That, my friends, is me. I’m Stef! *Waves hello* I am the ripe old age of 30 (31 is coming up fast). Among many things, I am a wife, mother, homeowner, bookworm, teacher, eccentric nerd, and a complete design junkie with an enviable collection of shoes, dresses, and riding boots. I also suffer an addiction to pedicures, eyeshadow, Harry Potter, and ice chips. I take a borderline abnormal pleasure in getting things for free, for cheap, or for a fraction of the cost! I enjoy tackling projects that both teach me a new skill and beautify my home. The difference between a house and a home is how personalized and “comfy” it feels.

After over 13 years together, 7+ years of marriage, and 4.5 years in our first apartment…the hubby and I bought our first home (on our 4th wedding anniversary) on 4/26/13! April 26th is a lucky day for us! It’s been a long time coming, and it’s been quite a ride already in the small amount of time we have been here. We have tackled countless projects and have many more to come! I readily admit that working on your home together brings you closer as a couple and reinforces your status as a team (although the joke is that “Jeffanie” has been an official “power couple” since 2003). I believe it is healthy for your relationship to work on your home together. Through joy, frustrations, fights, and smooth-skies, we worked alongside one another to make our house a home. Another upside is the absolute pleasure you get from looking at a room, piece of furniture, or a renovated space and thinking “WE did that!”. It’s a sense of pride unrivaled by anything else. Pretty cool!

Here’s the other half of me and my favorite person in the entire world (working on the house as usual):

 

I hope to show you how changes that seem like small ones can make a huge impact in your home.

I hope to help you understand how much money “doing it DIY” can save you.

I hope to bring you inside of both my house and my life, and share the “work-in-progress” that is my home.

I hope to show you how thrifting and resourcefulness can change the way you think, the way you live, and the way you save.

And above all, I really, really, REALLY hope you like it here!

::To the start of a new journey:: Let’s DIY, share ideas, and have some fun. Cheers! (::holds up glass of red wine::)

Here is a partial-view of our home (the inspiration behind this blog), decked out for Christmas 2013:

other page.