the other wall

I guess when I finally make a decision, I do it thoroughly. After figuring out what to do with that one problem wall in the family room, it was fun to take care of the other wall as well.

I start to feel like I don't have enough walls for all of the pictures I want to hang. I decided that since that other wall had a lot going on with the photo ledges and lots of pictures, I would keep this one clean and simple.

I went with three large prints (these all look like canvas, but they are different products that I like better, you don't loose sharpness like you do with canvas.)

The layout is simple, I went with two 16x20's and one 20x24. I wanted it to be as simple and calm as possible, so I went with black and white to unify all three prints.


I love the way it looks with the painted armoire.


This is about all I'm going to do to this room until we get those couches moved down stairs and start over with new furniture upstairs. Speaking of the basement, trims, stairs, playhouse and carpet are all that we have left! Hopefully the materials for trim work get delivered this week so we can get started and we'll be that much closer!

Post Edit:
sorry about that, I didn't mean to be vague, but I've had a few questions and emails about what these are!

The middle one is a gallery block from a company called Artsy Couture (unfortunately, professional photographer's only.) The two side images are stand outs, available from any professional printing lab, contact your photographer for information on those. I've never seen them at consumer grade photo labs, although mpix might carry them for regular consumers.

photo ledge and wall gallery {completed!}

Just so we're all on the same page, here's the before:
this was taken right after we moved in, we just kind of put things somewhere until we could get to making this room how we really wanted it. It drove me crazy the whole time, still does, but I really wanted to do the kids bedrooms first, and I wasn't sure about what I really wanted in this room anyway.

I played around with ideas of a gallery wall, something along the lines of this little ditty I photshopped...
But some "man" made a design error when this house was built and guess where my thermostat is?

Wow, I'm telling you, a man must have done that! Poor planning. I noticed this the first time we looked at the house and we thought about moving it, but in the end, I just wanted to find a simple solution and move on.

After much thought, I decided that ledges where the way to go above the couch.

I bought the ikea ledges and was so excited to put them up, but they looked too small and a little dorky, I should have taken a picture, but I didn't. We needed super long ones, and the Ikea by our house is out of them. Next option, I looked at the Pottery Barn version, it would have cost a lot, so after looking at them closely, my hubby and I decided it would be a piece of cake to DIY our own version, so we did.

All you need is 3 pieces of MDF per shelf. We went with 6 foot lengths, because they would fit perfectly above our sofa.

So it's one 1x2, a 1x3 and a 1x4. It only cost about $8.50 per shelf!
If you're super lucky, you'll have a little helper like ours who will shine his lil' flashlight on your project. :)

This took less than 15 minutes to assemble. The widest one goes on the back, the smallest in the front. We lined them up flush and used a nailgun to secure everything. They were already primed, so all they needed was a little bit of paint, which we already had on hand.

To secure them to the wall, we used 4 screws per shelf, lucky for us they lined up on studs in the wall, then we went along with the nail gun, using 16 gauge nails (big boys!) and made sure it was good and tight. It's not going anywhere! We made sure to mount it a little higher, so it wouldn't be a temptation for little fellas to grab at the pictures and hurt themselves.

Here's our finished product!
I love it! It makes me happy every time I look at it! I chose to mix black and white with color photographs because I'm a bit of a color photo junkie, the photographer in me works hard to make colorful fun images, I would be sad if every picture in my family room where black and white.


I'm really happy with how this wall turned out, it puts the "family" in family room, it feels a lot more inviting and it makes me happy to have a wall full of happy family memories, I wish I could have fit more pictures, but it's borderline overcrowded as it is!

This project was worth much more than the $17 it cost! (Technically $17 plus some frames, most from Ikea, many I already had.)

o-o-o, o-o-o... Overstock.com!

(Please tell me you've heard that Overstock radio commercial, to the tune of jingle bells? No?? Maybe it's just me, but everytime I think of Overstock I hear that song in my head. Anyway....)

The good folks at Overstock.com are offering Our Humble Abode readers a great deal! How would you like a 10% discount on top of their already slashed prices??

I jumped on the chance to share it with you all today, because I really do like Overstock.com. For starters, my husband started out his career, fresh out of college, working as a systems admin in the Salt Lake City warehouse. We had the chance to tour the warehouse a few times and each time I was just in awe at how huge it is and how much stuff they have.

Also, let me mention they offer shipping for $2.95, regardless of the size of your order... how, I don't know, but they do it.

Did you ever think to look on Overstock.com for cabinet door hardware?
Stone Mill Nantucket Cup Satin Nickel Cabinet Handles (Pack of 5)

Well, they have them! And a pretty decent sized selection at that. I want some like these for my kitchen re-do that will happen at some point.

How about a new faucet while we're at it?
Vigo Modern Pull-out Spiral Kitchen Faucet

I've been looking at a few faucets similar to this, and I'll tell you, this one tempts me because the price is lower than the others I'm considering, and check out the customer reviews on this one, it got 4 1/2 out of 5 stars, from 57 different people.

Need a nice new rug?

Jullian Beige Shag Rug (5'3 x 7'7)

Handmade Medallion Light Blue New Zealand Wool Rug (6' x 9')


Weaves Natural Fiber Beige Seagrass Rug (8' Square)

don't even get me started on the furniture.
This chair is practically begging to come and live at my house.
angelo:HOME Harlow Floral Arm Chair Lotus Green

This is just a small sampling of what you'll find at Overstock.com.

Have I teased you enough? Let's have that discount code!

The discount code is:121745, good for 10% off Overstock products (excluding movies, books, and electronics). This discount code never expires, however, it can only be used once per email address.
202234 - free shipping promo code for electronics.

My disclaimer:
All the ideas and opinions expressed are my own. No monetary compensation was received for doing this post, however, I was provided with the same discount code as my readers, and I do plan on using it sometime fairly soon. :)

little updates

One of my favorite things about the new year is cleaning out and starting fresh. One of my big goals this year is to organize every part of my life, a big part of that is my home, it's usually pretty clean, but I have some secret messy spots in closets that I am continually cleaning out, only to have them get all messy again. I've been working on some of these lil' areas, and I'm happy to report, it's going well.
I tackled this closet last weekend. I forgot to take a before picture, but trust me, it was bad. Like quickly-open-the-door-and-get-what-you-need-and-slam-it-shut-so-nothing-falls-out-on-you bad. It's a lot better now. Master bedroom closet is up next. Wish me luck...

Speaking of the master bedroom, my second night stand finally came in around Thanksgiving, and I finally found the perfect chair. Drumroll please...
I think it's perfect. The kicker was it was only $60 on ksl classifieds, it's pottery barn, so I knew it was high quality, it's comfortable and it came with two slipcovers, so it never has to be "naked" when the covers are washed.

Our other good news is that we are steadily plugging away in the basement! We're setting a goal to be finished by the end of February or beginning of March.
My hubby layed the tile in the bathroom:
The doors are mostly all in, this office door is going to be my favorite!
I can't wait to use all of the closets and storage space we'll be adding to our house!
What's left to finish:
Wood stair treads (they're going to be gorgeous!)
light fixture going down the stairs
Banister and ballisters
House-ify the playhouse area
hang one more door
baseboards
trim doors and windows
board and batten wainscot in the office
touch up paint in the corners (due to overspray)
odds and ends electrical finished up
CARPET!!!

That looks like a big list, but compared to where we started it's looking like the light at then end of the tunnel!

Another little thing I've been working on is my boy's room... this was my big boy's room, and after much begging, we finally agreed to let them share. They are 4 and 2 and 1/2, so close in age, just 19 months apart, and best buddies. It was their own idea to sleep in the same room, so we decided to go with it while they want to do it. We're having another baby this summer (also why I took a little blog break, I just wasn't feeling well for a long time!) so it was perfect timing!

Here's what it looks like, now that we've got little brother moved in and settled:
I wanted the bedding to look good together, but not match. I'm sure I'll add to it or change it a bit, but for now, this is working for everyone.
There's actually more space than it looks like there is... it's working out pretty well, and most importantly, they're loving being together!

We have a lot of work to do before this baby gets here, with finishing the basement, setting up another baby room, and getting the house organized and finding better systems so things work better. Now that I'm feeling better and the morning sickness seems to be subsiding I'll get right back to work! I have a few more things I can't wait to post about soon!