A monthly list of good things to do, buy, read, watch, and more.
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We’ve spent the past month settling into the farmhouse, and it still feels incredible to actually be living here. Looking around, I see the projects we completed, the hours of work, and the helping hands that made it happen — which makes it all the sweeter. #diylife
Our focus has been on many small finishing touches: installing light fixtures, adding final door trim, building shelves for better organization, hanging artwork, and, of course, working through boxes.
Thrift stores have benefited from our move — I purged a lot while in storage as we searched for property, but without knowing what the new house would look like, I kept many things I then had to sort through once we found a place. The new farmhouse simply doesn’t have the wall and shelf space our last home offered, so a lot of decor that once fit beautifully had to be passed on.
It’s all part of finding our rhythm in this lovely home. This month’s list includes a few room snapshots as we continue to add finishing touches, plus a few finds that have really impressed me — including finally discovering a much cheaper way to get custom picture mats made.
Good Things List
Settling In the Farmhouse
We hung the dining room curtains after a saga of rods and panels, and I love how the black rod complements the chandelier. The living room curtains ended up a bit long (I forgot to allow for the curtain clip drop when measuring), so I’ll shorten them, but I wanted to include a photo because some readers worried curtains might block the view.
We mounted the rod high and wide to showcase the beautiful window trim and preserve the sightlines to the view. We also need privacy at night, and curtains help prevent windows from becoming black voids after dark.
The black-and-cream ticking fabric arrived, so I sewed a curtain for under the coffee bar sink. It ties the space together nicely. I’ve propped a vintage mirror there to see how it looks and I think I’ll hang it behind the faucet. Remaining tasks: add a couple of connecting shelves above the mirror, install crown molding on the top cabinets, and order the glass for the cabinet doors.
Affordable Custom Picture Mats
This discovery thrilled me. I often spot great frames at thrift stores but skip them because framing costs can be steep. Years ago we learned that lesson the hard way: a free print and a $10 thrifted frame ended up costing about $80 at a DIY framing shop.
Recently my daughter wanted to reframe a pen-and-ink print from her grandmother’s house, and initial custom framing quotes were around $120. After researching, we learned Hobby Lobby cuts custom mats for roughly $12–$20 depending on size. We bought a ready-made frame on sale for $22 and paid $20 for a custom-cut mat at the store. My daughter assembled it at home with archival tape. Total: $42 versus an estimated $120. A big win.
Retro Kitchen Wall Clock
We needed a kitchen clock and both of us prefer classic, 1950s-style faces. I ordered one from Target that turned out comically large — it nearly touched the ceiling and trim. After measuring properly, I found the clock pictured above and it looks perfect over the kitchen doorway against the century-old beadboard. It’s plastic, but that’s not noticeable from a distance, and at roughly $14 it’s a great value. Brian walks through the kitchen and always remarks how great the clock looks.
Soft Wool Rug
Moving in during an unusually chilly stretch made our walk-in closet feel frigid in the mornings. Rather than add a vent, I chose a warm, soft wool rug and a natural rug pad to add comfort and keep it in place. I’m very pleased with the texture and softness underfoot — it makes those quick closet moments much more pleasant.
Vintage-Style Wire Coat Hooks
I’ve used simple screw-in wire coat hooks for years because they’re easy to hang, sturdy, unobtrusive, and versatile with many decor styles. For the farmhouse I searched for aged finishes and found beautiful aged wire hooks on Etsy. Though pricier than new brass hooks, their patina and smooth finish are exactly what I wanted for a salvaged board in our laundry/mud room. They look perfect and won’t catch on fabric — worth the extra cost.
April Reads
Prodigal Summer, Barbara Kingsolver. This was my first Kingsolver novel after loving her memoir Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. The book weaves three stories that converge by the end. The narratives held my attention, but the environmental themes felt heavy-handed at times, making parts of the novel read more like a lecture than natural conversation.
Kitchens of the Great Midwest, J. Ryan Stradal. This book surprised me and wasn’t what I expected. It follows a difficult, often sad arc centered on a character who ultimately finds a measure of hope. Some plot points were hard for me to connect with as a parent, but the writing and structure are interesting.
My Oxford Year, Julia Whelan. Julia Whelan, a favorite audiobook narrator of mine, wrote and narrated this novel. It follows a political adviser who takes a year at Oxford, encounters new people, and reconsiders her future. Some twists were predictable, but it was an enjoyable listen overall.
Abundance: A Novel of Marie Antoinette, Sena Jeter Naslund. I stopped this one about a quarter in. Despite enjoying historical fiction generally, the first-person voice and slow pacing didn’t engage me enough to continue.
Confronting Injustice Without Compromising Truth, Thaddeus J. Williams. This book was eye-opening and important. From a Christian perspective, it explores the recent cultural shift toward public shaming and what a merciful, truth-centered response to injustice can look like. I plan to revisit it and recommended it to my daughter.
Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald, Therese Anne Fowler. I’d wanted to read this for a long time and enjoyed its first-person perspective in this case. The novel explores Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald’s lives, their circle, and how autobiographical elements shaped his writing. It piqued my interest in watching the film adaptation.
Watching
TV & Film:
This is a Robbery: The World’s Biggest Art Heist (Netflix). Our daughter found this documentary; we watched it together and learned a lot about the art world and the fascinating museum where the theft occurred.
Thunder Force (Netflix). Melissa McCarthy stars in this PG-13 superhero comedy. It had laugh-out-loud moments and a few cringe-worthy scenes, but overall it was an entertaining watch.
Concrete Cowboy (Netflix). Starring Idris Elba and a young actor from Stranger Things, this film explores a real community of urban cowboys in Philadelphia and follows a young man sent to live with his father for the summer. It’s a compelling coming-of-age story with a unique backdrop.
Spenser Confidential (Netflix). Brian picked this one. It’s a classic action-comedy about a misunderstood cop trying to right wrongs, with plenty of gunfights and car chases.
That’s it for another edition of the Good Things List!
If you’d like to see more of what I’m enjoying, you can check out the other Good Things Lists. I’d love to hear your thoughts — if you’ve tried any of these items or have recommendations, please leave a comment below.
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