Where I Blog From!

Happy Monday! It's an especially happy Monday for me, because (dare-to-dream no more) I'm participating in the Where We Blog From series over at Ill Seen, Ill Said!

I'm swooning at the sweet comments that have been left already. Many thanks to Jane- it's a thrill to contribute to one of my favorite daily reads!

Click on over for a peek at the desk where I blog from! Today I'm tethering myself to that desk for my first day of NaNoWriMo (175 pages to go, wish me luck!). I'll be back tomorrow with a Halloween recap...

A Few Finds for Me... and You?

The other day I met my Parentals for a dinner at Zao and some post-noodle shopping at U Village.  I had to spend a small fortune on a blogging necessity (*hmph* Merry Christmas, readers), so I refrained from snapping up some lovely bits and pieces for ME at Miller-Pollard...

Neighborhoods of miniature Christmas houses are cropping up all over the place this year, but most of them are too pastel, too twee, or just too x-mased out for me. Not so with this sparkly white church. A simple, traditional structure with just enough crookedy "made it myself" charm.  Love it.

This green glass urn in the window has year-round potential, but it would be perfect for forcing bulbs in the Winter.  Alabaster pebbles and a graceful paperwhite? Black river rock and a lavender hyacinth?  So versatile. So thinking I should go back and snap it up.

Later we went to the organizer's promised land also known as Storables, where I discovered an unexpected treasure. No, not an illusion bookshelf or a neato cord control kit... it's a really classy desk.

Who would think to go to Storables for anything other than boring metro shelving?  Madly crushing on this desk though- sleek and modern and solidly built, with chrome trestle legs and a bamboo top.  The keyboard drawer is at the perfect height for comfortable typing, and the cross-bars are an excellent spot to put your feet up (you know, so you can try to relax while you're paying your bills).  The best part is that it looks wayyyyy more expensive than it is.  Would you have guessed $150?  That's what I call champagne on an Ikea budget!  

It would be completely wrong in my house, but I feel like somebody has to have it- anybody looking to revamp their home office?

Feeling Hot Hot Hot

Heat rises.

You learn this in grade school science, but it has very little import in your life until you're living in the upper floor apartment of an old house. Adam and I gloat about this phenomenon when we're walking around in shorts in the winter, but we pay for it in the summer when our brains are melting. Matilda drapes herself across the furniture and grumbles about how miserable she is; we crossly remind her that we would have opened the windows if it weren't for her recent rooftop escapade. We become sluggish and sullen, we spend stupid amounts of money on iced beverages and tickets to mediocre (but air-conditioned) movies, we suffer a three month lapse in productivity.

Well almost. Matilda and I cleaned off my desk this weekend, and made room for my handsome new lamp, Wilton.

I can't even believe I was lucky enough to snag one of these from Crate & Barrel Outlet!

Knocking a wist off the list? Now, that's what I call productivity.

This week might be a quiet one for Shock the Bourgeois- when not in a heat-induced stupor I'll be wrapping up the party planning for our company picnic this Saturday (yarrrr!). Never fear though- tomorrow I leave you in Adam's capable hands. Remember: we're still looking for a humorous name for his contributions!

My Shockingly Domestic Life

Last night Adam and I took advantage of a warm evening and walked down the street to the Wallingford Farmer's Market. I find browsing the market incredibly satisfying, even when my pockets are empty and my refrigerator is already full (though that's a rare occurrence).

It's not about being a consumer. I really dislike the chore of grocery shopping: the chilly ammonia-scented air, maneuvering a wonky-wheeled cart through a maze of aisles, the necessary (and discouraging) price tag mathematics. When every brightly colored package is shouting its merits and every fruit is hot-house grown in the dead of winter, I am strangely compelled to buy really awful food!

There's something refreshingly honest about a local market- after all, they can only sell what is ripe and good! This week, the first of the strawberries and the last of the peonies. In a few weeks, heirloom tomatoes in wild colors... in a few months, bundles of enormous dahlias.

It's a treat for the senses- brushing dirt off of Washington potatoes, the smell of fresh-baked bread wafting in the open air, the anticipation of tasting the raspberries and Camembert you're bringing home... 

 

Plus, everything just LOOKS gorgeous.

So sorry to wax poetic, my patient readers- but I encourage you to seek out a farmer's market near you and see for yourself.  It's such a lovely way to connect with the subtle shift of seasons AND actually make eye contact (or conversation!) with members of your community.  With that, on to the decor segment of this post!

While Adam was busy cooking up the goat cheese & bell pepper ravioli he selected at the market, I set to work arranging my purchase- a massive bouquet of flowers (for only $5!).  I had so many that I was able to fill two vases.

One for my "office," where I spend so many hours blogging away...

I recommend placing flowers where you'll enjoy them most.

My desk, complete with ubiquitous (but beloved) iMac, red schtapler, and Design Bible.

I try to keep things lively with fun finds, like the glass flower frog for pens & pencils, or my collection of vintage frames (the largest of which is plastic, a road-side find that has been drastically improved with spray paint!)

A spray of indigo and white was saved for my dresser...

This arrangement made me a little nostalgic- I had a blue and white bedroom throughout my childhood.  

 

So I was inspired to make the bed up with a crisp set of sheets, and my favorite summer quilt (Matilda approved).

I searched out blue and gold items, and I'm rather enamored with the array. Do you like the change?

My apartment feels so bright and summery- even Tildy-Cat is stopping to smell the flowers!

Remember, I'm looking to wake up my wardrobe as well... and I need your help!

Painless Project!

Okay!  Y'all ready for a quick project on your long weekend?

The hardest part of this DIY is the window washing!  The $10 old window that I picked appears to be coated in antique grime, and that certainly won't do.  It also has one broken pane, which will need to be carefully removed so that no sharp edges remain.

When you can actually see through it again, let the fun begin!

Option #1...

A Picture Window

Because the panes of this window are roughly 9" x 6", it's just right for framing photos.  Easy, interchangeable, and vastly more attractive than most "grouped" frames you see in stores.  I'd set it atop a modern Ribba picture ledge from Ikea to keep the presentation streamlined.

Option #2...

Mirror Mirror

When I first saw this window, the first concept that sprang to mind was a calendar.  How about 5 days of to-dos? To add some sparkle, I'd suggest painting the back of the panes with mirrored finish spray paint (read my review of this product tomorrow!).  The window won't function as a real mirror, but the reflective surface would be lovely behind your notes-to-self written in dry-erase marker.  (Design*Sponge recently featured a similar idea.)

  

  

Hang it from a doorknob hook with a metal chain, and stash your markers in an ornate wall-mount cup.

Option #3...

Old-Fashioned Charm

The third and final option works on the same principal- but uses chalkboard paint.  I think this brings out the best in the rustic, flaking paint.  Sort of a schoolhouse feel, eh?

Choose a "handy" hook to hold on to your chalk- and maybe your keys as well!

This last idea reminds me of my very own vintage window...

A chalkboard for lists galore in my closet craft nook.

I used stained glass paint to add some color.  I don't recommend this product, by the way- thank goodness it's completely removable. 

Has anyone else used an old window as decor?

SPRING CLEANING Day Four: Sweeping Up the Paper Trail

I'm in no mood for more cleaning today.  Tonight when I get home, I want to sit down (for once), sip a hot latte, and enjoy a re-run of Charmed (please... don't tell anyone).

Thank goodness I'm good at multi-tasking... and thank goodness round four of SPRING CLEANING '09 doesn't require that I get off my rear.  Today I'm going address information overload.  

You'll need:

- To sit yourself down at your desk

- Materials for filing (folders, labels, a pen)

- A guilty pleasure tv show or two

- A paper shredder, scissors, or the ability to do this

- A wastebasket

Step One: Get comfortable.  Make sure the remote is in reach.

Step Two: Review and purge the following...

- Financial records.  Now that you're done with your taxes you can file last year's records.  Paperwork over a few years old can be shredded up and recycled.

- The inevitable build-up of magazines & catalogues.  Clip and recycle, or shelve them neatly.

- Instruction manuals.  No point in keeping manuals for a CD player I got rid of two years ago...

- While you're digging through your drawers, test your pens and markers.  Toss those that don't perform.

- Your computer desktop & folders.  If you can't see your desktop image anymore, it's time to label or tag images and put everything into folders.  Delete old files to clear up some HD space.

Ahh, that's much better.

Step Three: Devote your full attention to the telly.

And with that... the "cleaning" portion of our Spring Cleaning is over.  Almost anticlimactic, isn't it?  What's left to do?  Well jeez, did you think that the DONATE and SELL boxes were going to become a permanent fixture?  

Office Space

This weekend I'm getting down to business.  There's organizing to be done, bills to pay, tax forms to prepare and mail (blegh).  I've also been working hard on this week's room design.

1  I've been ogling this quirky $15 insect paperweight from See Jane Work for ages now.  I used it as the inspiration for this imaginary office- everything is useful but not utilitarian.  If your home office feels like a dreary cubicle, it's time for a merger with the rest of your house!

Love the beetles, I'll pass on the spider.

2 + 10  Even though it would mean a major furniture reorganization, I'm always taking applications for the perfect secretary desk.  This $195 Georgian secretary is prim and polished, with a place for everything.  The desktop flips down to create a larger workspace, the drawer is perfect for stashing your laptop when not in use, and there's plenty of shelf space to showcase your goods.  Because the doors have wire mesh instead of glass, it would be neat to use these gold binder clips ($3.99 at OfficeMax) to post memos and notes-to-self.  I would love to see this desk dressed for success- in warm gray paint with distressed edges, like so.

3  Typical office supplies bore me to death- it's hard to get excited about anything "manilla."  OfficeMax seems to have finally gotten a clue.  They recently introduced lines of revamped products that can help your home office feel a little more like home.  These moc-croc binders are only $8.99, and they definitely get you more bang for your buck.

4  This classic banker's lamp is totally money.  For only $20, it's a sound investment.

5  I love this stationery by Pink Loves Brown.  Love it.  Personalized cards are a luxury, but worth the expense ($20 - $51).  Better hurry though: Nicole Balch is closing up shop soon for her maternity leave (congrats Nicole!).

6  This $5 green marble napkin holder deserves a promotion- it would be great for holding your incoming mail.

7  A striped side chair for $125 redefines business casual.  So comfy it would be tempting to take a sick day.

8  When I found this gold plated wastepaper basket on Craig's List I totally cracked up.  It brings a totally new meaning to "one person's trash is another person's treasure!"  For $30, what the heck- you're the boss.

The butterflies... bahaha!

9  I like to have everything in its right place, but plastic storage is against my office policy. Vintage finds like this green planter ($18) are great for holding pens and pencils- they get the job done and look lovely.

For those of you crunching the numbers, our total expenses are... $471.98.  Questions?  Comments?