My younger sister, Marcy, and her family moved to Arizona last fall.  Last week, Caleb, Sophie and I got to go visit for a full seven days!  Neither of the kids had ever flown (or remembered flying) before.  And we had never been to the desert before.  It was beautiful there and the weather was amazing.  We spent every afternoon in their pool.  The kids had a blast with their cousins and I had a blast with my sister. 

If you know Marcy, you know she isn't that enthusiastic about decorating her home.  So while I was there I got to help her. I was really nervous going into it because I've never decorated anyone's home but my own.  But thanks to some simple, foundational guidelines given to me by Jenni Sabino, Teresa Dodge, Rachel Roeth, and Nate Berkus, I think everything came out okay!  It was really fun!  She had a budget and an amazing craigslist to work with.  And she didn't even have to do (hardly) any shopping.  She sent Jake with me instead.  :)  And they love it!  Check out the pics....

The kitchen when I arrived....

Before pic of family room...

Before pic of dining room/family room area (pool is right out that door)...

Before pic of a massive entertainment center we bought cheap on craigslist.  Marcy has very little storage room, so we needed a big wall unit to keep books/games/recording equipment in...

A lot of sweat and work, seven days, and a pocket full of cash later....a new couch/loveseat on craigslist, new large area rug, new light fixtures, painted an accent wall and the island, put up rods and curtains, stained her cabinets and installed hardware, totally revamped that wall unit in the previous pic, and added some other decor.....wahla!

Family room....

Family room from the dining room...

Wall unit...painted, new hardware, etc...one door is still missing because a hinge has to be fixed.

Kitchen/dining room area...

Dining room...

Other living room.  I didn't have a before pic of this room...

There you have it.  My first decor job.  Thanks for trusting me, Marcy!  I loved helping you do this!