A Q&A with Shannon Fox of @foxhollowcottage

Lifestyle blogger Shannon Fox is known for sharing design, decor, diy tips (and much more) on her popular blog and in features with Better Homes & Gardens, Country Living and Buzzfeed to name a few. She’s been documenting the hands-on renovation of her 1920s cottage on her site and on Instagram, @foxhollowcottage where she posts snapshots of the cozy home located along the coast of Oregon. The cottage has been an evolving project since 2006, so we were eager to ask Shannon about her renovation journey thus far, her upcoming plans and advice for other renovators.

When did you move into your 1929 cottage?

We acquired our cottage bungalo in late 2005, and moved into our new home in 2006. It needed a top to bottom renovation in every single room, including all new windows, French doors, paint & flooring throughout. Over the years, we’ve continued to fine tune the spaces to meet our needs and style.

What was the state of the kitchen when you moved in?

When we bought the house, the kitchen was essentially a cobbled together mess of lacking and mismatched cabinets, old appliances and the walls were covered in a combination of hunter green paper-bag wallpaper & neon pumpkin orange paint. I promise I am not making any of this up.

What did your kitchen renovation process look like? How long did it take, did you run into any unforeseen obstacles and if so, how did you overcome them?

Because we were working on so many projects at once, and were simultaneously remodeling the guest house on our property, my memory is a little fuzzy. I’m going to guess 2 months total. We did actually run into a huge obstacle. We parted ways with the general contractor, due to.. so many issues I wouldn’t dream of boring you. But long story short, my husband and I grew so frustrated that we looked at each other one day and, exact words, said; “You know, we can screw this up ourselves for free!” And so began our biggest DIY adventure to date. We gutted the kitchen, and did everything ourselves, with the help of my dad (who was a life saver). Because of “budget” issues due to the prior contractor debacle, design choices and all materials had to be adjusted. This left our final kitchen a much different space than I had originally planned, but one I am still grateful for.

How would you describe your kitchen’s style now?

While I am incredibly thankful we were even able to complete our kitchen, sadly, it’s never been the timeless, classic kitchen I’d envisioned. My current style is leaning towards an eclectic mix of modern cottage with some light European and farmhouse influences. Our adjacent brick wall, the oversized chandelier and hardwood floors have us almost there. I’d love to change the cabinet color, and have new counters and fresh backsplash installed.

Where do you look for design/decor inspiration?

Probably my biggest design weakness is that I love a little bit of everything. I can literally find something I like in almost any period or style. And I appreciate such a variety of design aesthetics. It makes it hard to pin down choices and a particular look or style for myself, but I still love looking! I find a great amount of inspiration from fellow bloggers, from the many design accounts I follow on social media (like the Waterstone Instagram page), and I definitely find inspiration from some of the homes I’ve gotten to tour in person over the years with my job. But most times, I run across a material, or a furniture piece, and it just wiggles its way into my heart, and tells me the story of where it wants to be!

What drew you to Waterstone’s Traditional PLP faucet and how does it fit with the rest of the kitchen’s design?

Pure immediate want. I was shopping online for a new kitchen faucet and I had been looking on and off for weeks. I simply wasn’t finding a shape and a finish color and just something that I wanted to look at every single day. And then.. I saw it. I was immediately lovestruck. And I knew it was the kind of faucet that would bridge the gap between the kitchen I’ve got now, and the one I plan to have one day. Because my main goal in our upcoming kitchen update is to have a space that feels timeless, I decided on the Classic Bronze, which to me looks like a soft brass in person. It’s such an elegant, classic finish.

What is your overall renovation advice?

You know, as far as contractors go, I wish I had some! When we came up against constant requests for more money (without the job materials or project changing) and the timeline kept being pushed out, coupled with the quality of work getting worse and worse.. I suppose my advice is, don’t be afraid to fire your contractor. A bad one isn’t helping you reach your goal. And they don’t often care about the quality of work they or the subs are doing. Setbacks are bound to happen, you can plan on that. Be flexible. Be ready to adapt to changes. Perhaps even have a plan B or C in your back pocket just in case. And know that it’ll eventually get done, and everything will be okay!