Home Tour Tuesday.....errrr Wednesday: The Living Room

Alrighty, sorry this is a day late. Life happens.

And for the life of me I can't take a decent picture of this room....so here ya go.

Here is our living room. It is our only 'common space' (meaning no family room, keeping room, finished basement, etc.)

So...we do all our hanging out here.

It's kind of cluttery....sorry. I'm not a designer. At.all.

So...here it is:

The entertainment hub:

We are a no-cable family, so we have a Mac Mini hooked up to our TV, so we can surf the web, watch Hulu, Youtube and what not. It really is fun for entertaining and hanging out. And of course, for Mr. Free, we have the Xbox and Wii.

Where I blog from....hehe

(Praise the Lord, we got Central Air this year....so soon we will take out that ugly wall unit!!!)
I love this basket for shoes I got for my birthday last year from Mr. Free's family...

Some old books...they were my grandmothers. I love decorating with old books. It makes you look smart.
More beloved milk glass.....and old books...

Our DIY Canvas Drop Cloth Roman shades again....and Mr. Free being...well.....him.

Lots of sunshine! Sorry it's so bright... but this is our coffee table, which I love. It's weird, and different, and modern. No one else I know has it, which makes me happy.

Well, there it is. Our teeny tiny living room.

Thoughts???

P.S. Any suggestions for the next room to show? (Kitchen, dining room, guest room, bathroom, outside?)

P.P.S. Friday I will be doing my first blog giveaway.....stay tuned!!!

Dear Readers....what's your design style???

Dear Readers,

I would like to know more about you! I want to know what kind of home design makes your heart swoon! Below is 5 pictures of various design styles along with a poll. Please look through these beautiful pictures and answer the poll on which one you like best!
xoxo Jenny Free

Room No. 1: Tradtional

traditional living room design by san francisco interior designer Amoroso Design
Room No. 2: Modern

modern living room design by los angeles architect LEAN ARCH, Inc.

Room No. 3: Country

traditional living room design

Room No. 4: Cottage

traditional living room design by los angeles showroom The Old Painted Cottage

Room No. 5: Eclectic

eclectic dining room design

There is no denying, all of these rooms are beautiful!!!

Please leave a comment and let me know which was your fave, so I can see the overall style of my readers!!!

P.S. I know today is supposed to be Home Tour Tuesday....but I haven't had a chance to take pictures of the living room.... I'll either update it late tonight or tomorrow. Thanks for your understanding!!!

P.P.S. Can anyone guess which picture is my favorite???

Moodboard Monday: A *real* bedroom!

A couple of weeks ago I got an e-mail from an old friend asking for ideas for her master bedroom. Her bedroom is cozy, with hardwood floors and some already purchased furniture as well as some new-to-them craigslist pieces.

So here is what I whipped up: (If you can't see the pic below, click here!)



Wall color: She mentioned she loved the color gray. I thought a Gray accent wall behind the bed, and an icy, calm blue for the rest of the room would be calming.

Curtians: I love this Amy Butler fabric and thought it would make some *beautiful* curtain panels for the room!

Bed: She already has a dark platform bed, but was looking for a headboard of some sort. I thought a DIY white upholstered headboard would look amazing up against the gray accent wall.

Dresser: She is getting that amazing dresser from Craigslist, but it needs some work. I loved the look of this dresser with the gray fronts and the rest painted white. I thought that would give her dresser a modern updated twist on a mid-century modern piece.


Chair: She already has this chair in gray (soooo jealous!) in another room, but I thought it would fit perfectly in her room with an icy blue accent pillow.

Rug: This rug is from Target (and NOT cheap), but white shag rugs are easily found and would be a great way to bring in softness and warmth to the cold hardwood floors.

Accessories: A silver mirror, silver floor vases and some candles will accessorize the room without it being "too much". The focus really is the bed and those amazing curtains.

Alright readers...what do you think?

Do you have a room you'd like help with? I'd love to help and whip up a moodboard for you!!!

P.S. I was featured on Sunshine and Wine's blog today for some of the my thrift store finds! Be sure to check it out!!!

Why Eat Local?

Great question.

I'd love to help you answer that.

Here's why eating local is good:

1. It helps the local economy

The money you pay your local farmer will then be turned around and spent in the local community.

2. It is better for you

Local food is *usually* organic. Farmers at the farmers market usually can't afford all the licensing it takes to be certified organic, but follow the same practicies.

3. It tastes better

Your produce, meat or dairy won't have been from across the country (or world!), sat for days in a train or truck, sat in a warehouse, then sat on your local store shelf. It is usually fresh picked, made or processed within 24-48 hours.

4. It's better for the environment

I know, I know...living in the Bible belt...environmental issues aren't very popular. However...doing good for the planet is NEVER a bad thing. The less trucks (pollution) and big factories (more pollution) we use to produce food, the better for the planet.

5. It's good for your social life

By joining a CSA or becoming a regular at the Farmer's Market, you begin to form relationships with the farmers who actually make your food! Just like the good 'ol days! You also begin to form friendships from other regulars as well!

6. It's better for you

Many tests have been done to show that antibiotics, hormones and pesticides are not good for us. I mean...common sense would tell us that! Keep things the way God made them!

Meat and dairy that have not been treating with rBST or antibiotics has more nutrients, Omega-3's and protein than their infected counterparts.

7. It's better for other people

Many people who work for large food production companies are treated poorly. Whether it's through their exposure to chemicals, pesticides or low wages and health care. By supporting local farmers you are supporting those who provide their workers with a healthy, fair job.

8. Your food will last longer

When your food comes to you fresh within a couple of days (as opposed to a week or more at the store!), your food will last longer...resulting in more cost-efficient buying.

I know that living in the Midwest Bible Belt, that local, organic food is often dismissed as 'liberal hippie' stuff.

But, as the homemaker in my home (even if it is just for Mr. Free for now...) it is my job to provide my family with good, wholesome, cost-effective food.

Label it what you want...but the more research I do, the more I find it important.

As I've said previously, that Mr. Free and I are on a tight budget. I have found that local, organic meat and dairy are more expensive...but in joining our Meat CSA, we have also learned the appropriate serving of meat. We had been used to our Costco-sized portions. This includes more balanced meals- which provides us with even more nutrients.

So in the end, we are still staying well within our grocery budget!

In buying produce from our local farmers market- I find it usually cheaper than the grocery store!

Here are a couple of local companies Mr. Free and I love and support:

Shatto Milk
Park Farms Natural Meats
Blanc Burgers + Bottles

Lee's Summit Farmers Market

I'm sure the list will grow, as we do more research!!!

To find more farms, farmers markets and businesses in your area, check out these websites:

http://www.eatwild.com/

http://www.localharvest.org/

Readers... do you have any other reasons why you eat local?

Do you have any other websites, resources or businesses to share??

Did you find this information intersting??

Please comment and share!!!

Me + Mr. Free

1. What are your middle names?

Lee and....coughLouisecough

2. How long have you been together?

8 years....9 in October

3. How long did you know each other before you started dating?

Let's see....I was 7 and he was 6 when he began going to my church

4. Who asked who out?

I'm old-fashioned....Mr. Free asked me out.

5. How old are each of you?

I'm a cradle robber....I'm 25, he's 24. *gasp*

6. Did you go to the same school?

Same middle school and high school, different colleges

7. Are you from the same home town?

Yup

8. Who is the smartest?

We are both smart....just in different ways.

9. Who majored in what?

Me: Vocal Music Education

Mr. Free: Art Education

10. Who is the most sensitive?

Oh, definitely me. I cry about everything.... Mr. Free *loves* that. Note the sarcasm here...

11. Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple?

The Caribbean...I pray we can venture farther soon!!!

12. Who has the worst temper?

Probably me....I am Irish after all...

13. How many children do you want?

Haha..... who knows. We will just see what God has in store...

14. Who does the cooking?

For the most part-me. Mr. Free is a good cook though.

15. Who is more social?

We both are pretty social- the overall winner I would say would be Mr. Free...

16. Who is the neat freak?

Haha.....those that know us in 'real life' know hands down it is Mr. Free... though I think I'm corrupting him to my 'laid back' attitude towards organization.... whoops.

17. Who is the most stubborn?

Really?! Who's the redhead of the pair. Of course it's me...

18. Who wakes up earlier?

It depends on our schedule. If we both can sleep as long as we want, Mr. Free will usually wake up first. He likes to live life...I like to sleep through it.

19. Where was your first date?

Oh memories....it was to the movies on a Sunday afternoon between church services. We saw 'Signs'.

20. Who has the bigger family?

They are the same size.

21. Do you get flowers often?

Mr. Free is pretty predictable.... our anniversay and Valentine's Day. A dozen roses from Aldi.... $7.99 baby. We're all about frugality...and being proud of it.

22. How do you spend the holidays?

Running like crazy people back and forth to our families homes. When we have kids that will *have* to simplify.

24. How long did it take to get serious?

I'd say a couple of years. I mean, we were in high school at the time. We knew we couldn't get married for awhile...but we were smitten from the get-go.

25. Who eats more?

"Real food"- Mr. Free

Desserts- Me

26. What do you do for a living?

Me- Elementary Music Teacher

Mr. Free- Full-time student/ Substitute teacher

27. Who does the laundry?

We each do our own. Mr. Free does his regularly....I do mine when I look in my closet and go, "Shoot! I don't have a matching outfit!"

28. Who's better with the computer?

Mr. Free

29. Who drives when you are together?

Usually Mr. Free. But he has a *long* commute to school (2 hours round-trip, daily). So if it's a week day evening, I will usually drive for errands to give him a break.

30. What is your song?

Well, from our dating days it was "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer.

Our first dance song from our wedding was "The Sun and the Moon" by Mae.

I claim both. : )

OK Lovebirds....feel free to copy and paste these questions so your readers can get to know a *little* more about you!

xoxo Jenny Free

Design Obsession: Daybeds

Ever since I was little, I always wanted a daybed.

But, instead, was blessed with a Full sized bed.

But I still want a daybed.

And they are not just for little girls anymore.

Check out these beauties.

I love this one and how it uses pallets!! So genius!

Doesn't this look like such a cozy place to relax and read?

Or how about one outside? Love it!

I love this modern daybed too!

So, I'm pretty sure if we are blessed with a little girl one day, she will have a daybed. If I can talk Mr. Free into it that is...

Alright readers, were any of you lucky enough to grow up with a daybed?

Do you even like them? Tell me your thoughts!!

Home Tour Tuesday: Our bedroom

I thought it would be fun each Tuesday to give you a little peak into our home.

This week it is our bedroom.

It's small, but it's the biggest bedroom we have.

Our bedroom actually used to be the guest room until I figured out that this room was actually bigger.

So we moved.

Here it is:

Our closets didn't have doors, so for a cheap fix I went the bedsheet route. The curtain is a Full size sheet from Target that I used drapery clips and a tension rod.

Voila!

The sign I got at Hobby Lobby, and the frame around it I got from there also for 90% off.

I like the look of the sign being framed. I think it gives it more presence.

The flowers are from our wedding.

The books were my grandmother's poetry books that I loved as a child.

And yes, we have a baseball bat by our bed. Home protection baby.

My milk glass...I use it to hold jewelry and my cell phone to charge at night.

*** A tip: Our dresser and nightstand were actually purchased from the 'Kids' section at our local furniture store. They were the exact same dimensions as the 'Adult' version, just had different hardware. We liked them equally and the 'Kids' version was about $100 bucks cheaper!

What do you think???

What room would you like to see featured for next week?

Mood board Monday: Basement style

As you are well aware, I am dreaming of changing my basement.

It is 900 sq. feet and about 30% finished.

It has raw concrete floors, white paneled walls and a dry wall ceiling.

Mr. Free and I do a lot of our art projects down there, so the raw concrete actually works for us.

But....we'd like to dress it up a bit.

This is one of my many visions of what to do with the space.

One day, I will finally pick one of my visions and run with it!

Please tell me....what do you think???

Let's play a game...

OK Readers.... I want you see what inspires you!

I want you to comment and leave a link of a photo that inspires your home decorating.

Here's mine.

I love the colors, fabric and roman shade.

OK...your turn! I really want to see what you all enjoy!

Resources for pics:

Houzz

Rate my Space

Apartment Therapy

even Google Image

Ready, set, go!

Fashion Wants

All via

Ruche and Etsy.

I'm glad window shopping is free. : )