Young House Love

Home Decorating & DIY Tutorials

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6 Smart Layout Features For A Smaller Home

Since downsizing to our 1400 square foot house three and a half years ago (as a refresher, our previous house was more than twice as large – clocking in at 3150 square feet), you’ve probably heard us proclaim that smart storage is key. It certainly makes living in a smaller home a lot more sustainable and enjoyable, but there are also specific layout features of our house that make sharing less square footage go a lot more smoothly for us. So whether you’re thinking of downsizing, considering a new home with any of these layout details, building a new home, or are just curious about what some of our favorite “living-larger-in-a-smaller-home” features are, we’ve put

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Sherwin Williams Extra White (SW 7006) Color Review

From its name, you might expect Sherwin-Williams Extra White (SW7 7006) to be the brightest, whitest paint on the market. And while it is a crisp clean white color – it has some nuances when it comes to where and when it should (and shouldn’t) be used in your home. So let’s answer some common questions about this popular white paint color so you can decide if it’s right for you. What makes SW Extra White a popular white? Extra White is one of the most popular white paints out there. Lots of these whites have names that lead you to believe they are the best, brightest, or “whitest” white around. You’ll see names like

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The Best Family Board Games

Our family LOVES a game night and we keep a tight collection of only our 30 most favorite games. They cover a pretty wide variety: card games, party games, puzzle games, and more. We believe the best family board games are as fun for grown-ups as they are for kids. So except for a couple of adults-only versions that we’ve clearly labeled below, everything linked in this post is great for the whole family. I’ve categorized our games into the groups you see below. But be warned – there’s definitely lots of overlap! I’ve included a brief description of each game, but to avoid repeating them every time a game appears in a list, you

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Easy DIY Window Plant Shelf

Let’s show you how we whipped up this CRAZY simple window plant shelf! You can make it in less than an hour & without any fancy tools, meaning you’ll be out shopping for more plans in no time. We even used some scrap wood we already owned, so the DIY project only cost us $2 to complete! We’ve put some greenery in this window, but adding the floating shelf gave us room for lots more! It adds some interest to a formerly non-descript window and the plants are super happy in the sunlight! You can see what it looked like previously along with all of our bathroom before and afters. Note: We recently had our

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Sherwin-Williams Pure White (SW 7005) – The Best Whole House White

Picking the perfect white paint can be a mind-numbing process. But after trying several, we’ve gone ALL IN on our one true favorite: Sherwin-Williams Pure White. It’s got all of the things you’re probably looking for in a crisp white, without any of the pitfalls that you run into with others (too bright! too gray! too yellowed!). Plus, it’s versatile enough to work on just about every surface of your home: walls, doors, trim, ceiling, cabinets, and more. Is Sherwin-Williams Pure White the best white? Anybody who has looked for white paint knows finding a “true white” is nearly impossible. Whites vary greatly depending on their undertones, often skewing yellow, pink, violet, or even green.

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Two Days In St. Petersburg Florida With Kids

Rather than take one big vacation this summer, we opted instead for a few short trips so we could experience more new places. We kicked things off with a 3-night trip to Charleston, SC, we met up my parents in the Georgia mountains in July, and then capped off the summer with a getaway to St. Petersburg, Florida. Sherry and I had only been there very briefly during this 2008 beach vacation, so we were excited to spend more time there and explore it with our kids. So here’s a quick recap of what we did, where we ate, and why we’re excited to go back. Where Did We Stay In St. Petersburg? St. Petersburg

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Benjamin Moore Edgecomb Gray: The Perfect Greige

We’ve used Edgecomb Gray in nearly every room of our home because it’s a warm, inviting, and versatile neutral. You might even call it the perfect greige paint color! It’s popular with designers and DIYers alike, whether you’re painting a living room, bedroom, kitchen cabinets, or even your siding. Let’s show you why. We’ve also scoured the Internet to find the best greige paint colors that experts recommend again and again (yes, Edgecomb Gray made the list!). The #1 spot did surprise us a little bit. But you’ll find some great alternative greiges if you want want to test a few. When should you use Edgecomb Gray? Benjamin Moore’s Edgecomb Gray (HC-173) is one of

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Aura Quartz: Crystal Meaning & Properties

Aura Quartz is a special variety of quartz known for its vibrant iridescent coloring. It’s found under many names and varieties, like rainbow quartz and angel aura quartz, depending on its coloring. These quartzes can be somewhat controversial among crystal collectors due to how they get their iridescent coloring. But I own several of them because they’re beautiful. Even more so in person! What is Aura Quartz? Aura Quartz is a natural quartz crystal with manmade modifications to create its signature iridescent appearance. This “aura coating” is created by fusing precious metal particles like gold or platinum to the surface of the crystal in a high-heat vacuum chamber. Some believe this enhances the quartz’s metaphysical

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#183: What’s Next, House Vibes, & Yet Another Embarrassing Moment

We’re dropping this random pop-in episode to share one of the most embarrassing tales Sherry has ever told on this podcast. Of course it had to happen in the nicest house we’ve ever been in (in front of one of Sherry’s personal heroes). We’re also listing what’s left on our to-do list, and answering the much-asked question: what’s your next big project? Plus, we break down what feels different to us about this house compared to our last one (and the varied impressions you might get about us if you walked in without us being there). Lastly, we each share some recent home-related purchases and the books & tv shows that are keeping us laughing

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The 12 Best Haint Blue Paint Colors

We love a blue porch ceiling (something you very commonly see – especially in the south). In fact, we’ve painted our porch ceiling a light blue color in nearly all of our homes! The tradition of a blue porch ceiling actually has a name – “haint blue” – along with a rich cultural history and some very practical reasoning behind it. So let’s dive into how it started and why so many people love a haint blue porch. We’re also sharing some of the best haint blue paint colors if you’re looking for one for your porch. In addition to photos of our own homes, this post also features many haint blue porches we saw

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Easy Board & Batten Tutorial

Board and batten is one of our favorite, easy DIY projects. It’s completely beginner-friendly and it makes a big impact in any room, entry, or hallway. This is the 3rd house where we’ve installed this type of wainscoting, so we’ll show you our trick for making this project faster, easier, and less expensive than traditional board and batten! For this particular installation in our beach house, we did a higher board & batten and hung peel-and-stick wallpaper above it. It was exactly the mix of traditional & colorful that we were going for in this guest bedroom! What is Board & Batten? Board and batten originated as a style of exterior siding, but is also

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Adding Poured Concrete Walkways & A Driveway

As we mentioned in our post about making a bigger backyard pool area, we’ve also made some big changes out front. Namely, we now have a legit front walkway and driveway! Break out the champagne! Release the doves! Rewatch the #Scandoval episode of Vanderpump Rules (or whatever else people like Sherry do to celebrate). I know this may seem unworthy of celebration – a driveway? cool story, bro – but when you live without one for THREE YEARS, it feels like a major win. Why We Needed Parking & Pathways I know most houses come with a place to park your car and some sort of path to the front door. Every other house we’ve

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