After a truly crazy month, we have sold our home and are heading to closing today! We both agreed that selling a house is so much worse than buying a house. Trulia just ran an article about how it feels to sell a home that really cracked me up. We experienced every single one of these things. From the crazy staging period to the hurt feelings that come from harsh feedback (I mean, sure our furnace is old, but “grandma left her furnace” is a bit much. Not that I’m hanging on to anything here), we’ve dealt with all of it. We also questioned if we really wanted to move after all. I mean, once our house was all decluttered and we made all those improvements and upgrades, we saw it in a whole new light. Ultimately, though, we needed to move on, and we’re so grateful to have had Century 21 Excellence Realty to help us out along the way!
Read the full article here.
This Pool Takes Dumpster Diving to a New Level
We’ve finally got a break from our rain marathon here in the Midwest, so it’s time to start wishing for a cool, blue swimming pools. A few years ago, I featured some gorgeous above ground pools, but this one is such a fantastic idea, it’s worth a mention. Experimental architect, Stephan Beese, repurposed a dumpster into this modern pool in his side yard. He enameled the steel body, added some high density foam to the bottom, covered the inside with a custom liner, and encased the outside in pressure-treated decking.
I love it. Check out more info and pictures on DIY Magic.
Columbus Ohio City Guide Featured on Design Sponge
I was so pleased to see our fair city of Columbus featured on Design Sponge this week. Although it just brushes the surface of all the great things to do here, I think it’s a great jumping off point. Take a look over at Design Sponge.
Explore Ohio Series on Columbus Underground
With the astronomical prices of airline tickets, and the potential horrors of a long road trip with children (I actually said the serenity prayer on a recent trip across town with my daughter), it’s no wonder a lot of folks are planning “stay-cations” this summer. Although Ohio is not exactly a tourist destination, there are lots of interesting and fun things that are within a couple hours’ drive from Columbus. Columbus Underground has been running a summer series called Explore Ohio with lots of awesome day trip ideas for those of us who are hanging around town this summer.
Check out the entire series here. I’m strongly considering booking a night or two at one of these sweet tree houses in the Mohicans! (Image from Columbus Underground)
Moving Pro Tip: The Supply Apron
One of my dearest friends recently moved to San Diego, and when I visited her to say my tearful goodbye, she was in the middle of packing up the last of her belongings. She used to be a professional packer for a moving company, so she really knows how to pack a solid box, and she actually helped me the last time I moved, but as I watched her pack her own stuff, I realized that she had kept one vital, life-changing moving tip to herself last time:
She was wearing a little apron, and in the apron she had packing tape, a marker, and a pair of scissors.
People, do you know how many times I lost my tape the last time I moved? Only about ONE MILLION TIMES. I added several unnecessary hours to my packing by wasting time searching for tape, a marker, and scissors. Seriously.
Anyway, if you are getting ready to move, take it from me, pick up a little $0.77 utility apron from Home Depot and save yourself untold grief and frustration.
I have very fond memories of the geodesic dome in my kindergarten playground. It was such a versatile piece of equipment–great for climbing, hanging upside down, the the perfect makeshift jail, home base, or hideout. A new kickstarter project, Hubs, promises to make it easy to build a dome of your own, right in your own backyard or playroom. In addition to being loads of fun for kids, domes like this can become arbors, creating leafy outdoor rooms. I’m all over this one.
Find the Kickstarter here
10 Tips for a Safe 4th of July
Are you planning a DIY fireworks display for the Fourth? Well, put down the matches, my friend and check out these tips from the National Council on Fireworks Safety before you light any fuses.
1. Know your fireworks; read the cautionary labels and performance descriptions before igniting.
2. A responsible adult should always supervise all firework activities. Never give fireworks to children.
3. Alcohol and fireworks do not mix. Save your alcohol for after the show.
4. Wear safety glasses when shooting fireworks.
5. Never relight a “dud” firework. Wait 20 minutes and then soak it in a bucket of water.
6. Always have a bucket of water and charged water hose nearby.
7. Never carry fireworks in your pocket or shoot them into metal or glass containers (are people seriously doing this??)
8. Do not experiment with homemade fireworks.
9. Dispose of spent fireworks by wetting them down and place in a metal trash can away from any building or combustible materials until the next day.
10. Keep your fireworks away from pets!
Have a Fun Fourth: DIY Outdoor Games
Are you planning a cookout to celebrate the 4th of July this weekend? This year, why not add a little fun to your barbecue with some simple, DIY lawn games? Apartment Therapy has rounded up 10 tutorials, many of which are just giant versions of popular tabletop games like checkers, chess, pick up sticks, Yahtzee!, and Kubb (also called Swedish Chess, pictured above via Apartment Therapy). Check them out here and have a great holiday!
Temporary Wallpaper
I love some of the gorgeous, modern wallpapers that I’ve been seeing out there over the past few years, but I’m hesitant to commit to any for my own home. I have traumatic memories of helping my grandmother remove her kitchen wallpaper when I was about ten. There was a vinegar spray, there was steam, there were scorers, and yet we were still reduced to scraping slivers of paper off the wall with our fingernails. Ugh.
But what if wallpaper weren’t so permanent? Tempaper is a removable wallpaper that is mostly marketed to renters or college students, but as a commitment-phobic homeowner, I find it very appealing. There are lots of really nice patterns, and they’ve even got some interesting textured options (think faux brick or wood panels).
They’ve also just come out with a line of blank, paintable wallpapers. It’s awesome for murals that you might want to remove without having to repaint.
These are also great for folks who are planning to move in the next few years. Wallpaper can be a huge turnoff to buyers, so removing it before you sell is a great way to increase your home’s appeal.
Playground-Inspired Decor
I have long desired a swing in my home for my daughter (and for everyone, because who doesn’t like to swing?). And now that IKEA sells an indoor swing, I think my dream will become a reality very soon! Playground inspired decor has been popping up all over the place for a while now, from slides to lower floors to climbing walls in kids’ rooms. Check out these fun applications:
My elementary school playground had metal slides that basically incinerated our backsides on hot, sunny days. No such problem with this stainless steel beauty from Apartment Therapy.
This indoor swing from Urban Outfitters is so pretty. At $98, the price is a little steep, but if you want fun and style, it’s worth it.
Installing climbing wall is as easy as screwing the hand and footholds into the wall, and then you can literally say your kids are climbing the walls. This one is from Aligned Real Estate
These are tree trunks that have been scraped, polished and installed as climbing structures for the kids. They are beautiful and super fun. From Remodelista
This picture just cracks me up. Look how high that kid is!! A bar is lots of fun for kids to flip and hang upside down on. I found this on on Remodelista.
Excellence at Home 