Mark, Cheree, and their four kids are such a fun family. Their girls love dancing, singing, and crafting, while their boys love fishing and working with their hands. Their 10-year-old can already use a chainsaw and drive a Bobcat. This sweet family moved to Northwest Arkansas from Texas and found this 40-acre horse farm that was no longer in use. They realized it was the perfect place to turn into a wild mammal rescue facility with plenty of room for their kids to build, create, play and thrive.

Although the lot and location are great, the house needed a lot of work. It didn’t have the beautiful kitchen Cheree was looking for. The layout was choppy, the main suite was tiny, and they needed to add one more bedroom within the current square-footage to accommodate their four kids.

Our goal was to take this house and turn it into a beautiful, modern horse ranch for the Coughenour family! 

(And, we were able to give one of our most favorite surprises ever! Since the Coughenour family has a bit in common with us, it was easy to pick the perfect gift – a miniature donkey – Baby Donk! He’s from the same farm we adopted Daddy Donk from so it was such a sweet surprise from our farm to theirs!)  

BEFORE

When you pull up to this house now, it looks like a completely different house. It’s so much brighter and happier. We made a few changes that made a huge difference. First, we adjusted the slope of the roof along the left side of the house to make it more symmetrical. This is where the garage had been, which we removed to make room for a master suite, mudroom and laundry room. We removed the garage doors and closed off the wall where the garage had been. They have plenty of room to park behind the house. The old driveway became the perfect spot to add an outdoor sitting area where the family can sit or run around and play in their large front yard.

At the center of the house, we added a shed style roof over the front door to create a large front porch. Board and batten along the whole front exterior, painted in white, turned the house into a modern, yet classic ranch-style home while the final details added warmth and interest. For that warm natural feel, we added cedar posts, cedar flower boxes and all new landscaping. And for contrast, we installed a large beautiful black door, black shutters, and black light fixtures.

AFTER

SOURCES

Flag | Allegiance Flag Supply

Exterior Lights | Kichler 

Outdoor Table | DJM Collection 

Outdoor Chairs | DJM Collection 

Exterior Paint Color | Sherwin Williams Simply White

Exterior Shutter Color | Sherwin Williams Iron Ore

BEFORE

Like a lot of houses that were built in this era, the front entrance opened up to a foyer that was more of a hallway. It felt tight and jammed, so we opened it up to the living room, making it an open floor plan and much more inviting. We also took down the wall that separated the living room from the kitchen. Now the layout flows much better. 

The floor in the living room, and throughout the entire house, is a non-glossy white oak. It’s the same flooring I have at home, and it’s great for kids and animals because it holds up really well against scratches. The staircase leading upstairs is visible from the entryway and living room. We replaced the old handrail with a more modern black metal version.

The fireplace in this room was probably our biggest challenge. We had originally thought to remove the huge, outdated fireplace and turn it into an alcove with a small wood burning stove, but that didn’t work out. Instead, we went with plan B and made it into a classic, homey fireplace that is still big, but better fits the style of this updated house. I love when plan B works out to be better than the original plan!

AFTER

SOURCES

Furniture | Howse

Living Room Fan | Kichler

Wall Paint Color | Benjamin Moore White Dove

BEFORE

This area had originally been the kitchen with a dividing wall between it and the dining room. When we moved the kitchen over to the other side, we were left with an awkward window where the kitchen sink used to be. Dave built new cabinets around the existing window and kept them a nice natural wood to differentiate them from the kitchen and go with the farmhouse look we were going for. Now, this area has extra storage and is perfect for kids (or friends) to hang out while parents are in the kitchen. There’s still plenty of room for a long dining table for meals and games.  

We placed a little surprise in here for the Coughenours. Dave made this wooden barn toy, complete with a tiny little flag! It closes up and has a handle for carrying it from room to room.

AFTER

SOURCES

Furniture | Howse

Sitting Room Light | CB2

Dining Cabinet Knobs | Amazon 

Dining Room Sconce | Ballard Designs 

Wooden Barn Toy | Dave Marrs

Wall Paint Color | Benjamin Moore White Dove

BEFORE

This spot had originally been the dining room with a cut through to the old sunroom. We added a wall to close off the sunroom and create an L shape for the new kitchen, and had plenty of room to add a large built-in kitchen island and perimeter cabinetry. Cheree had wanted an all-white kitchen. It came out bright and cheery, especially with the extra touches we made to warm it up and blend in with the farmhouse style of the rest of the house. One of my favorite choices we made for this house is the wooden surrounding the hood. We found this large chunk of wood at the neighbor’s house across the street (who are friends of ours), and it was perfect. I just love the imperfections of the hand-hewn beams. 

To the white countertops and white cabinets, we added some contrast using black hardware and a touch of shine from this gorgeous marble backsplash. We didn’t have a lot of height in this part of the house so instead of putting in hanging light fixtures, we went with canned lights and these beautiful wall sconces that flank the hood. The sliding glass doors here give plenty of light and allow the Coughenours to see their animals.

AFTER

SOURCES

Appliances | Metro Appliances & More

Kitchen Sconce | Pottery Barn

Kitchen Knobs | Amazon

Kitchen Pulls | Amazon

Backsplash | Lowes

Runner | Turkish Trunk

Wall, Cabinets & Island Paint Color | Benjamin Moore White Dove

The original laundry room was tiny. You practically had to walk sideways to get through it. We removed the laundry room from there and moved it over a bit. Then, we turned that spot into a mudroom instead. Dave made this simple, but really fun, boot rack from an old piece of wood and some old horseshoes which had also been found in the neighbor’s yard. We also added cubbies – one for each child. Since we had a little more height here, we added classic hanging lights. The black slate tile is also classic and very easy to clean, making this the perfect drop zone for coming in the door.  

Right next to the mudroom is the new laundry room with more room than before. We relocated their washer and dryer here, and added a new utility sink and new cabinets. It’s so much more usable and convenient now. With the updated layout, the laundry room became a new hallway to the new master bedroom.

SOURCES

Mudroom Pendant | Ballard Designs

Laundry Room Knobs | Amazon

Laundry Room Pulls | Amazon

Laundry Room Runner | Turkish Trunk

Boot Rack | Dave Marrs

Mudroom & Laundry Wall Paint Color | Benjamin Moore White Dove

Mudroom & Laundry Cabinet Paint Color | Farrow & Ball Drop Cloth

Since this had originally been part of the garage and the old sunroom, this new master bedroom came out so huge! It’s a great challenge to have, but we wanted to cozy it up a bit. We added some board and batten trim to add dimension to the room and painted the walls a soothing green color. Since we had this beautiful large window and view, we wanted to make the most of it. It’s the perfect spot for a sitting area where you can read or just relax. The whole room is decorated with furniture from our new Walmart line: cozy couch, the woven headboard design from The Welcome Inn, nightstands like the ones we have at home and pillows inspired by my love of Turkish textiles. 

Since we had extra room, we built an amazing closet. It’s big enough to have its own Turkish rug, window, plenty of shelves and hanging space. 

The bathroom, which also came from the space we took from the garage, is equally large. There’s plenty of space for an old-fashioned (yet modern) soaking tub, a stand-up shower (the custom glass didn’t arrive in time for the reveal, we installed it after! But, yes, there is glass!), water closet and a double vanity. The black slate matches the flooring we used for the laundry room and mudroom, and it ties in the modern black hardware, mirrors and light fixtures. To counter the black, we added warm organic touches with the stone flooring in the shower and the natural wood finish on the vanity.

SOURCES

Woven Bed | DJM Collection

Nightstands | DJM Collection

Sofa | DJM Collection

Closet Styling Table | DJM Collection

Bathroom Sconce | Shades of Light

Bathroom Mirrors | Amazon

Bathroom Cabinet Knobs | Amazon

Shower Floor Tile | Lowes

Bathroom Floor Tile | Lowes

Runners | Turkish Trunk

Bedroom & Bathroom Wall Paint Color | Farrow & Ball French Grey

Bedroom & Bathroom Ceiling Paint Color | Benjamin Moore White Dove

The Coughenours have already added several new animals to their farm including two horses to hang out with Baby Donk! 🙂