It’s that time again! When we take a moment to look back on all that we’ve done in the past month at a glance (and gather all the links in one handy place for ya). And of course we tossed in some never-before-seen stuff to spice things up. This month we were all over the place as usual, from doing a bunch of kitchen things to dipping into a few office projects, some landscaping tasks, and even a few Halloween crafts. So let’s take a walk down memory lane, with yearbook-esque superlatives (you know, just for kicks).
Most Destructive: Demoing out our fridge cabinet, which officially kicked off to the kitchen makeover madness.
Best Timing: Our long-awaited appliance purchases, which allowed us to save nearly 1,400 big ones.
Best Moves: Swapping the location of our fridge and pantry by moving them to opposite sides of the kitchen to improve the flow (look how intense Sherry is when she moves big things).
Best Removes: Taking out our wall oven, its cabinet, some counters, and our cooktop to make way for our new appliances.
Thriftiest: Fun secondhand finds from our road trip to Brevard, NC for my cousin’s wedding.
Cutest Couple: Clara and her BFF Gee (she named him herself) all packed and ready to go on our little weekend road trip. Sidenote: Good thing the cabinets are keeping an eye on them.
Cutest Couple (Runner Up): A tie between Sherry & Katie’s very giggly performance and me & Jeremy’s Sprite-tastic cameo in this Q&A video from the Bower’s visit to Richmond.
Worst Looking: Our kitchen in the midst of some electrical work so that our new appliances had a place to plug in.
Most Killer: Stenciling the walls of our office, which took Sherry three 4.5 hour installments to finish. A killer process, but we think it’s a killer result.
Most Likely To Include Ceramic Animals: The “Curator’s Collection” that we had the honor of creating over on Joss & Main (it’s completely normal to get hyper about dog lamps and map art, right?).
Cheekiest: Our office chairs, which got a few coats of green paint and bold new upholstery.
“Gone To the Dark Side” Award: The bottom half of our office walls, which look a lot more grounded now that we painted them a darker grey color.
Least Likely To Take Themselves Too Seriously: The personal, bright, and sentimental art solutions that we made for our office, which provide a nice visual break from the daily grind (and only set us back $13).
Sloppiest: Clara’s finger-painting skillz on our psychedelic kid-friendly Halloween pumpkins.
Spookiest: Our mildly creepy Halloween decorations, including bloody candles, white wooden snakes, and green apples and gourds.
Most Hair Raising: The spider that tried to thwart our quickie mum upgrade to our front porch. I’ll spare you guys the close up pic of our girl “Charlotte” again.
Most Open: The view of our front yard, now that our bush fence is gone.
Most Open (Runner Up): Outlining a few of our kitchen decisions (and indecisions) including the addition of some open shelving.
Most Grounded: The new flooring that we’ve chosen for our kitchen – some dark cork purchased on sale at Lumber Liquidators.
Most Well Rounded: The penny tile that we chose for our new kitchen backsplash (so glad Clara approves).
“The White Stuff” Award: Our decision to forgo granite and use white Corian counters in our kitchen.
Deal of the Month: Saving over $300 on cabinets by getting them at the ReStore instead of the home improvement store.
Most Likely To Catch Flies: KB & SP as they announced the return of the Pinterest Challenge, open mouths and all.
So there’s our October at a glance. Can you believe it’s already November? What did you guys knock out last month? Have you ever made a list of accomplishments to look back on? If not, feel free to use the comments of this post to break down what you’ve done. It’s so nice to take a break from adding things to The List while appreciating what we’ve completed. Just for a second. Then it’s back to the kitchen. By this time next week there should be a giant 8′ opening into the dining room. Raise your hand open your mouth if you’re excited.
Psst- You can check out July’s superlatives here, August’s here, and September’s here.
Pssst- We announced this week’s giveaway winners. Click here to see if you’re one of them.
Ruth says
In October I replaced our living room curtains, made a gallery wall in our bedroom, worked on a quilt for our bed, hosted a halloween party with pumpkin carving, and participated in the pinterest challenge – I made a cute little heart necklace from these instructions:
http://fusionknots.com/graphics/gallery/knots/Celtic%20Heart%20Knot.html
Oh and I pinned about another 100 things on pinterest. :)
AshleyMG says
Just want to say that I am so excited for the kitchen remodel! Every day I hope that there will be a post about the kitchen updates. LOVE the penny tile!!! LOVE the cork floors!! Excited for the open shelves although I don’t think I could get myself to do them. Keep the updates coming!
Oh and I’m super pumped to see the big hole in the wall soon!!!
Kiran @ KiranTarun.com says
Great month! I especially loved the ReStore steal and makeover. So cool!
I Can’t wait to see the kitchen once it’s all done :D
SaraJ says
I feel like you guys have done sooooooo much work in the kitchen! It is coming along great. I know you like to do everything DIY on a budget but do you ever feel like it may have been a better to choice to just get new cabinets?
YoungHouseLove says
Nah, we love working with what we have and saving money. Our cabinets are solid oak and even have some modern inserts like a swing out pantry! So they’re just as good as buying new ones (but cheaper and with less waste). We also like the challenge of moving things around – it’s like a big puzzle we’re having fun solving!
xo
s
[email protected] says
i love your stress free approach. when it comes time to do our kitchen, watch out. holy cow. i’m going to be a stressed out mess! lol. i also love how you multi task ie think about exterior house colours, work on the kitchen, take care of clara, etc. it’s awesome!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Ashlee! We both felt a lot more time-pressure with our first house (we wanted it perfect right away) but those 4.5 years taught us that things take time and we just have to try to take it slow and try to made well thought-out decisions as we go! For some reason we don’t feel the same time-pressure with this house which is a really nice freedom. It’s probably because our friends and family members expect to come over and see a pile of tools or paint swatches or wood somewhere so we stress less about trying to keep things perfect an pristine all the time.
xo,
s
[email protected] says
it took me a few minutes to figure out what the word ‘demoing’ meant. lol. i was reading it as ‘demowing, and i was like…they mowed something? in the house? is that another word for mowed the kitchen down? haha.
Krista says
Sherry– you are not alone in your one-bra-ness! Once you break a good one in, it’s all you need, right?!
mp says
I was in the Home Depot on Hull Street (just before the 288 bridge) and as I walking in, almost collided with a guy that looked just like John. For a minute I just about lost my cool thinking I was about to meet him!
Every day you guys are such a joyful read! Not only am I glad y’all are around, but also that you decided to nest in Richmond!
PS – I got my copper-painted doors finished and was supposed to put them up yesterday, but my neighbor never arrived to help. He tends to be unreliable about showing up when he says he will, although he’ll show up eventually with some sort of excuse (usually having something to do with getting too friendly with a six-pack).
YoungHouseLove says
Aw man, we were in the Midlothian Home Depot this morning! Me, John, and Clara. So sorry we didn’t bump into you!
xo,
s
Lauren says
Cannot WAIT to see the big wall opening next week! So exciting!
Do watching football, drinking vino, and digging into a new book count as accomplishments? If so, then I was a very productive girl! ;)
YoungHouseLove says
Yes! Sounds like the life!
xo,
s
Krista Haws says
Speaking of ceramic animals, Sherry! I was at Home Goods last night (in CA) and saw two dogs that look just like your white dog that broke! It was about 2 1/2 ft. tall. I had to immediately tell the husband, Sherry on YHL had one of these that broke! lol…… I’m telling you because I was wondering if maybe your Home Goods has some too?!
YoungHouseLove says
Love it! Thanks for the heads up!
xo,
s
Becky says
Holy Cow! You guys are so busy. Crazy to think this all happened in one month. I am eagerly waiting to see how your kitchen turns out, as I’m sure you all are too it’s nice having a normal, sane kitchen to live in :). Have a good weekend!
Whitney says
Wow! What a super busy October! i have loved watching your renovation of the kitchen. It has been great to see the design evolve as “hiccups” are presented. Can’t wait to see the whole project complete!
Have a wonderful weekend!
Whitney @ http://whitneybrock.blogspot.com/2011/11/its-november-voting-time.html
toni from says
I love the superlatives…..they always make me laugh. I was starting to think that you weren’t going to post them until next week, but nope you surprised me today. LOL. I am dying to see what you guys bought with your Joss & Main credit. I hope you can get something great with it. I also am so excited to see your wall blow-out next week/ doorway widening. I am so excited for you too. Every month I am so impressed with all that you get done, and it seems that every month you do even more. Make sure to take a weekend away again this month, or a weekend at least with no projects, other than maybe crafts. Clara is so cute painting those pumpkins, it makes me miss my kiddos at that age.
[email protected] says
what did i do this month. well. hmm. i don’t feel like i accomplished a whole heck of a lot of anything. but i have to keep reminding myself that things move SLOWLY when you have children and activities and a busy life. but i still feel like i should be doing *more*…i think it’s a mom thing. :)
i finished my daughter halle’s room. well, i suppose you could call it a work in progress, as things are ever changing, but it’s MOSTLY done.
sydney’s room (my other daughter)…not going very well at all. we have it painted. everything is moved out of her room and into every single other room in the house. as a result, the house is an absolute mess. i’m really, really, REALLY hoping to have it finished by sunday night. but that’s wishful thinking at this point.
we’ve got the play room almost done. the only thing we have to do is perhaps buy one more large basket for toys (like a toy chest), hang the curtains (not a lot of effort there) and hang our art gallery walls in there.
aside from that…no progress. i did gut some things out of the house (went through old clothes, etc). i like that feeling :)
Claire says
wow awesome month. the pumpkins were so cool!
Morgan Smith says
You guys are so creative and seem to work so well together. I’m a new reader of the blog. I love art and diy projects. It’s actually because of your post on your old house’s guest bedroom that I decided to go get a sofa bed tonight and take down the bed in our guest room so we can utilize that space for office, gym and art work when we don’t have guests – which is 90% of the year anyway! Can’t wait to post pics when I’m done…hopefully I’ll be submitting them to you! http://www.momma-licious.blogspot.com
YoungHouseLove says
Ooh, definitely post pics! We’d love to see them!
xo,
s
Jessica@nucheysmommy says
OMGosh you guys have been busy! We recently took down the wall between the kitchen & dining room & it made all the difference in the world! Can’t wait to see your kitchen all done! How fun :)
YoungHouseLove says
Wahoo! We can’t wait either!
xo,
s
Sarah says
This post makes me sad because it marks my months long trek through all the archived posts! Now I actully have to read them whenever you post them :D
YoungHouseLove says
Congrats for making it all the way though! Wow.
xo,
s
Susan says
What font(s) are you using in the appliance cost breakdown? :)
YoungHouseLove says
That’s called Ostrich Sans I think. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Ileana says
Wow. Great work. I think your office is a beautiful airy welcoming place to work. You are so lucky to work side by side like that. I also especially love your sunny yellow front door and the gorgeous dark cork you chose for your floor. Very inspiring, thanks!
Angela says
Up here in Connecticut we had a freak snow storm last Saturday and have been out of power ever since (my house is still out, but here at work we have it back on, so I’m sneaking in some blog catch-up).
I tried to read your blog on my phone and after trying for over 15 minutes (I don’t have a smart phone, so it was pretty slow-going) I gave up and realized I was being ridiculous. I thought you guys would appreciate knowing that you were one of the things I missed most without electricity!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, that’s the nicest thing we’ve heard all day! So sorry about the storm and the lack of electricity. Glad you’re back up and running!
xo,
s
Elizabeth says
You two have made a lot of progress so far!
Bridgette says
I missed reading yor blog!!!! Love these catch up posts. I broke my arm at the head of my radius….so needless to say surfing the internet was not happening. I had shakes. =) Your kitchen is great and the K&S video was fantastic.
YoungHouseLove says
Ouch! Hope you’re feeling better!
xo,
s
Carissa says
I love all these DIY projects and makeovers!
I have a question for y’all… As a young recently-ish married person, I get a lot of hand-me-downs. While I really appreciate this (and it’s beautiful furniture) I’m also told not to change/customize it. When my grandmother moved into my parents home, she put all of her furniture in storage for me to have when I started making a home of my own. My style is very industrial-modern while the hand-me-downs are very woodsy-rustic. The furniture is also pretty beat-up since some pieces are 50+ years old and used on a daily basis. There is SO MUCH potential in these pieces but I can’t find a middle ground on this. I can’t change them, I can’t sell them and refusing them seems disrespectful… Is there a really dark (black? whitewash?) stain I could use on the wood pieces instead of paint? Is there a nice way to say “If you’re giving me ownership of these pieces, I should be able to customize them.”?
YoungHouseLove says
Oooh, I would restain them if you think that’s allowed! Just sand them down and use a rich dark walnut color or a whitewash as you mention. Both are gorgeous! I would just ask if you can “freshen” them up with a darker or lighter stain and see what your grandmother says. She might not want you to cover them in glossy yellow paint but stain might be completely non-offensive to her! Good luck!
xo,
s
Carissa says
Is there a non-toxic brand y’all could recommend? Most of my refinishing has been on metal or other non-wood materials.
YoungHouseLove says
Safecoat Acrylacq is an amazing non-toxic product that you can use instead of a sealer full of VOCs, as for a stain, we’ve just used things like Minwax (outside) and sealed it with Safecoat when we’re done so that once it dries and comes inside it’s sealed and safe! I bet you could check out greendepot.com for low-VOC stains too!
xo,
s
Sara says
“Sidenote: Good thing the cabinets are keeping an eye on them.”
Seriously had me laughing for about 5 min straight!
Brooke says
Hi Sherry,
I wanted to ask you a few questions…I know I’ve read them on the blog somewhere, but can’t find them now!
1. What was the name of the conference you are speaking at in ATL next June?
2. Was it your power company or home insurance that reimbursed you for the perishable foods you had to throw out after your power went out? The snow storm got us last weekend…5 days without power!
Thanks, and L-O-V-E the blog!!
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Brooke,
1. That’s called Haven. So excited! There are more details about it here: http://www.centsationalgirl.com/2011/10/haven-update/
2. We contacted our power company (our home insurance would have covered it but it would have been a “recorded claim” which means our insurance could have gone up the following year due to being high maintenance).
xo,
s
KiTX says
In October, we waited and waited for our house to be vacant and ready for us to move in- our first home! We moved in yesterday, and I swear I had dreams about decorating ideas and paint colors all night! =) Can’t wait to get started on projects after the mandatory 3 week waiting period (so I don’t make crazy irreversible decisions). Loved your October!
YoungHouseLove says
Wahooo! I remember laying in bed the night before moving into our first house and not being able to sleep from excitement. Have so much fun!
xo,
s
Morgan says
I kind of like the pumpkins…not so creepy!
TheChangingHouse says
You guys are always such amazing inspiration!
I also started a blog (as many others have done) about my always changing house; which includes renovations and decorations!
I also have a lot to learn about this blogging world!
Thanks for sharing!
[email protected] says
sherry, how do you go about finding someone to knock down a wall (or a portion of one)?
YoungHouseLove says
I’ll be sharing that info in about two hours! Haha. We’ve gotten that question a lot!
xo,
s
[email protected] says
thank you so much! i am planning to remove the island from my kitchen and open up the wall that it was attached to, granting a MUCH more open concept feel to the living room (which is currently rocking the french door feel, haha)
YoungHouseLove says
Ooh sounds like it’s going to be amazing!
xo,
s
Drew @EpicFinances.com says
Good luck with all of the work. I mentioned it before, but make sure you check out my blog to see how to save over 20% at lowes and home depot.
If you need a 10% off lowes coupon I would be honored to send you one. (they also will apply retroactively)
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks Drew! I checked out that link the first time you shared it!
xo,
s
Silke says
I feel sad there is a radio silence over here on Young House Love :-( After the weekend I am dying for some news from you guys !! Hope the site did not crash (as I could not open it half n hour ago?).
Greetings from Belgium !
Silke
YoungHouseLove says
Our morning post is already up! Not sure why it’s not showing up for you. Here’s the direct link: https://www.younghouselove.com/2011/11/opening-soon/
Maybe try emptying your browser’s cache?
xo,
s
Paul Garnett says
Thinking of buying a derelict house here in Sweden to do up and live in. It is very cheap to buy but the restoration and stuff will cost a lot. Know it’s taboo to talk about money but it would be interesting and helpful to know the amount of monies you have spent on each room product so far. I think your office looks great and wonder on the cost to replicate it. Understand if you do not wish to disclose the amounts spent.
YoungHouseLove says
We actually do list prices for virtually every project we complete in each post as we go (down to the big projects like the patio and smaller undertakings like hanging art in the office). Building the desk was around $130 and our chairs were $35 from a thrift store (we reupholstered and sprayed them). The art behind the desk was $13 and the 7 was $25. The stencil and wall paint are tabulated in those posts too. So sorry we don’t have a master number, but if you read back through our archives or search for office posts I’m sure you can add things up!
xo,
s
Jenn M says
How are you guys liking your new kitchens appliances? When my husband and I renoed our last house we put in all whirlpool gold stainless steel appliances. We absolutely loved how they functioned, but I didn’t love the constant cleaning of the fingerprints. Now we’re just about to start a massive kitchen reno of our own in our new place, and I’m trying to figure out what to do appliance wise. Do I go with what I know or try something new… hmmm. Is the frigidaire gallery stuff actually fingerprint proof? Does it cook/clean/cool well? If you have a minute in the midst of your kitchen chaos, I’d love to hear your opinion.
Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
So far we have zero complaints! The fingerprint seal stuff is amazing (it might not come on all Frigidaire Gallery things so be sure to confirm if it’s on the thing you’re ordering just in case). As a comparison, the glass on the oven door is constantly full of fingerprints and smears while the fridge looks freshly buffed! Can’t believe how well it works so far. And of course the little glass oven square is easy enough to wipe down and we love how it cooks (especially the convection feature).
xo,
s
Christina says
All that in one month? Wish me and my hubster were that motivated!! We have so much to do!! We put our fall decor out beginning of October/trick or treating to finish it out….we need to be scraping out the old tile that the previous homeowner put down in the living room/old carport. Sheesh! btw, I have the same applicances that you purchased (just paid several hundred more for mine in January, BOO!). LOVE them (so does everyone else), they are great and they look amazing!!!
Katie says
Hi! I’ve been reading back over all the posts in the archives the last few days and I wanted to let you know that the ““The White Stuff” Award” links to the picture and not to the actual post about the countertops. I have really been enjoying seeing the projects as they happened (since I just discovered your awesome blog a few months ago!)
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks for the catch, Katie. Fixed it!
-John