Leather Sofa on Craigslist (Oh, and I'm a Stalker)

We decided to get a leather sofa for the dining room. Yes, I realize how strange that reads.

Our dining room is an odd space. It has a fireplace across from the actual dining area, and adjacent to that is an extra area that leads to a sun room. We decided the extra area is where the sofa will go.

At first we didn't know what should be added to the dining room, but as we thought about my large Latino family it became clear that we'd need more seating for parties. Since this will be a place to dine, we automatically knew we'd have to go leather for easy cleanup. The idea to get a leather sofa naturally followed, especially as I developed visions of lounging on it after a meal while watching the kids play in the sun room.

So we looked around at styles and prices. To get a real, non-bonded leather sofa most times you gotta cough up some major cash. We're talking thousands of dollars. I started to notice, however, that even the nicest stuff appears to sag over time (peruse Craigslist for the saddest and the saggiest). The only kinds of sofas that didn't have this effect going on were the tufted ones because the pinning and tucking keeps things tight.

Have you noticed that the Chesterfield is making a comeback? I'm telling you, this image from my boards gets re-pinned the most. I started to think maybe this was the route I should go, but I had to be honest with myself and acknowledge that it's just a little too ornate for my taste. I then began to hope for something in the middle, like if a Chesterfield mated with a MCM lounger and made a cheap baby. . .

You can imagine how excited I was when I thought I saw what I was looking for (finally) on Craigslist. I write "thought" because the posted images weren't of great quality, but the seller assured the public that this was good quality leather. And the price, wait for it, was around $400.

Egad, I wrote to that guy so quick and did a pick-me-pick-ME dance like never before. Imagine how excited I was when he wrote back the same day to say I could check out the sofa and buy it whenever I wanted! He said it was being stored at his sister's place of business, which was located at the corner of such-and-such.

It was all mine! Right?! Wait, right? I didn't hear from him after that. I wrote back to say what times would work for us to stop by, but he didn't respond. I sent a follow-up e-mail, a hey-did-you-get-my-last-e-mail? e-mail. Nada. I started to think he sold it to someone else or was dead. I even sent a hey-just-put-me-out-of-my-misery e-mail, too.

So I went totally a little weirdo. I figured out what store was housing the sofa based on the intersecting streets he had given me. I found out the store owner's name. I typed in Google: "[Store owner name] + [First name of the seller] + sibling." It was a stab in the dark, but that word 'sibling' brought up a local newspaper article about their family and community involvement. It mentioned that the seller had a business of his own, which I then looked up and got its number.

Am I freaking you out yet? I really wanted this sofa!!!

So I dialed the number to the seller's business. As I did, I thought to myself, "Monique this is some crazy stuff you're doing. He's going to think you're stalking him! How is THAT going to make him want to sell a sofa to you?!" Before I could talk myself out of it, the seller answered. This was my response: "Oh, hey, this is Monique from Craigslist. You're probably wondering how I got your number. Gee, I think in the process of not wanting to be freaky by just showing up to your sister's place unannounced, I got all sorts of creepy by Googling your contact info." It went quite well all things considered.

I mean, all's well that ends well, right? (Don't judge me.)

So here she be.

The sofa isn't exactly ready for her closeup. We have to restuff the cushions and polish up the leather, but I think it's going to look really nice in the end. Plus, it will always remind me of this odd little Craiglist adventure. -That, and this restraining order that came in the mail, hmmmm. . .

Silk and Cotton

This is a typical summer work outfit for me. Keep in mind that I'm wearing a lab coat over this, too. I try to go for a splash of color to poke through the coat, and keep it simple when it comes to pants. In the summer, my trousers are made out of cotton or tropical wool. I'm constantly on the move, so I always wear flats.

Start Being a Show-off?

Something I struggle with when it comes to blogging is putting myself (and my stuff) out there for all to see. Part of my concern has to do with privacy, but I'm also concerned about showing off and making people feel bad about what they have or don't have. I base that off of reactions I've seen when someone has posted about feeling heavy with a body size others wish they could have, or drops a ton of money on something seemingly frivolous as others who can't afford to do that look on. Thinking about those comparisons and the emotions that come with them make my guts hurt.

That being said, I want to think that blogging isn't all about one-upping and making comparisons. I know that for me, I really, really appreciate it when someone lets me in on how s/he does it, gives me inspirational ideas, and is honest about what things are worth the time and investment.

I've benefited a lot from what I'm learned online and I'm going to use that as motivation to put myself out there a bit more (sing it with me: Because I have been given much I, too, must give). Today I'm even thinking about sharing what works for me from a clothing perspective. I am terribly embarrassed to be 'modeling,' but. . . why not? Right?

When a Picnic is No Picnic

Lately we've been going to our beautiful arboretum that is so close to our house. The trip is only 5min, but the packing takes forever. This is what my bag contains, including blanket. What do you carry in yours?

The Middle-Crazy of the Nursery Continues

I went with that half-wall idea. And trust me, when you live in an older home with not-quite-flat walls and floors, this was no picnic to accomplish.

The upper wall is in Benjamin Moore's White Dove, and the lower is Gray Owl. This has been a color combo suggested over and over again on Pinterest, but funny enough I came to it on my own after comparing samples and later finding out their names. I suppose subconsciously I was influenced.

Been putting up artwork to break up the lines and that has been a lot of fun so far. We're going for a carefree eclectic look in here, so I basically grab whatever's on hand and use 3M command strips to stick it up there. I'm starting to run low on supplies, so that means I get to do some Etsy art shopping. I'm also loving a lot of what I'm seeing at Society6, so maybe I'll just have to grab something there, too. The prices are way affordable compared to stuff I've seen elsewhere. 

I still think the room looks disjointed and basically a hot mess overall, but I keep telling myself it will all come together in the end. -Which is hard to do because I don't exactly have a vision of that, I just try things left and right and tell myself that the rug you see there can draw it all together. . . or it will be my undoing.

Had to Get It

Kitten Bandit

Something about this 8 x10 print stuck in my mind. My intention is to put it in the shared kids' bathroom, otherwise it will do just fine in the nursery. Isn't it intriguing? It's from the Mysterious Girls from The Black Apple, by Emily Winfield Martin. Check out her Etsy shop.

Boy's Room: Hanging it Up

In order to keep the momentum up and get fragile stuff off the floor, we've been hanging a bunch of stuff on the walls. Turns out that makes a huge difference, at least for me.

Remember this sad little corner?

Now it's looking like this:

I think it also helps that spring is finally here and we're getting better light in the house. Sunshine makes everything look so much better. It was motivating us to go on a wall-decorating frenzy.

This is all stuff we had at the other house, so it's nice to see them again, and this time in a new light. I know that for Leepo, having familiar items around him helps to cope with the move. He's doing OK these days, but those first couple of weeks were rough. The poor kid couldn't sleep well at night and went on to develop nocturnal hallucinations ("Mom, Dad, there was a glowing man in my room.") and the fatigue caused him to develop a sty! So glad we're passed that. Now this is his favorite room in the house and a place in which we all enjoy playing.