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At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

Where Ideas for your Home Meet Inspiration for your Heart

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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

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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

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  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. […]

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Yesterday on the way home from school I had the ra Yesterday on the way home from school I had the radio tuned to my daughter's favorite station and a song that was playing had a line in it that really stood out to me. It made reference to a 'season of the sticks' which I think its safe to say must mean winter. I thought that was such an accurate, albeiet kind of depressing, picture of this time of the year.

While we definitely have more than our fair share of evergreen trees here in Oregon, we also have plenty of trees and bushes that are reduced to sticks during the cold months. But, this morning as I looked out my kitchen window, greedily sipping from my mug of coffee, I marveled at the beauty of the winter sunrise. The sky was all pinks and oranges with frost on the rooftops and a little bit of fog. And, I realized that part of why it was so amazing is because I could see it more clearly through the sticks. The bare branches allowed me a view that I wouldn't be able to see if those same branches were covered in leaves. Being stripped down to almost nothing revealed something magnificent.

We have seasons of the sticks in our lives too, don't we? Times when we feel as though we've been stripped bare and left exposed. It's easy to think that this is a place where all is ugly and dark. And yet, just like the winter sunrise was more visible because of the bare branches, the vulnerability we feel in the winter season of our souls allows us to get a glimpse of beauty that we wouldn't see otherwise. In the lush, warm seasons it's so easy to become comfortable. But in the bare, cold seasons we recognize just how much we need to rely on the One who placed the stars in the heavens and is sovereign over all.

If you feel like your soul has been stripped bare and you've been left exposed and vulnerable, may I encourage you today to ask the Lord to help you to see the beauty in this 'season of the sticks'.

“Answer me quickly, O Lord! My spirit fails! Hide not your face from me, lest I be like those who go down to the pit. Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul." Psalm 143:7
I just went to make my mid-morning protein shake a I just went to make my mid-morning protein shake and grabbed a banana out of the freezer and was about to put it into my shake before I realized it was a frozen egg roll. Sooooo that's how my day is going so far! 🤪How about you?

It's honestly fairly representative of my state of mind these days as I can't seem to make the date on the calendar match the date in my spirit because it feels like it should be January 45th. Every year this month drags on and every year it seems to surprise me for some reason. In addition, my heart just feels heavy as I witness a lot of darkness and sadness around me. So, I'm choosing to control what I can control by making my house feel as cozy as possible, relishing the sunshine whenever it dares to peek through the clouds, gathering inspiration for warmer weather projects and, most importantly, resting in the comfort of the sovereignty of my Father.

“God’s voice thunders in marvelous ways; he does great things beyond our understanding. He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth,’ and to the rain shower, ‘Be a mighty downpour.’ So that everyone he has made may know his work..." Job 37:5-7
What if you could do something at the beginning of What if you could do something at the beginning of your day that would be a gift to yourself later on? That’s what we’re talking about on this week’s Tip Tuesday! #tiptuesday
The sun decided to make another appearance today! The sun decided to make another appearance today! It’s been such a lovely Sunday. Chocolate croissants for breakfast followed by church then naps/football/reading/etc and soon we’ll be heading out to dinner with friends. These are my favorite kind of weekends. Hope yours has been lovely too! 🌿
Yesterday was stormy and cold but today the sunshi Yesterday was stormy and cold but today the sunshine is breaking through the fog and my house just seems happier. We definitely needed to see that light streaming in through the windows and it’s a gift I don’t take for granted.

And yes, there are still twinkle lights on my mantle because those help when the sunshine goes away again. ✨
Happy weekend! The rainy and gloomy weather here i Happy weekend! The rainy and gloomy weather here in the Willamette Valley has me feeling less frustrated about my migraine forcing me to just snuggle up indoors and these flowers in my kitchen are lifting my spirits. What are you up to on this holiday weekend?
It’s time for TIP TUESDAY! This week, I’m offe It’s time for TIP TUESDAY! This week, I’m offering a gentle reminder from my own parenting experience after feeling my heart pricked with conviction about what was waiting for my daughter every day after school. I hope it will encourage you! 🌿#tiptuesday
The day after Christmas I found myself laundering The day after Christmas I found myself laundering and folding all of the linens we used the previous night as we hosted my husband's side of the family for dinner and other festivities. As I laid out each cloth napkin and folded them one by one, I couldn't help but be struck by what a simple, yet meaningful, task it was. It's such an honor and privilege to be the hostess and, at this stage of my life, I realize that this has almost one hundred percent become my role now. Our parents are in their 70's and have either downsized significantly or simply don't have the energy to take on hosting duties for a large group. I could resent this. I could feel overwhelmed by it. But, instead, I'm choosing to embrace it knowing that, someday, I too will pass the hosting torch and I hope that I will be welcomed with love and attentiveness. So, I fold the linen napkins, taking pleasure in the way all of the creases line up and how neat and tidy they look in the drawer of my dining room buffet. These seemingly simple chores are part of the lifeblood of homemaking and my attitude towards them can either be one of gratefulness or grumbly-ness (yes, I'm making up words now). 

And I’m choosing gratefulness. 

“This job has been given to me to do. Therefore, it is a gift. Therefore, it is a privilege. Therefore, it is an offering I may make to God. Therefore, it is to be done gladly, if it is done for Him. Here, not somewhere else, I may learn God’s way. In this job, not in some other, God looks for faithfulness.” (Elisabeth Elliot⁣)
Welcome to Tip Tuesday! I’m so excited to be kic Welcome to Tip Tuesday! I’m so excited to be kicking off the year with a brand new series! Each weekly installment will feature a tip for everything from your home to faith to parenting to family life and so much more. My goal for 2023 is to have far more personal interaction with this community while continuing on with the mission of weaving together all things heart and home. I hope you enjoy this first tip and I’d love to hear from you about whether or not you decorate for winter! 
#tiptuesday #organizing #winterdecorating
“He has made everything beautiful in its time. H “He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” 

Here’s to beginnings. Happy new year friends! May you experience the majesty and sovereignty of the Lord in 2023 like never before! ✨
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