What do you do when you’re not sure whether your current house is your forever home? And if it’s not, how do you decide when to stop investing in improvements? In this post we tackle those two big questions, sharing practical ways to weigh the trade-offs and describing how our answers shaped the renovation choices we made. We also cover a recent, unexpected change to our mostly-finished master bedroom — a small surprise that led to several free updates — and share a few things that have made our weekday mornings quieter and more organized. Finally, we touch on one surprising factor that can negatively affect a home’s value.
You can download this episode from iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and TuneIn Radio — or listen using the player below. Use this page to follow any links, notes, or photos we mention. If you’re reading in a feed reader, you may need to open the post to see the player.
What’s New
- Above is a new rug in our master bedroom. We plan to take a few more photos and publish a full post detailing what came in and what went out — hopefully by tomorrow.
- In Episode #45 we talked about storing items by function, which is where the Sharpie in our lunch-prep drawer came from. Organizing by use keeps everyday tasks faster and less stressful.
- I also mentioned that I don’t strictly bulk-portion smoothies every week anymore. We still drink our green smoothies each morning; I just stopped pre-bagging every ingredient into tiny portions. The routine is simpler now and just as reliable.
- For reusable lunch containers, we use Sistema containers for our daughter’s meals — either the side-by-side style or the stacked option — plus small cups for sauces and sides.
What’s Not
- We came across an article listing nine surprising things that can add value to a home. It’s useful for thinking beyond the obvious improvements when you’re weighing upgrades.
Listener Question
- If you’d like to hear our early answer to “Is this your forever home?” skip ahead to 5:45 in the Blogiversary Q&A video above — that clip shows how our perspective has evolved since 2009.
- If you’re curious about our past projects, we’ve linked tours of our first house and our current house so you can see what has changed and how our priorities shifted from one home to the next.
We’re Digging
- The photo above shows two of the pretty, decorative backup toilet paper holders we keep in our half bath: a basket on the floor and a glass vessel on the tank. They keep extra rolls accessible without looking utilitarian.
- While the exact basket we used is no longer available, there are plenty of attractive options if you want to give guests easy access to spare rolls without resorting to a plastic holder.
- We’ve been enjoying Grand Designs, which recently became available on Netflix for U.S. viewers. It’s a great look at ambitious homes and unusual design choices from Britain.
- If you prefer short recaps, there are episode rundowns and clips on video platforms that capture the show’s spirit and give a sense of what each episode delivers.
Psst — Looking for something we recommended in a past episode? Here’s a master list of everything we’ve highlighted across past shows.
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