Obsessed...

...with Design*Sponge sneak peeks. I seriously can't get enough - if only Husband would approve of my favorite rooms... it's going to take some convincing.

I'm planning on creating a wall, similar to below, in what we like to call our "nook" - technically it is a "dining area" but it makes zero sense when used as one - and currently we do not have any friends to actually dine with in said area... we're losers.


This shelf/cute B&Ws and white accessories are part of my potential plan for our weird bedroom situation...
p.s. last day countdown: 11 days

Freedom is coming.

Master not so masterful...

I love our home, but the master bedroom is driving me crazy. The problem? The lonely, single window located in the corner of the room. It is totally asymmetrical and is seriously throwing me off. I love asymmetry in almost everything else... but this is just a p-r-o-b-l-e-m. I personally think we should play-up the asymmetry... HGTV suggests creating a "fake window" to balance the other side of the room - but I think I'll pass on the faux window. Gross. Husband is clueless and trusting my judgement. Anyway, here is our Brown Beauty - she leaves a bit to be desired.


Because we seem to have a surplus of Ikea shelves, I thought maybe we could do something like this: (please excuse my less-than-stellar photoshopping)

Toss a couple accessories on the shelf and what do you think? (Yes, I did photoshoped in the painting I just purchased on eBay. Hope you approve!) We could also lose the shelf and just hang the painting... Any opinions? Does anyone even read this?? I'm also trying to distract from the fact that nearly everything in the room is from Ikea. (We added the hardware to the dressers and nightstands and it made a huge difference). I'm not crazy about the chocolate walls, but they came with Husband as-is. We've got plenty of other rooms in need of paint before we tackle this room.

Is anyone out there? Help!

j.crew love

A little nugget of joy appeared in my mailbox the other day... the new J.Crew catalog! It is safe to say that I'm totally obsessed. And if I didn't have to talk about my wedding in the past tense, I would totally be ordering these dresses for my fine bridesmaids:



Can't go wrong with a wrap dress - and the ruffle is too cute. I'm in love.

Anyway, my current projects consist of trying to get our home to look like and Etsy-ish version of Pottery Barn, but on an Ikea budget. So far I'm having some mild success. Lucky for me, Husband already had purchased his home before we met and it's adorable. It wasn't the worst bachelor pad ever - no posters hanging up or anything - but he does seem to have a love affair with these damn Ikea shelves:

They are everywhere. On every wall. In every room. And I really and truly do not have anything left to put on them. I'm gently trying to coax him into the idea that we don't need a shelf on every empty wall... They might slowly disappear while he is away at work over the next few weeks...

I've been reading Making it Lovely and Decor8 for serious help as to what to do with our empty walls (and shelves.) Decor8 has been a huge tool in finding new Etsy sellers - I could spend hours (not that I have...) on Etsy looking for, well, anything, but seeing these featured artists has been really wonderful.

I'll post pictures of my latest "Design Challenge" in our home later - check back soon! (I need all the help I can get with this one...)

In about 15 minutes I'm going to give my 30-day notice to my boss and I'm thinking that I could really use a Xanax right about now. I'm anticipating some strong words and quite possibly fire shooting out of her nostrils. However, I did buy myself a You're Finally Quitting Your Job present... a super cute new bag!

On a much less stressful note, as of November 8th I will actually be able to spend time with Husband, finish knitting project from last winter, decorate our home, and maybe even take my new sewing machine out of the box! Speaking of decorating, classic bride posted this adorable fall decor pic that I am totally loving:


Ok... guess I really have to do this now. No more procrastination. Wish me luck.