Sweet Dreams

I'm living in a hotel still (FOR ONE MORE DAY) and maybe the drab bedroom has got me dreaming of prettier things. I'm in love with every one of these, they're so glamorous and beautiful and colorful (have I mentioned I love color?) I'm also into headboards as you can see.. each one of these is to die for!

RuGs!

So I've discovered that area rugs anchor a room and pull everything together. But they're so dang expensive! You can be lookin at $1000 for just a rug! That being said, I don't own a single one, but I plan to. That's because I've been shopping around at overstock and csnstores.com and I've found several that I LOVE. Once we actually know where we're living and our color schemes I'll recruit Aaron for his opinion (and permission!). These are all around 5x8 ft which is a decent size I think and they're all under $200!

One day...

One day I will have this in my closet. 

House Hunt

Sooooo although I'm still in Ohio (just for another 4 days), I can't help but look at houses online for around Utah County. You see, we need a bigger place with a soon-to-be-walking toddler. Now, as I've searched around looking at pictures of houses and townhomes, I have found a common pattern...
Anyone in Utah may have noticed (and I really don't mean to offend because I have also fallen victim) that every house has a similar theme inside. BROWN. Brown leather couches, dark brown woods, beige walls, tan accessories... just everything neutral. Let me me demonstrate: (these are all from home ads)

Exhibit A

Exhibit B

And then Exhibit C

This particular photo throws in some red. It's kinda like we're all afraid of color, but then the red and brown theme was really in, so BAM, we've got some color... we've ALL got that color. Granted that style was kind of in... I've watched David Bromstad's Color Splash from a few years ago, and that's all people were asking for. And I love red! It's just interesting that in Utah especially, that's been such the rage. I wonder if people really are afraid of color, or if they think brown hides all the dirt and grime from your kids (which is true) or if it's just been the in-thing.

I'm kinda hoping things turn more in this direction...

So pretty!

A very important project

Guess what Walmart has- EVERY color of spray paint imaginable! And guess who should not be spending lots of money on new furniture and decorations.. Yes that's me. In fact I should not even be looking til I know we can afford a bigger place and are in need of some furnishings. However, this project can not be passed up.. by anyone!

Hideous chair can be found at DI, Craig's List, garage sales, or the side of the road. And look at the potential with some paint and fabric!! I really need to learn how to reupholster.

IKEA

I once hated Ikea. Shame on me, I know. I thought it was so crappy and cheap and boring and I hated that you had to assemble EVERYTHING yourself. However there's some pretty cute stuff on their website these days that makes me want to head right to Draper when I get back to Utah. And you really can't beat their prices.

Sister's Living Room

I've always been a fan of interior design. BYU never had the program so my interest was limited to HGTV and cute accessories at Target. But since I've had a summer of sitting around on the computer, I decided to start researching design blogs and trying out my skills at actually creating something myself. Having purchased a new Mac with cool programs, I'm now able to pull images from websites and design my own rooms!

My sister Valerie and her husband Taylor moved into a new house in Provo and wanted some ideas of how to update their living room using the furniture they had, but adding some orange and zebra print (Val's favs!) I'm all about thrifty spending and finding killer deals, so most of the pieces are intended for Craig's List finds repurposed or from cheaper stores like IKEA or Home Go0ds.

Here's what I came up with!.... (Click for a close-up)