Welcome to Our Home!

Welcome to Our Home! This is the #firstimpressions you will see as you walk through our front door. Very casual. Our Main floor is not very big, but I try to make it welcoming for all who enter. Our home has evolved over the past 19 years with things new and old. We all would like to make changes to our home and to keep it updated when our budget allows us to. But for now, I “Love the Home I Have!”

My goal this year is to replace the carpet and vinyl flooring to make this first floor one continual space. My husband and I have talked about removing this wall so we can make the kitchen a little larger.

We had updated our kitchen about 12 years ago. The blue tiled walls were new before we moved in about 7 years before that. They may be even making a comeback by now. LOL! Even if it’s not, we are keeping the tile. At the time of our kitchen updating, we had replaced the cabinet doors from those white laminate doors with the oak wood trim at the very bottom of them. But, since we weren’t going to change the cabinets, we just chose basic oak doors to match. I’m thinking of painting them gray to brighten up the kitchen. What do you think??  I did try to freshen the cabinets up about a year and a half ago with new stainless hardware. At the time of our kitchen update, we also added new laminate counter tops and the island. Our intentions for the future are to replace the counter tops again and add more counter and cabinet space to the island.

This is our every day Dining space that takes up the other half of our kitchen. Off to the left side of this space is our Sun Porch which I will be sharing with you all another time. Thank you for stopping by! I have plenty more to share with you soon!

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23 Comments

  1. 1

    Maria, I would leave your cabinets the way they are. They are clean and shiny and I love the strip of wood down the middle of the cabinet. The blue tile against the wood looks very striking. I’m also loving your front door and that wreath you’ve hung in front of the glass pane. Thanks for more decorating ideas!!

  2. 3

    First let me say, I love your front door, Maria! The old window hanging over your pass through looks great. I think that is probably the best way I have seen an old window used in decorating.

    • 4

      Thank you Debra! What a nice compliment! I have actually had the window in that spot for a long time now. I do change the decor on it from time to time. I actually placed the wreath there recently, but I don’t know how long it’s going to last there because my cats keep trying to get to it. You may actually see the wreath displayed somewhere else in another photo at some point!

  3. 5

    Thanks for inviting us in! I was surprised how long ago you redid your kitchen, I think it still looks great. The good thing about keeping the natural wood cabinets is it adds a nice warmth to your kitchen and looks nice with the blue tile, too! It’s fun to hear your plans to update as budget allows, I think you have some great ideas!

    • 6

      Thank you Melissa! Yes, It’s been that long since we did that kitchen updating! How time goes by so quickly. Of course, the stove and the refrigerator were replaced since then. We replaced the stove about 4 years ago. And the refrigerator is now 3 years old. The stove and refrigerator were both cream colored before we switched to stainless steel. Replacing the appliances, when needed, also helped update the kitchen even more. Now if only my dishwasher was to stop working. Not, that I am wishing for it! lol!
      I appreciate your advice. Thank you for stopping by!

  4. 7
  5. 9

    Just charming Maria! The first things I noticed were the wooden furniture pieces….classic. I’d leave the kitchen cabinets as they are because they are so warm and complement the blue tile. I love these house tours especially when I see items we have in common. I too have a black bistro clock which I just adore! Thanks for the tour. 🙂

  6. 10

    Thank you for stopping by Nancy! Yes, I have a lot of matching furniture in my home! And I know it’s not very design like now a days, but I can’t see replacing quality furniture for no reason. So I decorate with and around it! And I am perfectly fine with that for now.
    I would like to see how you have your bistro clock displayed if you can.
    Please show us more of your home! 🙂

  7. 15

    Hi Maria,
    I really like your oak cabinets. Do you have ideas for the type of counter top material/color you might use? I have some ideas..(can’t help myself) I also love your dining area with that corner cabinet. It’s very inviting. One more thing…that blue ceramic lamp!!! Yes.
    Have a blessed day!

    • 16

      Thank you Nikki! Yes, I would love some advice for the counter tops. I know I’m keeping the blue tiled walls and I do like the gray color of my laminate counter tops., So, if can find a material with a similar gray tone, that would make me happy. I had a cream color counter top before this one, So I know I don’t want anything light again. I’ll have to do more research when we are ready. Do you know if they make counter tops with a slate material??

  8. 17

    Maria, I love your front door! I think you’ve done a great job of creating coherency throughout your main floor, and your dining room epitomizes farmhouse style for me.

    • 18

      Thank you Jennifer! I was so excited when I was able to pick out a new front door after having the same old door since we bought our home 19 years ago! It’s been couple of years since we bought the door and I still love it! I like that the light can still shine through, when the door is closed. I do like the farmhouse look for my kitchen dining area, but it has been that way for so long. So, I’m thinking of making some changes that my budget will allow. Just to give it a fresh new look.

  9. 19

    Maria, I think your home embodies an important statement about style. Yes, many of the touches around your rooms are inspired by trends from previous decades but they are also beautiful, smart, classic choices in their own right, and they have a timeless appeal. I love that you have embraced those styles and developed a look that is completely your own.

    • 20

      Thank you Diane! I think you made some of my insecurities about showing my home, in it’s reality, feel a little at ease. There are still some things I would like to change about my home, yet there are so many things I do love about it. When I was making choices in buy new furniture and things around the house, I wanted the style to last. So, I tried to play it safe with my decisions. It turns out, when you buy quality furniture, it’s hard to replace, even though your taste in decorating has changed. So, I have learned to work around it. I think more than anything, I love to refresh our living spaces by painting and buying some new accessories when my time and budget allows it.
      Thanks again for stopping by! It’s always good to hear from you!

  10. 21

    I think your house is so charming! Thanks for sharing all of it! I really like your wood kitchen cabinets and your farmhouse table. A really comfortable, welcoming home 🙂

  11. 22

    Thank you Crystal! I’m in the process of making a few changes on the Dining side of my kitchen. I would like to post it as a Before and After project. Just trying to find the time to finish it all. Thank you for stopping by! 🙂

  12. 23

    Your home is lovely Maria! It really gives me hope because the house itself isn’t super fancy, but you’ve made it seem so homey and inviting with your arrangements. We’re in a rental now, but hopefully in a few years i’ll have a home I can paint and re-do as well! As for the paint question, I think it really depends on what you’re going for. I could see the room looking lighter if you painted the walls a bright white and the cabinets a light gray, but it really depends on how much natural light you get in that room (something we’re struggling with in the rental). I’m thinking of trying changing out the light bulbs to “daylight” bulbs to see if that helps, but i’d say for you just experiment, ruminate, and see what happens!

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