At long last

Well, it's about that time. I've taken dozens of pictures of my new place to get them just the way I want them and it's finally time to post. It's taken me so long because I kept adding new stuff and rearranging and I wanted the pictures to be just perfect. Thing is, I can't seem to get the pics to capture its true essence. So, I've decided that you all must come to visit to see it in it's true glory. For the first time in 8 years of marriage I've finally been able to decorate to my true style with everything that I personally picked out and I couldn't be happier with the way it turned out--for now at least. I do have some mean ideas for paint once we buy a house.

Let's start the tour, oh and don't expect any master bedroom pics because it, as usual, still needs a lot of TLC.

Walking through the front door you will see this to your right.

And to the left

This is a small version of what I had in my massive hallway in Seattle. Sorry, not everyone is represented here, I promise you will be once we have a bigger place. (Especially Tim and Allie--I still love you). My bedroom door is just to the right of these pictures, but again, you will not be seeing that today.

Straight ahead you will see my living room, dining room and to the right the small hallway to the main bathroom and two bedrooms.

If you walked into my living room you would see this

If you decided not to walk into the living room and went straight you would be in my dining room

Once there you could go straight out the back door or turn left to be in the kitchen

Not too exciting, I realize. It's got gold knobs and ugly floors and the counters are hunter green. blagh! But I did make this valance to make the space a little cuter

Leaving the kitchen, the view of my living room would look like this

So, let's talk about what you've seen so far:

• I got the couches, chair and two ottomans at an amazing price of $500. They are La-Z-Boy brand from Ethan Allen. My sister's boss was helping his brother-in-law clean out a vacation home that he sold and asked her boss if he could get rid of this furniture "today" and if he could he would sell it for $500 (he orginally paid $4000--and this is from a vacation home so the stuff was barely sat on). My sister's boss remembered hearing my sister say that we were moving from Seattle and had to get rid of pretty much everything and he thought of us. AMAZING, right??
• I was dying for some orange curtains and I couldn't find any anywhere so I made these from some fabric I fell in love with. I made the floor length living room ones and the dining and kitchen valances--all backed with muslin-- for under $50.
• I searched endlessly on Craigslist for a floor lamp and finally came across a lady that was selling two floor lamps and two table lamps for $45. (the cheapest floor lamp I found was through WalMart for $30). The lady lived over an hour south of me so I offered to pay her $50 if she would meet my husband in Nashville. It turned out that she had a doctor's appointment four miles from his work in seven days and she agreed to hold them for me till then. AMAZING, right?
• The lamp shades I picked up new from WalMart for $14 each to which I added the ribbon trim to match my decor.
• The end tables are one of the few things I bought new. They are from Pier One and were on sale for $100 each.
• The pillows on the couch and loveseat I made from dish towels from the Orla Kiely line that Target carried in February of this year. I bought the brown set in the store for $10 (with a birthday gift card) and I bought the blue flowered set off ebay since moving here (we won't discuss how much I spent on them--I HAD TO HAVE THEM!!)
• I finally got my three clocks that I've been wanting since I saw them at a friends house nearly three years ago (thanks, Sally!)
• The table and chairs were also found on Craigslist and after three hours of driving and $300 they were mine. I have plans to paint them black with some red distressing. I can't wait.
• The little orange table in the dining room I picked up at a yard sale for $8 and I painted it orange. The box that it holds on the bottom self is also from Orla Kiely and is pretty much what started it all. I LOVE IT!

Back to the tour

Down that little hallway you'll find the girls' bathroom

It basically looks the same as before, but because it has no medicine cabinet and practically no cabinet space, I used this produce basket/holder that I've held onto since college to store barrettes, wash clothes and extra TP.

In this little hallway you will also find our office/guest room

You might recognize this quilt. It's the lovely one I won on a blog a while back. YAY me! I'm so excited to finally use it. This room is still a work in progress. I hope to get a little nightstand soon. I have a lamp ready to put on it. I have no idea what to do for curtains. My sister gave us the the bed frame, we got the box spring at a yard sale for $5 and later the mattress at a yard sale for $15. (Don't be grossed out, it was still in plastic and in great condition and we used a lot Febreze and Lysol). The sheets are brand new.

On the opposite side of the bed is our GIANT desk

This also came from Craigslist for only $30. It's HUGE, so Earl and I both have a side and matching black chairs that my sister gave me (Both aren't pictured here, because one is currently being used by a scarecrow on the front porch).

I love my little craft area and my super cool scrapbook paper holder

I should probably actually work on some crafts...

Lastly, the girls room. It also looks much like it did before we moved, however, this room is nearly twice the size and has a huge walk-in closet. With three girls' worth of clothes this is really a blessing.

We bought this table and chair set at IKEA before we left Seattle. My sister gave us all the cute flower pics.

Here's the window in their room> It was a different size than the one before, so I had to add the bottom striped section. I had JUST enough fabric to make it the right length that I couldn't even hem it. I had to apply clear finger nail polish to the edge so it wouldn't fray!

So, if you leave the little hallway and head back the way you came you will be a my living room again

It's cute from this angle too, huh?

I hope you enjoyed your little tour and feel even more excited now to come for a visit. We have that little twin bed, an air mattress and the couches are real comfy! If we can't find a spot for you inside, bring a tent and camp out on the backyard. We would seriously LOVE to have you.

SEE YOU SOON!