Robin's Room

When we moved into our house, I told Robin that I would compromise with him on home decor. You see, Robin really likes more modern decor and I...don't. Our decor is definitely a mix of traditional and transitional, nothing like the light wood, clean lines, and metal that Robin would choose if things were left up to him.

In an effort to mesh our two styles, I told him that if he'd let me have the rest of the house, he could have 3 rooms. He happily agreed.

His 3 rooms? His office, the garage, and outside.

As you can tell, I chose to interpret the word "room" very loosely!

He was actually pretty happy with this arrangement and so we've spent a fair amount of time getting his "rooms" fixed up for him.

Last year, we added a beautiful red cedar pergola to our backyard. My dad, a contractor, built the entire thing by himself. I knew it would turn out well...my dad has great taste and he's a perfectionist. It turned out even better than we hoped and has added so much to our backyard.

The pergola was a perfect option for us because our back porck is right outside of the only window in our living room. I didn't want to completely block all light but the angle of our house means that we can now sit in shade in the afternoon. Perfect!

Robin is also a big fan of bamboo. We drove to someplace he found online in south Houston that sells a lot of bamboo and he selected some clumping bamboo for the backyard. We now have 4 different clumps of bamboo against our fence around the yard. To my surprise, it actually looks really nice! Our backyard is very small and we didn't want to eat up too much yard space, so the bamboo gives us a lot of green for the buck. You can see the bamboo here before he planted it (and right before we hired Chemlawn...our grass looks great now. Bye bye weeds!).

We also recently added an Oklahoma Redbud tree. I went to college at the University of Oklahoma (Boomer Sooner!) and there are gorgeous redbud trees all over Norman. It is just about to bloom. Can't wait to see it!

Anyway, we've been searching for new patio furniture in earnest since the pergola was finished. We had just doubled the budget in despair of ever finding something we both liked and that met our needs when we found this set at Target.com. A sale, free shipping, and the AAA 10% discount made it a no-brainer and it is on its way. Hopefully, we will be lounging on our new patio furniture next week.

Robin insisted on an ottoman for the chair and I insisted on a neutral color and something that would be comfortable for lounging. This set made both of us happy and the great reviews and amazing price sealed the deal!

Image via www.target.com

Sorry about the mini-image. Apparently, Target does not want you to know about it's patio furniture!

We picked up a loveseat, 2 chairs, an ottoman, a coffee table, and an end table. We may add an outdoor rug but haven't decided yet.

Also on the to-do list for the backyard this year:

• plants for along the back of the house
• brick the area beneath the faucet/hose
• add some planeters and hanging plants to the pergola

I can't wait for the reveal!

In other news, the kitchen renovation begins TOMORROW!

(Yay for not even being able to feel guilty about not cooking.)

The Plan

Friends at work look at me like I'm crazy when I talk about the upcoming changes for our kitchen. I'm still a little shocked that my husband is going for it!

Our to-do list for the kitchen:

- Paint the cabinets white. I haven't selected a color yet (I need to get on that!). White is HARD to choose!

- Granite countertops installed. I selected Black Pearl granite. Robin got stuck in a meeting at work so my dad and I selected the countertop granite (don't worry, Robin and I had narrowed it down to a few already). I chose an eased edge.

Image courtesy of www.glamourflooring.com

- Undermount sink. Our new sink is much deeper than our old, shallow sink.

Image courtesy of Home Depot

- New faucet. After MUCH research, we selected the Delta Leland faucet. We really wanted a 1-hole faucet with a pull-out spray but didn't want to a) spend a fortune and b) deal with a spray that wouldn't retract fully, which seems to be an issue after a few months for many faucets of this design. The Delta Leland features Magnatite Docking, which is just Delta's fancy way to say that there is a magnet where the spray connects with the faucet neck to keep it in place. The spray can toggle between 2 different spray types and the handle is integrated into the faucet. I can't wait to start using it! We got it for a great price from http://www.faucetdirect.com/.

Image courtesy of Faucet Direct

- New Backsplash. I actually like our old backsplash but the way our countertops were installed means that the current backsplash will be damaged when removing the countertops. Undaunted, I forged ahead into the world of tile (hehe!). After much deliberations (have you SEEN how much tile is out there!?!), I chose a gorgeous (and shockingly affordable) Contempo White Marble Subway tile from Dal Tile.

Image courtesy www.fastfloors.com

- Under- and over-cabinet lighting. We'll be using Xenon lighting.

- 2 3/8" crown molding at the top of the cabinets.

- Knobs and Pulls! Both are from the Revitalize Collection by Amerock. We're going with satin nickel to match our faucet and doorknobs. All of our lighting is Oil Rubbed Bronze; however, I feel like it is too much of a contrast with white cabinets, so things you pull will be satin nickel and things the give off light are Oil Rubbed Bronze.

Images courtesy http://www.pullsdirect.com/

- New pendants above the bar area on the sink side of the island. I think we are going to do 3 pendants but I will make the final decision after everything else is complete.

Image courtesy www.csnlighting.com

- Speaking of the bar area, we will be extended the current bar by 6 inches on the side that faces the living room so that it's actually useable space. Currently, the 12 inches of depth don't really allow for anything to be placed on the bar for serving.

Phew! As you can see, there are many changes in store for our kitchen.

What do you think? Any hints or tips?

The Kitchen...now

Well, at the moment, the kitchen is a bit of a mess. Nothing terrible (thank you, Robin, for doing the dishes) but every vase I own is currently sitting on the counter (that will soon be leaving us!).

On Tuesday, my dad will show up to begin prepping our kitchen for the first phase of the remodel. To be honest, when Robin FINALLY agreed to do something about our kitchen, I was thinking of just a small shot of botox. It has turned into a full-on face lift. Oops!

Here is what our kitchen looks like right now:









Functionally, there is nothing really too wrong with our kitchen. Sure, a deeper sink and a faucet with higher clearance would be nice, but it is fully functional with plenty of cabinet space. Still, it doesn't "fit" with the rest of our house and the oak cabinets looked outdated even when they were put in. Stay tuned for the to-do list with plenty of pictures!

Welcome!

Welcome to my little corner of the blogosphere. My husband, Robin, and I live with our 2 furchildren, Max & Lola, in a home we closed on right before our wedding 5 years ago. Since then, it has gone through many, many different incarnations before we finally settled on a style that works for both of us and the way we live in our house. Throughout our 20s, our tastes have changed and evolved, and our house seems to always be a work in progress, hence the blog title. Currently, we are about to begin a kitchen remodel. Thanks to my dad, our fantastic contractor, our kitchen will undergo transformation beginning this Tuesday. We're excited to begin!