Project Monday...on Tuesday

So since I am in the middle of a project right now, I didn't want to post it tonight.  That means tomorrow will have to temporarily be "Project Tuesday."

There are still so many changes that have happened in the ransion since last week.  Here are a few more updates

Last Tuesday we went to Crate & Barrel, oops!  About 45 minutes south of us there is a C & B Outlet.  Wanting desperately to add punches of color and pattern to our somewhat naked living room, we gave in  set a budget.  We didn't really have anything in particular that we were looking for.  We have been on the hunt for the perfect rug for the living room, but knew we couldn't get that for a tiny $200 (that's not a small chunk of change to us, but apparently it is in the rug world- which we are just starting to learn).  So with no real purchase intentions, we set out south bound for some funk.  We got to the store about a half hour before they closed, not only did we have a budget, we also had a deadline!  Luckily Randy and I both work well under pressure :)  We did our typical routine where I want everything we pass by and Randy reminds me that we have a budget and we can't go over (unless I pull out the "my life will never be the same having seen this" routine).  We went through the furniture- amazing, yet still too expensive, and we don't really need any (let's be honest, we both know this isn't about what we "need").  As we approached the wall-O-pillows we both had an epiphany: we "needed" new pillows!  They were the perfect accessory to add some funk and color to the room without breaking the bank.  We messed up the display and got some dirty looks as sales associates tried to clean up for the night (this never stops us, I did my time in retail- we're good), but we finally came up with a mismatch of pillows we loved.  As we worked our way to the register we picked up a funky yellow rug for the bedroom (for my side of the bed), a green clock (living room), a new mousepad, a candleholder, 5 decorative bowls, and some magnets.  Oh- and a lime green planter for the peace lily that sits in the bay window.

   

Me holding our goods

little bowls I loved, they look like polka dots 

And here is a little before and after action

Before

Before

After

Also- we were on the hunt for the perfect accent chair to make our living room a better "conversation" room.  I wrote about this gem a few posts back.  Randy ordered it online and the new pillow is absolutely perfect.  It sits under the shelving units.  Oh, and don't mind the tape on the floor.  We thought we needed an 8x10 rug for the room, but just to be sure we outlined it along with a 5x8 just to confirm our idea.

Target chair <3

On that note, Happy Monday! 

B

This Past Week...

This past week has continued to be crazy.  We have yet to have a night where we come home from work, cook dinner, eat dinner, and relax.  I keep wondering when we are going to reach that point.  Friends that are homeowners assure me it won't be for at least another month, eek.  Anyhow, along with business comes productivity- so here is a weekly update of some changes that have been happening in the Jilliams (Jones+Williams- the whole naming the house thing will be much easier once we are married, oh yeah, I think I am supposed to be planning a wedding right now) 

Guest Room Makeover Monday

You may have seen photos of our good friend Neal who had the honor (or maybe not) of spending the last weekend ever in our apartment with us.  The poor guy came up to Maine to relax and snowboard and he found himself moving boxes down our terrible flight of narrow stairs into the garage, Neal, we really do love you.  In order to get one last good snowboarding weekend in, he had planned a trip to come back up to Maine from PA this weekend.  This was good motivation to get our guest room habitable.  I loved the room before we moved in, and before it became the "crap" room- you know, the room where you just toss everything you don't have a place for yet.  Here are some before and afters for you.  The only money we spent in this entire room was on the duvet cover ($25 @ Target) and a foam mattress topper ($10 @ you know where).   Here is our $35 room -AKA- Neal's room 

Before

After

Before

After

The dresser and twin bed were given to us by Randy's parents.  I believe this was his brother's bed when he was a kid.  We had the curtains from the apartment, and although they don't go to the floor, we probably won't bother with new ones for a long while.  The mirror is from our bedroom, we originally got it from a friend that moved.  The nightstand used to be in my tiny half size closet in the apartment, I used it as shelving!  We are going to refinish the nightstand and dresser.  I got the materials to do it this weekend so we will see if that actually happens.  We are debating on the color.  I almost think a dark yellow would be nice, but then I don't want this to end up being a circus-like room. White is always good.  We are hoping to find a cheap rug also- but we have other areas in the house that are in more need of a rug than this.  Also, Randy flipped the fan blades over so that they are plain white now.  They blend in to the ceiling much better.  It was a sore spot before.  

The Curtain Dilema 

We found curtains we loved at Target, go figure.  We decided to get one set for the bay window in the living room (here), and we were going to wait on new ones for the bedroom.  Well, since we had to put some sort of window treatment in Neal's room, we decided to bite the bullet and get the same curtains in gray for the bedroom.  I wanted white, but Randy talked me into color.  I am always worried about things being too matchy-matchy.  But he was right, the gray is awesome. 

Before

After

You can see we hung a green mirror we had in the old apartment.  Today my goal is to get some more artwork up in this room. 

I don't want to give away all the goodness in one post, so I'll wait an hour.

Until then, Happy Sunday Morning! 

B