on-hand modern

my house on 8.31.12

this summer was equal parts awesome and awful.

i hate it when people write cryptic sentences like that without any further elaboration as to why or what happened, but i hope you'll forgive me because it's honestly all i have words or energy for.

the point is this: i went weeks without picking up my camera. weeks. it felt strange and sad to see it looking all forlorn on top of the refrigerator or languishing on the desk, neglected and gathering dust. but on the other hand, i also knew it would be ready when i was ready. and then one day i was.

the result is this not-quite house tour. all photos were taken on a rainy friday afternoon, in light that doesn't normally inspire me, but for whatever reason, it spoke to me to that day. i hope something in the photos speaks to you too? even the messy parts. or especially the messy parts? because that's what life is--messy. right? and maybe some of you out there even feel like you're a mess? sometimes? maybe? that's okay. i do sometimes (most of the time) too.

hello again, internet. i've missed you.

***

experimenting with manual focus

it wasn't until the auto-focus on my camera broke last spring that i started playing around with blurring photos intentionally. i shoot in manual mode all the time, but it never occurred to me to try focusing manually.

i'm not saying every photo should be blurry. but try it sometime. it will give your photos a dreamy quality.

(p.s. our tree is up! and it's real.)

***

new photos of the kids' bedroom

their room gets photographed more often than any other because it changes more often than any other. they are constantly moving things around, adding and subtracting depending on their mood/interests/needs. (meanwhile, dust gathers on the christmas wreaths and nativity set in the living room. but let's not go there.)

the cardboard playhouse the children got for christmas has finally been retired, after multiple reconstructive surgeries involving large amounts of packing tape. (edit: you can sort of see it here.) the sentimental child was sad to see it go, but i suppose having more space is a nice consolation prize for putting the poor thing out of its misery (the playhouse, not the child).

the desk and chair have been moved back to their spot under the window. the chair was mine when i was a little girl. i have contemplated painting it many times and then chickened out. maybe that's a good thing? i didn't notice the globe on the desk until i took these photos. it usually lives in the living room.

i was lazy about framing that calendar...can you tell? somewhere at this very moment the engineer is shaking his head and saying i told you so.

the boy's side of the room is looking kind of sparse. but his taste tends towards minimalism--less for aesthetic reasons and more out of a strong dislike for cleaning up. i have been meaning to order a guitar hanger for above his bed. he also wants a deer head. (?)

but anyway.

more + slightly different photos (taken earlier this year) of the children's room are at little.lovely today. up for a game of "spot the difference"? a big thanks to khali for featuring us!

***

humidifiers

how cute are these panda humidifiers by crane? cute and functional. we have two running simultaneously--one in the kitchen and one in the playroom--and i'm pretty happy with them. the engineer used a water-o-meter (not a scientific term) he borrowed from work to test the humidity in the house:

before humidifiers: about 15-20%. (note: the average humidity in the sahara desert is reported to be about 18%.)

after 1 humidifier: about 30%. (it varied by room, depending on its proximity to the machine.)

after 2 humidifiers: around 40% throughout the house. (40-50% is considered "comfortable" for most people. each humidifier is effective for up to 500 square feet and our house is about 1,000.)

i hadn't realized how bone-dry things get when you run the furnace all day. k explained to me in girl terms that it's like what happens to your hair when you blow dry it too much. (aha! hmmm.)

anyway, it does feel noticeably more "moist" (haha, don't you love that word?) in the house and scout's skin (the reason for the purchase) has improved considerably of late. but more on that tomorrow--i'm planning a post on winter skin care that i hope is helpful.

warm wishes to all of you. here in the midwest, we are supposed to get 10-13" of snow in the next 24 hours...how's that for moisture!

***

p.s. drat. i went to buy another humidifier for my friend meredith--we got ours online at target for $29--but they are sold out of the panda now. lots of other animals to choose from, though. the elephant is the runner-up for me. but the dragon is a great deal! [UPDATE: my sister just alerted me that the panda is back in stock at target at $35. thanks, g!]

p.p.s. just fyi. the one in the playroom is being relocated to a more kid-friendly spot, safe from little hands that can't resist a tempting knob. i took the photo while we were testing.

***

around the house 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

just a few more scenes from a snowy afternoon around the house.

it is small, and sometimes (okay, a lot of times!) i fantasize about a bit more square footage, but i must admit to taking a certain amount of pride in making the space work for this little family of five.

***

around the house

have you ever noticed when it snows outside, the inside of your house looks better? it's true. the snow reflects the sun and you get all this lovely light. everything looks cleaner, brighter, fresher--even the messes. i'm convinced i would feel less of a need to buy new furniture if my house always had that happy snow day "glow". more of a need to buy cozy sweaters and hot cocoa, though.

***

 

design with kids in mind

hey, there's our kids' play space featured as part of 6th street design school's "good design: kids in mind" series. there are some other pretty great spaces too. take a look?

(thanks, kirsten!)

***

sprucing up: the living room

i stole an idea from my sister and moved the globes from the playroom into the living room. also added the chair to the right of the piano. it's a sidewalk find that's been sitting in the garage, awaiting reupholstery "someday". it needs a good cleaning for sure, but the peachy-cream color is not as hideous in the room as i thought it would be so...

the pillow inserts on the same chair--i am sewing covers for them. tonight.

maybe.

also! big news. we got curtains, which (doh) are not pictured here. k picked them up on a recent business trip to seattle that included a handy detour to ikea. sadly, the 12-foot long curtain rods that were also on the list did not fit into k's carry-on, despite the fact that, hellooo, he's An Engineer. we figured it out anyway by combining parts from various hardware we already had on hand (left by the previous owners) so, in the end, the engineer saved the day again, of course.

notes for my own benefit:

i like white walls (don't fight it)

i like neutral furniture

i like pops of color in accessories

i like wood floors (a comfy rug would be nice too, but which one?)

i like floor-length sheers mounted close to the ceiling (they definitely give the room a homier feel, and the ceiling looks taller too)

***

other side of the room: a peek

lazy post today. i have a cold/flu/mucous thing. [whine.]

the upside, if there is one, is the new and improved view from command central (a.k.a. le sickbed). thank you all for your kind comments and emails about scout's spruced-up corner of the master bedroom. it makes me smile, and so do you.

more soon, i hope.

***

sleeping nook

i finally decided to do something about the blank walls in the baby's corner of the master bedroom. thirty minutes later--floating shelf hung, lanterns suspended, a couple of personal items displayed--and i'm kicking myself for not making this little nook hers months ago.

(maybe decorating doesn't have to be as complicated/scary as i make it out to be...?)

***