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A Pretty Happy Home

Life, DIY and Random Things That Make Me Smile

  • Home
  • About
    • About
    • Contact
  • Shop
  • Projects
    • Cleaning
    • Clothing
    • Colonial Farmhouse
    • Crafts
    • Decorating
    • DIY Projects
    • Holidays
  • Adventure
    • Moving to Ireland
    • Living in Ireland
    • Visiting Ireland
    • Travel
    • Family and Parenting
    • Humor
    • Learning
  • Privacy Policy
  • Home
  • About
    • About
    • Contact
  • Shop
  • Projects
    • Cleaning
    • Clothing
    • Colonial Farmhouse
    • Crafts
    • Decorating
    • DIY Projects
    • Holidays
  • Adventure
    • Moving to Ireland
    • Living in Ireland
    • Visiting Ireland
    • Travel
    • Family and Parenting
    • Humor
    • Learning
  • Privacy Policy

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  • tan buffalo check kitchen curtains with beige wainscoting
    decorating

    Buffalo Check Curtains For Our Kitchen

    October 4, 2023 /

    It takes me a long time to decide on window treatments but I finally hung buffalo check curtains in our kitchen. What’s a long time? 4 years, 2 months, and 19 days. But who’s counting? And it was totally worth the wait. I know these photos do not look like a kitchen but trust me when I say there is a sink full of dishes right behind where the camera is positioned. That’s the perk or quirk of having a galley style kitchen. A kitchen table could probably be squeezed into this space you’re seeing. For reference, the rug is 5×8. However, there are also stairs to the right and…

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    annisa 0 Comments

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    My Design Style Is a Little Bit Funky

    April 30, 2018

    What Should I Do With This Junky Treasure?

    January 10, 2018

    Update: Vintage Key Project

    August 8, 2018
  • our fall front porch with pumpkin topiary
    decorating

    Our Fall Front Porch

    October 2, 2023 /

    Our fall front porch feels so welcoming right now. It’s one of those ‘walk up to the front door and grin because of how it makes you feel’ situations. That could have something to do with the smiling trio. Aren’t they the happiest? The smiling trio was created using the simplest idea – transform black duct tape into Halloween decals. Specifically, jack o’lantern faces for these planters but I also made bat decals. You can get the instructions here. “Trio” might be the theme of this year’s fall porch because, on the other side of the front door, I have a pumpkin topiary created with a trio of pumpkins. In…

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    annisa 0 Comments

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    Heart Plant Stakes

    January 15, 2016
    black built in pantry cabinet pantry organization tips for glass front cabinets

    Pantry Organization That Works (For Us)

    January 22, 2024

    $60 Thrifted Dresser

    January 21, 2019
  • Annisa Olsson Jones sitting on the front porch of a colonial farmhouse in new jersey double rockers for our porch
    decorating,  gardening and landscape

    Why We Chose Double Rockers For Our Porch

    September 27, 2023 /

    There is a new addition to our front porch. Double rockers! Double your fun. (I grew up watching Doublemint gum commercials. I was compelled to say that.)  Why did we choose double rockers over regular rocking chairs or a porch swing? Great question. I’d love to tell you. I have always wanted a big covered porch and this is the first house we’ve lived in that has a front porch big enough for porch sitting. Every romanticized image you can imagine of front porch sitting and front porch living has taken up residence in my brain for years and I have zero regrets about that. I knew I wanted 4…

    read more
    annisa 0 Comments

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    Christmas Tree 2017

    December 18, 2017
    create a Nature Art Gallery Wall using an eclectic grouping of landscape art, flower prints, and leaf stamping.

    Nature Art Gallery Wall

    October 16, 2023

    Pottery Barn Shelf Knock Off

    June 2, 2014
  • fall flower ideas vintage toolbox flower arrangement for fall
    decorating

    Vintage Toolbox Flower Arrangement For Fall

    September 25, 2023 /

    The only thing better than a vintage toolbox is a vintage toolbox with flowers in it! If you want a big bang for your flower arranging buck this fall then create a vintage toolbox flower arrangement. Let’s face it, we all want our buck to go a little farther these days. The rustic vibe of a vintage toolbox lends itself really well to this fall season where we are all about getting cozy. I’m sure fall can be fancy but, in my head, I associate fall with things that are a little more rustic and earthy like apple orchards, haybale rides, warming hands around a firepit, crunchy leaves on the…

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    annisa 4 Comments

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    Adding Color to the Piano

    February 13, 2015

    Christmas in the Foyer

    December 7, 2016

    Halloween Built-Ins

    October 9, 2015
  • marshall middleton bluetooth speaker via amazon in praise of pretty bluetooth speakers that look good in my home
    decorating

    In Praise Of: Pretty Bluetooth Speakers

    September 20, 2023 /

    Pretty Bluetooth speakers. That’s what I want. I want to listen to my music and I want it to come from a Bluetooth speaker that looks good in my home. That’s not too much to ask, is it? Eh. Sometimes it feels that way, so I’m on a mission to dispel that myth. If you can design a speaker with killer sound quality, surely you can design a speaker that looks elegant, fun, sleek or any other adjective that fits the style of someone’s home. And I don’t want to use one that comes with a voice assistant like Alexa. No thank you. Just play my music. Don’t try to…

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    annisa 0 Comments

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    decorating with thimbles

    Decorating with Thimbles in a Modern Way

    March 11, 2020
    large fireplace in an old house decorated for christmas with seven nutcrackers of varying sizes on the mantel and an off centered green garland with red berries. Layered on the mantel is a handmade nut garland comprised of walnuts, hazelnuts, and almonds. Sitting in front of the fireplace is a skinny christmas tree with a tree collar that looks like a red drum. The tree is decorated with faux red and white berries and ornaments fashioned out of nuts.

    Nutcracker Holiday Mantel Decor

    December 3, 2025
    Annisa Olsson Jones sitting on the front porch of a colonial farmhouse in new jersey double rockers for our porch

    Why We Chose Double Rockers For Our Porch

    September 27, 2023
  • Fall Mantel With Leaf-Stamped Wood Rounds in a colonial era home with wood beams and original wood floors fall decorating ideas
    decorating

    Fall Mantel With Leaf-Stamped Wood Rounds

    September 18, 2023 /

    Last week I shared how to leaf stamp on wood. You know I don’t make crafts unless I plan on using them, so let me show you my fall mantel featuring a grouping of leaf-stamped wood rounds. I do declare that it looks beautiFALL. That probably won’t be the last bad fall pun in this blog post as I’m feeling a bit acorn-y today. Our dining room fireplace is my favorite of our three fireplaces to decorate seasonally. It’s the only one that I change the decor on regularly even though spatially speaking it is the trickiest to decorate. The overmantel, the spot above the mantel where decor goes, is…

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    annisa 2 Comments

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    Cozy Touches Of Fall In My Home

    November 8, 2023
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    October 19, 2020
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    Which Category of Kitchen Art Do You Have?

    April 19, 2021
  • needlepoint framed to match wall color navy blue sunporch with matching picture frame when to match picture frame to wall color
    decorating

    When To Match Picture Frames To Wall Color

    August 30, 2023 /

    Selecting frames for artwork can be tricky as frames totally change the look and feel of artwork. So, is there a time and place to match your picture frames to your wall color? The short answer is yes! It’s your house. Do what makes you happy. The short answer doesn’t make a good blog post though, so let me briefly elaborate. Match picture frames to wall color when the frame is too distracting.  If the frame is distracting from the real start of the show, the artwork, paint the frame the same color as the wall so that the artwork pops. That’s what I did on our blue sunporch. I…

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    annisa 0 Comments

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    Vintage-Inspired Teen Girl’s Room

    April 20, 2020

    Scrapmaster Project #4: Dove

    December 14, 2015
    close up of a vintage globe upcyled into a diy push pin travel globe. The globe has wood push pins marking places traveled and sits in front of a checkbaord background.

    How To Make a DIY Push Pin Travel Globe

    May 4, 2026
  • diy wood acorn wreath using wood acrons, wood beads, and wire fall wreath
    Crafts,  decorating

    DIY Wood Acorn Wreath

    August 23, 2023 /

    If fall is your favorite season, you are going to love this DIY Wood Acorn Wreath. Bold words, I know. This wreath might not have pumpkins or spice but it does have an underrated but ready for its moment item – acorns. Yes, acorns. Wood acorns to be precise. If you didn’t know wood acorns were a thing, this craft is going to blow open the door of possibility for you. I, for one, can’t wait to see what you create. But let’s start with this Wood Acorn Wreath. Materials Needed: wood acorns (I used 16 acorns out of a package of 20.) 20 mm wood beads (I used 16…

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    annisa 0 Comments

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    creative way to fix a cracked wood bowl with leather laces

    Creative Way To Fix a Cracked Wood Bowl

    September 18, 2024

    Felt Wreath

    December 21, 2015
    diy repurposed berry crate spring wreath using a vintage wood berry field flat or berry basket carrier. It's hanging on the wall with sprays of pink, yellow, and purple faux flowers attached to it.

    DIY Repurposed Berry Crate Spring Wreath

    February 23, 2026
  • my recent thrift store finds milk glass candlesticks
    decorating

    My Latest Thrift Store Finds: Part 6

    August 14, 2023 /

    Welcome back to the delightful but infrequent blog series “My Latest Thrift Store Finds.” It’s not infrequent because I’m not thrift store shopping. No, no, no. Even I don’t have that much restraint. It is an infrequent series because I forget to write about my thrift store finds unless they are part of a larger story or project. This blog series is my attempt to right (or is it write?) that wrong. Here’s what has come home with me in the last few months. My Latest Thrift Store Finds: Chess Set Did you know chess is really popular with the middle school crowd? It has something to do with TikTok.…

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    annisa 0 Comments

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    antique cast iron hitching post installed in front of white carriage house with a stone wall in the background

    Hold Your Horses: Bringing Back the Original “Parking Spot”

    August 10, 2026
    yale smart lock on a black front door 3 things we love about our smart lock and one we don't

    Front Door Smart Lock: 3 Things We Love, 1 We Don’t

    June 17, 2024
    wood bowl in front of a stack of wood cutting boards in a farmhouse kitchen wood bowls for decor or food

    Wood Bowls: For Food or Decor?

    April 10, 2024
  • antique radio cabinet router holder hide a router and modem inside an antique radio
    decorating,  DIY

    Hide A Router and Modem In An Antique Radio Cabinet

    July 31, 2023 /

    What can you do with an unsightly router and modem? Hide them in an antique radio cabinet. Long before we got our entertainment via apps on our phones, radios broadcasting news, music, and entertainment were housed in ornate wood cabinets. Some sat on the floor. Others sat on tabletops. These radios became obsolete ages ago. Even I’m not old enough to have grown up with an antique radio. I had a boombox with two tape decks AND a CD player. I thought I was so cool. And modern. I see antique radios at thrift shops somewhat regularly for not a lot of money because no one really wants them. Even…

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    annisa 0 Comments

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    Colorful Wall in a Girl’s Room

    February 27, 2017
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Hi! I'm Annisa.

Recent Posts

  • Hold Your Horses: Bringing Back the Original “Parking Spot”
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  • Finally Fixed the Carriage House Rotten Window Trim
  • Happy List: #444

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