Typically one would think that polypropylene rugs are only good for outdoors. However, a great place for these rugs are under the dining table since stains wipe easily off with a little water. Ikea's Drakor rug is a S-T-E-A-L for $79.99. You won't find rugs of this size (~ 7 x 10) & quality for under a $100.
Bemz can help to give your shabby Ikea pieces a fresh start. They sell ready made slip covers for Ikea's popular pieces such as the Tullsta, Klappsta, Ektorp, and Karlanda. If you don't have one of these chairs, scour Craigslist (don't pay retail) and then start clicking away on Bemz! Here are a couple of my favorities:
modernarteveryday offers these three prints for only $16! She's also an Etsy seller. How cute...L'Amour! Happy Valentines Day!
Just recently, I blogged how awesome Etsy is for affordable art. Another alternative to jazzing up some blank space is to create a fabric wall hanging. Textile Arts is a wonderful shop that offers the groovy designs of Marimekko and other mid-century modern designers.
I've ordered some in the past, and lemme tell you ... they are super easy to put together. You will need a staple gun (see Nest Essentials) and a little bit of muscle to assemble them for yourself! They range from $65 to $130. Totally worth it since they are quite large (mostly over 42" wide).
Here are some other great patterns:
I've been cruising around Etsy lately... and I love it! Finally there's a place where you can go to find affordable works of art (and other goodies). For those of you who haven't checked it out, Etsy offers a marketplace where you can buy and sell all things handmade.
Aisyah Ang, a local artist based in San Jose, CA, features incredible pieces for prices around $100. Love her Poppies and her Moody Forest.
A seller, The Baby Lounge, offers made-to-order changing pads - what a cool gift for a mom-to-be!
I've been looking around for a rug for my living room - one that is more traditional with a pink hue. The other day, my friend suggested that I check out eBay.
Holy - moly... there are rugs galore for under $200! If you are just looking for a nice accent and can forgo on the tactile purchasing experience, you should check out eBay!
I pulled the trigger and got this one for $120 (including shipping). It's a 5x7 Turkisk rug that's hand made, double knotted (120 knots per square inch ... not bad) and has a pink hue (that'll compliment my Rothko quite nicely)! Once it arrives, I'll take some pics!
I spent last weekend gardening - planting Primrose, Mini Snap Dragons, and Dusty Millers. Here's how they look right now - happy and only a few sign of flowering buds.
In my experience, Walmart's Garden Center has the most economic pots and supplies. They beat Home Depot, OSH and Lowe's selection hands down. I created two identical bowls and if you're interested... spent $25 in total for the bowls & saucer, soil, and plants.
My husband thinks that I'm looney because every night, I've been carrying these plants indoors since the temperature has been dropping to the low 20's. Hopefully my TLC will pay off, and I'll have a beautiful arrangement shortly!
This is where the magic happens....my office! For this space, I was intent on not creating a wall of books. Instead, I wanted to blend in fun & colorful objects & boxes to serve as eye candy for my storage solution.
Originally, I was thinking of having custom cabinets installed until I realized that they cost more than $2 - 3,000! So, I opted for the next best thing for my budget ... Ikea! The bookshelves are the Billy, the shelves are the Jarpen (which I highly
recommend because they can hold a ton of weight), and of course all the boxes are from there as well. I considered buying the Billy glass doors to hide the mess. But opted against dropping another $180 on the office.
There are slight deviations that separate these two clocks: the face, the hands, and size (the one is 22" vs. 16" in diameter). But the biggest differentiator is ~ $350. The one on the left is the classic Nelson Spindle ($405) whereas the one on the right is its close cousin ($56). I don't know about you ... but I'm fine with its cousin!
eBates offers a service where you can get rebates (translation - cash back!) on all your online purchases. If you are like me and you do a majority of your shopping online, then you should check them out! Here's a sampling of some of their rebates: Target (4%), Saks Fifth Avenue (3%), Home Depot (3%), Bluefly (4%), JcPenney (4%), Overstock (3%), and the list goes on...
It's also a great destination to get coupons as well. Happy shopping!
I'm finally done! I purchased a playful pattern that ties colors that I have around the house . It's an outdoor fabric that's waterproof so hopefully, droppings will not stain too badly. For the cushion, I used a 1" high density foam and extra loft batting. I have one down and another one to go. Then, I'm off to find my second set!
If you are curious of material selection, check out my new section on the left - Nest Essentials.
I was really happy to see on the cover of Metropolitan Home the headline, "The Mix is In". This theme goes hand-in-hand with my latest project of refinishing & reupholstering old dining room chairs. I am planning to replace my existing chairs with two mis-matched sets that will share the same uniform color & fabric. Having a hard time visualizing... come along!
A couple weeks ago, I found these on Craigslist for $20. As you can see, they were in pretty desperate shape, but I really liked their Chippendale-esque styling and was quite excited by the possibility of dabbling in upholstering!
Like my previous project, I had to sand away the original finish. Then, I applied primer onto the sanded surface. One mistake that I made was not tinting 
the primer to my final 
color choice. I had to apply 2 heavy coats of paint in order to obtain the desired color. Now, I'm off to the fabric store to pick the perfect pattern.
Entryways can collect so much clutter. Umbra's Flip Hook is functional and tucks in nicely when not in use. It would go great with this parking spot for your keys.
Whether you are starting with a blank slate or have decided to redecorate an existing one, it always helps to visualize your pieces in the new space. Instead of moving around your furniture from one room to another, you can use this measuring tape to outline the exact dimensions. This can be extremely helpful with large items such as sofas which, more often than not, appear much smaller in your mind's eye. For only $8 a roll for 50 yards, this visualization exercise is worth a try!
I'm a little off topic, but I can't help raving about this product - Dry Cleaner's Secret! I just dry-cleaned 8 cashmere & wool sweaters at home for under $2. This is especially well suited for lightly cleaning and freshening up your clothes. I wouldn't recommend it for heavily stained clothing, but you be judge and read all its great reviews. This is a bargain hunter's dream!
If you are struggling for gift ideas for a loved one who definitely lacks the green thumb, consider this cool bonsai kit. It's eclectic and decidely modern, and for only $20 each, why not buy a couple and showcase them in clusters! What a delight!
I applied the last coat of paint yesterday. Now, she graces the floor of my living room! The final color is more vibrant than the primed color.
Here's an overview of all the action that took place. I applied my first coat of Herbal Green, but soon realized that I should have been more diligent of ensuring a smooth sanded surface. If you didn't know, it's vital to use a tack cloth or lint-free rag to remove ALL tiny little particles after you complete your initial sanding. This will ensure that you have a smooth surface when you paint. I used a
320 grade sand paper which is great to remove dust spots or marks between finish coats. Some of the color stripped off, so another coat of paint was needed.
Now, I am debating on spraying on a coat of lacquer for additional shine. But, for now, I'm happy with my end result, especially for the original cost of $25!
At Home Depot, I invested in a orbital sander which was $30 (with my coupon). I figured having a little "help" would not be a bad idea and could save hours of manual labor. Here's a picture after I stripped its original skin. This took about 1 1/2 hours to complete. All the curved areas required manually sanding and some good old fashion s-w-e-a-t. A word of caution, whenever you use a sander, you should wear googles and a mask! I learned the hard way with a severely irritated eye and hacking cough that took a day to get rid of. (No worries...I'm feeling better now).
Here's another photo with my first coat of tinted primer. Alas, the light is at the end of the tunnel. Now for the final coat of paint.
This past weekend, I decided to experiment with modernizing an old traditional rocking chair. Here's the chair that I found at a garage sale for $25! The style of the chair - early American - was not to my typical liking. Then, I started envisioning ways of revitalizing its original heritage with a contemporary color treatment - glossy herbal green - to be exact. For $25 I was sold. I handed the seller my money and off to Home Depot happily I went.
