Time is FLYING!
Wow…the holidays have already really put a big wrench into my 5-days-a-week of posting! And they’re not even close to being here yet! But I guess it’s good (for me, not my readers!) – it just means that I’m busy! New clients (yippee!!), Christmas bazaar prep, holiday decorating and more is keeping me very, very busy! So I’m just stopping in to say hello and to point you to a few great inspiration posts to get you in the holiday spirit!
And I promise that I’ll share ‘after’ photos of my new living room and our holiday decorating as soon as I have a chance to edit these photos (but first I have to make room for them on my computer!). We got a new dining room table (for FREE!!) and I can’t wait to show you everything…but just keep checking in and you will hear more from me soon.
Oh how I wish I had an interesting front porch like this one….
I’m also loving the green (but not CHRISTMAS green) Christmas colors. Click the links below to see some more beautiful inspiration!
{images via: Homes & Gardens (1,2) and Discover: Interior Design (3, 4, 5)}
Read MoreThe Big Rearrange
Glenn and I recently started discussing what to do for our holiday decorating, and finally came to the conclusion that our living and dining rooms are just too packed to fit a tree anywhere! Our living room is actually a very big room, it’s just a little awkward to work with because there are 2 8-foot windows in it, the wood stove in the corner, and a hallway at the other end. So unfortunately it’s the type of living room that you have to place the furniture around the walls in, and the rest have to float out in never never land.
It’s a long and skinny room, and we’ve always had the living room furniture arranged down at one end (by the wood stove) like this:
And last year in our first Christmas in the house we put the Christmas tree in the corner (on the right side of the photo), and we knew that we wanted to do something different this year, but in order to do that we knew we needed to do some rearranging. First up – the giant elephant in the room needed to go. And by that I mean – the pool table. We rarely use it. And when we do, it’s only right after we talk about getting it out of here. Or when we first come through the door to stack our stuff on. We thought that this holiday decorating season would be a good excuse to test out the waters and see how much we’d miss it if it was gone.
And so out of nowhere, we got up and did this on Sunday!
Rearranging the Living Room from Facebook User on Vimeo.
In order to move the TV, we had to move the cable, so at the end of the video above, Glenn and I are getting bundled up to go crawl under the house to re-run the cable. And yes, I did crawl under the house! Which is good because two heads and pairs of hands are better than one under there as our central heating system runs down the middle of the house and of course we had to run the cable from one side of it to the other, and this way we could just pass the cables to each other. Awesome. Along with the piles of bones that are under there – yuck. 
Cat bones, I think.
And this is pretty much how the house looks today! It’s so weird to us…it feels like a different house completely!! It’s also pretty bare now, but after we get the Christmas tree in, and inherit Glenn’s great-grandmother’s kitchen table, it will fill in a lot nicer. And I’m looking into some art options for the bare wall next to the wood stove, and how to rearrange what is over the couch now. I would show you some ‘after’ photos, but after updating my iPod (I haven’t done it forever!) for the road trip we’re taking today my hard drive is full so I can’t download the photos yet, ha! I’ll make some room.
With all of that moving, my sciatic nerve still hasn’t recovered. A lovely after-effect of having a baby…maybe I should finally make that chiropractor appointment!
We are off to my sister’s house for Thanksgiving! What are you guys up to? xo, L.
Read MoreHow Efficient Is Your Home?
Have you ever wondered where those chilly drafts are coming from? If your windows are sealed tightly? How well your walls are insulated? Or if you have a moisture leak somewhere in your home? Maybe you should try having an Infrared Energy Audit done on your home.
‘What is an Infrared Energy Audit?’ you may ask…well, a qualified and trained professional (such as David, shown in the pictures below) comes into your home and uses an infrared camera to capture temperature differences in various areas throughout your home. Throughout their training, they learn the key areas to look at; appliances, corners, windows, etc. He or she will take infrared pictures of your home, compile them, do the research and create a detailed report to send back to you. They’ll give you tips on how you can fix inefficiencies that they find, and make recommendations on the next steps that you should take. It might be as simple as caulking a seal around a window, or they might recommend that you upgrade appliances (only a recommendation, though, but they can really tell how much energy that fridge is draining!).
These first 2 images are both sides of the brochure for the company that David works out of — feel free to download it and check it out. It might answer a few more questions, or it has the contact info. for The Rider Group, who was great to work with. They are based out of Reno, Nevada. Download the PDF of the brochure here. I should be receiving their detailed report any day now, and I’m excited to share those results with you as well!
The overall process took about an hour and a half (our house is approximately 1400 square feet), and he looked at every window, corner, closet, doorway, appliance and wall – and he even went outside to take infrared photos of the exterior, roof, and windows.
He even let me follow him around to take pictures of him and ask questions.
I was very interested to know how much of a difference our new windows were making, how well sealed our doors were, and if there were any leaks around the wood stove that he could see.
This window (in my office) is not new…brr.
Harper’s closet has the trap door to access the crawl space underneath the house, plus it’s back to back with the bathroom, so I wanted to make sure things were nice and clean there.
“What is this stranger doing in MY room?!?!”
Lots of moisture, even on our new windows…but I don’t think it has anything to do with the windows themselves.
The color differences account for temperature changes, and there is a handy little scale on the right side of the screen that can tell you exactly how hot or cold something is.
See the studs in the walls? Very handy (but expensive) stud finder.
He also measured and counted all of our windows to account for the proper ratio of heat loss that we should be having in our house (square footage/area of windows). Again, I’m very excited to see the results that he’s compiled and I’m sure I’ll share them next week. To read more about Infrared Energy Audits, click here.
Have a warm and toasty weekend! And Happy Thanksgiving!
Read MoreHave You Met {Oh} Brooke?
I just had to share this (and get an extra entry into her fabulous Fabulous Necklace Giveaway by doing so! Muah ah ah ah!). {ohbrooke} is a regular read of mine, and you should check it out as well! Especially if you’re interested in graphic design, interior decor, blog tips, sewing tips and more! She has a special place in my Bookmarks Toolbar…reserved for a select few blogs. And I just realized that 1/2 of the links up there are preggo girls’ blogs…including Brooke – she’s expecting a little baby boy! There must be something going around…I better be careful so that Harper doesn’t become a big sister any time soon!!
Anyway…back to Brooke. Click over here to enter to win a fabulous necklace from Lisa Leonard Designs.
This one is my favorite (the Oval Monogram Necklace) – many are available for customization.
Can someone please tell my husband that THIS is what I want for Christmas?? I hinted around for something like this as an anniversary gift…and nada. But I guess if I win I won’t have to ::try:: to hint any more. Wish me luck!!
And if you’re curious about who else is sperminated like Brooke…visit Sherry here…and Katie here. Congrats, ladies!!
xo, L.
Read MoreHappy Holidays!
Miss me yesterday? I try to post once per day, Monday through Friday…but Harper needed a couple immunizations yesterday so I was out and about and didn’t have a chance to write.
If you’re my Facebook friend, you’ve probably already seen this photo, but I just can’t help myself sometimes! My webcam caught this photo of my silly family using Photobooth, but the more I look at it, the more I love it. So I decided to use Picnik to make a Christmas photo (it’s made using the “Collage” function…there are some adorable and easy-to-create holiday templates!).
This is what happens when you put off getting that professional family photo…I’ve been sulking because I missed my chance with the gorgeous fall leaves. But this one is almost as cute.
Happy Holidays from the Christensen Family.
xo, L.
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About Me
I'm an interior designer and a draftsperson, but I live in the country. I like it that way. I'm also a firefighter's wife, mom to 2 cute kids, and a homeowner and I like that even better. But right after that is a pretty and affordable space...and I mean a REALLY affordable space. Because I believe good design can be for EVERYONE!
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