It’s that time again — a quick rewind through the past month to collect everything we tackled, all in one place. We’ve got projects ranging from hunting down secondhand nightstands and building a 13-foot desk to stenciling walls, altering light fixtures, framing a mirror, making free art, and more. This month felt a bit scattered, but in the best way: lots of small wins, a few surprises, and plenty of progress. Below are our monthly superlatives — a yearbook-style roundup of our favorite moments and projects.
Most Pro-Banquette: We kicked things off with a half-formed plan to add a kitchen banquette (see our concept table sketch).
Most Pro-Banquette (Runner-Up): Continued banquette chatter and a reader-submitted rendering that had us both laughing and rethinking layouts.
Least Pro-Banquette: By month’s end we officially shelved the banquette and embraced a peninsula — a better fit for our kitchen flow and traffic patterns.
Weirdest Giant Metal Chicken: We spotted a larger-than-life metal chicken on our way to Delaware — an odd roadside delight that gave us a laugh and a memorable photo-op.
Best Deal: An $11 pair of yard sale nightstands that we rescued, refinished, and added to our bedroom for a polished, budget-friendly update.
Least Appetizing: An empty fridge after Hurricane Irene — followed by a coupon-heavy grocery run to restock. Update: we filed a spoiled-food claim with our utility company, which saved us from dipping into our insurance deductible.
Most Improved: A pair of secondhand orange cabinets (about $1 each) that we transformed into taller, white built-ins for our office with a little woodwork and paint.
Most Long, Dark & Handsome: A 13-foot wood tabletop built for our office desk from framing lumber and a dark stain — a simple, low-cost solution that looks polished and substantial.
Most Inebriated: The office walls after getting their coat of “Moonshine” paint — a cheeky name and a bold, moody color that changed the room’s vibe.
The “You Raise Me Up” Award: Our office light fixture got raised higher (no more bumping heads), sprayed indigo, and topped with a discounted drum shade — a small change with a big functional impact.
Most Grounded: Trim added to the bottom of the desk to create a built-in look, helping the workspace feel more finished and anchored.
Most Secretive: Revealing “never-before-seen” corners of the house, like our spaceship-like sunroom roofline that surprised even us when photographed from the right angle.
The “You’ll Be Missed… But Not Much” Award: We removed a small tree growing awkwardly on the house to prevent any foundation or siding damage, and trimmed several overgrown shrubs to tidy the yard.
Most Persistent: The bathroom mirror framing redo — a project that survived a false start with trim that was too small and a dramatic collapse on the first try. We rebuilt and finished it right.
Most Photogenic: Our TV — yes, we actually photograph the screen to capture decor ideas and color combos that inspire our design choices.
Easiest: A fast and free food-coloring print for our hallway gallery — an inexpensive way to add bold color and a playful touch.
Easiest (Runner-Up): A simple faux cross-stitch project that turned into a heartfelt, handmade anniversary gift.
Most Likely To Result In Claw-Hands: Stenciling the office walls — it’s a labor-intensive process that should pay off with striking texture and pattern when it’s done.
Best Sentence Ever Uttered By A Sixteen-Month-Old: “Iss my hoo hat.” Clara insisted we help her put a crocheted owl hat over her pajamas — proof that style can start very young.
Most Three-Dimensional: A comparison of three different 3D interior design tools we tried — pros, cons, and how they helped visualize layouts before committing to changes.
Most Intense: Our Blogiversary week — a series of detailed posts that covered everything from a day-in-the-life, to pie charts showing how we spend our time, behind-the-scenes numbers, a video Q&A, reader polls, goal-setting for our fifth year, coding and blogging tips, and ten lessons learned from four years of blogging.
There you have it: September in snapshots and short wins. Taking a moment to list accomplishments feels surprisingly good — a little celebration before we dive back into the next stencil, build, or paint job. What did you accomplish this month? Even small wins are worth noting — they add up fast.
Note: If you want to revisit our past monthly superlatives, we shared similar roundups in prior months for extra inspiration and ideas.