Style: Home Tour

I've moved quite a bit since moving to Minneapolis for college in 2008 (wowza, that dates me a bit). I've accumulated pieces here and there for every place I've lived. Recently, I've been focusing more on getting rid of things I truly don't need. While I love the idea of having a stockpile of furniture and decor to restyle my place any time I'd like, it's not realistic (especially considering I'm likely moving again in May [in Minneapolis, not out of state!]).

Even though I'll probably be moving again soon, I'm loving the place where I live right now. It's the lower level of a duplex in Northeast Minneapolis (my favorite 'hood). While it's rough around the edges, it has so much charm (think arched doorways, original wood trim, a beautiful floor and swinging kitchen door). So I thought I'd give you a little tour.

Here's the thing about house tours and social media in general - more often than not, people like to paint the picture that their life is perfect. And to those people, if your life is as perfect as your photos I SALUTE YOU AND PLEASE TEACH ME YOUR WAYS. But that's not how things are at my house. What you see is what you get (and as a note, I didn't even show you all the messy things, like Camp's toy bins or his fur in the corner of every room).

But here's what you will see - my actual home. I didn't clean up before taking these photos (but I do make my bed every day). I didn't mop, dust, move photos or do anything out of the ordinary; this is how my home looks and feels. It's not perfect, but it feels warm, comfortable and contains all of my favorite things (goofy pup included).

This is the view of the living room from the dining room (when I began taking photos for this post, it was the end of December, so you'll see the Christmas tree in the mirror reflection. Also, that mirror has YET to be hung). There's a fireplace to the right, which doesn't work and holds up the TV. I love how big this room is, and how the rug pulls everything together. 

There's a large foyer off the side of the dining room (large enough that my entertainment center doubles as a table with extra storage). I dig the archway into this room.

Side note: those bins are filled to the brim, and the corkboard on the wall on the left is NOT hung straight. But I tried, right?

Right off the living room is the dining room (there's a big arched doorway that leads into it that still is adorned with winter spruce needles). I love the dining room. It's so big and anchors the entire apartment. I splurged on the chairs and found the table on Craigslist. We spend a lot of time in this room (I mean, just look at that natural light!)

More views of the chairs. And the rug. And the floors (insert heart eye emoji). 

There are three large windows off the dining room, so naturally, I've used the window ledges for framed photos and succulents. It's likely these plants will die soon. Also, there's old radiators everywhere. 

I'm a candle hoarder. I'm loving these from Rume Candle Company and Kit + Ace. There's usually eucalyptus in the wooden vase but I'm unprepared this week. #reallifethings

This is one of my favorite pieces. My mom and I thrifted this metal cart last summer, and cleaned it and spray painted it gold. We've filled it with all our favorite things, including deer horn bottle openers, coasters from our favorite supper club (The Silvercryst in Wautoma, WI) and Bulleit American Rye Whiskey. (If you're wondering where the wine glasses are...we drank some wine this weekend and they're currently in the drying rack). 

This is Camp's corner of the house. I received all of those pieces of pup art as gifts, and love them dearly. Naturally, Camp laid on that sheepskin rug nonstop when it was in the living room, and now that it's in the dining room, he has yet to lay there. Also note, ALL THE DAMN SPRUCE NEEDLES ON THE FLOOR.

The dining room has a lovely built-in buffet. To adorn it, I hung some very random pieces of art. The piece in the middle is a painting of some old school "explorer?" Who knows, I got it from an antique store. 

These are a few trinkets in the corner of the buffet in the dining room. I received that yellow card from one of my best friends and had to frame it. It's one of my favorite pieces. Also, we were the "foxes" in high school, so that little fox has a piece of my heart. It sits on top of a birch log that my dad cut for me. 

It's true, Camp gets to sleep on the bed. I currently have red flannel sheets and a big wool blanket from Faribault Woolen Mill on the bed now. In the spring/summer I change it out to dark gray sheets with a gray and white duvet. There's a special Ray LaMontagne poster above the bed from his most recent Minneapolis show (there's also a sweet love note behind it from my guy, and I don't think I'll ever have the heart to take it down). 

I'm a big reader, and you'll find books (and dust) everywhere in my apartment. Plus picture frames. The black and white photo is one of my favorites of me and my dad on the lake when I was three or four (FYI, he has a mullet and I have crazy curls). The photo in front is one of many from my trip to Iceland with my friend Riley. I think about that trip every single day.

WE HAVE A SWINGING DOOR! It goes from the kitchen to the dining room. Camp is deathly afraid of it, so we prop it open with a Buddha. We had a lot of bets on whether that Buddha was heavy enough to hold the old wooden door open (I said no, boys said yes). Boys: 1, Courtney: 0. 

The kitchen is where this place gets super weird. The house was built in the 1800s, and the kitchen hasn't been updated to fit modern-day appliances (so our refrigerator is blocking cabinets). The cabinets we do have are super generic and cheap (the original cabinets were removed). Also, there's no real light in here. But this little corner of all my cookbooks is one of my favorite parts. 

We have a large rug in the kitchen (it's sizable, even with how weird it is). It really helps pull this odd space together (although, it requires constant washing due to our dirty shoes, which is a big pain in my booty). That's also a fresh pot of coffee (full to the brim). And for the record, I am in the midst of drinking all of it (I took this photo this morning against my better judgement to not share my not so cute kitchen with you).

I kind of love this refrigerator (we had to get a new one since we moved in). But I don't like it because it's new (although, it is nice that it's new). I like it because it's filled with holiday cards, wedding save the dates and article clippings from my mama. It's also adorned with all the Bulleit Rye Whiskey we've drank (and for the record, there's another bottle that fell on the floor that I just can't reach). 

Remember when I said this kitchen is weird? There's a weird shelf in the middle of the room, so I've put all my wooden spoons and 5-6 more picture frames on it. Because I think that's what you do with weird space? Who knows. 

This bathroom makes me laugh. It's small, has very old yellow wallpaper and zero storage. I've used these metal carts to hold everything I need. They don't look great, but they get the job done. Also, there's a clawfoot tub so that makes everything better.