Weekend Recap

Good morning! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Here’s a bit of what we’ve been up to over the past week or so.

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Home Projects & Updates

Now that the house is mostly buttoned up from the elements, they’ve been hard at work inside. Nearly everything is fully prepped for flooring now, and the walls have been mudded and sanded a few times now!

Here’s a better example in the carriage house bathroom. You can see they’ve floated the shower floor, shower walls have been prepped for tile, they’ve added the boards in the room on the floor for the tile, and the walls have all been sanded again. I just love how much light this bathroom receives! The ceilings are 10′ here, so that window in the shower won’t have any privacy issues (it just faces the row of trees and is fairly high up in the shower).

I’ve had so many intentions to publish gift guides, wrap up our Christmas home tour, etc. etc. over the past few weeks. But we are in the thick of meetings and progress at the house and I’ve had to focus most of my time there. We’re at the stage where so many final decisions have to be made (without having costly changes down the road) and it has been very time consuming.

We met the tile guys onsite last week to choose niche placement in the showers. They also let it slip that none of our tile or hardwood floors had been ordered yet due to some delays with the shop receiving the check from the builder before the shop was closed for Thanksgiving and a week of inventory :/ The guys were basically ready to go, but are now just waiting on product. So hopefully it all comes in rather quickly so they can get started!

We also met the cabinet maker onsite to finalize the cabinet plans. Outside of two vanities I plan to order online, they’ll be building all the bathroom cabinets, kitchen cabinets, laundry cabinets and some built-ins for Kurtis’ office. The volume of decisions I’ve had to make over the past two weeks is a little mind boggling. But I think we settled on some really beautiful plans, as long as the bid doesn’t come back astronomical.

Friday we had our meeting at the countertop shop. They have a large slab yard, but nothing jumped out to me as “the one”. Nearly 50% of what they had was Taj Mahal quartzite, which I think is very beautiful, but is not my aesthetic. We prefer a lighter base with gray and warm veins, which is not as easy to find, and they had less available in these color tones than the last time I was there.

It turns out I have a pretty incredible talent to pick out the absolute most expensive slabs in any given slab yard :/ Last time I visited when Rachel was looking for slabs, their most expensive options were labeled $$$$$. Now, they have some with diamond labels because they couldn’t fit any more dollar signs. Ha! In my mind, I would still really love to try to find some Calacatta Gold in a honed finish or something similar, whether it’s a quartzite or marble. I know there are a lot of strong opinions on marble but it’s the one I continue to be most drawn to.

I ordered about half of our lighting for the new house during Cyber Week sales, and some of it has already arrived. I was hoping for a few shipping delays because this is going to start getting crazy. We may have to use our carriage house as a storage unit for the time being! We’re trying to inspect everything upon receipt to make sure there isn’t any damage but then putting it all back together and taping it up so we can store it more efficiently. I’m guessing they won’t be hanging our fixtures for at least another 3-4 months. Thankfully several of my other orders are backordered until March!

I had our Christmas home tour ready to photograph last week and then it rained and rained and rained for five days straight. So, I’m hoping to get it all prepped again to hopefully photograph early this week!

Around Town & For Fun

In addition to all the house meetings last week, we also had a year-end meeting with our CPA and I also had to take the cats to the vet for their annual appointment. It’s hard to believe they’re eighteen years old now, and outside of Hawkeye’s hypothyroidism we treat with daily pills and some dental plaque on both of their parts, they’re still both so healthy thankfully! Hawkeye is getting less and less tolerant of the vet’s office (he has to go a few times a year to get blood draws for his medicine) but he was well-behaved this time around. He even explored their little cat tree they have in the exam room.

Here are two outfits from the week that I remembered to actually take pictures of. This striped pullover is so dang cozy (I actually wore it twice last week). The thumb holes are a favorite and the material is so soft. I wear a Large in their relaxed styles. It’s 40% off today with code GIFTMORE. And this under-$20 long-sleeve henley couldn’t be cuter! It’s festive with the jeweled buttons and ruffle tartan trim, but not too over the top. It also comes in red and black and fits true to size! I’m wearing these jeans (only $30 today!!) in both pics and then these clogs and these fur sandal slides.

After our countertop slab meeting which Kurtis and I had driven separately to, he wanted to go straight home because of the weather. I told him we were dressed and out of the house for the first time in what felt like ages, so we were going to lunch! We headed to Camp Creek Inn and it was nice to not be stuck inside the house!

Friday night we had our friends Amigos date, but this was the extent of our green space time. The rainy view from the car as we were leaving. Ha! It definitely made us really just how fortunate we are with beautiful weather nearly every other time we come here.

Kurtis and I spent Saturday morning cleaning out closets, sorting donations and decluttering. Every little bit helps before we list our house next year! I had bought these bedding organizers (sheets bins here and larger bins here) months back and finally got around to putting them to use! They can all be labeled as well so you can quickly find exactly what you’re looking for. You can see the prior chaos in the first image below and how much better it all looks afterwards. We still have some work to do, but it feels much less chaotic now.

We found this little gem. Kurtis and I were set up on a blind date at a joint wedding we were both attending back in 2002. Apparently I gave him my phone number on the back of the favor they had on our tables!

By Saturday afternoon, Rachel and I were both going stir crazy. We had originally made plans to go to the annual Rosemary Beach Christmas Tour of Homes, but there’s quite a bit of outdoor walking and we really didn’t have interest in the downpouring rain. So, instead, we headed to The Pearl for lunch. Rachel was craving an espresso martini so we made it happen! It was the perfect spot to eat on a dreary Saturday. The view out to the water was still so beautiful!

You know the weather isn’t great when there isn’t a single person in any given photo in Rosemary. Ha!

We continued our Christmas movie session with “A Merry Little Ex-Mas” on Netflix. It was cute but neither of our favorites by a long shot. There were some funny parts, but I wouldn’t prioritize it. The cats don’t care what’s on as long as it means fire time and snuggle time!

One night we heard the strangest noises and realized Hawkeye had jumped in the Christmas tree collar and was running around crazy underneath and moving things around. This has been set up for weeks now and he’s had zero interest in it. It was probably revenge for the vet visit 😉

Sunday bocce league was switched to dinner and game night given the weather. I thought I’d share this cute salad Rachel made in the shape of a wreath!

Rachel and Chris had been talking about Shut the Box for a month or two now, and I tried it for the first time. I loved it so much I ordered it to play with both of our families during our travel the next two weeks! It’s fast-paced and we had ages 5 on up playing! I ordered this version because I prefer the numbers to be on both sides of the flipped pieces of wood. The guys also managed to sneak in some football time.

If any of you are looking for a last-minute getaway, one of our rentals, Hola Beaches Casita, was professionally decorated for Christmas! Santa will also be visiting both of our properties (Hola Beaches is found here) on 12/21 for pictures and meet and greet! You can find all furniture and decor sources for Hola Beaches Casita here.

I got a lot of inquiries about these pieces of art (Deck the Halls and Fa La La) in a recent Instagram post about my 2023 Christmas home tour. They were now only available currently in black and white. The good news? Lindsay messaged me this morning and brought them back in the dusty blue for us today! And they’re 20% off for those interested!

SOURCES: “Deck The Halls” Art | “Fa La La” Art | Lamps | Console Table | Melamine Bowl | Blue Ornaments | Green Ornaments | Topiary and Vase – old from Pottery Barn

We woke today up to semi-blue skies and THE SUN which we haven’t seen for four or five days! And it’s all sun for the forseeable future now. It’s actually hilarious the texts I was getting even two days into the rain. Everyone was freaking out. Like nobody here knows what to do with themselves when they can’t get out of the house after 24+ hours. It just goes to show that even when it’s cold here, at least the skies are usually clear and we can still go outside! Kurtis was so desperate for a walk yesterday, he found his rain gear and still walked three miles in the downpour because he couldn’t take another day!

Kurtis heads to Omaha tomorrow for work and a couple holiday parties and then I’ll join him Thursday night. We’ll then be celebrating Christmas with our besties and goddaughters as well as Kurtis’ side of the family. We’ll come home for four days and then we head out to Salt Lake to spend Christmas with my parents. It’s going to be a busy, yet really fun, couple of weeks!

Recent Buys & Sales

Following are some sales from the weekend that have carried over and are still going strong!

• ABERCROMBIE is offering 25% off select styles. You can shop their sale here.
• AFLORAL is offering 20% off wreaths with code WREATH20. You can shop their site here.
• AMAZON has a bunch of items on sale in their Today’s Deals section. You can shop their site here.
• AMERICAN EAGLE is offering 40% off everything, including jeans and new arrivals. You can shop their site here.
• ANN TAYLOR is offering 40% off your purchase. You can shop their site here.
• ANNIE SELKE is offering 20% off washable rugs with code WASHABLE. You can shop their site here.
• ANTHROPOLOGIE is offering an additional 40% off items in their sale section. You can shop their site here.
• ARHAUS is offering 20% orders of $5,000+. You can shop their site here.
• BALLARD DESIGNS is offering 20-50% off sitewide. You can shop their site here.
• BODEN is offering 10% off new women’s arrivals with code RHDT. You can shop their site here.
• CAMP SNAP CAMERAS is offering 7% off their viral camera with code LIFEONVIRGINIASTREET. You can shop their site here.
• CHICO’S is offering 30% off everything. You can shop their site here.
• COCO & EVE is offering 15% off your purchase with code SARAHST15. You can shop their site here.
• CRATE & BARREL is offering up to 40% off Christmas decor. You can shop their site here.
• ETU HOME is offering 20% off your purchase with my custom code LOVS20! You can shop their site here.
• FRANK & EILEEN has a number of new items in their sale section up to 70% off. I also received a mailer with code JINGLE for 15% off your order that any of you are welcome to try! You can shop their site here.
• GAP is offering up to 60% off sitewide. You can shop their sale here.
• GROVE COLLABORATIVE is offering 25% off a $75+ order with my code SARAHSTEWART. You can shop their site here.
• J CREW is offering up to 50% off holiday picks, up to 60% off great gifts, and an extra 60% off sale styles with code SHOPSALE. You can shop their site here.
• J CREW FACTORY is offering 40-70% off everything. Plus get an extra 70% off clearance items with code UNBOX70. PLUS I have an unpublished code, MERRY20, that will give you an extra 20% off your purchase of $100+! You can shop their sale here.
• LANDS’ END is offering up to 50% off sitewide plus an extra 75% off clearance with code POLAR60. You can shop their site here.
• LINDSAY LETTERS is offering 20% off all art! You can shop her site here.
• LOFT is offering 40% off full priced styles and an extra 70% off sale styles. You can shop their sale here.
• LULULEMON has a bunch of sale finds. You can shop their site here.
• MADEWELL is offering up to 50% off gifts with code JOLLY. You can shop their site here.
• MARK & GRAHAM is offering up to 50% off and free shipping on $100+ with code CHEERS. You can shop their site here.
• MARSHALLS is offering free shipping on orders of $89+ with code SHIP89. You can shop their site here.
• MCGEE & CO. is offering up to 50% off hand-picked styles and 50% off holiday items. You can shop their site here.
• NORDSTROM has a number of new markdowns as well as up to 40% off during their Designer Clearance Sale. You can shop their site here.
• OLD NAVY is offering activewear on sale from $10 among other deals! You can shop their sale here.
• PHILOSOPHY is offering 30% off and free shipping. You can shop their site here.
• POTTERY BARN is offering up to 70% off furniture, outdoor, bedding, plus Cyber Monday deals and free shipping on 1000s of items. You can shop their sale here.
• REJUVENATION is offering up to 40% off lighting, furniture and more. You can shop their site here.
• RUGGABLE is offering 15% off your purchase with my custom code LIFEONVIRGINIASTREET15. You can shop their site here.
• SALT & STONE is offering 15% off your purchase with code SARAHS15! I have really been loving their clean deodorant! You can shop their site here.
• SERENA & LILY is offering up to 40% off everything. You can shop their sale here.
• SPARTINA 449 is offering 40% off handbags, travel and accessories. You can shop their site here.
• TARGET has a number of home deals like up to 40% off holiday decor and lighting, up to 60% off rugs, up to 50% off indoor furniture, and more. You can shop their site here.
• TJ MAXX is offering free shipping on orders $89+ with code SHIP89! You can shop their site here.
• TORY BURCH has a number of new items in their sale section. You can shop their site here.
• TUCKERNUCK has a number of new items in their sale section. You can shop their site here.
• U BEAUTY is offering 20% off sitewide with my code LIFEONVIRGINIASTREET20. You can shop their site here.
• VINEYARD VINES is offering up to 40% off select full-priced styles with code GIFTMORE. You can shop their site here.
• WAYFAIR is offering up to 70% off during their 5 Days of Deals. You can shop their sale here.
• WEEZIE is offering 15% off your purchase with my code LIFEONVIRGINIASTREET15. You can shop their site here.
• WEST ELM is offering up to 60% off sale and clearance items. You can shop their site here.
• WILLIAMS SONOMA has a number of new items in their clearance section. You can shop their site here.

I hope you all have a great week!

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