House Crashing - Ben & Jen

Who's excited for more House Crashing?

(Me! Me! Me!)

Today we're checking out the fantastic home of "Ben & Jen"...

(And - NO - not THAT "Ben & Jen.")

THIS "Ben & Jen" bought their ranch-style home in 2009.

It was built in 1952 - just outside of the Cedar Rapids, IA.

It's a 2 Bed/2 Bath, and is about 2300 square feet.

(Check out that HUGE YARD!)

In the summertime...

... and in the wintertime.

The house sits on 2 acres of timber...

... which I'm sure the "smallest" member of the family

just LOVES to explore!

The entire house was gutted down to the studs in 2006 -

and includes exposed beams!!!

(I am such a sucker for those.)

Jen has managed a Pier One for about 7 years now, 

and according to Ben - all the "interior design decisions" are left up to her.

But he, "lives with the idealistic notion that his option matters."

Spoken like one smart guy!

I love how earthy, warm and inviting the house is...

that BIG leather sectional is perfect.

Curious about their furniture?

Most of the pieces are bought from:

Antique Shops

Pier One

West Elm 

Restoration Hardware

There is a hint of PINK in the house.

And...

what little girl wouldn't want this room?

Now...

for the MASTER BEDROOM.

Check out that view!

We have GOT to talk about this amazing bed.

Ben actually BUILT it himself.

He used most of the materials from an old barn that was torn down.

It was made, following the simple instructions from this blog:

"My Family Loves It."

Guess how much it cost to make?

$60 BUCKS!

That's it!

And... it only took him 4 hours to build.

 A-M-A-Z-I-N-G

Ben says, "Jen was a bit skeptical at first - in both my woodworking skills,

 and the final outcome of the project."

But, now that it's done - Ben & Jen both agree - the platform bed has

INCREASED their quality of sleep.

I think it's great.

Super jealous.

Makes me want to go out and build a bed.

Also...

I absolutely LOVE the chocolate brown panels they used for a headboard.

(And the curtains... and the big, white comforter.)

Thanks for sharing these wonderful photos of your beautiful home!

Keep up the great work!

"Let's Go Fly a Kite"

Taking a cue from the movie "Mary Poppins"...

... I went to Chicago to visit my sister (Laura) for Easter.

The weather was SO BEAUTIFUL  - we wanted to play outside.

So... we went to Lincoln Park, and decided to fly a kite!

(Make that, a BARBIE kite.)

Don't worry... our "inner child" didn't stop there.

We also bought bubbles and sidewalk chalk!

It was almost too much fun to handle!

I highly recommend doing this... 

Seriously takes you back to the days of being a kid.

Then, we took a trip to the Lincoln Park Zoo.

(BONUS - admission is free!!!)

My sister's boyfriend (Adam), and his good friend (John) came with too.

"ROAAAARRRR!!!!"

Look how pretty the zoo was... 

spring has officially arrived in Chicago!

On Easter Sunday, my sister gave me this adorable basket.

She used a flower pot as the "basket" and filled it with some of my fav candy.

(She made a make-shift handle out of construction paper.)

Next...

We set out to find some Easter brunch.

Once again... it was a BEAUTIFUL day outside.

The place we wanted to eat, was the "Riverside Cafe"...

... but it was "CLOSED!"

So, we decided to hop across the street to "Jane's."

Fabulous choice.

Everything was DELICIOUS!

They had pitchers of Bloody Mary's...

and bread with HONEY BUTTER :)

We bellied up to the bar,

and stuffed ourselves full!

(Our waitress kept the coffee coming.)

My blueberry pancakes just OOOZED with blueberry goodness.

(There was also a mound of potatoes underneath. OMG.)

My sister's crepes were also fresh and fruity.

(Came with a side of turkey sausage.)

All in all, it was a WONDERFUL trip!

Beautiful weather, beautiful people, beautiful holiday weekend.

Mary Poppins would have been very proud :)

Happy Easter!

"Egg-cellent" Day of Antiquing

I LOVE going to antique stores.

It's something my sister and I really enjoy doing together.

Since moving to Green Bay, I haven't been antiquing -

but FINALLY ventured out this past weekend (on a rainy, snowy day)

and stopped by "Somewhere in Time Antiques."

First off - the store was SUPER cute, clean - and didn't have that "funny smell"

that some antique stores do.

The shelves were filled with LOTS of vases and glassware.

I LOVED this little bedside table - really, really difficult not to buy.

I've secretly always wanted a library index card cabinet.

This one was out of my price range ($300+)...

... but someday, I want one!

I'll probably put it in a home office, entry-way or living room...

like this one from Poetic Home.

This antique store also had lots of fun, vintage purses and jewelry.

This one was from an actress in LA.

(On the tags of each item, it said where the pieces came from.)

This table was one of my FAVORITE pieces!

Love the turquoise color.

Not to mention, the ADORABLE place settings!

It was only $15 for the cup and saucer...

VERY tempting to buy.

The coffee pitcher was also cute and cheerful.

I fell in love with the bench under the table... but it was $60 buckaroos.

They weren't willing to negotiate on the price... 

so I'll wait and see if it comes down a few weeks :)

Look what else I found -

A vintage MILKSHAKE machine!!!

Super fun.

This "kidney shaped" table also caught my eye.

It's covered in table linens at the moment... but take all that out - 

and it could be great in a living room.

Finally... a piece I could NOT live without.

(And, since it was in the "Easter Sale" section, I got 20% off!)

I bought this awesome luggage rack for $25 bucks.

I've always wanted one!

Also bought this adorable vintage car planter for $7.

It reminds me of my Grandpa Jake's old car.

(He passed away 13 years ago.)

I'm going to put a plant in it, and give the planter to my dad as part of

a Father's Day present!

Also found this glass-blown violin.

Very pretty... but didn't buy.

Marbles in jars!!!

Only $5.

My heart stopped beating when I saw this.

So lovely.

Could be used as decoration - or a cookie jar :)

Ball jars GALORE!

Couldn't help it... bought 2 of them :)

Lots of fun, vintage chairs... that just need the seat reupholstered. 

Check out this retro cooler!

And... these retro fans!

Would love to put one of these in my bedroom.

(I'm one of those people that can't sleep without a fan going.)

Once I got home, I immediately set up my new luggage rack.

Not sure where I'm going to put it yet...

but I have some options.

One thing I need to do is take off the OLD ribbon - 

and put on some new bands to hold it together.

Once I do that, it could be used as a place to put my purse.

Could use it as a side table...

... since I don't have one for my couch.

Whenever/whatever I decide, I'll be sure to update :)

All in all...

I bought my luggage rack, car planter, and 2 Ball jars for $50.

Not too shabby for an "Easter" sale at the antique store!