Out with the Old

We have reached a point in the moving process where I feel like we are as good as it is going to get without spending any cash.  Yes, I hate the bright red futon we're using as a couch in the living room - but unless a free couch drops out of the sky, it'll do until we can save up some dough.  The boyfriend and I have been working very hard at paring down our belongings even further than we did before everything went into storage.  Basically, unless it has a use to us right now - it's out the door.  When you rent, I think it is easy to get into the habit of saving furniture pieces that you like even if they don't work well in your current house - because they might work well in the next one.  But I'm over that.  Most of our pieces are free or thrifted - so there's no real reason to hang on to them like they're family heirlooms.  Plus - one of the only joys of moving is the chance to redecorate.  Right?

We had a garage sale a couple of weekends ago to clean out the garage.  The boyfriend is very excited about turning the garage into a "golf room" so its main function can't be storage.  I am happy to report we did really well - $250 in a couple of hours.  We actually didn't sell most of the extra furniture we had out.  Instead, most of the profit was made selling clothes for a quarter a piece - go figure.

Without the big pieces selling, I decided to relist two pieces I had put on Craigslist before the move but hadn't found buyers for.  The first was an Ikea wardrobe we had used for my son's clothes at the last (closet-less) place.  The boyfriend had gotten it for free from his work and it was in great condition for a used Ikea piece.




Ours was birch.


Since the new one sells for $99.99 at the store, I listed it for $50.  The other piece I listed was the Land of Nod bed I scored for free off of Craigslist last year.  I loved the bed, but because we downsized to a two bedroom house, we don't have a place for it anymore.  I put $100 on it.

Surprisingly, both items sold within a few hours for full asking price!  That's my ideal situation - getting something for free, getting my use out of it, and then selling it for a profit.  I wish I could do that every time.

I am very tempted to start selling a few clothes on Ebay.  I follow a great blog called My Dear Trash which is very inspiring.  Although I've bought lots of things off of Ebay, I've never used it to sell so I'm a little worried about the fees and shipping costs.

Offline

Sorry about the shocking lack of posts the past couple of weeks.  We're safely back in Austin and sort of moved in.  You know, as much as you can claim to be moved in when you are surrounded by half-filled boxes and few things have a permament home.

I'll be back online soon - promise.  Meanwhile, check out some of the cool blogs on my blog roll.  Love them all.

Masters Chair at MOMA

I didn't get through a couple of pages of the new issue of Lonny before falling in love with this chair.



MoMA Store


It is the "Masters Chair" and can be used indoors or out.  I love it.  It would work equally well at a desk, vanity, dining table, or outdoor room.  And the price isn't crazy bad - $244 (plus $23.95 for shipping).  I think this will be a new classic.

Room Remake

I saved this picture as soon as I came across it on DecorPad.  Later I found it featured on House to Home
and decided to try and recreate it on the cheap.  I love how it manages to mix patterns and colors without at all seeming busy.  In fact, it feels very relaxed.

First we'll start with the wallpaper.  It's from Cole & Son, but I found a couple of close (and probably cheaper) versions.  I settled on this one from American Blinds, which has a great selection of affordable wallpapers.

Pattern Number 7562921 for $28.10 a single roll.

Pair some soft white curtains with this curtain rod set ($11.99-$17.99) and curtain rings ($2.99) from Ikea.

Then add a DIY roman shade made from this sheer diamond-patterned fabric from Fabric.com

Ikea also has the cheapest white canopy bed I could find ($299 for a Queen) - the Edland.

Topped with a simple canopy in this P. Kaufmann fabric, also from Fabric.com

I love this Dash and Albert rug from The Bella Cottage - only $207 for a 6x9' rug.
 
 

 
The bench at the end of the bed was a hard one to match.  In the end, you would probably be better searching Ebay and Craigslist.  But I did find a close match to the shape in a single seater on CSN.com.  So picture two side-by-side, sanded down and painted a distressed gray.  ($179.99 each)
 
 

 
The chrome chair was also impossible to match.  I like the idea of this Overstock find outfitted with a teal cushion.
 
 

 
Do you have a favorite room you'd like to redo on the cheap?

Desk Update

On Monday, I posted this beautiful desk and wondered if there was a cheaper alternative out there.

Today, I found it at World Market.  I haven't completely give up on the idea of building my own version of the original.  But this one is a nice knock-off - and $199 isn't bad.

Favorite Kitchen

Just wanted to share a picture of my favorite kitchen ever.

Candice Olson did this on one of her shows.  I'm not crazy about the stools and would probably want more color - but I absolutely love the layout.  Especially the window seat - because I do a lot of reading in the kitchen.  That sounds like I'm being sarcastic, but I'm totally not.  I love flipping through cookbooks.  Plus, it provides a comfy spot for someone to hang out with the cook.  Which is always nice.

Amazing Swan Lake Video

A friend of mine sent me a link to this video, and I just had to share.  It's simply amazing what the human body can do.Beautiful, right?



Happy Mardi Gras!