My recent Saturday night felt like an episode of FIXER UPPER

If you are a fan of the HGTV show FIXER UPPER...like me...then you know what it's like when you get to the end of the hour long show and get a glimpse into the newly redone home courtesy of Chip and Joanna Gaines.

Well I had that feeling last Saturday night when I headed over to my friends house for dinner. 

They have spent the last year or so working on a renovation of their home.  Not changing the actual footprint of the home but reworking space to make it more efficient and useful for a family of 5.  I have popped over here and there to see the progress along the way...when the wall came down and she showed me the plan for swapping the dining and kitchen space,  how the hallway would be re-worked and the den would have a new entry and the old entry would become a wall.  It was exciting to watch the progress and listen to her think it through.  Nothing like a juicy wall discussion to get me going!

And then I saw the kitchen once the cabinets and counters were all in and she talked about the stools she was thinking about and how she wanted the light fixtures over the island to look.

But last night I saw their home finished in a way I had not seen before.  

It was so reflective of her.  

Artistic, a bit modern and chic in a cozy kinda way.  

Of course the dimmed lights, the candles and the crowd of people and their laughter only helped to seal the deal but it felt like I was seeing the FIXER UPPER reveal.

And let me tell you, Chip and Jo would be JEALOUS!

We walked in and the fireplace was a blaze.  U gotta love the Northeast in March! 

One of her original pieces of artwork (and my top fav) rested on the mantel and was flanked by sconces and this deep blue color took over.  

Directly across from the fireplace was a new seating arrangement. I loved the punch of deeply saturated color she chose.  The rustic wood nesters and goose neck lamp to the right cozied it up and the texture on the pair of poofs added another layer.  

This space has always been a frustration for them since it is essentially the entry to the home.  But her solution to keep it simple and to one side was perfect.

A few steps back and the kitchen was humming with activity.  

The big island was command central... big pieces of stretched dough were played out on parchment paper ready to make her homemade spicy noodles and sharing the expansive space were appetizers, flowers, charging phones and plunked down cocktails...this baby was multi-tasking big time! 

I loved the way her choice of ombre glass pendants almost oozed into the scene and that they were a perfect match to the grey veined counter top and back splash.  

And the cb2 vapor stools were sleek and modern but didn't hog the visual space, allowing you to see other things.

Just in front of the island is the bar and this helped to alleviate crowding in the kitchen area.

But the real surprise was when I turned to my right and looked into the dining space...

these sliding, custom painted barn doors left me speechless.

She had talked about wanting sliding doors but wasn't sure exactly how it would play out.  

Like only an artist could, she had hand painted a marble effect on each door using a variety of paint colors.  The marbling was similar on each door so they felt like a pair.  The colors against the white walls were stunning.

Visually the colors connected everything within eyesight...the sectional in the den just beyond the doors, the cream shag rug, the wood dining table, the navy blue linen napkins even the wood chopsticks.  

It was like the choir was singing in perfect harmony.  I was left speechless for a good couple of minutes.  

What an amazing feeling!

Here they are closed...

And here she is demonstrating how they close...

Details are never wasted on me.  

I loved her use of interesting light fixtures, artwork and accessories.

A pair of these lights flanked the entrance to the dining area, I love the rustic, modern vibe they give off. And layered on the grass cloth wallpaper made it even better.

Here is a pic standing back and looking at the wall with the grass cloth in the day light.

The large metal drum fixture over the dining table is a piece of art in itself and looks totally different when it's lit at night.  It reminds me of a sky full of bright stars.

Even her choice of vases.  

A glass brick and her daughter's ombre handmade pottery...

And you might just miss the sweet, silver beaded trim that she wove through the marble backsplash because it is so subtle but once you see it its like GOLD. 

It's so cute to hear her hubby say "it's all Priscilla" and he is right, she knocked it out of the park.

Great job Priscilla and Ab, thanks for the fun night!