Extreme Makeover College Edition

Ok, ok, ok, so I promised you home decor and design and so far all I've shown you is a barefoot and shirtless guy (a mighty fine looking one if I do say so myself) and some dogs!

So, here's the story.  Our youngest daughter, Jessica, was attending college at Mizzou in Columbia, Missouri.  She and a friend had rented a little basement apartment in an old house.  Now, if you have ever visited a college town and spent any time in the available rentals for college students you would know that most of them are lacking in the aesthetically pleasing department and this little dwelling was of no exception.

Jessica was having trouble getting settled into her new duds.  It was a dark little room in a basement apartment.  There was one very little egress window leaving not much natural light.  Her decorating thus far was placing her mattress on the floor and piling all of her other belongings in the corners of the room.  The walls were a dirty primer color with carpets that let's just say had seen better days after the abuse of former college students and the results of some good parties.  I could tell that in order to get this girl in the spirit she was going to need to be lifted emotionally by her surroundings and she needed some help!

Now, my other daughter, Amy, shares in my enthusiasm for design and decor and she is also quite the little "do it your selfer".  After collaboratively speaking of dear Jessica's dilemma we decided we were capable of doing what needed to be done in order to perk our little girl up, and after doing a little shopping and list making, we were able to come up with a plan.

Paints, brushes, tools, tarps, old headboards, and accessories, we loaded up the Subaru and headed to CoMo for a day in order to transform Jessica's room (and attitude) from blah to beautiful!!!!

We also wanted it to have that element of surprise, you know, like MOVE THAT BUS!!!!!!  So we sent Jessica away for the day and she was not to return until we were finished with the project... She was gone a LOOONNNGGGG time!

Here was the task at hand... Can't blame a girl's bad mood with a room like this!

Oh, my!  I've seen prison cell's with more personality!  Well, not personally, you know, on those TV shows...

So, we began by first emptying the room and giving it a good wipe down and vacuuming.

First coat of paint went on the walls.  We used a very bright and creamy peachy orange color to compliment the bed spread that Amy made for her sister... The girl has talent!

Because the room was so small, we wanted to give it some dimension and depth, so we painted two thick mother of pearl like colored stripes around the room.  We used flat paint for the walls and glossy paint for the stripes to give it some texture.

Here was the finished look of the walls...

Next we worked on repurposing a small chest of drawers, a new mirror, and an old headboard that we covered in batting and tufted fabric (not too bad for our first attempt).

Then we began reassembling the room.  Bed off the floor with new headboard and bedspread, new curtains, repainted chest of drawers with new knobs, mirror (mirrors are great because they make a space appear larger) and shelves on the walls, new embellished lamp and table accessories.




Wait for it...


Wait for it...





And wahhhhlaaahhhh!!!!!  Extreme Bedroom Makeover College Edition!

From this to that...

Makes for one very happy college girl... and two very exhausted, but accomplished, designers!

Hope you have enjoyed this version of Extreme Makeover College Edition...  The only thing missing was a megaphone and that big bus, oh, and Ty... gotta love a guy in a tool belt!

Thanks for visiting!

Next up, see a couple of recent purchases at a favorite store that had me in shoppers bliss!

Stacy K

An introduction

So, according to Wikipedia, a blog is "a personal journey published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete entries ("posts") typically displayed in reverse chronological order so the most recent post appears first."  Well, I don't want to go in reverse chronological order.  I want to be somewhat random and sporadic, and I feel compelled to start with the beginning and I think all beginnings should start with some type of introduction.

Today, I will introduce you to my world and some of the people (both two and four legged) in it.

First, there was me.  And while I was doing this...

Stacy Kearns working in the ER
I have no idea why I am in such a stance???

I met this guy...

Ken Carter
No, I didn't meet him as a patient, he's an ER Nurse too!

It was pretty much love at first site, and I soon found out that he was a package deal that came with these two...

Amy and Jessica Carter
Oh my, they are going to love me for this one...;-)

And so began learning how to live life as a family.  We did just fine!  I will spare you of all the details...braces, boys, first loves...(and break ups), oh dear!,  messy rooms, homecoming dances, driving lessons...oops, I was going to spare the details...  So, like I said, everything went just fine...

Amy, Ken, me, and Jessica at Jessica's High School Graduation

With the girls graduated and off to college, we decided to make a change, and so we moved here...

First visit to what would become Barefoot Farm

The rest is history in the making.  The land is ours and the house is built, although, I don't think it is ever DONE!  It's a continual work in progress; designing, building, and decorating.  It has been an amazing experience to turn an idea in our heads to plans on paper and then into real life structures and things that we enjoy sharing with our family, friends, and neighbors. 

And not a visit to Barefoot Farm will go by without being greeted by our four legged family members.

Chloe

Daisy Mae Frecklebelly

Henry Jo Jo

Graycie Merle

A few more pics of some of my most favorite people...:-)

Me and Ken

Sisters
Jessica and Amy Carter

Amy Carter and our future son in law, William Grinnan
Stay tuned for Engagement Party pictures!

Thanks for visiting and now that all of these introductions are out of the way, let's get down to business!  

COMING SOON!  College dorm makeover, easy wall decor ideas, and I am going to share with you some of my recent coveted finds at one of my most favorite places to shop!

See you next time!

Stacy K

P.S.  Please bear with me as the look of my blog may change (numerous times) as I play around with all of the edit and design options.  Have I mentioned I have no idea what I am doing?!?!?!

What is Barefoot Farm????

I am frequently asked this question and to this question, I answer, "It's where we live."

Soon after finding our perfect piece of paradise we began talking about our goals and dreams and what we wanted to accomplish living in the country.  I had already shared my dream, which was building a house that was "ours", meaning it was well thought out and designed for us by us.  Ken, being an avid gardener already, wanted a place where his gardens could be limitless.  I mean, the man can garden!  Flowers, vegetables, fruit, he can grow it all...and WOW, does he look good doing it!...oh, sorry... yes, the man can garden!  We decided that we wanted to give our place a name, a name that would just fit, describe the look and feel of it, and something that just encompassed our casual way of life on a "farm" where you won't find big tractors and equipment, no grain bins or silos, no cows or pigs, and absolutely no pesticides!  Just two people, dogs, cats, some chickens and ducks and the occasional other fowl, and lots and lots of gardens.  Well, it did not take us long to come up with the perfect name for our new homestead.  The pictures say it all...

Yes, you will frequently find Ken barefoot in his gardens, this is a practice he has had for a very long time, and so when he said, "we should call our place Barefoot Farm", I knew it was perfect!  Besides the fact that the name fit for an obvious reason, I also felt it described the general feel of our land... casual, comfortable, kind, and pleasant...a place where you would feel comfortable barefoot!  And so it was born.

I guess we could have called it "Barefoot And Shirtless Farm"...I told you he looked good!!!...;-)

So, I have had the idea of this blog for a long time, and being an unfamiliar task have procrastinated it's beginnings.  As I sat at my computer last night to explore how to set up a blog, I had no intention to actually get it started right then, but I just started typing and the words came and I thought, well, you've got to start somewhere!  So I obsessed all day (I tend to over think things) over whether or not I can actually do this... will I be able to figure it out?, will I stick with it?, will I look like a dummy?... and the answer is, I don't know, but I am committed to giving it a try.  I am so far humbled by the words of encouragement and support of some of my dear friends and family (what would we do without Facebook).

I was anxious to get home this evening to continue working on my idea and how I would execute the blog of Barefoot Finds and Designs.  My goals are, as I mentioned, to share my passion of all things home decor and design, some of my creations and inspirations, and my love for cooking, baking and entertaining in my home.  I also want to use this blog as a way to chronicle and share our journey in the "pioneering" of Barefoot Farm.  Now, my obsessive compulsive self was already worrying about how I would do this in such a uniform fashion and then my creative self chimed in, with a voice of reason, and decided that I will do all of the above, but in a random way so as to keep my readers interested (I hope).  So, as I post, you will see my life... the people (and animals) in it, my home, my obsessions, my finds, and all other random things that I find worthwhile to share.

Stay tuned...

Stacy K

And so it begins...

It seems not long ago there was a time that I did not even know where my kitchen was.  I shuddered at all things domestic.  My idea of cooking dinner was dialing the nearest pizza place that delivered.  And had you told me I would be involved with raising two teenage daughters and then move to the country with a bunch of chickens, well, I would have told you you've gone and lost your mind!  Boy, have times changed!

Fast forward almost 12 years and here I am living with four dogs, yes, a bunch of chickens, (well, they live in the vicinity), and a man that after all this time still gives me that lusty butterfly feeling in my tummy every time I see him, yep, it's true!  About 5 years into our relationship I divulged to him a secret.  I had always dreamed of building my own house in the country.  Now, when I say BUILDING my house, I actually meant telling some guys what I wanted it to look like, and of course, they would do the building.  And so it began...The hunt for the perfect land, designing and building the house, decorating the house, and living happily ever after.  It was in this process that I learned of a passion and that passion is in the design.  I scoured through piles and piles of books and magazines, tearing out and tabbing all of the pictures that appealed to me and placing them in the appropriate files.  Boy, where was Pinterest when I really needed it!

We put a lot of thought into the design of our simple home.  Through my research, it was in the details in decor that I decided to put the most emphasis on and I found that this is what I felt most passionate about... and now am just down right obsessed!  One of the most influential resources in our design process was an architect by the name of Sarah Susanka.  In her book, "The Not So Big House", she talks about building a house for "quality, not quantity".  I took from her many things, but most importantly was to not build a house so big that you cannot afford to decorate it and that you should be able to use every room in your home on a daily basis.  I feel we were successful.

Our house is not considered big by any means.  A little under 2000 square feet, but feels and looks very spacious with the open design.  It is simple in that it is a ranch home, but not ordinary, because of all of the details that I hope to share with you through my blog.

Anyway, back to my new found passion.  I am passionate about design and decor of the home.  Once living in our new home, I quickly learned that I also loved to entertain.  I have become enamored with the "art" of party planning.  I am all about details and presentation and I love to cook and bake!  I love to feed people good food that they enjoy.  Oh, and I also love to photograph the food.  My nearest and dearest family and friends know not to take a bite until pictures have been taken!

I love to shop and collect things for my home.  My preferential palette is very neutral.  I love the color gray (in any shade), burlap, nailheads, and anything with a vintage modern vibe.  I like to "collect" things for my home, instead of buying 'matchy' sets,  mixing old with new and some things that are new and made to look old.  I am insanely crazy about cake stands and platters and baking dishes, cannot get enough!  I read cookbooks like novels and I collect more recipes than I can possibly keep up with!

I have been told by many that I have talent and maybe someday would like to make a career out of this in some way, shape, or form.  In the meantime I just feel the need to document and share my passionate obsession that is the creation of Barefoot Finds and Designs.

Hope you enjoy!

Stacy K