
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Pool Table Area is Coming Together

Thursday, May 28, 2009
The Red MUST Go
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
I love West Elm.... Hate Ikea
Honestly - we're thinking of exchanging the Harry chairs for the next level up. We've just been sitting on them and they're not that comfortable. Another $30 per chair and it's more comfortable and come on - $120 for FOUR more comfortable chairs doesn't seem that high a price to pay - thoughts?
If this is the case.... I want to know if I can take them back assembled and then get the others. Hmmmmm.
P.S. While i'm very proud of West Elm for already having the lamp here... they still haven't picked up the other one yet. It's been on our front porch since Tuesday morning...
P.S.S. "Superior" Granite and Stone finally sent a check today. Thanks assholes.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
A Few Updates
- We went to Atlantic Station and bought most of the stuff for the dining room.
- Devon helped/saved us/met us there and came over and hung out.
- West Elm gave me the wrong lamp... they said i'd have the right lamp by Wednesday.
- Ikea didn't give me a cover to one of the chairs... they said someone would CALL me by Wednesday and they weren't sure when i'd get it. If I don't have it by Thursday - i'm going back. Blah.
- So far I think i'm loving how it's looking - but it's hard to tell with the light not up, no decorations in, the walls still red, etc.
- That's about it for now - have LOTS to do this week - can't wait though!
Monday, May 25, 2009
Dining Room Help!

So I came up with this board yesterday... all day yesterday going back and forth, undecided. I think I really like the idea of mixing up dark wood and birch - kind of a earthy feel but still matches with the house. I want to:
- paint the room the color of the rest of the house
- have a rectangular dining table with 4 white chairs and the two woven chairs on each end (they're bigger/taller than the white ones).
- I want to have one birch side table with a lamp, clear vases and green buds on it
- I want to have one piece of art over the console - we liked this one.
- Other than that - I want a pendant hanging over the table - i've been eying this one at Ikea for a while.
- Lastly, I plan to do a cluster of mirrors on a different wall - but I haven't found them yet. I'm thinking homegoods or TJ for that.
So what do you think? Love it? Hate it? Also - do you like this lamp? Austin liked the one on bottom better. What do you think?
Sunday, May 24, 2009
My Happy Office


So does Reuben...


What you're not seeing is the wall to the left of the window! I plan to paint a shutter white and stick black/white photos in it. I want to hang it vertically. I actually started painting it, but need to go get gray primer. You're also not seeing the wall to the right - it's a small wall because there is a closet on the end. There is a white 3-drawer chest from Ikea on it, and it will soon have a TV on it. I haven't gotten it yet because right now I have a 22" w/a built-in DVD player in the kitchen because they wouldn't put cable in. Now they're saying they may be able to, so Austin said to wait before buying a TV because we could just stick that one in my office and get a TV w/out a built-in DVD player for the kitchen!
This room is ALL ikea - from the curtains/rods to the light fixture and lamp. Aside from the shutter and TV, I still need to:
- buy a pillow for the lazy chair
- finish organizing my stuff (it's in boxes but not how I want it yet)
- decide if I like how things are set up (i'm not crazy about the books. I worry it looks messy)
I'm thinking about buying this pillow - what do you think? Any advice or thoughts on the room?
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Nope...
On another note - I have lots more to do at home but regardless I am taking pictures today! Promises!!!
Thursday, May 14, 2009
I Hate Being Dodged
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
A New Roof
Long story short, we're getting a new roof! Austin's mom suggested we get designer shingles. Basically, they're less matte and more layered - they add texture if you will. Austin met with the insurance adjuster today and the roofing guy and it looks like we'll have a new roof + designer shingles very soon, at potentially no cost! We'll see. :)
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Must Take Photogs
Monday, May 11, 2009
We Settled
Most importantly - I don't want to talk about it anymore (I know, shocker) because I want to ENJOY it. We love it - we do. It's what we were looking for and, at the end of the day, it looks great!!
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Friday, May 8, 2009
I Hate Contractors
- The installers get there and tell us, in so many words, they're likely going to damage our backsplash upon removal of the countertops. What?! That's why we didn't do it ourselves - we're paying you to do it.... what?! They're like, "we just don't know until we get in there and see. Things happen." Um, seriously? Long story short: Austin calls, raises hell, they agree to fix it if it's damaged. Result: no damages/no problem!
- The installed have laid down the countertops and see the 1/2" gap between the top of the countertops and where the tile begins. I knew about this gap, and was told the "grout joint" would be filled with grout to bridge the gap. The installers apparently weren't told they would need to do this. They asked me what we were planning on doing with it... I said um, what are YOU planning on doing with it? They had no idea... Long story short: I called, raised hell, they agreed to fix it. Result: the guy headed out to Home Depot, bought it, put it in, it looks great/no problem!
- They went to drill the holes and it was just wrong. Not right AT ALL. I couldn't figure out why it wouldn't line up with faucet in center, then operator, soap, sprayer to right.... they worked it out and put faucet in center... but then operator to left and soap to the left of it then sprayer on the far right. It just wasn't right... it plagued me. Later I realized THEY PUT THE SINK IN BACKWARDS. The big side should be on the left/small side on the right so the faucet, operator, soap and sprayer could line up down the right. O. M. G. I was so upset. I double-checked my emails and everything and I requested big on left/small on right. Long story short: I called, raised hell, they're figuring out how to go about it. She DID confirm that her notes had small side on left AND the templater's notes that I signed had small side on left so she "doesn't know what happened." Result: TBD.
At this point... i'm like come fix it. Come template, cut another slab, bring it out here, buy more grout, uninstall the sink, readhere, reinstall, etc. AND pay our plumber $225 to come BACK out OR give us $. Just give us $ and i'll deal with it. How much $? I can't decide. I would have rather they just done the job right the first time, you know? This is THE biggest slab, and the most complicated slab because of the sink break. It's definitely going to cost them the most to replace... and then of course 2 trips, paying the plumber, etc. I personally think they should give us $1,000. haha For real - i'll start buying stainless appliances!!! :) We'll see....
P.S. In all honesty, at the end of the day, it really looks good. It DOES. I just can't enjoy it until i'm compensated or until it's fixed.... AAARRRRGGGGGHHHH. They've sucked all of the fun out of this for me! :(
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Granite TOMORROW
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Interesting!
Monday, May 4, 2009
Just hired a Plumber
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Loving the Orange Guest Room!


Saturday, May 2, 2009
We'll Have Granite Thursday!
As far as this coming week - the big things I want to get to are finishing up the patio furniture (still have 3 chairs to put together and the table), finishing up Austin's office (it's in really bad shape!) and hanging the pool table light (it makes me nervous on the floor and it's just in the way you know? Other than that, it will just be little stuff!
Thursday, April 30, 2009
The 2nd Guest Room is Coming Together




Hope you like it! I love the bedding and lamp - and that little night stand is making me happy $50 later - woo! I'm also loving the shabby chic dresser with the linen runner - thanks for the mirror, Dev! I still need to:
- put pictures in the frames
- Borrow the black wicker chair from mom for the corner (will get this weekend!)
- Get a pillow for the chair and hang our framed wedding invitation over it (thinking a white pillow to brighten up the corner)
- Get our 'guest book' put on wooden backers so I can hang it on the wall by the bed (unless it's too big - in which case it will go somewhere else!)
- Get a new ceiling light - still deciding between a fan, normal light or pendant light!
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Our Granite Templater comes TOMORROW

Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Not too much news...
Other than that he's finishing up the patio chairs. I just cooked and enjoyed the new tv/dvd player in there! And I hung a lot of the stuff in his den and contemplated ironing all of the curtains but it didn't happen. haha
That's about it. The house is definitely starting to feel more like ours. More lived in and comfortable and I can feel myself getting in a groove- yay!!
Monday, April 27, 2009
Let There be TVs
We stopped by the house, set up the TVs, ate a quick lunch and confirmed that the screws don't work. ARGH. By then it was 5 p.m. and Mon/Andy were coming by to get boxes/see the house so we put Kroger/trip back to Lowe's on hold and did some more stuff at the house - I worked on my office more, and Austin worked on his den more. Then Mon/Andy texted that they were running late, so I headed over to Kroger and had the hardest time. First, the pharmacy had just closed. KNEW I should have gone earlier. Then, I couldn't find ANYTHING - it was crazy - new stores are hard. :( I headed back home and walked in 60 seconds before Andy/Mon! So good to have them over though - they're moving this coming weekend!! Yay!!!
Once they headed out work on the house came to a screeching halt. We ate. Watched our favorite - Law & Order - and I succombed to a benadryl-induced slumber. Don't know what's on the agenda tonight but I do know that they's not much left to do - woo!
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Ikea Failed Me
- I got to Ikea at 8 p.m. to get box 2 of 2 of my bookcase that I didn't get Friday.
- I had already paid for it. I even called ahead to ensure they had it and to figure out how best to go about it.
- I left 1.5 hours later without it, but with a $30 giftcard and a waived next-day delivery and will have it between "4 and 8 p.m." tomorrow.
- I hate having to be a bitch but it was one of the most frustrating, unorganized, inefficient, situations i've ever been in. Not cool.
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Gotta Go Back to Ikea...
#1 I got the black floor lamp instead of the silver one. I've actually decided to keep the black though.
#2 I got the white 3-drawer chest instead of the birch one. I've decided to keep it though and think i'll like it much better! (I originally wanted white but it didn't look cute online - it does in person though!
#3 I only got 2 legs for the desk. Der! I thought they came in packs of two so I got two packs... but quickly realized that wasn't going to cut it.
#4 I only got 1 of 2 boxes for the Ikea Expedit bookshelf. I have the exterior pieces and the hardware... i'm missing all of the interior pieces...
So yes -i'm going back to get the other Ikea box for the bookshelf and 2 desk legs. And yes, I feel like an idiot....
I will say the room is coming along great! We put together the desk chair, visitor chair, lounge chair/foot stool, lamp and dresser. I've put together half of the orange/white boxes and i've put legs on half of the desk. It's looking super cute!
Friday, April 24, 2009
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Our Entryway is Complete!
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LOVE the entryway!! Me and Devie found that piece at Ballard's on major clearance - woo! And I love the Restoration Hardware lamp Austin's mom gave us! We were originally going to do a coat rack here and i'm still thinking about it. The one at Pier 1 was $100 and the closest store that had it in stock was in a city i'd never even heard of 45 minutes away. However, I found this one on Ikea for only $30. What do you think?
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Our Bedroom is Done, too!
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Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Our Living Room is Done!!!





Monday, April 20, 2009
Go Big or Go Home: Getting it DONE
Kitchen/Seating Area/Den
Bought new hardware and installed it. yay Austin!!
Chose granite for the countertops. Love it - tan brown
Put together 4 chairs for the seating area; bought pillows/throws for chairs
Put together a coffee table (then disassembled and returned it – too big!)
Put up curtains for the back French doors. love them!
Hung a valance over the sink. so cute!
Bought rugs for kitchen area. still deciding on!
Hung the Wrought Iron M over the fireplace
Moved the armoire into the pool table area - looks so good!
Hung a key rack by the door
Bought a piece of art for over the bistro table - love it!
Entryway
Bought a piece of furniture - small black console
Hung a picture over it, set a lamp by it and chose a ‘catch all’ white bowl from my china
Bought a glass case and set up a neat floral arrangement in it; hung art by it
Half Bath
Bought a rug - looks great!
Bought a toilet paper holder
Living Room
New couch was delivered/set up - LOVE it.
Bought two leather club chairs - LOVE THEM.
Moved new console in - i'm obsessed with this room.
Hung large iron piece over couch
Bought large glass jugs and set up the area with vase filler and sand - looks SO good!
Bought 3 pillows for chairs/bench and a throw
Bought new coasters, tray and jar for the coffee table
Bought curtains/curtain rods
Bought a new floor lamp - SO cool!
Master Bedroom
Bought a floor mirror - swoon. It's awesome.
Put two new chairs in - they blend so well - although we have TONS of seating!
Bought a console cubby system and put it together with 4 new cube baskets - eeee a biatch to put together but it looks fabulous!
Bought décor items for the birch sleeves and console (vase filler, candle sticks, etc.) Devon did an AMAZING job putting this area together - love it
Bought curtains/curtain rods
Master Bath
Set up new stool for vanity
Bought closet organizers and set them up - so much easier to use now!
Guest Room #1
Bought bed
Set up bed frame/headboard/bedding - i just love this room. Love it!
Bought fan & installed it - the fan looks GREAT!
Bought curtain & rod
Bought mirror
Guest Room #2
Bought bed (will be delivered on Sunday)
Set up bed frame
Bought headboard - so cute!
Set up dresser - loving the ivory and how it's all turning out!
Bought Curtain/rod
Bought side table & lamp
Guest Bath
Set up shower curtain/lamp/rugs/etc.
Installed new hardware
xBox Room
Moved couch upstairs and put in console - Austin's space is starting to look GOOD! I know he's excited.
Bought a coffee table
Have art ready to hang
OUTDOOR
Bought 2 sets of patio furniture (set up one)
Bought pillows for the furniture - love the pillows/love the conversation set. Can't wait to see it all together!
Notice what’s missing? The office and the scrapbook room! They have lots of work… I can’t decide on a color scheme for the scrapbook room and the office has become a catch all – eek! And of course there's lots of things left to do in each of these rooms (hang curtains, etc.) but MY GOSH did it come together quick and me and Austin couldn't be more thrilled with the restults. We LOVE IT - and are so grateful to have Devon and Mom spend the weekend with us and lend their time and expertise. We're some lucky new homeowners. :)
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Granite Update - and More!
Then I got the updated quote... first, she didn't line item out the island so it was A LOT (the island is about 9 square feet alone) and then the square foot price jumped up $4/foot for the tan brown. What? She said they cost the same. So... I wrote her back and hope to have an update tomorrow. I just can't decide about the island - I think I want to leave it as is... what do you think?
Other than that me and Austin:
- put together 2 dolce chairs
- put together a coffee table
- set up the seating area... can't decide if we like it - need help!
- installed a fan in the guest room (but don't have special bulbs so we couldn't put the light on)
- cleaned both bathrooms and did a load of laundry
- hung the M over the mantle and measured it for a TV
- hung the key rack thing by the door
- put together two bed frames
- installed the headboard and attached it to a bed frame in one of the guest rooms (love it!)
- made a new recipe (Sausage Rotini Pasta - LOVED IT!)
- found out that Reuben can get out of the backyard - eek!
Another great day! We're just plowing through this stuff - it's fun! I even made the coffee table by myself - woo!
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Granite People are Coming Tomorrow Afternooon!
- Bought patio furniture (a conversation set and a dining set)
- Bought bathroom organizers (drawers and tubs) and organized it
- Bought light bulbs for the track lighting, seating area chandelier and half bath lighting (and installed)
- Put the cabinet pulls on - love them!
- Tried to put the drawer pulls on (didn't work though - need longer screws AND a way to fill some holes... hmmm)
- Checked the mail and brought up the trash - so fun!
- Bought a fan for the guest room
Busy day - lots of stuff done though - woo!
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
I Want Granite... and I Want it Now!
I asked for a quote on:
- 37 square feet of baltic brown granite with eased edges.
- A stainless steel undermount sink - one bowl
- Installation of sink
- Removal of countertops (only if they think we'll mess up the backsplash - otherwise we'll do it)
- No seams! No counter backspash! 3 cm. thick
Here's some photos of the granite I love and of a kitchen I found online that has the granite installed in a white kitchen - LOVE! My dream kitchen is getting closer and closer!

Monday, April 13, 2009
Dev Made Her First Visit Post-Purchase
Sunday, April 12, 2009
We're In!
- The move was quoted at 3 hours. It took 3 hours for them to LOAD - alas, it took 5 hours. But it's all good - whatever!
- I got TONS done the first day - worked non-stop and finished up A LOT.
- Austin went to get our taxes done - we get our stiumulus in TWO WEEKS not next year. Oh my - this changes everything! Why? Because we closed on March 31 - the LAST day for you to get it this year - crazy!
- It's looking great but we're having a hard time figuring out where to put stuff - boo.
- The seating area didn't work out - the bench just looks odd there. We decided instead to get 2 more dolce chairs (we love them!) and a coffee table. We ordered them tonight!
- My bathroom is great but it needs a chair for the cubby. A chair seemed to clutter it - like the back of it and stuff, so I ordered a rattan cube (with a storage spot) so I could put my blowdryer/flat iron in it - I heart hidden storage!
- We ended up putting the chaise upstairs in the bedroom. Now I feel like the bench needs to be reupholstered... and we need new Euros... and we need a floor mirror.... and 2 night stands... the master needs lots of work! haha
- Austin's parents brought us lots of stuff - including some cool lamps and a ladder - woo! Saved us $100 off the top!
- Cable was installed today. It took forever and the guy made mistakes at every turn. AND he wouldn't install the jack in my scrapbook room or in the kitchen - said we need to get professionals to come out. Argh.
- Austin told me to go ahead and order the couch, too - so I did!
I think that's it for now - pics to come!


















