Remember when we showed how shiny and polished the kitchen looked after we finished grouting? And then we revealed the chaos that showed up shortly after? The room is back together now, and we made a lot of changes to the lighting. Yes, the ceiling looks like Swiss cheese, but it’s all for a good … Read more

Just when you thought we were done with backyards (we shared the duplex backyards last week), we’re back with another one — this time the beach house backyard. It started out in a pretty lackluster state, so we’re excited to show the transformation. It might be one of our favorite updates to date. The space … Read more

Happy Valentine’s Day! We hope you have a delightful day—whether it’s romantic, playful, low-key or full of quirky fun—as you celebrate someone special. Sherry and I are about to exchange gifts over breakfast (more on that Monday), then we’ll follow our long-standing tradition: visiting a photobooth at a nearby restaurant to mark the occasion and … Read more

***This giveaway is no longer accepting entries*** Before announcing this week’s freebie, here’s a little musical earworm to set the mood—Destiny’s Child. (If you need a refresher, play the song on your own device.) This week’s prize comes from the playful team at Booty Bean Bags. They remind us that bean bags aren’t just for … Read more

Cabinet installation is still underway in the laundry room (details coming tomorrow!), but since yesterday’s post included a giveaway (we were blown away that over 25,000 of you took the poll), I wanted to share a quick update on three recent redo projects. Sometimes a project needs a second pass to get it right — … Read more

We don’t have a huge bathroom overhaul to report this week—most of the major tasks are already done (we built a shelf and painted the walls)—but we squeezed in a few mid-project updates between a crazy stretch of travel (10 flights in 11 days!). Now that we’re home, the next installment will be a bit … Read more

When Totty sent photos of her remarkable bathroom makeover, we knew we had to share the dramatic transformation. Below is her letter describing the project and the decisions that shaped the renovation. My husband and I are fellow Richmond residents and have followed your blog for years. We wanted to share photos from our recently … Read more

We didn’t expect to find $1 cabinets again like the ones we scored for the office built-ins, but we couldn’t resist stopping by the Habitat for Humanity ReStore to look for the four cabinets needed to build our peninsula and enclose the microwave and fridge. We were able to reuse the 36″ base cabinet that … Read more

If the movie Office Space captures the drudgery of a typical desk job, Poppin offers the opposite: bright, thoughtfully designed office supplies and furniture that make working at a desk more enjoyable. Their range includes colorful staplers, push pins, notebooks, file cabinets, and even art and furniture—everything you need to refresh your workspace. This week … Read more

I’m back with more baby-name inspiration because I can’t get enough of them. One-syllable girl names have been rising in popularity as longer names like Olivia, Charlotte, and Isabella feel more common. In the latest Social Security Administration data, only one single-syllable girl name—Grace—made the Top 50. That makes one-syllable choices an appealing way to … Read more