It seems like I have been working on this little house forever!  (It probably seems like that to you too!)  It has definitely been a labor of love, and is still a bit of a work in progress, but I am finally at a place where I feel I have tended to enough of the details to let you have an in depth tour. At 980 square feet, this house packs a lot of character into a very small space!  Matt and I have been thrilled to settle in to this little mill house and make it our home.  Living in a small house or apartment doesn't mean you have to compromise your design aesthetic.  There are plenty of ways you can bring style and organization to a small space, while keeping to a strict budget and I hope I can give you a few tips along the way! 

 I am pairing a "before" picture with each room / porch, just in case you have forgotten the horror!  If you are new to The Southern Mercantile, be sure to take a peek at my previous renovation blogs, to see the whole process!  
​Alder Street Social Club
Alder Street Renovation
Alder Street Renovation-The Floors

​Now, just to recap, here's a little reminder of what the house looked like on the outside when we began our work.  

And, ta da!  Here's my beautiful front porch now!  Don't you just want to come on up and visit for a while? Matt and I have already spent many evenings here in the spring and the fall, sitting on the glider, sipping a glass of wine and, catching up on the day! I had concrete board siding and trim put on the house which helped greatly in making it more energy efficient and will hold up much better in our damp climate than the original wood siding.  I did have to install all new windows in the house and the porch received new columns.  

On to the side porch!  You may remember, the side porch did not originally exist.  There was a small stoop with steps leading up to the side door.

I decided to expand a little by adding a small side porch.  As it turns out, adding this porch was, by far, the best decision I made regarding the renovation.  I just love it!  I love coming home, parking in the driveway, and walking up the steps to be greeted by this happy little spot!  The side door enters into the kitchen so it is perfect for the usual coming and going, unloading groceries, etc.  There are steps each side of this porch, one set leading down to the front yard and the driveway and one set leading down to the back yard (and the soon to be patio).

If I am home alone on a pretty evening or a Sunday morning, this is where you will find me.  It is a little more private than the front porch and such a happy place to sit and drink my coffee!  I know you can see my stash of yard tools, under the table.  I have future plans ready for a cute little gardening / storage shed but that project is down on the priority list a ways.  For right now, the side porch also serves as my storage area for gloves, yard tools and bug spray.  This cute drop leaf table has been a great outdoor storage solution for me.  My vintage drink crate acts as a nice cubby for small items.      

I have a few more projects waiting in the wings to finish things up on the outside. I am currently saving for a metal roof and underpinning.  This spring I started to attack the yard but I still have a good bit of work to do there!  I am also planning a little patio area that will be right off the steps that lead to the back yard and I have a feeling that will become my new favorite spot!  

Just in case you are interested, here is the color pallet for the exterior of my home.

Did this inspire you to spruce up your own porches?  Here are a few items in The Southern Mercantile store that can help you get the look!  Click a picture below to view it in the store! (This blog was originally posted in July 2016 so some of these items are no longer available.  We hope you will check out the store and see what's new!)

​Check out more Alder Street Renovation stories here!

I enjoy picking on my husband, who is fairly simple in his wardrobe choices, about how much he likes to “accessorize his food.” If there is a gravy, sauce, relish, or any other condiment anywhere nearby, he will find something to put it on! 

Of all the possibilities, I believe his favorite is peas with relish. There are many options, from the type of peas to the type of relish. Black-eyed peas are a favorite here in the south, but other varieties include Cream Forty or Cream 8, Pink-eyed Purple Hulls, Zipper peas, Crowder peas, or Ladyfinger.

 Now’s the time of year to put up peas in the freezer. After shelling the peas, blanch them in hot water for 1 1/2 - 2 minutes. Drain the peas and shock them in an ice-water bath, then drain again. Scoop the peas into freezer bags, label the bags, then store the bags in your freezer. If you don’t have time to shell your own peas, contact your local canning plant. They may have a sheller machine, or they may know someone like our friend, Owen Paulk, who will purchase shelled peas and even get them in freezer bags for you!

Most folks cook their peas with ham-hocks or a few pieces of bacon, but in an effort to be a little more healthy, we’ve switched to using Goya seasoning or just cooking them in chicken broth. You still get that meaty flavor without all the fat and sodium. Adding relish to peas gives them extra flavor, and you can use relish made from just about anything. My mama always made pear relish when I was growing up because we had pear trees. My mother-in-law makes green tomato relish from the piles of tomatoes they grow or have been given. A few years ago, my sister and I made a vegetable relish from zucchini, tomatoes, and onions, which I believe has become my husband’s favorite (Shhh! Don’t tell his mama! :) ​

Born and raised in the South, Sweet Tea was served at every meal.  There was this unspoken understanding that everyone wanted tea--so there was never any need to ask your family members or guests what they wanted to drink with their meal.  Sweet tea was what I knew to be the beverage of choice, and it has remained so throughout my life.

I learned to make tea at an early age, due to how often this task had to be done.  After moving off to college, I continued my weekly tea making.  To my surprise, not everyone knew how to make sweet tea!  So, just in case your tea making skills are a little rusty, here are a few tips on making perfect, southern sweet tea.

The first, and possibly most important, tip is in choosing the right tea bag. We believe in using Lipton tea bags, they just taste the best! You can purchase one gallon tea bags or family size tea bags--either will work fine!

Now that you have the main ingredient, let's make sure you have the most important: sugar!  In our opinion, perfectly southern sweet tea takes two, yes TWO, cups of white granulated sugar.

Now, boil water on the stove in a tea kettle or pot.  Measure out two cups of sugar and go ahead and put that into your gallon-sized tea pitcher.  Once your water is boiling, turn it off and immediately pour it into your pitcher along with EITHER one gallon tea bag or two family size tea bags.  Give your pitcher a stir dissolving the sugar and let it sit for 15 minutes.  Remove your tea bags and finish filling up your pitcher with cold water.  Give it a good stir again and place your tea in the refrigerator until cold.  Serve over ice with the option of fresh cut lemons!

**Helpful Tip:  If you are a busy bee like me, I have a convenient alternative to the normal tea making process.  You will need a large microwave safe measuring cup, mine holds 8 cups.  Fill with water and your two family size tea bags.  Pop it in the microwave for 7 minutes--and wallah!  You can let the tea sit up to 20 minutes in the microwave before mixing up your tea and sugar.  This works well for me when I am doing chores all over the house and not necessarily in the kitchen to watch for the water boiling on the stove.  When you are ready, pull out your freshly steeped tea and mix in a gallon-sized pitcher with two cups of sugar.  Once the sugar is dissolved, finish filling the pitcher with cold water.

Don't you love the mid century mod glasses in the photographs?  We have two sets available in the store!  Click HERE to take a look!

Shop our favorite Sweet Tea themed products below!

Few vegetables are as southern as okra, and most folks either love it or hate it! If you happen to be an okra-lover like us, here are our five favorite ways to serve it.

1. Fry it. My family eats fried okra like popcorn! Slice the pods of okra (or leave them whole for a different look!), dredge them in a mixture of self-rising flour, corn meal, salt & pepper, then drop them into hot grease. Once they're golden brown, remove them from the grease and sprinkle with seasoned salt. If I have extra okra, I cut and dredge them, then lay all the pieces on a cookie sheet, and put the pan in the freezer. Once frozen, the pieces go into a freezer bag, and they're ready to go anytime we have a craving for fried okra between now and next summer!

2. Pickle it. If you've never heard of pickled okra, you must not be from the South! I never really cared for it until I was grown, but my children could eat a jar apiece, if I let them! Pickling okra is really very simple. Just pack as many pods in a jar as possible, add a hot pepper, garlic cloves, and dill seed. Cover with boiling vinegar 

3. Roast it.  If you want to go a healthier route, roast it!  I love this option because it is simple and delicious, while making little mess!  Wash and cut your okra, discarding the ends.  Toss in olive oil, salt and pepper and bake on 425 degrees for 35-50 minutes.   The longer you bake it, the crispier it gets!  Be sure to give it a stir every 15 minutes or so to prevent sticking.

4. Okra and Tomatoes.  You can serve it with grilled chicken, a perfectly cooked steak or a pork chop.  No matter what you choose, okra and tomatoes over rice will be the perfect addition to your summer meals.  I start by frying up a few slices of bacon.  When those are crispy, set them aside and save for later.  Remove the excess grease from your pan so that you are left with a couple tablespoons. You are going to saute onion, okra, and tomatoes in the grease along with some seasoning.  When the veggies are tender you spoon them over rice and top with crumbled bacon.  I mean, can you really go wrong when bacon is involved?  
*We'll be emailing a more detailed recipe card of this recipe so you can try it at home for yourself--so make sure you are on the list!  You can also access all of our previous recipe cards in our Recipe Archive.  You'll just need to create a log in and password if you haven't done so already! 

5. Peas with Okra. Toss a few whole pods of okra in a pot of peas for an extra Southern touch! One of my favorite meals my Mama served was cubed steak with gravy, rice and tomatoes, peas with okra, and her lacy cornbread! 


These are just a few of our favorite ways to serve okra. We'd love to hear your suggestions! How do you cook and serve okra?

Looking for even more great ideas for your summer veggies?  Check out Southern Vegetables by Nathalie Dupree and Cynthia Graubart.

If you took a look at my previous (also the first!) renovation post, Beech Street Bungalow: Before, I'm sure you noticed how many fireplaces were in our new home!  I love the character and warmth that they bring to a room, so needless to say, I was excited!  Today's post gives you a little glimpse at what we've been working on and what we have in store for a very special fireplace.

The first step in our renovation process was to begin tearing out the existing walls.  We wanted to do this for a number of reasons, the two most important ones being to make it more energy efficient and give it a more updated look.  As we removed the first layer, we discovered bead board was what was hiding beneath it.  This was a happy surprise due to hopes that we would be able to use some of the original walls!

As Phillip peeled the layers back from around the fireplace in the dining room area, he discovered a different brick that formed the chimney.  If you have picked up on my style at all, you would know that I am more drawn to this rustic and industrial look rather than the classic and formal feel.  

The newly discovered brick is known as "fire brick".  The darker brick that made up the outside of the fireplace is known as decorative "wire cut" brick.  This brick cannot withstand the heat as well as the fire brick can--which explains why the fire brick makes up the chimney!  As we began to discuss the possibility of this brick being behind the wire cut brick, our wheels started turning.  We decided to take the risk and begin removing the wire cut brick from the face of the fireplace.

We spent hours (and  I mean HOURS) removing this brick, cleaning it up, and neatly stacking it only to be relocated two more times. You don't realize how many bricks it takes to build a fireplace until you tear one down! ​

We worked into the wee hours of the night in order to see what we would end up with. (And p.s. you will definitely want to wear dust masks if you ever decide to do this!  The amount of mortar and coal dust we stirred up was amazing.)

Not glamorous, I know, but totally my style! The original fireplaces were coal burning, which means that they are more shallow than a traditional wood burning fireplace.  Gas logs would work perfectly in this space, so we hope to have them installed in the future!

The very  next weekend, we diligently started on the living room side of the fireplace.  This is when it really started looking dramatic!

So after removing the wire cut brick from the living room side as well, this is what we got:

We love how it turned out!  We decided to go with a more open concept and let this fireplace take center stage.  The beautiful glass french doors that were on either side of the fireplace are being lovingly relocated to accommodate this change.  

After spending a lot of time (days upon days) tearing out and carrying load after load to the dumpster, this project was such a fun encouragement.  It was a simple and quiet reminder that the best is yet to come.  It's little finds like this along the way that make the aching bones and restless nights worth it.  

I can't wait to share another update with you soon.  I think I'll take you on a tour of the walls! I'll tell you more about the beautifully colored strips of bead board you see above and what we have planned for them.

​Check out more Beech Street Bungalow renovation stories here!