Posts By John Petersik

Could you put your wallet on lockdown for 365 days? Sherry shared the story of a woman who did, including why she took on the challenge, the few exceptions she allowed to make it possible, and how it’s inspiring us to adjust our spending… and maybe even try out a ban of our own. Plus, how much should you involve your kids in the design of their rooms? We share some tips and tactics for keeping everyone happy in the process, so the result is a room that they love (and that you also like to be in with them). Plus, the paint colors that will help your home sell for more money (some of

Doorless bathrooms? Toilets behind glass walls? Showers and tubs just sitting in the corner of the bedroom? These “open concept” bathroom trends seem to be showing up more often, and they’re alarming to some and exciting to others. So this week we attempt to understand what sparked this growing trend, and we explain where we land on the bathroom privacy spectrum. Also, Sherry concocts a new date night idea for DIY enthusiasts and I recap how a few months off of social media has affected me (for better and for worse). Plus, how our very own half-bathroom installation went terribly, terribly wrong. You can download this episode from Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn Radio, and Spotify – or listen to

It’s never fun to get a call saying that you have to tear down something that you just SPENT AN ENTIRE WEEKEND CONSTRUCTING, but that’s exactly what happened with our beach house bunk beds. So this week we’re sharing what went down behind the scenes, and what we did to get around it. Plus, we’re talking to Matt Paxton who’s one of the extreme cleaning experts from the A&E show Hoarders, and he sheds a ton of light on why people hoard, how you can help someone who does, and what tricks he has picked up for keeping his own home in order. Sherry’s also diving deeper into the woo-woo waters, I’m loving a certain

We’re getting personal this week, and sharing some early setbacks and hard choices that almost steered our lives in a totally different direction – no houses, no blog, even no marriage! We also dive into how some failed attempts at making over a certain area of our home led to us giving up and calling in the pros. Plus, an easy way to up your drawer organization game, and a tool that makes nearly every project easier. You can download this episode from Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn Radio, and Spotify – or listen to it below! Then use this page to check out any links, notes, or photos we referenced. Note: If you’re reading in a feed reader, you might have

This week I’m fessing up to a design choice that I insisted we make in our beach house kitchen, but now realize was – shall we say – misguided? Thankfully it’s not too hard to undo, so we’re explaining our change of heart, and what we’re doing to fix it. There’s also a polarizing design “trend” that we’ve been asked to weigh in on, so we’re sharing our take – and why we think it gets people so worked up (this trend literally can make people get rage-y). We’re also sharing some secrets for recreating that super cozy, uber luxurious bed you see in the pages of magazines… and why there are some bed-making tricks

We don’t always see eye-to-eye on our projects and decorating decisions. In fact, we’re stuck in the midst of some pretty “active” home arguments right now. So in honor of Valentine’s Day, we’re sharing everything we love about each other all of our home-related disagreements and how we’re planning to work through them – hopefully without too many hurt feelings (although Sherry’s pretty heated about one of them already). We also cover a whole slew of updates, from the historic review board’s verdict on our duplex roof proposal to Sherry’s never-ending Invisalign saga (she might have a record-breaking case here). And most importantly, we answer one of the most common questions we get: if our

We’ve encountered a few frustrating setbacks with our beach duplex renovation, but thanks to a small technicality we were finally able to charge ahead and start demolition. Gotta love a loophole! So we’re sharing our work-around, and the surprising thing that was discovered during demo. Plus, when it comes to buying things online without touching or seeing them in person first, we’ve become much more willing to go for it these days, so we’re sharing our tips for minimizing your risk when shopping for home stuff online (including how to unlock even more reviews, and what items we haven’t had the courage to buy online yet). Plus, we make a case for rethinking your shower