We seem to have a sore spot with tubs, and the duplex renovation has been no exception. Today we’re sharing how a strategic cost-saving decision cut about 30% from a major renovation line item — but also sent us into a tub-related stress spiral. We’ve got updates on painting our brick house white, a rather … Read more

We decided to refinish the old, stained clawfoot tub in our beach house bathroom ourselves. Hiring a professional to reglaze or refinish it felt overwhelming (it’s heavy), so we committed to a DIY approach. It turned out to be much more straightforward than we expected and cost roughly $50 plus a lot of elbow grease. … Read more

We’ve been slowly transforming John’s sister Emily’s nursery on a tight budget, and here’s another update in the makeover saga. Previously we shared how we painted modern vertical stripes… …added large mirrors to visually expand the small, windowless room… …and whipped up an easy no-sew bed skirt. Next on the list was art. We wanted … Read more

While hanging our bedroom curtains last week, I snapped a few photos of a little trick I use to keep drilling dust from scattering all over the place. It’s simple, effective, and saves a lot of cleanup—especially when you’re drilling holes for curtain rod anchors. You may already know this tip, but we only discovered … Read more

We did it. Holy cats, we did it. Just a few days before Christmas we secretly started building Clara’s play kitchen and, miraculously, finished it on Christmas Eve. Our budget goal was under $99—roughly the cost of a basic store-bought play kitchen—but we wanted a few upgrades: working oven knobs, a real-feeling oven light, a … Read more

This whole kitchen thing began because we wanted to widen two doorways — one from the den into the kitchen and another from the living and dining area into the kitchen. In our typical 1950s brick ranch, most rooms are connected by narrow doorways. The house has great bones (and a wonderful all-glass sunroom), but … Read more

Yes, this is a post about running a dryer duct and rerouting HVAC vents. Before diving in, some context: by the time Monday’s post went up, David the framer had finished framing our new laundry room by adding the final wall (the one with the door to the hallway). He also framed the wall that … Read more

A few readers called us out about something we mentioned earlier during our BHG & Home Depot–sponsored porch makeover. In the early posts about the project we said we planned to make some twine mobiles, but they didn’t appear in the big reveal. We were allowed to change plans, of course, but the real reason … Read more

Better Late Than Never? I tackled this project a couple of months ago before we moved (hence the photos of our old kitchen counters), but I wanted to share it in case someone finds a bargain cheese plate and wants to refresh it with a sheet of patterned paper. Let’s step back in time for … Read more

After many requests for a fireplace tutorial, we’re finally delivering a clear, simple guide you can follow this afternoon. We’ve painted more than one brick fireplace and learned a few things along the way. …and another. When we moved in, both fireplaces were dark, dated red brick that weighed the rooms down. Painted brick transformed … Read more