Interiors: Another Home Tour in Chapel Hill

Not too long ago, I took you on a full tour of Kristie’s house in Chapel Hill. Today I’d like to take you on a mini tour of my family’s home. It’s stunning, too! And, yes, I’m biased! Nothing was styled – this is how the place looks just about all the time (you may spot balloons, books, non-fluffed pillows, and crooked chairs). This is real life.

Let’s start in the dining room. The farm table is massive and fits the whole family and then some. Much of the art in this room – and in the home – was done by my sister. Her Lady Agnew piece (seen in the second photo below) still amazes me. My sister painted it when she was in art class in Australia. It’s incredible!

The living room is ridiculously bright because of the walls of windows and the 10+-foot ceilings. If I remember correctly, the furniture is from Anthropologie, Crate & Barrel, Joss & Main, and West Elm.

The kitchen is certainly a gathering spot for this family! The marble table is going strong almost 10 years later, which is great. It’s a beautiful piece. The chandelier is from Ikea, and my sister painted the artwork.

The library is another bright room in the house. The lemon trees grow in here like crazy. Yes, lemon trees. Yes, indoor lemon trees. Isn’t that amazing? The fabric for the daybed and pillows came from Ikea.

I love this view. Look at those arches! This area is basically a great place for my nephews and niece to chase one another. And dance parties. This spot is great for dance parties. On my next trip, I’ll be sure to take more photos. The bedrooms are quite beautiful, too!

See more of the powder room at Domino, their rental home in Chapel Hill,  and their former Manhattan apartment as featured on Style Me Pretty Living.

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Uptown: How to Makeover a Fireplace

I was so happy to see a gas fireplace in my house when I first toured it with my real estate agent 2.5 years ago. After I bought it, moved in, and planned my various renovation projects, the fireplace was on the reno list, but it wasn’t a priority.

Over the last few months, however, I tackled this fireplace makeover*, and I’m so pleased with the results. Shall we walk down memory lane together?

Here’s the before photo of the fireplace. It was always in perfectly good working condition, but the tile was old, the 80s gold did nothing for me, and the step riser took up space in the smallish-size room. IMG_5806.JPG White-Cabana-fireplace-makeover-2The plan?
1. Get rid of the tile and the step.
2. Paint the gold.
3. Install a beautiful mantle.
4. Install a tile surround.

Thankfully, things went according to plan with this project!

My dad carefully removed the step and tile and ensured that additional supports were installed before adding more plywood/drywall to the surround.

White-Cabana-fireplace-makeover-7 White-Cabana-fireplace-makeover-3 White-Cabana-fireplace-makeover-4White-Cabana-fireplace-makeover-5My mom’s incredible detective skills resulted in a gorgeous mantle frame that was just about the perfect size for my space. My resourceful and handy parents took care of the few adjustments (and adding more trim).

White-Cabana-fireplace-makeover-1The painting and tile work was my responsibility. After taping around the fireplace screen, and covering my room’s floor with tarp, I painted the gold using high-heat Rustoleum spray paint. I completed a few light coats to ensure good coverage.

White-Cabana-fireplace-makeover-8Once the mantle was installed, I was able to get on with the tiles. I sourced 2-inch matte black hex tiles from my KW go-to tile team at Twin City Tile. I had my heart set on black from the get-go, but I did contemplate white hex and marble for a bit, too (you saw a bit of marble in one of the photos above).

White-Cabana-fireplace-hex-black-tilevia Instagram

In the end, I’m definitely glad I went for a black hex tile surround as the fireplace blends in, and it’s all very sleek.

White-Cabana-fireplace-DIYvia Instagram

Before painting the mantle, I sanded the heck out of it (thankfully I have the Black & Decker matrix with sander attachment, so this process went fairly quickly). I did all the sanding before I installed the tiles, by the way. I then put on three coats of white door and trim paint to freshen and brighten up this old mantle.

White-Cabana-fireplace-2via Instagram

White-Cabana-fireplace-1via Instagram

And there you have it – a step-by-step recap of my fireplace makeover.

* Thanks again, Mom and Dad, for your help!
If you’d like to see more of my house, check out my house tour or read the articles in the Uptown category.

Uptown: To Do List Update

I haven’t posted a house update in many months. If you follow me on Instagram, you will have seen some random house photos already. Last year was full of major renovations, and so many changes happened in my once dark-burgundy home.

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white-on-white-on-white jewelry station

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teak and white in my living room

My original to do list (August 2013) was lengthy and full of major projects. Some additional items got crossed off the updated to do list (March 2014):

– remove wallpaper in basement bathroom
– install a shower in the basement bathroom
– paint touch-ups (all over)
-office organization
-office art wall
-install fire smoke alarms (again)
plan patio

Since then, I have added – and crossed off – a few more tasks:
have a garage sale (read about my garage sale with Tim)
-finish touch-up tile work in kitchen (seal grout, add missing tile, caulk again)
-install foyer tiles
magically find 2 small side tables for my living room
-find one small table to match my chaise (to replace the existing ottoman)
-upholster my two Danish teak arm chairs (seen in photo above)
clean up/organize the garage (again)
-paint basement
BBQ a lot

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coffee – just because

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I’m starting to organize my not-so-pretty-but-oh-so-useful garage supplies

Renos have slowed down slightly over the summer as there weren’t immediate changes that needed to be made. My basement (storage central) got cleared out a bit after my recent garage sale. I have had the paint (thanks, CIL) for many months, and I’m itching to break it open and start slathering white on the dark walls. I could do a major bathroom/laundry renovation down there, but I honestly don’t know if this is the year that I’m going to do it. Please hold. I have also had my marble foyer tiles stacked neatly for months, but I haven’t found the time or energy to focus on installing them in my foyer. Soon, yes?

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Ah, flowers, they’re so pretty (thanks, Anita)! They almost make me forget about the DIY to do lists that are waiting for me!