I love a bargain

It's inherited I guess, I love a bargain just like my Momma. And boy were these shoes a bargain. A few days ago A bought himself $11 shoes. He was pretty proud, they are black skate type shoes, not my favorite but fine considering the price and that he has ruined every other pair he owns (renovations!). So I went shopping the next day and found myself a deal. Try $6.71. That is a deal indeed. And I love them. They match a cute little purse I already own, and according to many sources this colour goes with everything! Oh and did I mention lines that go across the foot make narrow feet look less weird? Perfect! I plan on wearing them a lot in the future, especially when it warms up enough to go without socks!

Some Before and Afters

Hallway Before

I mentioned in my post about lighting, that our house was on the market for quite a while before we were able to buy it at a reduced price.  Well, since we moved in we did a few minor updates that I think made a major difference.  

The first was paint!  The house was mostly white, the kids bedrooms and the living room were the only rooms with colour! You can also see in this picture that we replace the doorbell and the lighting.  Just updated everything.  I thought of putting a mirror in the hallway as the previous owners had, but I read that a mirror shouldn't be used when there is no light to reflect.  Well this hallway has NO LIGHT, so instead I used 3 framed pics of the cutest kids ever.  This hallway table needs something pretty on it and something on the wall.  Haven't quite decided what yet.

 Hallway After

So after we painted everything with a fresh coat of subtle neutral colours, we replaced the upstairs doors and door knobs.  Ok, I just said "we" painted, but really, we paid someone to paint.  We painted our last place ourself and it took FOREVER.  So we opted to suck it up and pay a guy who did the whole main floor in 4 days, by himself!  I will probably pint downstairs myself though as it was pricey!  

These doors were a bit of a splurge, just a bit.  But I think they add a lot of character.  I dream of craftsman style bungalows, and these doors say craftsman to me and that makes me happy! 

 We left the closet doors flat just painted them and replacing the knobs.  If that really bugs me later we can always tackle those one at a time.  And the trim.  I would like to replace the casing and make it a bit thicker, but that will also have to wait.  For now, it looks like a new house, and I am very happy with our work.

The wall..revealed

Ok, I feel I mislead you all a bit with the title of the last post, the international was just an Austin Powers reference (International Man of Mystery). It was the first thing that popped into my head and I went with it.
I wonder what that says about my head, hmmmm.
Anyway, here are the pics of the mystery items:

Enough dirt to pot a plantA knife

As I write this Aaron has come to inform me that a goldfish net taped to a paint stir stick was also hidden back there. Apparently they were trying to fish something out, the knife maybe?

Who was the closest? I am not really sure....coffee for everyone!
Call me to arrange a time! Thanks for playing!

The international wall of mystery...

A ripped down a wall today. It is in preparation for the electrical work that is kicking me out of my house for 4 days!! Ok, that is another story!
We found 2 mystery items in the wall. That is, it's a mystery how they got IN the wall. Best guess gets a coffee from me!
We also discovered 2 cables not hooked up to anything, 2 speaker wires that run behind the fireplace, with the gas line, and a n electrical outlet totally behind the paneling. Oh and speaking of paneling... the "bleached oak" paneling that is covered over by crazy plaid wallpaper is actually itself covering over...darker brown paneling! Yep, 2 layers of the ugly stuff, NICE.
Don't forget to post your guesses, contest closes when all (3) of you have guessed, and no later than next week when S is in town so I can actually reward her in person if need be.

Kid clutter anyone?

My 3 monkeys create some major messes, and have a lot of stuff! So here are some places I keep their stuff so our living room looks less like the aftermath of a Toys R Us explosion and more like a place that actually has a floor.

So the key for me is to have a place to hide it! I have 2 vintage make up suitcases, one I inherited from my Grandma, and one my mother in law gave me when she saw what I did with the first one!

One holds baby toys and one holds matchbox cars. They can be toted anywhere, which the kids love! They dump them out, I lock them back up to avoid pinched fingers. Just pile everything back in when the kids are done and slide them under the chairs in the living room when not in use.The next trick is classic, it's the storage ottoman! Specifically, this is the Ektorp Bromma leather ottoman from IKEA. Love that place. I bought rubbermaid tubs to organize the inside, and voila, train storage! I was quite surprised how much of the Island of Sodor fits in there. I may reassess the whole plan as K got more trains for his birthday and they may need to get bumped somewhere else. But basically I put our current obsession in here so it is readily accessible but not always visible.

There you go. My contribution to the taming kid clutter linky party hosted by the Shabby Nest and Pretty Organized Palace. I can't wait to see all the other ideas so I can deal with the clutter in other rooms, like the playroom, oh the playroom!

Defining Style

I keep reading in magazines about all the trends in home decor coming this year.  Style at Home describes them as European Mauves, Belgian Farmhouse, Polychromatic Brights (!), and Industrial Schoolhouse in this year's high/low issue.  As we have recently moved, I see choices on the horizon for everything from a couch, to bathroom fixtures, to flooring.  I would love to have a clear idea of what I want the house to turn out like before I choose things along the way. 

Really, I don't want basic and I don't want a mishmash, so I would like to define my style a bit before we get too far.  Thinking about clothes and how I have thought through my style this last year thanks to some fun blogs (more on that in another post) I have discovered some truths about myself that I think will be useful here. 

 I am not Romantic.  I don't like ruffles or florals on my clothing, and I think we can safely rule it out for the house too.  Even traditional and intricate antiques are a bit too much for me in big doses.

I am not Trendy.  Looking like everyone else is not for me.  I am excited by colour trends though, so I would like to have some flexibility in accent colours.  My house has had some version of blue in it (and a bit of green) since I have had a house of my own.  So keep blue and green in mind.

I like Vintage.  I like un-frilly vintage things.  In my wardrobe I think this means a bit of 30's/40's/50's styling and in my house it means pieces with patina that happily show their age.

I like Natural.  I like being outdoors, I like denim, I like the worn in look.  In the house I like wood, and primitive things, a bit of nature.

I read a lot of country decorating magazines, never the fancy magazines with perfect formal houses!  But when I first got married I was enthralled with modern, minimalist style and everything had to be chrome.

When I saw Style at Home I thought I was all about the Belgian Farmhouse look described as "natural", "clean" and "casual".  Did I mention that everything about us as a family is casual?The mauves are to feminine and the brights make my head hurt.  Then I flipped a few pages and saw the Industrial Schoolhouse spread.  I think I gasped.  It is lovely.  

Described as "retro", "functional, yet clean, simple".  It is the perfect way for my country and modern ideas to meet.  I think it will work well with the classic and caftsman pieces we already have.  It is casual, vintage and natural, and now I just need to get my hands on all the galvanized metal I can find!

Oh, and these pictures are sneak peaks of my new improved mantel.  Remember back here I said I was working on it?  Well I have made progress, but it is not perfect yet!

Linky party coming up

So over at the Shabby Nest and Pretty Organized Palace they are hosting a Linky Party about taming kid clutter on February 4th.  That is precisely what I need, especially after a certain someone's 3rd birthday party today!  

We used to live in a townhouse that had no playroom.  Did I mention that the playroom (aka the bamboo lounge) is my favorite part of this house?  Anyway, we did the 'kids play in the middle of everything' thing for 4 years so I have a few hiding places for toys.

Here is a quick teaser of what I am going to post for the party!

Hmmm, I wonder what's in here?  Ok no cheating, since 2 of the 3 people who read this blog have been to my house!

I am also hoping to get some ideas on what to do with kids artwork and books.  We don't have a good system for storing books yet in this house.  So in short I can't wait for the party!  I love a good party don't you?