John’s dad, nicknamed “El Cheapo,” is one of our best examples of thoughtful money management. That nickname doesn’t mean he lives without comforts or wears shoes with holes; rather, he chooses to save for the things that matter most to him—like a family-sized vehicle and a vacation home where the family can gather—while passing on … Read more

The soft spot we have for stencil projects has only grown since our office project, and this one by Amy at The Casablanca Transformation might convince even the most skeptical. Her painted leather barstools are stylish, practical, and surprisingly achievable in a short time. Here’s her story: No matter how many decorating projects I do … Read more

With more than 2,300 posts behind us, digging back through the archives has become a monumental task (several of you probably deserve an “I survived the YHL archives and all I got was this lousy bumper sticker” bumper sticker). For our fifth blogiversary, we thought we’d pull together some highlights from roughly 260 weeks of … Read more

Merry Countermas to us! They’re here, and they’re spectacular. Just as a reminder, the room looked like this when we moved in last December: Back to our brand-new Corian countertops: I didn’t expect them to feel so dense and stone-like. They have a solid, substantial weight and a soft matte finish that reads like honed … Read more

***This giveaway is no longer accepting entries – see who won below!*** Wow — you all had strong opinions about the periodic table. Random.org selected the winner of this giveaway as… Andi W. (who confessed a soft spot for Sodium because of salty snacks, but admitted “My inner nerd wants to vote adamantium.”) Congrats, Andi! … Read more

When one of our favorite paint prodigies sent photos of her recent transformation, we couldn’t wait to share them. Here’s her note: Hi everyone! I wanted to share a recent project because the colors and style reminded me of “Young House Love.” I designed the pattern myself and made a custom stencil to achieve it. … Read more

We’ve been focused on improving our curb appeal lately—planning planting beds, carving crisp edges, and spreading a fresh layer of mulch. With Clara’s birthday party this weekend, we wanted the front yard to look tidy. Mother Nature has already done the heavy lifting by getting everything super green, so we concentrated on defining beds and … Read more

It’s time for our monthly thank-you to the sponsors who help support the 30+ posts we publish every month. Their support keeps this site going—literally helping put food on our table and clothes on our backs—so we wanted to highlight a few favorites we noticed this month. Below you’ll find things that caught our eye, … Read more

Dearest Ikea, We love you. We really do. But yesterday you exploited that relationship, and I can’t stay silent this time. “Some assembly required” is one thing — we expect that with larger furniture — but we don’t expect to assemble every tiny item we buy from you. I’m talking about the Kassett storage box. … Read more

We recently made two major changes to our shopping habits that have brought both benefits and downsides. Here we explain what we changed, why, and how we’re addressing a few unexpected issues that surfaced. We were also reminded how freeing it can be to accept that you can’t be good at everything—especially in a social … Read more