I’ve been alluding to it for awhile now. Talking about it like it’s not consuming every square inch of our brain (the little we have left after becoming parents). We’re building a house. I’ve just started calling it our home. A house is an object made from lots of materials. A home is a place where life is lived. We’re building a home. To get this experience, we feel extremely lucky, but it comes with exhaustion too. It’s rare that a day passes without me saying, “I’m never making another decision again.” I’m being overly dramatic, but we’ve made a lot of decisions in the last couple weeks. And no decision is made without a mood board over here. I wish you could see my desktop (actually I’m glad you can’t). I have 10,000 thumbnails of screenshots from revised boards. It’s silly and excessive, but we’re dreaming up a home that we plan to spend a lifetime in. So come on in, but don’t tell me what you think. If I have to change anything…..I can’t make another decision.

Where to begin? Let’s start with the overall vibe. If you can’t already tell from my site or Instagram, I like lots of white with pops of color. It extends to every last part of my being, wardrobe included. I’ve never been able to shake this palette. Been sporting it since the 90s. (Please don’t sign me up for What not to Wear.) If you asked me to describe the house in three words, I’d say it’s a cozy, modern farmhouse. My style is very eclectic. It drives Kev nutty. He likes linear, and I’m anything but. Dreaming up this space was, well, a dream, but it wasn’t without its hiccups. Anytime two people have to come to one decisions (multiplied by 1,000) there’s bound to be disagreements. Overall, we’re both really happy with the space. Right Kev? Kev? He is, I promise. Outside of the visions in our heads, we drew a lot of inspiration from Yellow Brick Home, Little Green Notebook, Smitten Studio, House Tweaking, Emily Henderson, and Lark and Linen and pinned it all here. Now, about those mood boards.

Light. I want lots of light! They (Brownsmith Restoration) gave us just that—a huge bank of windows across the back of the kitchen. It looks out to a parking garage, but whatever. This is city living. Matte tiles, dark grout, industrial-esque lighting, notched out cabinets, plus a pop of green—as MTV Cribs says, this is where the magic happens. I owe a huge thank you to my Facebook friends who have humored and answered all my kitchen questions like: is a french door fridge annoying or awesome and double or single sink bowl. That’s a post for another day. Search #thefauxhouse tag to skim through those helpful conversations.

Sources: Verona Range, Pendant, Window Lighting, Faucet

Our dining room table has made it 4 states with us. I don’t think I can part with the memories. But as for chairs, we need to buy something yesterday. We’re borrowing Lucy’s grandma’s folding chairs at the moment. I think these Eames-esque chairs might make for the perfect pop of color. There’s a short wall separating the kitchen and dining room. I knew I wanted an Emily Jeffords painting on that wall as soon as it went up in the plans. We’ll see if we can afford it after all is said and done. I mocked this one up based on one of her landscape paintings. I may have to attack it myself until we can save up some monies.

Sources: Chairs, Hallie’s Chair, Pendant

The living room is half-baked at best. Kev is still trying to pawn my yellow chairs off on a bedroom that no one will see. Those chairs are my heart and soul. He doesn’t know I’ve won that battle yet. I’m not the biggest fan of the TV over the fireplace, the hearth of the home. But we wanted lots of windows in here and a really cool staircase that you can’t see in these boards, leaving no other place for me to watch Dateline. Once we save up more monies, Brownsmith may build us a piece of artwork to hang over the TV that opens easily when needed. Coffee table? Picture frames? We’ll figure you out soon.

Sources: Leather Couch (Crate and Barrel via Craigslist), Grey Couch, Yellow Chairs (Craigslist), Rug, Standing Light

It feels weird to talk about bathrooms, but here’s our bathroom. Kev calls it old Hollywood. My mom calls it retro. I call it perfect. We’re breaking the mold and going extra large on the subway tiles. Normal doesn’t suit me well.

Sources: Vanity, Faucet, Tile

Why so many bathroom mood boards and no office mood board? We had to pick out tile and fixtures stat. Office, you’re coming soon. Let’s hope my decision-making tank fills back up. We’re 70% of the way done and I’m bound to change my mind come tomorrow morning.

Sources: Kids Vanity (painted using Semihandmade Doors), Pulls, Tile, Kids Light, Kids Faucet, Kids Mirror, Powder Mirror, Powder Pedestal, Powder Faucet, Powder Light, Wallpaper

This house would not be a home if it weren’t for the talented team over at Brownsmith Restoration (Twin City friends, bookmark them). Thanks for putting up with my finicky tastes. We’re also partnering with a couple dream companies to make this house happen: Rejuvenation, Wayfair, Forage Modern, and Schoolhouse (plus a couple more in the works). I wish I could have you all over for a meal around that table that’s traversed so many states with us. Maybe one day we can make that happen.