We’ve finally found a way to present the changing layout of our home without inviting everyone over (though we’re always happy to give a tour). While browsing RemodelingMySpace.com, I discovered a free tool called Floorplanner, recommended as an easy way to create 2D house plans. For those wanting more advanced 3D options, the site also … Read more

Last fall we featured a redesign Nancy created for her son Owen. She’s back with another lovely room makeover—this time for a family with a heartwarming story. Here’s her letter: Hi John and Sherry! A while back I entered the Creating with the Stars contest hosted by East Coast Creative and was teamed up with … Read more

When Rhoda shared her impressive DIY staircase makeover, we knew we had to share the transformation. Below is her note about the project: I wanted to pass along photos of my latest project, since you all love DIY. I hated the carpet on our downstairs steps, so I removed it. The images show what I … Read more

We originally had a different post planned today, but a spontaneous project landed in our laps Monday night and we couldn’t resist. We made up a DIY technique as we went, and the results surprised us — in a very good way. This might be my favorite project under $10 ever. It’s easily repeatable with … Read more

Check out this updated faucet in the half bathroom: The old fixture wasn’t offensive, but it did leak. And with a single knob I worried that Clara might accidentally crank the hot water up when she washed her hands. We visited our local Habitat ReStore hoping to score something inexpensive. Sherry nearly squealed with delight … Read more

Since it’s Thursday afternoon and we’re prone to wandering off into random topics (like some old posts we’ve shared), I thought I’d toss another one onto the blog. Below are a few things you probably didn’t know about John and me. Is it proof of our oversharing tendencies? Yes. Evidence that we’re a little weird? … Read more

The universe works in funny ways. A few weeks ago we were publicly lamenting the death of our lawn mower on Facebook and Twitter (though we later brought it back to life with some basic DIY maintenance). After our social posts, helpful readers chimed in with suggestions — and our friends at Lowe’s noticed, too. … Read more

Note: This is a retroactive post I pieced together in December 2011 so I could create monthly recaps for the whole year—our first year in our new house. I’m a little type A. Here’s what we tackled in June, presented yearbook-style. Most Improved: Finally painting our kitchen paneling Most Annoying: Priming the paneling, which took … Read more

Last week was shaping up to be a pretty good one. Sherry celebrated turning 30 and we declared the kitchen mostly finished. Spring was in full bloom and even brought a dramatic thunderstorm one night. It rained harder and faster than anything we’d seen since moving into this house. Then, around midnight, something unexpected happened. … Read more

If you have marble or granite countertops—or any surface you want to protect—preventing oil rings from bottles is essential when cooking. Rather than constantly worrying and wiping, we use a simple, effective system to stop oil from ever reaching the counters: It’s nothing fancy: a small white square dish placed under our bottles catches any … Read more