Picking up a few things...

In preparation for our move, I had to make one final trip to Ikea to get a few things I knew I'd want for the house right off the bat. I know there will be things to add to my shopping list... and luckily we'll be spending Christmas in Chicago with my family (and driving the truck up there) so we can make a run if need be. But, for the time being, this collection of lovelies will have to tide us over. I'm really into white right now for some reason. Normally I'm big on color, but I think in my old age, I'm starting to neutralize just a tiny bit. The new house will have lots of color... but some nice white and neutral pieces as well.

Before I get into all of the Ikea stuff, let me show you this office chair I just got from Z Gallerie. I spotted this on a picture from Young House Love and fell in, well...... love. My office chair has been broken so it was the perfect excuse to pick up a new one :)

Since we're talking about the office, check out these loverly wispy panels that will be going up on the window:

We have a pretty good sized TV (61"... what?!!) in the living room. I have some Lack shelves from Ikea in a dark chocolate brown I'm planning on hanging above the TV. I think a few of these boxes will look so neat and clean perched on top: Our dining room has some built in bookshelves that we'll be using as a china cabinet. The dining room's a bit smaller (see here for pics), so we don't have much room to put doors on the shelves, so instead we'll be using some of these hanging panels to cover the front. We did a similar set up in our dining room in our first apartment in Atlanta, here. The white panel is semi transparent, and I think when layered with the brown panels below, the overall effect will be cool. Last but not least - I have an unhealthy obsession with grommeted window panels. I LOVE love love them. Our living room is painted with Behr's Prarie Field, and we have a light khaki couch and we'll be working in some chocolates, oranges, and greens. Click here to see some of the furniture we'll be using in the living room. I think some lighter colored panels will be great on the corner windows, close to the fireplace. So there you have it kids! Let the games begin! As we get moved in, I'll be sure to post lots of before & afters.

How cute is this!

I am so getting this for my office from Mod Dog Shop on Etsy.

What I'm Loving Right Now

We're getting primed for a living room update and here's what I'm loving right now:

Media center from Crate & Barrel. Love the varied colors of the wood anchored by the dark wood on the sides and handles. Can also work as a sideboard or buffet.

Arched lamp from CB2:

Silver bowl from Ikea. Wouldn't a series of 6 of these look cool hung over a couch?

Last but not least I love this rug from Ikea. I think it looks like an onion. I don't know if we'll end up buying it, but I think I'd like the look of it under a coffee table.

DIY Pot Rack

Have I told you that we live in an apartment with a teeny, tiny little kitchen? Not ideal for a cook like me who likes all kinds of gadgets, gizmos and the latest cookware. But.... in the words of the beloved Tim Gunn, it's all about making it work. It's hard for me to believe that hubs and I thrashed and fought with our seemingly unexistant cabinet space for nearly 12 months in this apartment before putting the pedal to the metal and getting funkdified with some storage solutions for our pots and pans. The goal: open up the limited space for other much needed kitchen items. Exhibit A: Our small kitchen. We do have a nice little breakfast bar, and behind that our sink and a teensy square of counter space which is our main prep area. See that larger door on the back wall? That will come into play in a minute. Please excuse the crudeness of the photo - I didn't make the kitchen too pretty for today's photo shoot. Exhibit B: Our FOUR cabinets. Yes - four. How's a girl supposed to make do? With only two drawers and essentially four full size cabinets to work with, putting the dishes away after making dinner every night was becoming a regular WWE match. Remember that door I mentioned before? It leads to our laundry area. There's some wire shelving in the laundry closet, so time to put some of that negative space to use!

Feelin' crafty at Home Depot one day, I picked up 7 or 8 S-hooks in which to begin construction on my basic pot rack. I just wanted to get these suckers out of the way so I'd have more room for baking dishes, cutting boards, my crock pot and stock pot -- and also so I wouldn't have ro rearrange the cabinets each time I wanted to take something out or put it away. The plan was to thread the S-hooks through some of the wire shelving, secure them so they didn't come unthreaded when pots are removed, and get me some more usable cabinet space in my thumbprint kitchen! See? Pretty little S-hook. I think I purchased 8 hooks for a grand total of $2.12 at Home Depot.

Being in a very un-permanent apartment, I'm going for function over form here. The first step was to hang some hooks without securing them so I could play with the layout of the pots. I didn't want them banging into each other and getting scratched or nicked. When I had my design as I liked it, I threaded the hooks through the wire shelving. To secure the hooks, I went with something I had on hand.... rubber bands! Simple, easy, functional and FREE! To secure the hooks, first thread them through the wire, then wrap and twist the rubber band around the middle of the hook and then up to the top of the S, forming an enclosure. This will ensure that the hooks don't come flying when you go to remove a pot in a hurry. As soon as the hooks were secured, it was time to hang my pots and reclaim my cabinet space! Hallelujah praise be AMEN!!!

And now for the final product!

Not too shabby, eh? This was the perfect solution to our space problem, and now using & putting away our pots and pans is a breeze. Plus I have easier access to all the other kitchen goodies I need in my cabinets!

Kiiiind of Obsessed

It's been about a week since I first stumbled upon Young House Love, thanks to my friend Julie. The first night I happened upon the site, I think I was on it for ohhhh only about 5 hours. The fearsome twosome is the tops when it comes to decorating & remodeling... and often doing so on a shoestring budget. Room makeovers, great decor tricks, and my favorite - the mood boards - make this site one to add to your daily repertoire. For example, check out the deliciousness that is this mood board - suggestions for an office makeover.

I myself have had a bit of the decorating bug a bit lately, for good reasons soon to be revealed on this blog. In the meantime, I'm scouring the internet for the best and brightest and this site definitely tops my list.

Selling our house

Hi Y'all!

Time for a little shameless advertising on this here blog that I (or rather Google) owns. We are selling our house in KC. It's newly remodeled and has brand new hardwood floors as well as an updated kitchen with granite tops and stainless appliances. Here are some photos. Please pass on to anyone you might know who's looking in KC... it's a great community with a lake, swimming pool, the works. Thanks!

5119 SW Snowy Egret, Lee's Summit MO 64082 $249,900

kitchen:

Another view of the kitchen:

Hearth Room:

Living Room:

Master Bedroom with tray ceiling:

Another view of Living Room with new hardwoods:

Eat-in kitchen:

Huge deck for parties, backs to park.

Be Bold, Not Beige

I love IKEA's new slogan -- Be Bold, Not Beige. That sums up my decorating theory exactly. Though I love the community we've chosen here in the ATL, it is very very beige. Walls. Carpet. More walls & carpet. Tres monochromatic in that sterile kind of way. Kind of that "I need to wrap myself in a straitjacket" type of feeling. I actually considered padding a room. When that thought crossed my mind, I knew I needed an IV of paint, stat. To Lowe's we go. This weekend was spent completing various apartment improvement projects to make our place feel a bit more like home. Coming down off our house in KC which was saturated in color, I needed at least a little soemthing to make me feel as if I weren't living in an asylum. Here are the results: Front door, adorned with a cherry blossom wreath:

Entryway. I wanted a funky green, and that's what I got!

Entryway View #2: Living room with "Tropical Nut" accent wall:

Living room view from loft:

Dining Room with hanging fabric panels:

Notice the coordinating tablescape! My favorite, the guest bedroom: Guest Bedroom view #2:

Any and all comments welcome! :-)