diy christmas wreath.

so in the spirit of the holiday season i decided to make our own christmas wreath this year.

reasons: 1. bc have you seen the prices of wreaths at the store? good lord.
              2. its a diy project!

before. got this one at hobby lobby on sale for $5

i bought all these little things to hot glue to it. present box & candy cane balls made it fun.

aren't they cute?

i added some christmas balls & it turned out so pretty. what do you think?

it is now hanging on my door & i could not be more happier with the outcome. i feel so proud!

happy christmas season.

cheers,

mrs. estes

change is good & scary.

a lot of change is happening in the estes household. change is good, but scary right? cory & i were talking last night when we got home from some friends about how it is scary all the new things that are coming our way. things that we are not used to & we both agree we have become comfortable with where we are. with that being said we sign our rental agreement to a house in carrollton the end of this week or beginning of next. we won't be living full time in carrollton until jan.

                                        i introduce you to the new estes rental. so charming.

i absolutely love it. 

things i love about it- big basement for all of cory's music gear & room for storage- fenced in back yard with a cute little patio for a grill- huge old tree perfect for my eno- a swing on the from porch- 2 bedrooms- all hardwood floors- open kitchen.

you can literally walk to the square & church from where we are. some of our best friends live a few houses down!

another new thing that wont happen until the summer is school. i am going back for cosmetology. i have been wanting to go & learn this trade for a while now, but have not had the opportunity. i feel like if i want to go & get this degree now i need to do it before i have kids, right? 

finding a new job should not be difficult, but it is still a little stressful.  

moving in itself is a little crazy, but i am excited to be back in the country. i am sad to leave all of our friends in the atlanta area that we are used to seeing on the regular, but we will just have to make time for all of them. 

cory has a lot of opportunity that has been thrown his way & we are just praying for guidance & clarity.

i cannot wait to post picture of the rooms as i get them decorated, all the diy projects that will be happening in this little home, all of the new memories, all of the dinners, & our upcoming halloween party.

YAY!

i am on the lookout for a new sectional couch & i like this one, but i am not sure how comfortable it would be. i need comfort. 

from ikea here

can you believe that i might have my first kid in this house? 

i get little butterflies thinking about it.

on a side note i have left over cake from my birthday & our friends made us a yummy dinner last night.

cheers,

mrs. estes

p.s. let's all take a moment a realize how blessed we are. my heart is a little heavy for Israel after reading an article this morning. we are really blessed to be able to live the kind of lives we all do.

rentals- cheap tricks to add color.

i have been looking all over the place to find cool projects that can spruce up our soon to be rental home & i have found a few ideas that really stuck out.

simple & cheap. with rental properties i feel like there are all kinds of rules. one of my least favorites is the "you cannot paint the walls" what? wall color is magical even if you are painting the walls bright white. so. pinterest & my mind have been on this daydream binge of finding the remedy to my dilemma.

i plan on hanging colorful art- & using furniture as statement pieces. my sister is an artist & i want her to do some pieces for me as well as buy this one piece i have been wanting for a while.

                                                 these living room ideas are my favorite.

i am on the lookout for a really cool functional couch. i love this burnt orange!

i also love the idea of hanging old art work from when i was a kid. i have a ton of that stuff just boxed up so i plan on having a craft day & framing some!

DIY wood ideas to brighten up the space too.

i thought about doing this one, but changing hello to welcome.

or this piece where they blew up a hymn & framed it.

you can also add some color with a rug. i have always loved those cow hide rugs & ikea has a black one that i really really want. 

add a couple of throws to a sofa of your choice too!

i am a black, white & grey girl through & through, but bright colors do not scare me. 

add some color to furniture you already have! i have this really cool cabinet that i cannot wait to paint and use as my craft closet! that will be a full post in itself. sometimes the closet space in rentals are really small, but you can make do utilizing furniture you already have.

i am thinking of doing this color with the cabinet i have! its bright & will look so good with the black & white throw folded o top!

lamps are another way you can add some color or make them a statement piece.

there are plenty of ways you can add color by using things you already have to spice up a room. i am really excited to be moving and take pictures to show you guys the changes i will be making.  i love DIY projects & hopefully by then i will have another computer and can use my camera again.

in case you didn't know someone stole my husbands bookbag with our mac in it :( sad day.

cheers to future makeovers,

mrs.estes

smaller homes & big dreams.

the mr. & i have been talking about homes, moving, renting, staying, big homes, small homes, tiny homes & everything else that goes along with it. i watched a documentary on netflix the other day about a young man who built his own tiny home on wheels. it was really small & perfect for a bachelor, but i am at the age where i want my family to grow, whether that be having a child, or adopting a child. i do however don't think i need a huge house either. i want a simple life, a simple home, a simple family, all things simple is what i want/need in my life. this is one of the things that haiti changed about my heart. i know this may sound stupid but sometimes i would just dream about building a house with 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms so i don't have to share the area with guests or my husband or a child when they come along, a huge kitchen with a lot of cabinets and space to bake pies all day, a huge laundry room where everything is organized & i can have jars for everything you can think of, big bedrooms with huge windows so the morning sunlight can shine through, but i don't think of these things anymore.

now my thoughts go a little more like this: i want a small cozy bedroom with a lot of light, i mean after all i do is sleep in there. i want a functional laundry room that serves its purpose, after all i do is wash clothes in there. i want a kitchen that makes use of the space. if i bump into my husband while i am baking a pie then there is a smile and an extra touch for the day. i want a living room where people can come over and they feel at home, where if someone needs a place to sleep they have it, where one day when we have kids & there are toys everywhere i have a basket there for all the toys to be thrown in. my heart is more towards enjoying the small moments, the simple moments that you will remember forever. what i think i needed before is not at all important or adding to the memories i want to make. i don't want a crazy house payment that takes me years to work and pay off. i don't want a car note that takes away money that could be helping someone in need or taking my family to a place we have never been. i get in this routine of working to make money to pay bills. i want to do something i love & make money to live.

so with all that being said i have been looking at DIY projects for the home, storage container homes, using pallet woods for functional floors/cabinets, the tiny home movement, or just a small home in general. these are some of the ones that i am in love with.

one thing i do like is a front porch. i love when we go to the crawfords house and hang out on their porch like last weekend. you can get a swing, or tie up your eno & relax. 

look at these shipping container homes, such a cool idea.

amazing kitchen ideas.

for the living room.

i can just see friends gathering in these spaces to play music, play games, talk about life, & eat dinners. yes, i am all for eating dinners in the living room. all my thoughts about future homes are about the people who are in it. the memories to be made. when we buy a home one day i want to live there for a very long time. when i was younger we moved so much & i don't want that for my children. i want them to have roots & stability. 

i also daydream about a farm. having my own garden, canning, growing my own veggies and everything else, raising chickens, & having a cow or 5.

check out these easy little garden beds.

a little green house too.

all of these can be found on my pinterest board here

i cannot wait to see what the future holds for me & my dream, but i am learning to live & love the journey.

cheers,

mrs. estes