Here She is...

All cozy in her new home!

When I bought the old couch brand new, it was so pretty!

But then, two little doggies decided to take it over.  It also was way too small for the space and didn't quite give that vintage look I was hoping for.  What can I say, I didn't plan that over so well.

To save the old couch from our destructive babies, we invested in a couch cover.

But, that only became a magnet for white doggie hairs.  I was cleaning the thing every week!

Rules with the new couch...No Doggies Allowed!  As you can see, Fatty was not too thrilled about this.

With the new couch came a new layout for the living room.

We finally feeling like we have the cozy living room we were dreaming of!

Sale, Sale, SALE!

On my birthday (So far, 30 isn't so bad), Clint and I decided to go out to dinner.  After dinner, I talked him into letting me wander through Kate Spade, in our local mall.  After Clint watched me hug every purse in the store, we happened to walk past Crate and Barrel.  Then it happened....

First off, let me explain before I go any further.  Our couch we have now is the pits.  Our furry babies have destroyed the poor thing to the point of no return.  So, for awhile now, we have been wanting a new couch.  I am talking about 2 years.  But who can afford the darn things??  We have been in love with this sectional from West Elm for a very............. long time.  The fabric, the wooden legs, the style.  It was perfect and nothing compared to it!  Well almost perfect.  With a price tag of $2,400, this sectional was out of our range.  

Ok, back to where I was after Clint had to drag me out of Kate Spade....As I stared into Crate and Barrel, I saw the most perfect sectional ever!  

I apologize for the photographs.  They are from my phone.

I quickly ran over to sit on it!  We couldn't believe we found a match to our dream sectional! 

Ok, anyone else seeing that table in the background?  I pretty much had to walk through the rest of the store with horse blinders.

We found a sales associate and asked our millions of questions.  Then she showed us this.

!!!!  Ok, let me first off explain.  This is the Delaney Sectional at Crate and Barrel that is no longer sold there.  So, this price is for the floor sample, as is.  If we were to purchase this couch new, it would be close to $3,000.

We all examined the couch to make sure there were not rips, stains, etc.  The only problem we could find were a couple small scratches on the wood legs, but nothing that we couldn't touch up on our own.

With that, we found our new (And hopefully will last 10 years) couch!!  She will be arriving on July 9th and we cannot wait!  Hooray for Crate and Barrels awesome sale falling on my birthday!

Happy 4th of July!

Color is Good

How many of you were taught that ceilings were always suppose to be painted white?  I was one of these people.  Any time I saw color on the ceilings, it made me cringe.  I feared it.  Well, last weekend, I thought outside the box. 

In our 60+ year old home, we have some of the most gorgeous ceilings!  Just take a look for yourself.

The dining room

The living room

Where most ceilings curve, ours has one more detail, of a square in the middle that drops down about a 1/4-1/2 inch.  When I first moved in 3 1/2 years ago, I painted the coffee color on the walls and white ceilings.  I loved the color and contrast, but the rooms felt like they were missing something.  Then it dawned on me.

Yep!  I added a little color to the curve.  Vanilla Delight by Behr, to be exact.  Just a small change.

It was just what the doctor ordered!  Instantly, the ceiling detail was shown off and the room felt taller. 

But I did not stop there!

I had also extended the coffee color into the entry way, when I moved in.  It was ok, but dark.

 We found that we were using the over head light, during the day!

So, Vanilla Delight was spread into this space as well.

Now the space feels open and less dark and cramped.

Now, I see the potential color can have on ceilings.  As Martha would say, "It's a good thing."

Perfect Match with a Little Help from Dora!

A couple years ago, we found this adorable coffee table for our living room.  Just $50 big ones at Pier 1!

We also bought this side table for $50 from Pier 1 to put next to our chair.

Even though I just LOVE this side table, my lovely kitty, Dora, did also.  So much so that she used it to stand on while bird watching out the window.  Twice, she had tipped the table from jumping off of it.  Luckily, the glass did not break. 

That is when we knew we needed another solution.  Something that when it fell over, couldn't break.

Enter, perfect side table from Urban Outfitters...

It matches perfectly to our coffee table!  Right down to the feet!

Dora approves also.

 

The birdie side table was moved next to our couch. 

Don't you just love the perfect finds?

Living Room Plan

My living room has the winter blahs.  Actually, it has been blah for a long time.  Poor Living Room...she has been neglected for too long. 

This is how she looks right now.

Not very exciting.  

Things I love about the room...

The ceilings

The doorways and wall color

The fireplace and hardwood floors

It needs a splash of color.  For months, we have been trying to find something to inspire us.  Then it happened! 

All the furniture in the room will have to stay.  I also love the mirror above the fireplace and the curtains.

So here is my first attempt at a mood board for the living room:

1. CB2 – Teardrop Diamond Hanging Vases - I plan to buy about 5 of these to hang above the area where the TV is.  Don't ask me how yet (suggestions?).  Bonus-This gives me an excuse to buy fresh flowers more often. :-)

2. Ikea - JONSBO ORÖD Table Lamp Base - I plan to put this lamp shade near the couch with the green lamp shade that is already on a lamp we have.

3. CB2 – Nash Floor Lamp - We really need a new floor lamp.  The one we have now is very cheap, small, and boring.  I have been hiding it behind our green chair.  The square shade is what drew us in to this one.

4. CB2 - Citrus Vases - As soon as we saw these vases, we knew we had to fit them in some how!  These would look great on our book shelves to the left of the TV.

5. Inhabit Living– Reef in Plum Pillow - I just love Inhabit Livings pillows!  They never let me down!  We already have 2 pillows from Inhabit Living on our sofa that usually go in the breeze way.  These should make the couch less boring!

6. cb2 - Hour/15 Minute Glasses - After we found the Citrus Vases, I knew I had to have the hour glass!  These will dress up the book shelves as well.

7. West Elm - Recycled-Glass Vases - I love, love, LOVE clear glass vases!  I am thinking of using the bud vases to line up on the book shelves with more fresh flowers. Maybe even on the fire place.

8. Crate and Barrel – Delano Tray - We have a small storage ottoman that we use to store blankets.  I thought setting the tray on top would give us an area to put magazines or books that we like to read out there.

9. Flor – Toe the Line Carpet Squares - Finally!  The piece that made it all possible!!  The idea of carpet squares for us, just works.  With 5 pets, cleaning and vacuuming becomes your life.  Being able to clean a square is more appealing than cleaning a whole rug.  I created this rug using the Design Your Flor tool on Flor.  It took me months, but it finally came together and gave me the color we so need in here.

 We love the idea of adding vintage with contempory elements.  Within the next few months, we hope to have the room put together and updated photographs!