If there was no "Before", there could be no "After".

We recently completed a major Property Flip and I'm excited to share all of the Before & After pics with you! To start us off, take a look at the exterior of the house . . . 

Doesn't it look gorgeous now? 

And here is the Living Room . . . 

With recessed lighting, beautiful moulding and gleaming hardwood floors, it's definitely a place that I would like to spend some time!

The Family Room took quite a bit more work . . . and more of a vision. 

After opening the Kitchen to make a Great Room, this house became much more welcoming. The ceilings were raised, beams were added and obviously everything was transformed. Skylights, new lighting and well, uh . . . pretty much new EVERYTHING made this Great Room gorgeous.

Here's another view . . . 

The kitchen definitely needed to be opened up. Before, it seemed like a place to go when being punished. Now, it's completely welcoming. 

The Master Bedroom was completely transformed.

Here's another shot . . . 

We don't have "Before" pictures of the backyard to show you, but I'm happy to share the "After" shots with you. Redwood trees, a Brazilian Hardwood Deck and lush grass make this backyard a paradise. 

Here's a close up of the front porch, now that it's a place to be proud of . . . 

And a few more pics of various rooms and spaces . . . 

So, that's what has been keeping us busy for the past few months. Business is booming and I'm just able to catch my breath! Which room is your favorite? It's tough for me to decide, because at this point, they all feel like my children!

The Top 5 Things I Love About Spring

1. More time spent outside. Whether I'm taking a walk, gardening or enjoying a drink in my backyard, I'm just happy to be outside.

 

 

2. Spring Flowers! Especially tulips. We have a TON in our garden this year and I get happy every time I look outside. And now, I know a trick about how to keep them from getting droopy after they are cut. This picture was taken 3 days after I put them in their vase. I'll share my secret later this week!

 

3. Decorating our backyard. Every year, I get excited about incorporating new colors into our outdoor decor. With all the flowers we are growing this year, our yards have more color than ever before.

 

4. Spring blossoms. When our trees look like this, I can't help but snap a pic.

 

5. Weekend Getaways. A Spring weekend getaway is the best kind! With wildflowers in bloom and the weather just right, there are so many opportunities to hop out of the car to enjoy the scenery.

 

 

What are your favorite things about Spring?

 

Art in the Kitchen

We finally added artwork to our newly remodeled kitchen and I must say . . . we're in love!

 

 

Here's a refresher of what the kitchen looked like when we bought our house.

 

 

 

The triptych is a photo of our favorite beach stretched out across three canvases.

 

Here's a before & after shot of the other side of the kitchen.

 

 

And a few more pics . . .

 

 

If you want to see more about our kitchen remodel, click here.

 

We have some fun holiday projects that we'll be sharing with you over the next 2 weeks. We've been busy!

Fallifying

 

It's a busy time in our house. After returning from Hawaii, the holiday season arrived. It sure snuck up on us! Joe has been busy in the backyard . . .

 

 

Building a shed . . . or maybe a Man Cave.

 

I think the "shed" may be as large as the room we use as an office.

And I'm a little bit jealous.

 

Especially now that it has a skylight. Really, is a skylight necessary for a shed?

 

While Joe has been busy building his "shed", I've been busy "Fallifying" our house. Is that a word? It is now.

 

After making some gourd garland, I added the burlap wreath I made, tossed a few other decorative items out there and called it a day.

 

Between holiday parties, Christmas shopping and playing hostess, I know things are about to get crazy. Any tips on staying stress free during the holiday season?

Fall Trip Time

I took a short (okay, not so short) break from blogging duties while we were basking in the Hawaii sun. But, I'm back now and ready to share some Fall inspired projects with you. So, stay tuned!

 

Savor Fall: 20 Things I Love About Fall

 

To kick off our Fall Series, here are the Top 20 Things I Love About Fall.

1. The Changing Leaves.

 

 

2. Decorating with Nature. Fall is the perfect time to use Nature's Bounty as a decor source. Bring a beautiful branch inside or place a bundle of leaves in a vase. Use what you've got!

 

3. Fall Produce. Celebrate the Fall Harvest by having a Harvest Celebration!
Need recipe ideas? Click here.

 

3. The Anticipation of the Holidays.

4. Bundling up! In our area, the weather stays pretty warm through the Fall, but we do have a few days where we get to bring out our sweaters and scarves to bundle up.

 

5. DIY Projects. Every Fall I get bitten by the DIY bug and I feel more crafty than usual. I'll be busy making wreaths, decorating our yard and dreaming up new tablescapes.

6. Fall Picnics. Sure, most people picnic in the Summer, but we are of the lucky few! We picnic at local wineries throughout Fall. And we love every moment of it!

 

 

7. Fall Cocktails. We enjoy Spiced Cider, Mulled Wine and Hot Cocoa. There's nothing better than curling up with a book or a good movie and enjoying a festive drink!

8. The Parties! Harvest Celebrations, Halloween Parties, Thanksgiving and even Friendsgiving.

 

 

9. Apple Picking. Make it a day! Pack a picnic, pick some apples, then go home and try every apple recipe you can think of!

 

 

10. Boots. I can't be the only one that looks forward to wearing boots. My feet are always cold!

11. Oktoberfest. Need I say more?

12. Carving Pumpkins.

 

13. Hearty Soups. I always use my Slow Cooker during this time of year. Soups, stews and chili are all staples in our house during Autumn. And I make a mean chili!

14. Football.

15. Planting bulbs for Spring. This year, we'll be planting Aliums and Tulips.

16. Caramel Apples. YUM!

 

17. Our Anniversary. We got married on September 29th because we love Fall and wanted another reason to celebrate Autumn every year.

18. Thanksgiving.

19. Planning Black Friday Shopping.
Here are my tips.

20. Spending Time with family.

What are your favorite things aboout Fall?

Linking up to The Inspired Room's 5th Annual Fall Nesting party.

 

Savor Fall!

We're starting a Fall Series here at Our Fine House.

Savor Fall!

 

 

Because this is our favorite season, we will be posting about a variety of Fall related topics throughout October and November.

Please join us as we Savor the Season!

October 1st: 20 Things I Love About Fall

 

We're linking up to The Inspired Room's 5th Annual Fall Nesting Series.