• Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
    • Collaborate
  • Blog
  • Parties
    • Children’s Parties Ideas
    • Holiday Parties
    • Adult Party Ideas
  • Holiday Ideas
    • Christmas
    • Easter
    • Fourth of July
    • Spring
    • Thanksgiving
    • Valentine’s Day
  • Seasons
    • Winter
    • Spring
    • Summer
    • Autumn
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers
    • Beverages
    • Desserts
    • Main Dishes
    • Side Dishes
    • Soups
  • Project Gallery
    • Crafts
    • Decorating
    • DIY
    • Good Ideas
    • Tutorials
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Bloglovin
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter

At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

Where Ideas for your Home Meet Inspiration for your Heart

  • Book
  • Speaking
  • Meet Vanessa
    • Featured

January 18, 2014

Unexpected Elegance ~ At the Picket Fence Parade of Homes

After an extended break over the holidays we are ready to share more beautiful homes with you in our ongoing Parade of Homes! Are you ready? Because we’ve got some really fantastic houses coming your way over the next few weeks!

Unexpected elegance tour with atthepicketfence.com

Today, we’re welcoming our friend Angela from Unexpected Elegance. We’ve had the privilege of meeting this beautiful and talented gal in person and she is warm, friendly, fun and can boogie down with the best of ’em. Right Angela? 😉 We are blessed to call her our friend and we know are going to see her wonderful personality shine through as you tour her gorgeous home today!

at the picket fence parade of homes

Hi, my name is Angela and I blog over at Unexpected Elegance. I’m so excited to be here today, sharing my home with all of you.

UE Inspiring Sensible Style

I thought I would start by telling you a little bit about how we came to live in our current home…

I’m originally from Texas (born and raised) and met my husband at Texas A&M University. We got married and worked in Dallas for a few years until my husband got a job in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. After only being there a few years and two very small kids later, we got transferred to Indiana. That was the third state in our 6 years of marriage!! Moving from the East Coast, I felt like the houses were mansions out here and couldn’t wait to tackle our new home. Unfortunately, because everything is so new (unlike our home in PA that was built in the early 1900’s) there is not a lot of character. My house is always in a current state of change and I’m OK with that. (My husband has his days!) I love a challenge and figuring out how to make things work within my small budget. I hope you will enjoy a walk through my house…because tomorrow it might not look the same. 🙂

Have a look around my home!

LIVING ROOM

Striped Living Room Makeover (1 of 1)-2

Striped Living Room Makeover (1 of 1)-11

For more details and photos of the living room click here and here.

DINING ROOM

seating2

For more photos of the dining room click here and here.

KITCHEN

Mini Kitchen Makeover via Unexpected Elegance

For more photos of the kitchen click here and here.

MASTER BEDROOM

Instant Artwork-1-12

How to Hang a TV and Not See the Cords-1-3

For more details and photos of the master bedroom click here and here.

MASTER BATHROOM

Master Bathroom Makeover from Unexpected Elegance

This room is still a work in progress! To see the recent details, click here.

GUEST BEDROOM

Gold Striped Guest Bedroom at Unexpected Elegance -12

You can find the complete room here.

STUDIO/OFFICE

Office Makeover from Unexpected Elegance

To see the complete room and some of the DIY projects for this space, click here.

LOFT

Organizing Craft Supplies for Kids

This room is currently get a little makeover but you see what it looked like before, here.

Deck update at Unexpected Elegance (1 of 1)

We use our backyard for a lot of entertaining from Spring through Fall! I can’t wait to dust off the snow and get back out there!

I hope you have enjoyed a peek inside my home. If you come over to my blog, please stop and say HI! I would love to meet you!

~Angela

Thank you so much for opening your beautiful home to us today Angela! Click HERE to tour the other homes we’ve featured in our Parade of Homes Series.

Thanks for meeting us here At the Picket Fence today,

dual-signature_thumb2

10 Comments Filed Under: Decorating, Parade of Homes Tagged With: decorating, home tours, parade of homes

Subscribe

Get the latest goodness straight to your inbox!

Previous Post: « Take Five: DIY Poppers for Valentines Day
Next Post: Burlap Bulletin Board Gallery Wall »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. chelsea says

    January 18, 2014 at 4:44 AM

    The master bedroom is gorgeous!

    Reply
  2. Shirley@Housepitality Designs says

    January 18, 2014 at 6:57 AM

    Oh I so loved taking a “walk through your house”…it must have been hard leaving the gorgeous countryside of Lancaster; however, you have made such a beautiful home filled with gorgeous details for your family…I love the horizontal wide stripes in the living room…and the great zinc topped dining room table…oh, I love it all…and thanks ladies for another beautiful home tour to start off the weekend on a great note!!!

    Reply
  3. Heidi @ Decor & More says

    January 18, 2014 at 7:18 AM

    Oh, my gosh so much loveliness — those vertical stripes in the guest room? Gold, no less? Amazing. Thanks for sharing, ladies!
    xo Heidi

    Reply
  4. Angela @Unexpected Elegance says

    January 18, 2014 at 7:26 AM

    THANK YOU so much for the feature!! You girls are awesome!!
    Hugs,
    Angela

    Reply
  5. Shanna Gilbert says

    January 18, 2014 at 9:15 AM

    Angela, your house looks gorgeous! You gave it so much character. Beautiful job!

    Reply
  6. Michele says

    January 18, 2014 at 10:40 AM

    So pretty! Angela is a good friend of mine, and her home is a reflection of who she is-beautiful inside and out. I can’t pick one room in her house I like more than the others. They are all lovely!

    Reply
  7. Pat says

    January 18, 2014 at 7:18 PM

    Absolutely gorgeous! Every room is a delight and so welcoming.

    xo
    Pat

    Reply
  8. Lisa says

    January 19, 2014 at 5:09 AM

    What a creative and warm home! I love the master bedroom – that wall color is so cozy!! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  9. Ashley@AttemptsAtDomestication says

    January 19, 2014 at 7:36 PM

    What a gorgeous house! And I love the master bedroom, it gives me a few ideas for mine!

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. My Home Tour over At The Picket Fence - Unexpected Elegance says:
    January 18, 2014 at 7:19 AM

    […] I’m so excited to be featured over At The Picket Fence!  I have had the pleasure of meeting Vanessa and Heather in real life and calling them friends. […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Search This Blog

Get the book!

Invite Vanessa to speak at your event!

Stay updated!

Must Reads

Recent Posts

  • Why We’ve Chosen Vacations Over Projects April 26, 2022
  • A New Look for the Family Room March 1, 2022
  • Christmas Kitchen and Family Room December 19, 2021
  • Christmas Home Tour Part One December 10, 2021
  • Easy Hot Cocoa Station November 21, 2021

Footer

Stay Connected!

Instagram

This is one of my most favorite projects from my b This is one of my most favorite projects from my book Life in Season! 

Because, if heaven has a fragrance, I’m fairly certain it smells like lilacs.

I think that somewhere along the way the verse in the Bible that said, ‘heaven will smell like lilacs’ just got lost in translation. But it HAD to have been in there at some point, right?

When I bury my head in the blossoms (which I absolutely MUST do every single time I walk past them), I immediately feel a stirring in my soul.

It seems like I wait forever for my lilac tree to bloom. Every year I anxiously watch as the buds begin to form on the branches and then when the blossoms finally burst forth I begin that agonizing process of deciding the absolute perfect moment to snip them and bring them inside.

And then, after all of that waiting and watching it’s just over…done. Because, unlike heaven, lilacs don’t last for an eternity. So, making my own lilac room spray seemed like the perfect way to enjoy their fragrance long after the blossoms have faded.

Here’s how to make it! Ingredients: Water, Vodka, Lilac fragrance oil. Directions: Fill spray bottle with 50/50 ratio of water to vodka. Add 12 drops of lilac oil. Give it a shake, spray and if the scent isn’t strong enough, simply add a few more drops of lilac oil.

Once you’ve made this lilac scented room spray you will be very tempted to spray it in every room in your house. And someone may want to use it in the bathroom to cover up other less…ummmm….pleasing aromas.

But, do not, I repeat do NOT, let them.

You’ve captured the fragrance of heaven in a bottle and you wouldn’t want to go and tarnish it now would you? 😉
We had two back to back days of sunshine (the most We had two back to back days of sunshine (the most we’ve had in a LONG time) and now we are back to pouring rain. This has officially confirmed what I’ve know to be true for awhile now.

I’m a MUCH better version of myself when the sun is shining! 🤪 So I’ll just be over here today plotting and planning how my husband and I can be snowbirds someday when the kids are out of the house.

If you could spend your winters (and apparently most of spring too!) in any part of the country, where would it be?
Happy weekend sweet friends!! We’ve had a LOT of Happy weekend sweet friends!! We’ve had a LOT of rain lately (which is saying something when you live in Oregon) and I’ll admit that it’s affecting my moods a bit. I feel like I’m dragging and struggling to find the energy to get stuff done. So don’t mind me if I’m over here looking at photos of my garden in the summertime and finding that it keeps me hopeful about those days to come. They will come, right?! 🤪. 

What are your favorite plants that you look forward to seeing in the summer?
We’re going to be giving our laundry room a make We’re going to be giving our laundry room a makeover soon. It’s LONG overdue! In fact, the folks from the counter company were just here taking measurements. While we have made some simple, inexpensive updates over the years, it still has many of the original elements from when the house was built in 1992.

Two of our bathrooms are also in need of major makeovers. And we’ve saved up enough money over the years to tackle those projects. But, for the most part, we made the decision to use the bulk of that money in another way. While we knew that it was financially wise to invest in our house, we also knew that the greatest investment we could make was in our children. 

I’ll admit, there are times where I see other people doing massive overhauls of their entire home in a matter of months and I feel a prick of envy. But, we decided that if our choice was between waiting a bit longer to enjoy a renovated bathroom or going on adventures as a family, we would choose adventures every time. And we don’t regret that decision for a single second. It’s not that we haven’t tackled home projects (we’ve done a lot!). It’s just that it’s been a slow and steady process. 

Most recently, we let our son pick where we would travel for spring break since this is his senior year of high school and we are trying to make up for lost time. With so much of life ‘paused’ for two years, we have appreciated these moments more than ever. And, since he’ll be heading to college in the fall, we are very aware of how important it is to spend this time together while we still have a modicum of control over everyone’s schedules.

We have many years left to remodel our home but only so much time left to make memories with our children.

And, while I’m always happy to look around my home and see rooms that are updated and more reflecting of our style, it doesn’t compare to the joy I feel when I look around my home and see the people I love the most who have been shaped by the many adventures we’ve experienced together.
Happy Saturday!! After endless days of rain (and h Happy Saturday!! After endless days of rain (and hail and snow) we are finally getting some sunshine and warmer temperatures. I’ll be honest, it’s really affected my spirits having one gloomy day after the next. So this is a much needed reprieve. Our cherry trees are showing off outside my kitchen window and we plan to get outside and make the most of these days while we have them.

What’s the weather like where you are?
“The devil, darkness, and death may swagger and “The devil, darkness, and death may swagger and boast, the pangs of life will sting for a while longer, but don’t worry; the forces of evil are breathing their last. Not to worry…HE’S RISEN!” (Charles R. Swindoll).

Happy Easter! He is risen indeed!
Who has believed our message? And to whom has the Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?

For he grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of parched ground; he has no stately form or majesty that we should look upon him, nor appearance that we should be attracted to him.

He was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and like one from whom men hide their face, he was despised, and we did not esteem him. Surely our griefs he himself bore, and our sorrows he carried; yet we ourselves esteemed him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 

But he was pierced through for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon him, and by his scourging we are healed.

All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on him. (Isaiah 53)
I try to always remember to put a water bottle in I try to always remember to put a water bottle in my car before I go to pick up my daughter from school. She didn't ask me to do this, but a few months ago I began to notice that she was often thirsty when she would get in the car. Her water bottle filled up at the beginning of the day was empty by the time school got out and she would ask if she could have some water from my hydroflask. So I make sure to have one waiting for her. It's just a simple thing, really. But, I want her to know that I'm paying attention, that I see her.

Isn't it amazing how small gestures can make us feel less invisible? Knowing that someone is thinking of us and takes the time to meet a need that we might not have even realized we had? These little acts can have big impacts. What is something that someone has done for you recently that made you feel valued and seen?

What have you done for someone else to remind them that you are paying attention to their needs?

“No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of another.”
― Charles Dickens
“The next day the large crowd that had come to t “The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!’ – John 12:9-19
#palmsunday
When the Lord blesses you with a glimpse of the pa When the Lord blesses you with a glimpse of the payoff of your investment in your children, it is truly one of the greatest gifts. We had that experience twice this week with our 18 year old son and were overwhelmed by this opportunity we had to watch as he handled two very different situations (one personal and one professional) with grace, maturity, integrity and courage. Those of you mamas of little ones, don't ever minimize the job you are doing in raising this next generation. 

Every story read at bedtime
Every correction made to strengthen character
Every outdoor exploration
Every nose wiped
Every bandaid applied
Every time you say no when the world says yes
Every night of helping with homework
Every difficult conversation
Every prayer uttered

The final pieces of the puzzle of his childhood are falling into place and the picture revealed is one that is more wonderful than we could have imagined. And we know that it is only by God's grace on us as we sought His wisdom and guidance that we have come to this point. We have been FAR from perfect parents, but one of my most sincere prayers for the past 18 years was that the Lord would stand in the gaps that were surely to be revealed by our imperfections. And He has answered those prayers again and again. He's taken my humble petitions and most sincere intentions and knocked our socks off with the young man we are so privileged to call our son. And we can’t wait to watch as his future unfolds!
Load More... Follow
Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2022 · Divine theme by Restored 316

Copyright © 2022 At The Picket Fence