I've been SOOO bad!

About blogging. Love it. Like to do it. Also like to make it interesting..... and really, just have been working up a storm, traveling like a crazy lady and when I'm home, I sit on my can with my dog and my bf and R-E-L-A-X.




One of these days, I'll have something interesting to write about... but until then, I'll be boring.

But this is not boring.....Our House Tour Crew.

Who is ready for HOLIDAYS?!

Goooo Jackets!

So... the house is done. Well, done enough for now. Your house is really never done, but at least ours is livable and decorated.
I know this blog is devoted to our journey with the house, but now I guess I need to take it another direction with snippets of anything house related along the way.

One reason we purchased this crack house was because of location. Blum and I rented down the street for about 2.5 years and I heart the Short North/Victorian Village area. Everything is around us from excellent restaurants to entertainment. I think I'll share some of my fav places and things to do!

The Arena District is about a mile away from our place. It's Blue Jackets time again. I wouldn't say I'm a crazy fan, but I have to admit, they're getting pretty good and the games aren't just about drinking beer, but you actually want to watch the game. Fair weather fan, sure that can be me :o)


We went to the game Saturday and had a blast. The Nationwide Arena is known for having a great "game" atmosphere and they do lots 'o fun stuff to keep the fans energized. It also helps when we beat the other team 4-1 and see some fights.

Chas has great tickets and took me, Adam and Jace. It was a good time and great seats!


Outside of the fast action and double high fives, my favorite thing is the Burrito Parachutes. Chipotle drops parachutes out of the rafters and you can win a free burrito and a shirt. They play that song "you dropped a bomb on me... baby" and it's just pure fun! I'm such a nerd.

No seriousness here!

We had a blast! It's so fun to be able to actually do something outside of working on the house!

Finter.... or Wall.

Finter is what is happening right now. It's SUPPOSED to be Fall, but it feels more like Winter... hence, Finter. Or Wall.

Perhaps because I just flew back from California and it was 90 degrees and sunny? Those warm budded Californians made me a wimpy Midwesterner!

I heart Fall. Buckeye Football. Perfect running weather. Changing leaves. Scarves. Boots. Warm Apple Cider. Bangs. Yes, bangs (b/c let's be honest, they get too greasy in the summer). The Doggy Park for Jake. And MUMS!

Jake loves him some doggy park! He tries to pull my arm off because he gets soooo excited to meet new friends and sniff new bums!

Wheeler is our park of choice. It's about a half mile away from our abode and it's ultimate fenced in fun.
Can't you see how happy he be? (I felt a little weird taking pics of other dogs... owners may think I'm a little cuckoo.)

I guess it will be true Finter when this stuff arrives.....

Roman Shades by Kaye

I read my other friends' blogs and see how creative they are and how they have an inner seamstress (see Under A Green Roof)... well, I have no inkling of that type of talent. Thus, I turn to Kaye. She made ALL of our window fixtures.

Kaye found this fantastical website called Make Roman Shades.com. You can input your style and your dimensions and wabam! Instant pattern for your roman shades. Why did we pick roman shades you may ask?

Top Three Reasons (according to me)

1) They can let as much or as little light in as you want.

2) They can add to your decor - when down, they look like a fabric panel which gives your walls a little somethin' somethin'

3) If you do them yourselves, you save boo coo amounts of money.

Our main contributors to the house below. My mom and my bf.

Frosted Glass - New Ways to Use It!

I know you're probably getting sick of Tour of Homes photos. But I neglected one other cool aspect of our house that may be a little.... different.
Remember the blue pillars by the staircase? Ugly. Didn't match up with the rest of the drywall. Shotty work. We put Adam's head through one of the pillars...

And ripped all the pillars down to some lovely two by fours.

Then painted some new and improved pillars... now insert frosted glass!

It gives the room an "open" feel and is safe for children or our inebriated friends.

Pretty cost effective and provides a great effect!

Mas Photos!

Upstairs pics.... starting with the hallway with the lovely palm and mirror.

Guest bedroom/office. Those pics are real ones from Europe! And those shades are real ones from the Kaye.

Who wants to come stay?! You actually have a functional bed now.

The master! Duvet cover made by Kaye. The best sheets in the world are from Bed, Bath and Beyond - Pure Beech. Pure AMAZINGNESS.

And then the bath. We had "before" pics sitting out in frames so people could see the nastiness it once was.

I'm not completely done here.... more to come. Have a SUPER DUPER weekend. I will NOT be working on my house :o)

Success with the Tour!

Ah.... we can breathe.

I've never planned a wedding before, but I imagine this could be potentially similar. A year and a half of your life. Working through financials, trying to find ways to be cost effective, but not skimp too much. All for 1 freaking day. Well, this was like a day and a few hours. So yeah. Similar to wadding.

We were #9 out of 11 on the tour.

Are you loving the spilling of the petunias? I didn't know what a petunia was this time last year.

It was a great experience. It wasn't weird for strangers to walk through the house and make comments. It was kind of nice (in a weird way). And we couldn't have done it without Klare, Tong and Zack on Friday as well my mom and dad, Auntie Janice, Cousin Cathy and Moira on Sunday. Also, of course, April and the kids! Thank you.

First floor picks first. Check out these flowers from The North Market Blooms. THEY were BEAUTIFUL. NMB did an amazing job!

You can also see the view of right when you walk into the house.

Glass tile back splash. We received some super nice comments about these. After agonizing over color, April came right over and said "why don't you just go with frosted glass." Genius.

Nick and Adam did the back splash on MONDAY last week.
I have to admit, a little iffy at first on the artwork below. But it grows on me. Don't you love the black buffet? I finally have a place to store all of the stuff that accumulates on the island. Also check out the CUSTOM roman shades. Kaye made them all.

View from the back door.

I'm just getting started. More pics to come this week! Thank you everyone!

Always time for a Buckeye Game

Even though the outcome wasn't what we wanted, it was a beautiful day to tail gate!

We were #1 at one point.... ah well, anytime I hear people poo poo the Bucks or Mr. Tressel, I just think "these guys are freaking 19 years old with the pressure of the whole town. Geesh, give them a break."

You're still fabulous Jim T. and Company.

TWO DAYS UNTIL THE TOUR OF HOMES!!! Fun fact - this will be the last year it's called the Victorian Village Tour of Homes. We are now moving to Short North vernacular to encompass more hoods in the surrounding areas (e.g. Italian Village, etc.).

Get Yer Tickets!

Only 15 bones until the DAY OF the Home Tour (after that it's $20 for Sunday's session, $100 for Saturday with a nice dinner in the hood)! Get your tickets at Spinelli's Deli (quite possibly the cutest and best tasting deli around). Spinelli's is just a hop, skip and a jump from our abode and honestly, one of our life savers during this house rehab. Adam and I spent many a morning getting breakfast bagels and Crimson Cup coffee (THE BEST).

LOVE me some Spinelli's. Locally owned and operated. My fav is a egg and cheese bagel with pepper jack cheese on an everything bagel. Yummo.

We're busy getting ready each day! I shouldn't even be blogging, I should be cleaning or doing some finishing touches! Sunday, my fabu family came to help us with some outside work. I don't know what I'd do without everyone who has helped us... thank you, thank you.

Oh. Wait, that's right.... I'd make a fool out of myself at Company outings, that's what I've been doing too.
Today we got asked to do a "gig" at a Company Sales Conference. WHAT? Did the HEAR us?

Potential Career Suicide?

Last Friday... oh it could have been a train wreck. Thank goodness it wasn't. Our CEO decided that we needed to spice up our Company gatherings and came up with our Company's interpretation of American Idol. I'm not a huge Idol fan, but apparently I am a fan of getting in front of crowds and acting like an idiot.

Since Will, Michael and I have absolutely zero musical talent (I wasn't allowed in choir in the 2nd grade), we tried to win the judges over with our crazy performance talent.

Hence, "You Gotta Fight" (for your Right to Parrrrttaaaayyyyy). Beastie Boys. A classic.



Although Will was a little more obsessed with looking like Kanye West vs. a Beastie.

"You wake up late for work, man you don't wanna go! You ask your boss please but he still says NO!"

We altered the words to relate to work and came up with some crazy dance moves. IF you are curious, we're in the finals in DECEMBER. Woop woop. If I find it on YouTube I may or may not share.... your ears could possibly bleed.

Pictures are the Best.

Ok. I lied. I can upload a picture. I was planning on a blog post that was house related... but while at my parents this evening, I came across this picture below. I just absolutely love this picture. It's my dad (far left), his younger brother Bruce and sister Linda. Doesn't Linda look so innocent? And doesn't it seem like Mark and Bruce are about to throw a bug down her shirt or commit some mischievous act??? They're so ornery looking and Auntie Linda is so serene.

I can't wait to fill our house with pictures of good times and fun moments. Heart it.

Technical Difficulties!

I had every intention to blog and blog WELL this evening (yes, I've been slacking)... we've been up to a lot - Preparing for the Tour, Apsen, Preparing for Potential Humiliation at Company Events, Preparing for the Tour, Picture Printing, Traveling for Work, Boot Camping, Scrambling for the Tour, etc. I can't upload a single picture at the moment. Once our darn internet is working again.... I'll be bock (say it like the Governator).

Top Chef Is BACK!

This is my all time favorite show! Holla if you hear me?! After we finish house things, I'm totally going to focus on my next hobby, watching Top Chef! Jk... well, not really. But I'm determined to learn my way around the kitchen.

Adam did say "now that you have all of these great appliances in the kitchen, will you use them?" YES. I. WILL. :) Do I know what ceviche means? No. Do I eat meat? Not really. Did I have to call my mom to ask how to boil eggs? You betcha. I can still learn how to cook, right?

Backyard...again

I found this one a little too late.... but this is a good before shot from the patio/courtyard.... see last post. We had ladies happy hour last night outside on the newish patio. It was such a blast, we all brought a bottle of vino and an app and caught up on life. I think the highlight from a food perspective was Klare's basil parmesean dip with homemade pita chips and Abbey's granny sandwiches. (I'll get the recipes and post them!).

Mark your calendars! Victorian Village Tour of Homes - September 20th! I think it hit me this week when Adam brought home the Columbus Monthly and there we were, in print. AND then I was stopped in the bathroom at work by our VP of Communications who said she saw our bio in Columbus Monthly as well. AND then, I checked out the website.

It's right around the corner and we have some work to do! Kaye and I are headed to Ikea this weekend fo sho!