November 2018 - Arrow Hill Cottage

AROUND HERE: NOVEMBER 2018

Around here, we have been…

ANTICIPATING the start of a very long winter. The fall has been unseasonably cold already, and we are bracing ourselves. Technically, winter hasn’t even begun! We have seen a little bit of snow, though not too much accumulation.

The kids have taken what little snow that has stuck and begun their winter project. They want to build a luge, to use as a sledding hill. I suppose that is one way to keep busy! We’ll see if they will follow through or not.

CELEBRATING Thanksgiving. We have so much to be thankful for this year! Grandpa and Grandma Jackson invited us over for a delicious meal and great conversation. It’s always wonderful to just take some time to relax and think about all of your blessings.

ENJOYING planning our forever house. The more that we work on the design, the more we realize that we are really looking forward to a smaller and more simple home. And, along with it, we are also anticipating a simplified lifestyle.

I suppose we are somewhat on a journey toward minimalism. And there are five minimalism techniques that we are incorporating to our new home design.

DECORATING for the Christmas season. As part of our decluttering, we went through all our Christmas decoration bins. It was great to look at each item one by one and decide which items really bring us joy. The other items were boxed up and brought to a thrift store, with the hope that somebody else will be able to pick them up and use them this year.

I love the simplicity of our tree this year, with it’s white lights and crocheted snowflake ornaments. This Christmas will be special in that it is the last year we will spend at the farmhouse. Many memories have been made within these walls.

This is just a glimpse at what our family has been up to. If you’d like a closer look, be sure to check out our weekly ‘mini vlogs’ on our YouTube channel ARROW HILL FAMILY. Be well everyone!

MINIMALIST HOME IDEAS FOR OUR NEW BUILD

As we work toward simplifying our lifestyle, we have also thought of ways that our future house can be more minimal. We have adopted the following minimalist home ideas for our new build.

SIMPLE + SMALL DESIGN

The first minimalist home idea that we incorporated in our design is related to the look of the house itself. We wanted the shape of the structure to be as simple as possible. The end result is a basic rectangular form, with a high pitched single gabled roof. An added porch gives the exterior a bit of extra charm.

Overall, we will have approximately 2,000 livable square feet, including the basement. For a family of seven this equates to about 285 sf per person. Considering the average in America is closer to 800 sf per inhabitant, our cottage is on the small side. Of course, compared to homes in other parts of the world it could be labeled as a large home.

We have made the best use of every available square foot by configuring the main level in an open concept format. The design also incorporates many large windows as well as white ceilings and walls. By doing so, the interior will actually feel quite spacious.

SHARED BEDROOMS

Our home will essentially include three bedrooms. The main floor bedroom, for Craig and I to share, and two bedrooms for our kids. All three of our sons will be in one of the upstairs bedrooms. Our two daughters will be in the other.

We believe it is a good life lesson for kids to learn to share a room. Though, we do understand that they will also appreciate their privacy as they reach the teen years. We were able to accomplish this by carving out small ‘sleeping nooks’ for each of the boys. You can read more about the boy’s bedroom design in THIS POST.

LIMITED STORAGE

Of all of the minimalist home ideas, this one quite possibly gets us the most questions. People are sure that we will need more closets and places to store things. We are of the philosophy though, that the less storage space that is available, the less inclined we will be to keep unnecessary items.

Each of the bedrooms will have a closet, and there will be a cabinet in the mudroom for misc. items such as a broom and vacuum. There will also be storage in various cabinets throughout the house. These few storage areas will be for items we use on a daily basis. For long term storage, such as seasonal decor, there will be access to space under the eaves – through the girl’s closet.

FUNCTIONAL KITCHEN, WITHOUT THE EXTRAS

I’ll admit that when we first began designing our dream house, it featured all of the standard luxuries that modern day kitchens employ. We then began to simplify the design and think carefully about the features we really needed. Interestingly, that large center island was not a priority. Neither was a dishwasher. Though some people might think we are crazy for not including one, we know we don’t need it. We have lived our entire lives washing dishes by hand, and have never missed the extra appliance.

And, just like the limited storage we employed for the rest of the house, we thought a lot about what our needs were for kitchen storage. Because of this, we determined that we would need only very few upper cabinets. And that stylish walk-in-pantry? It isn’t a necessity in our simple home design.

Instead of placing our dining table in a separated room, it will be accessed directly off of the kitchen. This is one of my favorite minimalist home ideas incorporated in our new home design.

TECHNOLOGY FREE ZONES

Though we will have modern technology in our home, we are planning to limit the accessibility for a variety of reasons. Primarily, we don’t want technology to be the main focus. Without the distractions, we will be able to spend more time together as a family when at home.

We will have no TV in our main floor living room, or anywhere on the first (and second) floor for that matter. Instead, we will be installing speakers so that we can listen to our favorite music.

In the main living space will be one central charging station for all of our devices. We recently refinished an ANTIQUE CABINET that will be the perfect home base for all of the cell phones, ipads, and laptops.

The devices will be left in this cabinet overnight, since the kids will not be allowed to take any electronics up to their bedrooms. We feel that this rule will allow us to keep an eye on their internet use, for safety reasons.

ONE FEATURE THAT ISN’T SO MINIMAL

The BASEMENT REC-ROOM is probably the one large luxury that Arrow Hill Cottage will have.

While it does seem to be going against the grain of minimalism, it actually has the ability to simplify our lives. It will serve as a multi-functional space. It’s primary use will be a home gym and play space – reducing our need to have a family gym membership. Available at all times, the rec-room will be especially helpful as a way to keep our kids active in the winter months.

When we have a large number of overnight guests, we envision the rec-room serving as a place for all the kids to ‘camp out’. Tents can be set up in the room, and the kids will be kept toasty by the in-floor heat.

Another way that this addition was justified for us is that we see it as a trade off. Where most American homes feature a 3 car garage, we instead opted for a 2 car space. The additional square footage was then given to the rec-room, where it will be more useful for our family.

OTHER MINIMALIST HOME IDEAS

This idea of simplifying life and embracing fewer material possessions is quite popular at the moment. Check out these other great minimalist home ideas from around the web:

50 minimalist bedroom ideas

minimalist living room decorating tips

minimal kitchen essentials

SAVE THESE IDEAS!

If you are preparing to design or build a new home for your family, consider these 5 minimalist home ideas. We are very excited to see them in place in our future home!

PLEATED TABLE RUNNER DIY

This simple table runner is striking, yet inexpensive and easy to make! If you have 30 minutes and a few dollars, your table can be dressed for success!

I love staple decorating pieces that can be re-used season after season. To fit that bill for me, they generally need to be neutral and quite basic. But nobody said that basic had to be boring! While this table runner would be the perfect compliment for a Thanksgiving table, it could just as easily dress up a Christmas or Easter table setting.

The best part of this do-it-yourself project is that it can be made inexpensively and quickly!

SUPPLIES YOU WILL NEED

A roll of Kraft brown paper. I used a 30″ wide roll

sharp scissors

pencil

sewing machine / thread

straight pins (optional)

DETERMINE A RUNNER SIZE

The first step in this project is to determine the width of table runner you will create. Because working with the full 30″ roll of material would be difficult, I decided to cut the kraft paper in half. This left me with a finished table runner that is 15″ wide.

Feel free to play around with the material a bit to determine the size that will work best for you.

If you do decide to cut the material down, try to maintain as straight of an edge as possible. Having a straight edge will be helpful when folding the pleats. Don’t fret if you can’t get the edge perfect though, as any unevenness can be trimmed later.

You will also need to think about how long you would like your finished table runner to be. Because of the way that the paper will be folded, you will need 3′ of length for every 1′ of finished runner. For example, if you would like to create a 6′ table runner, you will need the roll of kraft paper to be 18′ long.

CREATE THE PLEATS

The pleats in this project are accomplished in a very similar fashion to folding a paper fan, with one important difference. The folds used to make a paper fan are ‘accordion folds’ – meaning they are all even. For this project, we will be using what is called a ‘knife fold’. The pleats for this technique are done at a 2:1 ratio. Learn the basics about the knife fold in the first few minutes of this video.

I chose to make my pleats 1″. That meant that the other fold needed to be 2″. If you choose to do a different size of pleating, just be sure to remember the 2:1 ratio. A 2″ pleat would require that every other fold be 4″, for example.

It helps me when I give myself small guides to work from. You can see in the above photo that I have a mark at 2″, and another 1″ further. I continued this marking pattern all the way to the end of the paper, on both sides.

Pinch slightly at the first 2″ markings on either side, then fold upward.

Pinch at the next two markings, and fold downwards. Continue this process, folding up and down alternately.

Be sure to make the lines as crisp as possible. I like to use my fingernail to get a nice clean line.

When you have pleated a few feet of paper, it may become difficult to keep the folds laying flat. At that point, consider placing some temporary straight pins to hold things together. You may instead choose to move onto the next step.

SEW THE PLEATS TOGETHER

Sewing the pleats down will allow the table runner to stay flat. A simple straight line stitch, set 1″ from the edge, can get the job done.

Or you may want to play around with the settings on your machine to find a more decorative stitch. This zigzag stitch looked really cute!

Finish by cutting the extra thread, erasing any visible pencil marks, and cutting the edge if needed.

ENJOY THE TABLE RUNNER

Your neutral pleated table runner is now ready for action! Layer it over a table cloth for extra dimension or place a bit of lace on top for extra texture. Add seasonal decorations for the final touch to a festive tablescape.

ALTERNATE IDEA

If the idea of creating an entire table runner seems overwhelming, consider this alternate. A smaller version can be created with less material and used as place mats.

PIN THIS PROJECT FOR LATER

BLOG GROWING PAINS

When you are learning something new, there are bound to be growing pains. My blog is going through some of those at the moment, as I discover what this world is all about.

There’s a whole lot to learn about when starting a website and blog. Analytics, Content creation, and the all important SEO. Yep, that’s right, SE… Okay – I still have no idea what I’m talking about. Basically it has to do with how people find my little corner of the web. The more people who visit my blog, the more possible it will be to grow.

To be honest, I have been a bit discouraged that I consistently write what I think is great content, and yet do not get many page views each month.

Knowledge is power, and I made the decision to sign up for a course on some of the more technical aspects behind building a good website. It has been pretty eye opening already and has proved that over the last year I have done quite a bit right. On the other hand, I am also now more aware of the mistakes I have made and why people haven’t visited my blog.

The good news is that by reversing some of those mistakes, I can send things in a positive direction. The bad news is that the reversal won’t be easy.

WHAT NEEDS CHANGING

Without getting all technical, I will just say that the basic framework of the website itself needs some re-working. The layout isn’t as user friendly as it could be.

In addition to that, a good number of my past posts will need to be edited so that they are more easily found.

It goes without saying that these changes will take time. Unfortunately, time is something that I tend to not have much of these days. Because of this, I will be scaling back the amount of new posts I put out each week.

I have consistently been able to add two new posts each week for the past year. Typically, on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Going forward until I get caught up, I will have a new goal of posting only once per week, on Thursdays.

CONTENT FOCUS

Our house build should begin in about 5-6 months. Though I have the basic floor plans finally nailed down, there are still a lot of details that need to be worked through. Interior finishes, furniture selections, kitchen cabinet layout, etc.

In order to be fully prepared for our build, I plan to develop mood boards for each space. My posts will be reflective of this part of the design process. While this will be super helpful for us to look back on as the house is being built, I am also hopeful it will be useful for others. When possible, I will try to list our material and product sources.

The posts will also document the house construction while that is happening. It should be good insight for those of my readers who are considering their own new home build.

GOING FORWARD

This blogging course has challenged me to take a closer look at my overall goals. Where it was initially started to share our design process, it has slowly been evolving into more of an overall design blog.

I’ve written about design trends, residential architecture home styles, and building tips. I have even shared some of the design work I have done for clients.

Writing a general home design blog has been fun! Once Arrow Hill Cottage is actually built though, a whole world of possibilities will open up. I will have an entire home to decorate and learn how to manage. There will be closets that need organizing and floors that need cleaning. I would love to learn to garden! And develop healthy recipes for my large family!

That being said, I foresee my blog focus turning more toward the subject of Simple Home + Simple Living.

I am super excited about this decision and, with this focus in mind, I will be making my website changes. The title bar will likely get a sprucing up, as might the logo and branding. Just be aware that my end goal is in mind!

There you go friends, that’s my update for today. Tune in next Thursday for the first of my newly focused posts to go live! Once again, thank you for your support and encouragement on this journey!

LIVING ROOM FURNITURE ARRANGEMENTS

Rearranging furniture is a great way to add variety and interest in your home. In this post, I share the living room furniture arrangements I have designed for our cottage.

Even as a little girl, I enjoyed rearranging my bedroom furniture to give the space a fresh look.

When Craig and I got married, this was an even more exciting adventure as I began to develop my decorating style. I must have come up with about 8 different living room furniture arrangements in our first house.

It is no surprise then, that while designing Arrow Hill Cottage I have had the idea of furniture placement in the back of my mind. With our original main floor layout, there wasn’t much wiggle room in terms of where the pieces could be situated. This sort of bummed me out, but I figured that if I could come up with one great placement I could learn to live with it long term.

I was excited though, once I made the major plan breakthrough that opened up the main level. Not only does the layout have a more relaxed and spacious feeling, it also allows for multiple furniture arrangements!

FURNITURE PIECES FOR THE LIVING ROOM

We have not yet selected our furniture, but I have in mind a few key pieces to search for.

Couch: I would like to find a sleek, tailored back couch – perhaps around 7 feet long. Nothing too stuffed or with a high back. Since this will be the largest piece on the main level, besides our long harvest dining table, I want to be sure that it isn’t overpowering.

A Pair of Side Chairs: Again, preferably not overstuffed. I will be looking for simple chairs with a basic and classic shape.

Coffee Table: This piece may have a bit more visual weight to it. I haven’t decided yet if it will include storage or not. In my mind right now, I envision it with black metal legs and a wooden top.

Small Side Table: To coordinate with the coffee table. A simple place to set a book or a drink.

Area Rug: In the following images, the area rug is an 8′ x 10′ size. Potentially, we could purchase a larger 10′ x 12′ size. I envision this to be a semi colorful or patterned piece.

ARRANGING THE FURNITURE

I love the ease of planning furniture placement through computer drafting. Obviously, it is much easier to move the pieces around and come up with a variety of ideas quickly. I was able to determine four living room furniture arrangements that I think would work well for our cottage.

Arrangement 1

This layout is very fireplace focused. From the front entry, a person can easily see the fireplace and the furniture is arranged to make it a focal point as well. Even though the side chairs are positioned in front of the large wall of windows, I believe there will still be a very open feel and a great view to the woods and pond.

The couch serves as a bit of a visual divider between the living room and the kitchen/dining space.

In the 3D images, you can see that the view from the windows is not greatly compromised by the chairs. One note for this arrangement is that I might want to consider adding a sofa table into the furniture mix, so that there isn’t so much couch back exposed.

Arrangement 2

For this next layout, I used the exact same furniture placement but rotated it 90 degrees. The fireplace is flanked by the chairs, which makes the living room more intimate and cozy.

The flow between living and kitchen/dining is open, with plenty of space to walk.

The couch back is one of the first things a person entering the house from the front door would see with this furniture layout. Again, this might be a good opportunity for a sofa table. It is also one of the reasons that a lower profile couch will be a priority when making the furniture selection.

Arrangement 3

This living room set up gives off a more formal vibe. The couch is placed with it’s back to the large wall of windows and the chairs directly across, with the coffee table in between. The benefit of this layout is that the room feels open from both the entry and the dining space, since the couch isn’t visually dividing the passage from either direction.

Again, a low profile couch will be important so that it does not block any of the wonderful natural light that is sure to spill through the living room windows.

Arrangement 4

This combination is what I am calling the ‘Holiday Furniture Placement’. This layout might be my go-to when we have company. In the living room, the chairs and couch are set up for maximum conversation in a U-shape facing the fireplace. Additional chairs could be brought for more seating.

There is also a bit of a configuration change that could happen in the kitchen/dining space. By rotating the table, the counter space overlooking the windows could be opened up for seating as well.

I can see that there would be plenty of space for a Christmas tree in the corner closest to the entry. This would allow it to be visible, yet out of the way.

I will need to work through my ideas for this a bit more to determine if setting the cabinets a bit might be worth the compromise of less storage. The very valuable aspect of this furniture placement, and why it would work so well for large gatherings, is that it would allow us to seat 14 for a meal. For a house that has a small main floor, that is a big deal!

BENEFITS OF ARRANGING FURNITURE

Rearranging furniture is worthwhile, and not just because it provides a good cardio workout! There are many other benefits that make re-arranging furniture a good idea.

Deep Cleaning: It’s amazing the amount of toys and cracker crumbs that can be found when furniture is moved. By arranging furniture more frequently, those dust bunnies will have no place to hide.

Furniture Wearing Evenly: People have a tendency to find their favorite spot and stick with it. By moving furniture, you just might make someone give another place to sit a try.

Sunlight also has a tendency to fade certain types of fabric. By rotating which furniture has a place in front of the windows, the sun fading will be less noticeable over time.

Appreciating the Space: When a room is always set up in the exact same way, it has a tendency to become visually stagnant. By changing furniture pieces around you can invoke new life into the space. This fresh perspective can allow you to appreciate the room again.

GIVE YOUR SPACE A FRESH LOOK

If you’d like to try out some new living room furniture arrangements without sweating, check out this link from Better Homes & Gardens!

Better Homes & Gardens Furniture Arrangement Tool

Do you have tips on how often you like to re-arrange furniture? Which of the four living room furniture arrangements of the four shown above is your favorite? I would love to hear from you!

Month: November 2018