Charleston Home Ideas

My grandparents moved from Princeton, NJ to Charleston, SC in 1994, so my childhood was spent driving down to Charleston and spending two weeks on Folly Beach. Every trip to Charleston brings back so many wonderful memories and makes me appreciate the time I spent here when i was younger. It was such a pleasure spending a few days with my mom, aunt, sister, grandparents and cousin celebrating our August birthdays in one of our very favorite places.

Day on the beach with my girls

This trip I am especially appreciating the beautiful architecture and history along the streets of Charleston as I get excited about our house. After a rainy Saturday morning, we took a walk down to the South Battery and did our own walking house tour! Although our house cannot even compare to the Charleston architecture, I know that my decorating will be influenced by these beautiful houses.

Loving the black shutters with the brick

Can't wait to have window boxes

This was just stunning.

I thought we had a big renovation project..

Loving this black and brick

This house was my favorite.. that door!?

 

Beautiful little brick home with so much character.

I just love the multi level porches in Charleston

This just made me happy

Always looking forward to another trip to Charleston! Hoping by the next trip our house will be comparable to the beautiful houses that have been a source of inspiration for me my entire life!

One more detail about our trip is my cousin and how we were all affected by his presence. Today he is 22 years old and 37 days sober from drugs and alcohol, the longest he has been sober in years. Every day we were in Charleston I dropped him off and picked him up at A.A., where he worked through his issues. I also worked with him to find a way to cope with his anxiety and find a way to release his energy. We went to a boxing class together and it was the most fun I've had in a long time.

Saying Goodbye to Fairmount

We moved into our Fairmount apartment on August 1, 2012, exactly one month before getting married. We have truly loved living in our little apartment, on what I believe is the best street in Fairmount. Our only complaint has been that the space is great for two people, but not for entertaining. Below is a picture of our adorable little living room, big enough for Timmy and us :)

Timmy was the star of every Craigslist picture!

Our bedroom was a bright blue when we bought the house so I found my favorite Benjamin Moore gray, which I think turned out really well and I will definitely use in the new house. The headboard was a Pinterest find and Andrew did such a nice job on making it from scratch! The Ikea closet came with the apartment and I am so looking forward to real closets. I have really disliked that big clunky thing!

Luckily, our street is very quiet but the black out shades were necessary due to the street lights.

The bathroom is going to be the hardest selling point for this house. Luckily, I am gone Monday-Thursday, so Andrew and I haven't gotten into a single bathroom fight. Sharing a bathroom of this size has definitely made us very close :)

Timmy's favorite room

The Cherry Blossoms blooming in April were a beautiful surprise! Coming home to this after being in -25 temperatures in Minneapolis really made me fall in love with the street. My favorite experience was taking a picture of a group of kindergartners learning about Cherry Blossoms. I took a picture of the group as they all said "Cheeeessseeeee," and it still makes me smile to think about.

We will never forget our first year as a married couple living in Fairmount. I am looking forward to having our new house and making many new memories.

Mrs. H. Buys a House

The running joke between my sister and her boyfriend is to call me "Mrs. H" when I am being sassy (hardly ever). I thought it was only appropriate to include "Mrs. H" in the title of my very first blog. I hope you enjoy reading about my husband and I as we experience the ups and downs of home ownership!

After viewing nearly 30 houses over a 7 month period and putting in 4 offers, we have finally found our house! We will be making the move from beautiful Fairmount to the up and coming Graduate Hospital neighborhood. 

Last Friday we had the home inspection so I was able to take plenty of pictures and start my Pinterest home decorating! This house is going to need a lot of love but it is something we are excited to do together.

Nice high ceilings! Can't wait!

Those floors! They will be the first to go, along with that track lighting! We are hoping to install the wood floors ourselves (stay tuned for our progress) in the few days between closing and moving out of our current apartment.

Andrew pulling up the current laminate

The kitchen is something we are hoping to do in the spring after we save some more money. We are trying to decide if we want to put down wood floors when we do the living room or wait and do a pretty tile floor. The floors now are in pretty rough shape so it would be nice to have a little bit of an upgrade before the spring.

I found kitchen ideas on the Little Green Notebook blog so I am starting the redesign brainstorming now. The wood floors with the dark cabinets and light counter tops just works so well and I would love to have a pretty kitchen in our little home.We will see how long I last with the nasty kitchen :)