Name: Suzannah Hamlin Stanley & Jason Stanley Size: 1,525 square feet Years lived in: Less than 1.5 years; The homes of avid Do-It-Yourselfers have a charm and artistry all their own; they are often places that represent their owners more clearly than any space filled with off-the-shelf pieces. Such is the case for Suzanna Hamlin Stanley and Jason Stanley, who just a year and a half ago moved into their brand new townhouse just outside of Portland, Oregon, and started building a home together to perfectly suit their style and needs. (Image credit: Nakalan McKay and Motoya Nakamura) Suzannah is a passionate DIYer, and the creator of a wonderfully intriguing blog called Create/Enjoy. The list of projects around the house that have also served as material for her DIY tutorials is extensive. The softly tufted headboard in the master bedroom, the gold-tinted tables in the living room, and the abstract modern artwork over the sofa are all beautiful, personal expressions that she's shared for others to be inspired by.
Having control over the fabric, finish colors and paints of many of their pieces has allowed them to create a palette that is soft and charming. It's a mix of pale grey and white walls, rich hardwood floors, light pastels with pops of bright color, and lots of gold. Their home is light and bright – it looks beautiful, and feels great. The main floor is an open plan space where the living room, kitchen and dining room effortlessly flow into one another, with the fireplace and bar centering the entire space. East and west facing windows ensure that the light and feeling in the space change on a constant basis throughout the day. Upstairs are the bedrooms (the master bedroom continues the soft palette from the first floor, while the guest bedroom has a bold blue wall behind the headboard) and a Suzannah's craft room – a must have for dress-making! On the first floor is a lounge room and the garage. As with any home, Suzannah and Jason's townhouse is an ever evolving and ever growing place.
But with so many expressive, personal and meaningful pieces, it is a true piece of living artwork. My Style: Clean, bright, fresh, with a few funky or vintage touches. Inspiration: I love seeing the home tours of stylish entrepreneurs, bloggers, and artists on websites like this one. I've been a blogger and reader of blogs for years, and I love pinning favorite images and scrolling through them when I'm looking for inspiration for a room or item. Favorite Element: I like putting gold pieces in unexpected places. I have lots of gold-framed mirrors, which I love, but there's also the modern lines of the paper maché initials in our office, which I spray-painted gold. They don't necessarily go with the modern computers and white IKEA office pieces, but I love the shine and contrast. Biggest Challenge: Capturing the natural light as long as possible during the day, and for photos we take in the house, like photos for my blog. In our east-west facing townhome, we only have windows on two sides, so it's sometimes very dim in the kitchen or office.
What Friends Say: Friends say very nice things about our home, and I've heard them say it suits me and fits with my personality! Biggest Embarrassment: Well, so far, I've had mixed results with my DIY upholstery attempts — I'm getting much better, but I do still have a couple of pretty funky pseudo-slipcovers on chairs in the living room. The black one isn't finished yet, and has been hanging there pinned for quite a while! I've really got to spend some more time on it so we can sit there again! Proudest DIY: Definitely my grey velveteen tufted headboard. My dad made the frame for it out of pegboard years ago, and I made a plain padded headboard for it that had several different covers over the years, but when we moved into this place I wanted something really nice for our master bedroom. I learned how to do it right and took my time with the tufting and covered buttons and upholstery techniques! I'm also very happy with the zigzag ikat-ey painting above the couch. I remade it from an old 70's oil painting and I got to choose the colors and style I wanted.
(Posted about it on my blog here.) Biggest Indulgence: Our West Elm Henry sofa. After years of living with cheap IKEA and Craigslist couches, and after shopping around quite a bit around the time we moved in, we decided to buy exactly what we wanted for the living room and anchor the room with a solid, pretty piece that fit our style. We did get an amazing deal on it, and I've never regretted spending more than I ever have before on a piece of furniture! We had the same attitude about the dining room table, and also got a great deal on it at World Market but still spent the big bucks compared to the secondhand things we were used to. Best Advice: Invest in a few important pieces, and then slowly accumulate the rest here and there. It takes time, but I've found so many favorite pieces at prices that fit my budget, and I love the one-of-a-kind feel we get from combining things from so many different sources. Dream Sources: Madeline Weinrib rugs, Michelle Armas paintings, bold graphic posters, a real fur to throw over a chair.
Gold square metal frame mirror: Ross White cabinet: Goodwill Outlet Hot pink picture frame: HomeGoods Damask stencil: Royal Design Studio, DIY—post here Sunburst mirror above bed: Target White quilt: Target via Goodwill Navy/white stripe sheets, grey/white stripe pillowcases: West Elm White IKEA curtains: Goodwill Vintage turquoise ceramic lamp: Goodwill Wool Pendleton navy/turquoise throw: Goodwill White/brown IKEA dresser: Craigslist, DIY—post here White IKEA bookcase: Goodwill Outlet Square colorblock tray: Goodwill, DIY—post here Milk glass vase: Goodwill Silver/white paisley patterned shower curtain: Target via Goodwill Pink and aqua square painting: Ross Oval mirror: Goodwill, DIY—post here Vintage vanity stool: Goodwill, DIY—post here Desk tops and legs: IKEA White/gold zigzag lamp: Ross Small IKEA chandelier: Craigslist White IKEA picture frames: Craigslist Staggered shelves on brackets above desk: IKEA
S and J initials: JoAnn, DIY Ironing board cover: HomeGoods Clear pegboard system: Amazon Headboard: Homemade, post here Hot pink pillows: Homemade, post here White bedside lamps: Target Nightstands: Gift, DIY—post here Dark grey IKEA curtains: Goodwill Gold oval mirror: Goodwill Gold letter canvas: DIY—post here Jewelry stands: Goodwill, DIY—post here Black-brown IKEA dressers: Craigslist Gold tray: Pier 1 Mercury glass lantern: Pier 1 Honeycomb blinds: Steve's Blinds Ikat zigzag shower curtain: West Elm Mercury glass jars: Pier 1 Nail polish shelves: IKEA Thanks, Suzannah & Jason! • HOUSE TOUR ARCHIVE: Check out past house tours here. • Interested in sharing your home with Apartment Therapy? Contact the editors through our House Tour Submission Form. • Are you a designer/architect/decorator interested in sharing a residential project with Apartment Therapy readers?