Oak. Glorious Oak.

I feel a little weird about this. I am not an interior designer. I don't even know if what I have "goes". But, I just pick what I like and if it matches, it matches. If it can withstand the terror of my boys, then it stays.

I would love to have all white furniture and trim and white, white, white. And a nice grand entry with a round table and a ginormous bouquet of flowers that are flown in fresh daily and fresh fish every day and fresh veggies that Queenplinker sends me 'cause she has award worthy veggies, and cake that she decorates....and a kitchen just like Kat's... oh, I could go on and on about what I would love to have if I won the lottery. Some day we'll play..."What would you do if you won the lottery?" Tom and I play that game a lot. But then we remind ourselves that we actually have to play the lottery to win!

Now, a reader named Kari (hope that it's okay that I used your name!) emailed and made a special request for me to show some pictures of my house in all it's oak glory. It's hard to find/take pictures that focus on the trim! So, I'm going to show you a few things... I am so not an interior designer, so I feel a little weird about this, but here goes. I scrounged up some pictures. Remember, I'm not a designer. I don't even play one on this blog. Have I mentioned I'm not an interior designer and that I feel weird about this. Let it out - show them what you've got....you can do it!

I mix my wood tones. Okay, I said it. The reality is, I don't want to paint all the trim in the house. Plus, as Tom so kindly pointed out, I'm not very neat about my painting. I did a good job on the stairs, but painting walls and trim, eh. Remember the boys floor? Not neat at all. And once I dumped an entire gallon of mustard yellow paint in our guest room of our first house. That time I had plastic down. And we just don't want to spend the money to have someone come and do it. Not a priority. So we live with the oak. And I'm...embracing it.

I stained the stairs dark brown. Planning that we will eventually put dark stained floors down in the carpeted rooms. But stick with the oak. I like the mixture of the two tones. Dark and honey. Ooohh, dark chocolate honey truffle....hmmm....I may have to try that....

We're trying to be consistent so things flow. I guess. I really don't know. I can't really paint the trim in just one room, because things are so open it has to stay pretty consistent from room to room. But, did anyone see that bathroom where they painted the trim, moulding and beadboard black? It was so freaking cool. Someone remind me who did that...please.... So, the oak stays, the stair color will be in the front room (the room with no meaning) and the stair color will also be in this room on the floor and on the mantel:

 

 The trim on the windows will stay the same, but we are building a ginormous box to go around that mantel and it will be the same color as the stairs (more about why I have to build a new mantel to go over the existing one later). And the floor will match the mantel, but the oak trim will stay....Have I mentioned that? The oak trim will stay. I'm really just trying to convince myself of this fact and be okay with it. (See my "t" pillow - it isn't even rightside up!)

The kitchen cabinet color is the laundry room cabinet color and the boys' bathroom cabinet color. But, there's that oak trim again!

  

The color of the peninsula (Like that? I don't know what else to call it!) and the island are the same black as the master bathroom cabinets. See that trim around the window? Not changing it.

(Funny, we don't have those stools anymore! I kept getting annoyed that the boys twirled on them and would bang the back of the chair on the counter...it drove me absolutely batty. )

 

But the trim in the bathroom is still oak. I think it makes the cabinet look more like furniture. 

Can you see my theory. I'm not mixing lots of different wood tones. Just a few. 

This mirror, which I adore, is the same color as all of the trim around the house. The table matches the dark wood, the white on the legs and the lamps (which by the way were one of the greatest GW finds EVER. used to be hideous) match the cabinets. This is in the family room. Across from this is the fireplace. 

Here are the stairs again, 'cause I love them. To make the railings coordinate with the stairs and pull it together (See how I sound all fancy and interior designerish? (I know it's not a word. Don't care.)) I am going to paint the runners up each side of the steps. I really think it will contribute to the continuity of the whole thing. Again, that's what I keep telling myself....

I say, pick what you love. It's your house. Who cares what other people think. (Umm...not going to lie, I do. Just a tiny bit.) Now. Some people, not naming names...are concerned with resale. And that is completely understandable. But I decided that if someone doesn't love the house the way it is they will change it on their own or they won't buy it. Why is it that we can't just live in our house and do what we want to it without constantly having to worry about what the next owners are going to want?

There's a little tour of our house. I'll try and get some pictures of the upstairs. My favorite room is actually the guest bedroom. Is that weird?