Keeping It Simple Summer Home Tour

Hello sweet Foxes! Today I’m sharing a mini Summer home tour. If you are looking for a bit of seasonal Summer decorating inspiration, but you want to keep it easy and affordable, come on in. I’m your girl! It’s all about simple and no-fuss at our house. Now, more than ever.

In fact, I may have sort of kind of cheated a wee bit. When I took photos to share my deep love for my new Swiffer, I went ahead and took extra pictures with more angles and views, (without the mop in them. hehe) because this is going to be it for me! Short of adding some fresh branches… or maybe a pillow switch (I mean, this is me we are talking about here) I don’t have any fabulous plans for an elaborate “Summer look”.

So this is our cottage, right now. Minus the branches because darn it, those real ones go and die on you. It was bliss while they lasted, and if you’ve got the opportunity to clip anything from the yard and bring it inside just to have some green, do it! And they don’t have to be fancy. Not everyone has a bottomless flower budget, like I’m beginning to suspect some do.

It makes all the difference in the feel of your home and for me, it just elevates my mood! I lucked out and my brother in law clipped a few branches from up the river at his mom’s place and gifted these to me.

ACQUIRING FRESH FLOWERS:

• ADD A FLOWER BUDGET TO YOUR MONTHLY EXPENDITURES – I would previously treat myself to grocery store bouquets a few times a month, but I’ve since put that on hold as we are saving and I decided to forgo that little splurge.

• GROW YOUR OWN – You can plant a cutting garden, flowering shrubs and trees. I realize this doesn’t work for everyone. Like me. We’ve got Deer that devour almost everything.

• DON’T BE AFRAID TO ASK FRIENDS & FAMILY – Some folks are overflowing with flowering shrubs and flowers and they don’t mind sharing. I’ve been gifted Cherry Blossoms & Hydrangeas on several occasions because everyone knows how completely tickled I am by them!!

• ALWAYS KEEP CUTTING SHEARS WITH YOU – We get Queen Anne’s Lace, Sweet Peas and more growing wild and profuse here, right along the side of the road (Always be safe please). If you’ve got access to public lands and it’s allowed, trim away.

• INVEST IN GOOD FAUX FLORALS – The fake stuff has come a long way! I mix those in and they really help feed my desire for plants & flowers when there are none available, or within the budget. I’ll link to my Olive Tree Topiaries at the end of the post. Check HomeGoods for great faux Fiddle Leaf Figs too!

For instance, I’ve had the white faux Geraniums for so long I can’t recall where I found them. But I do recall they were a little more than I’d normally spend. Turns out, it was some of the best money I ever spent.

The very popular and pretty peonies aren’t easy to find here, but HomeGoods often has the faux version and they are great quality. I’ve had these a few seasons now. I just cover them when I store them. So far, they’ve stayed beautifully.

For so many of us, we crave light and airy when Summertime hits.

This console table was down in The Little Cottage bathroom, where I could never see it, so decided to steal it away up here. I had tried a different furniture set-up, but I always seem to go back to visually separating the living and dining room with a furniture piece.

The coffee table is also holding some faux flowers. They came in a more modern thick glass vase, but I simply popped them in an old brass pot I picked up junking for a little more cottage flavor. The brassy tones pick up the table legs, and the other warm brass accents throughout the main floor.

Like the (clearance find) Target bar cart.

Along with the wall sconces, and our kaleidoscope, which is a family heirloom.

You guys will recognize the chippy green metal basket. I use it frequently.

INVEST IN VERSATILE BASICS:

I can’t stress this enough. I’ve got pieces, like that giant glass vase on the console table, that I’ve had for years & years. Console tables themselves can go from sofa tables, to entry tables, to slim desks and even night stands (if room allows). And the green shade of that metal basket makes it usable for Winter, Spring, Summer & Fall. I’ve stuffed it with Pine-cones and love it just as much that way.

Having a mostly neutral home that I can strip of color & noise, or add accents to works the very best for me. It allows me to have a very relaxed space almost devoid of color when I crave that. As well as one I can layer color into if I desire.

It’s pretty quiet right now with a relaxed feel that is calming to me. The green seems to add just enough life to the living & dining areas.

It might just balance my (possible overabundance of) Lemons in the kitchen. I can’t help it. They are so zingy and happy, and kind of a Summertime decorating staple.

Side note: We continue to be so pleased with our unexpected kitchen island/bar purchase! The way it’s opened up the traffic flow to the kitchen, and provided just the storage we need has been such a gift. I’ve got the barn door section stuffed with paper towels and every time I slide them open to grab a roll, I’m thankful for how well it worked out.

All About Lavender Topiaries [click here]

My sister sent me both the little lemon signs, and I stuffed one in my years-old Target clearance lemon wreath. (Shopping after the season pays off!)

One day, I’ll get these cabinets painted, and maybe even get countertops that don’t involve grout. But for right now, I’m busy being feeling fortunate for what has been accomplished. We got our kitchen refresh part one complete [click here] for details and a peek!

We got a bit interrupted by the big repairs and window replacement to the exterior of our home but these things are bound to happen, that’s just something that comes with home ownership. This isn’t my first time needing to do some big repairs and it won’t be my last so I think I deal with these situations pretty well now. But then my car broke down during all this too… life right? It’s probably going to be some time before we get back on schedule, as the repair & rebuilding to the outside of the house were a bit expensive.

Which makes us so extra thankful that we were able to partner with Hausera on part two of our kitchen refresh. Which was to replace our kitchen sink and faucet. Both were so necessary.

Those of you who follow me regularly are well aware of the state of our previous sink and faucet. The sink was beyond repair and riddled with deep scuffs and scratches. While the lovely faucet sang you a shrill, high-pitched siren song. Each and every time you turned it on, and it would only stay on at full force. Very splashy, and less than ideal. My mom is so happy to know she won’t have to contend with that when she comes to stay, since she’ll be in charge of the kitchen.

The Waterstone faucet is an absolute dream. Seriously, it’s like a dream faucet. I can’t even believe I’ve got this thing in my kitchen! If you are making kitchen design choices, I can without pause recommend this incredible brand. Especially for an essential that works as hard as our kitchen faucets do! They are handmade right here in the USA and the quality is without compromise. You can get them with all the matching extras like soap dispensers and all that, but I wanted as sleek as possible. I selected the faucet alone, and the one hole Riverby Kohler sink.

[twenty20 img1=”21602″ img2=”21603″ offset=”0.5″]

The sink split and the design has been wonderful. We’ve been nothing but happy with the entire set-up. That bottom rack lives in the sink 24/7. I pop it out to clean and back it goes! I was thrilled to find such a beautiful, functional sink for our drop-in needs.

Because we aren’t all set-up for a farmhouse sink, I was excited to share this beautiful option with you.

Oh… the downside to versatility? It’s that I already stole the black and white rug from the kitchen and put it in the loft. Whoops.

One room had to lose out.

Wishing you all a not too hot, and just right Summer!! xo Shannon

MY DECOR SHOPPING LINKS:

I’m including clickable affiliate shopping links below to some of the decor and household items I shared in my post.

• FARM TABLES LIKE MINE: [click here]

• MY DINING CHAIRS: [click here]

• CONSOLE TABLE: HomeGoods

• MY DINING ROOM CHANDELIER: [click here]

• MY KITCHEN ISLAND CHANDELIER: [click here]

• MY RUGS: [click here]

• MY BRASS SCONCE LIGHTS: Lamps Plus

• FAUX FLORALS: HomeGoods & [click here]

• FAUX OLIVE TREES: Ballard Designs Online [here]

• COFFEE TABLE: HomeGoods

• CHUNKY WALL SHELF: DIY Tutorial [click here]

• OUR KITCHEN ISLAND BAR, STOOLS & More: [click here]

• FAUCET: Pull down faucet in Classic Bronze by Waterstone (the color looks more soft golden brass in person than in my photos, it’s gorgeous!).

• SINK: Kohler brand, Riverby

• GREEN CHIPPY BASKET: Try Antique Farmhouse and Decor Steals online, it’s hit or miss but I do see it pop back up on occasion.

If you don’t see something listed, just leave a comment and I’ll make sure to do my best to get you the info you need! I tried to just add the highlights & some larger items, so it wasn’t a laundry-list of clickable shopping links. LOL

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