Have You Ever Been Inspired By The Decor You Saw In A Great Movie House?

Not sure what got me thinking about this, but a few days ago I was thinking again about how much I loved the home in the movie, Home Alone, and how it had made such an impression on me when I first began buying furniture and decorating my own home. That sent me down another rabbit trail wondering what else have I done in my home that was the direct influence of something I had noticed in a movie … [Read more...]




2 Electrical Updates: A Practical One For The Basement & A Bit Of Luxury For The Bath

This would make a great Metamorphosis Monday post, but I'm eager to share how the electrical work I had done yesterday turned out so let's just dive right on in. It was a good day for getting stuff done! So, remember when the unfinished side of the basement looked like this with insulation visible in the walls between the finished and unfinished side?   When I had the whole house surge … [Read more...]




A Happy, Bright Update for the Basement and Storage Room!

Welcome to the 728th Metamorphosis Monday! How is 2023 treating you so far? I hope it's going well! I'm feeling a lot better now after having caught a bug at Christmastime. I have a basement update for this week's Met Monday. Here's a quick recap if you're new to the basement updates I've been making--I added stair lighting along the right side of the stairway going down.   I also added … [Read more...]




A Few Updates For The Guest Room

Welcome to the 723rd Metamorphosis Monday! It's dark and rainy out so I had a tough time getting some decent photos this morning. Yellow walls seem to completely freak out my camera. The walls in my guest room are a pale yellow, not the dark yellow they appear below.   This photo is a bit more accurate, but still too dark. The yellow you see above the secretary is a bit more accurate. I am … [Read more...]




A Basement-Terrace Level Reveal, Sharing All 3 Spaces and How They Look Now!

Welcome to the 720th Metamorphosis Monday! I am so excited to give you an update reveal on the basement area. As you look at these pictures, please keep in mind that the basement is still not complete--I have many more plans for this space! You may remember when I first started this process a few weeks ago, the basement stairs looked like this. Not sure why, but when this home was built in 1982-83, the … [Read more...]




Painting Starts Today! Also, Progress Has Been Made in the Crawl Space Storage

Welcome to the 719th Metamorphosis Monday! How was your weekend? I hope it was great! I spent it working here in the crawl space area of the basement. My muscles are spent! When I last shared this area, I had just started priming shelves in this space for painting. I also planned to use Drylock on the walls since it's what I found recommended when I did a search for the best paint for basement … [Read more...]




New Lighting–the Basement Staircase Is Transformed! Lots of Updates!

Yesterday was another busy day with the basement renovation. I managed to get a final coat of paint on the wall in the unfinished area and got the shelves fully primed in the smaller storage area. I need to buy paint for those and will do that today or tomorrow. The electrician was here for most of the day doing all kinds of good stuff! At my request, he installed dimmer switches for all the recessed … [Read more...]




Renovating 4 Spaces In My Home, And It’s Happening All A Once! Yikes!

Welcome to the 716th Metamorphosis Monday! The next few weeks are going to be pretty busy around here. I just had a new hot water heater installed and this week I have two different electrical companies coming out to give me estimates on adding additional lighting for the staircase that leads down to my basement/terrace level.  Hard to believe when this home was built around 1982, the only lighting … [Read more...]




New Tablescaping Goodies, Attractive Storage Idea & the Room I’m Renovating Next

I'm headed over to Home Depot today. I have a project I'm working on in both the unfinished, the semi-finished, and the storage area of my basement. I will share a lot more about that on Monday for Metamorphosis Monday. In the meantime, I wanted to share a couple of table purchases I just made recently, as well as a few photos of the semi-finished part of the basement at the end of this post. The fall … [Read more...]




Fortnum & Mason Hamper As a Side Table, Great Place to Hide Throws & Pillows

Welcome to the 711th Metamorphosis Monday! Happy Monday! I hope your week is off to a fabulous start! A week or so ago I shared the arrival of a Fortnum and Mason Hamper I had purchased, along with the goodies that I chose to go inside. I ended up creating my own bespoke hamper to get the size hamper and the contents I really wanted.   When I first placed my order for one of their hampers, I … [Read more...]




Garage Art, Easy Way to Level Cabinets & Such a Cool Tool–I Bought it Twice!

Welcome to the 710th Metamorphosis Monday! Hope your Labor Day weekend is going amazing! I've been goofing off and relaxing a bit, something I find hard to do. lol I always feel a bit guilty if I'm not being productive. Anyone else have that problem? There was one thing that I got done here in the garage, something that's been bugging me since the garage makeover was completed.   See that … [Read more...]




What’s Inside All Those Storage Cabinets? I’m Throwing Back the Doors!

Welcome to the 727th Tablescape Thursday! For this week's Tablescape Thursday, we're taking a peek inside the nine storage cabinets I have here in my garage to see what's stored inside and how it's all organized. I hope this little storage tour offers up a few ideas for your storage needs.   Let's start with the cabinets here on this side wall of the garage. Before we throw back the doors … [Read more...]




Is it True? Will LED Light Fixtures Cause Your Garage Door Opener to Malfunction?

Over the past few weeks as I've shared the updates I've been making here in the garage, one question I've been asked in the comments a couple of times was if the new LED lighting I had installed would create any issue with my garage door opener.   During the renovation process, one of the things I had done was the replacement of the original seal on the garage door. Sometime over the past 40 … [Read more...]




It’s Done! The Cabinets are Back and All Systems are GO!

Welcome to the 709th Metamorphosis Monday! It was a long time coming but I finally have all the cabinets back in the garage and filled back up. Before I share the "After" here's a little reminder of where we started. The garage walls were in need of a fresh coat of paint and much better lighting than the builder-grade lights that had been here for 40 years.   Previously, I had 6 dish … [Read more...]




Garage Storage Cabinets, Progress Has Been Made But There’s Been a Few Glitches

Welcome to the 708th Metamorphosis Monday! As I type this, I'm waiting for the second garage door repairman to arrive. Hopefully, I can get this post up before he arrives. I will have to create a post sharing all the things that have had to be done and redone multiple times so you'll know life isn't all rainbows and unicorns up in here. Ha! Seems like every project I embark on has had a major glitch (or … [Read more...]




Not Again! Unfortunately, yes! Again! Plus, Sharing a Handy DIY Hack

So remember when the garage looked like this?   Well, it looks like this again. Arggh! :( I'll explain more on Monday but basically, the original painter the company sent out did a terrible job of fixing a couple of places on the ceiling where the sheetrock tape that was used 40 years ago was starting to loosen in places. He really botched it. So the painting company has sent out a much more … [Read more...]




A New Addition for the Office & How I Track Down Studs

Back around 2010 when I put my home office together and purchased an office desk chair, one of my top priorities in choosing a chair was its appearance. Of course, I wanted it to be comfortable and great for day-to-day use, but I also wanted it to be pretty and to work with my home office interior. Over the years and many desk chairs later, I have pretty much given up on worrying about how it looks and if … [Read more...]




A Small Addition to the Garage That I’m Absolutely Loving

Welcome to the 707th Metamorphosis Monday! Over the last week, I've been sharing the dramatic makeover my garage went through recently. (See that makeover in full here: Dramatic Garage Makeover with New Lighting, Fresh Paint, and New Flooring.) This weekend I shared over two posts, the 2-day process of how the flooring was installed. A painter will be coming out to complete a few touchups on the back … [Read more...]




Garage Flooring Installation, Day 2–All Done and So Worth It!

In yesterday's post, I shared the first day's process of having a new floor installed here in my garage. You may remember we ended here with the garage door left a few inches open to prevent the door from damaging the newly installed floor. The flooring was left to dry and set up overnight during which time the colorful flakes that had been broadcast out over the floor, would have time to meld with the … [Read more...]




Garage Flooring Installation, Day 1–Here’s How They Did It!

Imagine that you regularly visit a gym for a full workout, but for some reason, you don't go for 3 months. After a 3-month break, you go back, but instead of starting back slowly, you dive full-in doing your old routine as if you've never missed a day. That's how I feel today, every muscle in my body feels like it's had a full workout to the max! I don't think there's a single muscle that's not feeling the … [Read more...]




Where Did You Store All Those Cabinets & Beautiful New Flatware for a Bargain

Welcome to the 724th Tablescape Thursday! Before we get into today's Tablescape Thursday, for those who have asked for it, I've added a printable version of the recipe I shared recently for these delicious Crunch Wraps to that recipe post. You'll find that post here and the printable version of the recipe is right at the end of the post: Crunch Wrap Recipe.   Soooo, though the garage is … [Read more...]




Dramatic Garage Makeover with New Lighting, Fresh Paint and New Flooring!

Welcome to the 706th Metamorphosis Monday! There are so many things I would love to share in this post but if I share everything that's happened through this garage renovation, this post would be a million miles long--and ain't nobody got time for that! Today we'll just enjoy the transformation which is pretty darn dramatic! A little back story: Does something ever needle at you and then one day you … [Read more...]




Three Days That Felt Like a Week

Welcome to the 704th Metamorphosis Monday! Choosing paint, at least for me, is one of the most stressful tasks ever! I hate it, I really, really hate it. Here was my thinking for the garage: I wanted a neutral color for the walls, definitely no red, blue, green, yellow, purple, etc... just something neutral and light, but dark enough that it would contrast with the white cabinets here in the garage. I … [Read more...]




How’s That Garage Makeover Going? Big Things Are Happening This Week!

Welcome to the 703rd Metamorphosis Monday! My home was built around 1982-83 so it's 40 years old now. I've lived here for 32 of those 40 years. Many, many years ago, sometime around the 2001-2002 time frame, I painted the walls of the garage. I don't remember now why I did that, I guess I thought they needed it. In 2010, I turned my son's childhood bedroom into a home office. At that time, I moved all … [Read more...]




Garage Sneak Peek & My Favorites from the Talbots and the Amazon Prime Sale

There are so many great sales going on right now! Talbots has a huge sale going on and here are some of my favorites. I love, love, love their linen tunics and have quite a few. They are perfect for wearing on super hot days since they keep the sun off of your arms, yet are so airy, light, and breathable. This beautiful aqua-colored tunic is on sale 40% off. It was originally $89.50, was marked down to … [Read more...]




Lots of New Upgrades, Plus I’ve Chosen New Lighting for the Garage

Welcome to the 702nd Metamorphosis Monday! Are you familiar with the children's book, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie? In the book, the cute little mouse asks for a cookie. The cookie makes him thirsty, so then he asks for a glass of milk. I've forgotten now what the glass of milk leads to, but each request leads to another and another and another.   This garage project I've embarked on is … [Read more...]




Garage Flooring Has Been Chosen & A Back-Saving, Step-Saving New Purchase

Welcome to the 719th Tablescape Thursday! A few days ago I shared plans to have my garage's concrete floor prettied up. I was trying to choose between two flooring systems: Epoxy vs Polyaspartic Polyurea.   After getting estimates for both methods, I've decided to go with the Epoxy system which is also finished off with a topcoat of Polyaspartic. I know several of you asked that I share in … [Read more...]




Planning a Garage Makeover, Here’s the “Before” and the Plan!

Welcome to the 701st Metamorphosis Monday! For many, many years I've been itching to spiffy up my garage. I've always hated this concrete floor. It's so depressing to look at and never really feels clean.   Last week I got a quote for having Epoxy flooring installed. Tomorrow I'll be getting a quote for another type of flooring that is also very popular called Polyaspartic Polyurea. I … [Read more...]




Will the Green Drapes and The Governor’s Party Painting Still Work for Summer?

Welcome to the 693rd Metamorphosis Monday! Last year I got a bug in my bustle and decided to finally add some art to the wall behind my bed.   Adding this beautiful Chuck Pinson Giclee made such a dramatic difference to the room, I decided to keep going and finally added some beautiful "worn velvet" drapes to the windows. They aren't heavy-looking in person, as velvet drapes could … [Read more...]




New Screen Doors with a Whimsical Dragonfly & Moon-Stars Design

Welcome to the 690th Metamorphosis Monday! These screened doors have been tucked away in my garage, patiently waiting to be installed for two years now.   They were built to replace the doors you see on either side of the screened porch below.   Naughty mice (rats?) made their own door one cold winter when they decided to homestead inside my large gas grill. … [Read more...]




March Favorites & New “Forever” Furniture for Both Decks

Before I share my March favorites, I have to share this awesome surge protector that I had my computer plugged into when a huge lightning strike happened right outside my office recently. That strike caused a surge that took out my cable modem, my speakers, and my garage door opener, but my computer and printer survived the strike completely unscathed. They were both plugged into this surge protector. I … [Read more...]




Coming Updates for the Screened Porch, Along with the Master & Hall Baths

Welcome to the 687th Metamorphosis Monday! I was hoping for this week's Met Monday, I'd be able to share the two screened doors I had custom-made a couple of years back, installed out on the porch. Unfortunately, when the contractor and his crew arrived to install the doors, we discovered the doors were a tiny bit too snug for the openings.     When I ordered the doors, I had … [Read more...]




Art for the Upstairs Hallway: The Beach Girls by Hilarie Lambert

Welcome to the 684th Metamorphosis Monday! A few years back I added a little blue chest to this corner of my upstairs living room.   This room has a beachy/nautical feel because of how it's decorated with lighthouse prints and shells collected while vacationing in Captiva, Sanibel, and Hilton Head Island many years ago. Though I loved the chest here, I eventually moved it to the hallway … [Read more...]




I Listened to You and Went Back for Them!

Okay, this is all y'all's fault! Ha! Since so many of you left comments and emailed saying I needed to go back for the vintage birdie prints I saw while antiquing a few days ago, I decided to take your advice and go back and get 'em. I was shocked by how heavy they were when I removed them from the wall in the antique shop to take them up to the register. I noticed that the frames were real wood, I could … [Read more...]




Changing All My A/C-Heating Ceiling Vents for Better Airflow

Welcome to the 680th Metamorphosis Monday! Not the most exciting Before and After but I am currently in the process of changing out all the air vent covers throughout the upstairs part of my home. I've been meaning to do this for a while. My home is almost 40 years old and some of the original vent covers are looking very tired. I've started with these two here in my bedroom. It has always bugged me … [Read more...]




A New Addition for My Home Office

Welcome to the 678th Metamorphosis Monday! There's a new addition here in my office. It may not be the most aesthetically pleasing piece that I've added to this room, but I'm definitely enjoying it. Recently, I was thinking how nice it would be if I had a smallish treadmill here in the office so when I was in the mood to watch a YouTube video or anything online, I could also be "out for a walk" at the … [Read more...]




IKEA Hemnes Bookcase Review & Sharing Its One Design Flaw

Welcome to the 677th Metamorphosis Monday! Hope you had an awesome weekend! We had a mini-snow storm on Sunday. It was short-lived but pretty while it was coming down. Did you see any snow in your area over the weekend?   In a previous post a few months back, I mentioned the bowing issue I was having with the Ikea Billy bookshelves in my home office. Two lovely BNOTP readers suggested I … [Read more...]




Planning Another Big Change for My Bedroom, the Hallway, Too!

Welcome to the 674th Metamorphosis Monday! I hope you're having a great holiday season. I feel like this period between Christmas and New Years is just one long, extended holiday, a time for slowing down a bit and making plans for the coming year. Today I'm sharing one more change I have in mind for my bedroom for 2022--actually, I started planning this change last May but it's just taken me a while to … [Read more...]




Wow! Amazing the Transformation Curtains/Drapes Can Make in a Room!

Welcome to the 672nd Metamorphosis Monday! Happy Monday Morning! I hope your weekend was amazing! This past week I've been working here in the bedroom.   After adding this Charles Pinson Giclee painting over the bed recently and seeing the way it really transformed how this room looked and felt, it got me motivated to make another change in this space that I've thought about doing for many … [Read more...]




New Drapes for the Bedroom, What Do You Think?

A few weeks ago I shared this Chuck Pinson Giclee painting that I added above my bed. Not sure how it comes across in the photos but in person it completely transforms the feel of this room. It adds so much beauty and warmth to this space and I love seeing it every time I walk into the room.   As I mentioned in that previous post, if a painting can do that to a room, maybe it was time I got … [Read more...]




A Painting Completely Changed The Feel of This Room + A New Purchase for the Bed

Welcome to the 669th Metamorphosis Monday! How was your weekend? I hope it was great! Mine was productive as I got a few things done here in the house that I've been hoping to do for a long time. Around this time last year, you may remember that I was shopping for the perfect frame for this beautiful Chuck Pinson giclee canvas print/painting. I ended up not getting it framed because after finally … [Read more...]




I Think I Finally Found the Perfect Frame, What Do You Think?

Last November, now a full year ago, I was hot on the pursuit of a frame for this beautiful Chuck Pinson painting named, The Governor's Party. The painting depicts the Governor's Palace just as guests are arriving for a Christmas party. I remember touring the Governor's Palace in Colonial Williamsburg many years ago. It was a wonderful experience and I would love to visit again and see it dressed this way … [Read more...]




How Have I Not Ever Noticed This Before?!

Welcome to the 668th Metamorphosis Monday! Last night I finally got around to changing from my spring/summer bedding...   ...to my tartan fall/winter bedding. I'm slow getting it done this year, normally try to make the switch in early October. I think I delayed this year because I was still really enjoying the summer bedding--but it was time. One of the things that always drives me … [Read more...]




All This Furniture Moving–What Has Happened to Me?!

Welcome to the 667th Metamorphosis Monday! I've never been one to move furniture around but I've done that more in the last couple of years than all the previous years combined. Many, many years ago, 1994 to be exact, I fell in love with the soft colors in this room featured in Traditional Home. I love old clocks so the beautiful Bornholm tall-case clock in this room definitely caught my … [Read more...]




Another New Lamp for the Upstairs Living Room

Welcome to the 659th Metamorphosis Monday! Looking at this older photo of the upstairs living room/bonus room/frog makes me want to move the grandfather clock back to this room. I may do that today, I miss seeing it here. But that's not why we're in this room today. Notice the large brass lamp at the end of the sofa.   Here's one more photo taken from the opposite end where you can see the … [Read more...]




A New Bookcase (and Bookcase/Picture Light) for the Guest Room

And just when you thought there wasn't room for one more thing in my guest room... A few weeks back I mentioned in a post about a sagging/bowing issue I've had with the Ikea Billy Bookcases here in my home office.   In the comments of that post, a few BNOTP readers mentioned that Ikea had come out with an all-wood bookcase that was quite similar to the Billy. Thanks, Magdy and Kim for … [Read more...]




The Painting Arrived & I Found the Perfect Place for It!

I can't quit playing in this room. lol Recently I added some cabinets down the left wall of this guest bedroom that's quickly become my "woman cave." lol   I love handbags and have been really wishing for a long time to gather them all together in one spot where I could see and access them more easily. This wall in the guest room was the only wall big enough and the guest room is very rarely … [Read more...]




Musical Lamps

Welcome to the 657th Metamorphosis Monday! Did you ever play the game, Musical Chairs, when you were little? Well, it's been like musical lamps around here lately. lol I may end up with one odd lamp out in the end, not sure at this point. Last week I shared a new lamp I had purchased to use in my home office. It turned out to be much larger than I had expected so not a good fit for the office. Lesson … [Read more...]




Going Waaay Outside My Comfort Zone

So I did something a little crazy today. See that white shelf on the right wall of the guest room? I ordered a new picture for that spot.   I also moved the trunk out of this room that had gotten shoved over onto that wall when I added cabinets down the opposite wall. I moved my vintage dress form from the office back to that spot, although it's not visible in this photo except for a small … [Read more...]




2 Beautiful, New Lamps–Unique in Color and Size, Crazy About Both!

Welcome to the 656th Metamorphosis Monday! Thanks so much for all your input on Friday's post! Appreciate all of your suggestions so much! After three weeks in Ohio, I'm back home now. The weekend was spent unpacking, going through mail, washing clothes, and all the catch-up stuff that usually needs to be done after a few weeks away from home. The two lamps I ordered prior to my trip arrived and I'm … [Read more...]




When I Move One Day, These Are Going With Me

Many years ago when I used to go out antiquing almost every weekend, I ran into a good friend in a local antique shop. I was so surprised to see someone I knew in this large, but kinda off-the-beaten-path shop. She was headed out the door with a big brass chandelier in her hands. I complimented her on her awesome find, it was a beautiful chandelier! As she made her way toward the door, she shared that … [Read more...]




New Lamp for the Guest Room & Contemplating a Change

Welcome to the 651st Metamorphosis Monday! How was your weekend? Hope you had a wonderful one! Last week I shared a lamp I had ordered for my guest room. I've had the same lamp here in the guest room for many years and had been hoping to eventually replace it with something that better suited the colors/fabrics in this space.   You may remember this photo of the lamp from that previous … [Read more...]




A New Lamp for the Guest Room–Love All the Designs!

Welcome to the 650th Metamorphosis Monday! We're playing in the guest room for this week's Metamorphosis Monday. The guest room doesn't see a lot of use, just the occasional friend visiting. Even when family is here, they usually prefer to sleep in another room that has "Queen size" sleeping accommodations.   These photos were taken early this morning so the room is still filled with that … [Read more...]




A Comfortable and Very Functional, “Forest-Themed” Desk Update

Several years ago, I had this fabulous, extra-large mouse pad on my desk. I love a super large mousepad because you never run your mouse off the pad, plus, it provides extra cushion for the arms and wrists.   When I shared this photo in a recent post, a BNOTP reader asked about that mousepad. I chose one with a large world map design back then because I had just started traveling a good … [Read more...]




How I Use 3 Monitors to Work and Play in My Home Office

Welcome to the 646th Metamorphosis Monday, a blog party sharing fabulous Before and Afters! Over the years, my monitor/desktop setup has changed several times. I've been using two monitors for many years. When I'm traveling and working from my laptop, I really, really miss having two monitors. Many years ago when I had cable TV, I purchased a Smart TV to place above my monitors thinking it would give … [Read more...]




So, How Did That Metamorphosis Work Out?

Welcome to the 645th Metamorphosis Monday, a blog party sharing fabulous Before and Afters! Still very badly missing my main computer. You get spoiled quickly when you normally work with two large monitors.  Once I get my new computer, I should have three monitors--looking forward to that. In the meantime, I'm still working from my small travel laptop.   So, I got an idea last night. I was … [Read more...]




Would You Do This? A Big Change for the Upstairs Living-Bonus Room!

Welcome to the 642nd Metamorphosis Monday, a blog party sharing fabulous Before and Afters! In Saturday's post, I mentioned that I was contemplating making a pretty big change here in my upstairs living/bonus room.   This room is a bright, airy room with four windows: two windows at the end and two dormer windows that face the front of the house.   One … [Read more...]




Problem Solved: Hide Those Not-So-Attractive Toothbrushes and Toothpaste

Earlier this week I shared some new additions to my master bath. I'm hoping to fully renovate at least one of my baths next year but in the meantime, I'm appeasing myself by adding little improvements and touches that make my heart happy. For example, I ordered this adorable birdie-themed tissue holder for the counter here in my master bath. Apparently, it's my favorite tissue holder since this is the … [Read more...]




Two Small Bath Updates to Appease My Bath Renovation Yearning

I had a little eye scare recently--it started a couple of days ago. I had something floating across my vision and was seeing flashes occasionally at the top right corner of my right eye. The first time it happened, I thought it was sunlight glinting off my glasses, but then I noticed it happened when I didn't have my glasses on. I called the eye doctor today and they had me come in right away. They … [Read more...]




Changing Out My Winter Bedding for Spring-Summer

Welcome to the 640th Metamorphosis Monday, a blog party sharing fabulous Before and Afters! Changing out the bedding from fall-winter to spring-summer is not for the faint of heart. lol  Usually I wait until someone (like my son) is here to help me. My previous mattress was sooo much lighter and stiffer than my current one and changing the bedding was pretty easy. But my current mattress purchased a few … [Read more...]




Creating a Pretty, Little Beverage Station for My Home Office

Do you ever read blogs on the weekends or do you mainly just read doing the week? I often post on the weekend so was just wondering if you like to get a blog post in your Inbox on the weekend.  (Pssst: If you haven't already, subscribe to get an email whenever I post here: Subscribe for Post Updates. It's completely free and will let you know when a new post is up with a link to the blog.) A few months … [Read more...]




2 Great Ways to Hide Those Unattractive, Metal Swing Chains

Recently when I shared how I've decorated the porch for spring, I received an email asking about the covers I have over the chains of the porch swing.   You got a closer view of them in this photo showing the large egg wreath I hung on the porch for Easter.   I've written a couple of posts over the years sharing in more detail about these covers which are really just electrical … [Read more...]




Making My Bed Like a Pottery Barn Bed

Welcome to the 625th Metamorphosis Monday, a blog party sharing fabulous Before and Afters! Over the past month, I've been getting regular emails from Pottery Barn reminding me that I have a $25 credit that's soon to expire. There's nothing that I particularly need right now but after about the 3rd time that email arrived, I decided to click over and check out their spring goodies. The first thing I … [Read more...]




So Whatever Happened to Those Peeling, Bubbling Columns…

Welcome to the 622nd Metamorphosis Monday, a blog party sharing fabulous Before and Afters! Last October, I shared some photos of my front porch columns and the developing issue I've had with them over the past year. It has been quite a few years since the porch was last painted. Trying to remember--I think I may have had it painted once since it was added on in 2008, but maybe it was just pressure … [Read more...]




Sometimes Small Changes Can Make Your Heart Happy

A few weeks ago I shared a little addition to my office space. If you look closely, you can just see it there to the side of my left monitor.   I'm not sure how, but I came across this clear tissue holder online and loved it. I liked how modern it looked, which is surprising since I normally don't care for modern decor pieces. I liked that it didn't fight the other patterns/colors in the … [Read more...]




Which Frame Do You Like Best with The Governor’s Party by Chuck Pinson?

Welcome to the 617th Metamorphosis Monday, a blog party sharing fabulous Before and Afters! I had planned to share some holiday decorating on the porch today, but I didn't finish the decorating since I stopped to wash the swing covers. That's an older photo below from a previous summer when I removed the covers for washing.   So instead of a decorated porch, how about looking at some … [Read more...]




Bringing Out the Cozy: Fave Flannel Sheets & New Art for My Bedroom

Welcome to the 614th Metamorphosis Monday, a blog party sharing fabulous Before and Afters! This post is going up a bit late because I changed horses midstream. lol When I awoke this morning, all I could think about was how much I wanted to put my flannel sheets on the bed. I'm definitely in the mood for some autumn/fall decorating. Time to cozy up the house before the cold weather arrives! Though I'm … [Read more...]




A Cute Retro-Style Refrigerator for My Home Office

Often when sharing an update here in my bedroom, I end up sharing this view of the room. But just around the corner and out of view is another room.   Previously this was a 4th bedroom, or 5th if counting the Bonus/Frog room, but the first owners of my home closed off the entrance to this room from the upstairs hallway, cut a big opening in the wall to connect it to the Master Bedroom and … [Read more...]




The Best Desk Chair I’ve Ever Had: An Update for My Home Office

Welcome to the 610th Metamorphosis Monday, a blog party sharing fabulous Before and Afters! Today is going to be a busy day around here. The two screened doors for the porch are being delivered and painters will be here cleaning and painting the front porch and washing the decks and the exterior of the screened porch. The cleaning/painting was actually supposed to be done earlier in the spring but … [Read more...]




My Screened Doors are Ready and I’m Sharing the Exact Cost

Welcome to the 606th Metamorphosis Monday! I definitely had a case of sticker shock when I saw the bill for my new screened doors. Maybe I should call it invoice shock instead of sticker shock. In any case, it took my breath away! lol A few months ago I shared the damage that was done to the doors on my screened porch last winter when some very bad mice (or was it rats?) decided to take up residence … [Read more...]




Butterflies for the Wall & The 2 Screened-Door Designs I Chose for the Porch

Welcome to the 602nd Metamorphosis Monday! My daughter-in-law, Nancy, recently added these adorable butterflies to a wall in the downstairs hallway of their home. She liked them so much, she decided to order two more packages. So there will be a lot more butterflies joining these real soon.   They are subtle against this pale yellow wall and sooo pretty! I love how she arranged them, feels … [Read more...]




Fun Updates for My Home Office: Some Additions and One Subtraction

Welcome to the 601st Metamorphosis Monday! It's been ages since I shared some updates here in my home office. I put this room together many years ago, Over the years it hasn't changed a ton, but there have been some little updates and tweaks along the way. The furniture I chose for this room so many years ago was Pottery Barn's Bedford furniture. Bedford furniture was designed to mix and max to … [Read more...]




Add Stars to the Ceiling of Your Bedroom, Living Room or Theater Room for a Magical Experience

Welcome to the 600th Metamorphosis Monday! Last week I shared this photo of a bedroom with a star-covered ceiling. I loved the look of this so much, I ordered a few stars to see how they would look on my bedroom ceiling.   After doing a little test run with a few stars, I decided to go for it. I ordered a bunch more stars from different companies and got to work placing them on my … [Read more...]




Starry Starry Night, Turn Your Bedroom Into a Starry Haven for Sleeping

Welcome to the 599th Metamorphosis Monday! Have you ever ordered something and when it arrived it exceeded your expectations? That doesn't happen very often, does it? I've been wanting to create a starry sky effect on my bedroom ceiling but my first attempt didn't work out so great.   At first, I ordered one of those machines you see online that projects stars onto the ceiling. I should … [Read more...]




A Front Yard Landscape Update, Green Beauty Boxwoods Growing Like Weeds!

Welcome to the 597th Metamorphosis Monday! Over the past few months, I've had several requests to give an update on the front yard landscaping I completed back during Spring 2016. I've been meaning to share an update because I'm absolutely stunned how much the Green Beauty Boxwood shrubs I planted back then have grown! Here's a before photo that was taken that May not too long after I planted all the … [Read more...]




Turning Lemons into Lemonade: New Doors for My Screened Porch

Welcome to the 595th Metamorphosis Monday! You know that old saying, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade? Well, today's Before and After is definitely a case of me trying to turn some pretty sour lemons into some delicious lemonade. But before I pour you a glass of lemonade, I want to share some napkins I'll be using later this week in a patriotic table setting, in case you are in need of napkins … [Read more...]




A Low-Cal Indulgence, A New Floor Lamp for My Bedroom & Puzzles are Back!

Working on a table setting for tomorrow's Tablescape Thursday, but thought I'd pop in with a few goodies and ideas I've been wanting to share ever since I arrived back home. One of the first things I needed to do upon my return was head to the grocery store to stock up on a few things. If you've been reading BNOTP for a bit, you may know I'm not the biggest fan of hot coffee, but I do love iced coffee, … [Read more...]




Loved This Lamp So Much, I Bought It Twice!

If you've been reading Between Naps On The Porch for a while, you know I'm a crazy lamp lady. I don't remember when my love of lamps started, but at some point many years ago, I discovered how much prettier, cozier and better the rooms in my home looked by lamplight--the more lamplight, the better! Overhead lighting can make a beautiful room feel cold and sterile--pretty much the opposite of cozy. For … [Read more...]




3 Ways to Decorate a Hutch for Spring and Summer

From reports back home, I know my screened porch is covered in this stuff right now. Ugh.   I'm trying to imagine it looking more like this, though.   There's a hutch on the porch that I always love decorating for spring and summer.   This is the dishware I most often use on the porch: Ma Maison by Tabletops Unlimited, designed by Darrio … [Read more...]




2 Before & Afters: How My Daughter-in-Love, Nancy, and I Work from Home

Welcome to the 585th Metamorphosis Monday! Hope everyone had a great weekend! I have an exciting, pretty "Before and After" to share today, actually a couple of Before and Afters! You may remember a while back I purchased this small desk to use when visiting my son, daughter-in-love and grandchildren. In the past, I always brought along my laptop. Combined with an exterior monitor, this set up worked … [Read more...]




On the Hunt and I’ve Found a Keeper!

Welcome to the 584th Metamorphosis Monday! Back in March 2015, I wrote a post about my search for the perfect sleeping pillow. At that time, I had just ordered a new mattress/box springs for my bed and had foolishly tossed my old pillows thinking I should replace those, too. Unfortunately, the new pillows I purchased were super uncomfortable and I really regretted getting rid of my old ones. I found … [Read more...]




A Dining Room Update That’s Been a Long Time Coming

Welcome to 579th Metamorphosis Monday! Many years ago, long before I began blogging, I had the walls in my dining room papered in a pretty, yellow and blue (with touches of raspberry red) wallpaper. These pictures, taken just before a little dinner party with friends, do not do the wallpaper justice. The paper was a beautiful, elegant pattern and I loved it for many years.   Back then, I … [Read more...]




8 Ways to Brighten Your Home (and your Spirits) During These Cold Winter Months

Welcome to the 573rd Metamorphosis Monday! Recently I was chatting via email with Selma whose beautiful table setting I featured a few weeks ago. During our email conversation, Selma asked if in a future post I'd share some ways we can brighten our home during these cold winter months. I know our homes can sometimes feel a bit empty and sad after we've put away all our festive holiday decorations. One … [Read more...]




Delight the Little Ones with a Christmas Bedroom Makeover

Welcome to the 569th Metamorphosis Monday! Merry Christmas and the most happiest of holidays to you! Today I'm sharing a fun, whimsical makeover I semi-completed for my grandsons' bedroom recently. I say semi-completed because the artwork I ordered to go above their beds wasn't the quality I expected and had to be returned. I've also ordered a different lamp and will share how it looks once it … [Read more...]




A Recent Kitchen Upgrade That’s Life Changing & Eating Dinosaurs for Breakfast

Family is en route right now so while I have a moment I wanted to share a life-changing update I just made in my kitchen (in case you find it helpful) and something that should make breakfast a lot more fun for the little ones this week. I just purchased this fun waffle maker and I can't wait to see my grandsons' faces when I serve them dinosaur waffles for breakfast! They are dinosaur obsessed right now … [Read more...]




A Cozy Autumn Winter Bed & A Big Sale Announcement

Welcome to the 558th Metamorphosis Monday Happy Autumn to you! I've been playing around a little in my bedroom, changing out the summer sheets for something a bit cozier for fall.   You may remember I recently ordered these sheets to pair with my winter bedding. (Sheets are available here: Woodland Sheets.)   I've never shown my bed turned down here on the blog. Do you know … [Read more...]




Easiest, Fastest Way to Remove Lint and Dust from Bedding and Dust Ruffles

Welcome to the 557th Metamorphosis Monday~ I had meant to post this weekend but unfortunately, I've been under the weather. Thankfully I'm feeling a bit better this evening so I thought I would go ahead and get tomorrow's Metamorphosis Monday post up for you now. Update: Before we get into this post, just discovered that Mr. Pheasant went on sale this weekend, 30% off! You'll find him on sale here: … [Read more...]




Proof I Will Never Grow Up, As If You Needed It

Welcome to the 555th Metamorphosis Monday! Remember the dinosaur bookends I bought for my grandson's bedroom...   ...when my daughter-in-law and I completed a full makeover of their room?   Yup, I'm talking about the ones there behind the dinosaur eggs. lol   I loved them soooo much when we did the makeover...   ...I decided I had to have a set … [Read more...]




A Blue Painted Chest for a Beach-Themed Upstairs Family Room

Welcome to the 554th Metamorphosis Monday! I'm not sure why, but every time I order any kind of furniture from Amazon, my local UPS always delivers it busted up and damaged. Remember the multiple ordering attempts I made when trying to get cabinets for my garage? I ended up ordering them via Walmart and had them delivered to my local Walmart Market where I picked each cabinet up in my SUV and … [Read more...]




What If Gray Lamps…and Finally, The “Personalized” Pillow Shams Are Here

A few days ago I shared a Before/After my daughter-in-law and I completed in my grandsons' bedroom. (View that post here: Bedroom Makeover: Dinosaur Themed Bedroom for Two Dinosaur-Loving Boys.)   The week before this bedroom makeover, I stopped by my local At Home store and picked up some lamps I hoped would work with the bedding and the chest we planned to use.   The night … [Read more...]