Battle Cry

Seems intense doesn't it, the strong desire that is placed on us to excel. To be the winner. To perform good enough to be the best. To compete daily. To fight for a position or rank in the eyes of those around us. To try and run faster and work harder. To accomplish accomplish accomplish....

Only at the end of the race we feel empty. Full of nothing, but a paper full of our accolades. Our hearts feel dry in the midst of the accomplishments. Our striving seems to fall on deaf ears, because we are fighting for an image of success. We are battling for a life that looks good to others. Our view of ourselves is shaped around what we should become, who we should be in the world, and yet, when we stop we feel dry and barren. The fruit we bore was a harvest of lack.

When we strive in and of ourselves relentlessly seeking our own merit we only produce lack. Winning the race never satisfies, but what happens when we run a race that has already been won for us? When in our striving we lean into the One who fulfills us? What if our accolades in Christ become more important than the accolades of this world? What of His gracious view of us becomes our view of ourselves? What if our definition is His: forever merciful, forever gracious, forever loving definition. How much more success on this Earth will we feel if we are operating in a God success. What if our battle cry comes from us glorifying the One who came for our righteousness?

Allow your works to become the best to cease. Seek to fill your vessel from the only One who quenches your thirst. There is no sense in running a race to fill a cup that is bottomless. Allow yourself to become complete in Christ. He is for you. 

Spring is springing dining room style!

I'm generally not one to decorate for seasons (unless it's Christmas), but spring is my thing. I love flowers. If I could have a cooler full of flowers in my house I would. Heck I would live in the flower cooler...Might as well be my whole house. So, lately I've been adding spring touches here and there in our home. I have only been using decor from my storage room to add the spring vibe. So, today I am sharing our dining room.

Bedroom bedroom oh my!

I think it goes without saying, but I LOVE my bedroom. It's my happy place of heavenly heaven. I've shown you a before and after a few posts back, but today I want to share some sources for all the things. Also, it might appear clean crisp and oh so white, but you've been fooled. Ha! The duvet needs a good scrubbing, and the awesome angles are a result of me standing on a pile of dirty clothes. What?! Did I just say that. Ha! Sigh....

Let's get started. We do have a comforter that is phenomenal, when the cover is in the wash we are extra happy sleeping under it's fluffy goodness. The comforter is from Kohls. The duvet cover is amazing. It's easy to clean, is very soft, and has ties to keep the comforter secure it's from Target. The toss pillows are from a combination of stores, and you can easily find them in any big box store. Although, the long cream pillow is a table runner that I converted into a body pillow.

 The furry white blanket on the left is from hobby lobby and the other one is a vintage find. 10 million points for thrift shops! The sign hanging behind the bed along with the yarn installation were both fun DIYs. Last but not least is the rug. It's from Rugs USA and appears to be sold out and discontinued. It's name is Sulema if you ever come across one. I believe the wall color is thin ice by Dutch boy. Please let me know if you have any questions. 

Xoxo- Brittany

New life from old finds

I've always been drawn towards old items. Something about keeping their story going draws me close. I love discovering unsuspecting objects and bringing them home. It seems strange to call it a passion, but that's what it's become for me. It's an opportunity for me to be creative and actively make my home.

 Growing up I would find myself eager to wander around my uncle's barn where he collected old "junk". I wanted to take everything home with me. I also have fond memories of excitedly visiting my great grandma's house. I knew I would be able to explore her stacks of books and vintage blankets. 

These days I make trips out of taking my littles to the thrift shop, after we do what they want, of course. I get excited about them being able to explore a world of old treasures, the junk that people eagerly let go of, only for them to find a new purpose for it. Hours of play have come from the thrift shop, for both them and me. 

 See that lovely woven briefcase? Can you imagine the adventures she's been on? 

Dining table

A few months back I went to the Goodwill on a whim. I went over to the furniture section and an amazing table was staring at me. I ran over, check the price, and it was marked for $10. Um. Yes. Mine. I found the closest associate and bought it. She thought I was crazy, but I saw the potential and value of the table. It was amazing. This is what I saw when I bought it....

Those legs had me at hello. I called my main squeeze and had him pick it up for me. I'm pretty sure he thought I had gone cray cray. This thing is a beast and weighs 5 million lbs. I would know I almost dropped it on my toes. Regardless, I got that baby in the house and started stripping the paint. Luckily the person did an awful job of prepping for paint and the paint came off easily.

After sanding.

Here is the final finish...

I absolutely love how this table turned out! 

Entryway

I've been awkwardly staring at my entry way for far too long. Something just didn't seem "right" it was this, it wasn't that, it was all of it...Ya know what I mean?! So, last night I got to work. I want our entryway to set the tone of our home immediately. I want my vintage-thrift-eclectic style to BAM people right in the face. 😂😂 So, I took everything down and reimagined it. I started by revamping the shelf. I bought it for $1 so I figured if I messed it up there would be no harm done.
Here is the before:

I liked the flow, but the shelf screamed a little too loud. I also had moved a lot of those things to other areas, which left me with a mumbled mess. This is where it stands today:

The crate has been used to cover our old doorbell. There used to be a really uncool faux birdhouse. What do you think? Did I nail the BAM! Here's my vintage-thrift-eclectic in your face-ness?

My boy's bedroom

On the top of my priority list when we first moved in was also making my son's room perfect for him. With the amount of stress I felt about the move, I could only imagine the amount he felt. So, I focused on his bedroom at the same time as the family room. As the paint dried in one room I would paint the other room. His room had light butter yellow walls and I let him pick out a color for his room. He chose Thomas the tank engine blue. Sigh. That really shook up my "I only love neutral colors" theme. I came up with a plan and ran with it. I decided to paint 2 of the walls blue and create a mural on the main wall. I found a great silhouette of a castle and did my best to replicate it.
Here is the before:

This is where we are at today:

I definitely still have some work to do, like painting the trim white, but it can wait. He really loves how it turned out and frequently taunts his sister about how he has a castle like frozen and she doesn't. Stinker. 

Family Room

When we first moved into our home our family room was full of bad paneling and orange beams. I was still in such shock from moving to a new city that I had to do everything in my power to make this house our home, and I had to do it fast. Like yesterday fast. So, I tackled the family room, hard. I immediately starting priming the paneling. It seemed to take forever and my shoulder hated me for it. (I was in the season of sleeping next to my little girls bed (on the floor) because she wouldn't have it any other way). Through my blubbering, and after what seemed like a solid 24 hrs of painting, I finally finished the room.
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Here is the before:

And the after:

A $20 can of paint literally catapulted this room. I also added a grey wash to the beams to tone down their blindness. Fixing up a home doesn't have to break the bank.

About Me

Hi!
I am Brittany the person behind "our fort knox". The name of our blog came about from a nickname that has followed my husband since he was little. His friends used to call him 'Fort Knox' and I thought it would be fun to name our first home ' Our fort knox'. The more that I think about that name I fall further and further in love with it. Our home is a place where our love grows and I couldn't think of a stronger fortress. Anyways, I grew up in a very small town in Ohio. I fell in love with my person there and we have been together ever since.

I have lived in 3 different states in my life. I have 2 babies who I adore beyond comprehension. They have taught me what it means to love beyond measure. I truly feel honored to be their mama. They have given me in their little lifetimes more than I deserve. I am currently in the "formulating dreams" stage of my life. I am relentlessly pursuing passions. I think its really important to follow your passions, even if they are just bursts of steam, I think that's when you grow the most. I believe sometimes we focus so much on what others think that we are taught to believe we have failed before we have even started. I have a bad habit of forgetting to give myself attention. Sometimes, I walk away from the day forgetting if I even looked at myself in the mirror. (real talk) I think we have all been there. I think its okay to give graciously to others, to love them and pursue them passionately, but think we need daily reminders that "we cant pour from an empty cup".



I love to eat chocolate --too much chocolate. I am a vegetarian because I saw a bad documentary once that has changed the way I view food. ha! I really enjoy the sunshine. I think it is a gift that we take for granted. There is nothing like basking in its glow and digging deep breaths out of your lungs. I used to do crossfit for fun (its a workout), but I let the winter take me down with it. Spring is coming though! I love thrifting. I think its fun to reimagine pieces, but more importantly I love being able to teach my babies that treasure can be found in the most obscure places. I mean you cant go to walmart and find an amazing piece of furniture that a man built with his own 2 hands, making each cut and pounding each nail. I think in a deeper format it really is an invitation for them to appreciate the objects that were once hand crafted and understand that we don't have to buy everything brand new. I enjoy decorating, redecorating, and redecorating my home, but I've realized that change doesn't always have to be present. Sometimes we need to do just that --be present-- and feel satisfied with what we have. I get frustrated and impatient too easily. I have been trying to pursue patience, but it has been an interesting journey. I blame it on me being short... I can never see anything or reach anything that I need ... RIGHT NOW... haha! Because of my shortness and my husbands tallness we've developed a whistle, so we can find each other in stores. true story.

I feel that its my calling to encourage others. The Lord has been showering me with His relentless love and grace. That experience alone has me wanting to shout His goodness from the rooftops. Thanks for swinging by and reading my ramblings. 

Master bedroom

In our previous home I never decorated our master bedroom. We lived in yucky peach colored walls and bad berber for years. I made it my mission in our new home to create a dreamy "hotel esque" master bedroom. I wanted a big fluffy comforter with way too many pillows. When we first moved in the room was pale yellow and a little hard to arrange. The location of the windows and heating vents only allowed our dressers and bed to be in one spot. It wasnt ideal, so my better half and I devised a plan. We decided to build two closets that would hold all of our things and nix the giant dressers. This would allow for more space and storage in the room. My husband built the closets and made the doors himself. They are pretty fantastic.
Here is the before:

Unfortunately, this is the only angle I have. 

Here is the after:

There is nothing better than sinking into this room after a long day. ❤

Our "1st" living room

Good morning! Yesterday, I shared with you what our home looked like the day we bought it. I've gone through many seasons with my decorating style. From minimalist to an eclectic mix with farmhouse and boho influences. I think I've finally pegged my style. There really isn't a name for it. I use vintage pieces, thrifted pieces, and complete DIYs to make up most of our spaces.

We have 2 living rooms that are "stacked" one on top of the other. Meaning you walk through one to get to the other. This concept has always stumped me, but I try to decorate them as cohesive as possible so it seems like they are one unified space.

Today, I am going to share our 1st living room, which is more of the formal living room. Aka the couch we hide on because everyone forgets about it. 😉 Here is a reminder of the before:

Here are the most recent photos of this space. You can see the "2nd" living room poking out in the background.

We have removed the carpet. Our floors are pretty gross now, but it's mainly because there are paint splatters everywhere. We haven't pinpointed a time to fit in sanding and restaining our entire living space. I hope you've enjoyed the changes so far. Soon I will share with you the kitchen, which is the biggest update so far. Have a great day! 

Our Fort Knox

Welcome, Friends!
Today, I wanted to share with you what our home looked like the day that we bought it. To be honest (since we were relocating) I only saw our house 2 or 3 times before we purchased it. When I came in for the first initial time I was pretty shocked 🙈. I didn't realize how much of a fixer upper we had purchased.

When we saw her she was covered in snow and boy did that siding color scream at us. Whew! That was a doozy. I will "sneak peek" and say that I did paint it this last summer. I will show you in an upcoming post. Up next are interior shots of our home the day we purchased it. In the future I will blog specific rooms in our home and the changes that we have made so far. 

Our dining room.

Our family room.

Our kitchen.

Our "formal" living room.

Do I have you attention yet? Can you believe the wall to wall carpet? How about that closed off kitchen? ...and the wood paneling and beams. What in the world?! Amiright?!! Regardless, stay tuned because I will be sharing how we updated these rooms and the source and paint colors that we choose.