decorate my apartment

1. Room darkening curtains
2. New bettwasche (duvet, in English)
3. An orchid & bamboo plant
4. Fresh flowers
5. Give away books, clothes, old boxes, old papers (anything I don’t use) so I have less clutter
6. Buy a nice poster
7. Pink and turquoise
8. Buy some fresh herbs
9. Splurge on a aromotherapy machine

I wasn’t really thinking about this goal a week ago when I went to the supplies shop and bought two 6×11 canvas and some paint. To be honest, I was just looking for some stress relief and I had the brilliant idea of just painting using my favorite colors.

Anyway, I’m just really pleased that I did this, because I got to hang my finished artwork on my bare walls.

I’ll take a picture of it later, then post it here.

I thought I was getting a tax refund and had it all spent in my head. Unfortunately, I made a mistake and it turned out I owe! So no pretty Jonathan Adler light and Pottery Barn rug for me right now.

But I did manage to rearrange my closet this weekend. That was free.

And I’m spending $3 on ribbon for bulletin board decoration, but that’s allowable.

And hanging the photos I have: also free. Then I plan to fill in the holes on the wall o’ photos with black/white images I’ve found online: should be just the cost to print at Kinko’s. Also allowable.

Reupholstering and restuffing the couch: I’m afraid to get the quote. Won’t be allowable, I’m sure.

argh. I hate how life moves in small increments. I want instant makeovers—they’re so satisfying. I love makeover shows for that very reason.

But fine, budget demands little changes.

One thing I did this week which made a big difference, bigger than I expected, was try to fix one of the little vignettes I’d made in my apt. I have some halfheartedly attempted “vignettes” – gol, that sounds so pretentious and obnoxious. Can’t I find a better word? But obnoxious as they are in both name and idea, they really do bring a home together. And mine are sort of thrown together, almost like I didn’t want to work on them too hard because of my deep rooted disdain.

So I fixed my bar/table up a bit and it makes me very happy now when I look at it. Happy sigh of satisfaction.

Plus I bought tomatoes, catnip, and purple basil, and some dark purple pansies for my “garden”.

And I’m trying to keep my bathroom cleaner. And buy flowers every week.

So I bought a couch a couple months ago, and got rid of my old chair. Now, all the furniture in the living room is stuff I picked out for myself! Next I’m going to paint my kitchen and bedroom.

- hung the chandelier I got on ebay
- purchased & assembled light for kitchen sink area
- offered sofa to my cousin – hope she wants it!
- reorganized bar cart
- glued hooks on backs of posters/prints for hanging
- cut out fabric for lampshade & pillows

TOMORROW:
- clean bathroom & kitchen
- do laundry
- buy frame for painting
- buy file storage thingy
- hang posters/prints
- finish lampshade
- take in alterations to be sewn (pillow/seat cover)

I feel like my apartment won’t be a home until I put a bit of myself into it. I’ve made a few attempts at decorating, but nothing has stuck. I’ve got plans of things I want to do. I just wish I could paint.

I really want to get shelves up so I can put my artwork on them. I have three shelves in my storage unit. I just need to go out there and dig them out!

I’ve been working between school on my days off to do some thrift shopping and some parusing of different places to hopefully make my apartment seem a little more mature. Right now, no room is all the way done (unless you want to count the bathroom.)

Right now I’m working from the bedroom out. Right now I’m looking for a used wingback or victorian era chair that I can learn to reupholster myself. I’m big into the do it yourself projects, so I feel that while it’d be challenging to do it myself, I’d find it really fun.

My bedroom is inspired from French noir art, and so far, I just need a white display/bookcase that is narrow to put in the corner, and a wingback chair that will be comphy enough to read in by the window, and look really nice.

If you have any ideas from the DC area, let me know!

What I’d like to get:

• shelves for bathroom
• tea towels
• cushions
• plants
• clothes hangers
• new shower curtains

I moved to middle of nowhere Mississippi for graduate school in early fall, but was too busy the first few months to do anything about my living quarters. Throw in a futon and a bed and a little end table to set my computer on and viola! Lately I’ve been thinking I want the place to look a bit more interesting. Also I’ve been meeting a few interesting people and wanting to have a place to seat them. I ordered some furniture online, and may get some more. The living room and bathroom were sort of my first priorities. I’m going for a sort of bombshell glamorous type of place, somewhere Jean Harlow and Dita von Teese would feel at home. So far: leopard print carpet in living room, two rococo white end tables, pink accent pillows with funky rococo pattern, elizabethan cream bench, a pale cream and silver chair with a sort of sinuous style as well (not sure what to call this one), large mirror on wall, two heart scroll (painted gold by me) accent mirrors on rococo tables, cream embroidered cover for the futon (I know these ladies would probably die at the sight of the futon, but I am a poor grad student and the purchase of the couch will have to wait till fall). I’m also working on some sort of fun feminine paintings that are playing with the concept of femininity and using those light, gold, and pink colors to tie everything together for the walls. Bathroom has pale pink curtain with embroidery, white rug and trash can, a sort of mannequin shaped toothbrush holder, and pink towels. Wondering what else to add to the mix. The place is still somewhat unfinished looking. The windows do need curtains, I absolutely hate blinds, but I’m renting so I’m not sure how kindly they would take to the attachment of curtain rods. A girl can dream… Then there is my bedroom which is a whole separate project. I’m torn on making it a sort of inside of a genie bottle looking place or a pretty courtesan’s bedroom. I love belly dancing and have some accessories that go along with the genie theme, but wonder if the other style wouldn’t be prettier? I plan on finishing up my living room and thinking about that meanwhile