First house on finn

Happy Halloween 2023!
Super Mario Bros Family Costume

ALOHA DEACON 🌺

Decorated our home for a tropical over the weekend!

Tropical flowers are a new favorite to work with, especially in the summer. store manager, Logan, created straight ART with this tropical arrangement! 🤩

Just for fun — here’s a gallery of our Christmas mantles from all the years we’ve lived on Finn!

Can you tell what’s been the same since year one? Comment below when you know!

2022: take two
2022: take one
2021: swapped mirror for wreath
2020: ribbons and bells
2019: stockings on the left
2018: note that old white mantle!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!! 🎄

“If my work had merit, I was certain sharing pictures of our home on Instagram and free consulting for neighbors would pay off.”

Excerpt From
Make Life Beautiful
Syd McGee & Shea McGee

Sweet, cozy, Christmas dreams is all we want and need 🤗 💤

📷

The First House on Finn Favorite Things Giveaway for 2022 winners have been contacted! Congratulations to Diane W and Chip H!!

Thank you all for following along, thanks for entering and sharing our giveaway. It’s so fun to share our favorite things with you!! 💚

The sun came out for the briefest moment this morning, so I ran around the house snapping photos as fast as I could! Pictured here is our Christmas Mantle 2022.2 because the *first* firsthouseonfinn mantle fell down.😆 All the same products, just styled differently + different Samsung Frame TV artwork.

Oh, and we received a new elf named Twinkle last night! Word on the street is the Young kids have been rotten and Santa sent a third elf because Flutterby and Jack needed a hand, but no one can know this for sure. At least they brought chocolate!

I’ve been reading and book and feeling extra inspired to share my festive little corner of the world. Bonus that they’re from Garret’s hometown, Pittsburgh! 🤍

Follow my shop on the .LTK app to shop this post and get my exclusive app-only content. ltk .home rattan bells
https://liketk.it/3XllO

So much cozy Christmas texture in one corner! ❤️

Follow my shop on the .LTK app to shop this post. ltk
https://liketk.it/3X9XW via .app

Now that I’ve officially done our mantle *twice* already this year, I can easily list out everything to recreate this on your mantle! I swear this thing falls down every single year. Every year! 🤦🏼‍♀️

Anyway, links to the exact numbers of greenery, red berries, and red florals to recreate this look are on the blog! firsthouseonfinn.com/blog

Follow my shop on the .LTK app to shop this post and get my exclusive app-only content!

ltk
https://liketk.it/3X25M

Happy Halloween!!!

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CkCPzV4jYyO/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

First House on Finn on Instagram: "I’m just gonna leave this one here 😂 #12ftskeleton #12ftskeletonclub #12footskeleton #8ftskeleton #skeletonfamily" First House on Finn shared a post on Instagram: "I’m just gonna leave this one here 😂 ". Follow their account to see 207 posts.

Random Saturday musings…
I’m thankful for my regular full-time job that gives me the structure I need to *be able* to stop and enjoy a fall Saturday. I’m grateful that I get to work from a cozy office space. I do not do well without structure (tried that for a couple years and nope, not for me)! I need that large Monday - Friday piece to keep all the other pieces in my puzzle in place.
That’s all. 🤍

Office sources linked on .ltk

Weighted blanket (newest obsession) from

and pillows, throws, and decor

The painted potting bench (try saying that one out loud 😜) fit perfectly in this corner and the sunlight hit just right to snap a few photos last night!

This is my latest end-of-summer porch styling, filled with mums, lots of mums! Went with orange and white this year. I felt bad about buying my last-minute mums from Meijer, so I visited my favorite local nurseries and bought more locally grown mums.. and now my porch is mum-filled! Someone remind me to water them 😅

Wreath:
Chairs:
Planters:
Garden tools:
Mums:

Everything linked directly on .ltk https://liketk.it/3O3Ln

These rattan hanging basket planters deserve a post of their own because I admired them for YEARS before finally getting them!! 🤩

A local shop, , had these hanging as their window display. I would periodically ask if they’d sell them to me, and the answer was always “no, those are store display only.” Until one day, I noticed they had been moved to the back, so I asked about them, and sure enough, they were for sale!! I bought one, then went back for the other two as soon as I saw it up. It filled this awkward corner so perfectly and hid the smoke detector I’m always photoshopping out of photos!

And Harry Styles, our Swiss cheese plant from , is super happy here soaking up the sun. He’s on a plant pulley from which makes it super easy to water! Can you guess which plant is the real plant? 🌱

Follow my shop on the .LTK app to shop this post and get my exclusive app-only content!

ltk
https://liketk.it/3JHKx

👀 See if you can find my unusual new vase, and try not to smile when you find it!!

Comment with a 🍑 if you spotted it before the last slide gave it away! So far everyone that’s been here in person has missed it completely 🤭

I’m not afraid of color! In fact, I kind of LIKE color! But only bright colors. I’m not a pastel kinda gal. I was walking in through the front door and noticed the lighting was hitting juuuust right so I snapped some photos 👌🏻

Looking for a link to the planters, lights, trellis, lantern, or plant stand in this photo? Head to LTK! Follow my shop on the .LTK app to shop this post and get my exclusive app-only content!

ltk
https://liketk.it/3GRQp

Give our new labor of love some love! 😘

DIY GABION ROCK WALL
https://www.instagram.com/reel/CeRCNhWlpFu/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Watch this reel by firsthouseonfinn on Instagram : “GABION ROCK WALL to hide pool equipment — This one was a labor of love! Gabion features were…”

C A N Y O U S P O T…

👀 PHOTO 1: Random screw in the wall where I hung something and changed my mind and never filled
👀 PHOTO 2: Blue llama stuffed animal where it shouldn’t be

I feel like I’ve forgotten how to post! 😆

I was taking photos of a corner to photoshop where I want to put a plant, and then I remembered I enjoy staging my house for photos and got into a rhythm and took some extras! It’s definitely been more “real life” and less “Instagram life” around here this spring! The amount of things I had to move just to take a photo is bad. Real bad.



Follow my shop on the .LTK app to shop this post and get my exclusive app-only content!

ltk
https://liketk.it/3E40y

Late night post🌛 NEW on the blog

I’m beginning a new series this spring, sharing tips from our start-to-finish home build experience. Today we’re starting off the series with at the very beginning of our new build journey: the cross-country move.

Now we are not planning on moving anytime soon, but after renting various places for a decade and a cross-country move (two for Garret!), we have certainly learned a thing or two about moving.

Check out the blog post for our moving tips at www.firsthouseonfinn.com/blog/spring-series-moving-tips

Shop this white kitchen photo on .ltk: https://liketk.it/3zxSV .home

A slow, quiet, gloomy Saturday morning…
Not in this house!
It might be gloomy, but it sure isn’t quiet 😆

In reality, I hurriedly cleaned off the table (last slide), moved some Legos out of the way, and snapped a photo while all chaos was happening behind me!!

But in the end I still got a pretty shot of our new chairs on this gloomy day! These are listed as the Henry chair and they’re made by ! The chairs are actually metal outdoor chairs that I put in my dining room, because my kids literally stripped the paint off of our wooden Crate & Barrel Marlowe chairs. These Windsor chairs match the Windsor bench we put outside, and you know I love subtle repetition throughout the home. I think they fit in our dining area so well!

Follow my shop on the .LTK app to shop this post and get my exclusive app-only content! .home via .app ltk
https://liketk.it/3ySHo

Hello!! I’m Rachael! 👋🏻

I’ve been having so much fun getting to know other interior design lovers in the area with the Cincinnati share week. I figure this is a great time to introduce myself for anyone new!

I met my husband, Garret, when we were both college interns at Apple in California. We got married, had kids, lived and worked there for 7 years together. Everything kind of fell into place when we were visiting Ohio to celebrate our daughter’s second birthday. We saw a floor plan we loved (Blair), and we made the tough decision to build a house in my home state of Ohio back in 2018, when our son was a newborn.

This is our first home, as we’ve always been renters before this. We didn’t know we loved home projects and DIY until we got here, and now it’s our favorite hobby!

Things definitely intensified during the pandemic, where we used home projects to break the cycle of everyday feeling like “Groundhog Day.” DIY projects are tangible, you can see and feel the progress, and this really got us through a tough couple of years.

Now for something fun… two truths and a lie!! Two “facts” are true, and one is a lie. Which is the lie??

FACT 1—
I once owned a dog accessory business and would sit at a sewing machine for hours (after my work day) sewing dog collars and leashes.

FACT 2—
I am still friends with a celebrity I met while living in California (She wasn’t a celebrity back then)!

FACT 3—
My little brother is an Air Force pilot and flies F-16 fighter jets. I get motion sickness even thinking about riding in a car.

I’ll do a poll in stories to reveal the answer! 😉 As always, thank you so much for being here. It means the world to me! 💛

via .app

Happy Valentine’s Day!! 🖤

Can you spot my Valentine decor? 👀 Ha! I saw this unique black wall fan at in Hamilton, and it has just a subtle heart shape. Love it on the wall in this corner!

Do you decorate for Valentine’s Day?

Follow my shop on the .LTK app to shop this post and get my exclusive app-only content!

ltk
https://liketk.it/3y5ru

Have a seat in our
P O W D E R • B A T H R O O M

I wish I had snapped a before picture, but we hadn’t planned on redoing this bathroom, and it happened so quickly! 🤦🏼‍♀️ This was a builder grade pedestal sink and matte gray walls before we refreshed it.

I was picking things out for the new basement bathroom, and I ended up finding things for *this* bathroom. We ended up doing two bathrooms at once! 😆

You don’t always have to go custom — this is a standard 36” vanity we ordered from (and it’s currently on clearance)!

Shoutout to Jordan, .becomes.home, for the wall treatment idea! I have had this saved for years after seeing hers, and I used her bathroom as my Photoshop mock-up.💛 The wall treatment really makes this small space pop!

Follow my shop on the .LTK app to shop this post and get my exclusive app-only content. The mirror is from RH so I can’t link it, but has a similar one that I linked on .ltk!

ltk
https://liketk.it/3wCA9

Introducing…
• S V E N •
our faux elk mount!

He stands at an impressive 56” tall, and is surprisingly lightweight, weighing in at just 12 lbs!

I have wanted one of these ever since I saw one in ‘s old house years ago. I was skiing a couple weekends back, and spotted a similar elk mount on an antiques building as we were driving home. Pulled off, asked the shop owner about it, and she set me on the path to , where I found this European elk mount. It’s faux AND made in the USA – doesn’t get any better than that!

Follow my shop on the .LTK app to shop this post!

ltk .home
https://liketk.it/3wft1

I’ve got big plans for this space!! 🙌🏻

That corner pantry is not doing it for us, a family of 5 with 3 dogs. We didn’t have a pantry at all in California, so *any* pantry felt luxurious to us when we built.

Now, 3.5 years later, we have an unsightly corner pantry crammed to the brim with kid snacks and dog food, and a gorgeous front room that we don’t even use. Why not fix the two issues in one project?! 😏

I’m dreaming of cutting through where the fridge is and turning that unused front room into a bigger pantry + second mudroom/dog space!!

I’ve got all these ideas bouncing around in my head, and I’m so excited, but I don’t even know what the next step is, if I’m being honest! We have not cut through walls before, and I definitely cannot make mudroom cabinetry by myself… but I’m not letting lack of experience stop me! Whenever I am determined to do something, it’s happening. Trust me. 😂

If you’re local and you *do* have experience, I would be thrilled if you want to help us make this happen!!

Follow my shop on the .LTK app to shop this post and get my exclusive app-only content!

ltk .home
https://liketk.it/3vQJT

There’s nothing like a clean, fresh start in the new year!

I still can’t believe this bathroom transformation was mostly *paint* you guys. The countertops steal the show, obviously, but the rest is paint!! The cabinets used to be gray wood, and the Tricorn Black wall was Agreeable Gray pre-reno.

I will say, Garret took a lot of practice to get these white cabinets to a smooth, durable finish. He’s got it down to a science now! Maybe he’ll do a video about it the next time we paint something! 😉

Follow my shop on the .LTK app to shop this post and get my exclusive app-only content.

ltk .home
https://liketk.it/3veSR