Sofas. Again.

I had almost maybe sorta kinda decided that we were going to get the Petrie or Rochelle sofas from Crate and Barrel. Last time we were in Denver, we even went to the store and SAT in them, BUT.... we didn't really love them. Eric liked the Petrie (but I didn't like any of the color choices) and I really liked the Rochelle (but Eric thought it was less comfortable and I still didn't like any of the color choices). 

After that, we both kind of figured... WE WILL NEVER GET A SOFA.

Then, Eric suggested we should reupholster the sofa we have. You know, the plan we had one zillion months ago back when we originally bought the thing!

So I went to the two reupholstery places in town, borrowed every single sample book I could get my hands on, and now, with all the color choices and texture possibilities.... I still cannot decide on a sofa. I think the operative part being, I CANNOT DECIDE. 

I'd like a sofa in this kind of fabric:

But we already have grey chairs and, even though they will need replacing soon, we are so indecisive they will probably never be changed and we would end up living with all grey furniture FOREVER. I do not want all grey furniture. I'd always imagined a nice grey sofa with leather or patterned chairs, you know? 

Then I went to my Pinterest "Live Here" board and discovered I'd Pinned a lot of pictures with sofas like this....

Apparently I like blue sofas. Who knew? Eric was not on board with the blue plan. He wanted a dark grey, or, he said, he might be ok with a very dark navy blue. I tried to convince him with mood boards (basically taking photos of everything in our living room and putting it all together in one photo), but it ended up backfiring.

Because I ended up liking the navy. Quite a lot. 

And it didn't help my case one bit that the navy looks pretty darn good with his Lebowski rug that he loves so much. Danggit. 

All this work and back and forth and, let's be honest, we will still probably NEVER GET A SOFA. 

We Have Some Super Cool Friends

You guys! Nick and Hanna are officially small business owners!! I can't believe I didn't tell you (all three of you) sooner!! Nick is a really talented woodworker and designer, while Hanna knows her way around a sewing machine, and together they founded their own company, Pare Furniture + Design. I'm pretty much in love with their Distill Lounge Chair, though the craftsmanship on everything they make is ah-mazing. Go, buy their stuff (and then give it to me)!!!

Emily Henderson

I enjoy design shows like "Project Runway" and HGTV's "Design Star," but in all my years of watching these shows, my favorites have only ever won twice: Gretchen Jones ("Project Runway" Season 8 winner) and Emily Henderson ("Design Star" Season 5). Gretchen is really the only clothing designer from "Project Runway" that has since made a name for herself, and Emily Henderson seems to be doing even better in the interior design world. 

Emily's blog is one of the few that I actually read each day, and it's fast becoming one of my favorites. She's a little bit snarky and, even though she uses a lot of hot pink and, well, color in her decorating, I really like reading about her process and seeing how her rooms turn out. It's like a behind-the-scenes, what-was-your-thought-process, look at how a real, awesome, professional designer turns a room from drab to fab. And she gives hints! From how to score deals at a flea market (wish we had one here) to how to shop at a flower market (also non-existent), Emily is really good at explaining aspects of the design world; I often feel like I'm actually learning something!

Bonus: SHE WATCHES THE BACHELOR, PEOPLE, and she's not afraid to comment on things like Kim Kardashian's failed marriage or how blue Ryan Gossling's eyes are (as she compares them to paint colors...). Which is super rare. Every other blog I read (when I say read, I mean look at) is too cool for school, if you know what I mean. 

Besides the blogging and the interior decorating, Emily Henderson also gets to go to flea markets every weekend. Lucky duck. There, she picks up old furniture, paintings, and accessories and turns them into awesome pieces. A few of these pieces are now online at her curated One Kings Lane Sale in their "Tastemaker Tag Sale." If only I had 10 grand (and the desire to spend ten grand) for furniture....

These were a few of my favorite pieces from the sale; I'll have to post some of her interior design work soon.

Bedroom Furniture

I'm still kicking myself for not buying the dresser set we saw at Oxford Antiques a while back. I haven't found anything that I like that much, let alone something so reasonably priced. Someday, though...someday we will find another bedroom set and I will not hesitate. I will make Eric buy it and we will live happily ever after with matching dressers that are large enough to hold all of our unmentionables. Like real adults.

Right now, West Elm has a decent-looking bedroom set. It's not my favorite, but I do really like the bed frame. It's pretty fabulous.

See? Love.

And then there are the dressers. They're fine. They'd hold stuff. I just find those round nobs to be....off-putting. It makes the dresser fronts look like silly faces. Why they couldn't have another straight drawer pull is beyond me. Is that being too picky?

And then there are these similar nightstands. I like 'em.

Hopefully we'll find something soon. I'm getting tired of storing my socks in a basket on the floor.

No. Way. Walmart?

Walmart. Carries. Bertoia. Chairs. Well, not the originals, but their own version.

Crazytown. They have both the diamond AND the side chair available.

I know I already own one zillion chairs, but I'll be getting rid of most of those and these suckers are iconic. Dear Walmart, I would like one diamond chair for my bedroom, and four of the side chairs for my patio. Thank you, and goodnight.

A Successful Weekend

I love having a house and weekends in which to putter around it. It's so relaxing and fun. Even doing laundry is enjoyable when you get to do it in your own home. Besides doing laundry this weekend, I rearranged my little terrarium thing (again), watched both seasons of Downton Abby (have you seen this show?! so amazing and addicting!!), and finished my chairs (finally!)!!!

But I think I'm going to have to get rid of them because.....

I got a new dining set.

Eight chairs, a table (with the slide out leaves I wanted!), and a hutch.

They're teak, they're Danish, and I love them all so, so much!

Eric hates the hutch. For some reason he's afraid that I'll fill it with Precious Moments figurines or Dale Earnhardt Junior commemorative plates. I have to admit that I wasn't too fond of the hutch at first either, but it's slowly growing on me. One good thing is that it is two pieces, and if we ever wanted, we could pull off the top and have a lovely credenza to put in the den with a little tv on it. Perfecto.

Eric also hates the chairs. He didn't tell me until we got home and, knowing that now, I'm really surprised he even let me buy this stuff. He mentioned that he would rather use the chairs I just refinished, but these Danish ones are, quite frankly, much more comfortable and much better quality. Solid wood. All the same kind of wood. Not bits and bobs of walnut veneer and oak like the others.

We'll talk about it.

I think it's mostly the fabric that he dislikes (which I totally agree with), so I think if I change that, it will help him like them more...

I have some linen lying around that I could use. It's pretty much grey, but I think it has enough cream-colored fibers in it that it won't clash with the warm tones of the teak. Though it's possible that I just made that part up.

On the left is the fabric color now (it totally looks purple in our house!!!!), and on the right is the linen I have that I could use. Up close it has a lot more beige in it, I must say.

If I recover them now, should I refinish then while I have them pulled apart? They're not in bad shape, just normal dings and dents from 20+ years of use and wear.

Enough thinking about what to do to these things. I just want to enjoy them for now!!!

Summer Vaction

Have I mentioned that we are going to Seattle this summer? We're going to Seattle next Wednesday for nearly a WEEK!!! I'm super pumped. The plan is to hang out, see a baseball game, hit up some museums, eat some great food, and (hopefully) do a little shopping.

In scouring the interwebs for things to do, I came across this great city guide (well, great if you enjoy boutiques, hand-made goods, and restaurants that aren't found in every county in the country), but I also discovered that Seattle has some really amazing vintage furniture stores.

I have to go to there.

I'm trying not to get my hopes up, I know this is a family vacation and family time is all-important, but really, how many days can they possibly spend with me? They're going to want me out of their hair at some point. And, at that point, I am fully prepared to accomodate their wishes.

And mine.

I have mapped out each store with directions to and from the house we are staying at, and I've even made hand-outs in case anyone is foolish enough to want to come with me; you know, so they can memorize them and help in the hunt. This isn't fun, people. This is a mission.

Don't freak out, those prices next to these pieces aren't what I'm going to pay. I've just written them there so I know what to expect, and I'll know whether or not I'm getting a good deal. I think I'll feel pretty lucky if I'm able to find even one thing on these lists that's in my price range.

Oh and, this all hinges on whether or not Eric's brother Joe drives his dad's giant red truck back from Colorado, and even then, Eric has to decide to let us drive that thing all the way there. Not the best gas mileage, as you could guess. I keep telling Eric that he and his super tall brothers will be much too crammed in our little Subaru. Their giantism is the perfect excuse to drive that thing to Seattle. And the perfect excuse for me to fill the back of it with treasure.

Trying not to get my hopes up.

Too late.

Fingers crossed, people.

Over the Weekend

We saw this, this weekend:

And I got started on a really, really fun project. Hint: it involves legs, oil, and lots of waxing.

Give up?

I started working on my new chairs!!! I've done a lot of sanding in the last three days, and I'm headed to the fabric store today to see if I can find something I like for the seats. Wish me luck!

I'll show you pictures when I'm all finished :)

Over the Weekend: Finally Feels Like Summer!!

The weekend kicked off on Thursday with Eric's "Fixie Forty" bike ride to Laurel and back.

Saturday I woke up and continued my rock removal efforts. Then Eric woke up and we headed to Oxford Antiques. It was closed (most disappointing store in the history of my life), but I found these awesome chairs at a garage sale on the way home:

$15 for the pair! Dope! So in love. Finally finding furniture I really like causes me to feel better about waiting - ie not buying the table I only kind of liked the other day.

Then....we went kayaking!

We ended up going to East Rosebud where we paddled around the lake, took a nap on the beach, and then gobbled down some chicken strips. The weather was glorious; we couldn't have picked a better day for it!

I have more pictures of us actually kayaking.....but they are on my camera....which is somewhere in my bedroom.....hopefully not on the floor?

Sunday we went to Symphony in the Park. It was blazing hot.

Ooooo! And then, this morning, I FINALLY finished picking up all of our stinking backyard rocks! And I did it all by myself!!

Prepare yourself for dirt pictures:

I'll probably have to give it another once over with the rake, but it is pretty much ready to be leveled and covered with sod. I'm really, really excited :)

And I discovered our first tomato this morning too!

The Pian-ee

We had small group last night and, while all the men were around, we had them haul the piano into our living room. This was a harrowing experience in itself as Dan's hand was smashed, and, at one point, Joe was seen riding the piano as they wheeled it across the floor.

The piano finally made it safely to its new spot, and for some reason our living room looks soooo much bigger! I don't know if it's because the piano is a lot smaller than the couch that was there before or if it's because the rug is gone too.....the room just looks bigger. And the walls suddenly look very bare. Things are coming together! Just ignore the tattered curtains and the fact that I have to reupholster the sofa....eeeeee.......is it too late to pay someone to do that.....?

(that white chair in the corner will probably go in the fireplace room. yeah.)

Aw....it's so pretty.
Don't tell my mom, but I played it a little last night (I am really out of practice) while Eric read his chemistry book (psht, nerd). And then I played it again this morning. Which is weird. I HATED playing the piano growing up. All that practicing was such a pain. But I guess playing the piano is better for my brain cells than watching the Today Show.

Finishing Furnishing

Well, we did it! Eric and I went back to Marketplace 3301 and got a couple of the many things I had fallen in love with! I haven't taken a single good picture of these guys yet, but hopefully you can get some idea of what they look like.

These chairs look just darling next to the fireplace. I will need to tighten/replace the seat webbing (help, Hanna?!), and I'd like to practice my upholstery skills on the cushions before I move on to my sofa (still terrified to rip into that).

These are the pieces that didn't follow us home:

This is the style of furniture I like and these were in AWESOME shape. AWESOME. I just couldn't quite get over the shiny veneer.....

When Chrissie and I had been there earlier in the day, we had a very nice, helpful salesman who was all about me buying every piece of furniture in sight. Until I asked if he'd want his wife to surprise him with that much furniture. When Eric and I returned that evening, we found this note on the dresser:

Marketplace 3301 Madness

Eric has been working some crazy hours because of the potential strike at Exxon, and, as a result, I've been a little lonely. Not today, though! Chrissie came over for a waffle this morning, then we spent the day scouring thrift stores before we ended up at Marketplace 3301. This place is huge! And it's packed with booth after booth of antiques, furniture, "collectibles," and, of course, a whole lotta junk. We wandered around for hours! Poor Chrisse, I'm pretty sure she was tired of me running from booth to booth squealing "Look at this! No, look at THIS!!!!" I think I may go back this evening to purchase a couple of things....? Eric willing, of course.....
Here are a few highlights....

Chrissie models this camera, which, including case and awesome flash, was 25$

 Two of these for 45$? Yes, please! (I may have to go back for them). They were in remarkably good shape.

Lovely old paper cutter. So tempting. But a bit small.

I like this...but it was veneer. No bueno.

One of these MAY come to live in our fireplace room. Maybe. They're both quite fabulous.

This piece....will also most likely end up in our house. Solid wood. For 75$, but they came down to 63$ (they are holding it for me right now). Pretty brilliant. Probably will add different pulls.

 There were also quite a few great rugs. And Chrissie bought a FABULOUS print; I wish I had a picture of it. Another thing that caught my eye (which I failed to take a picture of), was a dresser and high-boy set from the fifties. It's totally the style I like and in perfect condition. It's just that....it's veneer. Ridiculously good price. RIDICULOUS. Maybe I'll take a pic of it if I can convince Eric to come back there with me tonight. Fun day. Thanks, Chrissie! :)

Ah, Chairs :)

I had to post another picture of our new chairs :) I am just that excited about them.

Never mind that the rest of our living room is crammed full of furniture left in random locations. These, these belong here, by the window. And look how nicely they match my blanket!