There’s just something about living on a farm that makes you say to yourself, “Should I have chickens?” And, if you’re me, you say to yourself, “yes.” Yes, I should have chickens. And once you’ve got one, you might as well have a dozen! What I learned is that it’s not as hard to keep chickens as you might think. So if you’re considering getting a brood of your own, you’ll find this episode very helpful!

In this episode, you’ll hear:

The difference between meat chickens and laying hens

What color eggs you’ll get when you start raising your own chickens

How to protect and feed your flock for happy layers

And so much more!

For more, go to FarmhouseVernacular.com/14 to learn more.

As the seasons begin to change here at the farmhouse, I am finally donning sweaters again. Which means that winter, too, is on its way. If you’ve lived your whole life in newer-built houses, you may not be familiar with the positively Victorian lengths we old house owners will go to in order to stay warm in our own homes. Fingerless gloves anyone?

In this episode, you’ll hear:

My top 10 tips for keeping warm in an older house

Why insulation is something I will always splurge on

The tragic (and frigid) tale of Paige, who hastily removed nasty carpet to let in the actual ice goblins all winter

And so much more!

For more, go to FarmhouseVernacular.com/13 to learn more.

My wifi is down, so to my Instagram messages I go for a little Q&A! You asked and I’m answering your burning questions about our home renovation, me as a kid, paint colors, and family planning. Oh yes, I’m going there!

In this episode, you’ll hear:

Which renovation projects I’m most looking forward to doing next

How we have avoided divorce while rebuilding a house together for the last 3 years

Why I can’t remember which room I loved finishing the most (spoiler, because I love them all equally!)

And so much more!

For more, go to FarmhouseVernacular.com/12 to learn more.

Life in the country is… different. It’s wonderful, it’s amazing, I would never trade it for anything in the world. But if you’re used to living in the city or the suburbs? IT’S AN ADJUSTMENT. If you’ve never seen a car disintegrating into the ground in front of every house on your rural lane, you might start to question what’s happening out here with us country folk! But for those of us who love it, we wouldn’t have it any other way.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

The different kinds of “country” life, from the sub-rural to the remote

Why it does cost more to live the country (but not in the way you might expect)

How a rural life can be more alone but not lonely

And so much more!

For more, go to FarmhouseVernacular.com/11 to learn more.

Brandon and I have renovated every bit of this house ourselves, which means we got to do it all the way WE wanted to. So you would think that everything is done exactly the way we wanted it. Right? Well, not exactly. There are still some, let’s say, mistakes that I wish we had done differently in this house.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

My soapbox advocacy for saving old windows if you have them

Why half an inch is all it takes to have tedious door-related drama

How the third time’s the charm with trim materials in this house

And so much more!

For more, go to FarmhouseVernacular.com/10 to learn more.

It’s no secret that I LOVE thrifting. The thrill of the hunt… The delight of finding the perfect piece… And of course, adding to the Densely Packed Fancy! Some people buy a coffee every day, I go thrifting. It is my vice of choice. If you are addicted to the thrift store, the antique mall, or your local online marketplace, then you’re in the right place!

In this episode, you’ll hear:

My ten best tips for finding fantastic treasures (even if you don’t have a lot of thrift options near you)

Why thrifting karma is real and you should never anger the thrifting gods

How to listen to the stuff that makes your heart sing so you can find MORE of that stuff

And so much more!

For more, go to FarmhouseVernacular.com/9 to learn more.

Yes, but how do you afford to keep renovating? Ah, friend, excellent question. The answer is SUPER sexy and SUPER unexpected, so brace yourself. The answer is budgeting. If you are a DIY renovator (or even if you use a contractor), you’ll need a plan to pay for your projects. So today I’m sharing how we have cash flowed our entire renovation of our 1906 farmhouse!

In this episode, you’ll hear:

How we make room in our monthly budget for renovations

Why we don’t actually spend every dollar in the monthly budget on projects

How to effectively estimate costs so you’re not surprised along the way

And so much more!

For more, go to FarmhouseVernacular.com/8 to learn more.

Today, we’re talking about one of my favorite topics: efficiency. As a former process engineer, it’s not just that I like thinking about efficiency; after nearly a decade looking for ways to build more efficiency into systems, I literally can’t see the world through any other lens. And my home is no different! So now I’m helping you put on your engineering goggles so you can think a bit more efficiently about how to live and work (and clean!) in your home.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

How to build more efficient systems in your home, even if you’re a one-man band

Why efficient systems are like Rome: they weren’t built in a day!

5 important principles of efficiency that will change the way you look at the tasks you do everyday

And so much more!

For more, go to FarmhouseVernacular.com/7 to learn more.

I live in a crayon box AND I LOVE IT! If you’re a lover of highly dramatic colors and a cavalier disrespect for the traditional rules of house paint, you have come to the right place. I’m sharing the story of every color in my home and how it got there all around the first floor of our house.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

Why I love white trim so dang much

How I can bring the drama in every room without making you feel queasy

Who is REALLY choosing the final colors for each room (it’s not me!)

And so much more!

For more, go to FarmhouseVernacular.com/6 to learn more.

Take a crash course in manufacturing with me as we discover why they don’t make things the way that they used to. I love my turn-of-the-century furniture -- not just because it fits with my turn-of-the-century house! -- but also because it was definitely a GOLDEN age. The peak of high quality production with mass manufacture. But alas, the golden age was bound to end...

In this episode, you’ll hear:

My quick and dirty rendition of the history of manufacturing

Why planned obsolescence is harder to achieve than you think

How you can help stop the madness of crappy manufacturing

And so much more!

For more info and show notes, go to FarmhouseVernacular.com/5!