Welcome to the World Arlo Erickson!

Remember about a month ago when I showed you all my BFF's super cute pregnant belly photos? Well, as most pregnant ladies tend to do, Brooke had her sweet little son just a little over three weeks ago. I'd like to introduce you all to the very handsome Arlo Erickson!

Isn't he just the cutest?! Brooke and Luke are our first really close friends (that we live near) to have a baby. It's so much fun to see him and be around him during the first couple weeks of his life. Ten years from now, I'll be able to be that annoying aunt/friend that can say "I was there on the day you were born!" while he just rolls his eyes and thinks "She says this all the time! Can I just have my birthday present?" Now I know why all my parents friends would always say "I remember when you were this big..." My how the tables have turned.

I need to start honing in my trailing off... Back to little Arlo. These photos were taken when he was only a week old. Look at all that hair!

I love this photo of Brooke and Arlo (below). I like to call Brooke "Martha" because she is just so good at everything. Her food is always the best. Her house and yard are incredible, and have you seen her nursery (if not, you can check it out here)? Being a new mom fits her so well too. He may not know it yet, but this guy is one lucky kid because he has an incredible mom.

I love this photo too ( I mean I love them all, but especially this one). You can see where he gets all that hair.

And the best part of a newborn are all the little details ...and yawns ...and squirms ...and the smell (most of the time).

We were only able to get a few pictures of Olive and Arlo. Olive was a little nervous around Arlo, which is probably a good thing. It was funny though because she wanted to be in the room, but would keep a wary eye on what he was doing.

What a perfect little face and a perfect little addition to the Erickson family. Thanks Brooke and Luke for letting me in to capture this amazing moment in your life. And also for letting me hold him and snuggle him up, but then give him back when he starts crying. :)

I'm sure I will have some follow-up for you guys from month to month and year to year. I can't help but photograph such a handsome face.

Until next time...

Future Baby Brandski

Last weekend I had the opportunity to photograph Laurie and Mike. Ya, these two are probably the funniest couple I have ever met. Seriously, they were cracking me (and themselves) up the whole time. There were some tears that had to be wiped a way. ...and maybe a little pee too. TMI?

Anyway, one of the things that Laurie told me is that ever since she got pregnant she has had a tendency to randomly get a case of the giggles. Not a bad symptom if you ask me, and apparently Mike knows the secret button to push, because once he got her going, she just couldn't stop. Hilarious.

In addition to all the giggles and good times, Mike and Laurie are one of those couples that you can just tell by being around them that they absolutely and completely love each other. They had a hard time keeping their hands off each other, but it was in the way that just screams that they are each still crazy excited to be with the other. It was fun to be around, and I can tell you that this kid is going to grow into an amazing family.

I have this crazy premonition that may or may not ever come true (let's face it, I have a tendency to get carried away from time to time...). I can just see Mike and Laurie's kid(s) looking back at the photos above maybe in twenty five years and loving that sense of nostalgia they get from seeing what their parents were like when they were young, before their life began. Now that I am in my mid-twenties I find myself wondering what my parents were like when they were my age. That's my favorite thing about doing maternity photos. I love having couples that will let me in enough to capture that honest sense of who they are at this specific point in there life. It's so much fun to be in that moment and freeze it for their kids to find and feel later. These two are probably the perfect couple for this because they are always on point.

And seriously, look at Laurie. She's eight months pregnant and looks amazing. She wears "mom to be" so well.

Thanks again Mike and Laurie. I had such a great time. I can't wait to meet your little guy in just a few short weeks! Stay tuned everyone else, because there will be baby Brandski pictures coming up soon!

Until next time...

Baby Erickson is almost here!

Guess what everyone?! My BFF Brooke and her hubby are expecting!! Well, she is 40 weeks pregger now, so not only is she expecting, she is about ready to pop. A few weeks ago, they let me shove them in front of my lens to take some fun maternity shots. ...and soon, I'll be able to show you some little baby boy pictures!

Seriously, a pretty good looking family don't ya think?

It's funny, because since I've known these two, they have always been a super cute couple. Now that they have a little bun baking, they are cute to the enth degree. Really, this is what they're like all the time. One lucky kid if you ask me.

The Erickson family photos wouldn't be complete without some highlights of sweet little Olive.

And here's Luke sneaking a little listen to his soon to be son.

This is one of my favorite shots:

Brooke might punch me for posting these two photos of her, but I LOVE them. You hear about the pregnant lady glow, and Brooke is just about the cutest little pregnant lady you have ever seen. These are one of those pictures that I think her kids will look at in twenty years and adore how their mom looked and smiled before their life even began.

Okay that is enough of me getting all emotional and serious up in here. Baby E is coming soon, so check back for some adorable baby photos.

Until next time...

Ding Dong, the Entry is DONE!!!

...well, not all the way done. We still need to add crown molding, find a new light, and (eventually) change the front door, ...and decide whether or not to paint or re-stain the closet door, but for all intensive purposes, this project is done!

 Even Zizou likes it:

...or maybe he just wants to go outside.

Here is a closeup of the bench that I made. Want to see how I made it?! You can check that out here.

And now I have a nice spot to kick off those Sperrys.

Here's a closeup of the picture shelf.

Remember this frame? Now he has a home.

And here is a close-up of all the knobs. Don't mind the white paint on the back wall. That will get fixed once the crown molding goes up. I'm beginning to understand the phrase "housework is never done".

I still can't believe how different it is when you walk in the door. I'd say much more welcoming than the original wood paneling. Since the last post, I have sanded, painted and retouched the shelving and bench, installed the transition strip under the bench, and added some color with the frames, pillows and bench cushion. Over time and over many shopping trips to Target, Ikea, Home Goods, etc., we will find more pillows, rugs, and trinkets for the picture shelf to bring some more color into the space, but for now, I am SOOOO much happier when I first walk in the door. And I did it all myself! I can hardly believe it. :)

Until next time...

Come On In and Have a Seat!

There was a lot of thought that went into how to build the bench for the entry way. Initially, I wanted to the bench to span the entire length of the back wall. But after finding out that the jut in the wall was actually part of the third bedroom addition, I changed my mind. Rebuilding a wall for only three feet of extra bench seemed like a little too much work.

After that somewhat disappointing realization, I began to contemplate how to build our "plan B" nook bench. There were a few problems to consider:
1- I wanted the bench to be open underneath so that people could kick off their shoes and leave them underneath the bench. This meant that I had to still be able to support the weight of 1-2 people without the bench tearing off the wall.
2- The wall on the left of the nook is 8in, and the wall on the right is 15in. Obviously, an 8-in bench is not wide enough for even a little butt. I had to think about how I was going to allow the bench to be the width that we needed but also keep it securely attached to all three walls.

Considering both obstacles, here is what I came up with:

The bench was essentially a 2x4in. wood frame with additional 2x4s spanning the width for additional support. On the sides, I used two 2x8in boards so that they would go down to the ground and I could screw them into the wall. My bench will be able to hold a small army. Once again, I picture a (non-existent) kid jumping up and down on the bench. No skulls will be cracked due to my faulty handy work! However, if the next owners don't like the bench, they may have a real hard time taking it out, but it won't break while it's in there.

Incase you have a very similar lay out and would like to know the cuts that I made (or rather, made my husband cut for me), here they are:
1- 2 x 4 x 44in (for the back wall)
1- 2 x 4 x 37.5in  (front of the bench)
1- 2 x 4 x 6.5in  (angled side of the bench, measured from the inside)
2- 2 x 8 x 19in (side pieces spanning to the floor)
1- 2 x 4 x 4.5in (additional piece on the right side)
1- 1 x 4 x 12in (to securely connect the pieces on the right side)
5- 2 x 4 x 9in (support beams going the width of the bench)
1- 1 x 4 x 40in (face of the bench in front)
1- 1 x 4 x 9in  (face of the side angle)
plywood:
1- 47 x 13in (top of the bench)

Once the bench was put together, we fastened the bench to the studs using four, 4in. hefty bolts.

I also secured the legs to the wall with 3 1/2in. screws. You may also notice I found another use for a strip of our bead board: the flooring under the bench.

This bench is going nowhere! It can actually hold both Nabil and I with no hands (or feet), but no one was around to get that picture. ...but we tried it.

Next, I added the baseboard and trim pieces, caulked, mudded the holes/gaps, sanded the surface, and primed and the unpainted wood. This is the part that I hate the most because the end is in sight, but it always seems like this stuff take FOREVER! Once it was all said and done though, this place was actually starting to look like an entryway with a pretty kickass builtin bench if I do say so myself (and I do).

Here is the view as you walk in the front door:

To wrap this post up, let's look at that entryway to-do list shriveling away:

- tear out the bookshelf
- take out the paneling below where the picture shelf is going to be and add another texture to separate from the rest of the paneling
- build a picture shelf to span the length of the back wall
- incorporate hooks for hanging coats/purses
- build a bench to go in the wall "nook" with a place for shoes underneath (in progress, just need to finish painting and add the cushion on top)
- replace all the outdated trim and add crown molding
- replace the light fixture with something a little more modern
- replace the front door (eventually! Realistically, this is probably a few years down the line)

Picture Shelf

Aaaahhhhh... That is the sound of the heavens reigning cheers of glory on my half-way done entry way.

I have always loved the picture shelves in the dining room of old houses, so I knew that I wanted to incorporate one in our new house somewhere. ...and why not cross it off the list on our first house project right? When building the picture shelf, I had to keep a few things in mind. (1) The shelf had to be sturdy enough to support the weight of frames and other decorations over the years but also not stick out of the wall too much. In my mind I kept picturing an eight or nine year old boy doing pull-ups or just hanging off the shelf. I'm not sure who this boy is because he obviously isn't ours, but it seems like a prime idea for some pre-hormonal kid with bottomless, unfiltered energy. I don't know where I get these premonitions, but I wanted to make sure the shelf could support the weight of this non-existent child before he got hurt. (2) The shelf also had to have some kind of stopper on the end so that the frames didn't slide off the end hitting some un-expectant guest on the head. And (3) the shelf would be the divider between the gray wood paneling above and the white wall below where people would hang their coats.

Keeping all this in mind, here is what I came up with:

I use a 1x6in. board to cover the gap between the two boards. This would also serve as the base for the shelf, so I made sure it was securely fastened to the studs. Also, at this point, I had decided that I wanted to use knobs as coat hangers. Luckily I decided this before hanging the board, because with knobs, they have to be screwed in from the back of the board, so before securing the board to the wall, I drilled eleven holes and placed the screws where the knobs would eventually live.

To assemble the shelf, I used a 1x4in. board and two rounded 1x1in trim pieces. Once measured and cut, I wood-glued and hammered on the trim piece on the end of the picture shelf because that would have been more difficult to do once the shelf was already assembled. Next, I screwed the shelving pieces directly into the edge of the 1x6 support boards. If you do it this way, make sure to drill pilot holes so you don't crack the wood since the screws will be so close to the edge of the board. I then added the 1x1in. rounded trim on the underside of the shelf. This was mostly just for aesthetics, but I suppose it could be adding just a little more support too. Below is a cross-section of the shelf which probably explains it better on it's own than my long winded descriptions.

Just incase you were wondering, I do realize that the corner cut has a big gap. I quickly realized that the wall was not exactly 90 degrees, so my corners were a little off. Nothing a little mudd and sanding can't fix, right?

This is the view right when you walk into the house. The coat closet is on the left, and the living-room is to the right.

Once it was all mudded, caulked, and painted, here's what we have:

I love the look of the knobs instead of hooks. We also decided to use all different kinds of knobs to keep some interest. They are all bronze or oil rubbed bronze (or at least they look it), so it isn't too distracting. Love love love!

So there you have it, a step-by-step on how we built a picture shelf. If you'd like to see the before pictures, you can check them out here. Once it's all complete I will post more pictures of all the fun details, but for now, let's take a look at the things we have crossed off our enrtyway to-do list, shall we!?

- tear out the bookshelf
- take out the paneling below where the picture shelf is going to be and add another texture to separate from the rest of the paneling
- build a picture shelf to span the length of the back wall
- incorporate hooks for hanging coats/purses
- build a bench to go in the wall "nook" with a place for shoes underneath
- replace all the outdated trim and add crown molding
- replace the light fixture with something a little more modern
- replace the front door (eventually! Realistically, this is probably a few years down the line)

Phew, half way done! ...and all this was done in time for all of our Christmas holiday guests arrival (barely). Next up, the bench to go underneath the shelf.

Until next time...