custom build

You know how there are some people in life who are just quintessentially cool? Like, whatever they do, you kind of want to do, too? Well, for me, that’s Nina. Sasha has known her since they were little, as Nina’s parents also immigrated to the US from Serbia. Coincidentally, she married one of Sasha’s fraternity brothers, who is genuinely the sweetest – and a pretty impressive entrepreneur too (ahem, see house below). Mike and Nina moved into their custom built home (by Renaissance Builders) earlier this year, and I’ve been lusting over it ever since. The white paneled wood walls, large windows (I’d kill for that much natural light in our house!), gorgeous modern (warm and comfy!) furniture, dark wood ceilings, massive closets, fun wallpaper… I could go on and on.

When I asked Nina if I could feature their house on Snapshots & My Thoughts, she kindly and enthusiastically agreed. They opened up their house for me to photograph the inside and although Mother Nature was against us, I was around again to take outdoor shots.

I hope you love the house as much as I do (cue me now pinning everything to my Dream House boards on Pinterest). Nina sweetly sourced most of the items featured in these photos (it’s a big house, and I had a hard time narrowing down pictures, but there are rooms and pieces not shown!). If you have any questions for her, please email me and I’ll do my best to track down answers.

Perhaps because Isla’s nursery is complete, I am super itchy to redo our living room. I have been scouring the internet for inspiration… probably much to Sasha’s dismay! We’ve only been in our house for a year, but there are many things I would like to change. In a few years, we plan to do a custom build, and I want to have every single room mapped out before we design anything. The living room is where we spend most time (second to the kitchen, which might be surpassed by Isla’s nursery right now!), so that would be where I focused most of my attention. I also want to build a toy room, as I am a freak about baby ‘stuff’ cluttering up the house. Our good friends are turning their office into a nursery – super jealous (although I love our study!!). Some of my favorite living rooms are posted below – including my sister’s newly renovated home. What do you think? Are these your style? Sasha finds it a tad girly, but he’s generally okay with letting me make design decisions (not so much with art!).

PS We are headed to Durango today! So excited for this new chapter in our lives.

Caitlin Moran via Glitter Guide