We can’t believe we’re already halfway through February (January flew by). To pause and appreciate what we actually accomplished — which helps keep momentum and quiets that nagging feeling of “we didn’t get anything done” — here’s a yearbook-style roundup of January. If you want to go further back, we’ve summarized every month from the … Read more

***This giveaway is no longer accepting entries*** We’re comfortable installing toilets and refinishing cabinets, but when it comes to cooking we welcome expert help. So we were excited when our giveaway sponsor, America’s Test Kitchen, sent us a review copy of their new cookbook Cooking for Two and offered multiple prizes for readers. When our … Read more

We made a sweet little mini-makeover today. John stayed home feeling under the weather, and while he napped on the couch I quietly rearranged the third bedroom to create a useful, attractive spot for writing cards and wrapping gifts. We loved the wall of frames in that room and wanted a reason to use the … Read more

This bathroom came together so quickly it’s almost hard to believe — though we watched every step. After our long-running bathroom renovation that began back in October, this upstairs hall bathroom transformed in less than a week from a dated, paint-only refresh to a bright, updated space. (A full reveal and budget breakdown for that … Read more

For more than a decade we’ve embraced the renovating mantra “the middle makes no sense.” In short: don’t stress when your home is mid-reno, unfinished, or in a holding pattern. Try things, live with them, see what you use and love, and adjust as you go. Forget the expectation of an instant, perfect finished home … Read more

It started when I was searching old posts for a link and stumbled across a long-forgotten mood board I made about a month before we moved into our second house in 2010. The board included the note, “we have no idea what our future living room will actually look like, but today this is what … Read more

Holy cow — we sold our house. (Pause while Sherry reacts — that sentence is always a trigger.) Now that the inspection and appraisal are complete and the closing date is on the calendar, we finally feel safe announcing it to the internet. We waited until this point before sharing the “we sold our house” … Read more

It’s a stick up — er, down! This step-by-step guide walks you through an affordable, fast way to transform an outdated floor using peel-and-stick vinyl tiles. These tiles, commonly sold at big-box stores for around a dollar each, make it possible to update a room in a single weekend without a full remodel. We used … Read more

***This giveaway is now closed – see who won below!*** Over the past few days the special referral account we set up grew from $100 to more than $300. We’re about to hand it off to our winner, Crystal Anderson, who mentioned she needs wall art “like no one’s business.” Congratulations! Last spring we curated … Read more

Our publisher asked each author to create a short video about their book — a kind of trailer that highlights what’s inside. Artisan suggested hiring a small film and editing crew, but true to our DIY spirit we treated it as a creative challenge and did most of the work ourselves. We made an outline, … Read more