Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Now that I live in a bona fide suburban neighborhood (for the first time in my life), I’m enjoying the new sense of community.  So, when I saw the sign for a pre-St. Patrick’s Day event at the local community center, I was determined to be there.  The Pumpkin Festival was so much fun, that I figured this one would be great too!

As often occurs in the life of a new home owner bent on decorating and renovating, though, my Saturday quickly whizzed by in a whirlwind of visits to Lowe’s, Home Depot, and furniture stores.  Which left little time for Irish-themed revelry and merriment.

That being said, the day was a great success.  I found a wonderful outdoor furniture set (with green cushions, in honor of St. Patrick’s Day).  And the store was offering to put an extra 10% of the purchase price of a store card back on it.  A great place to hang out as the weather gets warmer, and free money to boot!  I must have the luck of the Irish.

Balance

As fun as it is to learn about the furniture, building material, and other decorating and renovating related stores in my area, it’s also been a great joy to get to know my neighborhood in a whole different way.  Namely, by venturing out into the great outdoors.  Each weekday, I head out at sunrise to a nearby trail to join the deer, bunnies, and coyotes in their morning jaunts.  The simple quiet of the morning brings a peaceful start to the day.  (Much needed before I hit the freeway!)

And then on weekends, I try to strike a balance between all the home related errands, and really enjoying all the beauty of the area to which I moved.  Because, like most people, I didn’t buy just four walls, a floor, and a roof.  I moved to where I wanted to live.  And on a beautiful spring afternoon, hiking through the hills near my house, I find that I am home.

Imagination

I have a great imagination.  In my mind, I can picture just what all the pieces for my home look like.  A round side table for the reading nook, made of glass and steel, to counterbalance the rectangular dark wood dressers and bedside tables.  A red couch for the living room, with cushions that stay firm (though still beyond comfortable, of course), and a magical fabric that doesn’t fade or stretch, ending up resembling a pug dog.  The wrinkles are adorable on a puppy.  Less so on a couch.  And a coffee table that is modern and unique, yet friendly, inviting you to pull up a plate and use it as a dining table.  (I can’t be the only one who gives into the desire to relax and eat dinner in front of the TV, rather than sitting in the dining room like a grown up.  In my defense, when the latest Mad Men disc arrives, I pretty much bee line it to the DVD player.  I’m hooked.)

Alas, the real world doesn’t allow my decorating fantasies to come to fruition as briskly as I might desire.  So this weekend, it’s off to more furniture stores I go.  Because, one of these days, I’m going to find these dream pieces.  Until then, you can find me curled up on my pug dog.  I mean, couch.

Sweet dreams

One of my all time favorite things is curling up in bed while listening to the rain.  Add to that scenario my brand-new warm, fluffy, 44 ounce (not sure what the optimum ounce count is, but that sounded good enough to me) down comforter (bought on sale, thanks to Presidents’ Day), and I am ready for the coming rain.  Curled up in bed with a good book, it just doesn’t get any better.

Add to this delightful locale my newly acquired throw pillows, and this cozy spot looks down-right grown up, too.  Since I am the world’s slowest interior decorator, the pillows took awhile to arrive on said bed, but it’s coming together nicely.

Where’s your favorite spot to enjoy the rain?

And the winner is...

It turns out I decorate like I renovate.  One piece at a time.  When I was doing my bathrooms, I went to multiple stores for each type of item before choosing my very favorite one.  I looked at quite a few different tiles, faucets, and slabs of marble before the winners took their place on the podium.

The chair for my reading nook now sits cozily in the corner of my bedroom.  I looked around at several until I found just the right one.  Not too big, not to small, and a color that was just right for the rest of the furniture in the room.  Now all I need to do to make it the ideal little corner in which to read is to find the right lighting, and perfect side table.  I may be the world’s most leisurely interior designer, but I always enjoy the result.  And that’s the best prize of all.

Welcome home

Travelling through Ecuador and the Galapagos over the course of a few weeks was amazing.  All the people I met were wonderful.  And the Galapagos Islands were teeming with life.  Although I’m always excited when embarking on a new adventure, this trip was especially memorable.  Experiencing a new culture, and seeing such a wide diversity of wildlife in its natural habitat, was truly phenomenal.  Sea lions and iguanas share the sand, with barely a notice of the other.  The penguins and blue footed boobies chirp happily, perched on rocks above waters swimming with sea turtles, sting rays, and sharks.  Each day I was away was a reminder of why, and how much, I love to travel.

But, ahh, it’s great to be home.  To my own bed, with soft sheets, and my perfect pillow.  To my beautifully renovated bathrooms, where the water pressure is constant, and hot water flows freely.  (After weeks without such things, I will no longer take them for granted!)  I’m enjoying getting settled back in, pouring over photos, and sharing holiday stories with friends and family.  After a nice break, I’m ready for the year to come, which is sure to be filled with many house-related projects.  I may even get adventurous, and incorporate some of the vibrant colors of Ecuador into my decorating.

Full speed ahead

I’m oh-so-close to the finish line.  The master bath is almost completely done, with just a few small finishing touches left.  But the shower doors that didn’t exist last week are now in, and the super shiny chrome towel bars are a great replacement for the dining room chair I was using as a stand in.  It truly is the space I envisioned.

The smaller bathroom is coming along quickly.  The vanity is in, and it is a huge improvement on the 1989 cabinet it replaced.  The light switch has been moved to another wall, which impresses me tremendously that you can just change up the location of such a thing.  (The fact that I’m impressed is a perfect piece of evidence for why I would never try to tackle electrical work…)  Now, just waiting for the piece of marble I picked out over the weekend to be cut and installed.

Then it will be time to gather all the accessories!  All the nailed down stuff looks great, but decorating will be the final touch.  I’ll get rid of the hodge-podge of towel and bathmat colors that worked for the old bathrooms, and go with something entirely new.  Any votes for the new colors?

Doing my part to boost the economic recovery

Over the last week, I’ve been doing some serious shopping.  Some credit card melting, major mile earning shopping.  I have picked up a slab of marble (who knew a short time ago that I would ever be the owner of such a thing?!?), light fixtures, a sink, medicine cabinets, tile, custom vanities, a TV stand/entertainment center, and last but not least, a dining room rug.  Yep, you guessed it, the bathroom renovation is getting ever-closer, and the decorating continues.

Now, I’ve been picking out these pieces one at a time, without carrying around samples of each, like I was instructed by oh-so-many people.  But I have a vision of this beautiful, modern-but-not-too-modern bathroom, and I truly believe it’s all going to come together in a fabulous way.  Because I like each piece.  Individually, each one is great.  Ergo, they will be great together.  At least, that’s what I’m keeping my fingers crossed for…

The Great Pumpkin Festival

Early each morning, I step out my front door, and head to a nearby trail for some pre-work exercise.  It’s one of the great things about my new house – the proximity to a number of great hiking trails.  But, since my neighborhood borders a popular commuting route, a section of my morning walk is generally a bit noisy.  (Nothing that cranking the volume on my iPod can’t handle!)

But, this particular morning, it was calm and quiet.  The road has been closed in preparation for this weekend’s Pumpkin Festival.  I’ve never really lived in a suburban neighborhood, so little local fairs right in my own backyard, a mere short walk away, are a new thing for me.  Although my curiosity will have to wait to be allayed, since I won’t be able to participate in the opening festivities on Saturday.

Nope, my Saturday will be bustling with a cornucopia of homeowner activities.  The new bed is getting delivered first thing, and my bedroom décor will be that much closer to complete.  Then, it’s off to the stone yard to pick out bathroom countertops with my contractor.  And I think for the trip to Lowe’s to pick out faucets, I’ll be flying solo.

But Sunday, I’m definitely going to the fair.  Taking a break from decorating and renovating, and eating high-calorie, high-fun fair food.  Ooh, I hope they have funnel cake…

Happily ensconced

The new furniture has arrived!  And it is beautiful.  And big.  Actually, it’s massive.  If Vikings descended upon my home in an impromptu invasion, I could build a fort out of this stuff, and it would be impenetrable.  Not only are the dresser and chest wider and taller than most I’ve seen, the bedside tables are pretty substantial as well.  These are all meaty, solid wood behemoths that are certainly claiming their place in my bedroom.

Now, to purchase the bed.  I found a lovely one, with a very simple, curved wood headboard.  My hope is that once it’s in place, the other pieces don’t bully it and make it feel (and look) small.  But being as it will get the most attention (I will be giving it my undivided attention for eight hours a day, after all), I have confidence it will stand up for itself, knowing that although it may be different from the others, I won’t love it any less.