Vanilla... or Butter Pecan?

Who knew that picking out a simple white paint color could be so stinkin' hard! I have a shelving unit that I've been wanting to paint off-white, so I took a trip to the hardware store to pick up a quart of paint. I sure didn't anticipate spending a good half hour shuffling through paint samples, trying to find my perfect shade of white. I just stood and stared at the sea of white for awhile, not knowing where to begin. But, after thumbing through what seemed like millions of shades (most of which had names that made my mouth water... Butter Pecan, Lemon Chiffon, Milkyway and Vanilla Ice Cream), I found what will hopefully be my perfect white.

Benjamin Moore's Mannequin Cream. Not the tastiest of paint names, but a perfect creamy off-white. I haven't painted with it yet. Actually, I have yet to even open the can. But I'll tackle the task sometime this week. I've been under the weather for the past 3 or 4 days, so I haven't been able to get much done.

Happy Monday! (If that's possible?) :)

Shabby White Desk

I have my sister Ellie to thank for this next purchase! She called me on the way home from a dentist appointment to tell me about this cute little store she found called Home Sweet Home. It's a mother-daughter shop, run out of their home in Middlebranch for the last four years. Ellie sent me a few pictures from her phone, including this adorable little table:



It was love at first sight! And at $65, it didn't take me long to decide that I had to have it. So we hopped in the car the next morning, and I took the shabby white desk home with me. :)

It will be perfect for our home office. I've been wanting to finish that room but didn't really have anything to go off of. Now that I have this desk, I'm determined to decorate and finish it!

Grain Sack Chic

I'm having a little obsession with grain sacks right now. No wait, let me correct myself... I'm having a big obsession with grain sacks right now! Pillows, furniture, or just a simple framed sack gives the rustic look that I just can't get enough of.


photo courtesy of Country Home magazine


I came across a website today called 3 Fine Grains. They have lots of great things made from antique feed sacks. Their pillows are especially cute.


I made this pillow with a neglected toss pillow and a dish towel.


How cool is this? A grain sack rug. I want one! $59 at VivaTerra.


photo courtesy of Country Living


I have this striped pillow from Pottery Barn and absolutely adore it!

A New Old Table

Meet my new bedside ensemble!



I found the antique wood stand at a local antique mall this week for $60. I've admired it on several different occasions and always thought about buying it, but until now, never knew what I would do with it.

I found the chair at TJMaxx a few months ago. I bought it to use in our home office, but because we don't even have a home computer yet, the office never gets used (and really, isn't even furnished or decorated yet).



I really love the antique stand. The tone of the wood is so dark and rich, and while it looks really old, it's still in great shape.



The copper brackets on the sides give it a lot of character. Perfect!

I think this little table was made for me. :)

Spring!

There is the most beautiful magnolia tree across the street from our house right now, full of big, fluffy pink blossoms. I have a perfect view of it every morning from our bedroom window. It's so pretty!


photo courtesy of Better Homes and Gardens

Oh, and the weeping cherry trees; I think they could be my favorite part of spring. Someday, I will have a yard full of weeping cherry trees.

I said to my mom the other day how I wish trees had blossoms like this all year-round. But she pointed out to me that if they were like this all the time, they wouldn't be as special every spring. What a wise mother I have. :) And what an amazing creation God has made!

Remember how I went shopping for a bedside table yesterday? I found one! Not the little desk that I had in mind, but I love this one just the same. Pictures will be coming... I let my brother borrow my camera for a couple days, but I'll post some as soon as I get it back.

Happy Thursday!

On the hunt

I'm officially on the hunt for a new bedside table. We have one right now, on Jesse's side of the bed. The poor guy has to put up with me crawling over top of him every morning to turn off my alarm clock. A couple days ago he declared that I must go shopping and find one for my side of the bed. I rarely hear the words must go shopping come of out his mouth... music to my ears. :) So, by request of hubby, I'm in the market for my very own bedside table. Yay!

I'm thinking instead of a traditional nightstand, that I would love to find a small desk; something I could sit at and read a book, paint my nails, etc. Something like:



I went shopping yesterday, but no luck. I'm going to an antique mall nearby after work today... let's see what I can find.

A little eye candy for the day...









photos courtesy of Country Living

Wire and Wood

Twice in the last week, I've taken a trip down to Holmes county with my mom and sister, also known around here as Amish country. There are so many cute stores down there, I just didn't know what to do with myself. Antique malls left and right, unique gift shops on every corner... a shopping paradise. By the end of the first day, our SUV was packed so full of goodies that we had no choice but to call it a day. My finds for the day included...



An antique pine-framed mirror, a mini wood stepping stool, a wire locker basket, a striped linen tea towel, and a nest of speckled eggs. I was most excited to find the wooden stool. My mom has one just like it, and I always admire it (and plot to steal it) every time I'm at her house. It's just so tiny and cute!

Then, there was the chair. There it sat, looking so proper and pretty with it's chocolate-y linen seat and beautiful scrolled white-wash wood frame. Just perfect...



... and if I had an extra $700 just laying around, it would be mine.

I did some serious bathroom cleaning on Saturday. Scrubbed everything top to bottom until my little hands couldn't scrub anymore. As I was down on hands and knees washing the floor, I thought to myself, why don't I have a Swiffer? It would make this so much easier. But there's just something about cleaning on your hands and knees that makes the end result seem, well, cleaner.

Speaking of cleaning, this office of mine could use some work. On that note...

Our Nest

I love to see the inside of other people's houses. If I could, I would walk around our neighborhood and snoop through the windows of all the houses. I just love to see how other people decorate, what their style is, what ideas they have. Maybe I'm crazy... or maybe I'm just crazy about decorating. (Don't worry, I don't actually do any of that!)

Anyways, for those of you who are like me, I'll give you an opportunity to snoop through my windows and see where I live. This is our nest...


The dining area


Living room


I've always wanted a real windsor chair, and just recently got this one. My sister Ellie, who lives in Chicago, found this at an antique store for an unbelievable $56. No, that's not a typo. $56! She knew how much I had been wanting one and, being the wonderful big sister she is, let me buy it.


I'll give you one guess as to who's idea it was to put the deer head in the living room. A hint... it wasn't mine. :)


Our bedroom


The bathroom

That's it! We're renting this place for now, but Jesse and I both dream of being homeowners hopefully sooner than later. I'm sure we'll be here for another couple years, and that's fine with me. We're nestling in quite comfortably!

Have a great weekened!

In the beginning...

I've been stalking a handful of blogs for some time now, and finally decided that it was time I got one of my own. I thought this could a fun little way to share my thoughts and ideas about, well, whatever I want! Also because I have a horrifically boring job and this will give me something fun to do during the day. :)

First, a little bit about me, Megan. I'm 21 and married to the greatest guy ever, Jesse. We're newlyweds of 8 and a half months and live in a small duplex in Hartville, Ohio. We both work for my dad at his custom cabinet shop; I work in the office, and Jesse works in the shop. Maybe eventually we'll get sick of being around each other 24 hours a day, but for now, it's awesome! I love decorating, which is probably what I'll be blogging about most - ideas, inspirations, projects, cute little finds, etc etc.

Well, I guess I made my very first post... that was fun! Definitely more to come. :)