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Hello! I'm Suzannah, a serious DIYer and mom of two little ones. Follow along with my DIY fixer upper house renovations, sewing and crafty projects, real food recipes, and de-stressing goals.
I believe you can love your home just the way it is, AND have the power to design and make big changes to make it better.
I'm also the author of DIY Wardrobe Makeovers!

Our house! Before we move again...

In September we moved into a little 1928 bungalow in the downtown of the town I grew up in, 20 miles outside Portland.  The landlord was OK with us painting, and I had big, fun plans for making it cuter!

We did some projects right away, but never had it "done" enough for a housewarming party.  Now, I just got a job in Portland, and while our house is on the light rail line, it's an hour-and-ten-minute train ride to work, and it's cutting into my day too much.  And, my fiancé goes to school in downtown Portland, so he has a long train ride, too.  So, we're moving to a sort of blah 1980's townhouse in NE Portland, less than a mile from my work!

It sucks to be moving again.  Especially since I never really finished working on our current place.  But before we move and start packing (today!), I wanted to take some pics of the house as it is now, and keep them for our memories as well as share them with you.  So take a look at the house I'll be leaving--you'll probably recognize some decor items from previous projects I've done!

Living room:
(Pier 1 flokati rug, vintage side chairs, Pendleton throw, vintage lamp, Pier 1 mirror tables, Ralph Lauren diamond pillow, vintage art, vintage lamps, mirrors I've spray-painted gold, pink ruffle pillow I made, Kitchen Kaboodle couch, vintage clock, Andy Warhol prints in Dollar Tree frames!)

Dining room: (I finally got the lovely grey I wanted for the walls!)
(Vintage table and chairs I spray-painted, random vintage plates, Foo dogs from Home Goods, vases from Fred Meyer, greeting cards and calendar pages in IKEA frames)

Kitchen: (I always dreamed of painting the cabinets white but they're oak and I never wanted to get into such a big project...)
(The real thing--Williams Sonoma Boos block table, the rest are Goodwill finds)

Sewing room: (I'm not showing you the other wall!  It's such a mess!)
(Vintage Singer table, IKEA chair, bulletin board I decorated, insulated blind I made...)

Bathroom, which you've seen before:
Vintage cabinet and ceramic thing, ruffled curtain and shower curtain I made, more calendar art in a TJ Maxx frame)

Stairwell: (More of the pale grey I love, and I always meant to paint the handrail white... oops)
(Lots of IKEA frames and art I did on the canvases)

Our bedroom: (Charming but limited sloped attic ceiling)
(DIY embroidery hoops, red checkered curtain I made, vintage quilt top I made into a quilt, MadeByGirl print, IKEA lampshades on vintage and Target lamps, IKEA alarm clock and yes, that is a Lego storm trooper alarm clock...)

Jason's office: (Also very messy, so here's just one wall)

(This room never got any of my decor attention but I thought I'd include it anyway)

Yikes.  We're moving by the 1st of the month, so I'm doing lots of packing today and after work this week.  Moving sucks!  So much anticipation and everything gets packed away and you don't know where it is anymore, and you just want to get settled already!

I don't know how fast I'll get the other place decorated but I think we'll go ahead and have the housewarming party before we finish, because who knows how long it'll be before it's "done."  I'd love to hear your moving and black-slate decorating ideas!!

22 comments

  1. I love your dining area...I miss Portland. Good luck with your move. It will be a new adventure!
    Cheers...

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  2. PS. I also miss Fred Meyer...sniff...what color is that grey? It's exactly what I've been looking for!

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  3. You will make any place your home. You will have a new place to decorate. Think of it as an adventure.

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  4. I feel for you so much, in my student career I've moved three times and will soon be looking for somewhere to live after uni. My fiance and I are looking forward to living together just the two of us but not looking forward to the hassle of moving.
    I'm sure with time you'll make your new home just as beautiful.

    Pam

    www.geekchicuk.blogspot.com

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  5. I love all your colors and decorations. You've got a knack! I hate painting but that grey might just be worth it. Yes, please specifics on the colors if you don't mind. Happy moving!!

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  6. You achieved so much in so little time! I'm sure it's a shame to leave after so soon, but just think how convenient being close to work will be and the exciting new projects a new home will bring.

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  7. I love your home. I love your living room more, my boyfriend said, it is perfect combination of masculine and feminine taste.

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  8. your landlord must love showing an apartment like that... it is adorable adorable! Your next place will be just as adorable once you put your touches to it!

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  9. I LOVE your kitchen! It's always sad yet exciting to move...good luck with packing!

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  10. You did a lovely job decorating!

    My husband and I have lived in our house for a looooong time ;-) but my kids moves around, so packing/unpacking has been on our agenda. Their secret: some personal stuff makes a home, so do that first.

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  11. Aww, thanks, you guys! Great compliments. I will get back to you on the paint colors soon!

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  12. with all your creative skills the blah 80's home will be great in no time

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  13. Moving is the worst!!!! I know that you will be thrilled once you are settled again.

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  14. Renting definitely gives the luxury of being able to move when life's circumstances change. Although you are leaving one place behind you will likely enjoy your new place even more (it seems it always happens that way). I agree with other posters; your landlord was really lucky to have you to decoarte the apartment!

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  15. Super cute! And I also would LOVE to know what color Grey that is in your dining room, I've been looking for something like that for my living room!!:)

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  16. I am jealous you are moving to NE. We wanted to live up there, but nothing big enough was in our price range. So for now we are in SW. Good luck on the move!

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  17. Your home looks lovely. Good luck packing and moving!

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  18. I love your place - the plate display is so charming and funny, I'm in the process of a DIY embroidery hoop display in my guest room! I hate moving too - I've done it about 18 times and even with all that practice, it never really gets easier or less annoying. We've left so many places without completing our plans - I guess that's the nature of how things go - too many plans, never enough time! good luck! :)

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  19. I agree on doing the housewarming party right away. My fiancee and I were going to have one after we cleaned and fixed up some of the more egregious stuff in our new house... now it's 2 years later. Maybe we'll just show people the house when we get married... but thinking about tackling all those projects while trying to wedding-plan makes my head hurt.

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  20. These pics are like something from a magazine - honestly! Love your house!

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  21. OMG, you guys are so kind! Thanks so much =)

    Very soon I will have to post pics of the outside of the house and tell you what the paint colors were. If I remember I also have some pretty funny "before" shots...

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