Something old. Something new. Something bargained. Something blue. That’s my design philosophy in a nutshell, at least one of them. Though, depending on the room, sometimes blue looks a whole lot like green.
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I hate talking about money and putting a price tag on something. But I’m going there today with the goal of saving someone money in the long run. Next to hanging pictures on the wall, choosing a rug might be one of the biggest home design conundrums. There are so many variables to consider—from size to pattern to foot traffic and price tag. Before moving in, we were advised to invest in a quality rug for our living room. With everything else we needed to buy for the house at the time, investing properly in a living room rug was impossible. 3 rugs later. They were right. Read more

I almost titled this post “Don’t Forget the Entryway.” It’s that short room at the start of the house that often gets overlooked, especially when it’s not needed as much in the summer, and especially when square footage is at a premium. But come winter time, it’s the space that welcomes your guests, gives them a place to hang their coats, a bench to take off their boots, and a tray to set them. Our builder was so deliberate about designing the house not only for us, but for our guests too. I’ve come to appreciate that immensely. I love that the entryway is both minimal yet functional (inspired by this pin and this pin). But it took teaming up with Studio McGee to make it cozy. Read more

We’ve been itching to finish out the backyard since we moved in two years ago. During our first summer in #thefauxhouse, we were committed to finishing the inside of the house, leaving no resources for the outside. The next summer, we hired someone to create a backyard plan that we would then execute. We realized two things—we needed to cut down and trim a couple trees. (I begged our builder to keep as many as possible during the build.) We also realized that the backyard we wanted was well above our expertise level, which is extremely low. So, we focused on the tree situation and waited. Here were are now. It’s our third summer in the house, and the backyard is happening (and nearly done)! If you follow my Instagram stories, this is old news.  Read more

I love Minnesota winters with all of my being. I jump at the first snowfall and mourn the last. The snow, the snow blowing, the cold air hitting my lungs, the evergreens, the quietness, the sledding—they make my heart beat. But with this beloved season comes the shortest days, the greyest afternoons, the darkest evenings, and the coldest cold. Whether you love this season or not, winter can always use a touch of this Danish thing called hygge (hoo-ga or hue-ga). (Scroll to the end of the post for a giveaway.) Read more