As we work through our biggest and most wallet-draining project to date, this week’s episode shares our system for planning and managing costs during any large-scale renovation or upgrade. We also offer a few practical money-saving tips. Plus: how a few simple house updates brought a great return for a friend, why it’s rude to … Read more

It’s Tuesday afternoon, and that means it’s time for some honest oversharing. Yesterday a fresh, hot-off-the-press copy of our book arrived via FedEx, and seeing it in person honestly made my head spin a little. We couldn’t stop smiling and saying things like, “It’s real! It has pages! It has a cover! It has our … Read more

Note: This is a retroactive post I put together in December 2011 to compile monthly recaps for our first year in the new house. I like details, so here’s everything we tackled in February — yearbook-style. Coupon-lovingest: A post about how I try to save money by cutting coupons. Sneakiest: Our tape-to-catch-drywall-dust trick that made … Read more

***This giveaway is no longer accepting entries – see who won below!*** And the randomly selected person who’s starting their new year off with a prize is… Jennifer, who answered this week’s question with a Canadian folk lyric. Congrats, Jennifer! Have you ever heard of a bathymetric chart? It’s essentially a topographic map of underwater … Read more

***This giveaway is no longer accepting entries – see who won below!*** And the random person getting their fixture fix this week is… Anne L (who simply described the problem in her bathroom as: “Pink carpet in bathroom?! Nasty!”) Congrats Anne! If your bathroom could use a refresh—new faucets, a better showerhead, or a complete … Read more

Linn’s built-in project is a great example of how transforming freestanding bookshelves into attached built-ins instantly upgrades a room. Here’s her account of the process: My husband and I built these custom built-in bookcases ourselves. Our old bookcases weren’t attractive and didn’t provide nearly enough practical storage, and we didn’t want to spend a lot … Read more

Yesterday was a delightful whirlwind. We spent nearly the entire day exploring the Portland Home & Garden Show at the Expo Center, with a brief break to sample the much-raved-about Voodoo Doughnut (yes, we tried the maple bacon — delicious). The hall was packed with stunning gardens, inventive green-living ideas, and an endless stream of … Read more

TGIF… or rather, thank goodness it’s February. This new month brought another cheerful delivery of fresh flowers, a gift from my husband: a bouquet a month for a year. This time we grabbed a plump bunch of white daisies from our local grocery store for just $4. I split the flowers into three simple arrangements … Read more

It’s late Sunday night as I write this after a whirlwind weekend in Northern Virginia. We helped John’s sister Carrie give her bedroom a grown-up upgrade and squeezed in a little nursery shopping while we were there. Below are ten things we helped her shop for, hang, and install to give the room a more … Read more

***This giveaway has reached its cap and is now closed – see who won below!*** You all shut this down with 10,000 entries in less than a day. Wow! We’ve already selected our random winner. She is… Rhonda (who says she’s going to ask for a juicer to go with her Christmas blender). Congrats! Tomorrow … Read more