Welcome to The Morris Manor farmhouse tour located in Virginia. Our circa 1919 has been lovingly restored and I'd like to show you around.

Let me preface this tour by telling you my husband (Scott) and I met here 20 years ago! That's right, his best friend grew up here and after high school, he moved away, once his parents passed the house sat empty. After a phone conversation one day about the possible selling of the home we decided to take a look at it. The moment we pulled into the driveway there was a connection. That day we made the commitment of breathing life back into these old bones.

In  January 2016 we immediately dug our heels in to begin an extensive renovation. We gutted the entire main level and I painted EVERY surface I could get my hands on ..including the upstairs hardwood floors.

Having a blog has been a dream of mine for years but it never felt like the right time. Now that we are settling into our new life it feels perfect! The official launch date of the blog was February 23rd. My hope is "To inspire you to create the home you love" no matter your circumstance or budget. Each week I will be adding more content, and DIY projects. I hope you will head over and check it out!

Now let's get on with the tour! We will start at the front door.

Front Entry/Foyer

The room off to the right is our soon-to-be study. It's currently under construction. Our design for that room is a gentleman's cigar lounge...minus the cigars! UPDATE: See the finished room here The entry was dark and uninviting. The stairs were painted maroon and the walls were dingy and dirty. It took a new floor, new paint, new light, and a lot of elbow grease to accomplish this clean fresh look. You can see the scary before photos HERE.

I'm planning to add a few more touches and actual photos in the gold frames! 🙂 For now we are enjoying the neutral simplicity of this space.

Powder Room

This room used to be a full bath complete with a tub. The door was on the wall where the board and batten is now. I didn't want a full bath on the main level as we have one upstairs next to the bedrooms. I knew we could make it work, the key is to be efficient with your needs. We are a family of 5 and share 1.5 baths. It's perfect for us! We moved from a home that had three baths and it was too much upkeep!

Living/Family Room

This was used as their master bedroom.  They raised 4 boys and gave them the entire upstairs to run free... can you blame them?

We added shiplap to the fireplace and exposed as much original brick as possible. There was only a small hole for a wood stove. My husband cut as much as he could before comprising the structure of the entire fireplace. I didn't think I would like it because my heart was set on gas logs but I LOVE it! It adds so much character! There is nothing like the crackle of a real wood fire.

The skinny shiplap behind the sofa is actually painted cedar planks. It was the cedar closet for the master bedroom. Instead of having wasted space we put a french door on a sliding track and made it into our girl’s art nook. My husband made a built-in desk and the girls use it every day. I'm working on a post to reveal it soon.

We knocked down three walls to open up the entire back of the house. An open concept was very important to our family.

The harvest table came from the same friend that I bought the hutch from. Ummmm, she has impeccable taste doesn't she?! If you can't already tell blue and white is my jam!!! The chimney was discovered behind the drywall. It was a dark red and I simply whitewashed it.

Welcome To Our Kitchen

I have adored white kitchens for years. I knew I wanted a wide-open space with the largest island possible! Ikea made that happen on a very tight budget! We did 100% of the kitchen ourselves.

Minus the plumbing and electrical. We spent countless hours measuring, laying out the floor plan, dreaming, and pinning! It turned out better than we could have imagined.

My Love For Blue and White Ccontinues.

The top of the island is stainless steel. We put tacs around the perimeter to give it an industrial flare.

Another Ikea purchase is the rod hanging on the side of the island. It's both cute and functional if I do say so myself. 🙂 Butcher block and brick backsplash were budget friendly options. I sealed the butcher block with boat urethane and it has withstood the test of time.  Below I used a magazine rack as a produce holder. It is one of the most popular items in our home. 

Non traditional storage is perfect for the kitchen. This houses my cooking oils etc... I use this almost daily. It's not only beautiful it's functional as well. Corralling your essentials next to the stove is a must. 

That concludes the morris manor farmhouse tour, I know it was long but I hope you leave inspired.

Read all about our HGTV Magazine feature here 

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