Homearama Showhouse: Furnishing Progress, Design Details, and Final Touches

At first I typed the original “I like to move it, move it” lyrics, but the truth is I don’t enjoy moving much — so unloading furniture into the Homearama showhouse on Monday felt a bit like unpleasant déjà vu. On the bright side, we finally get to furnish the showhouse, which is exciting. Note: for anyone wondering what this showhouse is and how it benefits Habitat for Humanity, see our other posts titled “Our Other New House” and “Showhouse Smorgasbord” for more background.

With construction essentially finished, a truck from Green Front Furniture — the local shop loaning pieces for many of the show homes — arrived with larger items: beds, desks, and sofas. It turned into an all-hands-on-deck day carrying and positioning pieces. Here I am with Charlie, the listing agent, lifting the king mattress into the main bedroom.

Not everything came from Green Front, so additional items have trickled in throughout the week. Sherry and I have spent a few hours each day visiting thrift stores, small local shops, and big-box retailers to find the finishing pieces that make a house feel like a home: art for blank walls, objects for shelves, and decorative accents for empty nooks and crannies.

There’s also been progress outside. The wood beams were stained and sealed, deepening their color as planned. The exterior still looks a bit bare without landscaping, but sod is scheduled to go down this weekend and the front door has been painted.

After discussing the door color with the Homearama team and collecting reader feedback, we ended up keeping the door white. Matching it to the white sidelights gives the entrance more visual weight while letting the deep siding color and rustic wood porch remain the stars. We’ll be adding landscaping, potted plants, porch furniture, and a hanging porch swing soon, so the door will play a supporting role rather than compete for attention.

Kitchen: Appliances, Backsplash, and Island Styling

Inside, the kitchen looks dramatically better now that everything is in place. Appliances are installed, the backsplash is tiled, and our island stools are assembled — comfy saddle stools donated by West Elm. For those asking about finishes: the island is painted Hale Navy; the gray cabinets are a stock color selected from the cabinet maker’s samples; and the gold pendants over the island are from Shades of Light.

You can spot a sliver of accessories sitting in the built-ins of the eat-in nook to the left — Sherry is likely working on those as you read this. We hadn’t shown the right-hand cabinetry corner of the kitchen before; it’s a large, open area (the island is 11 feet long for scale) and Sherry can’t wait to style those counters and glass-front cabinets to make the space feel more homey. Even seeing the stools pulled up to the island made the kitchen feel more “real” to us.

We chose a fairly subtle backsplash to add polish and reflect light without competing with the navy island, gold fixtures, and x-fronted glass cabinets. The white blend waterfall glass tile, made locally by Mosaic, acts as a supportive design element rather than a focal point.

The counters are a leathered marble called White Moura, which has a slightly pebbled texture and a matte finish. It feels tactile — almost like leather — but is dense and durable. The texture and seal make it easier to keep clean and maintain compared to high-gloss stone finishes.

Now about the fridge: I’m a little jealous. We initially selected a Whirlpool line, but the builder encouraged us to upgrade, so we chose a Sub-Zero and Wolf package for the showhouse — luxurious appliances that really elevate the kitchen.

The doorway beside the fridge leads to the butler’s pantry, which shares the kitchen’s cabinetry and counters. We kept traditional lower storage for wine and servingware but replaced upper cabinets with industrial teardrop sconces from Shades of Light and a wall coated in chalkboard paint. It’s a compact transition area, so we decided to let the upper walls breathe and plan to use the chalkboard wall for creative, functional touches.

Upstairs: Wallpaper, Laundry, and Bathrooms

Upstairs, we finally hung the wallpaper in the laundry room. It’s Pebble Leaf by MissPrint, donated by Wallpaper Direct. We hesitated for a moment, but decided this is a showhouse — a place to take some design risks — and are very glad we went for it.

The laundry counters are soapstone (sourced locally from Eternal Stoneworks), the faucet is the Leland model (donated by Delta), the cabinets are a dark-stained wood (purchased from Affinity in Richmond), and the floors are Travertino White Field tile from Mosaic in Richmond. The pendant lights are from our Shades of Light collection in a bright “Extra Lime” finish — we hung two in a row for a playful touch. We’re still waiting on the washer and dryer in a deep gunmetal finish, which will complete that wall.

The guest bathroom is still unfinished in places — tile and the mirror over the vanity remain to be completed — but we were aiming for a vintage vibe and installed a tile wainscot around the room. In the meantime, here’s a preview of the floor, donated by The Tile Shop: a hex version of the penny tile we used previously.

We paired vintage-inspired fixtures like a bridge faucet donated by Brizo with classic hardware from Liberty to reinforce the old-school charm. Even small details like cabinet hardware make the space feel more finished.

Our favorite bathroom in the house is the kids’ bathroom. You may recall the green vanity and white lantern tile from a preview a few weeks back — a wall-to-wall mirror is now installed along with wall-mounted faucets and an industrial light fixture donated by Shades of Light. The white solid surface top houses a recessed double trough sink sourced with help from Ferguson. It’s deep and roomy — over five inches deep, 14 inches wide per basin, and almost 48 inches long — perfect for family use and, if you’re imagining like I am, a toy-filled paradise for kids.

Another fun feature in that bathroom is the separate toilet/shower area, sectioned off by a door so one child can shower while another uses the sink. We added wall shelves behind the shower for rolled towels, shampoo, and small accessories — a compact and practical storage solution — and used striped glass tiles in the shower for visual interest.

Other Spaces and the Neighborhood

Small nooks are starting to come together, like the main bedroom atrium between the bathroom and closet. We added a brass floor mirror from West Elm and a branch chandelier that you may recognize from earlier updates. The tall ceilings — 10 feet on the first floor and 9 feet on the second — make these transitional spaces feel open and elegant. (Update: the walls are painted Stonington Gray by Benjamin Moore.)

There are six other houses rising around ours as part of the show, each created by a different team. We took a quick field trip to see some exteriors and were impressed by features like the backyard pool at one neighboring property — a special touch for this area where pools are less common.

Timeline and Final Push

Over the next couple of weeks we’ll be heavily focused on the showhouse, so please forgive any delays in our other work. We’re committed to finishing as much as possible by April 4 so the Homearama organizers can photograph and judge the home; after that we’ll be fine-tuning details for another week or two. For now, we’re basically living on-site — and it’s a relief to have mattresses in place.

Psst — For a full tour, final photos of every room, the floor plan, budget information, a video walk-through, and a shoppable list of the showhouse furniture and accessories, check our full showhouse gallery titled “Our Full Showhouse Tour.”