PROJECT CONDO: THE DETAILS

I was so excited to be able to reveal my finished dining room space on A Beautiful Mess last week! It's been such an exciting accomplishment to finally finish this room. I've learned so much and overall really felt like keeping my focus on one room at a time helped me complete the space well and love the end results...AND have a completed room!

I've had a couple questions regarding where I purchased some of the items and furniture in my space and I wanted to give a full disclosure post, as well as share a couple extra photos of the finished room! If I missed anything or if you have any questions, please tweet me @maiedae or leave a comment below!

O N  T H E  W A L L
For the artwork, I really wanted to chose pieces that would add color into the room. All of my big pieces are very neutral and I needed something that would pop and add in the interest I was trying to achieve. For the art collage, I tried several combinations of art I already had and new art to see what looked best together. Once my favorite art was selected, I framed everything. I had Jenny help me lay the frames on the floor to create the shape I wanted. What I love about this is that I can easily change out the artwork if I decide I like something better and still keep the same look. In addition to the art collage, I really wanted a statement art piece. I fell in love with The Places in America print and decided to build a statement frame out of wood scraps to add more drama and really make it stand out. I love that Jon and I can record the places we've been and want to go on it with little push-pins. It's a special piece we can continue to enjoy throughout the years. And finally, I wanted to balance out all of the art with something different, so I decided on a handmade papier-mache deer head to hang next to the curtains. It's one of the first things you see when you walk into the room, which is great because I feel like it's a perfect "greeting" piece.

* The Universe - Society6
* Tiny Trees - Renegade Shop in Chicago (now closed, but check out their site)
* I Love My Family - BeauChamping
* Renegade Craft Fair - Renegade Shop in Chicago (now closed, but check out their site)
* Yes Ma'am Print - Jordan Grace Owens
* Green Andy Warhol Car - art.com
* Small Nebula Prints - Elise Mahan Fine Art
* Papier-Mache Deer Head - West Elm
* Places in America Print - You Me & The Royal We
* Wooden Frames - Michael's Craft Store
* America Pallet Frame - Handmade with my father-in-law

T A B L E  A R E A
I knew I wanted a wooden table, and this was actually one of the first purchases we made for the space. I love how the legs face different directions and the coloring is fantastic. I was also set on not having all of the same exact chairs. We started with the metal chairs and then purchased the high-backs when the room was nearly finished. At first I thought that these would go at the head of the table, but in order to balance out the room and still make the art collage visible, we decided on a "benched" look near the windows.

* Metal Tub Chairs - World Market
* Suede High-Backs - World Market
* Blox Wood Table - CB2
* Sheepskin - IKEA
* Faux Deer Antler - Z Gallerie
* Celestial Coasters - Anthropologie

C A B I N E T
The cabinet was my second furniture piece purchase for the room. Jon and I loved the metal detailing on the doors and the little touch of vintage it added to the room. Jenny helped me decorate the inside with dinnerware and glassware pieces, as well as special items we've collected and been given. I love how it looks sophisticated and also serves as a functional piece.

* Plants - Whole Foods
* Tray under plants - IKEA
* Candle Holders - Target
* Organic Dinner Plates - West Elm
* Vintage Cabinet - Antiqued from Kudzu

R O L L I N G  B U F F E T  T A B L E
I originally envisioned using a bar cart or some other piece of furniture for this space, but after we purchased the cabinet we decided something like a buffet table for serving would be perfect. I created a small bar area and left the rest of the space mostly open on top for meals, snacks and extra drinks when we host get-togethers. It's very practical AND ended up being a great space for my record player and records.

* Console Table - World Market
* Record Player - Crosby Turntables
* Wire Storage Baskets - Urban Outfitters
* Hammered & Copper Bowl - World Market
* Terrarium - Urban Outfitters
* Boyd Owl - Antiqued
* Mirrored Tray - World Market
* Honeycomb Glassware - West Elm

T H E  E X T R A S
* Curtains - Target
* Metal Pipe Curtain Rod - Do It Yourself
* 3-Jar Light - West Elm
* Paint Color - Sherwin Williams  
* Filament Light Bulbs - Restoration Hardware

Overall, the words for this room as I was designing it and picking out pieces were: industrial, a touch of vintage, a little rustic, sophisticated, functional, and comfortable. I feel like we achieved our desires for the space and that it's a perfect combination of Jon and me. I've loved sharing my dining room decorating process with you! To look back on all the brainstorming and the full process click here! Also, be sure to continue following along with my Project Condo posts to see how I decorate my next room!

PROJECT CONDO: A BEAUTIFUL MESS FEATURE

Today I have two exciting things to announce. The first is that our dining room is finally finished!! If you've been following along with my project condo series, you've seen my planning process, inspiration boards, progress peeks, and now, after six months, it's complete! Jon and I made it a goal to finish our dining room on December 1st so we could host a fancy holiday diner party. Shortly after, I took some final photos and have been waiting to show you, because my finished dining room is being featured on A Beautiful Mess today! Hop on over to Elsie and Emma's blog to take a look at my finished space!

It's hard to believe that we started off with absolutely no furniture and a red room! I have to say that this process really took a lot of patience and time. It was difficult to merge my taste with Jon's in a functional way that we both really liked. I definitely spent a lot of time looking at the room; adding in new pieces, taking a step back..questioning my choices. Jenny helped me a TON, I'm so thankful for her advice, frame hanging skills, and that she helped me take all of these pieces and execute them to create a finished space.

I'm so happy to have a place that fits our family and a space we can use for hosting and throwing get-togethers. Just for fun, here is a before and after shot from where we started in July and where we are now:

I'll be posting more details later on where I've got everything and my final notes on the entire process. I'm also excited to start the decorating for our next room! After some thoughts and planning we decided to take on the living room as our next project. We already have a couch we're way in love with...now we just need to build the space around it...and that's as far as I've gotten. Let the inspiration-board building begin! I'll be posting some before photos of our living room in January once the Christmas tree is down. ;) Be back later with a final 12 Days of Christmas Cheer post!

CHEER: DINNER PARTY

Last Saturday, Jon and I hosted our first dinner party. I set a goal to finish my dining room decorating on December 1st so we could host it in our newly decorated space. We ended up pushing two tables together and fit 12 people in our space. Everyone brought a side dish and we had a feast! This may sound silly, but I felt like such an adult! We all dressed up, lit candles, I pulled out our best dinnerware and we had a fancy meal all together as friends.

I love celebrating the holidays with my family, but there's something special about being able to celebrate with your community as well. :) I am STOKED that our dining room is finally done! If you've been following along on my Project Condo series you know it's taken me some time. I haven't revealed the final photos yet, but I will very soon! For our dinner party, I was able to use some of the fancier things we haven't been able to use yet. I love how the whole setting looked. It was Christmasy, simple, and just enough "adult". ;)

For the table setting, Jon helped me cut out place-mats from kraft wrapping paper that I picked up from Target and Jenny wrote everyone's name on the side. This was a clever way to assign seats and make it look pretty. I got the idea from Chelsea of Oh My Deer who made a similar handmade place-mat and loved the idea! It's a lot less expensive than buying 12 place-mats. I was also tempted to buy these tear off paper place-mats at West Elm, which I might end up doing later, but liked this idea for the party better.

Because I didn't have quite enough silverware for everyone to have the branch flatware setting, I decided to mix and match what I had to give it a more collected look. I did the same thing with the glasses too. I had purchased around 20 random glasses (some mason and some jam jars) from thrift stores for one of Jenny's showers when she was engaged and I loved how they were all different, but looked great together. I've used these glasses on so many occasions! Definitely worth the hunt!!

I decided to decorate the table with pieces I already had around the house, plus a little glam. I bought the gold candle wreath from Michael's and used holly from the backyard to decorate the table. I love how everything came together. The dinner party totally made me want to start one of those dinner clubs and make a fancy meal every month...maybe even a themed dinner night?? Ah! That would be so fun!

Dinnerware & Decor Found Here: 1// Organic Dinner Plates - West Elm 2// Salt & Pepper Shakers - Gneiss Spices 3// Faux Antler - Z Gallerie 4// Branch Flatware - West Elm 5// Silverware - Gift 6// Blue Glass - Anthropologie 7// Mason Mug - Thrifted

Do you throw dinner parties during the holidays?? What is your favorite thing to cook? How do you like to decorate the table? Oh, and while you're answering those questions, be sure to check out my friend Gina's farm to table Thanksgiving on her blog. Best idea ever!

You can follow along with 12 Days of Christmas Cheer on the Maiedae Facebook page! Also, be sure to check out how Jenny sets her table on her blog later today! Happy weekend, friends!

CHEER: DECORATE FOR CHRISTMAS

Every year after Thanksgiving I look forward to the "a-okay" from my husband to start decorating for Christmas. This year, Jon surprised me with a real tree. We bought a pre-lit tree before we got married and used it for two years, but this year I had my heart set on a real one. We went to a little tree farm in Georgia that our families go to get their trees and picked out our very own. It's beautiful. Just a few glittering lights and a handful of collected ornaments. We love it and so do the cats. ;)

This Christmas is also the first Christmas that we have a fireplace for our stockings! It's probably one of my favorite things about our new place. We set up a fire as often as possible now that the weather is getting cooler. :) For day 5 of Christmas Cheer, Jenny and I wanted to share with you a couple snapshots of our Christmas decorating. I'll be sharing my mantel decorations and Jenny will be sharing her beautiful Christmas tree and DIY tree skirt later today. :) 

When decorating my mantel, I went for a more "neutral Christmas" look. I reused a fall inspired mobile DIY to add some texture to the wall, stuck some candles in a few of my collected bottles, used spare Christmas tree branches to add a touch of nature and a few of my favorite pieces from around the house. 

A couple tips when decorating your home for Christmas:

* Use natural pieces from around your yard or from your tree. I re-used the extra Christmas tree branches all around my condo, cut a couple pieces of holly from outside to decorate, and used some of the pine cones I picked up from work. 

* Candles are an easy way to add warmth to any corner of your home. Since Jon is sensitive to strong scents, I usually stick with the simple white candles and let them sit out alone or put them in decorative candle holders. 

* If you're having a difficult time decorating an area of your home, try decorating it by a color palette and picking things from around your home that compliment that color combination. 

* Once you've decorated a space, step back and see if you like the way it looks as a whole in your room. Maybe take a couple things out or rearrange it until it feels right. My favorite thing to do is to get help from Jenny so another pair of eyes can take a look at it and offer suggestions.

* And most importantly, have fun. :) 

What are some of your holiday decorating tips?? :) Feel free to follow along with my Christmas pin board to get more inspiration AND please share your pin board in the comment section below. :)

PROJECT CONDO: FINAL TOUCHES

I can't believe my dining room is *nearly* finished! It's looking like my goal of having it complete by December 1st is going to happen and I can't wait to host a formal dinner party for my friends to celebrate! Yesterday was exciting because my father-in-law and I got to finish a very special project that's now hanging on the wall. That leaves only a few final touches left to complete the dining room!

1. I'm still really wanting a "bar cart" area in the space. Since we nixed the actual bar cart idea, I'm planning on using a space on our buffet table to create a bar area. I'm going to buy a mirrored vanity tray to put all of the bottles and accessories on. Something with a filigree element and some shine to add a little more metallic to the room. I also LOVE the branch styled bar accessories above. I have silverware very similar from West Elm.

2. I would love to have a small terrarium somewhere in the space. Most likely on the buffet table. Jon and I don't have a single live plant in our home due to my fluffy Kaito who LOVES eating all plants. I think a closed in terrarium like this would keep the little plants safe from kitty teeth and add an organic touch to the space.

3. These faux antlers are beautiful. I think I've settled in on this being my centerpiece for the table. I wanted something simple and natural looking for the centerpiece and I think this will look just right!

Aside from these purchases, I have just a small to-do list left! I can't wait to put it all together and show you how much it's changed from the beginning! I'm planning to show off my art wall and special project soon. Keep an eye out!!

INVITED IN: MOOREA'S HOME

Hi, everyone! I was so thrilled that Savannah invited me to share a little bit of my home on her blog, as her Project Condo series is a favorite of mine. I am a major budget shopper. As much as I would love to be able to splurge on some fancy decor, most of the bits and pieces you see in these photos were found in flea markets, yard sales, thrift stores, and on good ol' craigslist. I so recommend trolling the FREE section of craigslist every so often, because you can find some major scores on there.  My boyfriend found 4 cactus plants that were being given away 2 blocks away from my old apartment and those spiky little guys have stayed with us a few years now! Here is a peek into my living room:

Do you guys have any secrets for decorating on a budget?  I'd love to hear your ideas!  Be sure to stop by my blog sometime and say hello :) Thank you, Savannah, for having me! xo Moorea

I love your space, Moorea! Such a cozy and inviting place. Thanks for inviting us in!!

PROJECT CONDO: CHOOSING A RUG

While I've been picking out the pieces for our art wall in the dining room, I've been thinking about what type of rug would look best in our space. I want something with a little pop and interest to anchor down the room. Overall, I'm looking for an industrial feel with rustic and vintage elements. I also don't want it to look too feminine or too masculine. Adding in the industrial buffet, end chairs, art wall and decorations will really add a lot to this look, but I'm looking for a perfect rug to compliment the whole space. I'm stuck on three different looks and could use a little advice!

1// Black & White Geometric Rug - I love the classic look of black and white as well as this bold pattern. I also like that this rug won't show spills or stains as easily.

2// Cowhide Rug - I think this option is really interesting. It's not something I would usually go for, but I'm starting to really fall for the rustic vibe it gives off. This might be a good option for cats since it's not woven.

3// Navajo Colorful Rug - This rug has more color and pattern to it then the other two. I think it gives off a nice vintage feel but still fits the coziness of the rustic look.

To get a little visual, here is the current progress of my dining room, with the rugs next to them to get a better overall visual. I think I like all of them?! Thoughts??

I'd love your help on deciding which one I should get! -- OR if you have a favorite rug shops online, please share as well! Thanks for your help! :)

PROJECT CONDO: STEEL CURTAIN ROD DIY

One of the things I really wanted to do while taking on the adventure of decorating our condo, was DIY projects. I've seen so many affordable, creative projects and I thought it would be a good way to grow in my crafting skills and experience in making things. When planning the decorations for our dining room, my original plan for the curtain rod was this piece from West Elm. I loved the industrial, sleek feel and thought it would fit in perfectly with our motif.

After a suggestion from my friend Jenny and encouragement from Jon, we decided to save money and build our own! The way this project turned out was exactly what I pictured. It has a very authentic, industrial look and is more of a statement then the original designer rods from West Elm. We also saved a little over $40.00 building these ourselves!

S U P P L I E S   N E E D E D
 * Two 3/4" wall/floor flanges
 * One 3/4" coupler
 * Two 3/4" elbow joints
 * Two 3/4" steel pipes in the length of your preference
 * Two 48" steel pipes 3/4" in diameter
 * Curtain panels
* Wall screws (be sure to include wall anchors if you're not directly screwing into a stud)

S T E P - B Y - S T E P
1. Attach the two 48" steel pipes to the coupler, putting one on each side.
2. Attach the elbow joints to the ends of the steel pipes making sure they are parallel with each other.
3. Once you've connected the pipes with the coupler and added the below joints, put on your curtain panels.
4. Attach the short steel pipes and wall flanges to the ends of each side. All of your pieces should be on at this point.
5. With a helper, hold the curtain rod in place, making sure it's level and at the correct height. Mark where you want it by putting pencil marks on the wall through each of the holes of the wall flanges.
6. Use wall screws to secure it to the wall.

D I Y  T I P S
* When purchasing your steel pieces, make sure the diameter of each piece is the same.
* Since this is a heavier rod, make sure you are either screwing into a wall stud or using anchors.
* I only have two curtain panels right now, but plan to add two more to make the window look more full. I would preplan this since it's difficult to take the rod off the wall once you put it up.

T O T A L   T I M E  &   C O S T
Time: 45 minutes
Cost: $60.00 (not including curtain panels)

I love how this turned out! It's our first DIY for the condo and I'm looking forward to doing more!

PROJECT CONDO: DINING ROOM PROGRESS

Jon and I spent the whole day Saturday working on home projects and focusing our efforts on the dining room. We had a long to-do list, but worked hard, listened to good music, and had great conversation. :) While it's super tempting to wait and reveal each room as it's completely finished, I thought it would be fun to do progress updates on the rooms we're working on to share our nesting journey with you step-by-step! The first photo was taken a few days after we moved in. We installed the first part of our light fixture but still had a lot to do. It's hard to see, but the white on the walls below the chair rail was textured wallpaper.

And here we are, a couple weeks after moving! Our table was delivered the Sunday after we moved. My father-in-law installed the lighting. This weekend, I purchased the metal tub chairs, curtains, and we painted the walls a beautiful white//grey. It feels so big, clean, and crisp! I can't wait to add in the other elements to really give it that industrial//rustic feel I'm looking for.

DINING ROOM ELEMENTS
* Light Fixture - West Elm
* Light Bulbs - Restoration Hardware (waiting on my third bulb to come in!)
* Wood Table - CB2
* Metal Tub Chairs - World Market
* Curtains - West Elm
* Table Costers - Anthropologie
* Curtain Holders - Urban Outfitters
* Paint: Olympic White - Sherwin Williams

I love the progress so far. Most of the day Saturday I felt myself going back and forth thinking, "Did I pick the right paint?"; "Will these curtains work?"; "Am I crazy?"...I know I've spent a lot of time putting this room together in my mind and on inspiration boards, but I've been nervous that I won't execute it correctly. BUT taking my time, asking opinions from Jon and close friends, and really searching for those pieces I love is making this process exciting and encouraging me to move forward at a slow pace.

I don't think this room will be done anytime soon, but my goal is to have it finished before the holidays...and possibly start on the living room before the end of the year. One room at a time! I can't wait to see what it looks like when it's "finished"!

Here is a rough sketch of my plans for the dining room:

DINING ROOM PLANS
* In the corner I'd like to put a vintage cabinet. Jon and I picked one out from a local antique store. It's from the mid-century and lovely! We are picking it up tomorrow!
* Next to the cabinet, I'd like to put together an intensely awesome art wall with wood and metal frames. I've been collecting artwork and still have a few more pieces to buy before collecting frames.
* Before the entrance to the kitchen we'd like a very industrial console table to serve as a buffet//display.
* Above the console we'd like to create a giant menu from an antique frame.
* I'm still on the hunt for perfect chairs to go on the ends of the table. I'm thinking leather and a tall back?
* I think one of the last purchases will be a rug. I want something to really anchor the room and pull things together. I'm not sure if I'm going neutral or geometric.
* Finally, I'd like to put together some special decor for the center of the table, the cabinet and the console. I'm probably going to stick with my inspiration words: industrial, rustic, clean.

So fun! I can't wait to continue sharing the progress! I'll be back later with an easy DIY and photos of the vintage cabinet!! Thanks for reading and sharing this nesting journey with me!

PROJECT CONDO: DINING ROOM ART WALL

Only 25 more days until we make the big move to our new condo! I've been collecting boxes from work so we can start some of our packing this week. I'm also excited about my first official purchase for the dining room makeover! Last week, the chandelier I wanted went on sale, so I snagged it up and saved 20%! It's on back-order, so I'll probably get it by mid-July, which will be perfect timing for our move. :)

As mentioned in this post and this post, we are keeping our focus on the dining room first and working to complete the decorating there, before working on any other rooms. One of the features I would love to have in the dining room is an art wall to offset the neutral pieces and add in the touch of color. I've already been collecting a few pieces to hang, but have been trying to put together a good collection of art that looks great as a whole. Here are a couple pieces I'm thinking about for the dining room:

1// Home Sweet Home - I'd like some type of "Home Sweet Home" print, maybe a little different from this?? I like the coloring in this one and I think it comes in a small size which would be good to offset some of the larger pieces.

2// Strong Beautiful Brave - I've found myself drawn to artwork with some type of typography in them. I think they just feel more moving to me. I've been a fan of Nan Lawson's work for sometime and I loved the beautiful blue in this piece.

3// Yes Ma'am - I currently have this print. I've been in love with Jordan's artwork since I met her last year at Indie Craft Parade. She made custom paper dolls of Jon and me awhile back, and I just had to pick up this print. I love the color and contrast in this piece.

4// I Love My Family - This piece is just beautiful. I love the words and simpleness of it.

5// The Lovers - Another print by Beauchamping. I also like that it's simple and the heartbeat creates a really nice graphical element.

6// Lightening Bolt - I haven't found this piece for sale, but I think it would be fun to DIY a couple simple patterns in gold to go with the art cluster.

7// Quilted Fox - I also have this piece, I'm not sure if I'll end up putting it in the dining room, but I kinda like how it looks with the blue and peachy piece.

Once I get there I'll probably have to lay everything out and play around with the order to find the right feng shui for the art wall. ;) What are some of your favorite pieces of art? I'd love to hear your suggestions. I'm always on the lookout for great art. :)

PROJECT CONDO: WHITE WALLS

I've got dining room on the brain. In my last Project Condo post, I shared some of the dining room tables I've been eying. This week, I'll be sharing my thoughts on color, or the lack thereof. ;)

In the past, I've always been drawn to rich, bright wall colors. In high-school, my room was light blue and later it was a textured royal blue with gold sparkles. I couldn't paint my dorm room walls, so I would cover an entire wall in collages made from magazine clippings. When Jon and I moved into our first apartment, I painted our kitchen a deep teal, our bedroom a plum (and later green), and the rest of our walls a silvery grey. Since moving into our second apartment, across the hall, we haven't painted any walls, since it's just a temporary move. Surprisingly enough, I've been enjoying our neutral walls in our current apartment. It's inspired me to take a more neutral approach to my walls. Maybe a few rooms here and there will have a little pop, but overall I'd like a cozy neutral look.

Since I tend to change my sense of style often, I think it would be safe to go neutral and use things like decor, art, and textiles to add the character and pop I'm looking for. With that said, I'm planning to paint my new dining room white. I don't think I'll pick stark white, probably something with a little tone in it to warm it up. :)

A Couple Reasons I'm Going Neutral
* If your decor style changes, you can make simple art and decor changes to create a totally new feel.
* Neutrals tend to feel more clean and sophisticated. I'm working toward getting away from the dorm-room style and creating a comfortable, grown-up space.
* I want the dining room to feel crisp and bright.
* I'm planning to put together an art wall in the dining room and I really want those pieces to pop against the wall color.
* Overall, I want the furniture and other pieces in the room to be the center of attention rather than the wall color.
* Also, these pictures are extremely inspiring:

1//2//3//4//5

And now to hunt down that perfect shade of white!! And some good primer to cover up the current burgundy. ;) Here are a couple helpful articles//posts on painting and white walls I came across in my research:

* Paint a Room by Martha Stewart
* The Right White by Elle Decor
* The Allure of White Walls by Pantone

Have you painted any of your walls white? Any suggested tones of white? How did it make the atmosphere of the room feel??

PROJECT CONDO: DINING ROOM TABLES

Last week I shared the floor plans for the condo that Jon and I are moving into at the end of July. We are planning a room-by-room decorating process for the new place instead of working a little on rooms here and there. Our first priority room is the dining room. We LOVE entertaining guests and usually have guests over at least once a week. We currently don't have any type of dining area in our apartment, except for a little bar area and a small fold out table. Our new entertainment area, including the living and dining area, is so much better for hosting a group of people. We can't wait to put together a nice dining area. :) I've been working on an inspiration board, planning paint colors and decor so I can budget everything out before we make our purchases.

One of the most important dining room pieces, in my opinion, is the table. I feel like a table decision can really make or break the dining room space. I'm looking for something durable, easy to clean, kid friendly, people friendly, rustic, and unique. Here are some of my top choices:

1// Emerson Dining Table: West Elm - $999.00 ---> This is the first table that caught my eye. I saw this in person at West Elm and haven't been able to get it out of my mind. It's a little pricey for my budget, but I love the way it looks. I like that it's a pedestal table so I can fit more people around it if I need to. My only concern is how rustic it is, I'm wondering if it will be easy enough to clean and splitter-free.

2// Reclaimed Table: Design*Sponge Sneak Peek ---> This table was made from reclaimed wood on a metal frame. I like the idea of making a table, but I might be leaning more toward purchasing a table. 

3// Blox Dining Table: CB2 - $499.00 ---> I really love this table. This might be my first choice AND I love the alternate facing legs. Just enough rustic with a unique touch, yet still simple enough to be a good neutral piece. 

4// Re-Finished Table: Decor8 ---> Before I started looking into the more wooden, rustic tables, I thought about just re-painting a thrifted table and pairing it with some mixed-matched chairs. While I think the look of #4 is amazing, I'm really wanting something a little more sophisticated. AND I tend to change my taste a lot, so I feel like I might need something more neutral that will work with its ever-changing surroundings. :) 

5// Industrial Dining Table: West Elm - $799.00 ---> I love the simplicity of this table. I'm also a huge fan of the rustic//industrial look. I'm a little concerned that this table may not be sturdy enough. 

6// Greyson Dining Table: World Market - $699.00 ---> Jon and I looked at this table this weekend. Jon was a fan of it, but we weren't huge fans of the legs. They're a little too traditional looking for our taste. 

Exciting! I'm hoping to purchase our table in mid-July, so it'll be ready to put together when we move. I'd love to hear your table vote! OR if you have any suggested table purchasing stores. :) 

PROJECT CONDO: FLOOR PLAN

I've mentioned a couple times here and there that Jonathon and I are moving into a new home at the end of July. We've been living in our current apartment complex since we got married in 2010. A couple months ago, we moved from a two bedroom apartment to a three bedroom apartment literally across the hallway. We've really loved our apartment living time. The apartments are new and I really love their modern look. However, as our family of two grew to having two kitties and a Glenn, our handy dandy roommate, we found ourselves feeling more and more squished in our little space.

We decided we would end our lease this year with no plans of where we would go next. We played around with the idea of buying, but didn't feel ready to take that step and really wanted to put all of our extra efforts towards paying off my student loans. SO, February of this year, my co-worker mentioned to me she was planning to rent out her condo since she was getting married in the summer and was looking for good renters. At the time, we weren't sure if we wanted to rent a home or a condo//townhouse, but decided it would be worth taking a look.

During our visit, we immediately fell in love with the size of the space. After talking it out for a couple weeks, we decided it was a perfect fit for us and our needs for the next 3-5 years. We made a deal with the current owner and here we are, about 7 weeks out from moving into our new home! Here are just a few peeks at my favorite parts of the condo when we took a visit in February:

Some Things I Love About the Condo:

* The lighting is beautiful. Most of the rooms are painted white and the carpet is a white Berber, so all of the rooms have a bright, cheery feel. 

* I really adore the front door//entryway. The door is heavy duty and was built in the 70's, so it has some real charm to it. 

* The space! This place is easily 2.5 times bigger than our current 3 bedroom apartment. And the rent is less expensive too. ;) 

* The Master closet. The lady who is currently living there converted the sitting area in her already large master suit into a GIANT closet. So that dream of having a chandelier and an ottoman in a closet...well it's about to come true!

* There is more storage than we could ever ask for. We even have some hidden storage places behind closet doors and a full attic. Narnia? It's insane. This home has potential for being the best hide-n-seek home ever. 

* The neighborhood is a more established quiet community. It's also part of a home owners' association, so everyone takes really good care of their little lawns and gardens. 

* The owner is leaving all of the appliances, including the washer, dryer, a microwave, AND a grill! Huge blessing. 

Not My Favorites:

* Since the condos were built in the 70s, there is a lot of brassy hardware. The kitchen and master bathroom have been renovated, so the hardware there is more updated. Jon and I have plans of doing some simple hardware updates to give it a little more of a modern look.
* Same goes for some of the lighting. Most of it is a little outdated, but easily fixable.
* The exterior reminds me a little of the older neighborhoods near Seattle growing up. Hilly, lots of trees and darker painted homes. This definitely gives it some charm, but on first glance it's a little dreary, which isn't a good reflection of the inside.

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I tried making a real nice professional looking floor plan on floorplanner, but to no avail. So I resorted to drawing. It's definitely NOT to scale and the dimensions are off a little, but it's an accurate idea of the layout. :)

Some Main Level Plans:

* The first priority room is the dining room. We currently have nothing in the dining room arena, so we've been saving and budgeting in order to get this room done within a month of moving in. 

* The fireplace is an icky pink brick color. I'm considering painting it white. I've got permission from the owner and believe me, I'll be doing some serious research before taking that venture on! 

* The breakfast nook is darling, and has some of the best lighting. Since we aren't much of a breakfast nook folk, we're considering converting it into my home studio. Yeah! 

Some Upper Level Plans:

* Bedroom #1 will be turned into the ultimate gaming//movie watching room, which we are REALLY excited about. This will mainly be Jon's bat-cave, but it will be fantastic to have all of that in one location and have an excellent space for guests to visit. 

* Bedroom #2 will be rented out to Glenn for a while and will eventually become a baby nursery a good while in the future. ;)

* And I have big plans for that extra-large master closet. 

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I'm so excited to share our condo adventure with you! I have a lot of decorating plans in the works. This will be our home for the next 3-5 years, so we are really looking forward to settling in and really putting forth some effort in the decorating department. My goal is to work on one room at a time. If I start piddling in rooms here and there I never get anything done and I tend to just give up. So my goal for the condo is to budget throughout the year and work on one room at a time until it's complete. The room at the top of our list is the dining room. I'll be sharing my ideas, inspirations, progress, and before and afters with you along the way!