Italian Lesson

Time to learn, folks...

Portico (n):  (from the Italian language) is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns.

Sounds thrilling, doesn't it? I actually didn't know what it was called just a couple months ago, but became obsessed with having one installed after breaking my promise to the hubs that I wouldn't embark on major (and more importantly, costly) home projects until we recouped some much needed funds.

It all started innocently enough. Within one week of moving in, we met our neighbors, who have completely remodeled their home and as I was admiring the work done to the exterior, I soon had the contact information for the company they used for "exterior design" services, called them up and had the owner quoting us for our very own portico... oh, and the portico was built and finished.

This was all done by week #3 after the move. I can't help myself. I have a problem.

But the results of the portico build have transformed our once flat-front colonial... 
 
BEFORE (I forgot to snap a pic before they taped off where the portico would go):

AFTER: 

I love it. Absolutely love it. But I guess I better love it considering that our next vacation will include us drinking a margarita standing beneath that portico since we have no vacation money. What I do for renovation love.

And if you are house hunting and fall in love with an interior that has as shabby exterior, fear not and know that you can transform the outside of your home. And when I say "transform" I really mean it - check out some of the jaw dropping before and after pictures on the site of the company we used to construct our beloved portico:  http://nuconceptswindows.com/photo-beforeandafter.html#photos/images/be24.jpg

This concludes your Italian lesson. Salute!

Fixture Fanatic

Born in 1975, our home may have made it through the 80s without leg warmers and outrageously large bangs, but it still has remnants of bad decor from decades better left forgotten.

Still on my mission to spruce up our new digs on a limited budget, I turned to my favorite technique - updating lighting fixtures - to help me modernize some spaces that were just rubbing (and in some cases, "fanning") me the wrong way.

Let's begin in our master bedroom, which housed the biggest, most dated offender. Behold the 1986 brass ceiling fan:

Quite the beauty, eh? Somehow our modern bedding and furniture just didn't mesh with the basket weave inlay of the fan blades.

When I hunted for a replacement I really wanted to hang a dramatic chandelier or a trendy light surrounded by an even trendier drum shade. While I fell in love with quite a few fixtures, there were three problems... 1) all the fixtures I found were not only dramatic in looks, but in price... 2) I have pretty much taken over the house and I don't think the hubs could bear to sleep beneath hanging crystals, which would probably strip him of his manliness as he slept... and 3) both the hubs and I turn into furnaces when we sleep, so having a ceiling fan is the only way to realistic keep cool under the covers.

So now I was on the hunt for a functional ceiling fan that had a trendy, semi-masculine look that still would give me the elegance of a modern chandelier or shade. Easy task, right? I was surprised when I found the solution at Lowe's of all places, for $180... check it out...

This fan is "exclusive" to Lowe's, made by their house brand, thus the low price.

Pleasantly surprised by the lighting selection, I thought it was time to replace these hall lights...

(Which aren't THAT bad, just not our taste and weren't jiving with the rest of the rest of our decor)





Into these:

Modern, different and 80 bucks. Gotta love it.

So today's lesson? Don't stay in the dark and remember what a dramatic impact the right (and inexpensive) lighting fixture can make.