Entryway

Or foyer, if you're fancy like that.

This is what we started out with. Yes, this is the first thing guests saw upon entering our home. OK, OK, I'd pick up a bit beforehand, but having to battle this mess each day was weighing on me. Keeping our keys and sunglasses on that tray where Homegirl could reach everything was also not doing our family any favors.

I wasn't sure what to do about the situation, but I had an idea. I knew I needed a dresser, but I couldn't find something modern that fit the space and was functional. Then I stumbled upon this dresser. . .

I'd been eyeing it for some time, and then those magical words arrived: SALE

If you know anything about Mormon temples, you'll understand why I attribute my interest in this piece to my time spent there. This dresser is very traditional, even formal with that burled wood. Surely it had no place in my modern home, right? Well, here's the thing. Lately I've been noticing that I like an eclectic look. I'm starting to feel that when everything is styled from a certain time period it becomes gimmicky. So I told myself to branch out, try mixing things up for once.

I'm really glad I did, because here's the beautiful after:

Not too shabby, right? At the very least it's a major improvement from what we had going on before. The next steps, besides getting some flowers for that vase, are to carpet over those brown tiles and find a chair to go either side of the dresser. I'm thinking wood, black, simple lines. Now that I've freed myself from a few design restrictions I feel liberated, but also a bit scared. It was safe to go with one thing. What if I go into these uncharted waters and choose the wrong chair? You know I don't like to waste money, and since I buy stuff on sale, often times it's non-refundable. I definitely won't be rushing into any decisions here.

As for the shoes, this genius right here realized she needed to get a shoe rack and stick that in the entry closet. Voila. Funny how taking pictures of problem areas really forces you to look for solutions, many of them obvious.

Hooray for design blogging!

The Little Turk that Could

Tiny splashes of turquoise, that's my fallback when the rest of my outfit is very subdued. I found this great set of earrings from Target and I've been getting compliments on them at work. If they have more colors, I might be willing to venture out into new hue territories.

Vintage Etienne Aigner

Why yes I think I will take that for $4.99, thank you very much, Goodwill! (Never pay full price, people. NEVER.)

p.s. If my mom were to read this, she'd say I paid too much and then remind me of her Ferragamo clutch for only $1 from the Salvation Army.

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. . .

Office, The Brain of the Home

Scheme for the office

The most important room in the house for the maintenance of sanity is the office. This, unfortunately, has been the last room to come into its own. By now you know about the epic cabinet debacle (at least half of my sanity perished with that alone). . . Well, those paint victims are now sitting pretty, just waiting to house books on risk management and diseases of muscle and nerves. I also acquired that beautiful spotlight desk from the C&B outlet. The red kilam rug is from West Elm (still on sale) and will go in the center of the room.

I'm really, really tired of painting, so I kept trying to convince myself that the current wall color would be just fine. The truth is, it's a dingy taupe that clashes horribly with the cabinets, which are painted Puddle by Behr (represented by that purple grey rectangle in the corner).

So now I'm moving things around in the office to prepare it for some new paint this weekend. I'm playing with sample colors in the top right corner. I think going with something lighter will make the cabinet and rug really pop. I had actually wanted to try something darker, more moody like a plum, but I just don't think it will work this time.

I grow impatient to get this all done with, but I know I should be a good girl and try paint samples. The upside to all of this will be the great likelihood of seeing Home Depot Steve. The downside will be having to report back to him on how my staining project went. . .

Bathroom Update No.147

This bathroom remodel is sucking the life out of me. Must celebrate small accomplishments; acknowledge setbacks and move on.

The tile is all laid in the kids' bath except for what's supposed to go behind the vanity. We fell behind just a little on that because we had chosen and assembled the IKEA bath vanity, but our contractor inspected it and told us that he couldn't, in good conscience, install it. He said the material was so flimsy we'd have to replace it in just a couple of years. We respect the dude, so now we're looking at other options, like this guy. I sure hate having to make design decisions with a time crunch. --That's an easy way to make an expensive mistake.

***This just in: My friend texted me to tell me that vanities and tops are on sale at Menards. The vanity we like is at Home Depot, but since they do price-matching we can apply the sale to our purchase! SCORE.***

Moving on to the master bath, our beautiful Porcelanosa floor tile is installed! The only disappointment here is that the grout color turned out much lighter than anticipated. We'll need to go back and darken it with a special grout tint. Other than that, I'm quite pleased with how it turned out. The tile looks like wood planks and they are of different sizes and some are designed to appear "end grain" to break things up and introduce interest. Swoon. Below you'll see that I'm trying to find a paint color for the accent wall. Everything else will be steely or cool white, so this is our rare opportunity to bring warmth into the space. Y'know, besides the warmth produced from the massive firebox on the wall. . .

OK, see the wet splatter on the cardboard? I turned on one of the faucets and it just shot out. Tim chose those open head faucets for the double sink and there was nothing to keep the spray from nailing me. Gotta work on that water pressure. . . As you know, this isn't the largest master bath in the world, yet we're trying to cram all sorts of things in here. The trick to accomplishing this, we've found, is to search for items using the metric system. Pretty much everywhere except the United States knows how to do modern, space-efficient design. -Like that vanity top, it's delicious to me. 

There's actually quite a bit of tile left to install in the master. All of the walls (yes, we're crazy) are getting covered, and we still have to come up with a scheme for the firebox wall. For the latter, we're having to strike a balance between cost and beauty. We chose what we consider to be the most beautiful tile for the job, but it was so pricey we couldn't afford to cover the entire area with it. We gotta come up with something creative to solve this problem. Stay tuned.

Score: The ReStore & CB Outlet

Have you been to a ReStore? They're part of the Habitat for Humanity organization. As its name implies, they take gently used or leftover items from homes and resell them to the public. As we are just launching our home renovation we decided to check one out.

(Many pictures pending.)

We had a wonderful experience there. The first funny thing to happen was we met the manager there and she is a hoot, her name is Susan. Tim and I felt like we were in some bizarre parallel universe because the manager at our main base, our favorite resale store, is also named Susan. Turns out the two have spoken to each other over the phone, but have never met. They don't look alike, but it's possible that if they ever cross paths one or both of them will implode in a blaze of 'upcycle' glory.

Enough with the doppelgangers.  Man, you can get some really good deals there. We saw one lady walk away with an entire backsplash of carrara marble subway tiles. I'm guessing that wasn't going to cost her more than $40. Mind blown. They were also selling a fancy shower system (by Pharo) that I'm sure someone will snatch up for use in an ultra-modern home.

Image via ReStore

We didn't do too bad, either. We left with three boxes of floor trim tile for the bathrooms ($5/ea. box) and a vanity counter plus vessel sink for the powder room. Here are my thoughts on the latter purchase. The counter top is marble, which is porous and something I'd normally be worried about getting stained, but since it won't be used as heavily as the main baths I'm not too concerned. I also realize that vessel sinks are very trendy and are becoming increasingly hokey. Again, with this being in the powder room I think a vessel will be just fine and you'll see (once I post pictures) that it's not very deep. -Meaning it's all about minimalism.

Tim and I felt like we were on a bargain roll, so we decided to hit up Crate & Barrel Outlet. Oh, boy, do I dig that place. We were kinda feeling anxious about having to host Christmas at the last minute because there have been some unexpected changes regarding who's going to be in town for the holidays. With that in mind, we checked out the dining room table section. That's when we saw the Oslo extendable table for +60% off.

C&B Oslo Table, Seats TEN

Why was this on super sale? It's because it has a couple of scratches and had been dinged on two of the corners. Here's the beauty about having kids: If we had seen these imperfections prior to becoming parents, we might have passed up this deal. Now that we know kids are going to add their destruction finishing touches*, it ain't no thang. Plus, we've learned all about the power of wood oil and touch-up pens. We were sold (again).

And that, dear reader(s) is how we do it.

*To be fair, my furniture has taken a beating more from visitors (adults included) than it has from my own children. 

Post-partum

I totally had a (second) baby. It kind of blew me away, actually. I had in my mind that I would deliver on my due date, after everything was in perfect harmony at home.

Well, life had other plans. I delivered 5 days early. Labor pains didn't feel anything like they did the first time. Oh, and my house was a disaster inside and out because we were struck by a terrible storm that took down trees and our electrical service with it. Thank goodness several people helped by stepping in while we were at the hospital to clear up debris and even launder my girl's layette. Tears of joy and gratitude!

Once we got power back, it was time to restock the fridge and I included a few treats for this post-partum mom:

Mmmmmmm. . . ice cream

I was having a borderline 'baby blues' kind of day when my husband told me to go on ahead and do my favorite.thing.EVER. Yes folks, I went to Target without the kids! And even better, I was shopping there with a gift card from all the returns we made after receiving more pink/leopard print/cupcake covered onesies than we knew what to do with!

I present to you, my booty (heh heh):

In the first photo you're looking at the following:

1. Makeup brushes. These make me feel like a big girl. Because, you know, having two kids wasn't enough to get me there. . . The Target brand sell for $2. 
2. Pads. OK, not a luxury item, but very much needed in the postpartum period. 
3. Index card holders. I'm an index card freak and I just love organization and color, so this really tickles my fancy. < $1.
4. If West Elm made a headband, this would be it. This was my 'splurge' at $11. 
5. Scissors, glorious scissors. I'm putting these in every room of the house, it seems like I always have a need for them. $0.75 for two.
6. Tom's-esque shoes for $11 on clearance. Holla'!
7. I got this necklace at Kohls, actually. I was in need of a simple silver piece to go with everything. $6.
8. Fedora. Now that I'm breastfeeding again I don't wear as much sunscreen because my baby likes to suck on my face. This is perfect for avoiding too much sun exposure. Trendy, too.
9. For the postpartum muffin top. I only plan to wear this as needed to get back into my old clothes. I can't remember the price, but this is actually a Spanx knock-off and was pretty cheap.  
10. Pencil container. See #3 to explain why this had to come home with me. It's actually storing #1 right now.  < $1.
11. The ice cream will be short-lived. I have to start exercising now so I got me some light weights.
12. Close-up picture is below. These were some pretty earrings at Kohls. They remind me of stuff I've seen at Anthropologie, but for a fraction of the price ($8).
13. Yoga mat, for some postpartum Pilates. It's so on. 

#12

Not shown are a few other items, like a canvas tote for the weekend that was on sale.

I really had a great time livin' it up with my gift card, so if someone were to stumble upon this entry and worry that I returned their gift, I hope they keep this in mind. (You didn't get to plaster my daughter's butt with ladybugs and ruffles, but you helped sweep away the blues. Thank you.)

Score! Shower Curtain

I'm not really a "girly girl," but clearly I make exceptions when it comes to Beanie's nursery and my own bathroom.

It is not imperative that I spruce up the ladies room before I deliver, but I've been updating a few things here and there, knowing that I might be spending a lot of time in there working on some perineal care.

I really liked these curtains from Anthropologie (I went from vowing I'd never step foot in there, to developing a slight crush on their 'house and home' section), but the price is a deal-breaker for me.

Waves of Ruffles, $98

Sculpted Mums, $118

So imagine my delight when I found this curtain from Target. It's definitely not the same quality, but for goodness sake it's just a shower curtain and the overall look is close enough for a fraction of the price. You know I pounced on it.

Target Home Ruffle Shower Curtain, $24.99

Zuzii Barefoot Sandals

ZUZII 

(Hope you like baby products because that's about all you're going to get these days leading up to my due date.)

I just purchased this 'barefoot sandal' DIY kit and couldn't be more excited about it. I think this little footwear will be perfect for my summer baby and offer just enough of the feminine touch to balance the rest of her wardrobe that is a bit more gender neutral.

Compared to buying expensive shoes that she'll only wear once also puts this purchase in the Score! category. Can't wait to get this in the mail!

It all Started with a Chair

Isn't that the first line to the movie Juno? The same thing applies here, minus the unplanned teen pregnancy. . .

The chair that launched a thousand insults.

I've been trying to straddle two very different worlds for so long, and the purchase of this chair knocked me over, causing me to fall into the chasm.

Enter the drama.

I had a bad week at work, one in which I was continually berated by staff members who wanted to haze the new, young, must-think-she's-all-that (I don't), petite female physician. So, when I spotted a beautiful Plycraft chair (modeled after the Eames Lounger) in an advertisement for only $85, I told myself that I needed the victory of that purchase to start the weekend right.

It took FIVE hours of preparation to make it to the resale furniture store selling the chair just before it opened. I was heavy with child and had my 2 year old with me. It snowed and I had to shovel the entire driveway by myself. Getting my boy in snow gear was akin to that scene in Christmas Story. We made it to the parking lot with exactly 12 minutes to spare. My boy asked to get out of the car because he wanted to look into the windows. Fine. We walked right up to the door and about five minutes later a line of ten people had formed behind us. Next, an employee of the store cracked open the door and said, "We realize we underpriced a very desirable item. We never do this, but we're handing out numbers for the order of who gets to buy it." A card with #1 scrawled on it was slipped into my hands. I turned around to face the wrath of a mid-century modern mob and my heart dropped.

Turns out, there had been plenty of people who had arrived to the resale furniture store parking lot an hour or more before it opened. They didn't think to beat me to the door because I looked like a non-threatening suburban mom who wouldn't know style even it slammed into her minivan. So when I whispered to the salesperson, "I'll take it," a ripple effect occurred. One lady began interrogating me about my knowledge of such pieces of furniture. She and others gathered to determine if I "got it." A man, single and able-bodied, was sure to let the store members know he'd been waiting in his car for quite some time before I showed up. None of these people cared to consider that I busted my butt to make it there, and certainly none of them could have guessed I had any appreciation of fine design. Perhaps as a nice little "up yours," my son then proceeded to climb on the chair, smearing snot on the seat, and crapped his diaper there.

Victory is ours, coolios!