My name is Tarah and its great to meet you!

Closet Shelves – Custom in our Basement!

Building custom closet shelves in the basement to accommodate our storage requirements and a new chest freezer! Way, way, WAY back when I first designed this basement on the idea of renting it out I built this closet to accommodate a washer and drier and then planned on putting rods above them for hanging clothes. Fast forward many years later this empty closet was in desperate need of some order and custom shelves besides. We recently purchased a little chest freezer (yay for Menards rebates – our garage addition literally paid for it) and it just made all of the sense for it to go in our basement closet. Read More »

Master Closet & Bathroom Design – Making a Plan of Attack!

Moving on to the plan of the other side of our second story master and the closet and bathroom design! As I mentioned in my plan of attack with the bedroom I’ve been just DYING to tackle our second floor for years now. There were a couple of certainties in my head when I knew this home would be mine back in 2013. One of them was that this entire 500 square foot floor would make a wonderful master suite. The space is divided in half by the stairwell that comes up the center of the home. Read More »

Work Bench and Painting out the Closet in the Workshop

Making a work bench out of an old barn door. Aw is there anything more adult than finding true joy in the sight of a big empty closet? I think not! I got to this point by the end of one long Saturday that I called “The Purge” when our workshop finally drove me to madness because of how disorganized it had become. Most of the problem was that a lot of things just needed to be put away but I took it much farther than that. The fact is when a room gets to that point its a sign it isn’t working and I knew it would go back to disarray eventually if I didn’t do something about it… so, I tackled it. Read More »

LED Light Bulbs for our garage that I am Infatuated with!

LED Light bulbs for our garage that I am infatuated with! Honestly I never thought I would feel justified in devoting an entire blog post to LED light bulbs but times apparently change. This is almost one of those “you know you’re an adult when…” moments but, NO, these are actually so cool I think I would have thought they were awesome even when I was a kid and suddenly had these spider things on my ceiling providing me with incredible light to build Legos with. I’m not kidding. These lights are life changing and they install just by screwing them in like any “normal” light bulb. Read More »

Garage door Installation, Electrical and Siding the Front Wall

Garage door installation and lights for our new addition! The final stage of our garage is here! OMG this one just felt like the endless project. First we poured the slab and then we poured the apron. Then we framed in the building. Then Lodi finished the roof. Then we did the side and back wall with plywood and steel siding. And now, finally, we framed in the front of the garage and ran electrical and then finished it with trim and vinyl siding. I’m embarrassed to admit that this project kicked our butts so hard it ran us from June to November! Read More »

The Purge – Workshop Reorganization is in Order!

Telling a frugal gal like me to purge something will absolutely not work until it finally drives me crazy. There’s simply a limit to how many times I can move something, without using it, without it also paying rent, until I will finally give it away or throw away a perfectly-good-whatever-it-is. I finally got there with my workshop this fall and I was ruthless in my purge. It has a lot to do with the fact that we did so much this summer it didn’t always get “put away” like it was supposed to. And it also has to do with Lodi and I combining households. Read More »

Cork board and Key Caddy Makeover!

I’ve had this little pine cork board my grandparents’ made for many years now. It comes with the added perk of also being a key caddy so, of course, we put it right by our front door. It really comes in handy! However, it doesn’t exactly mesh with the look we have going throughout our entryway. Varnished knotty pine in that gold color is really not our style so its been on my list for awhile now to give it a little makeover! Read More »

Adding Tufted Upholstery to an old Coffee Table

Adding a tufted top and a new paint job to an old coffee table. I’ve been working on the refresh of my living room for awhile now. It started when I decided I hated my sofa and was ready for a new one! That worked out perfect because I really needed my old sofa to complete my seating area out in my garage. Following my old sofa to the garage was my coffee table and one of my end tables too! That left my living room pretty barren: the perfect time to do a makeover! Read More »

Three Legged Stool Makeover: Paint and stain combo with dipped legs

Teaming up with Chas in our DIY blog hop this month with projects for our bathrooms! (Make sure and check out all of the bathroom projects following this post and feel free to join in!) This little stool has a fun story behind it. My Grandparents’ were wood workers and made and sold lots of these along with many other pieces of furniture. One of my neighbors is an avid follower of my blog and felt she simply had to return it to me so this milking stool came home after being gone for over 30 years! Read More »

Lace Doily Upcycling on my Radio Stand Kitchen Island

Lace doily upcycling across the front of my kitchen island that I made out of my great grandpa’s radio stand. This piece remains one of my ALL TIME favorite transformations that I’ve created. Some projects just work! It was like this old radio stand had been waiting 100 years to be made into a kitchen island. It looks great from the front and the shelves in the back house all my recipe books too. During my recent kitchen remodel I did some surgery on it to work even better for me. Read More »

Thrift Store Lamp gets a Country Makeover with the Farmhouse Hens

So, a few months ago, I went to my local thrift store to get myself a sweater to make mug koozies for my Christmas in a Jar post. I left the thrift store with two sweaters, some shop rags, a mirror tray and a lamp! To be fair I still only spent $8 and no one really believed I was just gonna be able to get one sweater right? Read More »

Lamp gets a country girl makeover using license plates! Before and After!

My new guest bedroom and library needed a reading lamp for the bedside table so, of course, I went thrifting! I found this little dude for only $6 and then went directly to walmart and found what I decided was the perfect burlap lamp shade. From there it was time to decide just how I was going to transform this little lamp into something country and fun! Using two old MN license plates I got to work! Read More »

December 2021 – Finally getting to work on our Master!

December 2021, I finally got to tackle our second floor! There was a lot that needed to get done around here since Lodi moved in so you guys know the master went on my back burner years ago. Not anymore though! I’m thrilled to say that earlier this month we got the entire master bedroom painted out and *drumroll please* for the first time ever, the master officially even has a door. It really is about the little things… Though perhaps a door on your bedroom is not so little a thing!? The other half of the floor (closet and bathroom) still needs to be painted out and tackled but one room at a time. Here are some sneak peeks – I can’t wait to show you guys all of it when its done! Read More »

November 2021 – Finally the Last Trip to Menards

November 2021 so I unintentionally lied to you guys in my last blog post. I tend to write my posts a bit ahead of time and there is absolutely NO LOGICAL REASON for the garage addition to have NOT been completed when the last post came out… And its not all of our fault! Yes, NOW, it is finally totally completed at the writing of this blog post but, realistically, it never should have taken this long. November 2021, between back orders in shipping materials, horrible weather and a bizarre amount of little irritating issues we kept running into… the garage addition (literally just a little glorified lean-to) became this bizarre headache in our lives… I’m sure you guys are probably even sick of me talking about it at this point! Read More »

October 2021 Glorious Weather and Tackling our Fall Check List!

October 2021 shame on me for enjoying such an absolutely glorious fall and not getting many pictures of it lol. I am an embarrassment to bloggers everywhere! Seriously though I wonder if other bloggers get tired of recording absolutely everything? Honestly I don’t know how they manage it unless they blog full time. I think of those hard core Instagram “celebrities” where its almost daily posting and it gives me anxiety just considering it. October 2021 was absolutely stunning as far as weather was concerned and though we did get quite a bit of work done we also made sure we enjoyed it at least a little bit! Read More »

September 2021 – Summer burn out, totally ready for quieter days

Well it wasn’t quite September 2021 when the temperature dropped and it started raining here but I didn’t have time to add it to the end of my August 2021 post. Us locals were all like, “Um so… not that we’re complaining (we’re really not) but, do we HAVE to get all the rain we’ve been missing for three months in a week? It just seems a little extreme… totally not complaining but… WOW.” And suddenly summer was just over. But I don’t think anything the weather could have done would have either surprised us, made us happy or even ticked us off at that point… Read More »

August 2021 Annie Becoming a Farmer’s Dog & August Photo Gallery

August 2021 – I have to start this post out with a disclaimer. Everything I am about to say about The Farmer’s dog food is legit – they literally don’t even have an affiliate program for me to make money from. However, for those many folks I know who follow us who have their own doggos, I just have to tell you about what’s been going on with Annie. After Lodi’s 2012 discharge Annie was assigned to him as his service dog from the Wounded Warrior program. So, to say that she means a lot to him, is an understatement! Read More »

July 2021 Concerts, Total Craziness and Taking a Break!

Well our July 2021 started off almost like a “normal” July before Covid meaning: We did way too much over the 3 day, July 4th weekend and totally exhausted ourselves. It was REALLY hot and sunny and crazy humid. We went to two concerts and had a big family get together at our place. It was A LOT. Deciding last minute to have a party out here meant Lodi and I were scrambling all day to prepare for it and then running to try to enjoy a concert and then working again all the next day before the next concert in some pretty impressive summer heat! It does mean we had our new lower deck and fire pit complete WAY ahead of schedule though I’m not convinced how much we stressed ourselves out was totally worth all we got done… Read More »

Basement Bathroom Reveal – Pallet Walls, Barn wood and Black Floors!

Basement Bathroom Reveal, adding a touch of girl to this little space because it was starting to feel like a man cave and not in a good way… I am not a girly girl by any means (as I’m sure you’re all aware at this point…) but even I can attest a balance between masculine and feminine in a space is a real must. Outside of this bathroom our living room feels like just the coolest underground speak easy and I totally love it. But with Lodi’s wood furniture and black leather couches no matter what I do it will always feel at least a little like a bachelor pad. Read More »

Basement Living Room Reveal – Speak Easy Theater and Chill Space

Basement living room reveal. So it all started back in 2014 when I purchased and began the renovation of my Grandparents’ 100 year old farmhouse. I was single and the basement had a separate entrance so I immediately tackled it with the intention of putting in a rental suite. It was a ton of money and work that all went for nothing a couple of years later when my husband (now ex) decided that renters were a NO. I used this unfinished space (what a total waste) as my workshop for awhile until I threw him out in 2017. So, I emptied the space to, once again, try to move forward with the rental idea. A lot of life happened in the years since but, finally, all of my time and money down here is no longer for nothing! Read More »

Lodi’s Room Reveal Complete with New Light Fixtures!

Lodi’s Room Reveal complete with New Light Fixtures! Starting at the beginning… When I renovated this home back in 2014-2015 I designed this as a wide hallway which included a huge closet made specifically to house a 6 foot chest freezer. At the end of the hall I put our “back door” which included a doggie door in it – which was a great straight shot out of the house for my big dog at the time. In 2018 I got rid of the chest freezer and I was playing around with making this wasted area into a reading nook / day bed / dog bed area and putting up some kind of gate so I could lock dogs back here whenever I needed to… Read More »

The Back Hall Reveal Before and After

Besides a random peak here and there from reveals and projects of other parts of the house this is the very first time I’ve ever posted about our back hall! This hall, Lodi’s room, our Guest Bedroom, and even a bit of the workshop, used to be a wide open screened in porch. (Sorry for the before pics but they’re the best I have. Hopefully the before and after floor plan as well as the renovation pics help somewhat.) I designed this back hall during the renovation to be a “T” each wing going to a bedroom and, before we made Lodi’s room, to a hall and big closet and back door which was just wasted space until we started work on all of it. Read More »

The Current State of the Garage and What’s Next!

To get the garage to its current state feels like a huge accomplishment for me! To recap I started in the early spring of 2019. First I had to clean the whole place out, get everything off the walls and then haul yet another pile of crap to the dump. Then I ran power, insulated, covered the walls, installed the doors, put EVERYTHING back where it belongs, made a path and enclosed my stock tank complete with a barn door on top of it! Read More »

Autumn Deck Reveal with New Seating and Updates!

Autumn Deck Reveal with updates and lots of new seating and additions! OMG Where on earth did this summer go!? I can’t believe its so far into November already and I still have so many fun things Lodi and I finished this summer and fall to share with you guys. I decided after so many changes to the deck (Check out the old reveal here) that I definitely needed to share a new deck reveal with you before 2020 was over and I missed the lovely fall colors! The biggest changes are all the seating we removed and replaced with new! Read More »

To Grandma’s House we go! (Wednesday Link Party #279)

Welcome to the To Grandma’s House We Go Link Party #279. We’ve had a pretty quiet January here at the farm. We finally saw some not so brutal temps which felt real nice after -35! I’m getting some house work done that I’m very pleased to finally tackle. We finally have a new master bedroom chandelier after being without for a couple of weeks. Loving it! I’m not real fond of winter but I do appreciate the excuse to work inside for a couple of months. Now, on to the Party! Read More »

To Grandma’s House we go! (Wednesday Link Party #278)

Welcome to the To Grandma’s House We Go Link Party #278. Wowser have we had some incredibly cold weather lately. I took a screen shot of a -35 degree morning last week when I left for work. I felt so bad for my poor little car lol I plug her in and she’s snug in the garage but that is SERIOUS cold! Our bird feeders are packed with every little critter around including bunnies and there is no fighting, no chasing anybody off of the feeders or anything, just little creatures trying to stay alive. Wonderfully though we have highs in the 20s this week and wow how that is gonna feel good! Now, on to the Party! Read More »

To Grandma’s House we go! (Wednesday Link Party #277)

Welcome to the To Grandma’s House We Go Link Party #277. Like usual after the holidays I am equally (totally) relieved that they’re over and also sad that they’re over lol. So great to get the house back, to pack up all the decorations and step in to the new year. This last weekend was BRUTAL here in northern Minnesota. Saturday we had a high of -10 and wind chill lows hitting nearly -50. We did not leave the house and were suddenly glad for the two feet of snow acting as insulation for the whole farm. Happy New Year everyone, I hope you had a wonderful holiday! Now, on to the Party! Read More »

To Grandma’s House we go! (Wednesday Link Party #276)

Welcome to the To Grandma’s House We Go Link Party #276. Reporting in from northern MN where we just got a WOPPING 15 inches of snow over 24 hours and am currently looking outside where it just started snowing again… *facepalm* We’re looking at getting another 5 inches by tonight and we’ve already crushed the snow totals we got ALL of last winter lol. I admit it, I got a little claustrophobic getting up Monday morning and being entirely snowed in. From just a few inches to adding over a foot over night is pretty dramatic! I was fortunate to not be one of many who had to travel in those nightmare conditions. Hope everyone is safe and sound after the holiday! Now, on to the Party! Read More »

To Grandma’s House we go! (Wednesday Link Party #275)

Welcome to the To Grandma’s House We Go Link Party #275. Well we’re certainly going to have a white Christmas as it is officially winter here according to our weather. (Not exactly surprising we do live in northern MN!) We finally got all of our wrapping done, decorations are complete and I just have one more trip to the grocery store before I plan / hope to not have to leave the house this weekend! I took Thursday off so I’m quite excited for a four day weekend gift to myself this holiday. Now, on to the Party! Read More »

To Grandma’s House we go! (Wednesday Link Party #274)

Welcome to the To Grandma’s House We Go Link Party #274. Wowser guys how is that Xmas is almost here already!? We got Christmas lights up on the house this weekend but other projects took precedence over getting our tree up. All the shopping is done, thank goodness, though nothing is wrapped yet. Hopefully sometime this week after work we get into the festive mood to get entirely ready for the holiday. How are you guys doing with your holiday preparations? Now, on to the Party! Read More »

OMG Pumpkins everywhere! Hometalk Fall Decor Inspiration board

Hometalk Fall Decor Inspiration board! Summer is absolutely my favorite time of the year – you will NEVER hear me complaining about the heat lol But I honestly think that’s a fact simply because fall and spring are such short seasons here in northern MN. Fall for us could truly last all of three weeks like our spring did this year! And that’s just depressing lol because that means we’re settling into at least four months of some serious cold and snow. Read More »

Hometalk’s Outdoor Projects I Can’t Wait to Build! Do it Yourself!

Inspiration Board of the Outdoor projects on Hometalk that I’ve been drooling over! I received a comment on my outdoor bench saying, “You’re SO crafty, that’s amazing!” And I admittedly got a bit offended, eventually I just laughed about it but I’m not sure how I can build a wrap around bench for my deck and still be called “crafty”. I could’t help but think that if I was a guy she certainly wouldn’t have looked at that bench and called him crafty! I am a builder at heart and I spend most of my time building things in my head or drooling over outdoor projects like these: Read More »

Let’s build some swings! Pinterest Do It Yourself Inspiration Board!

Well now that spring has FINALLY arrived, my dreaming has turned to swings! Let’s build some! These are some of my favorites I’ve found on Pinterest and stashed away for a later time because, seriously, who doesn’t want to swing away a beautiful summer day? Contrary to popular belief, I do NOT feel that swings are for kids in any way. Many of these are very grown up swings for us “adults” lol Read More »

Nooks and Getaway Places: Pinterest Inspiration Board

Nooks, crannies, special getaway places, some of my favorite escapes via Pinterest Inspiration board. It has been a very difficult few weeks here at Grandma’s House, tailing the end of a very, very hard year. I will tell you guys why and what’s been going on when I’m able to get my feet back under me again. To say the least though I have found myself on Pinterest, looking longingly at getaway places and nooks that promise quiet and PEACE. Read More »

Inspiration Board: Six more Summer Projects I can’t wait to build!

Six more summer projects I can’t wait to build for us outside and out on our deck! Some DIYs and things just have to wait for some nice weather not only for us to enjoy them but for us to build them as well. Currently I’m sitting here in late October and we have a winter storm warning 🙁 So, hears to dreaming about next summer and all the things to look forward to building. I posted earlier this year a few summer projects I just can’t wait to build but I’ve seen so many build projects on Pinterest I had to share a few more that I can’t wait to build next summer! Read More »

Inspiration Board: Gorgeous Bedrooms to swoon over!

I spend a certain amount of time on Pinterest gazing with my mouth open at some of the gorgeous bedrooms people have. As far as Inspiration Boards go I’ve published quite a few over the years but I think this one might take the cake. I am absolutely in awe of a few of these. Considering how much time we spend in our bedrooms (albeit it is with our eyes closed) I am a firm believer that they are a VERY important part of our homes. So, without further adieu here’s some gorgeous bedrooms via Pinterest!! Read More »

A Beginner’s Guide to Model Building

Wow this post took me WAY back to my childhood. You probably won’t be surprised that though I didn’t quite dip into full model building as a child I was still absolutely a builder! From Legos to Lincoln logs I was not your normal girl lol. This post intrigues me though and I wonder if I have the time to perhaps look into it! It certainly sounds and looks like a lot of fun 🙂 Read More »

Common Roofing Problems

Roofing problems simply comes with the territory of being a homeowner. Even a small leak can cause ENORMOUS amount of damage which is why I had all of the singles replaced that needed it (by professional) when I first started work on Grandma’s house. Since then though, knowing someday all shingles will need to be replaced, Lodi and I will probably cover the entire roof with steel ourselves. Unfortunately there is one draw back to steel though. Everyone I know who has a steel roof really struggles with their cell phone signal when inside. That’s a bummer but I believe a maintenance free roof would be totally work it! Read More »

The ultimate maintenance-free gardens guide: How to get there

Especially considering its going to be -30 degrees here tonight I am THRILLEd to talk about gardens! Oh how I miss green things lol we are currently living in a practically black and white world. Though I am relieved for the reprieve from outdoor chores I will forever be a summer gal. I can’t help but daydream of our backyard, deck and garden and just can’t wait to get started in the spring time again! Read More »

Home Accessories You Should Never DIY for Luxury and Style

Home accessories are one of the best parts of decorating and designing rooms! I don’t totally agree with everything on this list but after trying to DIY more than one lampshade and, considering how inexpensive they are, I resoundingly agree with that one! Mirrors can be very expensive but very difficult to literally DIY ourselves. Blankets can be made of course but I am reminded of the insanely soft throw that Lodi purchased for me for Xmas and I just have no idea how it would even be possible to DIY such a wonderful accessory! Read More »

12 Home Improvement Chores For 2022

Home chores don’t always have to feel like a chore! There is something about the new year that always gets me motivated and excited again for improvements on our property and in our home. As the year wanes everything does begin to feel a bit like a chore but, one thing about our long winters, by the time spring comes around I am totally excited and ready to go again! Read More »

Buying Furniture vs Building Your Own: Things To Consider

Many of you know I’ve built quite a bit of our furniture here and there around Grandma’s house. Especially (mostly) outside as outdoor furniture is very expensive and I happened to have material left over from when I built our deck. I put in a full wrap around bench, a table, two end tables, a coffee table and two sun loungers all of which have served us well for years. Beyond that though the few pieces I have purchased for the home generally came from thrift stores etc. and I was able to fully refinish them (or modify them) to get what we wanted which is a great option if building your own furniture isn’t something you wish to tackle. Read More »