DIY Farmhouse Kitchen on a Budget

After seven years of working on our kitchen a little at a time, we have finally finished our farmhouse kitchen. This is truly a DIY kitchen on a budget. With the exception of the appliances, sink, and faucet, everything in our kitchen has been thrifted and DIYed. 

DIY Reclaimed Wood Kitchen Countertops

Hey!  Do you remember me?  

I've been hanging out over on Instagram and had pretty much given up blogging, but blogging was my first social media love, and I really wanted to get back to it.

Small Home Living ~ Kitchen

Recently, a sweet visitor to my blog asked to see my kitchen.  I really haven't posted much about the kitchen, mostly because there are still some changes I want to make.  I will be honest though -  I LOVE my kitchen as it is, and if we never get to make any more changes, that is ok with me too.

Small House Living ~ Dining Room

This is the tiny dining room in our cozy little house.  It is very, very small, and when people are seated, there is no walking space around the table.  Yet it still works really well for us.

The only furniture that actually fits in this room is the dining table, 4 chairs, and bench.  There used to be a wall between this room and the tv room and it was impossible to have any large family gatherings here.  One of my favorite things we have done is remove the wall between these two rooms.  

Small House Living - Master Bedroom

Do you watch House Hunters?  I love this show and have not grown tired of it after watching hundreds of episodes over the years.  One thing I know though, my house would not fit the criteria for most of the house hunters out there. 
 1.  Master Bedroom Suite - NO
  2.  Large enough for king-size bed - NO
  3.  Walk-in closet - NO
  4.  Master luxury bath - NO
  5.  Master bath - NO
  6.  Double sinks - NO

In spite of not having anything on this desired list, I LOVE my master bedroom.  It has everything we need to have in a bedroom, and it is simple, easy to keep clean, and comfortable.

Decorating on a Dime - Old Window

This week I am on February vacation from school.  I have nothing exciting planned except a colonoscopy on Monday and a dentist appointment on Wednesday.  At least the weather is unseasonably warm, so there's that.  It was over 70 degrees in New Hampshire this week, in February!  That is unheard of in these parts so we will take the blessings where we find them. The snow is melting quickly, and mud is everywhere.  

A couple of years ago, I found two old windows on the side of the road as I drove to a medical appointment.  I pulled over and hauled them into my car.  They sat in my garage for awhile, and then I tried them in a couple of different places until this one finally landed in the dining room.

Cleaning Faux Flowers

I have some pretty faux flowers that I have had for several years. These flowers are made from some sort of fabric, not plastic, and of course they are white.  Lately I have been noticing how dingy, dusty, and dirty they were.  I thought they might be beyond saving, but I decided to try washing them first.  I'm embarrassed to say that I would take them outside and shake them, but I had never really cleaned them before.

The Closet Project - Beyond the Curtains!

When we moved into this 175 year old house, this closet had bifold doors.  If you know anything about old homes, you know that the floors are never even throughout the rooms.  They usually slope down somewhere and our bedroom floor is no exception.  There is actually about a 2" difference from one side of the room to the other.  If you know anything about bifold doors in tracks, then you know how the darn things never stay in the track even with an even floor.  You can imagine what a 2" slope would do to those bifold doors.  This was the situation we found ourselves in.

Frugal Ideas - Reusing Candles

Since about mid-January, my husband and I decided to have a "no-spend year".  Two weeks in and we have modified that to a "no-stuff year" after one of my readers commented and said her and her husband did that.  That is actually much closer to what we are striving for.  

Early Morning Routine

Almost every morning I wake up at 5am, whether it is a workday or not. 

No Spend New Year

Jade plant my mom no longer wanted.  Rusty stool - yard sale $5

It has been a long time since I last blogged.  Over the last year I have found myself losing interest in blogs.  There are a few I always find myself going back to.  These blogs are usually a combination of decorating, recipes, DIYs, crafts, frugal living, a Christian perspective, and also some personal stuff so you get to know the person behind the blog.