Our new home Archives - Ask Anna

Office Refresh

Anna — Wed, 21 Jun 2017 11:00:34 +0000

Thank you BHG Live Better for sponsoring this post and my mini office refresh.

This month BHG Live Better gave me the opportunity to freshen up my office. I haven’t done anything to my office since its original makeover a couple years ago, so I was excited to add a little texture and style to the room.

If you’ve followed me for more than 5 minutes, then you know I’m obsessed with the color teal. However over the last year I’ve been trying to incorporate more dark blues into my design, as an accent color to all the teal in my life.

When I saw this stunning, deep blue rug on Walmart.com, I knew it would be the perfect accent to go with my teal desk.

On the other side of my office I have a large desk, my husband made me years ago, where my daughter loves to sit and do her art and schoolwork.

For years, every time she’s wanted to sit there, she’s always had to drag a chair from the dining room, into the office. I don’t know why I didn’t do it sooner but I finally purchased her a nice comfy chair that’s all hers.

I also did some reorganizing on my bookshelves and added in some more wire baskets to organize items on the shelves.

I love how easy it is to organize with cute baskets, I’ll never tell how unorganized the inside of the baskets might be.

It’s not a huge makeover, luckily we are done with those (at least for now) but it’s always fun to make little tweaks to a room and not have to spend a lot of money. I spend a lot of time in my office so I’m loving my little mini office refresh and all the new fun textures!

Puppy dog is loving the new, super soft rug too.

Shop this room –

Follow Better Homes and Gardens at Walmart to see what’s coming out soon!

Disclaimers – I am part of the BHG Live Better Blogger Network; this post is sponsored by BHG at Walmart. All opinions are my own. This post contains some affiliate links, for your convenience. Click here to read my full disclosure policy.

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Spring is Here and the Doors are Wide Open!

Anna — Wed, 17 May 2017 11:00:27 +0000

Thank you Phantom Screens for sponsoring this post and providing hours of outdoor fun for my daughter!

I don’t know about you, but as soon as the weather turns from winter to spring, I want to have the doors and windows open as much as possible! My daughter loves to play in the front yard with the neighborhood kids so I usually just leave the front door open to get some fresh air and to keep an eye on her. The problem I’ve had for the last 3 years though, is that when the door is open, the bugs think it’s an open invitation to join us for dinner – gross!

Years ago I heard about Phantom Screens and ever since moving into this house, I’ve been dreaming about getting one for our front door. I love having the front door open as much as possible but I don’t like the look of traditional screens, I want to see my pretty door, and wreath, when the door is closed!

Now that we have our Phantom Screens I’m able to have my pretty front door show, but when the kids are ready to play outside, or I just want some fresh spring air, I open the door and close the screen.

I absolutely love our Phantom Screens, they are everything, and more, that I hoped they’d be. It might seem silly to “love” a screen door but when you get yours, you’ll understand. Everyone that comes over comments and says how awesome they are.

The Latch & Release handle makes it easy to use, quiet to operate and secure from unintended openings.

The screens are also very sturdy and durable. The day we had ours installed I had the dog in the backyard while the installation guy was over. When he was finished I left the front door open, with the screen in place, and let my dog back in the house. She came bolting up the stairs, and full puppy speed, and ran straight for the door – thinking she was going to get to run right out the front door. Instead she bounced off the screen, as if she’d just landed on a trampoline. I was so mad and thought for sure she had just broken my brand new screen, but when I went to inspect, it was in perfect condition. The screen had just let out a little more, to give into the tension (of our puppy bolting “through” the door) and then retracted back into place! Amazing!

Each screen is custom made for your home and the installation is seamless so when the screen is retracted you don’t even notice it’s there. There are 10 standard colors to choose from but countless custom colors to match any home, including wood tones.

We had a second screen installed on the glass door in our eating area, and it’s a different color from the one we put on the front door because the door color is different.

Not only are the color and sizing options custom for every home but you can also choose from a wide range of mesh options. Choose from mesh that stops bugs, lets the fresh air in, gives you privacy or provides shade from the sun, there’s an option for every need!

We chose the standard – keep bugs out – screens and I’ve been really impressed, they work far better than any of our other traditional screens.

Whether you have a single traditional door, French doors, double door or sliding door Phantom Screens will work. They also make them for windows! We absolutely LOVE our Phantom Screens and I know you will too!

To learn more about Phantom Screens, and find an installer in your area, visit their website or check out their Facebook and Twitter pages.

Happy Spring everyone!

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Farmhouse Style Outdoor Seating Area

Anna — Mon, 13 Feb 2017 12:00:16 +0000

Spring is on the horizon and I might not live in the South but I’m already looking forward to sweet tea on the porch while I watch Malea and the neighborhood kids ride bikes around the cul-de-sac!

Last spring I realized the need for an outdoor seating area on my front porch, so I added a rocking chair from the BHG line at Walmart, but I quickly realized that wasn’t going to be enough seating, so this year I added a table and 2 chairs!

I am so in love with this Better Homes and Gardens farmhouse style mosaic tile top table, from Walmart, because not only is it a showstopper, but it’s the perfect place to sit and enjoy my sweat tea while reading my BH&G magazine, while also keeping an eye on the kids.

And of course every showstopping table needs a stunning sidekick, right? These metal chairs from Walmart.com are the perfect match, and a steal at only $44!

Now the front porch is just calling my name, I can hear it beckoning me to come sit and relax – which I can’t wait to do once it stops raining for more than a day. I don’t know what the weather is like where you are but it has been raining buckets here!

But it won’t last forever and before too long I’ll be spending lots of time sitting out here, enjoying the sun and the laughter of the kids.

Are you looking forward to warm days, cool evenings and getting outside with your family? Use these beautiful pieces to set up a little outdoor eating area or a place to sit and relax on your front porch or back deck.

Happy (almost) Spring!!!

Shop this look –

Black metal chairs (they have lots of colors)
Farmhouse mosaic tile top table
Chevron outdoor pillow

Follow Better Homes and Gardens at Walmart to see what’s coming out soon!

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Master Bedroom Reveal! Before and After pictures – Finally!

Anna — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 12:00:37 +0000

Do you remember back in the spring when we completely gutted our master bedroom and bathroom? In April I revealed our master bathroom and told you our master bedroom reveal would quickly follow… well… 9 months later, I’m finally ready to show you our bedroom. Before we do that though, let’s take a look back at what it used to look like (because you know I love a good before and after picture!).

Image is from the MLS listing.

… and here’s what it looks like now…

The reason it took me long to post these pictures is because we were SO tired of doing projects, after our bathroom was completed, that we just recently got around to painting this room.

The timing of me showing you the reveal kind of worked out though because I think it’s fun to show you the “after” pictures with all the pretty touches of Christmas. Even though it’s just a bedroom, I still love bringing the coziness of Christmas in; it’s especially wonderful in the evening, when the fire is lit, the Christmas lights are on, and my husband and I can curl up on the couch with a glass of wine.

The fireplace used to be pink tile from the 80’s with gold trim, which I thoroughly enjoyed ripping out. The marble was left over from our kitchen counters last year and I think it’s the perfect touch for the fireplace surround. Someday I want to build a mantle… but maybe when I recover from all the other projects we’ve done this year. The Christmas tree is a fun touch for this time of year and if you can believe it, I got it at Walmart for only $25!

This couch is one of my favorite places in our house. Snuggling up with these cozy pillows from Better Homes and Gardens at Walmart, and a glass of wine, I’ve had so many good conversations with friends, my husband and my own quiet time, reflecting on the day.

The teal dresser is also one of my favorite things in our room. It used to be in the living room at our old house but when we moved into this house I wasn’t sure what to do with it because it didn’t fit anywhere. I was so excited when we redid our bedroom and I discovered that it would fit perfectly as a night stand and I love the pop of color it adds to all the neutral colors in the room!

I also love the pop of gold from the baroque frames. Oh and now that we have finally have a “grown up” bedroom, I decided it was time for us to have matching bedside lights, don’t you just love them?

And speaking of being grown up, we finally have a headboard again. A couple years ago I sold all of our bedroom furniture because I was tired of it all being so matchy-matchy, so when I saw this headboard on Craigslist I knew it would be the perfect piece for the bed in our new bedroom! The gold foil heart pillow is fun too and coordinates nicely with the chandelier above our bed.

My two absolute most favorite things about this room though, are all the light, and the views. I love natural light so every time I walk in our room it’s like a breath of fresh air, no matter how dark of a day it is. Can you believe that corner where the windows are, used to be where the tub sat? I’m SO glad we flipped the room around and I think the best decision I made in this room was expanding the size of the windows!

I will never get tired of waking up to this view of the river and every day I’m thankful for it.

So after seeing all the pictures, would you agree with me that it’s about a 100% improvement from what it was before?

If you didn’t get a chance to check out the master bathroom reveal, you can see it by clicking HERE.

I hope you enjoyed the tour!

Shop the look of this bedroom-

BHG Faux Fur pillow from Walmart
BHG baroque gold frames from Walmart
BHG gold foil heart pillow from Walmart
BHG bedside lamp from Walmart
Montevilla curtain rods from Walmart
4′ White Christmas Tree from Walmart
Wall color – Benjamin Moore, Natural Cream (OC-14)

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Farmhouse Chic Kitchen Mini-Makeover

Anna — Wed, 10 Aug 2016 11:00:28 +0000

Thank you Better Homes and Gardens at Walmart for sponsoring this post. All my opinions about their beautiful products, are my own.

Last month I was super fortunate and got to visit the Better Homes and Gardens headquarters again, in Des Moines, Iowa. While I was there “Farmhouse Chic” was all the rage, which got me thinking about our kitchen.

With our pine ceiling, and open shelving, we have the Farmhouse look going on in the kitchen, so I thought, why not add a little “Farmhouse Chic”.

One of the things I was really inspired by, at the BHG headquarters, were the staged sets, especially the kitchen/dining room. I’m not always good at thinking outside the box but I loved the way the stylists mixed colors and textures.

For example, I love these shelves and never in a million years would I have thought to put a bowl of lemons and a fern on them! But I went home and looked around at some of the Better Homes and Gardens products I already had and started a mini-makeover of my kitchen shelves.

I started by coping the stylists and used my oval serving bowl (from my outdoor dining post) to add some lemons to the shelves for color. I also potted a succulent (because they’re the only kind of plants I can grow) in one of my silver pieces to add color and sparkle!

There were a few other Better Homes and Gardens products, sold exclusively at Walmart, that I had seen in Des Moines that I really wanted to add to my collection so I headed to Walmart, so I could finish the mini-makeover!

I found this wire tray, (which was only $15.88!) and brought in the clover lantern from my front porch makeover, to hold my wooden cooking utensils. I love the way it turned out because it’s much more Farmhouse chic, and stylish, than what I had there before. And in the spirit of “thinking outside the box” I also added a succulent for a pop of color color.

When I saw these dishes on a set in Des Moines, I knew I had to have them. I have never been one for colored dishes (we’ve always had plain white ones) but I loved the color, style and texture of the Teal Medallion dishes, and for less than $30 for the whole set, they make a statement, without being too overwhelming or expensive! And they add great color to my shelves, don’t you think?

I made a few other tweaks, like moving my cutting boards, moving some glasses around and adding color to the top shelf, and I’m really happy with the way it turned out. I think it’s a big impact and I didn’t have to spend a lot to do the makeover (win-win).

Here’s another look at the before –

And here’s the after –

Not only is my kitchen now “Farmhouse Chic” but it’s warmer, more inviting and much more colorful! What do you think of the changes?

Shop this look:

Follow Better Homes and Gardens at Walmart to see all the cute stuff coming out this Fall!

Disclaimer – I am part of the BHG Live Better Blogger Network; this post is sponsored by BHG at Walmart. All opinions are my own. This post contains some affiliate links, for your convenience. Click here to read my full disclosure policy.

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