Ikea Bedroom 2007

However you feel about Ikea quality you have to admit that their room designs are fantastic. They run the gambit from sparse Scandinavian style to country cozy.

The new bedroom "designs" are available to view online and I am salivating over them. Fairly soon we (my husband and I) will be moving into the downstairs bedroom which is now buried in the lifetime accumulation of a twelve-year old girl. The aforementioned 'girl' will be sharing our bedroom with her ten-year old sister and their new sister soon to be adopted from Ethiopia. I can't wait to have three pre-teen girls sharing a room with all of their precious "stuff". It will be an adventure.

So to get on with it, our bedroom will soon be MUCH smaller than we have had. My grandmother's old veneer furniture will not fit, that is for sure, and it is questionable as to whether or not we will be able to have a king-sized bed anymore (imo essential to a happy marriage). So I keep my eyes open to new and interesting (and cheap) ideas for our "new" room. Ikea fits those requirements.

For your viewing pleasure, here are some pictures of bedrooms from the new promotion:

I love the use of space in the first picture and the second pics color combo of lime and purple is just yum-yum-yummy!!

This last pic would be a great way to design a kid's room that needs a lot of storage--turning that daybed into a regular bed for one child.

If you want more information about our adoption of four Ethiopian children you can check out my other blog: Our Adoption Journey.

Whaddaya Think..??

This post is for all you Helpy Helpertons out there. My project is my living room and I need suggestions from you. Maybe this will get the comments coming.

My living room consists of copious amounts of dog hair, magic markers, Transformers, piles of dvds, Polly Pocket Paraphenalia and these items:

One brown leather sofa (JC Penney online: $689.00)

One brown leather chair (JC Penney online: $449.00)

One brown leather ottoman (also JCP: $249.00)

One Magiker entertainment center (Ikea online: $600.00 +/-)

*note that the lovely sofa and chair photos are NOT taken in my living room but in the JC Penney design studio by professional photographers.

Now this is where I start, with extremely neutral furnishings and a crap-load of ideas. I just can't narrow them down to one that will work for my entire family.

Husband: likes blonde wood (like the finish on the Magiker) the colors: green, brown, black, some red, some yellow. Likes woods and natural looks along with sparse, streamlined, (whether it be modern or shaker) also loves touches of whimsey, eclectic looks, weird movies, fast cars and loud music. Does not like: pink, purple, lavender, florals, dark woods, formal or traditional style, clutter, too much blue, indie films and pop music.

Self: likes all wood finishes but has no idea how to mix them, pale blues, greens and blue-greens, yellow, brown, tan, nature themes, bold patterns, shiny things, rounded shapes, some pinks, some corals, cowhide, streamlined but cozy, mid-century modern, lots of light, branches and buds, dogs, eclectic style with touches of whimsey. Does not like: purple, too much red, ugly things, too much pattern, anything that the cats want to scratch.

The House: Older farmhouse in a southern Vermont ski town. Livingroom is a decent size, three windows and two doors with lovely trim (painted white) wood floors (honey toned) and that nasty popcorn ceiling.

Family: Four children ages 12, 10, 8, and 4. Three dogs (2 big and 1 little). Three cats (scratchy and stinky). And we are in the process of adopting four children from Ethiopia ages 12, 11, 10, and 9.

Use: Watching TV, movies, playing video games, reading, drawing, toy playing, napping, dog lounging, etc etc etc.

Okay, people, if you have any ideas or suggestions please let me know. I would love to get a bit of 'outside' advice on this.

Budget This.

I don't get the whole "budget" idea. I mean, maybe to some people spending $1,000.00 on a lamp is a steal but ... ?? ...I didn't even spend that much on my SOFA!! (Snagged it on sale at JC Penney).



I thought, for fun, I would try and recreate one of my favorite bedrooms in Domino Magazine (April '06) on the cheap. The REAL live cheap. Let me know what you think.

1. Fabric headboard and Dust Ruffle: This is tricky. The headboard and fabric were custom and ended up costing the homeowner $1,750.00 excluding the fabric. (Which I have a hard time understanding since isn't the dust ruffle fabric?? I guess it was a custom deal. Most NORMAL people can't really afford "custom" unless it means DIY or asking dad if he will make it for us. However, Ikea has a fabric bedframe called the Morkedal (add appropriate umlauts) which has a clean white headboard and dust ruffle. The one in Domino is more of a creamy muslin color but I think this is a decent facsimilie. And there is always RIT dye to fall back on. This beauty will set you back a mere $309.00!

2. Antique Mirrored Chests as Nightstands: Okay, if you want an antique you will pay for it. The owner of this bedroom certainly did...$2,130.00 A PIECE!! (Currey & Company). If I wanted to replicate this look on a budget I would head on over to one of my fave sites: Urban Outfitters, and pick up two Mirrored End Tables for the reasonable price of $200.00 a piece. Now that's a deal! They don't have the gorgeous patina of an antique but you get the same idea for pennies instead of $$$.

3. Lamps: The lamps in this picture are a lovely matte silver with white shades. They are $239.99 at Lamps Plus. While I agree that they are really beautiful, I am sure we can find something a bit more "wallet friendly". I found this Silver Shine Table Lamp for a mere $50.00 a piece at Pier 1. They are brushed chrome finish over brass and the white fabric shade has a pretty little design. I really like these. Nice shape and fairly unbreakable for little ones who like to tornado around my bedroom!!

4. Duvet: I am not sure exactly what size this bed is. In the photos it looks to be a full/double size. The duvet is a gorgeous custom Medura Lapis from John Robshaw textiles and it cost the homeowner $590.00. Once again I headed over to Urban Outfitters where I rather like the Giant Damask Bedspread . It isn't a medallion print but the colors are right and they also have styles featuring medallion prints but in other colors. This coverlet is 101 1/2" x 91 1/2" (which is nearly the size of a king spread) and can be yours for the low, low price of $34.00. That's right! It's not a typo. Only $34 bucks and if the backside looks crappy you can always buy two for that price and sew them back to back or make them into a duvet cover. What a deal!

5. Sheets: West Elm Morocco sheets here. Nice ones too and not a terrible price of $79.00 for the sheet set. In the pictures you can't really see them very well so I would imagine that any sheet set from your regular retail shop would be fine in this case. They have a small chain pattern on the edge which is nice but not necessary in my opinion. Suit yourself on this one.

6. Pillow Covers: I think that this means the blue throw pillows which are also West Elm (called Layered Geo) and do not seem to be available online anymore. West Elm has many other great pillow covers. As a matter of fact, pillow covers are pretty easy to find in the budget range. I particularly like the Denise Schmidt Strings Attached Sham from RetroDepo which fits a standard sized pillow. Great deal at $18.95. Also check out some of these from West Elm (on clearance) and Pier 1:

7. Curtains: I am terrible at choosing curtains. I can never decide what type of material I should get, or if they should have liners. Also, they cost the EARTH! Even Kmart window panels (one per package) are crazy prices considering you usually need two per window and have more than one window per room. It's a pain in the butt. The homeowner's curtains are made from Rosen and Chadwick's fabrics at $19.50 a yard and hung at ceiling height on a black or dark brown rod. They seem to be a plain blue color. Hmmm. In this case I would recommend taking your new bedcover or throw pillow to the store and attempt to match one of the shades of blue.

8. Light Shade: The magazine doesn't list the price of the big round chinese lantern shade on the overhead light. They SAY that it is an "inexpensive lantern". Pearl River is the undisputed KING of paper lanterns for less. They have different sizes and colors available. The largest sizes are under $30.00. Beautiful!

Nick Olsen Turned Me On

Do you know what sucks about being married? You have this man living with you who usually has NO opinion about the decor of you home...(you ask him if he likes mocha and azure together and he says 'whatever, honey, I trust your taste')...and then you show him a fabulous bedspread from Urban Outfitters (see previous post) and he says "Um...nah, I don't like that." What is with that?? Aarrgghh. I need to learn to STOP asking his opinion. If I like something that should be enough, right? lol.

Anyway, today's post is about turn ons. Lately I have been turned on to a few websites with fantastic deals by other bloggers. In turn I want to take this opportunity to turn you on as well.

Daily Turn On:

RetroDepot Fabrics has some of the coolest fabric I have seen in a long time and at great prices (well some prices are great, others are just good). This was the find that Nick Olsen turned me on to.

These are just a sample of the many gorgeous fabrics available (including Marimekko which is lust inducing - at least for me). They also sell some gifts and t-shirts and in my humble opinion the piece de resistance: a Vermont state map pillow. Could you just die??!!

Urban Outfitters

While perusing Urban Outfitters for throw pillows I came across some great deals including this gorgeous mirrored console table.

I admit that I have been drooling for a mirrored piece for a long time but the idea of all that shiny surface just waiting for jelly hands and wet dog noses makes me cringe. I'd be at it with Windex all day long. Oh well, we can all dream can't we?

For those of you without sticky, icky family members, check out Urban Outfitters and the lovely console table can be yours for only $299.00!!

Other items that I am lusting for:

Starting A Design Blog

We all have dreams. Big dreams. Mine usually involve throw pillows and coffee tables, Ikea and Ebay, thrift stores and tag sales.

Anyone can decorate a home if they have the cash. Whether they do it themselves or hire someone with taste to do it for them, money changes everything...including bad carpeting. I am not one of these lucky ones. Design Within Reach is waaayyy out of my reach. I don't have a decorating budget because there is nothing left after paying the bills and buying the food.

So here I am in my Design Anxiety working with the best online sites and discount stores to make my home beautiful, stylish and able to stand up to the harsh reality of kids, dogs and cats.

This is my mission statement and I am sticking to it. Maybe along the way we can help one another find style for less and 75% off. Ya think?