Young House Love

Home Decorating & DIY Tutorials

Posts by Sherry Petersik

Sherry Petersik is one half of the duo behind the award-winning home improvement and do-it-yourself design blog, Young House Love. Together, she and her husband John have renovated seven homes, published two New York Times Bestselling books, and designed products sold in Target and Home Depot. They are currently enjoying their downsized home on Florida's Gulf Coast with their two kids and their dog, Penny.

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Inexpensive Home Decor Ideas

And let’s just say I’m an eternal, unapologetic, and annoyingly chipper optimist. Anyway, we’re back to share the homely group of odd items that we picked up with our $100 shopping budget on our little end-of-winter beach vacay in Rehoboth. Since we were staying at John’s parents’ beach house for free (I have the best inlaws ever), we figured that a hundred dollars to put towards light fixtures and wall decor and other new house items sounded about right to two cheapskates like us who were happy to have saved at least three times that amount by avoiding hotel fees and driving to the beach in the winter instead. Hah. They’re not exactly a group

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Shopping And Thrifting In Rehoboth Delaware

Remember we mentioned on Monday that we were taking it easy and enjoying some family time? Well we were actually at the beach! We snuck away to John’s parents’ beach house in Rehoboth, Delaware for a nice long weekend of R&R (while the guest bedroom took care of itself- just kidding it was just as messy when we returned, darn). We had lots of fun going on long walks, eating seafood, getting our thrift on, and bringing Clara down to the beach on a particularly warm day (it was 65+ degrees on Monday!). So we thought we’d share some of our adventures with you guys. First, we hit up our favorite secondhand shop in Bethany,

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A Round Wood Pedestal Dining Table

First things first. We have a furniture name change to attend to. Our giant 70″ dining table arrived (you know, the one we blathered on and on about here), and he just can’t be called Woody. Because he’s obviously not a he, he’s a she. Given her elegant lines and curvy figure, I don’t know how we ever could have made that mistake. We finally landed on Stella as her new moniker because she’s definitely a stellar addition to the future dining room. Har har. And since we already have Ed (the bed) and Karl (the sectional), I felt like I needed a lady-friend to balance things out. Update: Everyone’s asking about the paint swatches

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U R Sweet

Did you get that candy conversation heart reference in the title? Those things crack me up – especially the new-aged ones that say things like “Text Me” and “Tweet Me.” Hah. Anyway, the point of this post is just to wish everyone a Happy Valentine’s Day. And to share some gratuitous Clara pics. These are actually the same photos that we sent to our family & friends along with a funny little V-day card with a Burger-esque chihuahua on the front (gotta represent for both kids, you know). Heck you guys are friends too, so just pretend these showed up in your mailbox: Gotta love that $1 stuffed candy heart from Target’s dollar spot. Quite

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Thrifting Antique Woven Desk Chairs

These. Are you surprised that we were thrifting again? I’m not. These were originally $90 a pop ($180 total). Marked down to $70 each ($140 total). With an additional 50% off. So we ended up paying just $35 a chair ($70 for both of them). Not bad considering Ballard sells semi similar metal versions for $199 a pop here and reminiscent-ish rattan ones for a whopping $249 a piece here. And they’re sturdy little buggers. I sat in them expecting a rickety mess with flat cushions (why else would they be so cheap?) and I was surprised. Not bad. Not bad at all. So I did that “wow, John, they’re really quite nice” thing and

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Updating An Old Cheese Plate For Christmas

Better Late Than Never? I tackled this project about two months ago before we moved (hence all the pics of our old kitchen counters). But I figured I might as well share it in case someone else comes across their own cheap-o cheese plate and wants to update it with some fun patterned paper. Let’s step into the DeLorean for a nice trip back in time… This little makeover idea was hatched when I laid eyes on this crazy old cheese plate at Goodwill for 40 cents in early December. Yes. Forty cents for the glass dome and the wood base with the ceramic cheese inscription (it was marked as 80 cents and they were

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Choosing The Right Dining Table

Who doesn’t love 1,909 words about searching for a dining room table? Here we go. We’ve been on a big round table hunt pretty much ever since we first set foot in our house. See, as soon as we walked into the small-ish formal dining room that fateful night in late fall of 2010 while house-hunting, John said “this room should be the office- and we can add french doors for you.” Sold. Since we have a pretty huge family (there are at least 12 of us when we get together for birthdays and even casual movie nights or spaghetti dinners) we knew that room would never accommodate a table large enough for more than

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How To Gray-Wash Wood Ceiling Beams

Remember when I admitted that I was glad this was over? I’m even more glad that the following project has come to an end. Let’s just say standing on a stepladder leaning back and up to paint three sides of five beams plus crown molding and quarter round around a mammoth 25 x 15′ room isn’t exactly a picnic according to this girl. I’d point to myself with my thumbs as I said that but I’m too sore. That’s right, my thumbs are sore. Along with my neck, back, chin (yes, chin) and various other body parts (calves, glutes, even my obliques for some odd reason). So to those of you who guessed that beam

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How Many Calories Does Painting Burn?

I just read in an old Health magazine (thanks to the waiting room at the dentist) that “rolling on a new coat of paint burns 204 calories an hour.” This may explain why my hubby (the designated roller – I’m usually the trim painter/cutter-inner) is tall and skinny even though he eats ice cream nearly every night while I sip tea. Because by Health magazine’s math, a 3-4 hour paint job can burn 600-800 calories for him. That’s a lot, right? I’ve never been a gym goer, but I have distinct memories of clinging to the treadmill on the highest incline at a pretty brisk pace and hoping desperately to get to 250 calories before

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Buying A Ceramic Ram For The Wall

Hi my name is Sherry Petersik, and I have a white ceramic animal problem. Well, this one’s actually made of white resin. Guess which creature stole my heart this time? Here’s a hint. Now I’m just putting words here so you don’t see the picture below before you venture a guess. Assuming you want to play along. Come on, what animal is it? More words. More words. More words. More words. Ok, now I’ll explain how it all went down. I couldn’t resist requesting demanding that John drive me over to TJ Maxx after I received this email from a reader named Nina: I thought of you guys when I saw this white resin ram’s

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How To Paint A Glass Lampshade Turquoise

So John went for a run, and I painted something behind his back. Let me explain. We usually have a “full agreement” agreement when it comes to decor (which means we can’t buy or change a thing unless we’re both totally on board, which keeps us from holding something against another person for years like a recliner that you hate but the hubs just had to have, etc). But I tend to bend the rules when it comes to things that can be undone if John doesn’t like them. I figure in that case, since it’s 100% reversible, and I’d be the one spending the time reversing it if John didn’t agree with my choice,

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Grocery Store Coupon Tips For Saving Money

And now for a post about saving money. Because the loot we save on food = more money to spend on paint & projects. I figured since I recently divulged my 2011 goal to figure out coupons and save more money this year, I should share a little coupon-related update for anyone else who’s as desperate to turn paper clippings into dolla dolla bills as I am. So here it is: I saved $53 at the grocery store!!! Coupons really do work!!!! Pardon all the shouting. I’m just really excited. I am definitely far from an “expert” on the subject (I just started trying to navigate the crazy coupon world a few weeks back) but

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