As Seen On Craigslist - Cobalt Blue Chaise Lounge

Last month I brought to your attention THIS incredibly pink and glorious sofa I found on Craigslist. Even though deep down I knew there was no way it was ever going to make it into my home, I created a mood board anyhow to show how I would style it.  

That little project was extremely satisfying; taking one fantastic piece and designing a whole room around it. The fact that said piece was a Craigslist score made it even more satisfying, since we are ALL about saving some dough around here. 

So when I happened upon ANOTHER incredible find, I didn't think twice about creating a mood board to show how this new piece inspired me! 

This month's "As Seen on Craigslist" find is a tufted velvet chaise lounge, being sold for $200. 

Cobalt blue is such an incredible color. Cool, classic, and can easily compliment any neutrals you may have or bring that pop of color your space has been craving. 
Just take a gander at these next few photos to see how much personality a blue chair could bring into your life. 

source / source / source / source 

Is cobalt blue your favorite color yet? I know it's creeping into my top 5 list. 

Here is my take on a bright blue chaise lounge! 

rug / accent chair / end table / floor lamp / light (this is such a great price, I would buy it and paint it gold) / curtains

I'm not even sure I could pin-point what my favorite part of this room is. Of course the chaise is bold and beautiful, but isn't that rug just to die for? Traditional style meets a combo of fuchsia and purple. And don't even get me started on how perfect that leopard accent chair is. Subtle pattern, yet so full attitude and spunk you just can't ignore it. 

Just envision yourself sprawled out on that chaise, diet coke in hand, relaxing in the shade of your perfectly healthy (because you're amazing and don't kill plants like me) fiddle-leaf fig tree......paradise! 

Happy One-Year-As-Homeowners to US!

We have OFFICIALLY been homeowners for one year! Wooohoo!!!!! 

*throws confetti* 

This past year has been a completely new experience for us, taking care of an entire house is incredibly different than a two bedroom apartment. I have though, been impressed on multiple occasions, the level of handiness Eric has demonstrated. The man's got skills. 

To celebrate our transition from new homeowners to somewhat-experienced-but-not-really homeowners, let's go on a little "before meets after" home tour! Disclaimer: this post is kind of long, so if you don't feel like reading, just skip down and look at the fun pictures! 

Let's begin with the front of the house, here it is when we moved in: 

 And here is what it looks like today: 
Not a whole lot of change, but we did add some potted flowers, pillows on the porch swing, and some adorable red lanterns. 

A few more items on our To-Do list is are:

• update house numbers 
• give mailbox and porch light a fresh coat of paint
• paint front door a fun color 

When you walked into our home that first week after we moved in, this is what you were greeted with: 

And here is what is looks like today: 

New wall color, white trim, and the creation of our gallery wall are all updates we made. We also swapped out small old lighting that was in the foyer, for this chandelier I found at Goodwill and spray painted yellow.

A few other things on my radar for this room is a runner rug, console table, hang a mirror in the hall, and update the flooring.

• paint walls, ceiling, and trim
• replace light with painted chandelier
• remove bars and replace carpet on stairs
• paint/refinish banister
• create some sort of landing pad for keys, shoes, ect.
• install door stop
• install hanging light going up the stairs
• runner rug

Next up is our living room in all its olive-green glory:

And thanks to panoramic iPhone magic, I can show you a fish-eye view of what it looks like today:

We've painted, updated the trim to white, bought new furniture, hung some pictures, and updated our side tables. I would like to update the carpet and hang some curtains in here soon as well. 

• paint walls, ceiling, and trim
• hang curtains
• new furniture
• new carpet
• end table between chairs (paint current set white?)
• revamp/replace coffee table (spray paint gold?)
• update IKEA light  
• TV that actually fits in the space
• widen both doorways?

Our dining room was looking pretty sad for a while: 

 But now it is easily one of my favorite rooms in the whole house: 

We've painted, gave my grandmother's table a new home, hung pictures, added a rug, tracked down some chairs, and decorated our china cabinet. I'm still debating if this room needs curtains or not, I kind of love the bare windows with the shutters, and I still want to paint our chairs white and reupholster them. 

• paint walls, ceiling, and trim
• curtains?
• new rug
• chairs for table
• paint chairs white (like this) and upholster

 Before the kitchen was just a giant wash of brown and beige: 

 Now it's bright walls and white cabinets: 

This room has probably had the most cosmetic changes in whole house. We've painted the walls, painted the cabinets, and hung curtains. Which may not sound like a lot, but it all made a huge difference. The rest of what we have planned for the kitchen is a bit more complicated, including updating the counter tops as well as redoing the floors. 

• paint walls, doors, ceiling, trim, and cabinets
• replace back splash (subway tile?)
• install crown molding on top of kitchen cabinets (like this)
• replace counters (butcher block? like this and this. Also like white like this, or a contrast like this and this)
• re-upholster bar stools
• get a refrigerator that actually fits
• change cabinets above stove to fit microwave there, and add a vent
• make roman shades for windows

Heading to the second floor, this was the view up the stairs: 

 And here is the view today: 

Painting the banister was another giant project we tackled this year. Finding a new rug runner to replace the brown one, and finishing the painting is next on the list for the staircase.

I had dubbed the upstairs the "hallways of brown", brown floors, brown walls, brown trim, and brown ceiling....not exciting. 

 Now we've brought in some light!:

We painted the trim, walls, doors, and the only thing left to conquer is the ceiling. 

Our bedroom was blue...very blue, and so NOT somewhere I wanted to end my day in: 

 And today it is looking quite delightful if I do say so myself: 

We painted the walls, the trim, hung curtains as well as pictures, and updated our bedside tables. Our hope for the future is to swap out our queen bed for a California king, as well as maybe get a matching bedroom set. 

• paint walls, ceiling, trim, and doors
• new ceiling fan/paint white
• headboard
• rug
• hang curtains
• bedside lamps
• nightstands
• matching dresser set 
• B&W print of each of us from wedding, flanking the windows
• hang mirror on closet door 
• set chair in corner with reading lamp
• accent wall like this?

The other two bedrooms upstairs are nothing to brag about....but also have had some improvements since we moved in. 

Less boxes, but really not much else.

 The bathroom though had quite the makeover, It went from this: 

 To wonderful peacock purple bliss: 

This makeover was one I was especially proud of. If there are anymore updates I'd like to make, it would maybe be to paint the cabinetry under the sink a brilliant color. 

Heading outside, this used to be the view from the back porch: 

 And holy-green-grass Batman! this is what it looks like now: 

The previous owner's dogs basically took over the backyard, and it ended up looking absolutely terrible. A few months after we moved in, Eric and his Dad dug up everything that looked dead and completely replanted. 

Other things we've been thinking about doing are building a pergola, and creating more of an outdoor eating and entertaining area. 

• replant grass
• backyard furniture
• fire ring
• cafe lights
• add a pergola or something for shade/coverage (love this and this)
• outdoor bar
• get a grill

The last stop of our tour is the rec room aka Eric's "man cave":

Slowly but surely Eric has been adding his own charm to this space, and claiming it as %100 his own. I'm not really sure what his goals are, aside from covering every surface space with Beatles, Cincinnati Reds, or Purdue memorabilia. 

And that concludes the end of our tour!  Sorry for the SUPER long post, but I hope you enjoyed taking a peak into our little home. We still have a ton of plans for the future, and I can't wait to get started and share our progress a long the way. 

Gallery Walls = A Grownup's Version of a Sticker Book

One of the things I love most about our home is the ever growing gallery wall. I've always been a collector of things, and as a child I collected everything! I had dozens of sticker books, a mountain of Beanie Babies (which I cut the tags off of because they bothered me #FacePalm), and even a nice assemblage of swizzle sticks from Pier 1. There was just something about gathering together items I enjoyed, and displaying them I found extremely satisfying. 

Hanging said items on our wall feels like an acceptable way to continue that obsession...but in a more organized and adult fashion (read "grownup sticker book"). Plus it's kind of like a peak into our life right  when you walk in! Whether it's a print, picture, card, or drawing, everything that I hang on our gallery wall has some sort of special meaning to us. I talked about wanting to start the gallery back in this post as we finished up the painting on the first floor, and needless to say it has grown quite a bit. When people visit our home, I just love watching them examine each picture and ask us where it came from or what it is. So I figure "Why not share it with everyone?!", maybe it'll spark some inspiration to begin your own gallery wall, or even give you ideas for some easy art to decorate with. 

First up, the main wall in our foyer: 

1. I won this "Eve of Destruction" print by the artist Hannaha Damaszek  in a giveaway hosted by the blog Because It's Awesome. I talked about it in this post, and framed it in an IKEA Ribba Frame.

2. This little pineapple card, as well as the frame, was in the $1 bins at Michael's. 

3. I spray painted this frame from a thrift store silver, and filled it with a picture from our vacation last year. 

4. I picked some of my favorite sketches from my trip to Italy, and stuck them in a thrift frame spray painted silver. 

5. This is the key to our first apartment in an IKEA Ribba frame. 

6. "Embrace the current season of your life" print by my friend Michaela from Happy Apple in a thrift frame spray painted silver. 

7. Wedding photo collage in an IKEA Ribba Frame.

8. Pineapple watercolor print in a thrift frame spray painted silver (I printed off a small 

version, but you can buy the larger version HERE).

9. Hanging pedestal from TJ Maxx, with a small silver vase and silk flower from Walmart.

10. Photo of our wedding party in an IKEA Ribba Frame. 

11. "Break the monotony. Do Something strange and extravagant!" - Emerson. My mom sent me this card during collage, and I put it in a thrift frame spray painted silver. 

12. Wedding photo collage in an IKEA Ribba Frame.

13. Peacock broach I had on my wedding bouquet displayed with a JAGU-Prosperity fabric swatch. I then put everything in an IKEA Ribba Frame.

14. "Whiskey Soda Rock and Roll" print created by my friend Elyse Myers, in a thrift frame painted silver. 

15. Painted wooden "W" I found at a Goodwill. 

16. Wedding photo of my Grandmother taken in 1957 in an IKEA Sondrum Frame.

On the wall going up the stairs: 

17. Society 6 pineapple print.

18.  Wedding photo collage in an IKEA Ribba Frame.

19. DIY Friend's "She's your lobster" quote in an IKEA Sondrum Frame.

20. Abstract acrylic and watercolor painting I recently completed.

It may look a little goofy to some since it's not "complete", but to me that's part of the fun. Like a giant puzzle I get to keep adding the pieces to.

Decorations don't have to be expensive or extravagant. Pictures of your family, a greeting card that is extra special, fabric from a favorite old dress, notes you passed to each other in High School, or trinkets you brought home from vacation are all fair game. 

If you're going to pound a bunch of nails in your wall, make sure it's to hang something that is meaningful to you. The idea that one day we'll probably have to fill all these holes and paint over the walls is a bit daunting, but if it makes us extremely happy in the meantime, it's totally worth it.