And Here We Go!

Has everyone been entering for their chance to win HGTV's 2009 Green Home? If I win, I promise to let everyone come visit.

It's funny that I was talking about redoing our bedroom because Matt came up to me the other day and said he thinks we need to work on it. I took that as him giving me his consent to spend our money on things. So I went out and bought these. We want to lighten up the room (you paint one wall of a tiny room chocolate brown and the room suddenly shrinks in size - who knew) and make it look more open so I bought the Dune color. I thought those curtains were a steal. I saw them in the store and the quality is impressive for the price. In store they were $29.99 a panel so I ordered them off the website for $22.99 and got an extra 15% off the sale price. I ended up paying $99 after shipping. I didn't think that was bad for curtains.

And yes, I know that I'm supposed to be anti spending money right now, but give me a break. Sometimes a girl just needs to shop for curtains. I was going to alter the ones we have, but I want the room to look luxurious and grownup. My crafting skills do not embody those two adjectives. Plus, I want the room to have style. I'm finding that hard to do since I really have none. I've been looking around at some websites and I think I want to go for a sort of loose interpretation of "mid-century modern" with really clean lines and geometric shapes. We'll see how far I get with that before I get all "polka dots and stripes WHEE!" on this project.

Check out this Mid-Century Modern group on Flickr. There is some awesome stuff in there. Obviously, since I have no knowledge of interior design history, our bedroom might end up looking nothing like those pictures and could be better described by some other decorating period. What came after mid-century modern? Later-century modern? Pre-acid-trip mod? I don't know...

Next!

I think I'm going to spend Saturday finishing up on the chairs that I'm redoing and moving around some furniture.

Thrilling. I know.

The chairs have become a home project of epic proportions. They cost me $4 and weeks and weeks worth of brain melting snags. But they're looking pretty cool. Hopefully, it will all be worth it when my butt is sitting on them Sunday morning.

And then I'm leaving the living room behind and moving onto the bedroom. In our bedroom we have exactly:

one bed
one night stand
one lamp
one entertainment center
five Beatles pictures on the walls.

Some of the trim is white, some of it's brown. The rug is awful. The room needs help. My biggest issue with it is that it feels really dark. And the furniture in there doesn't really make sense. Our nightstand is a side table from the living room, and the entertainment stand is a night stand. Why? Why is that? I want to shuffle around some things between the bedroom and the living room.

And then I will magically make the room fantastic in the following 8 steps:

1. Paint everything brown, white. The biggest thing that bugs me about that room is that I painted the trim around the closet white (the old owners painted it beige for some reason) and then then left the closet door in it's original, ugly, wood veneered state. I'd like to paint it white.

2. Then I'd like to paint a couple of really wide white stripes across the wall behind our bed. The wall is a powder blue color so I think it will look nice.

3. Then I want to buy a headboard. It's the most uncheap step of the plan, but oh how I want that headboard.



4. Buy a couple of cheap used tables, paint them white and turn them into night stands. Buy a second lamp that goes with the first one.

5. Get a new rug. Preferable a shaggy, soft one that will treat me well when I step out of bed in the morning. Target has one for something like $40.

6. Figure out how crown moulding works. Probably call my dad a million times for help and power tools.

7. Rearrange the Beatles mania. Maybe cut back on it a little.

8. Lengthen the curtains with some white and blue polka dot fabric that I bought and then never used.

I'm sure no one really cares about the list. Really, I understand that. I'm a glutton for lists though. Thanks for reading it.

For Real?

You know what's annoying?

I've had two people come to me this month and tell me that they want websites that look like The Office TV show's website. Whatever, it's a fun site. That's not the annoying part.

The annoying part is that Matt and I avoid all things Office and wait until the DVDs come out so we can sit in front of the TV - like a couple of losers - and watch the seasons all in one sitting. It's so much more satisfying that way. During the TV season we avoid it at all costs. We plug our ears and humm through the commercials. We leave the room when our friends talk about it. I fast forwarded through clips during the Emmys. I've stopped reading peoples' blogs who talk about it.

And now, after all that effort, I'm forced to view their site for my job.

Bastards.

The hands-off approach to saving

Clark Howard: The hands-off approach to saving

Wonderful article about the over-spending habits of Americans and simple steps to curbing our impulsive shopping.

Easy Recipe: Homemade Chicken Pot Pie

I made this last night. It was really, really easy. And delicious. I didn't take a picture of it because you probably wouldn't want to make it if I had. Beige colored food does not photograph well.

Homemade Chicken Pot Pie

Package of 2 refrigerated pie shells
12 oz. bag of frozen mixed vegetables
1 pound of chicken
1/2 an onion
Small can of mushrooms
Can of cream of mushroom soup (or whatever kind you want)
Can of turkey gravy
Garlic
Salt and pepper
Cheese (if you so desire)

Cut the chicken into strips and season it however you'd like. I sprinkled mine with Lawry's and chicken seasoning. Creative, I know... Boil it in water for 5-10 minutes (until it's white inside) and shred. Throw it in a pot with the veggies, mushrooms, onion, gravy and soup. Cook over medium heat (you're really just warming it up before it goes in the oven). Add garlic, salt and pepper to taste. It actually needs a decent amount of salt. I never add salt to anything I cook but I thought this recipe definitely needed a sprinkle. I think I also threw in some bay leaf and worshishtershirerer worcestershire for some extra help.

Press the first pie shell in the bottom of a pie pan. Add the filling. Cover it with cheese if you choose to. Press the second pie shell down over the top and trim off excess if there is any. Pop it in the oven at 425° for 20-25 minutes or until the top turns a nice golden color. You can also brush the top with a little melted butter before sticking it in the oven to give it a nicer color.

Easy. Delicious. What else can you ask for?

On a side note... Can you believe how expensive meat is? It's outrageous! Why is chicken so expensive? They're rotten little birds that are born by the dozen. Farmers should be giving them away for free! I often make several vegetarian meals a week because grocery shopping is insane otherwise. We tried to buy a hunk of roast beef for Easter dinner and a 5 pounder was nearly $20.

For beef?

In Nebraska?

Is that a joke?

From My Inbox to You

I was ranting the other day about not being able to find practical and cost effective ideas to use around the house. Here are a couple of things I've found that have a few good budget friendly tips. Bonus points for these also being "green" ideas.

I somehow got signed up for an email newsletter from DIY Network a few weeks ago. I've actually started reading it now and it's pretty cool. It's full of DIY tips (obviously), green products, budget friendly ideas, and on and on. It's great to click through their site and find all kinds of easy and cheap tips for around the house.

From DIY Network I found Ecologue. Ecologue is where I am going to spend the majority of my afternoon I'm afraid. It looks like most of the articles are compiled from other sources like HGTV and DIY network. It's great that everything is all in one place where it's easy to find and reference. Right now I'm loving Going Compostal! I've always wanted to start a compost pile.

Check out their Crafty Recycling tips. There are a few really cute decorating ideas in there for little money. I really like the tips for reusing cans in Can the Clutter but I think I would give my husband a nervous breakdown if I put any of that stuff in our house. His biggest phobia is cutting himself on the edge of a cut can. I would have to buy one of these.

My Issue With Home Decorating Recources

I love to read home decorating blogs but I'm becoming increasingly annoyed with them. First off, home bloggers and magazine editors must think that everyone lives in an architecturally stunning home. I do not have twelve foot ceilings. I do not have 100 year old wood floors. I to not have a patio that overlooks hills and mountains, nor do I have columns or archways.

I have this:




This is a home. This is what the vast majority of Americans live in. Houses. Average, everyday, affordable to the other 95% of us, houses. Of course I wish I was living in something Frank Lloyd Wright designed or a townhouse on Park Avenue, but let's get real. I'm 25, recently married, and a first-time home owner. I do not have the resources to afford such a home.

This lady knows what I'm talking about.

Which brings me to my second issue. Money. I want to have a great, personal looking house but I don't want to spend thousands of dollars on furnishings. If I had thousands of dollars to spend I'd make major home renovations, not buy some crazy ass sofa that my dog or morning coffee spills are going to ruin. I love good deals and cheap crap. I think it's possible to make a lovely home with next to no budget but it's hard to find the resources sometimes. And yes, that $300 lamp on sale for $99 might be a steal, but it's still $99. I want to make my own lamp with fabric scraps and $4 in supplies. But I need someone to show me how!!!

You know one person who really gets what I'm talking about? Martha Stewart. Martha gets it sometimes. I just read on her website how to create a faux wood looking table using paint and some weird roller brush. YES! Cheap! Awesome! Creative! Leave it to one of the richest women in the world to show us how to pinch pennies in style.

That's why she's Martha.

I'm trying to come up with some of my own ideas and plans for cheapo home decorating. I bought all the furniture and big stuff I can afford and now I want to make the room look full and cheery and personal without spending an arm and a leg that I don't currently have. This is a recession people. And I am certainly recessing with the frivolous spending in my life. Starting with this. I will not buy that. Even though it's on sale for $199, it's still $199. Maybe Martha can show me how to weave my own peace sign rug with old unraveled sweaters.