Our New Couch Featuring Home Reserve Furniture

Adaptable furniture for everyday life

My Partnership with Home Reserve

EEEEEKKKKK! Our new couch has been here for about a month now, it arrived just in time for new baby Walkers arrival. Literally 4 days prior and Jay put it together just days before I went into labor. Months before my due date, I started thinking that I wanted to spruce up our living room space since it was essentially not usable with an extremely hairy suede couch (horrible fabric for dog owners), broken yellow chairs that fell backwards when you sat on them, and a mishmash of decor that I just didn’t love. I wanted a space that was inviting and cozy since right when you walk in our front door that’s what you see, but also our main living area is wide open and I dreamt of a space that would provide us with comfort and ultimately a place to gather.

What I wanted:

When researching couches, must haves for me were pet and kid friendly, washable couch covers, and stain resistant. We’re in the thick of parenthood with four small children, lots of little messy hands, and have two very large dogs that shed, so a couch that could uphold all of that was a non-negotiable. That’s when I stumbled across Home Reserve and immediately fell in love. I’m serious, this couch has been a dream and I am so in love with the style, design, and color that we chose. Let me tell you why I love it so much…

About Home Reserve:

• Kid and Pet Friendly: With small children and dogs, things just don’t stay nice, at least not in our home, but with Home Reserve they’ve made it really easy to keep things looking good with their changeable and renewable features. Watch this video to see how spills repel off the fabric!

• Renewable parts: How does it last forever?? You can literally replace any individual part at any time. If a frame piece, cushion or fabric cover gets ruined, you can replace just that piece!! Isn’t that awesome?!

• Stain Resistant fabric: When shopping for the fabric type you like, sort by machine washable and stain resistant fabrics to list all of the fabrics that are made with i-clean technology. These are high performance fabrics that are engineered for comfort, durability and ease of maintenance making it easy to keep your furniture looking and feeling nice for years to come.

• Washable covers: If you’ve been following along for some time now, you know how important it is for me to have items in my home that are machine washable. AKA our crib mattress cover, our rugs, and now even our COUCH! This is a huge game changer with kids and messes all the time, I can easily take the fabric cover off and throw it in the wash to keep it clean!

• Changeable fabric covers: This is one of my favorite features of the couch, is that you can purchase brand new fabric covers in whatever color or style you want for a fraction of the price. So, whether you are redesigning your space or want to replace your current covers with the same fabric, you can do so by ordering new covers. This is not something you can do with just any other couch and it makes me very excited to know that I can have this couch literally forever, yet still be able to change it up if I want to! We went with an archetype style fabric and it’s been really great with the dogs. We try to keep them off the couch, but if they do end up getting on it, the hair is easy to wipe away and doesn’t cling to it.

• Customizable layouts for any space: What’s super nice about a modular couch is that you can transform the look and layout of your couch at any time. Rearranging to fit a Christmas tree, or want to make your couch bigger or smaller, add arms or switch cushions, the options are endless and most importantly timeless.

• Built in storage: This is another super nice feature, the added storage. I can store games, toys, or extra pillows and blankets inside the couch and access it just by lifting up the cushion.

• Made in America: Being made in America is another great feature as the company knows where everything comes from, understands how its made, and overseas the entire supply chain.

With all of the great features I listed above, it’s no wonder this couch was a great option for our family. I know that we will have this for many years, even forever, as we can change the layout or fabric design to fit and meet our needs as our style changes and adapts or when life just gets messy. I love that you can buy new covers for a fraction of the price, a feature not many couches offer, and that you can add or subtract any of the pieces to fit your space or season. Putting it together was time consuming as it does come flat in boxes, but well worth the time in my opinion.

Our exact couch: Fabric “Archytype Hemp”

• Jovie Armless x4

• Jovie end panel

• Corner ottoman x2

• Lounger Jovie corner

Partnering with Home Reserve has been nothing short of amazing. We love our couch, the warmth and comfort it brings to our home, how beautiful and timeless it looks in our living room space, and most of all that it brings us all together. Whether I’m cooking in the kitchen while the boys watch cartoons, we’re having a movie night as a family, or just enjoying the company of friends or family, we are always on our new couch and I couldn’t be happier.

I would highly recommend Home Reserve to anyone looking to purchase a new couch, whether you have kids and pets or not, this couch is for you. There are endless options, styles, designs, and fabric colors to choose from. Let me know if you have any other questions or check out their site for more information HERE!

As always, thanks for stopping by!

xoxo Mari

Transitioning your Nursery Rocker

Hey Hey Hey!

Ever feel isolated, away from everyone nursing your baby? I mean, sometimes it’s nice but other times it would be nice to have the big comfy chair in a main living area where you can be intertwined with everyone, and engage in the conversation. Be a part of the chaos, the mess, the crazy but also hang out in your comfiest chair and just do your thing, nurse your new born baby.

When redecorating our living space, which has been untouched and unused since we moved in, I thought long and hard about how to make the space functional. In past months, the couch has been claimed by the hairy dogs, and the chairs are so old they tip over when you sit in them. Plus I never really loved the large empty white wall, that I couldn’t figure out what to do with. And being it was a main living area, open to our kitchen and dining, I wanted to create a space that we could come together as a family and utilize during all parts of the day. Whether hanging out watching a movie, eating together as a family, or cooking meals together, a big comfy chair was just something I envisioned in the new living space so that once our fourth baby arrived, I could be a part of the action and I am not disappointed to say the least.

I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to partner with Million Dollar Baby, and chose the Linden power recliner in the color white linen (which is currently sold out). It is sooo beautiful in the space, I couldn’t be happier. I use to think that a rocker could only be used or styled in a nursery, but I was so wrong! Adding this chair to our main living space is just what we needed and Im loving being able to rock Walker and nurse him in it. Not only does the chair provide comfort, it creates a light and airy space in the corner of our living room and is the chair everyone wants to sit on.

What we Love about it:

• Super easy set up, no tools needed!

• Electric recline allows you to quietly make adjustments and move in the chair

• USB charging port allows you to charge your phone while sitting in the chair

• Effortless glide allows a smooth and gentle 360 degree swivel while gliding back and forth

• GREENgaurd gold certified: Which means it’s been tested for over 10,000 chemicals and meets stringent chemical emission standards. It helps reduce indoor air pollution and chemical exposure to ensure the safety of your home and health of your family.

DIMENSIONS
Assembled Dimensions: 36.25" x 34" x 40.25"
Assembled Weight: 112 lbs

A nice feature is that you can order wood and fabric swatches for free when trying to decide what product to get. Million Dollar Baby offers a large variety of nursery furniture in all sorts of styles, from cribs to dressers, to changing tables and seating. Make any space in your home beautiful with their products.

Thanks so much for stopping by! Next time you’re redecorating a space in your home, think outside the box and envision a comfy rocker in your living room space or bedroom space. You can always transition your rocker into a different space in your home as well, making it last for many more years to come and well worth your money!

Xoxo Mari

The BEST Banana Bread with Samsung Home Appliances

Hello Hello!

Thanks for stopping by my my little space on the internet. Today I’m sharing Jay’s grandma’s banana bread recipe and it’s legit AMAZING, you will never want to make another recipe again. Plus, I’m sharing a secret trick to get a gooey sugary layer on top. This post is in collaboration with Samsung Home Appliances, and if you’ve missed my last few post, we have been loving our kitchen appliances since the day we got them just over three years ago! To shop our exact appliances or just check out what’s so awesome about them head to there website Here.

My boys love helping me cook. At ages 5, 3, and 1 I’m not always eager to let them help but a few things I’ve learned along the way are 1. letting go of expectations, 2. Ignoring the mess, and 3. Letting them crack eggs in separate bowl so no shells get in the main ingredients! Try to have fun with it, and let them learn. I always tell myself I want my boys to know how to cook when they grow up, so allowing them to help me is the only way they’ll learn!

Ingredients:

• 3 very ripe bananas (mashed)

• 1 stick of softened butter

• 1 cup sugar

• 2 eggs

• 1 cup flour

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 1/4 tsp baking powder

• 1/4 tsp baking soda

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees

2. In large bowl, mix together sugar and butter. Add mashed bananas. Then add eggs one at a time.

3. Gently fold in dry ingredients, until blended together, careful not to over stir.

4. Place in greased bread pan.

5. Cook for 45-55 minutes.

6. Immediately once out of oven, cover with tin foil. This will create a nice gooey sugary layer that makes it sooo yummy!

I hope you enjoyed today’s post and have all the ingredients to make some delicious banana bread! You won’t be disappointed, I promise. Again, thanks to Samsung Home Appliances for collaborating with me on this post. We love our appliances, all of their smart capabilities, and the overall look and quality of them. If you missed my last blog post on them, head here to see what we love most about them!

Xoxo Mari

Five Reasons we love our Kitchen Appliances: Ft. Samsung

This post is in collaboration with Samsung Home Appliances which we have had, used and loved in our home since we bought it and renovated it three short years ago! Making our house a home and completing each space has been a slow but steady process, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned is that it’s important to take your time to research and invest in products that will provide a timeless aesthetic to your home, the quality is not compromised, and will last a lifetime.

This is something that I’ve had to learn the hard way on some items by buying products that met an instant need or desire, rather than getting something that may take a while to find and get but provide us overall with the best outcome. I can say for certain that buying SamSung Home appliances were an excellent investment and after three years, we have yet to have one issue and are still loving them as we did when we first bought them and got them installed!

Here are Five reasons we love our SamSung Home Appliances

1. The color and material used is something that I don’t think I will ever regret. Even with decor styles changing I continue to love what we have. All of our appliances are made in the fingerprint resistant black stainless steel. With three littles, I wouldn’t say we don’t ever have smudges but I definitely think it helps hide them so I am not constantly cleaning those as well.

2. Wifi Capabilities: When you download the Samsung App, you can remotely control all your appliances from wherever you are. One very nice thing is that we could turn the oven on 20 minutes before we get home so it’s ready for us to use, or even look into our refrigerator if we’re wondering what we need at the store! These may not be important to some people, but it is a nice feature to have.

3. Stream Youtube, music, or put family pictures up on the screen of your fridge when you have the family Hub smart screen. This is one feature we utilize the most! We will upload family photos, the kids will draw on the white board feature, we listen to music or even stream church live from our fridge! So when cooking breakfast we can take in the message. How cool is that?! You can also link your family calendars so that everyone knows what’s going on in the day/weeks/months!

4. Our dishwasher cycles at only 39 dBA, making it very quiet. At the end of each cycle, the door to the dishwasher opens automatically to circulate air and improve overall drying performance. This feature took a while to get use to, but I would say it works great! I also really love that all the controls are hidden on the top so that the kids can’t monkey around with them.

5. Lastly, if you couldn’t already tell how much we love our fridge, another great feature it offers is the capability to use three of the four doors as a refrigerator which they refer to as the flex zone. It allows you to convert your freezer to a refrigerator in just the touch of a button, an awesome feature to have when hosting gatherings or needing extra food storage.

Buying appliances is a huge investment, something that you want to last without having lost of issues arise or needing fixing. We are fortunate to have bought our Samsung kitchen appliances and still love them today. If you are in the market for new appliances, I highly encourage you to check out what they have to offer, plus if you bundle and get all of the appliances together, you save money! Below I have listed the exact items that we have in our kitchen or you can shop here Samsung Kitchen Appliances.

• Family Hub Refrigerator

• Slide-in Electric Range

• Linear Wash Dishwasher

• Microwave

As always, thanks so much for stopping by and supporting my little space on the internet. I hope you enjoyed today’s post and found some useful information into buying home appliances. Again, I can’t say enough about our Samsung Kitchen appliances, they were a great investment that our family still enjoys today!

xoxo Mari

Quick, easy, cheap DIY kitchen backsplash; with Samsung home appliances

Hello hello! Today I’m taking you through our DIY kitchen backsplash that we did a few months back. I originally wanted subway tile, however that just wasn’t in our budget so we came up with the plan to add this simple, easy, quick and affordable option that completes the space and makes our kitchen all that more perfect for us!

This post is in collaboration with Samsung home appliances. What I love most about having Samsung home appliances is their ability to synch up with our smart phones and have the option to fully take advantage of all that they offer. I love the color, the quality, and especially our refrigerator because the kids utilize the drawing app on the home screen and we often listen to church on it!

Back Story

Jay and I bought this home three years ago now and completely gutted the entire main level down to the studs, tore down the main living wall that separated the entire house and vaulted our ceilings to give it that open concept feel. It’s taken a while to slowly make each space in our home functional and something we love, but making small changes such as DIY projects that are inexpensive can completely transform a space from boring to beautiful in no time.

Materials Needed

• 1/4 x 4 x 4' Mastercraft Poplar Boards (1.17 sqft per board, $3.50/Board)

• General Construction Adhesive ($2.25/Tube)

• Kitchen/Bath Caulking ($3.50/Tube)

• 1-1/2" Brad Nails ($3.50/1000 Pack)

• Paint ($20/Quart)

• Masking Tape ($2/roll)

• Electrical Switch Box Extension ($3 each)

• Spacers (Could be a dime, nail or purchase tile spacers at the store)

• Paint Rollers or Brush ($10)

Tools Needed

• Miter Saw or Skill Saw (For cutting boards to length)

• Brad Nailer

• Air Compressor

• Tape Measure

• Jig Saw or (For cutouts around outlets and windows)

• Table Saw or Skill Saw (For ripping top boards to correct length)

• Caulking Gun

Directions

Below are the steps that you will want to do before going to the store to get the materials. 

1. Measure out how much backsplash you need. Measure the length and then the height in feet of your backsplash area. Ours was 12' long on one side and 6' long on the other and it was 1.5' tall so that gave us (12+6)*1.5=27 sqft that we needed for our backsplash.

2. You then need to figure out how many boards you will need. To do that take your backsplash sqft that you just figured out in step 1 and divide it by the sqft per board which in our case is 1.17 sqft per board. For us that was 27 sqft / 1.17 sqft per board = 23.1 boards. Then you are going to need to account for scrap that you will not use so we assumed scrap of 20% so we did 23.1 x 1.2 = 27.7 boards round up to 28 boards. This is how many boards you will need for the backsplash.

3. Now go to the store and pick up all of your materials listed above and rent/borrow/buy any tools needed.

4. Now that you have all your materials it is time to get to work.

5. Take off all of your electrical outlet covers and turn off power to those outlets.

6. Now start in the corner on the bottom and use a full lengthboard.

7. Put the adhesive on the back at both ends and 2 in the middle that spaces the adhesive roughly 16" apart.

8. Then put your spacers on the countertop to lift the board off your desired amount ours is about 1/16".

9. Now put the board into the corner and on the spacers and slide into the corner. Move board around slightly to seat adhesive.

10. Now nail the board on the top and bottom of the end, both middle spots near the glue and the other end.

11. Congratulations you have your first board of backsplash up!

12. Next board you will want to use a spacer to space off the countertop and the board next to it so you have even space through out.

13. Repeat steps 6-9.

14. Once you come to an end board you will have to measure the length of the board that you need or mark the board and then cut it using your miter saw or skill saw.

15. Now you are onto your second row on backsplash. Make sure you either start with the scrap you cut off or cut a full length board so that the ends of the boards do not line up with the first row of boards.

16. When you get to an outlet and you don't have a jig saw try and make one edge of the outlet be a end of a board that way you only have to cut a square out of a corner and not a U out of a middle of the board.

17. Keep going until you make it to the top row where you will probably have to use a table saw or skill saw to rip the boards to the height needed to fit.

18. Now that you are done putting up your boards it is time to paint your backsplash.

19. Tape off your countertops and the edges to help avoid getting paint where you don't want it.

20. Now paint the backsplash.

21. Now after the paint is dried you can put your caulking on the bottom of your backsplash and countertop. (Jay still hasn’t done this…)

22. You can also put your electrical box extensions on your boxes and put the covers back on.

23. Congratulations you have yourself a brand new kitchen backsplash made with love by yourself or husband!

 It took us around 5 hours to complete not counting waiting for the paint to dry. This overall project cost us $157 for materials.  We already had all the tools so we did not have to buy or rent any of those.

As always, thanks for stopping by! Hope you enjoyed today’s post and find that motivation to tackle that home project. A quick DIY backsplash is an easy quarantine project you can do in no time. If you’re in the market for new appliances, I would highly recommend looking into Samsung home appliances and all they have to offer. We love ours still after three years of using them!

xoxo Mari