Anthropologie and TJ Maxx

I was really excited Friday when I checked the mail because the knobs I ordered from Anthropologie were there. I didn't have time to look at them before work so I took them with me. Thats okay because my job is literally waiting for the phone to ring, then answering it, and giving it to someone else because no one calls a car dealership to actually talk to a receptionist. So I spent a lot of time just looking at my new knobs and I showed just about everyone who would look because I was really excited. Finally I got to go home and I immediately put them on the table.

I was a bit uncertain at first but I'm fairly sure I really like them and will just like them a whole lot more when the house is painted and they match the decor better. Hopefully it won't be much longer until we get that room painted at least. We've picked out a color but we aren't 100% certain we will be going with the Valspar paint. It is the easiest for us to get but we're going much lighter than the walls are right now so it will take at least 2 maybe even 3 coats to cover as we would like to. And that could be a bit pricey, especially considering we're going to hire someone to paint the room for us. This is the only room we're not painting ourselves because I'm afraid of heights and the 18 foot ceilings are a bit scary. That and I'm not about to buy a ladder that big just to paint the ceilings (and someday soon hopefully switch out the chandelier over the dining table that I'm not all that fond of.)

But the real exciting purchase was something Drew and I stumbled upon ourselves! Monday when we were out buying his birthday present (a new computer chair) super early because he really needed it Drew and I decided to wander through TJ Maxx because it's my favorite and it was on the way. We found this super cute coral lamp that BOTH of us actually thought was pretty cool. It was $40 with the shade which is actually an awesome price for a cool lamp, but I didn't feel like spending $40 at the time. So we wandered to the clearance section and it was love at first sight with this ADORABLE giraffe lamp. I'd been looking at one online a year or so back that wasn't even as cute and I considered paying $150 for it after shipping.

This little lamp had seen better days as it was cracked and dirty. I wanted to bring it home and save it but Drew was convinced if he picked it up by its neck the head was going to fall off and that the wiring was probably damaged. I disagreed but left the giraffe lamp anyway.

Fast-forward to yesterday (Saturday). I woke up in the morning and couldn't stop thinking about that coral lamp so finally I frantically dove through a shower and headed out to TJ Maxx as it is Memorial Day weekend and shoppers are crazy, that and I had plans in the afternoon. But I just HAD to have this lamp. I got there (in the pouring rain) almost slipped and fell on my butt, but I made it back to the lamp section. And it was gone. To add insult to injury though they had other aquatic lamps and figurines. They had an ugly white statue of coral (blech!) an even uglier cobalt/teal metalic spray painted realistic coral lamp on a black base with a white shade (double blech) and then a lamp with a starfish that was spray painted silver... I grew up on Cape Cod. Starfish are not silver.

I was sad... so I wandered around sad trying to find something to buy as a pick me up, so I headed to the clearance sections again (for some reason I generally find it a waste to buy anything that isn't on clearance at TJ Maxx... except I would have made an exception for that lamp.)

Then I suddenly got super excited and rushed past to ladies that were moseying over to the clearance section. Why? Because there was ANOTHER GIRAFFE LAMP! And it was waaaaaaay less broken than the other one. A bit more dirty, and still a little broken, but I could totally glue it back together and give it a new coat of paint! Yeay! The best part? It too was marked down to $10!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I plan on (maybe) switching out the shade but keeping this little guy as my desk lamp until I have kids, and then this will be a nursery lamp. He's just so cute though, I fell in love.

I was still a bit sad about the coral lamp though, but I just clutched my giraffe lamp and kept wandering around the store, checking the kitchen clearance aisle and so on... and then... Hidden behind a bunch of other stuff... I found MY CORAL LAMP!

 

Sorry the picture is a bit dark, it was still 6 am when I took this picture. But it really is splendidly cool. And as I approach the register with these two ultra funky lamps I look like either A. I have a very interesting modern/contemporary style that people WISH they could duplicate, or B. My house looks like a 5 year-olds imagination exploded onto it. I'd like to think more of option A. And it did seem that the cashier really liked the lamps too! She said nice things.

So then I packed my new lamps carefully into my car and headed home. Even called Drew on the way home to be excited because I couldn't wait til I got there. Victory.

Seriously, though. When was the last time you got two awesome lamps with shades for $55 including tax? The ones at Target that are super plain cost about that much just for the base! I call this... success!

The Giant Checklist

I'm working this afternoon and probably not going to get much done for the house today aside from the ordinary every day cleaning but I figured it would be beneficial for me to make an awesome giant checklist of things I want to accomplish within the next year for the house. I'm giving myself a year time line because it's a lot. It might take longer than that but I think I'm finding staying in on the weekends and doing things around the house is more fun than going out. And avoiding doing both we can save money a lot faster! So here we go, giant checklist.

1. Build fence for the dogs.
2. Decide on colors for all bedrooms.
3. Paint guest room bed frame.
4. Make 2 new desks for the office. (Click!)
5. Build kitchen table. (Click!)
6. Purchase and install new pendant lamp. (Click!)
7. Spiff up the front yard.
8. Fancy up the mailbox.
9. Paint Master Bedroom.
10. New Master Bedroom Furniture.
11. Sectional for the living room.
12. Paint laundry room.
13. Make window coverings/treatments for all of my awkward sized windows.
14. Buy real curtains for windows that can support them.
15. Improve on Master Bathroom (switch out knobs, paint?)
16. Guest bathroom, in general.
17. Make a gallery wall in living room.
18. Make headboard or bed frame for Master Bedroom.
19. Build cool bookshelves for around the fireplace! (Click!)
20. Build entryway table. (Click!)
21. Build bookshelves for closet storage! (Click!)
22. Switch out mirrors in Master Bathroom for 2 individual mirrors.
23. Switch out light fixtures in Master Bathroom.
24. Build shelves for attic.
25. Paint end tables.
26. Make new (cute) dog beds.
27. Pretty area rug for the living room!

More will be added I'm sure. Probably the first things conquered will be deciding on colors and painting the laundry room because those are things I can easily do on my own. Wish me luck! This list will probably grow, and also take me well over a year, but it's exciting to do things!

Home Sweet Ours!

I'm so excited to actually be in our home now! Even though we moved in two weeks ago today, between today and yesterday was the first real dedicated time I had to enjoy it. I've only had one other day off since. But now it's really real to me and I'm so unbelievably excited!!!


I want to do everything at once but of course we have to prioritize. We finished (mostly) unpacking throughout the week when we got home from work, running around a bit like chickens and finally falling in bed at night completely exhausted but so happy. Really the biggest and scariest part of unpacking was our closets, and thanks to the fact that we decided large rubber bins were much better than moving boxes even that wasn't so bad. Now we can swap out winter and summer clothes into our giant attic with no worries! (Even though our closet could easily fit both of our full wardrobes!)


So with half of our clothes in the attic and the other half tucked away neatly in our closet, we are starting to feel like we're really living here.


We're still waiting on our quote on our fence, neither of us can wait until we can open the door and just let the pups out into the backyard. We're certain Atlas will enjoy spending the majority of the day running though the sprinkler and Oliver will probably just elect to be inside, but thats fine by us. If Atlas can be out there frolicking we're going to be a happy family!


Once the fence is installed and we have recovered (financially) we will be moving on to other things like panting and buying some well deserved new furniture, like a grown up dresser and a comfy sectional for the living room! All very exciting, but this will take some time.


Speaking of, the quote on the fence just came in at $4,800 so it will probably be a while before we get a fence. Either we will do it ourselves or have to get another quote from another company. In this North Carolina humidity it's not worth shelling out that much money for a fence that may only last 2-3 year if will protected.


It will be another adventure then! Building our own fence! Maybe!


For now we're sticking to small things. Slowly deciding on color schemes for rooms (because I can't stand an all beige house) and working with what we have/what we can make. We're planning on making 2 new desks for our office with this tutorial I found on ana-white.com when we have some time off together, and todays project for me was finally painting a table that I've been lugging around with me for 8 years. Have a look!

 

Before 

& early this morning! I started at 7 am after I fed the dogs and took them out. 

After 

I had finished this by 9 am when Drew was still in bed, I felt very successful!! Of course this was later in the day once I had dried, and Drew helped me carry it back into the house. We're not sure if this is where it's staying and obviously it's not centered and the room needs more decoration but I think it's a good first step! I'm pretty excited, as this moment was 8 years in the making!


And what do you know, it only needed 4 coats of paint! The paint was the trim paint left over by the builder so that didn't cost me a thing. The table was purchased 8 years ago for somewhere between $40-70 I can't really recall, and the paintbrushes cost me $2.50. I think it was a pretty good deal overall.


I did splurge a little though. I ordered new knobs for it from Anthropologie at $8 per knob, plus shipping, but I feel like I deserve it, as they are really the only thing I've purchased for myself recently.

 

I ordered the brass one. More pictures when they get here of course!


Well, with the set back on the fence painting this room might come sooner than we thought! Fingers crossed!!


-Molly Kate