Stanley Tudor Revived

Showing posts with label Stanley Tudor Revived. Show all posts

9.16.2026

Much-needed simple garage makeover

This was basically the last space in this house to get renovated! I've touched every room, the yard, the exterior, even the roof... all that was left was this garage and maybe some closets, ha! It wasn't a priority, just an eyesore that made me feel a little yucky, until we decided to get married in our backyard. I knew all our family and friends would see it if they walked through, plus I wanted a nice clean space for the catering folks. So we got motivated and decided to redo it!

7.21.2026

Backyard transformation over the past few years, nice enough for our wedding!

Because this house was such a fixer-upper and needed so many big projects to essentials like bathrooms and the roof, it took me a while to get to the yard. I’m also not a gardener, or at least I haven’t been so far in my life, so aside from grass versus pavers, I wasn’t sure what to do in our backyard for a long time.

But over the past couple years, I’ve made some very impactful changes that have made this backyard a wonderful place, so much so that we just got married here!

5.04.2026

Full 'after' tour of our Tudor revival fixer-upper house and all sources

My home was recently featured in a full tour on Homeworthy, and I've spent the past year finishing the last little projects in preparation... I'm so proud and happy to call it DONE and share it all on here! (At least inside. I’ll save the exterior for another post when everything is in bloom this summer.)

If you want to see where it all started, you can check out the full before tour HERE.

I bought this house in 2018, when Otto was a newborn, and I had more vision than time, more determination than budget, and no idea how many changes would happen in my life and how many times I would redo certain rooms.

Some spaces came mostly together quickly, others evolved over and over as I figured out my style, what works for our family, and what actually feels right in a 1937 Tudor revival home.

12.29.2025

2025 recap and 2026 project goals!

2025 was a year of finishing touches and classic upgrades—the kinds of projects that make our historic home feel more polished and personal. Here’s a look back at the projects I actually completed and documented this year, plus what I’m dreaming up for 2026.

2025 Home Project Recap

1) Dining Room Updates

In January (worst time to refinish furniture outside) I refinished a vintage Ethan Allen table. Such an improvement from the Target farmhouse-ey one I had had for years.

And then, after years of trial and error, I found the right size rug for this room! I landed on this classic jute rug in a square (comes in so many sizes and multiple shapes!) that actually fits this square room and makes it feel finished.

Classic jute rug in square dining room

3) Wallpaper Projects

I swapped the old peel-and-stick for a tree-and-daisy print that suits the Tudor vibe of my house, and is an instant mood lift the second you walk in.

Historic Tudor entryway wallpaper

I also added wallpaper to my upstairs bathroom in this charming floral and bird print that makes it feel like a treehouse! I did some other updates there too, like a sink skirt and painting the cabinet. I love it in there now.

4) Window Treatment Upgrades

I upgraded several rooms from worn fabric shades to woven bamboo with top-down options—so much prettier and more practical.

In my bedroom I replaced some sad old Target blackout curtains and layered a blackout Roman shade with pinch-pleat linen curtains (with ribbon trim!) which I love against my custom peachy-pink walls!

Pinch-pleat linen curtains with trim

5) Timeless Style Updates to My Plain All-White Kitchen

I was so excited to replace my old DIY industrial shelves with these pretty curved painted brackets that are much more appropriate for my home's style, and look pretty with my trim and plate walls.

I did some other small swaps too, to get more of a Nancy Meyers kitchen feel and less of a confused 2018 modern traditional boring fee. I added warmth and character with my polished nickel hardware, sink skirt, and more) to align with my classic style.

Timeless kitchen details

6) Sod and More for the Yard

This spring I spent a lot of money having my backyard redone (it was a wreck after the patio project), plus the front and side yards, with sod, fresh mulch, and some cleanup/pruning. I bought a hose sprinkler system and timers and kept it watered (unfortunately that meant three $300 water bills this summer) and it all is still looking great!

Here it is right after install. So flat and smooth... ahhh...

But it needed something. I had them remove 2-3' of sod around the edges and plant a million hydrangeas, small shrubs, and other plants I bought at a local garden store's fall 40% off sale. I have yet to see it all in bloom, but already it looks a little better (as good as it can in its sad Oregon winter yard dress).

Plus we added some classic swings to the cherry tree, and new chips under it, and new plants tucked in elsewhere too. Here's a lovely Oregon winter photo for you.

7) Major Living Room Upgrades

The living room finally feels balanced thanks to a custom-size jute rug—proof that the right dimensions are so important.

Getting the new sofas in here was so important, too. I started with these and then got a second of the blue velvet, we love it so.

2026 Project Goals

Here’s what I’m planning for the year ahead...

1) Finish the Basement Media Room

This fall after Micah moved in, we got a TV for the basement, and he brought his weights down there to use as a gym sometimes. It was not looking cute so I brainstormed... decided to get some pre-assembled kitchen cabinets and install them as built-ins! And I found a classic slipcovered Pottery Barn sofa on Facebook. And added this nice rug.

But... it's still a work in progress. I'm not sure what to do on that big blank wall with the outlet in the middle (was meant for a TV when I had a different layout planned), it needs art/interest (that lamp on the cabinets is temporary), and we need a coffee table or ottoman. Sometime in 2026!

I'm also working on the toy areas down here, with more storage, getting rid of the little kid stuff, and creating a Barbie village for Lucy that you can see parts of here.

2) Lucy's Room Updates

I think it's time for an update to this darling room now. Lucy got some American Girl doll things this Christmas and currently has about 5 doll beds taking up space on the long wall.. I just moved the rocking chair out, but I think she needs some more storage of some kind here. Plus that DIY Roman shade I made years ago has finally stopped retracting when I push it, so I think it's time for a new one in a cute pattern she can help choose.

3) Yard/Garden

Now that I've spent the big bucks on sod and polishing, it's time to add in layers with pretty plants... I'm excited to see what I've planted bloom! Hope it all does well. I'm not sure what else I'll need next. Probably a few more smaller, filler plants here and there.

4) Minor Decor Updates

It feels like such a privilege to have such a short list! After almost 7.5 years of projects here (including the hard ones), it's a wonderful feeling that aside from some function upgrades, mostly I'll just make some minor aesthetic changes like I hope to replace one of my gold mirrors with something more antique, and I need some better lamps for the basement. On the thrift/antiquing list!

As always, thanks for following along—here’s to a cozy, classic, and creative 2026!

12.15.2025

Classic Christmas decor around the house

Classic Christmas Around Our Tudor Revival Home

Welcome to our cozy holiday house tour! I've been doing traditional reds and greens the past few years but this year decided there is nothing wrong with the basic Hallmark color palette... it's not overdone, it's classic! So you'll see some needlepoint, plaid, brass, and lots of greenery—layered over my existing "new traditional" decor. Come on in and see the living room, dining room, kitchen, bedrooms, and even the new guest room all decked out.

Linking everything I can to shop below!

Entry & Living Room Welcome

The living room features the tree and mantel so is automatically Christmassy, but this year it also has a puzzle table! One of the things Micah brought with him. We've done a couple already! So cozy and relaxing.

Tudor Revival living room with classic Christmas decor

9.16.2025

The perfect high quality rug solution for a uniquely shaped room!

I have just majorly up-leveled my living room! (I hope I used that term right.) Point is, I have a unique, long, skinny living room in my historic Tudor revival house and there is just no way that a modern standard rug was ever going to be the right size. Back in the day homeowners could order from the Sears & Robuck catalog or other mail order sources to get a custom piece of carpet or linoleum cut to exactly the right size to give a nice border around the room. My parents' 1910 home still had some of these when they bought it, and my 1937 home has very clear lines where the wood floor has discolored from the sun over time around the edge of a perfectly sized floor covering.

But now nowadays, a 10'x14' or 12'x16' rug are about as big as you can get and they are just not the right dimensions… Until now! There is a new way to get incredible quality natural material, fully custom size rugs, down to the inch!

Custom Jute rug for my uniquely shaped living room

I actually started with an 8'x10' rug in this room and just kept slowly getting bigger over the years. Finally we had a 10'x14' which was close-ish to the right width, but there were these two bare floor areas on either side of the couches. I put a small vintage rug on one, but it wasn’t a great look. My kids played so frequently in the other one, near the bookshelf with toys and books and Barbies, and I really wanted something comfortable there for them. Plus, you’ve probably heard this before… a too-small rug makes a room look smaller! Repeat that after me… When your rug is too small, it makes your room look smaller!

8.06.2025

Bedroom updates, and affordable custom trimmed curtains

After many years of subpar window treatments in my bedroom… I finally cracked the code! I had been using slightly-too-short standard 84" Target curtains, pretty good blackout, but just the hidden tab top, because I knew they would be quiet for opening and closing while the kids were sleeping nearby. But I really wanted the elegant look of pinch pleat curtains on rings. Well, I figured it out!

The best window treatments for my primary bedroom

The solution: layered Roman shade and curtains. I got this beautiful woven Roman shade from Twopages, with a super thorough blackout lining, and I mounted it outside the window to block the light around the cracks and allow all the light I can through the window when the shade is open. This thing is so powerful, but all I need is the shade closed for a seriously effective blackout (and it’s silent when I open and close it).

7.30.2025

Floral wallpaper transformation (and more) in our plain upstairs bathroom

I think I’ve done it… I think I’ve wallpapered the last room in this home that needs it! I hesitated for a while because I had already renovated this bathroom… Back in 2020, with kind of a mix of that organic earthy modern thing that was trending for a while plus some traditional elements like wainscoting. It was...fine. Honestly, fine. But I also thought it was sort of begging for wallpaper about the wainscoting on the white walls.

7.22.2025

New sofas in the living room!

A couple years ago I finally figured out the right layout for my long skinny living room. Two couches facing each other: simple and classic, but very comfortable, with lots of seating options. Plus an ottoman instead of a coffee table for comfy foot resting, and of course lots of forts and jumping by the kids. But as for the sofa style, I debated for probably a year and a half before I figured out the right combination. Well, they’re finally here and I’m so excited to reveal them!

Thanks to Interior Define for partnering with me on this post.

6.18.2025

Re-doing the entryway wallpaper! With something way better

Well, I’m to the point of redoing DIY projects I did at this house a few years ago…! I wallpapered this entryway with peel-and-stick wallpaper in 2021, My first wallpaper project in this house. That paper was trendy and kind of modern and never exactly perfect for this house. But, it was neutral and not offensive, and I wasn’t sure what else I would choose. But an entryway is such an important moment. When you first walk into the house, I wanted it to be really special.

Thanks to Sandberg Wallpaper for partnering with me on this post.

5.22.2025

Finally, the right size rug for the dining room!

This dining room was the first room I called "finished" when we moved in almost 7 years ago, and because dining rooms have pretty basic ingredients, it hasn’t really changed all that much. I’ve definitely improved it though, several times. But the thing I was never able to get right was the rug. This room is about 12' x 12', which means a standard 8'x10' rug looks… OK? But definitely not high-end or really comfortable.

Thanks to Rugs USA for partnering with me on this post.

4.17.2025

Cutest patterned Roman shades, and outside mounting them

I’ve installed many Roman shades in my house, but only just now did I install any outside mount. Inside mount is typically the ideal, because then it doesn’t block any of the trim around your windows. But on some windows, there isn’t a deep enough trim, or maybe you don’t have trim and you want to make the window look taller. Or in my case, I didn’t want to block any of the light that I didn’t have to, and when you install inside mount, you automatically block the top 6+ inches of the window when the shade is folded up.

4.09.2025

Fast, super functional custom bamboo and woven Roman shades

An overall goal I have for my home these days is using timeless, high-quality pieces. Since we’ve been here 6 years now and I’ve been decorating it pretty much the whole time--sometimes that means redoing something I did when I didn’t know any better. When we first moved in, I bought quite a few cheap Amazon Roman shades because they had the top-down option and they sort of looked like linen. For Otto's room I got a different model that was more blackout. Neither of these held up very well or looked very good.

It was overwhelming to think about replacing them--there are several windows and I knew they were going to be lots of options to choose from now that there are so many affordable custom window treatment options--but I put the time in and I’m so happy with it!

Thank you to Neutral Curtains for sponsoring this post.

1.31.2025

Vintage dining table refinishing project

I’ve been looking for a dining table for about two years, since I started refreshing my dining room with some more traditional pieces and getting rid of the modern traditional/Farmhouse look I liked when I first moved in. This house was built in 1937 and is a Tudor revival, but has a few federal revival elements in it too, and that’s my favorite style of old houses.

I’d been scouring Facebook Marketplace and had given up my search, but then this vintage Ethan Allen table with three leaves and lovely curved legs popped up in my feed. It was in rough shape, but I think it was $60. And miraculously fit in my car. I picked it up after work and then my dad helped me get it out of the car and into the garage where it’s at for months, overwhelming me.

I mentioned to a friend that I had a dining table to refinish and she said she’d help me. I should’ve asked her before, I knew she was good at refinishing furniture! Anyway, I’m so happy I did and I now have a much better dining table in my dining room!

Vintage Ethan Allen Dining Table Refinishing

1.25.2025

Strawberry floral and gingham little girl room!

Four years ago we finished Lucy's nursery in the "pointy room" upstairs. This house has four bedrooms with closets plus this room and the basement, which sounds like a lot but nothing is perfectly laid out for traditional family living (e.g. all bedrooms on the same floor, or kids upstairs and primary suite downstairs)... and this room is only accessible through my bedroom! Won't always work, but for now (she's four and I'm single), it works great.

I've made a few updates over time (like these pegs for hanging clothes instead of a closet), but she slept in the crib until recently. (It was great. She never tried to climb out, either!) But this summer I found a charming vintage (c. 2002) daybed on Facebook and repainted it, and just now I finally found the perfect bedding and accessories. "Big girl" room complete!

Lucy's Big (Little) Girl Bedroom Update

The pointy ceiling and low walls add a lot of drama!

12.28.2024

2024 recap / 2025 goals

2024... my rate of progress on this house is directly related to my 1) financial comfort but also 2) my emotional state RE the rest of my life which includes health, parenting, my coparenting relationship, and dating. I was all over the place on those things in 2024 so I had some bursts of feeling good and having lots of creative energy for house projects, and some bursts of being distracted (good and bad). In general I'm feeling pretty close to "done" with this fixer upper, at least with the important stuff, but continuous improvement is my style and I'll probably always be refining. So, here are my top projects of the past year, and what's on the list for next year, assuming those two things go well. (:

Historic home project recap

My goals for 2024 were:

1. Finish the basement. Paint touch-ups, etc. I got about 25% of those done, but getting out all the right paint and finding a wall patch solution have been overwhelming so it's still not there. I did finish the laundry room.

11.22.2024

Stairwell wallpaper project reveal!

It doesn’t feel like that long ago that I learned to install traditional pasted wallpaper, but I realize I have now done six rooms in my house, and I love it so much! It really makes such an impact. It’s a bit more of a pain than painting, but really only a little.

I recently redid this project in 2019--my idea of redoing a space in 2019 was basically painting it white and adding some black and gray. :P This house felt so old and dusty, and that was my reaction to it. But now I am trying to complement it a little more, although still working with what I have, which is lots of white trim.

Stairwell wallpaper project

This stairwell goes down to our basement, which two years ago we had finished out with drywall and added a bathroom, so it’s actually a relatively nice space to play, plus I do laundry there. So I walk through this stairwell quite frequently, but it was always a little dingy and plain.

It’s also the door out to the trash can area and driveway so it’s a holding spot for things I want outside of the kitchen. I added some hooks to make it more functional before, but it was still really lacking in looks.

It’s right off the kitchen where I’ve recently been trying to add some traditional style and warmth, like with my vintage plate walls.

11.20.2024

Living room update! Rug, sconces, plates, and unique curtains

My living room has been a great canvas the past few years. Living rooms are hard to decorate (there are so many options for what might work) and I've tried a lot of different things. I don't think I'll ever be totally done, but I'm feeling so good about some of these new pieces and think they will last a long time.

Historic Tudor revival house living room update

11.12.2024

Back patio door replacement + tips to Paint Smarter!

This spring I had my driveway and back patio replaced with new concrete (read about that here). It was an expensive project and it had quite a few domino effects and other little things it encouraged me to get done around the backyard. One domino was this strange back patio door we’d had with a 5” or so ledge you had to step (or trip) over. I had the concrete guys cut the ledge down to the grade, but then the old door was too short! I found an antique one on Facebook, probably around the same age as my others (1937 home with all the original doors). I’ll spare you the installation saga (it took two handymen and a custom brickmold trim order to get this thing installed right…) but I also really took some steps to do the painting of the new door and trim right, and I’m sharing a few tips for smart paint purchasing, storage, and recycling in this post.

This post is sponsored by PaintCare, an organization with a ton of resources to help you paint smarter and recycle paint!

9.17.2024

Basement laundry room but make it cute - reveal! And sources

A basement laundry room is not my dream situation, but I’ve finally finished renovating and now styling this one and am happy with it! It was part of the big basement renovation project that we started in early 2022 but, thanks and part two divorce and lots of other priorities in life, there were still paint, touchups and other things to do until very recently. little by little finished parts of this room and then finally got the final piece, very cool, traditional drying rack!

Old House Basement Laundry Room Reveal

The blue on the walls is a shade darker than the blue on the drywall around the rest of the basement: the laundry room walls and trim and the trim everywhere else is Sherwin-Williams 6228 Refuge, the walls in the rest of the basement are SW 6227 Meditative. It’s actually really beautiful blue color, not too dark despite this being a slightly darker space, perfect amount of muddiness.

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