House Guests

We have been having lots of house guests lately {8 in the past 3 weeks!}, which has kept me very busy {exploring downtown Philadelphia, shopping at IKEA and the King of Prussia Mall, etc.} and far away from the computer.

However, this weekend, we will be visitor-free for the first time in almost a month, so stay tuned for more detailed posts!

Isn't that quote above the bed adorable? I'd love something similar for our guest room!

Clutter Chaos

This is what our guest room closet looks like...

...except it's twice as cluttered and half as pretty.

I've been meaning to clean the clutter and organize this mess of a space for weeks. Unfortunately, not only have I neglected it, but I haven't done any upkeep...which means the clutter has actually become much, much worse.

Any suggestions on how to break down the project so as to prevent me from losing my mind???

Some clean closet/dressing room inspiration for us all:

freckleschick

makingitlovely

allbowerpower

makingitlovely

A New Year

Well, I completely failed at sharing pictures of our home in Virginia during 2009. Now that it's 2010 and we are officially Pennsylvania residents, perhaps my New Year's Resolution should be to post more frequently?

In honor of a fresh new start, I'll begin by sharing some pictures of the revamped bookshelf in our Guest Room/Study. The idea was to spend little to no money by using items previously located in other rooms and repurposing them here.

AFTER: The bookshelf, complete with "new" accessories {taken from various rooms in the apartment}.

BEFORE: A photo of the bookshelf when it was still in our old guest room, decorated with my husband's former bachelor pad items...I had been dying to get my hands on this room!

BEFORE: The plant was previously housed in an old casserole dish...oh so classy ;)

AFTER: It now lives in a white planter from Ikea.

Bottom Shelf: A tiny frame containing a picture of my parents dancing at a wedding a few years ago, husband's souvenir from Caesar's Palace, an old gardening book {beautiful color}, etc.

Second Shelf: A pencil drawing of Abraham Lincoln {drawn by me and given to Ben several years ago}, as well as a cute little mint-colored candle tin Deb sent for my 27th birthday {just one of the many wonderful gifts she sent!}.

Top shelf: I received this 5x7 print in a free giveaway over at Brooke's blog. The colors are perfect ~ in case you can't tell, I absolutely love all shades of turquoise. The frame was purchased for 50 cents at Good Will and was previously a muddy brown color ~ I simply painted it white.

Third Shelf: Dried roses my parents gave me after graduation, filling up a Ball jar {yet another gift from Deb ~ received last Easter, filled with gorgeous, white hydrangeas}, various books topped with a shimmery aquamarine bowl (a gift from my sister a few years ago).

Before & After: Lamp

My goal is to use as little moula as possible to make something as fabulous as possible. Case in point: my lamp project.

While taking out the trash a few months back (actually, Ben was putting the trash in the dumpster while I supervised from the car), I saw something sitting by the dumpster. My curiosity got the best of me and I jumped out to find out what this little treasure could be.

Lo and behold...it was a lamp! But not just any lamp: a free lamp. Unfortunately, my dear husband and I did not see eye to eye on this discovery...

Me: Just look at this beautiful lamp!

Ben: Why are you putting someone else's trash in our car?

Thankfully, in the end, Ben just sighed (after getting tired of hearing me shriek "please?! It's free!!" a hundred times) and let me bring home my new treasure.

Since the lamp was free, I decided to see if I could find a lampshade that was nearly as budget-friendly.

Sadly, after a month of searching (at Bed, Bath, & Beyond, J.C. Penny, Target, etc.) I could not find a single lampshade that fit both our budget and our style.

But then, just as I was about to cave and settle for a pitifully small, $17 drum shade from Target...I re-discovered Ikea's scratch-and-dent section! Much to my surprise, I found an enormous, black and white striped drum shade for just $2.75 - and there isn't even anything wrong with it! Can you believe it?! Two dollars and seventy-five cents!!! That definitely deserves three exclamation points! ;)

So, I snatched up the perfect lampshade and immediately went to work on my new-to-me lamp...

The lamp: BEFORE

The lamp: AFTER painting it with primer

My "new" lamp, with its new shade

A view of the guest room/study* with the lamp

A lovely bedside lamp for our guests**

So, have you been working on any free (or nearly free) projects?

*This room will be painted gray once I receive my free paint!

** The orange pillow cover was a recent purchase from West Elm. Ben suggested that instead of buying a pillow form, we should just fill it with the stuffing from an old "husband" (one of those pillows you rest against) we had lying around. He's pretty much a genius! :)

Desk Dreams

The husband and I have a guest room/office that is on the cusp of greatness. First came the throw pillows, then came the lamp, and soon, the paint (yes, I finally made a decision). Then, finally, it will be time for the desk.

We used to have 2 desks (1 in my apartment, 1 in his) but saw no reason for the 2nd one. Once we got married, we would have only one working desktop PC, a MacBook, and an old desktop PC that was on its way out. So, we got rid of my desk. We gave it to...actually, I don't remember what we did with my old desk. Good Will, maybe? The trash? Gosh I'm glad it's the weekend - my brain is fried! Anyway, with Grad School resuming this October, the husband and I decided it was time to create some space for me in the office.

I had been drooling over this Parsons Desk from West Elm for months and months...

Isn't it gorgeous? John & Sherry over at YoungHouseLove have the same one in glossy white:

Unfortunately, at $329, it was oceans away from our price range.

Then came the Mini Parsons Desk from West Elm...

just as chich but even more adorable!

Alas, our newlywed budget could never take the $250 beating.

Then, out of nowhere, I stumbled upon this little gem...Could it be? A nearly identical Parsons Desk from Walmart of all places for just forty-nine dollars?!

I immediately told the husband about the desk. His response? "It's very simple...but definitely nice and modern". I agree - it is perfect!

Sadly, they are out of stock in BOTH Walmarts in our area, as well as the Walmart near my mom's house in New York AND they are out of stock online. Ugh! What's a girl to do? I must have this desk!


So, my plan is to obsessive-compulsively check the website and call each Walmart in the surrounding area every single day until I find one in stock. And if I ever feel like giving up, I will look at this for inspiration to continue in my pursuit for the perfect (and affordable) desk...



So, what is your most recent "must-have" item?

Gifty & Gallery

Brooke (from ohbrooke.com) made some fabulous favors for her friend's Bridal shower and had 10 extra to give away...I just happen to be one of the lucky people who will be receiving one!


Aren't they gorgeous? The quote is too sweet - and I love the colors and the design. I can't wait to frame it and hang it in our guest room/study!

(Random question: does anyone know why my pictures are so small? I cant figure out how to make them bigger without making them blurry - any suggestions?)

In other news, I finally have pictures of the photo gallery in our guest room/study. Here is the transformation:

BEFORE:

Some of the frames pained, some not quite yet. I lined the frames up on the ground and switched them around until I decided on a pattern I liked.

After painting each of the frames (some black, some white, some keeping their wood finish), I moved them to the wall to the right of the bed in the guest room/study.

AFTER:

All of the frames (except the center gallery frame, which was from IKEA) were purchased from yard sales and thrift stores like Good Will and the DAV. Each were 75 cents or less. Most of the frames are filled with pictures of fabric that I found online and printed off on regular printer paper.

Here is a close-up of one of the prints: 1 Corinthains 13:7

Clockwise from left: Fabric on printer paper, I love NY (my home state) saved on a Word Document and printed on regular paper, fabric on printer paper, "I love you" in over 50 different languages (saved on Word and printed), a mirror from Good Will, fabric on paper, more fabric on paper, one of my favorite verses printed on regular printer paper, some flower graphics printed from Word, scrapbook paper, fabric on printer paper. The center frame contains a blue and white gift bag from The Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC (my husband took me there the day after he proposed to me in Central Park).

I hope you enjoyed the pictures of our gallery! What project(s) have you been working on lately?

Collage

Over the past few months, I've been collecting frames to make a picture collage in our guest room/study. I am using various sized frames and will most likely be painting them black and white. Yesterday, I was able to hang all of the frames on the wall - they look so great all grouped together! I can't wait to get all of them painted and filled with interesting pictures and scrap paper! Once the project is complete, I will display the final results on here.

Until then, here are my inspiration photos:

So, what projects have you been working on lately? :)