This Old Couch...

My boyfriend and I have been wanting to get a larger couch for a few months, but could not decide on which one or where to buy. Then a friend and I stumbled upon a cute affordable furniture store in the city, and I found the perfect one! It was right in our price range, and the color is a nice chocolate brown. Our close friends have a sectional very similar and we loved theirs, so we knew we needed to find something like it. Plus this one came with a big ottoman to close the deal!

     Image via affortable portables

No this is not a picture of my actual couch in our actual home, as I am still currently waiting for it to be delivered today. I have been thinking about some of the details though! Since the ottoman has a soft top, I really want a cute tray to go on top. Here are a few I like:

White slightly worn tray 

Colorful very worn classic serving tray

Golden wood tray

Bottle Cap Mosaic Tray

Wooden tray with handles

Cleary Acrylic tray

All images via Etsy

Which one do you like?

-M

Tweak your Home

I have been trying to add new things to my apartment every now and then to make it more cozy and personal. It takes some time to really get the rooms the way you want them, and it can all cost you a pretty penny depending upon what you want to do.

Recently, I found an adorable blog, that included an even more adorable home! Joanna from House*Tweaking, shared some pictures of her house on her blog. I love almost every bit of each room, so clean and creative! She says that she is always tweaking all the rooms.

Images via House*Tweaking

I love the DIY Headboard!
-M

Big Ideas, Small Places

With living in an older Chicago apartment building, the rooms are not quite as big as I would like. Overall the space is plenty for what we need, but I have to be creative at times to make my furniture fit. I love finding ways to take advantage of the small amount of space I have without looking cluttered. I am sure everyone has somewhere in their home that is just a little too quirky to make the most of it.

images via ladies home journal

I love that desk, so chic!
-M

Before and After: Kitchens

I currently live in a vintage apartment building, estimated to have been built in the early 1900's. It is a 2 flat with a basement, and we are on the top floor. Our landlord is very flexible and easy-going, he let's us paint, make changes and suggestions, etc. I think one of the reasons is because he just doesn't want to decorate or try to design the interior himself!

My boyfriend and I recently painted the faded white walls in our dining room, which is also the first room you enter when you walk into the apartment. We bought the paint from a cute eco-friendly store, COLORI Eco Paint Boutique, located in Wicker Park. My friend Natalie went with me to choose the color. She insisted that the name of the paint is more important then the actual color itself, which I agree with to an extent. It was harder than I thought to choose the color, I really just wanted a medium shade of tan. However, after looking at so many paint samples that are so different yet so similar, I finally just picked one. I chose a color called Jungle Path, by Mythic non-toxic paint. At first, once we started painting I started to panic, thinking that the color was too dark, but now I really like it and we have received several compliments.

Next I really want to paint our kitchen, and also just re-decorate the whole thing! Right now the lower half of the walls is painted an odd shade of light green, almost minty (from the previous tenants). At first I thought I liked it, but it really just doesn't look right or go with anything. I would love to paint it a bright yellow! So that is my next project. I would like to take some before pictures, then once it is all done, some afters to hopefully show the big improvement! In spirit of my new project, I found a collection of before and after kitchen makeovers.

#1 Before

After

Now that is a cute shade of green!

#2 Before

 After

This kitchen finally entered the 21st century! What do you think

about matching the exterior of the fridge to the cabinets?

#3 Before

After

I love the yellow pattern on the built-in bench!

#4 Before

After

This makeover only cost a measly $400!

(see more at myhomeideas)

Have a good Monday!

-M