Well that was a nice break...

Wow...didn't realize it had been quite so long since I last posted. What I thought might be 2 weeks of chaos surrounding "the great migration one mile down the road" has stretched into 2 months of mess...and I still have about 10 boxes left in my dining room to unpack...and curtains to hang in the bedroom. Hence the vacation from the blog...

At what point does a vacation become a sabbatical?

So here's the plan...get the house together and return to normal life. I'm pretty sure that my self deprecating wit will become more entertaining in direct correlation with the increased organization of my surroundings...at least I'm hoping.

Of course you know what they say about the best laid plans...

The Dreaded "X"

I need a new couch.

This isn't a "wow I'm really bored with my current sofa and would really like a new one" kind of a statement. It's a "this couch is old, stained, misshapen, uncomfortable and looked great 11 years ago when it was purchased" kind of a statement.

My couch is a Jennifer Convertibles fantastic find...from 1998. It is sage green with straw colored piping and tuxedo arms. And of course being from Jennifer it's a sleeper...which means it is HEAVY...(so don't envy the movers by the way). When we were searching for a sofa I completely remember looking at fabrics and listening to the salesman talk about cleaning codes and throwing around letters and definitions...and me blithely answering back, "That non-washable brushed cotton twill will be fine...we don't have any pets or kids." Totally jinxed myself with that one...

The first issue came when we tried to adopt a stray cat. (Did I mention I'm not really a cat person...not sure where the head was on that one). This cat apparently didn't want to leave the cold street for a warm loving food filled existence...To show his appreciation he sat at the window screaming to be let out and then peed on the cushion of the over sized chair. You know that over sized chair covered in a "X" cleaning code fabric? Well they weren't lying...not really cleanable.

Then we moved and hired a cheap mover that didn't wrap furniture. So my beautiful sofa and chair covered in their oh so 90's trendy brushed twill were sweated on by my cheap movers...oh and ripped, but you can't blame the rip on the fabric...just on the movers.

Over time the pillows have turned limp and floppy, the piping is worn away at the corners, the front of the sofa has faded to a lighter sage than the sides and the set has suffered more than their fair share of stains, pen marks, etc. Sweetie cracks up whenever I get stressed over a new mark...because seriously, at this point can any new stain make it much worse?

So now I am at a crossroads...excited about the new space and wanting to fill it with a beautiful new sofa...but not sure if I can/should spend the money on it right now. Because truthfully, while my current set is certainly not winning prizes in the beauty department it's still decent to sit on.

Do I go the slip cover route and stretch it another year? Sorry if I offend anyone but I really don't love the look of "one size fits most" slip covers. They seem to be mostly made out of yucky fabrics and I hate it when a sofa looks like it was wrapped in fake suede saran wrap. I'd look into having custom fit covers made but at that point I should probably just replace the set. And as crafty as I am I am totally intimidated at the thought of making my own.

I'm going to wait for enlightenment now...and pass the time dreaming of this little beauty:



That is one good looking sofa...bet it's a dreaded "X"...

LindsB is my hero

It's official...after looking for FAR too long we've finally found a new space soon to be called "home"...and that was followed by my promise to make this new space feel like a "home" not just a place to sleep as I am often accused of by my better half.

How excited was I therefore to open up the Globe Magazine to find the fantastic feature "100 Decorating Ideas for under $100". I quickly abandoned the grocery list in favor of a second cup and promptly parked my tuchas down to read it cover to cover. And it is here that I found my new hero...LindsB and her blog everythingLEB. Linds is me...with follow through that is. She paints, she sews, she re-upholsters Craiglist chairs, she sells handmade etched glasses in her Etsy shop...good lord, does she ever sleep?

I have the best of intentions....I have great ideas....I even make it through to the materials gathering stage....and then life gets in the way. And suddenly I am staring at a tub full of fabric, trim and foam that should be my mother in law's window seat cushions...two years ago.

But I'm thinking that this new space can be a fresh start. If nothing else it has more room to actually work on projects. And my brain is absolutely brimming full of ideas (thanks to LEB and her blogroll of creative friends).

So here is my pledge to myself and my family: "I promise to work with you both to make our new space a welcoming and restful retreat; a place that we can enjoy our life with each other. I can't promise that it will all be done immediately but I do promise that it will all be done thoughtfully and on a reasonable time schedule."

There it is...my public declaration...and the feeling of accountability that it has instilled in me is equal parts exhilarating and terrifying.

And now, forward I go...and I take LindsB with me in spirit...hope she won't mind.