11 Magnolia Lane

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Summer Home Tour at Christy’s New House

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Dining room at the MCC House
Hello, friends, and welcome to my summer home tour!  First off, many thanks to our gracious friend Marty at A Stroll Thru Life, who has organized this fun blog hop.  With thirty houses to tour over five days, there’s plenty of inspiration to be had!  If you’re visiting from Simple Stylings, then welcome to 11 Magnolia Lane!

If you’re new here, then let me give you a quick introduction.  We’re two friends, and former college roommates, who have blogged together for almost seven years.  Amy lives in Northern Virginia, and I currently live in Southern Pines, North Carolina.  We’re a military family and move frequently (Amy’s family isn’t military, but they move often, too), so it’s a good thing that we love to decorate and create a comfortable home on a budget!

Two months ago, our family moved to a quaint little craftsman-style home downtown.  We call it the “Mint Chocolate Chip” house, and I’m sure you can see why.  It makes me crave ice cream every. single. time!

MCC House
We downsized from a much larger home in the same area {see it here} because my husband is moving out to Kansas for a two-year assignment–he actually left today :(. The kids and I made the tough decision to stay here so that our son can finish high school instead of moving to his third high school for his senior year.  With two rent payments on the balance sheet, we had to be very aware of how we were allocating our housing dollars.  This cute 1600 sf cottage is quaint and fun, and so far we’re loving it! {What We Love About the MCC House}

MCC house hammock
We can walk to all the restaurants and shops, and my kids can even walk to school when it’s in session. Even the flowers are happy!

impatiens
Our downstairs consists of a living room, dining area, and kitchen, that are all open.  My kids’ rooms are downstairs, and they share a bathroom/powder room.  Upstairs is the master, sitting area, and a second bath.  I’ll be showing you my son’s room as well as the upstairs later, because I’m still working on them, but really, things are coming along nicely at the MCC house given that we’ve only been here two months.

I’m still undecided as to whether or not smaller spaces are easier or harder to decorate.  One benefit of downsizing is that I have only my very favorite things in our home now, but one drawback is that it’s easy to clutter up a small space!

Last week, the living room featured my husband’s nailhead tufted recliner, but he’s taking that with him, so stay tuned for an update.

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Tufted nailhead sofa

|  Sofa  |

 

 Living Room Sources:

 The dining room is just the right size for the antique oak pedestal table I found on Craigslist when we were living in Virginia Beach; it’s a dead ringer for one that my grandmother had.

Dining room at the MCC House
I’ve stored serving pieces and barware in the thrifted china cabinet.

I did change the chandelier and hung one of my own–it’s easy once you have practice, and it makes such a difference in the space!

Dining room at the MCC House
You can see more of my dining room in this post, and how I made the DIY plantation shutter dog gate here.

Dining room at the MCC House

Dining Room Sources:

 The kitchen is just the right size for essentials, and I’ll admit that I have a lot of stuff stored downstairs in the basement, but it’s easy to keep clean!

MCC House kitchen
I gave one of the walls a coat of my favorite Rust-Oleum chalkboard paint, and now it’s a menu board.

MCC house kitchen
 

MCC house kitchen
Because we don’t have a pantry, I tend to shop for just a few days at a time now, but that’s OK as we’re eating more fresh foods.

MCC House Kitchen
I’ve added a few vertical space savers, like the chip rack on top of the fridge.

MCC house kitchen
And the kitchen cart under the window used to be our “island” in our Savannah house, but it works great for storage and as a coffee station now.

Kitchen cart MCC house
 

 

kitchen MCC house

 Kitchen Sources:

My thirteen year old daughter has one of my favorite rooms; the color palette is so soothing.

AB room MCC house
The bookshelves used to be in our living room in Savannah, but every house is different and so we move furniture around without even thinking twice!

AB room MCC house
The DIY Greek key dresser is one of my favorite projects (the tutorial is here).

Greek key dresser MCC house
She’s got dozens of old pointe shoes, so I have to get creative with them–they look pretty in a big apothecary jar.

I’m still not sure how the antique French loveseat wound up in her room since I originally bought it for my upstairs sitting area, but it fits perfectly down here and is just the right size for her to curl up and read a book.

French loveseat

 Annabelle’s Bedroom Sources:

 

If you want to keep up with our progress in our new (old) house, and follow Amy as she moves to a new home in the next few months, too, then we’d love for you to sign up for our emails {here}.

Next up on the tour is the talented Cristina at Remodelando la Casa–she has great style and is a fearless DIY’er, so you’re going to love a peek at her home!

 And here’s the whole week’s lineup: you won’t want to miss any of them!

Thanks for stopping by!

Monday – June 12

A Stroll Thru Life

Pink Peppermint Design

Cuckoo4Design

Nesting With Grace

Life On Virginia Street

Decor to Adore

Tuesday – June 13

Thrifty & Chic

21 Rosemary Lane

Decorating Delirium

The Chronicles of Home

Hymns & Verses

My Sweet Savannah

Wednesday – June 14

Life Love Larson

Making Home Base

Inspiration For Moms

Duke Manor Farms

ZDesign At Home

Our Fifth House

Thursday – June 15

Life & Home @ 2102

It All Started With Paint

Simple Stylings

11 Magnolia Lane

Remodelando La Casa

Southern Hospitality

Fri – June 16

Refresh Restyle

Far Above Rubies

Our Southern Home

Simple Details

Haneens Haven

Common Ground

 

Final New Christy headshot 2015

icon-facebook-1icon-instagram-1icon-pinterest-1icon-twitter-1NEW Google+
 

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. I don’t know how you did it, but you managed to decorate an entire home that feels lived in already for a very long time! I love that I can still see your pieces from your previous home and how you styled it differently here! You guys made a tough decision in a lot of ways, but I thank you all for the service and this sacrifice! Definitely a life, and home to be proud of always!!! As always so honored to share this home tour with you Christy, cheers!

    Reply

    • Vel, thanks so much for those lovely and thoughtful words! I’ve never really minded moving, because it’s always fun to have a new home to decorate – – and even the same old things look different when they’re in a new setting. But we are definitely happy to be settled in and able to enjoy living downtown now!
      I agree with you – – it’s always a pleasure to be on this tour with you!
      XO,
      Christy

      Reply

  3. Oh wow, you are wonder woman. This home looks like a million and in only 2 months. I love how you have created such a warm and friendly place in the MCC home. Your style shines through in every room. I love it all. Thanks so much for joining the tours, it has been so much fun to have you and your home definitely has tons of inspiration for anyone downsizing.

    Reply

    • Thanks so much for the lovely comment, Marty! I don’t feel like wonder woman – – I actually feel pretty darned tired–but it’s such a relief to be moved in and mostly settled. Thanks so much for organizing this fun tour! I’ve been so inspired by all the beautiful homes! XO, Christy

      Reply

  5. What a fresh and fun summer tour. So many charming vignettes. As a retired military wife and mom, I commend you for putting your son first. Moves are hard on teens. May the two years fly by.

    Reply

  7. Christy, I love your Mint Chocolate Chip beautiful home! Only you to make a new house feel so homey in such short amount of time! Love your girl’s room, the kitchen, the dining room with that pretty pedestal table, well, the list goes on and on… Lovely!

    Reply

  8. Your home is lovely Christy!! Agreed that you made it look like you have lived there a long time. I especially adore your daughter’s room- every girl’s dream! It’s an honor being on Marty’s tour with you.

    Reply

  9. It is lovely and personal, just as I knew it would be! What a fun change of pace this must be, doesn’t every woman want a chance to “doll up” a cottage!

    Reply

    • Thanks so much, Debbie! We’re really enjoying the house, and living downtown. I hope you and yours are having a wonderful summer!
      XO,
      Christy

      Reply

  11. Your MCC home is absolutely beautiful. I love it.
    By chance do you know the wall color in your daughter’s room? It is perfect!!

    Reply

    • Thank you so much, Tirzah! Yes, we actually painted her room when we moved it. It’s Sherwin-Williams Sea Salt, and it’s the perfect blue/gray. We like it so much, we’ve painted her last two bedrooms the same color.

      You can see more of her room {here}.
      Take care,
      Christy

      Reply

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