• Home
  • About
    • About
    • Contact
  • Shop
    • Apparel and Shoes
    • Books
    • Crafts and Sewing
    • Decor
    • Furniture
    • Home Improvement
    • Kid Favorites
    • Kitchen
  • 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
A Pretty Happy Home

Life, DIY and Random Things That Make Me Smile

  • Home
  • About
    • About
    • Contact
  • Shop
    • Apparel and Shoes
    • Books
    • Crafts and Sewing
    • Decor
    • Furniture
    • Home Improvement
    • Kid Favorites
    • Kitchen
  • 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
    • Apparel and Shoes
    • Books
    • Crafts and Sewing
    • Decor
    • Furniture
    • Home Improvement
    • Kid Favorites
    • Kitchen
  • 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

No Widgets found in the Sidebar Alt!

  • yale smart lock on a black front door 3 things we love about our smart lock and one we don't
    decorating,  DIY

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

    June 17, 2024 /

    Two months ago we switched to a smart lock on our front door. There are three things (at least!) that we love about about this smart lock and one thing we don’t love. Before I dive into the details, I want to mention that we feel so fancy now with a smart lock. We don’t have a Ring doorbell camera. We don’t even have a regular doorbell. If you come to our house, you have to knock on the door like in the good ol’ days. If you do knock, I may or may not “hear you knock,” if you get the excuse I’m throwing out there. Just depends on…

    read more
    annisa 0 Comments

    You May Also Like

    Our Best Hidden Storage Purchase

    July 26, 2017
    The Doors of Our Colonial Farmhouse

    The Doors of Our Colonial Farmhouse

    July 8, 2019
    DIY Copper Toe Kick For Built-In Desks to solve the problem of feet scuffing the trim using adhesive copper toe kick cut with metal snips farmhouse style desks

    Copper Toe Kick For Built-In Desks

    February 10, 2025
  • time capsule installed in a basement in a home in new jersey in 2024
    colonial farmhouse,  DIY

    Basement Time Capsule Has Been Installed

    June 10, 2024 /

    We installed a basement time capsule in our almost 250-year-old home and I’m giddy with excitement about it. Why would we do this? Hold onto your Swatch watch and I’ll tell you. It was time. I have been looking for treasure ever since we bought this home. Every time we dug a hole or opened up a wall while renovating, I hoped we’d find something amazing. Gold coins. Prohibition alcohol. Jewelry. I wasn’t picky. What have we found? Nothing of note unless you’re into rats’ nests and lost paperclips. I decided to channel this treasure-hunting energy into something more productive and forward-looking. If I’m not going to find anything of…

    read more
    annisa 0 Comments

    You May Also Like

    Built-In Computer Desk in our colonial farmhouse

    Built-In Computer Desk Reveal

    January 27, 2020
    kitchen art coffee station farmhouse kitchen

    Which Category of Kitchen Art Do You Have?

    April 19, 2021
    Colonial Farmhouse One Year Anniversary

    Colonial Farmhouse One Year Anniversary

    June 15, 2020
  • keep a set of house tools in a distinct color so that they don't get lost
    DIY

    Why You Need House Tools In a Distinct Color

    June 5, 2024 /

    Do you have a set of house tools? It took us twenty years to realize a set of house tools that stay in the house would make life so much easier. Quick learners? Not so much. We typically store our tools in a garage or shed as most people do. However, in our current house, there is no door between the garage and house so you have to go outside if you want to get anything out of the garage. I mentioned to my husband that I needed a house hammer for hanging pictures. I didn’t want to run out to the garage every time I needed to get the…

    read more
    annisa 0 Comments

    You May Also Like

    Trash to Treasure Mirror

    August 2, 2017

    Great Idea: Stacked Book Pub Table

    July 1, 2016
    how to fix misshapen ear pads on headphones

    How To Fix Misshapen Ear Pads on Headphones

    July 22, 2024
  • stone windowsill in a recently repointed basement in a 240 year old home in new jersey
    DIY

    Stone Windowsills and Wooden Doorsills

    May 22, 2024 /

    Let’s talk about what’s on everyone’s mind these days – window and door sills. Specifically, stone windowsills and wooden doorsills. *crickets* Wait. That’s not on everyone’s mind? Only mine? Huh. What do you guys think about? What’s for dinner? Why “sigma” is teen slang now? A problem at work? How to help your kid with fractions? When you can squeeze in time for a haircut? That embarrassing thing you did in third grade? All the emails you haven’t read? Inflation? War? If the colostrum all the influencers are taking has real benefits or is a gimmick? Fair enough. I guess we’re done here. But…stone windowsills and wooden doorsills are easier…

    read more
    annisa 2 Comments

    You May Also Like

    how to fill gaps in wood floors with oakum

    How to Fill Gaps in Wood Floors with Oakum

    May 10, 2021
    farmhouse black kitchen mini makeover

    Colonial Farmhouse Kitchen Mini Makeover One Year Later

    March 29, 2021
    10 tips for building an outdoor ping pong table using cement board for the top

    10 Tips For Building An Outdoor Ping Pong Table Using Cement Board

    June 12, 2023
  • how to make curved wood refrigerator handles
    DIY

    DIY Curved Wood Refrigerator Handles

    May 6, 2024 /

    Let’s talk about Curved Wood Refrigerator Handles and how to make them. We have an old refrigerator. It’s probably over 30 years old. The thing runs like a champ. Makes ice faster than a snowman could, which means it’s probably not energy-efficient. It holds a ton of food because it’s as big as a Mac truck. It’s a creamy color, which I believe was referred to as “biscuit” back in the day. Basically, it’s in fine shape and I’ve loathed it since the moment we moved into this house. But then a funny thing started to happen. I realized a stainless steel refrigerator would be way too modern for our…

    read more
    annisa 6 Comments

    You May Also Like

    recreating historic trim on the exterior of an old house in new jersey from the 1780s

    Recreating Historic Exterior House Trim – It’s A Process!

    October 21, 2024
    carriage house interior makeover how to use a headboard as a room divider solid wood headboard divides a room

    4 Tips For How to Use a Headboard As a Room Divider

    August 15, 2022
    shellac on pumpkin pine wood floors gaps in original pumpkin pine floors from 1780s

    All About Our 240-Year-Old Pumpkin Pine Wood Floors

    March 30, 2020
  • what we didn't anticipate when repointing our stone walls in the basement ourselves repointing stone walls takes a lot of time
    DIY

    6 Things We Found Inside Our Stone Walls

    April 24, 2024 /

    Oh, the interesting and downright horrifying things we’ve found INSIDE our stone walls will not be easily purged from my memory. Why would we be looking for things inside our stone walls? And why do we even have stone walls? These stone walls are, in essence, our foundation walls. The oldest part of our home dates back to the 1780s. The home was added onto a few more times and all of our foundation walls are built with field stone and lime mortar as shown in the photo below. We’ve been repointing the stone walls in our basement. Repointing means chipping out an inch or so of the surface layer…

    read more
    annisa 2 Comments

    You May Also Like

    carriage house gym expansion demo a fieldstone wall to prepare for repointing removing concrete from a stone foundation with a chisel attachment on a hammer drill

    Stone Carriage House Gym: Part 2, Demo

    April 28, 2025
    reclaimed wood bench with hairpin legs bench made from an old windowsill

    Reclaimed Wood Bench With a Story

    September 25, 2024
    recreating historic trim on the exterior of an old house in new jersey from the 1780s

    Recreating Historic Exterior House Trim – It’s A Process!

    October 21, 2024
  • 6 split ceiling medallion installation tips
    decorating,  DIY

    6 Split Ceiling Medallion Installation Tips

    April 22, 2024 /

    If you’re considering installing a split ceiling medallion, I  have six split ceiling medallion installation tips for you! (Say that six times fast! Haha!) A ceiling medallion is that decorative circular ring on the ceiling above a light fixture. They used to have a practical use of helping to conceal the ring of soot put off by lighting that involved a flame, but today are mainly decorative. If you’re considering installing a split ceiling medallion (two half circles you put together) over a regular ceiling medallion, you probably have a very good reason for not wanting to take your light down to install a ceiling medallion. I had my reasons…

    read more
    annisa 0 Comments

    You May Also Like

    Clothespin Holder

    July 18, 2016

    No Sew Holiday Pillow

    December 7, 2015

    Paper Pumpkin Centerpiece

    October 14, 2015
  • modern country laundry room in a colonial farmhouse with wainscoting stained glass horse art basket wall and inset wall shelves
    decorating,  DIY

    What We Regret About Our Laundry Room Makeover

    April 15, 2024 /

    It has been one year since we completed our laundry room makeover. One year? Already? It feels like forever since we completed that project. I suppose that means time does not fly by when you’re doing laundry every day. Shocking…said no one typing a blog post next to a giant pile of clothes to be folded. Don’t get me wrong. We love with a capital L how this space turned out. It is a combination laundry room and pantry and it flows so nicely with the rest of the house now, particularly the kitchen. It’s how the space always should have been. No matter how much you enjoy a room,…

    read more
    annisa 0 Comments

    You May Also Like

    carriage house interior makeover how to use a headboard as a room divider solid wood headboard divides a room

    4 Tips For How to Use a Headboard As a Room Divider

    August 15, 2022

    Happy Thrifting: The Nest at Farmstead Farmers Market

    September 5, 2018
    our fall front porch with pumpkin topiary

    Our Fall Front Porch

    October 2, 2023
  • stone steps showing wear in basement in home
    DIY

    Foot Wear On Our Stone Steps and A Basement Mystery

    March 20, 2024 /

    I noticed an interesting thing while we’ve been repointing the basement. There is foot traffic wear on our stone steps. If you look closely, you can see the slight dip on the left side of the stairs closest to the handrail, especially on the fourth and fifth stairs down from the top. Fascinating, right? How old do stone steps have to be and how much foot traffic do stone steps have to receive before the treads start wearing down? I’m not sure. I went spelunking on the internet to try and find the answer to this question. There might be a mathematical way to solve this question but we are…

    read more
    annisa 2 Comments

    You May Also Like

    House Number Sign From Wooden Spool

    June 28, 2017
    diy pool equipment tool holder wood rack for holding leaf skimmer and telescoping poles near pool

    DIY Pool Maintenance Tool Holder For Leaf Skimmers and Poles

    June 7, 2023
    stone wall being repointed repointing a stone wall there is wood in a stone wall stone carriage house

    Wait! There Can Be Wood In a Stone Wall?

    August 28, 2024
  • fill gaps in wood floors with oakum update two and a half years later
    DIY

    Filling Floor Gaps With Oakum: Update 2 1/2 Years Later

    March 18, 2024 /

    Two and a half years ago, I filled the gaps in our original wood floors with oakum. You can read more about that process here. This is a niche solution to a common problem with homes built in the 1700s and 1800s with original wood floors and gaps between those floorboards. Our house was built in the 1780s and later added onto in the 1800s. It’s time for an update on how that oakum has held up! First of all, what is oakum? Historically speaking, oakum is a combination of natural fibers like hemp or jute and tar or oil that was used to caulk wooden ships to make them…

    read more
    annisa 0 Comments

    You May Also Like

    DIY plant hanging rod

    DIY Plant Hanging Rod Secured to the Ceiling

    November 17, 2021

    DIY Live Edge Wood Coffee Table

    May 23, 2018
    diy copper accent exterior lighting how to add a copper accent to exterior lights

    How To Add Copper Accent To Exterior Lighting

    September 11, 2024
 Older Posts
Newer Posts 
Hi! I'm Annisa.

Recent Posts

  • Curved Fieldstone Wall: Part 12, Reveal 2nd Wall Section
  • Curved Fieldstone Wall: Part 11, 2nd Section Swoop
  • Fall Break 2025
  • Happy List: #408
  • Fall Front Porch At Night

Categories

Subscribe to blog
Loading

$2018 © A Pretty Happy Home
Ashe Theme by WP Royal.