Inside This Young House

Don't worry. No breakin & enterin laws were broken with the writing of this post. And I didn't actually go inside casa de Petersik. In fact, all I did was obsessively observe when they came to visit. And then I opened the floor for a bit of nosiness to you. That's right. I was gonna give you the low down on John and Sherry...but apparently you don't have that many questions. BOO YOU. Either that or you don't read my posts...in which case, I don't blame ya.



Seriously, only Anon & Karin spoke up. So first I will answer their questions and then I will answer questions that you should have asked. That will be the fun part.


Karin - excellent inquiries. Let me be frank for a moment (you guys be Ron)...while they share some of the same qualities - they are definitely different people. I would say John is more easy going than Sherry. And Sherry is definitely more bubbly. And while they are both more stylish than me in their choices of home decor and clothing - I would say that they aren't the kind of people who obsess over the upcoming fads and trends. From seeing them IRL - how they dress, and talk about their home, they don't take ONLY style into account...but cost, usefulness, and longevity. Which I think is why they are so popular.

And as far as the blog goes - I saw it happen with my own two eyes. Sherry does reply to some answers (like questions about their paint colors & where to buy stuff) on her own...and gasp, use the 'we' instead of 'I'. BUUUUUT, I also saw Sherry & John work together to come up with answers...four eyes are better than two (that's what I always say!). And I saw John do a bunch of behind-the-scenes work to make sure that the comments, layout, production of posts, and some email questions were bloggerific. And no...Burger does not participate in answering questions.

Anon...this is actually more of a question for John & Sherry...but I think that the probably of me freaking them out is quite high. And yes, the thought of chaining them up in the basement and forcing them to create thousands of moodboards for my home did enter my mind...but then I reconsidered. After all, we have windows down there. If they escaped then how could they ever fall in love with me?!?


Ok - now onto the questions I was really hoping you would ask that weren't asked...

1. How often did they go to the bathroom? Sherry went into the bathroom twice the day she arrived, four times one day, three the other. But I only counted the times that she went downstairs...so probably increase that number by two for each day (once upon waking, once before bed). And I have no idea if she actually used the restroom...we don't have a camera in there...that would be weird.

2. Did you sense any tension in their relationship/was John gay? The only time I sensed tension was when John was checking out Jeremy. I have no idea if John is gay but I did find a Playgirl magazine in the guestroom. Whose was it? I guess we'll never know :)

3. Was Sherry a little tart? I didn't actually taste Sherry so I have no clue. I will tell ya this tidbit of fun - the girl can talk quicker than anyone I know. But then again I do live in the south...they can make the word 'fast' into four syllables.

and lastly....

4. Was Burger actually a stuffed Taco Bell dog doll? At first I thought he might be...but no. I checked the poop in the backyard and I have never seen a doll poo something so tasty. Just checkin to see if you were still reading :) Actually we loved Burger lots and lots...he loved to snuggle on the top of pillows...like a princess but with little boydoggie parts.


So there you have it...all the info you might ever need on the Petersiks. Stay tuned for a post on our fabulous new kitchen runner and how we did our duty to protect it from harm :)

On the Top

1 decorating genius
+ 1 gawkward jokester
5 FUN TABLESETTINGS

One Table Five Ways on Vimeo.

Don't try to do the math people. It'll give you a headache. It did for me anyway :)

Anyhoo, back to the video. Did you watch it? Note: I was sweating worse than a Biggest Loser contestant during their last chance workout. Seriously. I had to run up to reapply deodorant three times. And that was before the record button got pushed. Needless to say, I am no HGTV whiz like Sherry!

And if you are here from my house tour that featured on This Young House, WELCOME! A friend of Sherry is a friend of mine. My name is Katie. I am an equal opportunity jokester with a flair for celebrity jabs, cheesy jokes & potty humor. This is more of a warning than an AA intro. Be on your guard my fine friends because at some point while reading ABP, you will be given the opportunity to laugh at yourself. Go ahead and take it...cause afterall, laugh lines are the new skinny. It's like a full-body workout but just for your abs....if you know what I mean. Plus, you are in good company since I make fun of myself more than anything. And yes, I was teased as a child for my ginormous head :)

Oh and folks - stay tuned...this afternoon I have a fun dump in a bag for ya bag of fun to dump on ya....it's all the decorating goodies that didn't make the cut for our video....it's "Sherry Petersik's Picks". Meet ya here around oh-fab-thirty :)

Breaking News

Way back in October, the more-popular-than-a-bikini-carwash blog, This Young House, posted about our bedroom makeover. Basically that is where this beautiful story of friendship, OCB (obsessive compulsive blogging) and bromance began.


Fast forward seven months and one full email inbox later and you would have found me screaming as I ran down the stairs to greet my new IN-REAL-LIFE friends. Yes, it is true I do not live inside the computer. That's right, John & Sherry & Burger (their cheeky little chihuahua) Petersik were actually at my house. (oooh I just got chills again!)

Since their three-day visit to Redneckville, USA you can imagine that keeping their visit quiet has been KILLING us....which is why I was totally relieved that we were able to bust out this corset-of-a-secret and let the blogworld know that our crossover event is here! Yessireebob. It's like she is Paris and I am Nicole...except I am the tall one and she doesn't have a scandelous video on the internet (stop googling people!).

But boy, do I have juicy details :)

So stay tuned to ABP and TYH for the next couple of glorious days as we reveal a house crashers double feature, a superfun (and educational) video, and all the dirt on those youngsters (cause you know there ain't nothin on me...afterall I am the normal one! right?!? So what are you sayin? C'mon, everyone has pasted their heads on other people at one point or another!)

This Young Voter

Dude, it's like the home improvement Oscars.

Yessireebob.

And I am super pumped to see who takes home the prize of FIVE FREAKIN GRAND! It's the BHG's & Home Depot's 48 challenge!!! Unless you have no idea, I am completely obsessed with This Young House. Let's put it this way - Sherry is Angelina and I am Octo-mom. So it's not a surprise that I am gunnin' for them to win.


It's also no surprise that I like to paste my head on pictures of their friends. That's not creepy Sherry...that's devotion :) Isn't my boyfriend just striking?!?!

So now that you know that I think their blog is the cat's meow, you can only imagine my disappointment when I saw they were runnin' 3rd. So I thought I would put my two cents in.

10 REASONS YOU SHOULD VOTE FOR TYH EVERYDAY FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE:

1. They design super-swanky rooms super-swanky-like
2. They are amateur renovators, just like you & me
3. Edward Cullen would if Edward Cullen was a nonfictional person
4. A vote for TYH is a vote for puppies
5. If they win, world hunger will be no more
6. When you vote, you will lose weight instantly
7. After 5 days of voting, your children will do better in school
8. If you don't vote, I can't promise bladder control will be easy
9. TYH is uber-educational (I dare ya not to learn something)
10. Chuck Norris did.

And if that doesn't do it...just look at poor Sher-Sher painting her porch while nine months pregnant. C'mon people, vote with your heart.


And for your voting convenience, I added a little yellow button on my sidebar...just remember you can vote every single day....till the day you die or till the contest is over...whichever comes first. More Bower Power to ya, This Young House!



****This post was not approved or endorsed by TYH!!! Also, I have knocked up Sherry with Paint. As far as I know, only her heart is impregnanted with love...no baby human is growing in her uterus. Unfortunately, I am not close enough to Sherry to know the actual status of her reproductive organs****

15 Under 50

No, this isn't some post about the 15 hottest celebutards under the hill. This one is for my Atlanta peeps (but don't worry, if you are from somewhere else, this can be a good reference tool for you too!). Yes, my fine friends, here is my new latest Bower Powerful tool to help out you penny pinchers. It's called 15 under 50.


All you gotta do is click on the 15 under 50 button on the sidebar and it will take you to a Photobucket slideshow that contains this weeks top 15 Craigslist finds under 50 dollars. I plan on updating that weekly (but just like Britney's virginity promise, you can't hold me to it).

So let's just say you see something utterly fantastic - (or at least has fantastic potential) like this:


or these:


well, then pause the slideshow. Then run your mouse over the photo of the lovely desired item and above the said photo will appear the "GET LINKS" link. Click it and it will take you to the craiglist link....so you can actually buy it!

And for those of you that live outside of the great Peach state...too bad soo sad. SIKE! This is a great reference tool for you too! See something you like, then go scour your own local craigslist. Not only does it give you a price point but it gives you negotiating power with the seller.

Plus, I make notes on each photo - ways I would use it or things to redo or what style it would work with. So if you see something similar to that item lurking in your basement or stored in your attic, you immediately have some ideas on how to reuse, recycle, or repurpose! And isn't that the best way to be green?!?!

One stipulation...if you find something off of 15under50 and redo it, you must pinky promise me that you will send me befores & afters. Because you know there ain't nothing I love more than making over cheapo finds!

I don't like to point the finger but...

...this is all your fault!




And all I have to say is...

THANK YOU!


(apparently my free photobucket account has only a certain bandwidth...and you people keep on viewing the tons of posted Bower Power pictures - aka - using up my bandwidth! Soooo...now that problem is fixed!!! YAY! and you can go back and play my V-day momento guessing game!

Oh and folks, thanks for eatin my bandwith - just be careful! You know what they say - you are what you eat!)

Blog Alert : Whatever

I just found a blog that I had to share. Not only is her house AHHmazing but she is super adorable and likes to shop goodwill! I could totally be friends with this woman! And her blog is chock full of photos that will make you cry, laugh and wish that you had her life!

Check out this amazing before and after of her guest bedroom/kid's playroom:

This room is enough to have me tearing up it is so gorg! Are you hooked? Wanna see some more?! Well, this gem of a lady sews:

and scrapbooks:

And in general rocks my socks off! Check Meg out at Whatever and tell me how much you just wanna be her! I am off to read her entire blog from start to finish :)