Sneak Peek: New Place
The days are counting down until we can move into our new place! It sometimes feels like September is coming way too fast, and other times I can’t wait for it to get here!
I found this handy website that lets you draw up a floor plan of your place and try out different furniture arrangements and wall colors. It’s HomeStyler.com and it’s a lot of fun!! I made up a floor plan of the new place from memory with help from the photos I took when we were last there. I know it’s definitely not accurate, but it gives you a good idea of what we are working with! I’m sure there are parts I am remembering all wrong… I can’t wait to move in and actually measure everything out and compare it to this rough version.
I don’t really know how we are going to arrange things yet, as much as I have been day dreaming about it! The only thing that is for sure is the bed in the bedroom. Everything else is just to give reference points and ideas. For instance, I’m not sure if the dining table would fit where it is on this plan, in the real house. I don’t remember exactly how much space is between the door to the Art Studio and the Back Door.
I definitely encourage you to try out this fun tool! And remember to SAVE OFTEN! Oh my was I bummed when my browser crashed and I lost all of my hard work the first time.
Wish me luck on my packing up my place over the next few weeks… I can’t wait to be done with that part! Not sure about what’s coming up next in the blog. Maybe I will show off a few of the glass bottles I have been Upcycling for an Art Fair in Bismarck, ND.
Until then…
Kitchen Colors
I just couldn’t wait to share more pictures and color ideas with you!
I spent some time coming up with color combinations for the kitchen last night,and figured I might as well post them!
Current Kitchen
I lightened the pictures a bit since everything seemed to come out darker and a little orange/yellower than IRL.
Again, everything is BROWN. UGH.
Also, (again) nothing in the pictures belongs to us. It’s all still the current tenants’ stuff. I am hoping to have a much cuter, much ROUNDER table in the kitchen! This table reminds me of the old one from my folks’ house. I don’t hate it, I’m just OVER IT. No country kitchen!! Ya feel me? I feel like I should remind you that I also still suck at the outlining of the areas to paint, so these are not the classiest looking pictures. These pictures look like a drunk grandma tried to put lipstick on, without a mirror, on a train.
OK! Onto the color schemes! (more…)
New Space, New Paint!
Guess what?! We found the MOST PERFECT PLACE EVER. (This is where I do my happy dance/wiggle in my chair.) Good thing we didn’t jump on the first place we looked at! We would’ve never found our wonderful new apartment. It’s in the lower half of a duplex and has all of the things we were looking for and more!
Let’s go down the list:
SPACE: Check! About 1105 square feet! LARGE master bedroom, decent sized 2nd bedroom that will be a music studio, living room, large eat-in kitchen with TONS of cabinets, & sunroom off back of kitchen for my glass studio!
GOOD LANDLORD/NEIGHBORS: Check! The landlords are a younger couple who live upstairs. They are really great! I can tell we’ll all be hanging out in the adorable back yard when it’s nice out. When we went over to get the lease (and take pictures!) they brought beers down. If I hadn’t had somewhere to be, I think we would’ve stayed and hung out for quite a while!
PARKING: Check! 2 spaces for us in the back alley! Yes!
REASONABLE UTILITIES: Check! Only things we need to take care of are electric, cooking gas, and hot water. $30-$60/month
EASY DOWNTOWN ACCESS: Check! This new place will only make Adorabeau’s commute 2 blocks longer!
BONUS: Free Laundry, WiFi and Direct TV! They’re letting us paint! Adorable backyard for grilling and chilling. Park around the corner, convenience store near-by, and lots of bars walking distance away. (No, we are not moving to Heaven, but it seems like it!)
There’s so much awesome stuff coming soon!
Hello, friends!
I have been pretty lax on the blog! I know… But things have been pretty busy for someone who is underemployed. And it’s finally SUMMER! I will have some good stuff for you in the coming months. I promise.
September brings a big move! My adorabeau (Get it? Adorable and beau in the same word? I just made it up. I think it’s a good name for him since he is both adorable and my beau.) and I have decided to move in together! And since I moved snuck the cats into his apartment, I practically live at his place these days, anyways. We looked at a place the other day and we LOVED it! We are looking at 3 more this weekend and making a decision. They each have such different and great qualities. I am sure the Pros and Cons lists are going to come out as soon as we finish the showings.
Main things we want:
- SPACE! We are looking for a place with enough space to really spread out. We both want our own studio space. Adorabeau makes music and needs room to bring in other buds to jam with him. I want space to do glass art and other random creative pursuits. We’re looking at places with 2+ bedrooms. Space is key.
- GOOD NEIGHBORS! We like to have people over sometimes and sing karaoke into the wee hours. It would be great to be able to do that once in a while (within reason) without getting passive-aggressived to death. We also want our place to be the place to congregate when people get together. Impromptu gatherings to Dinner Parties.
- PARKING! There needs to be convenient parking. I don’t want to have to worry about snow emergencies and that kind of BS. It would be nice if friends had an easy time with the parking when they visit as well.
- NO / LOW PET FEES! I can’t tell you how annoying it is to me that some landlords want you to pay up to $250 per cat (sometimes non-refundable!) and/or have them de-clawed and/or pay monthly “pet rent”. I am pretty sure there are kids who are worse for apartments than my cats. Why don’t they charge “toddler rent”?
- REASONABLE UTILITIES! If we have to pay heat in the winter, the rent better be low enough to compensate and/or there better be other amenities to make up for it.
- GOOD LANDLORD! This could mean a few things. I like a landlord who will make sure things get taken care of, but otherwise, is pretty much absent. If the heat goes out in the middle of the night and we call someone to fix it, the ideal landlord will let us send him a receipt and that much less rent. We are not needy tenants. We can fix things and make things better. In fact, we like doing that kind of stuff! Our kind of landlord would let us make things better.
- EASY DOWNTOWN ACCESS! Adorabeau works downtown. Our place needs to be a quick bike and/or bus ride downtown.
Do you have any things you can’t live without in an apartment? Do you think any of our “main things” are unreasonable? I’d love to hear from you 
In the mean time…
Do you know about Pinterest? I am really loving it! While I daydream about what Adorabeau and I can do with our combined forces of creativity, I am constantly finding inspiration on the internets for our future place. I’ve been using Pinterest to keep track of things I like.
You can follow my Design board here: Interior Exterior
I also keep track of DIY projects here: CREATE
Feel free to follow any other boards you are interested in and leave comments and/or questions!
Fun With Spray Paint!
Sometimes when I put my mind to something, I get a little carried away. I really went to town with the gold spray paint this week and I am pleased with the outcome! I really didn’t take a lot of (any?) before pictures, so you’ll just have to use your imagination, K? Thanks.
I still have things on this list to spray paint and actually ended up painting somethings that aren’t on the list at all. We’ll start from the top and work our way down, yes?
From boring white to glamorous gold!
One of these days I will take pictures with a camera that’s not my phone. It’s just so handy! Ugh, the top is so bleached out… Well, you get the idea. It really made a big difference. The white was super blah and dirty. Shiny gold is so much more fun!
3 things are sprayed gold. Can you find them?
I found this board lying in my storage room that fit over that shelf almost perfectly. It was just raw pine (probably pine) so the gold really did a lot for it. I also sprayed that formerly clear glass vase and the candle holder for the taper. (Used to be red.) I debated doing the mirror too, but decided against it. I like the look of it the way it is, and didn’t want to ruin it.
This area needs at least one more thing.
This thing was kind of bronze before.
It’s still not the same gold as the more brassy candle holder sconce next to it, but I like it better. Maybe I will spray the sconce too… I also did something which I love to an old soap dish that I was going to donate:
I spray painted a green soap dish gold and cut out a funky little profile in some light blue patterned paper that I found and modpodged it onto the dish. Super easy and quick! The bottom of the soap dish has holes for whatever reason ceramic soap dishes have holes, so it hangs on the wall nicely!
Love it!
I really debated putting it up over by the shelf between the windows, but decided against it. The area above the bar needed more stuff. (Yay, stuff!) I love to up-cycle things if I can. I hate throwing things out, which admittedly is a problem, but if given the time and resources? I can find a use for just about anything. Example:
Background displays from my old job.
I found these old displays from the place where I used to work (I refuse to even mention their name, they don’t deserve the free advertising.) I also used some old display stuff in another project that I will show you soon. I wanted to add some gold to them and debated actually just spraying them all gold all over so I would have plain gold squares to work with, but I liked what the little stencil thing I made did with them, so I left it.
There’s the stencil thing I used. I ended up spraying the clipboard too and hanging it on the wall. I left the stencil on it just because I like the way it looks. I hope to use the clipboard as a schedule holder for when I finally find a job. That will be sweet.
I covered my cork board with some left over fabric from the couch. Looks way better than that crappy thing! And of course, there’s the clipboard on the right. Looks way better gold and shiny than brown and silver, I think. (Like most things.)
Jesus and the St Paul Cathedral
I had originally bought the oval framed Jesus piece for the oval gold frame, but I decided to try something and really liked how it turned out! I figured, if I hated it, I could just use the frame like I wanted to before, anyways. All I did was take a few pieces of scotch tape and put them in different places on his face before I sprayed it. The end result turned out kinda sweet! I like that if you see it from a distance, it mostly looks abstract until you get up close and see the detail. I didn’t realize that I had a picture of a church right below Jesus until I was captioning the picture above. I like when things accidentally go together. All I did with that one was spray paint the frame it was in. I found that frame empty in an abandoned building. I love finding things that are so useful! It makes me really happy
Kinda hard to see the Cathedral in this washed out photo. It's that little speck in the middle...
I do have a Before & After for you after all! Her name is Ophelia and she is a Styrofoam head that I’ve had for a few years. I recently pinned flowers from my nameless former job, on her head like a little flapper cap:
The glass "feather" has been there for years. I just couldn't figure out what I wanted to do next until very recently.
I decided Ophelia needed a little more of a glam makeover so I went at her with the gold spray paint (of course). I didn’t think about the fact that spray paint has a bunch of chemicals in it that will affect the Styrofoam by kind of melting it. Whoops! I think she looks way better now and the chemical burns actually make it so that the gold reflects more and she kind of sparkles!
I dig it:
I just put a little bit of scotch tape over the glass "feather" and went to town!
A few things just got touch ups:
Before: Shelf is all one color.
After: Shelf has gold edging thanks to spray paint and a Q-tip.
Before: All one color frame.
After: Details get a little golden.
Empty golden pot in South West corner = Positive money flow Feng Shui. Hope it works!
And last but not least, a testament to the truth of my last post:
If you clean out a space, a kitty will go in it.
I was putting dishes away and the bar cabinet was open…
Riku is not a good dish. He will eat your food.
Until next time…
If you clean out a space, a kitty will go in it.
Oh hai!
If there is one thing I’ve learned since being the proud mama of cats, it’s that they LOVE to get in any little spot that was previously occupied by just about anything. As you can see…
Really?
I want to put things on that ledge, but they are so cute and happy in the window.
Not one, but 2 kitties in the basket! I wish Riku was still that little! 
Spike likes to prop himself in these positions. I like to think it's for my enjoyment, but he may like his belly plunging into those little holes.
I can't really picture how Spike got his fatness in there.
So, there is just one more reason to clean things out. Kitties love new spaces just as much as I do!
Goals. (I have them.)
Since everyone needs goals, even (maybe especially) disorganized slobs like me, I have decided to make a couple and share them with you.
Goal Number One:
Get my apartment looking good enough to enter into Apartment Therapy’s Smallest Coolest Home contest.
Now, I don’t really expect to win. My apartment isn’t in New York and I don’t have a lot of (any) money to do much to add to what I’ve got, but I’m creative and thrifty. Wait until you see what I have planned to do with gold spray paint this week.
Goal Number Two:
Get my apartment into a presentable state and have people over for the May Day celebration that happens in the park located practically in my backyard
I am pretty stoked to be living so close to Powderhorn Park for this years’ May Day festivities! I always have such a wonderful time there and wouldn’t mind if it turned into a Grand Old Day of sorts…
So there you have it. Goals. One will lead to the other, since the deadline for the Apartment Therapy contest is April 20th. Expect to see all kinds of big posts in the coming weeks!
Devil colds can’t stop me! (For very long.)
Oh boy! I sure was sick this week! There’s nothing like being mentally motivated to actually get some work done in your own apartment and then being struck down with a devil cold from HELL. I spent Monday and Tuesday from my bed, looking out into the living room I wanted to rearrange and clean. I think I left my house 1 time to get tissues and toilet paper. And food that wasn’t Carnation Instant Breakfast. (IE: Frozen Pizza and Hot Pockets) I felt better on Wednesday and EVEN BETTER yesterday (Thursday) so I just went for it and attacked the living room. I even remembered to take pictures! Hooray! 
First thing I did was move enough stuff around so that I could move the couch. I didn’t hate where it was. I actually kinda liked it, but I figured moving it so it would be against the wall instead of having a corner directly behind it would help me use more of my space. I was right! It even feels a little more open that it did before! And BONUS: Cats can’t hide under there anymore. Sorry Spike, your fatness has to find somewhere else to hide when it’s time for a road trip!
BEFORE: Corner was blocked by love-seat.
AFTER: Pushed the love-seat against the blue wall and brought the side table out. Opened up space and still allows for the cozy "visiting area" I was going for originally.
AFTER: Here's a little more of an angle. I guess I didn't get any pictures that show the chair that is also there. It's just to the right, facing the couch. You'll see it sometime. Probably with a cat on it.
This last picture always reminds me that I really need to get some stuff up on that wall. Don’t worry… I have plans. (Of course I do.) I am looking forward to my parents next visit for a myriad of reasons including the hanging lamp they will hopefully be bringing. I want it up in that corner. It’s blue with gold fringe and a great big gold tassel. My Grandma Kraft had really great taste! It was hers. I am also hoping for this incredible, large, ornate gold framed mirror. My plan? Put the mirror (if it will fit) over the curio and move what’s there across the room to the white space you see above. Here’s a picture of what was above the curio. (Apparently i don’t have a decent recent picture. But, you get the idea.)
Above the curio. Whoa. This picture is old. :/ And blurry. Double :/
Ok, well I’m going to make up for it by showing you what stuff is, after I explain a little. I found a bunch of frames at the thrift store for CHEAP and painted them the same color as my wall. And a few shelves, as well. Aside from the frame on the top left, which has the recent Health Care Act in it, if the frames didn’t have mirrors in them, I put pages from spare Buffy the Vampire Slayer comics that I had laying around. (Apparently I ordered a couple I already had…??? Who does that?? Anyways…) There’s not much more inspiring than a girl my size who saves the world all the time. Plus, they match stuff pretty well! Here’s some better pics:
Buffy has no love for evil faeries.
Buffy's good with a bow and arrow.
Here’s the other Non-Buffy stuff:
Mirror
Other Mirror
Really cute little flower painting.
There’s not a whole lot to say about the rest of these. You may have noticed that the big mirror above wasn’t in the original picture. I moved that other Buffy frame to the bookshelf yesterday. It actually was on the shelf that I completely rearranged as well. I’m pretty happy with how it turned out! You can see the big picture below:
All kinds of stuff.
I framed a sticker of my friend’s art work that I liked. I was really happy when I came across those stickers yesterday. I’ve been waiting to use them for something. There’s another one on another shelf above the couch. (I’ll get to it.) I found that little vase in a thrift store, I’ve had that lantern forever. I think the seashell container came from One World Imports in Saint Paul and the candle from a Feng Shui candle set. (Yes, it’s in it’s proper place… I think…).
Oh! I found a picture of part of that chair. And yes, there are cats on it.
Riku is getting a little too big to fit up there with Spike. Its like when you can't fit in the same chair with your sister anymore because you are both too big. Except I don't think cats care much about that.
Ok, so it’s blurry and you can only see the top of the chair. I was obviously not taking the picture to showcase the chair. There’s lots of stuff on it from the rearranging process. I promise you it is now cleaned off and will hopefully stay that way until the big closet organization project of next week (or the week after, heh..) There’s nothing too special about it. It’s brown, comfy and it rocks. Unless of course you remember my Grandpa Wangler, whose chair this was. That part is kind of special.
So, this is getting kinda long, huh? Well, I just noticed that there are lot of pictures, so no complaining, cuz I’m just going to show you a couple more. K?
I mentioned another shelf. I’m pretty happy with these thrift store finds as well as the other stuff I have either made or found to put this little section of my wall together. Here it is:
Above the couch, between the windows.
I really love that center frame and even the print inside. The glass is domed out, too. <3
I find it no coincidence that sticker fit in the frame perfectly. It was meant to be! Looks pretty rad, too.
The framed mirrors and center ornate frame I found at Unique thrift store. I really scored on that oval ornate piece. I think it was like, $6 or something awesome like that. The framed sticker is artwork from talented friends that you can see here: Bloodtime. I made the TRIFORCE stained glass piece. There’s some of those reeds in lavender oil that keep it smelling pretty nice. I love that little owl. <3 I found him at an antique store in North Saint Paul. I assume the tiny bottles are from thrifting, as well as the little vase.
Alright, I think that is enough for the day! I hope your weekend is full of sunshine and bike rides! I know mine will have at least half of those things. Peace!
While WordPress was down…
I was stumbling through the Internets and landed on an ivilliage.com article about 45 different bedrooms. I then proceeded to check out some other photo galleries of organization ideas (which I desperately need) and curtain ideas (which I’ve been pondering). I will share the bedroom inspirations with you here, since I’ve totally forgotten what it was that I wanted to post about!
Bedroom Inspiration.
Don’t worry, you’ll get nice (if not in quality, then in quantity) pictures of my bedroom and it’s similarity to the sty of a cute little pink piglet. (Really it just looks like my closet exploded, which it may as well have.)
My bedroom is green and so is this one. Awesome.
There is so much I love about this green room! I mean, pretty much everything. I was not brave enough to paint my room lime. I guess I didn’t ever even have the urge to paint it lime, but I admire this person’s courage. (Mine’s more of a mint.) The mixed patters are fabulous and the headboard is divine. WANT.
This pattern makes me happy. --->
I really love the pattern on this headboard! I have seen it a few different places over the past few months (in various bright colors) and have loved it every time. I think the first time I noticed it was on the Absolutely Beautiful Things blog, which is always a huge inspiration to me. You can bet I will find a way to use that pattern somewhere in my bedroom…
These floral patterns really bringing out the girly girl in me!
One wall being different in color or pattern from the other 3 (or more) in a room makes such a great statement and allows you to do so much more with the wall decor. Imagine if you put this floral design on all of the walls… Your shelves, mirrors, art, etc. could get lost in the pattern. While it sometimes makes an even bigger statement, I prefer the “clean slate” of the plain walls in the room for contrast. I have been having a hard time deciding what to do with my big, blank, bedroom wall. This is a beautiful example of what won’t work for me in this apartment, but will hopefully work in the future!
Love, love, LOVE this headboard. <3!
The girliness is coming out again, I guess. This floral pattern and color has me weak in the knees! Again, it won’t work in my current bedroom, but I think I am definitely convinced that floral sheets (and maybe a couple of pillows) are a MUST for my bed. This is progress, folks!
I got too excited.
This is bound to happen. I am going to find really awesome stuff and will HAVE to tell you about it. Then I’ll probably go a week or more without saying anything. Well, it’s my blog so I can do what I want! And I really wanted to post this, because I will not remember in the future if I don’t. K?
I did not know about Chalkboard Contact Paper! I saw a tweet from @Etsy and clicked the link and came upon this: AWESOMENESS.
You bet I'm going to do this!
Anyways, that is all. I’m excited.
