Berry Wedding Bliss

Today at work I was digging through a pile of June wedding proposals when I came across a bride's request to have their cake decorated with fresh strawberries, mint, and blueberries.  For some reason {maybe my yearning for summer and fresh blackberries} this struck me as so endearing and incredibly Americana.  It's the perfect detail for a small, intimate wedding.  I'm thinking of a ceremony on my parent's boat dock and reception on my parent's easement lawn.  There would canoe rides in the sunshine, cafe lights when the sun goes down, and firefly nets for the kiddos {never mind that I've never seen a lightning bug in Oregon}.  I'd do all red flowers - think ripe strawberry - in piles of lushness.  There would be picnic tables, family style, and piles of fresh rosemary bread, brie, garden tomatoes and golden lemonade which we'd all sip from grandma's mason jars.  Each guest would leave with a red, monogrammed tote {pre-filled with a heartfelt "thank you for coming" card, Bellegem waffle mix from Williams & Sonoma, a carton of fresh Oregon berries, and a bottle of pecan syrup} And sparklers.  Lots of sparklers.

Blog Breakdown...

Please bear with me as I work to find a new layout for The House of Thorn's.  My last template broke up with me - apparently I had too much to say and it couldn't handle it.  It started freaking out and now I'm in search of a lovely new layout. Any suggestions are appreciated!

xoxo
N

The Glamorous Life

Sorry I've been MIA lately.  Our family of three has been busier than I ever dreamed possible {at least busy and still sane}.  So, what's really been happening at the House of Thorns?  Well, get ready because I don't know if you can handle this much glamour from one family...

It started with our shutters.  In case you don't remember, when we bought our little place it was still rockin' its original 1930's shutters and was in need of a little updating to keep up with the neighborhood  {remember this?}.  Being the DIY-ers that we are, we {and I mean Chris} decided to build our own. 

{this pretty shot was taken in our lovely basement}

Once they were all cut and assembled, we put P to bed and started painting!

{Yes, I took this of myself because I had to prove I was really there and, if you look closely, you can see black paint on my fingers}

Above is our before with the shutters removed {and in the middle of painting the trim white}

And voila!  The new shutters are perfect!  But, why stop there?  We decided that our new shutters called for a yard makeover so we started digging and bought Chris a new lawnmower.

And because the previous owner obviously had an allergy to yard work of any kind, we had to plant new grass.  And this, of course called for a sprinkler system which turned into a month long irrigation installation {again DIY} and we lived with a huge mud pit while Chris chipped away at it.  I honestly was not sure that we would ever get it done but sure enough... TODAY we planted our seed!  I had Chris say a little grass blessing and then I strapped P on and off we went!  Seeding and fertilizing.  See... I told you we are super glam. 

Oh, and I forgot to mention that somewhere along the way our little car had a mid-life crisis.  So that was fun.  The Hub is incredibly smart so this was another DIY project that he took on...

Part of this project involved getting to the gas tank which is apparently under the backseat {does this not seem incredibly un-safe to anyone but me?!} so out the seat came!

P and I lent moral support which was much appreciated.  That is, until I decided that exposing my child to gas fumes is irresponsible parenting so we went inside.  {Did I mention that Chris did this all in the rain AND while wearing head to toe J Crew?  That's my husband.}

While the rain was coming down, our outside projects came to a standstill so we moved inside.  We have a gross side door that enters into the kitchen but also to the stairway that leads to our basement.  Eventually this will all be beadboard but until then, it needed a little freshening.  So, we called on my friend MS @ Home Depot {she has the BEST paint palette!} and went to work painting the stairway "Sharkey Grey" and the door and stairs plain old black.  Here's the before:

Here's the during...

Almost finished...

Done!

So, you're wondering what Paley the Incredible was up to while we were slaving away on house stuff?  She learned to crawl!!  

I have to admit that while the last two months we have been going non-stop, we've also made time to enjoy the NW spring.  

{Chris made a Paula Deen Mac-N-Cheese for Easter!}

{Auntie Sierra & Uncle Zach}

{P and Poppy Pat}

{Paley LOVES her GG days full of singing, dress up and tap dancing!}

{first time down a slide...}

{our little city girl does not love grass yet and much prefers the comfort of scratchy concrete}

So that's it in a nutshell.  I'm surprised you made it this far into this fabulous update. We are working hard and still knee deep in loving this house and I'll try to do better at keeping you posted.  Now, I'm off to edit my closet for summer... next project: garage sale???

Best Movie Homes

There are few things that inspire my love of homes besides a good movie.  I was that weird kid that would watch a movie just to see what kind of house they lived in and then I'd spread wide my butcher block paper and go to town with my pencils coming up with my own rendition of the floor plan and furniture layout.  Dork, I know.  But to this day there are a few that still strike my fancy and that have formed my taste in abodes as well as decor.  Here are some of my favorites:

Parent Trap I {why did they bother a remake?}

{This California ranch inspired my love for all things low slung and stucco}

{Open walls and tons of outdoor living is my absolute DREAM}

Somethings Gotta Give

{Love the Cape shingles and sweeping driveway}

{The color palette in this room is right up my alley - I love that they used the pale blue as a neutral}

{Again, I love this color palette with the pale blues and grey used with the white as a neutral.  And because I love a topiary}

It's Complicated

{Again, my love of the California Spanish ranch}

{love the rustic touches they used inside}

{I was once in a house with a glass hallway similar to this and it's not as creepy as it sounds... it was pretty awesome so I put it on my list of "maybe somedays"}

{Big marble breakfast bar/island and, of course, copper pots and pans}

{I love that this living room uses individual chairs and not a couch!}

Father of the Bride

{Yeah, who doesn't want to live here??  But I want to drive the car too!}

{As you know, I love using muted colors for neutrals which this house does well with a whipped butter color}

{I love this portico off of the side of the house - this is definitely on my dream house list}

{I added this one for Chris because I know that he looks forward to doing this with P someday}

What Lies Beneath {I swear I only watch this movie because I love this house!}

{Love the pergola side entrance and of course, the lake in the backyard}

{I am imagining many an afternoon with the bestie watching the kiddo's play in the yard from this porch}

{This is pretty traditional staircase as well but it's been updated for a more modern look}

{You know I'm a sucker for a clawfoot}

{And, yes, this one is pretty self explanatory.  LOVE}

Brothers & Sisters

{Love a good tiled roof, stucco, archways and a portico... yup, it's all there}

{I love the gallery staircase but my favorite thing about this house is the linen wall treatment}

{You can't see it very well here but the dining room has the same linen walls which I would love to find someplace to use}

Brady Bunch

{Lovin the ranch... this obsession obviously started with a childhood spent watching Nickolodean reruns}

{I love the look of rock inside plus that staircase is pretty rad}

And last but certainly not least... 

Houseboat

{Because we've always thought it would be awesome to raise our family on or near the water and we even tried to buy a yacht to live on once in SF... long story}

It's fun to see these houses in one big collection because I begin to see patterns.  Sometimes in collecting or decorating it's hard to know why something speaks to you in a certain way and I can definitely see how some of my particular tastes were developed.  

And now I'm off to Casa de Douglas to help the hubs dig up some arborvitae to replant along our back fence.  {Have I mentioned my newfound passion for digging?!}

Happy Weekend!