Bedroom Update // It All Started With a Lamp

We I did a little big of rearranging in the bedroom the other day. If you know me at all, this won't surprise you one bit. And it all started with a lamp. Isn't it peerrrdddyyy?? :)

On Monday my mom and I went to a super sweet Salvation Army (on 4th St. N, for those of you in Minneapolis), and I totally scored this incredible geometric floor lamp! We both had been looking for lamps so when we saw a sign stating that lamps were 50% I swear I heard the angel hallelujah chorus. So what did I do? Buy three lamps? You betcha'!

[Excuse the low-quality pic (high-quality hubby), hopefully I can post some better pics later... but this gives you an idea of the new space.]

After trying out the standing lamp in the living room, Loverboy and I both decided it just wasn't quite the right height for the space, so thankfully, I had already started tearing apart our bedroom [Loverboy gets to come home from work to lots of fun things. So grateful for a husband that just laughs when I yell at him from the furniture-baricaded bedroom that I'm tearing the house apart]. I've really been wanting a little side table by my side of the bed and I decided that our old coffee table [post on our new-to-us coffee table coming when I remember to snap some pics] might do nicely. Kind of quirky for the space, but it would give me lots of room to do what I wanted.

So, I had already moved things around quite a bit and the geometric lamp was able to find a home as a perfect little reading lamp in the corner. I kind of love it and have been spending a lot of time in there. Although the new arrangement feels a little bit tighter than the last one [kind of inevitable when you're moving a bed from away from the wall], it definitely feels cozier and like the space works better for our needs.

And my little side table just makes me so happy! The perfect space to stash a couple books, some lotion, chapstick, and other essentials! 

So there's a little update on the status of our place... hopefully some better photos will be coming your way soon! Thanks for stopping by friends, and happy hump day!

Rolling Craft Cart

I scored this adorable tri-level rolling cart for ONE DOLLAR at a thrift store in Madison a couple summers back when I lived in the Dells. It didn't have a price tag so when I asked how much and they offered it to me for a dollar I almost peed my pants in excitement. It was originally a silvery-metal color so I spray painted it white and called it good.

I kind of always pictured it as a bathroom piece, but we ended up using some different shelving in the bathroom, so I knew I had to think of some other fun way to use it. I had been wanting to create a crafty area in the office or guest room [even included it in my winter goal list], but just hadn't found the right place to set up shop yet.

So when I thought of turning this cart into a mobile craft center, I knew I had struck gold. Perfect for wheeling over to the coffee table for scrapbooking while watching a movie, easily accessible from the desk where it sits next to, and great for corralling all my little craft supplies. I decided to stick mainly to paper crafting supplies, since this cart is little and I have way too many supplies to all fit. Plus, paper crafting has been a favorite of mine for like ever in the grand scheme of the crafting world. So it just made sense. I used jars, tins, cups, mugs, and other organizers to sort and arrange my different supplies. Washi tape, small papers, glues, pens, stamps, etc. Each has it's own place in this little cart.

The top shelf houses small scrapbook paper and stickers, washi tape, little envelopes, sticky notes, and flags, tape and glue, paintbrushes, and pens.

On the middle shelf you can find stamps, stabilo pens, colored pencils, paper punches, decorative paper clips, and photos. The bottom shelf holds my Smash Books, Project Life Kit, and paper cutter.

So there you have it! A functional and cute little mobile craft station. How would you use this cart?

Spreading Christmas Cheer for All to Hear!

I really do love this season. Partially because it lends itself to so much gold and glitter, but mostly because it's the time of the year that reminds us of God's greatest gift to us—His Son. And although gold and glitter don't exactly say "Jesus," I really do find that decorating for the Christmas season gets me in the mood for cheer and thankfulness. Having Christmas music playing as the soft glow of Christmas lights shines on the Nativity scene just does something good for my soul. So I thought I'd share some of our decor with you in order to inspire you to snaz up your place a bit for the holidays. And as you're about to see, it doesn't have to be expensive or difficult.

I love going to TJ Maxx or Gordmans and looking at all the beautiful decor, but something about the challenge of being uber thrifty really excites me. So this year we've decided to keep costs to a minimum... but that doesn't mean that gold or glitter had to be at a minimum! After hitting up the Dollar Tree and a couple thrift stores, we were ready to decorate!

So here's a peak at our place all spruced up for Christmas. And of course things are a bit different now that we had to rearrange the living room to fit our tree... but that's for later.

The jingle bells, ornaments, and this fabulous tinseled tree are brought to you by the Dollar Tree.

This ceramic Nativity set is from way back in the day when I was in a church equivalent of the Girl Scouts. I glazed the set myself... not bad for a nine year old!

The colorful lights, greenery, and gold, glittery pears were all thrift store finds, along with the precious ceramic deer that I snagged for $3 and $4 a piece!

And here's our tree.... JK! This lil guy brings Christmas cheer to our bedroom... and has been doing so for me probably since I was in middle school. Post about our real tree coming soon!

Thrift Store Finds & Pretty Plants to Boot!

I am one happy girl! Today marks one year of choosing to live life and see if we want to do it permanently (btw, we did, on March 29, when he put a ring on it) with Loverboy. So this morning I went out to my car and what do I find? That sweet man snuck a box of plants as well as a cute tape dispenser and photo of us that I could spruce up my office with. I've been thinking about getting some plants or decor of some sort to make my little cubicle more homey and that boy's been listening!

I also went to Savers today and scored this great mid-century side table for $5! So I was feeling pretty inspired by all this new fun-ness and had to do something about it!

The mug that I put the cactus in was $1 from Salvation Army... the handle creates a heart with the etched in design on the mug. Plus who can resist white and mint??

My sweet friend Kate gave me this print, which is really a card, for my bridal shower! I picked up a frame from the dollar store (score!) and threw 'er in!

Both the Pride and Prejudice and Pies and Cakes books were from a 10 books for $2 sale at Goodwill a couple weeks ago. Not only are they pretty, but they are also practical! I got the gold polka-dot journal for a few bucks at TJ Maxx a couple years ago.

All these plants go so well together... and I'm super excited to finally own my first succulent! Now hopefully I don't kill it. :)

I hope you're inspired to make some space in your home beautiful. Maybe you even need a little more green in your life!

Thrifting 101: Five Tips

I would say that about 90% of my closet is thrifted. Clothes, accessories, and all. I've been told that I have a knack for finding good deals and awesome finds, and people are always asking me how I do it. Well, I'm here to tell all you fine people that it's not much of a science, BUT lucky for you there are some simple tips you can follow to make your thrifting more successful!

Go on sale days.
My favorite place to thrift is Savers. It's not so classy that it's as expensive as shopping new but it also has a ton of gems. One of my favorite things about Savers is their sales! Every Monday the whole store is 25% off and on holidays that fall on Mondays (Labor Day, Memorial Day, Veterans Day, etc) their clothes, accessories, bed and bath, etc. are 50% off! If I can, I try and hit up their 50% sale days and get there right when they open since it can get super busy. Also, if you get there in the afternoon everything can be pretty picked over.

Have a plan.
Just like how most things in life go more smooth if you have a plan, it's always a good idea to have some kind of strategy in mind when you head out to go thrifting. What will you be looking for? If you have a short time what is the most important thing to look at? You can waste so much time just aimlessly wandering the aisles of thrift stores if you don't know what you are there for. [Which is fine, by the way, but only if you have the time for it!]

Try on a lot.
If you're going to succeed at thrifting, you're just going to have to accept the fact that you will need to try on A LOT of clothes. I pretty much go with quantity for the first round of trying things on, and if something looks even slightly interesting, I'll put it in my cart to try on. This is how you find those items that you might not have bought at an actual retail store. Plus, since everything is different brands they will fit differently so I usually look in sections that might be a little smaller or bigger than I normally wear. You never know what you might find since the sizing is done in the store and might be a little bit off.

Have a pattern.
Pretty much every time I go to Savers I always check out a few key areas. For me that's books, home goods, shoes, purses, and most recently, skirts. Oftentimes I won't even go through any of the shirts, pants, or other clothes if I'm just stopping in for a short trip. I just look at the things I'm most interested in and know I can find the best buys in.

Try out different things. 
I see thrifting as a way to try out different things that I might not choose otherwise. Go ahead! Try on that 70s style dress! Spot a leather fanny pack? Try it on! Some of my coolest finds were things that I wouldn't ever think I'd wear, but once I tried it, I liked it. Plus, it's all about confidence! Chances are, if you think you can rock it, then you can!

Bonus tip!
Sometimes thrift stores will give you a discount if you bring in donations! Check out if your local thrift shop offers this promotion... if so, it's a win-win! Spring cleaning to make room for more AND a sweeter deal! Happy thrifting!

Weekend Wrap-Up: Spice up your Summer

1. Check out this video. Go to your local Michaels and buy one of these. Or you can find them here. [I personally love the "doodle red" one!] Commence hours of crafting.

2. Looking for a good summer jam? Well look no more! Listen to 'Some Nights' by Fun. You will be dancing night and day.

3. Also in need of a great summer tv series? Once again, your quest is over... check out 'Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman.' I have no idea how you get ahold of it aside from buying it from Amazon, but do whatever is necessary to do so. You will not be disappointed. Seriously... how could this not be amazing?!

4. Check out your local thrift store [Goodwill is preferable]. You never know what you may find!

5. Spend time with Jesus! All these things might make your summer more fun, but Jesus will definitely make your summer meaningful and complete!