Love, The Nelsons House Tour: The Front Entry

Oh man. So much to blog, so little time, BUT you have to start somewhere am I right? :) While I'm cranking out edits and answering e-mails, I thought it would be fun to start to a little home tour over here! :) I mean, if you've been reading this blog for awhile now, you KNOW how MUCH FUN owning a house can be (I hope you sense the sarcasm here), you KNOW all the HUGE lessons we learned HERE and you also know how much it means to us to even BE in our home considering everything we've been through. Now, our home isn't anywhere perfect (le duh), or 100% 'Pinterest-worthy' in all areas, which IS OKAY (and realistic), but I like to think of our home as a work in progress. I still love it, I'm still proud of it, and absolutely LOVE that we have 100% done EVERY update in this home. Every wall color, every outlet, every door, every trim board, every installation, every tile (except for the kitchen...haven't replaced that yet!) and every wood laminate flooring you see. It's been all us, just Drew (mostly Drew) and me (I deserve some credit, I promise!) ;). It's been a wild ride, and rewarding to say the least, and even though we don't have our own home renovation show, or are professionals, our house has been built with nothing but blood (lots of it, trust me lol), sweat (oh yeahhh babe-eh), and tears (for sureeee, mostlllly mine lol). BUT first and foremost, it's been filled with nothing but LOVE and the Lord, as cheesy as that sounds, and that alone is the best foundation our home could ever have.

Today I'm going to start with our front foyer. It's fairly tiny, so we were limited and although I've pinned a few things on my Pinterest board, Drew looked at me and said, "Shay, the next house, okay?" I sadly nodded and sadly agreed and decided that decorating our home on a budget this time around was in fact OKAY! :) I really didn't have a choice, but I like to think I did mk!? ;) #wifeproblems

When we first moved in, this is what our front foyer looked like: Blue tile with dark gray grout... And for some strange reason, there was carpet on the edge of the step down. I mean? Really? WHAT WERE YOU THINKING PEOPLE? HAHA! To be fair, Drew's first tiling project was actually this front foyer. We went to a home resource store here in Austin where people recycle their home goods, or they bring their left overs from other renovation projects, and we happened to find just enough tile to "practice" with! :) When we look at the tiling job now, we kind of cringe at the "mistakes" we see, but it's also been a nice reminder to actually show how much we've learned and how far we've come since the first house project! :)

Anyway, I'll get on with it. I've never really been good at being straight to the point have I? :)

BEFORE: (All these before photos were taken with a point and shoot way before I ever owned a DSLR camera: oh, the memories! ;) ) 

AND AFTER: 

Before/After: 

I have to thank the lovely ladies over at Lulu and Georgia for the fun rug and pillow that added some life and spunk to this space! :) There are so many awesome things on their website that I seriously would love to have in my home! You can check them out here! :) A big-sincere-and-special shout out to Michaela for all her lovely help! A similar rug on their website can be bought HERE (I don't think they have this rug in at the moment) and the pillow can be purchased HERE.  ALSO: If you find something you like (and you will), please use this code for a 20% discount: SOSHAY20 (You're welcome!! ;))

I added in the green plant for some color in the middle of taking these photos and kind of like it! :) I have to thank my friend Lauren (who's an awesome stylist) for design direction when I first started to work on this space awhile back and for also for helping ignite my green thumb in my humble abode! :) I had a plant in college sort of like this, butttt I killed it. It was a quick, painful death. (RIP college plant) - We shall see how much longer I can keep this little dude alive. Pretend you don't see that dead leaf at the bottom alright? AH. You saw it. I promise I'm not trying to kill it. Any advice from you fellow plant lovers, I'll take it! I think my thumb is blue, or black. Whatever color means "I kill every plant I own that isn't artificial." :) 

The Triangle Wall decals are from Walls by Mur, and added that cool geometric vibe that I was really wanting in my home! :) I almost went for BOLD colorful triangles, but I have to say, I'm really happy with the subtleness of the white ones! :) White triangles for da winnnn! :) They were easy to apply and a great alternative to not spending ten years measuring and painting them. Baller status' I know! Just make sure you REALLY clean the wall before you apply them. We skimmed over the top but due to the height, we missed a few spots and the decals haven't been sticking as well. The bottom ones? They are on like GLUE! :) It's our fault though. Just follow the directions they tell you and you're good to go! :) 

The mirror/key rack was a hand me down from my brother and sister-in-law. I'm not sure where they got it. A part of me wants to paint it white, and still might do that, but for now, the brown stays...until I can find some time on my hands to paint it white. What do you guys think? Brown? White? SEAFOAM GREEN!? Jk. :) 

The bench is from Target and it was on SALE in the clearance section! Can you say HOLLLLLAAAAA FOR (fewer) DOLLAAAAAS! :) Heck yes batman! The gold polka dot scarf is also from Target and was a gift from my sweet friend Katie! :) 

The satchel is from Shop Ruche, and the pink hat is from Garden Ridge of all places a few years ago! :) 

The light fixture actually came with the house, and we've contemplated changing it, but for some reason, I like it. I think it's so old that it's actually in style now and matches all those fixtures I love so much in West Elm, and Restoration Hardware! :) 

We also replaced our front door (from Lowes) after we had the foundation work done as well as the knobs and outlets/outlet-covers, and it did wonders, not only aesthetically, but our electricity bill likes us a loooot more than it used to that is for sure! :) No more light peeping from underneath the front door y'all and it's a beautiful thing! :) 

Wall Color: Glidden - Quill (From Home Depot)

I picked out the paint color before I even owned Hattie…kind of cute and appropriate right? Hattie has quills…get it? Okay, moving on. 

There was also a film on the windows that I scraped with a knife and razor blade for hours and hours. No joke. My fingers were all cramped up and sore for days after this. It was one of those "small things" that ended up being a big pain in the you know what. It wasn't fun at all, but it helped bring in the natural light we love so much! Now I can say it was worth it. :) 

I'm so excited to have started this little home tour! :) I hope y'all enjoy it and can hopefully gain some inspiration for your own homes, can show you all the work we've done, or if all else fails, just gives you something to look at for a minute while you're at work! ;) 

I'll be back soon to continue this little series, but until then, YOU rock. Thanks for being here today! :)