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All Things Home

customizing a house | painting interior doors

I’ve been contemplating a way to describe my current house and the changes I’m making. It’s not outdated, it’s not ugly, it’s not run-down, it’s not in poor taste… In fact, it’s a beautiful home. So, how do I explain why I view this perfectly nice suburban home as one that is ripe for a makeover? Then, it hit me. It’s not customized. That’s one of the reasons why it appealed to me, but it’s also why I view it as a home that’s perfect for a makeover. It’s a great foundation that could use some color, texture, and choices that reflect some personality! One simple way to customize a blank-slate home is to paint the interior doors. I didn’t think this was that crazy of an idea, but my mom made me think it’s a bit more unusual than I thought. She was opening the (painted) door to my

January 25, 2018 61 Comments

All Things Home

Are you a flitter or a sticker?

We each have our own work flow – a way of doing things that makes sense in our own minds and feels most efficient and productive. As I was packing to move, I discovered something about myself… Instead of packing one box, taping it up, and adding it to the pile, I was working on several boxes, even in different rooms, hopping from one to another. Eventually a box would be filled, taped and added to the pile. It seemed fluid to me, but I’m sure it would’ve looked chaotic. There was a moment when I really noticed what I was doing and I realized I often work that way. And I thought the actual words, “I’m a Flitter.” I just flit from one thing to the next, eventually circling back to finish everything. I think that may be how I’m able to accomplish as much as I do. It

January 24, 2018 116 Comments

All Things Home

blue & white finds

I will admit that I am basically a collector of blue and white things. If I spot it in a store, I am drawn to it like a magnet. My mom and I went to Home Goods a couple of days ago and, front and center, there was a display featuring blue and white. On the display was a pair of Ralph Lauren pillows in a blue and white check. I impulsively went to grab them. I hesitated. First of all, I have enough pillows and most of them end up strewn all over the floor. Second, I have enough blue and white check and this particular pattern didn’t match any of them. So, I left them there for someone else to buy. I didn’t resist blue and white finds altogether, though! Before Thanksgiving, I spotted some pretty blue & white Johnson Bros plates, also at Home Goods. I thought

January 23, 2018 76 Comments

All Things Home

hang your head in shame, faucet

The kitchen has come a long way since we moved in and, while it looks like a big overhaul, it’s really just involved paint, changing out the lights over the island, and hanging the pot rack. The one big change we made was converting the electric stove to gas and replacing it with a beefy commercial-style range, which has been on my kitchen wishlist for over 15 years! One thing that’s a pretty easy fix, but we hadn’t changed, was the faucet. I have seen worse, but this one was pretty sad. It’s not that it looked terrible, but it was not functional! Well, water ran out of it, I can say that. The pull-out sprayer, though, was loose and it flopped around most of the time. On top of that, the faucet was difficult to swivel. So, you’d grab the neck to move the faucet from one sink to

January 12, 2018 62 Comments

All Things Home

the basement playroom

In my post reviewing our progress on the new home in 2017, I shared that there are rooms I haven’t showed here, yet. In fact, I haven’t showed the entire basement! In addition to the utility room and some storage, there is a family room, a playroom, bathroom, and a guest room down there. It’s a walk-out basement, so even though it’s subterranean, it has pretty nice light and high ceilings. We initially planned on setting up my business down there. The main room is wide open and would give me plenty of space for art, office work, painting, sewing, and upholstery. Before we moved in, we began to really examine how we could best use our spaces for our family and my business. We came to the conclusion that the basement was just too perfect for a family space to use for my business. So, my business is spread

January 11, 2018 39 Comments

All Things Home

studio tweaks

When I moved everything into the studio, I knew that they might not stay that way. I had an idea of how I would use the space, but that was based on the idea that the drafting table would be my primary work surface. Since I’ve been doing more painting than watercolors and drawing, I’ve been working mostly at my easel. That puts the work/storage table that houses my palette, brushes, paper towels, etc., on my left. As a righty, that means I’m reaching across my body constantly. I haven’t thought too much about it, but it is awkward at times and not ideal. The postal sorter is also monopolizing quite a bit of surface space on the narrow table, so things are a bit cramped. So, I’m going to move the easel where the drafting table currently is and I’m going to hang the postal sorter on the wall,

January 10, 2018 27 Comments

All Things Home

home progress in 2017

We’ve been in this house for just over five months and, with the turn of the year on the calendar, it seemed like a good time to share a recap of what we’ve accomplished. This house has been an interesting project for me, because it is beautiful as is. It doesn’t need a major makeover. Nothing is hideous or dated. Even the plum-colored wall in the basement hasn’t bothered me enough to paint over it. The nice thing is that there doesn’t need to be a sense of urgency to work on projects. We can move at a comfortable pace as time and budget allow. These makeovers are about customization and making this house feel like ours. And that has meant buckets and buckets of paint! Paint is always my go-to and it, once again, has proved its worth. In the living room we… Painted the walls in Whickham Gray

January 5, 2018 48 Comments

All Things Home

open kitchen shelving

This week, I have felt even more motivated than usual to knock things off of my to-do list. I was slowed down a little over the past couple of months with the holidays, an injured shoulder, and a chest cold. The new year is underway, though, and I am feeling that energy that spurs us to collectively organize and plan. Today was heavy on the organizing and planning and not the fun kind. Just paying bills, catching up on e-mail, preparing paperwork for taxes (already), filling in my calendar, making a master to-do list for January, etc. But, yesterday, I knocked out something that’s been lingering on the to-do list for months – painting the open shelving in the kitchen… When we first moved in, this nook was just an open, underutilized space. This house is designed very well, but we were scratching our heads at this niche. Maybe for

January 4, 2018 81 Comments

I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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All Things Home

customizing a house | painting interior doors

Are you a flitter or a sticker?

blue & white finds

hang your head in shame, faucet

the basement playroom

studio tweaks

home progress in 2017

open kitchen shelving

next art sale

August 13th, 2026 at 1pm EST

Now Available for Preorder

Move Slow & Make Things

From the Studio

Artful pieces for your home and everyday life.

From the Studio and Home

Shop the Feed

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power washing the patio

painted garden obelisk

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