Kitchen Refresh in the Bird Nest

Happy Monday!! I hope you all had a great weekend. We spent the weekend finishing up our kitchen refresh. This post is a part of our "Home Improvement Series," which I will lovingly be calling The Bird Nest.

When we first looked at the house we really liked the kitchen cabinets and the counter tops. The previous owners had updated the kitchen in 2007. The cabinets are KraftMaid and the granite counter tops are from Lowes, but I can't determine the name of the color, they don't have a match currently. I highly recommend the cabinets, they are of the highest quality and they have the soft close feature! No slamming drawers when Will makes me mad! :) Inside the cabinets is the best feature, full size pull out shelves that neatly organize our pots/pans, Tupperware, Pyrex and baking sheets/pans. My favorite feature is the built in silverware organizer that is two levels! When I saw this, I was pretty much sold on the house!


We were so lucky that the previous owners had invested in the custom cabinetry and granite/back splash installation when they updated. I will have to say, I wasn't a fan of the back splash at first, I had even thought about tearing it out, covering it up or even painting it, but that leads me to my next point! What a difference paint can make! The kitchen was originally a pale pale sky blue, which is beautiful in a bedroom or bathroom, however, in a kitchen it left a lot to be desired and washed out the room. We knew we wanted gray, however, have you ever tried to pick out grey paint? There are WAY more than 50 shades!

We finally settled on Sherwin Williams Functional Gray. I had them mix the color in at 50%, and it was the exactly color of the swatch. This is a painting tip for any color, but especially darker colors. The paint changed the entire vibe of the room! Not only is it refreshed, but the cabinets pop and the grey and brown tones in the back splash stand out! I went from hating the back splash to really liking it!

We also updated the appliances. The original appliances were white and when the owners updated they only updated the oven/range, so of course they bought a new white slide in. It was a very nice oven, however, the white did not go (in my opinion) with the cabinets or counter tops. The owner also took with them the refrigerator, so we had to buy that. Since we were shopping for appliances around black Friday we actually got an excellent deal on an entire suite of new appliances at Lowes. We liked stainless, but now GE makes a matte stainless called Slate. It doesn't show finger prints and it isn't quite as shiny. We decided on a french door fridge with a freezer drawer, the slide in convection oven/range, a vented microwave and a high efficiency dishwasher. These are by far the nicest appliances I've ever owned and I'm SO excited to use them!

Our kitchen that started with great potential has turned out to be more than I imagined! It feels like a gourmet kitchen out of a magazine! We couldn't have done it without the help of my dad who gave us a tutorial in painting 101. Needless to say, I think we'll be painting the other rooms in the house that need an update! We are using the kitchen furniture I had in my house, which were previously my parents', that we've had since the early 90s. I love them, and they look even better in this house with the cabinets! I organized a few of our dishes and platters on the hutch but can't wait to get everything settled after the wedding.

Without further a do, I give you the before and after of The Bird Nest Kitchen:

I hope everyone has a great week and GO TIGERS!!

Five on Friday! Welcome 2016!

First off, HAPPY NEW YEAR!! Welcome 2016!! I love all the potential a new year holds. For me I'm praying it's a sweet sixteen! March 19th is going to be a pretty sweet day of 2016! But I know that the Lord has so many other surprises and opportunities in store for me/us this year!

I thought I'd start the new year with a few items that I'm loving right now/Christmas recap for 5 on Friday link up with April over at A. Liz Adventures!

First, I can't help but say that I'm loving that the Clemson Tigers are headed to the National Championship!! GO TIGERS!! What a season it has been! Although I did not attend Clemson, I've been raised a Tiger, as my mom is an alumni. I'm so excited that such a great team led by a fantastic coach are rewarded for all their hard work this season with a chance to be National Champions! GO TIGERS!!

Born to be a Tiger

I'm LOVING my new laptop! I got an HP Chromebook for Christmas from Will and it was SO needed! I have been borrowing his laptop since the spring when mine decided to literally drop dead! I have to admit, I kind of picked out my own present on this one... We were in Walmart one night back in the early fall and I saw this laptop and loved it, because it was TEAL!! I really didn't know anything about Chromebooks, but so far I'm liking it for blogging since Blogger is linked through Google. However, I'm not an expert Google Docs person, so that is taking some getting used to! Also, my blog is currently connected to one email and after I get married I need it to be connected to another, so I'm having some difficulty figuring that out. Any help from tech savvy people would be appreciated!

We had somewhat of a tech Christmas by adding Apple TV to our collection! We cut our cable a little over 2 years ago and never looked back! We have basic cable, you know the 9-15 channels you get of the major networks and such, but we also have Netflix, Hulu, & Amazone Prime and we have managed just fine with those! We were using Will's laptop with an HDMI cord connected in the bedroom and his Playstation to access those services in the living room. Well NOW with Apple TV we are able to more easily access them with a remote instead of a mouse on the bedroom tv! I can't say enough good things about Apple TV from what we've experienced so far! I love being able to watch the Vloggers that I follow on Youtube on a big screen and it's just so nice to have a more user friendly interface to access our accounts for Netflix etc. We purchased Apple TV from Target on black Friday with a portion of a giftcard and it was on a crazy sale! We had looked at it a week or so prior at Best Buy and really fell in love with it, so we were super excited to get it on such a great sale! If you are interested in cutting your cable and finding alternative ways to watch tv, this is the way to go!

Another Christmas gift that I'm loving so so much is my new MK purse that Will got me! I had totally forgotten that I had even pointed it out when we were at the mall back in the fall. It's blush pink, the same color of the bridesmaids dresses, so of course I had to have it! He tracked it down all the way in Chicago! I can't wait to carry it to all the upcoming wedding festivities!!

Cynthia Medium Saffiano Leather Satchel in Blush-Spring 2015

Finally, I have always loved that with the start of a new year you get a new calendar! I love to organize and plan so getting the tools to do just that makes me so happy! I normally get the Mary Engelbreit wall calendar, however, this year I just wasn't in love with the theme and the picture didn't match the month. On Amazon I saw the illustrated Bible verses calendar, but couldn't see pictures of the individual months. I went to Books A Million and they had it and I got the very. last. one. It is BEAUTIFUL! I'm so happy with my choice and can't wait to hang it up tomorrow and be reminded of God's love and plan for me on a daily basis! 

amazon.com

Thank you all so much for reading and following along in our journey down the aisle! We can't wait for all this year has in store for us! I hope each of you had a safe and happy New Years Eve and I wish you all the best in 2016!

Wedding Wednesday: Paper, Prep and a Pick Up

Happy Wednesday! It's the middle of the week and normally I would be so excited about it being closer to the weekend, but this week I'm not. I have always loved the week after Christmas because the hustle and bustle has subsided and it's a great week for everyone to unwind and really enjoy the holidays, so I'm not really ready for the week to end! Will and I are not quite done celebrating Christmas and will head to Florence this weekend to exchange gifts with his parents/relatives! Then Monday it's back to the grind, I already have 3 sub jobs lined up for next week! Yay!

Before Christmas we (my mom and I) had decided to spend a lot of time this week working on that LONG wedding to-do list, since we were both off of work. Yesterday, a friend of mine came over and we worked on details about the rehearsal dinner. >Side note< I'm working on some of the rehearsal dinner since Will's mom has been in and out of the hospital for the past couple of months. > We organized table decor and she designed the rehearsal dinner invite. I had found one at a local invitation store a few months ago and checked on the price and it was an absurd $145ish for 45 invites. WHAT?!? So my friend, who is beyond amazingly talented at graphic design, was able to design a similar invitation (but even better than the expensive version) and I got a quote from a printer and it's going to cost like $30.00 for 50 invites + envelopes! #winning Post wedding I will be sharing all of the paper products in the wedding, but everything is under wraps until then!

Speaking of paper, my friend also designed our ceremony program for me. We didn't quite get finished with all of the design elements so I'm excited to see the finished product! We used the skeleton of her program to help with the elements for mine. I am an organized person, but for some reason the task of planning out the program was overwhelming, so it was helpful to have her to help me talk through all the specifics!

After we finished, we went over to my moms and started unpacking the decor that we are going to be using for the reception. We have 27 bird cages, 27 birds and about 8 bird nests so a few more of those to collect! We organized it all by size on big tables out in my parents garage, it was so fun to see it all out and grouped together! I can't wait to start organizing it by what is actually going on individual tables. It makes me so excited to walk into my reception venue and see it all set up! The event planner in me can't wait to see all these puzzle pieces come together and make the final product!

And FINALLY, my dress is FINISHED being altered!! Hallelujah!! I have to say, that besides the guest list, dress fittings have been stressful. My seamstress made, what could have been a headache, really relaxing and she was super confident in her ability to alter my dress! I think it was just stressful to me because my dress is altered and I'm not wearing it for another couple months, but since my portraits are scheduled for Jan. 18th, I had to have it done by now. It was exciting to try on the fitted dress today and finally feel like it's finally mine. For so long it felt like I was wearing someone else's dress because it was so BIG! She also completed the bustle which made it fit better for dancing and not so BIG around and cumbersome. Here are a couple of pics from picking up the dress today...

My seamstress, Merci and my gown! Concealed of course! :)

Sneak Peek of my Dress! Of course I blurred it a bit! ;)

I hope everyone has a great rest of your week and a VERY Happy New Year!!

Late 2015 Recap

Goodness Gracious! We are in the final days of 2015, and I haven't even blogged the last 2 months which has been jam packed with exciting happenings!! I think I'll start with Christmas and work backward...

Our 2015 Christmas Card! 

Christmas didn't feel much like Christmas this year because it was HOT. Everyday has been at least 65 degrees or more, and mostly in the mid-70s! It is IMPOSSIBLE to look cute and "Christmasey" when it's too warm to even put on a scarf! It also didn't feel much like Christmas because I chose not to put up a tree or even many decorations. The stockings were hung and there was a wreath on the door but that was about it! A perfectly good excuse was because we have too much going on and this week, I'm attempting to get back into Wedding Planning mode and therefore did not want to worry with taking down decorations!
We had a very blessed Christmas spending it with family and receiving some wonderful gifts. Will got me a new laptop, which was much needed! Watch out blog world.. I'm set now, if I can figure it all out! Will's big gift was a tool set from my parents, which he can't wait to piddle around with! We also got a set of our fine China which brings the count to 8 place settings! We are super excited!! We also got a few other things from our registry including our NINJA blender! Bring on smoothies!

Many nights in December were filled with attending holiday events, and I subbed nearly everyday! The month FLEW by!! Let's rewind back to the very end of November/beginning of December when....

WILL BOUGHT A HOUSE!! We are excited about our new little nest!

We have some painting to do, and some updating to take care of! We found a great deal on appliances and they should be installed in the next couple of weeks! We bought and were gifted some furniture this past weekend and we got a few house items for Christmas! I'm excited to share all our house updates as they happen!! Stay tuned in 2016 for the makeover!

In Mid-November I had my first (ever!) bridal shower! It was so much fun and I LOVED the fall theme! Here are a few pics from that event! 

The Winn ladies threw me the shower! Sweet family friends!

Bridesmaids/Honoraries in attendance!

The same weekend as our shower, we had our engagement pictures taken! We LOVE our photographer and I highly recommend her! Check out her website if you are in need of a wedding/baby/family photographer! She does amazing work! I would post our engagement pictures, however, Jessica wrote such a beautiful post and included some of the best of our pictures on her blog, so check it out here! And here is just a teaser picture...

2015 has been quite the year with lots of "ups" and a few "downs," but it will be a year I'll always remember! We are looking forward to all that 2016 has in store... it's sure to be sweet! 

Inspirations

In my previous post, I mentioned that we are in the process of possibly buying a house. While not enough details are finalized for me to elaborate any more than that, it doesn't stop me from sharing a few inspirations for decorating our new home! I took a housing class in high school and college, so needless to say I've been waiting a long time to "nest." (I've decided that term doesn't have to just be used when you are expecting, because I'm definitely NOT!) I was lucky enough to be able to purchase my first home at the age of 22 and I started planning furniture placement, paint color and decor long before closing! Somethings don't change. I'm pretty much already there with this go round! Luckily, I have a fiance who trusts me to make interior design decisions and who puts up with me showing him my Pinterest board with all my ideas!

When I bought my house the last time I couldn't wait to put color on the walls. When I purchased it the walls were very vanilla, literally it looked like vanilla ice cream color on the walls. I purchased furniture with taupe color fabric and side tables that were dark cherry for the living room. My bed is also dark cherry, and at the time I was obsessed with a blue and brown color palette. I have the Vera Bradley Java Blue pattern bed skirt, message board and lamp shade. I had those items in my college apartment senior year and wanted to incorporate a very girly design into my master bedroom. It was perfect for a young single girl, but I am ready to "graduate" to an inviting couples retreat! My kitchen is currently the color of a firetruck. I couldn't wait to paint my kitchen a bold color! I LOVE red in a kitchen and it looks best at Christmas. I also collect antique kitchen utensils with red handles and display them on  my kitchen hutch. My guest room is a pastel yellow, called "yellow ribbon." It was actually the same color my nursery was when I was a baby. I paired pink and green with it and it is the cutest girly room ever!

Obviously, the last time I planned paint colors and decor I was obsessed with color! It's true, I'm a color person, not much in my wardrobe is bland! However, this time, I've decided to tone it down a bit. When we were looking at houses on the  market I saw one that had grey walls throughout the home. It looked good in every room, was relaxing and created a sleek modern look throughout. It was then that we both decided that we wanted that same look in whichever home we purchased. With the same color on the walls in every room we can add color in our decor and accessories! I contacted the Realtor for that listing and asked her for the shade and make of the paint. It was Sherwin Williams Agreeable Grey.

I found this fabric when I was browsing looking for fabric to recover some chairs. I instantly knew that I had to have it! I mean, it has birds on! I found it at a local fabric store and I'm hopefully going to look at it/purchase it Friday! I want to make three euro sized pillow covers for our master bed. I think it will compliment our neutral bedspread nicely and add some pattern/texture.

For the wedding mom found some champagne colored birdcages at Ross. After the wedding I want to hang them from the ceiling in the master bed room. I will probably add some battery operated candles to them to add some light and decoration. The picture below is similar to the ones I have in color, but are more ornate than mine. But mine do have the hooks, which is what made me think to hang them in our bedroom after the wedding!

Above the bed I want to put a cut out of our married monogram. I ordered one a few weeks ago from Groopdealz.com. (Ps. if you don't know about that daily deal site, acquaint yourself!) I got this monogram cut out for $7.99 plus shipping. What a steal!!! I haven't decided what color I'm going to paint it yet and if I'm going to mount it on something else or hang it with a ribbon. My intention is to use it somewhere at the reception as a decoration, but then eventually put it above our bed.

So basically, the master bedroom will be a mix of greys, browns, and metallics. Will doesn't think it's too feminine and I think it's very inviting and even a little romantic! I'm excited to see it all come together eventually.

Whenever we do purchase our home and start to move in, paint is the top priority! That will refresh the space and make it feel like ours. Of course, I will blog about it along the way and if I decide to take on any DIY projects that I've pinned I'll share those too! I intend to use my current bedding/decorations in our guest bed room. I can't quite let go of the blue and brown palette just yet. The walls will be grey, but I think that will make the blue and brown pop instead of blending with a light blue wall. The third bedroom will have my current guest bedroom furniture in it, including a desk. I will probably set up my sewing machine there and get to leave it out instead of having to put it up and off of my kitchen table. I'm so excited to have more than 1040 square feet to live in! We can each have a place to escape to and do our own thing! Again, more updates on the house we purchase when more is finalized, but I can't wait to share with you our new nest and the transformation to making it ours!

Where did October go?

Hello! Sorry I've been MIA for the month but we have been busy busy busy! I'll go ahead and warn you this post is a photo dump! I thought I'd take the opportunity on this chilly, rainy, 1st of November night to fill you in on life with the TBirds! We have had a crazy October! It has been fun, but constantly on the go! To help keep our schedules straight we finally synced the calendars on our phones! Y'all this is HUGE!! *insert Donald Trump Voice* We have been together for 3.5 years and we are just now doing this?!? It has been an amazing development in our relationship, and would have saved us from so many spats in the past! If you haven't done this I encourage you to!!

Anyways, the first weekend in October we were each supposed to head in opposite directions: Will to Florence to celebrate his moms birthday & me to Rock Hill to my sorority alumni reunion weekend! Well, that didn't happen! As I'm sure you are aware the thousand year flood occurred that weekend and we each decided it wasn't a good idea to travel. Instead we watched Netflix & football, caught up on our shows and ate Waffle House! Everything was shut down, including schools (for the entire week) and the bank was closed Monday. We were stir crazy by Monday evening but we enjoyed a few "unplanned" days off and enjoyed spending the unexpected time together! Should we have been working on something towards the wedding? Probably. Did we? Absolutely not, unless you count pinning more decor ideas on my wedding Pinterest board! Joking aside, the flood damage to our city and state was devastating! My heart breaks for the people that were severely impacted by the damage! It will take awhile for everything to recover, but we will because we are #SCstrong!

This is a picture of the Old Mill on Main St in Lexington, about 2 miles from my house! 

The next weekend we attended the wedding of Will's former co-worker! It was in town and we enjoyed the great food and fun at the reception, even though it was rainy and still icky from the flood! Do I have a single picture from this event? Nope. #bloggerfail

The week after the flood the sun was finally out and the SC State Fair started on Wednesday the 14th. I was able to take my grandmother and spend the day with her walking around the fair looking at the exhibits and eating delicious, but not in my diet, fried food! Will met us for lunch, so we got our fair fill in within the first 5 hours the fair was open! Sometimes not working full time has its benefits! I wouldn't have been able to take gram and make that memory! 

We were 2 of the first 1,000 people into 2015 state fair! 

Will eating his annual donut bacon cheeseburger. Also, not on the wedding diet! 

The next weekend we didn't have any concrete plans, but we spent the majority of the weekend watching football and just being together! The weather was beautiful for a change and so we just got some stuff done around the house! The day before, the invitation for my first shower came in the mail! That was super exciting, and made it all start to seem real! We also had our first pre-marital counseling session, which went well. We have had 2 sessions so far, and we enjoy recognizing why we know we work so well together. 

Last weekend was super busy! Will's 33rd birthday was Saturday the 24th! It was a low key celebration! My parents grilled filets and we watched the Clemson game that night! During the day we went house hunting!! This wasn't the first time we had been, but we had added some more to the list to look at. More to come on this as it develops, but we hope to buy soon & have Will moved in by December! I will move my stuff little by little, then move most of my stuff the week of the wedding and spend my first night there on our wedding night! Prayers are appreciated as this is a big decision with a lot of hoops to jump through! Adulting at its finest! 

The Devils food cake with marshmallow buttercream frosting that I made for him! It wasn't pretty, but it tasted good and he was excited about the Star Wars theme!

This is the 3rd birthday we've celebrated together! I look forward to sharing many more!

Wednesday we were supposed to have our church's trunk or treat, but due to rain it was moved to Thursday night! Shocker! We reprised our roles as Danny & Sandy! We have intentions to ride this 2TBirds thing out as long as we can! There were over 4,000 people who attended! We went through 14 BIG bags of candy just at our trunk! 

Friday night we attended a costume party in my parents neighborhood! Glad we got 2 more wears out of our costumes this year! My parents went as a zombie bride and groom! Either that are really into this wedding stuff, or we are slowly killing them with it! :)

That is moms wedding dress that she has on! Who knew 41years ago that it would one day be a Halloween costume!

This weekend, on Halloween, we attended the wedding of one of Will's high school friends! The reception was a masquerade ball which was neat! Here is the only pic we have because again, I fail at taking pics at events! 

The weekends have definitely been busy, but I've also been staying busy subbing! I've also applied for like a hundred more jobs! This is my current thoughts on that...

Might as well laugh as to cry about the situation!

November is looking just as busy as October! This weekend I'm headed to Augusta to pick up my dress and have the first fitting!!! So I'll be busting it at the gym this week and eating lettuce and jello! Not really, just lean meats and proteins for the next few months! The candy got me last week! Then the next weekend we have our engagement pictures, finally, and my first shower! All super exciting!! I can't WAIT for our pictures and to see my ideas for the shoot become real! Just pray that Saturday the 14th is a beautiful sunny fall day in SC! Thanksgiving will soon follow and then Christmas! Time is flying by!! 

Have a lovely week and welcome November! 

Thursday Tidbits

Hello! I realize that I have taken nearly a month to update again. Life has been, well, crazy to say the least! For not being full time employed I sure have kept busy!! I refuse to waste this time that I was unexpectedly given! 

Employment Update: 

Really enjoying substitute teaching! My first full week was last week and I was in elementary, middle, our tech center and highschool! I definitely got a feel for which age/grades I like best and surprisingly that was middle school! This week I have only subbed 3 days and those were in highschool! I really like the flexible schedule, being back in a classroom and being around children/teens! I mean I only knew there was a Snapchat update last Thursday because I was in middle school! 😉

I am still looking for full time employment and have put in what feels like 50,000 applications/résumés to various places! I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a certain position and hope to hear back before the end of the week or at least the first part of next week!

Since I've had "free time" I've spent a good bit of it in the gym! It's really paying off! I lost about 15lbs, and around 4in in my waist! Skirts and pants are starting to get too big and I'm slowly getting into clothes I haven't worn in quite a while! I don't like to brag on myself, but sometimes you have to toot your own horn!! 

Another thing I've started back doing recently was church choir! I had taken about a 2 year hiatus due to grad school and then I wasn't a fan of the worship style my church changed too. However, it has gone back to a more blended style of worship music and so I decided to get involved again. It has been a blessing to go to practice on Wednesday nights and worship through singing, and it's been fun to lead worship on Sunday mornings! I missed practice last night, as I've had a sinus/cold/cough thing going on since Sunday, but I'm looking forward to being back next week! I also joined a ladies ensemble to further my vocal ability! It's probably out of my league, but I'll do my best to make a joyful noise unto the Lord!

Wedding Update: 

The invitations came and I absolutely love them!! I think I said that in my last post! Now comes the hard part of assembling and addressing them! I plan to start working on that next week! If I do 10-15 at a time it won't be too overwhelming! I have until the end of January to get them completed! 

I have a laundry list of wedding to-dos! I need to buy ribbon, I need to assemble favors, I need to order Will's tie and the ring bearers's bow ties, I need to check on groomsmans' ties & socks, flower girl dresses need to be ordered, honorary gifts, organize center pieces, have dress fitted, take engagement pictures, take bridal portraits, have a bachelorette weekend and a few showers, and the list goes on and on of those nitty gritty details that you don't think about until something else makes you think of them!! I know it will all workout and be beautiful so I'm not too worried, just need to prioritize those details!!

Upcoming Festivities:

We are looking forward to a busy fall! We have two weddings to attend in October, one is on Halloween with a masquerade reception! How fun! We also hope to participate in our church's trunk or treat again as Danny and Sandy from Grease! Of course we will be watching football most Saturday's and taking in the occasional Friday night lights with high school football! Will's family reunion is coming up as well as his 33rd Birthday!! Lots of activities and busy weekend ahead! Looking forward to all fall has to offer besides, pumpkin spice lattes! 

I apologize for mylast few posts not being very visual! Not much in my life is picture worthy at this point! I have made some pretty decent dinners that were worth snapping a pic, but I'm always too hungry to think about anything other than diving in! If I think about it in my next post I'll list the recipes I made and the links to where I found them! 

Stay Beautiful! 

MG