Shop Our Home

Luxurious White Hotel Bath Towels & Hand Towels

We recently upgraded our bath towels and hand towels to these soft, fluffy, and large White Classic towels found at Amazon.

I’m very skeptical about new towels and bedsheets (especially ones priced as low as these), so I wasn’t sure what to expect.

These towels are beautifully white, get fluffier and softer as you wash them, dry you off well, and are large enough to wrap around our bodies easily.

Extra-Long Shower Curtain & Adjustable Shower Rod

An easy way to immediately make your bathroom appear more elegant and grand is to use this extra-long shower curtain found at Amazon and hang it up as high as possible.

We put this shower curtain in our guest bathroom and our AirBnB bathroom. The extra height makes our 8 ft bathroom ceiling appear much taller. It also makes an otherwise simple shower curtain feel grand and spa-like.

I also recommend this adjustable shower rod found at Amazon to make installing this extra-long shower curtain a breeze! The contrasting black rod with a white curtain is my go-to look in our neutral bathroom.

Extra-Long Bathmat

I don’t know about you, but I hate the look of dinky, little bath maths that aren’t even wide enough to catch all of the water dripping off you.

That’s why I chose these plush, absorbent, and extra-long bathmats found at Amazon for both our home bathrooms and our AirBnB bathroom.

Now, I don’t have to worry about being perfectly in the center of this bathmat when I step out of the bath or shower. Stylistically, it makes the room feel more centered and balanced.

They fit in the washing machine and are easy to clean as well.

Amber Soap Dispensers

These amber-colored soap dispensers found at Amazon are a nice addition to both of our bathrooms.

We save money by being able to buy hand soap in bulk.

We don’t have to fill up the soap dispensers as frequently as the cheapy store-bought ones because these hold a ton of soap.

And they add a pretty pop of color/ contrast to our otherwise very gray-and-white bathroom.

These simple soap dispensers come with labels for “Hand Soap” and “Dish Soap”, but I liked them much better without the labels!

Palisade/DumaWall Shower Panels

When we were remodeling our home, I spent a long time looking into all the shower paneling/tile options.

I was hesitant to go the traditional tile route because of the cost, amount of time, and effort involved in that project. I also hesitated to go the traditional shower surround route because I wanted something more custom and elegant-looking.

That’s when I came across these gorgeous interlocking Palisade Shower Tiles found at Amazon. They are made of vinyl which makes them easy to cut with standard power tools, plus they are installed with silicone in the grooves, so they are 100% waterproof.

You cut them to size, caulk the seams, and glue them to the wall in whatever pattern you like best. (View my Palisade tutorial here.)

They were easy to install, and we’ve been very pleased with our Palisade Shower Walls (in the color Wind Gust). We’ve even gotten several compliments from them over the last 4+ years and convinced some of our friends to install them as well!

Large Salt & Pepper Shakers

We recently upgraded our spicing experience by adding these large salt & pepper shakers found at Amazon to our kitchen.

(Have you noticed I have a thing for oversized household goods? Haha!)

I wanted extra-large shakers because I get sick and tired of filling up the salt & pepper shakers frequently.

Plus, I wanted a shaker that had a large opening so I could quickly and easily fill it up with our bulk supply of salt and pepper.

These shakers ticked both of those boxes for me. At first, I wasn’t sure if I liked them because their large size takes a minute to get used to.

But now, I love them because they last much longer between refills and look super cute too!

5-1/16 Inch Center Bar Pulls (Stainless Steel)

If you want to immediately modernize your kitchen island, then these cabinet pulls are a must. They are heavy-duty feeling, durable, easy to install, and are a large size for a great price.

We put these pulls on all of our kitchen and island doors and drawers along with our bathroom doors and drawers. You can find these gorgeous cabinet pulls here on Amazon.

P.S. Use this hardware installation template to install these new pulls in record time!

Baker’s Rack

On a wall beside our kitchen, we have this beautiful Baker’s Rack found at Amazon to add additional storage and decoration to our home.

We use it to store a few wine bottles, our supply of tea, and flea medicine/wet food/treats for our cats.

Furniture is hard to purchase off Amazon because it never seems to be the dimensions you need or made from the quality material you want.

This Baker’s Rack is a sturdy piece of furniture that has held up well for us over the last 6+ years that we’ve owned it. It’s not made of real wood, but it’s also not made of the chintziest material either.

Fun fact: Our cats know the treats are in this Baker’s Rack, so every time we open a drawer, we get a nosy, meowing kitty trying to tell us they want treats! (You can see Dash in the picture scoping out the treat situation even though I’m in the tea drawer haha!)

6 ft Artificial Areca Palm Plant

I love the look of large fake plants. They are an easy way to add a natural pop of color to a home, and they go with any design style.

They can be pretty pricey though. That’s why I love these 6-foot-tall Areca Palm Plants found at Amazon.

You can get 2 tall plants for a reasonable price, and they’re super easy to assemble. Their large size and natural coloring make them look life-like with the bonus benefit of no watering or sunshine needed!

The bases are boring, though, so I also used these modern black and tan seagrass baskets (size small) and fake Spanish moss plant pot filling found at Amazon to complete the look.

I recommend filling the base with some rocks before putting the Spanish moss in to help prevent the plant from tipping over in the base (or size up to a medium in the base so the plant pot sits level in the basket).

Sheer Window Curtains

We have a large floor-to-ceiling window in the front of our house that offers a beautiful view of the local nursery across the street.

I wanted a little bit of privacy, but still wanted most of the daylight to flow through this window.

So we decided to add these beautiful, see-through window curtains found at Amazon that let in a ton of natural light.

If you need your curtains to block sunlight or to block the view from inside your home completely, then these curtains are a bit too see-through.

But if you want the maximum amount of daylight coming in with a little bit of the view inside your home distorted, then these curtains are my recommendation!

To up their appearance, I also recommend adding this thick, black extra-wide curtain rod found at Amazon that spans the entire window.

Moroccan Blythe Area Rug (8′ x 10′)

Rugs are another one of those items that seem to be expensive for no reason. So I was on the hunt for a beautiful rug that didn’t completely break the bank.

That’s when I found this gorgeous gray and white Moroccan Blythe Area Rug found at Amazon.

The rug is a nice, low-pile carpet that is easy to clean and comes true to color. It took a few days and a little persuasion with this double-sided rug tape found at Amazon to get the corners flattened out fully.

But after 3+ years of human and dark-haired cat use, it still looks just as good as it did new.

Large Wicker Basket

We have a wood-burning stove in our home, which we absolutely love and use almost daily throughout the cold Ohio winters.

Wood-burning stoves tend to have a lot of supplies needed to start the fire and keep the area clean, though, and they do not look pretty sitting out on the fireplace hearth.

To solve this problem, we bought this large wicker basket with a lid found at Amazon so we could tuck all of the supplies away while not in use.

This wicker basket is huge, beautiful, and sturdy. It works out perfectly for the decorative storage we need. It would also be great to store extra throw pillows, blankets, and/or toys inside.

Fireplace Poker Set

Another item we recently added to our home for function and decoration is this Fireplace Poker Set found at Amazon.

This sturdy 4-piece set includes a shovel, broom, poker, and tongs. I didn’t think we’d use all 4 tools, but within a month, we’ve used all of them!

We’ve gone without this poker set for 3 years and finally got tired of struggling to maneuver the wood around while the fire is burning. Plus, cleaning it out was a pain without the right tools.

I’m kicking myself because I should have bought this pretty and useful poker set sooner!

Beckham Hotel Collection Pillows

One of the items I’ve struggled to find a good one of is a pillow. Believe me when I say I’ve tried dozens of pillows that swear they’ll “give you the best night of sleep you’ve ever had”.

Sigh. So much frustration and bad nights of sleep lol! Now I’ve learned that pillows are so unique to the person and how they sleep that no pillow can fulfill the needs of every human on the planet.

So take that into consideration when I say that when I say that I really enjoy these Beckham Hotel Collection pillows found at Amazon. They’re soft and not too plush but are still supportive enough to help keep my neck in line with my spine regardless of whether I’m on my back or my side.

We also have these pillows on the beds at our Airbnb and have had several guests reach out to us to ask for the brand because they had a great night’s sleep. (Those are my favorite guest texts!)

I’m not promising these will work the same for you, but if you’re still looking for a pillow, I highly suggest giving this one a try!

Signature Design By Ashley Hybrid Mattress

The other item in our bedroom that we absolutely love is our Ashley Furniture hybrid mattress found at Amazon.

Now, this one I will say is the best mattress I’ve ever slept on that’s under $1,000. It’s much firmer than typical bed-in-a-box mattresses because of the hybrid gel memory foam and springs combination. I didn’t even think I liked firm mattresses until I tried this one lol!

That hybrid combination also makes the mattress last years longer than the basic memory foam-only mattresses without caving in or losing cushion. (This is another item that we’ve had several of our Airbnb guests rave about and purchase for themselves after their vacation.) 

We’ve used it in our personal home and our Airbnb for over 2 years now and it feels just like the day we bought it (which I CANNOT say about our Lull mattress that started breaking down after only a year and only lasted 3 years total. This hybrid mattress was cheaper than the crappy Lull mattress too!)

If you’re in the market for a new mattress and you like one that’s a little firm, then I highly recommend giving this one a try!

We also really like these soft bedsheets, bedspread, and waffle blankets found at Amazon on the bed as well in case you want to complete the look! (If you go with the bedspread though, size up because it falls a little short on the sides for mattresses on top of boxsprings. For a queen bed, get a king bedspread.)

White Blackout Curtains With Curtain Clips

When we go to sleep, we don’t like any light peeking through the windows. That’s why I chose these simple white blackout curtains found at Amazon for our bedroom.

They are thick and heavy and fully block any light coming from outside. Plus, the simple, bright white pops against our light gray walls, dark gray headboard, and black comforter/sheets.

I paired them with the same thick black curtain rod found at Amazon that we used in our living room (in a smaller size). Carrying the same decorative items throughout the whole house helps make the home feel more cohesive.

I also used these dainty little black curtain ring clips found at Amazon that elevate the custom look of the curtains.

My only struggle with these curtains and clips was getting the spacing of the clips to look right so the pleats folded correctly. I did the best I could haha!

Redi Shade Fabric Blinds

We put these beautiful Redi Shade fabric blinds found at Amazon throughout our whole house when we moved in (because we threw away all of the old blinds during demolition).

It took me forever to choose the type of blinds I wanted because they can be kind of pricey. But I came across these blinds that let in a ton of natural light but still fully block the view from outside.

We live in the country so we don’t get a ton of people outside our windows, but when we do, I love knowing they can’t see in and I still get all of the natural daylight I want!

Plus, the big benefit for me was that I could cut these to size at home. They are a PAIN to cut with a steak knife, but once you get them cut, they fit perfectly and look beautiful.

My tip when hanging these blinds: use the sticky strips they come with to hang them, but also use finishing nails to tack them in place. That will make sure they’re extra secure when you pull them up and down.

Schlage Camelot Electronic Deadbolts

I’ve tried several different electronic deadbolts on our rental properties and personal residence and none of them stand up to the quality and price of these Schlage Camelot Electronic Deadbolts found at Amazon.

First, their batteries last for years because they use 9V batteries instead of AA and you manually move the deadbolt on the twist instead of it automatically moving. (NEVER get the electronic deadbolts with AA batteries if it’s going to be on an exterior door – you’ll be changing out the batteries every 5-6 months).

Second, they don’t have an electronic board inside so they last for years through rain and shine. Other electronic deadbolts we’ve used had these elaborate electronic boards inside that got fried after only 3-4 months in the rain. They were similarly priced to these Schlage deadbolts so we were very frustrated to have to replace them so soon.

Third, who needs to carry keys anymore? I absolutely love being able to punch in a code and get in and out super quick! We’ve purchased this deadbolt over 12 times to put them on all of our rentals and we’ve been happy with their functionality for years!

7 ft Artificial Olive Tree

Another large fake plant I have in my home that’s reasonably priced is this gorgeous 7-foot-tall Olive Tree found at Amazon.

The tree is more tall than wide, so it fits perfectly next to my desk. I could have also used it in my small bedroom or guest bedroom.

The leaves are a natural green color that looks realistic from a distance. The little black and green olives are a nice touch too.

Filling the base with some rocks before putting the Spanish moss in helps the base stay put.

Like with the palm plant above, the base is boring, so I also used this modern tan seagrass basket (size large) and fake Spanish moss plant pot filling found at Amazon to complete the look.

Herman Miller Aeron Office Chair

Where are my work from home and work at a desk friends at? If you’ve spent any amount of time working a desk job like I have, then I’m sure you’ve realized any standard desk chair and your tiny laptop screen just do not cut it for long periods of time!

I finally got sick and tired of feeling neck pain constantly from hours spent sitting in front of a computer on a crappy chair.

That’s when I started investigating the Herman Miller Aeron office chairs that are supposed to be the Cadillac of office chairs… jokes on me though because those chairs cost over $1,800!! (Sorry, I just couldn’t get behind that price no matter what they promised to fix.)

Luckily, I found that you can purchase these amazing Herman Miller Aeron chairs on Amazon from open-box companies for 1/3rd of the price. That was a good enough price for me to give it a try for 30 days (which I could return if I didn’t like it).

It took only a week of using this chair in conjunction with practicing correct sitting and sleeping posture techniques from the book 8 Steps To A Pain-Free Back by Esther Gokhale found at Amazon to finally have a reprieve from my neck pain. (I highly recommend this book for anyone who’s struggling with neck, back, shoulder, hip, or foot pain. It takes a little bit to get the correct posture techniques down, but once you do, it’ll be hard to have bad posture again because you will feel so good!)

The Aeron chair (size B) helped me perfect some of the techniques from the book, which is why I’m recommending them together. Also, this chair adjusts everything to fit your exact needs. I was surprised at how big of a difference that actually made to my neck pain. 

My neck pain isn’t completely gone because it’s only been a few weeks, but it’s the first time I’ve had breaks in the pain in over a year. The chair and the book were worth every penny, and I’m excited to continue using them!

(I also use this Asus Monitor found at Amazon and a Bluetooth keyboard to help put my neck and head in the correct posture while working as well.)

By Christine

Christine is a blogger and DIYer who tackles home renovation and decorating projects alongside her husband, Adam, for their personal residence and rental properties. Although she successfully tackles large renovation projects to avoid expensive contractor fees and bring her vision to life now, her path to success was not easy.

Go here to read her story,  “From a Clueless First-Time Homebuyer To A Confident DIYer Creating Her Dream Home One Project At A Time“.