Hi everyone! With the move behind us, I’m finally sitting down to catch up on the last 7 weeks in one post…. so here goes nothing!
Let me start by saying it was bittersweet leaving our little hillside condo. It was the first real place we lived in longer than 6 months together, and after almost 4 years {and one puppy later}, it became a real home. I’m a firm believer that no matter where you live, whether you rent or own, you can make any space YOURS, and that’s exactly what it was. After all was said and done, we ended up moving only a few miles south and went from this (above) to this (below). I guess change isn’t so bad after all ; )
Apart from the first studio we ever lived in, we’ve landed all our rentals on Craigslist. Truth be told, there’s actually quite a few honest landlords out there, and within 3 days we discovered, visited, applied, went through background checks, and got accepted to the new digs {truly a miracle}! For about a year, we had been wondering how it was all going to work out, and were even considering moving out of the county to a more affordable area; but we learned to follow God’s plan and go wherever he takes us. Those blind curves were hard to see around, and after writing a buttload of scary checks all at once {what are we doing, what are we doing, what are we doing} the Lord proved to be faithful and our decision was sounder than ever – we were able to find a rad place within our budget and exactly where we wanted to continue living!
At first glance, the place was pretty standard {and messy, i.e the photo above}. It was presently occupied by a single dude {who, by my totally non-judgemental assumption of all his belongings, was super into Tecate, X-Box, and keeping furniture that he doesn’t actually intend to use} so it took super-human strength to see through the clutter and into the amazing potential the one-story duplex offered.
First, the plants. I MEAN THESE PLANTS! The Lord certainly knew I would live here someday because he planted a million succulents of every species imaginable, and paired with the weathered blue fence, this place really was irresistible. Truth be told, if single dude refused to move out and left all his junk behind, I’d be ok camping in the yard because it’s that dreamy.
The palm trees around here are too good to be true – and the view from our patio is like waking up in Hawaii every day. The birds even sound different and there’s a constant breeze. Ah. Pinch me!
Before we knew where we were going to live, we had a Pinterest board going to gather color and design inspiration, so it was pretty simple to pull our thoughts together once we were ready for action. I’d been dying to experiment with navy blue in at least one of the rooms, so we settled on Behr’s English Channel for the master bath and a light gray for the rest of the house {Behr’s Gentle Rain}, with the exception of the guest bathroom, which remained white.
While you can’t really tell in the first photo, the grey actually appears as light lavender in certain lighting, which was quite the surprise but something we couldn’t really change considering we’d already painted the whole house {whoops}. However, once all the furniture was added, this became much less noticeable and I like the contrast it provides while adding a bit of warmth over basic white. Our dining table {original post here} was brought down to standard height using metal piping, and we scored 8 metal chairs {6 shown here} from Target for a killer deal.
The master bathroom was bland and sterile before…
But became much more cozy after! This photo was taken a few days before we moved in, so it’s changed quite a bit in recent weeks. I was nervous that this shade of blue was going to be too dark, but it was PERFECT and a great compliment to the cabinets. I splurged on a luxuriously fluffy rug since {those toes need to stay warm!}, put a few towel hooks up and am working on finally getting that grey-and-white striped shower curtain I’ve been eyeballing from West Elm to complete the nautical feel.
A friend introduced us to Piggy Boxes, who rent out stackable plastic moving bins instead of having to buy/find/dumpster dive for cardboard ones {then be responsible for breaking them down and disposing them 5 months later}. The boxes get dropped off at your current house, you move them yourself, then they pick them up at the new place. Pretty sweet, and totally worth it, especially since you don’t have to worry about rips or using any tape!
Our living room {the carpeted area} is now actually smaller than our previous one, so our couch {which was a sectional}, had a tough time fitting with our side and coffee tables. Looking to upgrade, we opted for the beautiful Leanne Fabric Slipcover Sofa from Macy’s, and it was an awesome compromise.
Then….. there was THE FRIDGE. I say THE FRIDGE because it was the biggest headache we’ve ever had to deal with and it shouldn’t have been. Long story short, we bought it on Craigslist without really checking out who the seller was {I take back what I said about Craigslist earlier}, and got a crazy good deal on a stunning Whirlpool refrigerator that didn’t, well, refrigerate. The “company” delivered it {late}, no-showed twice to “fix it” {without ever calling of course, because that would be way to professional}, and ignored phone call upon phone call and text upon text for requests to repair our broken appliance. On the third attempt, the tech finally showed and had to replace the entire compressor {the part that actually gives it the ability to cool and freeze, and is normally a $400-$700 repair}. If it weren’t for my family’s help that week, I’m not sure this would have ever been resolved. BUT! There is a happy ending to the story; they didn’t charge us a penny for any of parts or time and anyone who visits our home would never know. Plus, the fridge really is gorgeous!!
{Side note: I took a photo of the truck because up until the day they came to fix it, I wasn’t sure they actually existed. Like a loch ness or evil sasquatch who takes your money. You’ve been warned}.
Phew! Well I think that’s about enough for one post. We’re loving our new home and the area provides easier access to the beach, which I’m so not complaining about. Thanks for patiently standing by – let’s hit the sand soon.
xoxo
Kristina