Thursday, July 19, 2012

Vanity Area-- finally!

I had this idea about 2 years ago and am finally watching it come into fruition. But then it sat for a while like this--- unused. Embarrassing, I know. And we were down a dining room chair......



I have always dreamed of having a vanity area where I can get ready in the mornings and do my make-up, etc. and used to live in an apartment with a large bathroom that had a vanity section.... but honestly, I separate from the sink area. IDK that just never seemed very.... sanitary to me.... So anyways, I have been on the lookout for a "desk" of sorts to use for a vanity section.

A while back, I found this desk at KOHL's clearance section for $25. Yes, the whole desk, retailed at $279, was on sale for TWENTY-FIVE DOLLARS!!!!!!! Obviously, I was a little skeptical so I literally pulled every single piece and styrofoam and screws out in the middle of the floor. The manager came over (maybe there were complaints?!) to ask what I was doing but I was not going to pass up a deal of that caliber!!!! Every single screw and piece was in working order. Apparently, it was just their floor model that had been packaged back into the box to be sold. DEAL!!!!! I can't find it on their website so maybe they discontinued it. either way, it was a steal of a deal for me!



I then came across a pinterest post (there are many) about using a shower rod with hooks to hang necklaces. I LOVED this idea!!!!! But I didn't like the idea that the hooks could fall off if you were pulling jewelry off in a hurry. So I snagged THESE hooks for THIS set at IKEA to solve that problem. And I really like the look of it!




This last week, I found this stool, with storage under the seat, and the full-price was $30 so it came home with me :) and that is now my new favorite store in Plano. LOVE LOVE LOVE BT Furnishings (Corner of 15th/Custer). What would you store under the seat cushion if this was your stool?



Found the decoration for above the necklaces for half-price at Hobby Lobby this week.....



Added the finishing touches (items on desk and this drawer-pull that I puchased at Home Depot)


 




And here's what it looks like now.



All my make-up fits in the drawer and my make-up brushes go in the tin bucket next to my lighted mirror(thanks MamMa) so I don't have to worry about my bad habits leaving junk sitting out, since it all has a place. So excited for this whole project and I LOVE the way it turned out!!!!!!!!


Have a lovely day :)

Amanda--- from let's get handy




Sunday, July 1, 2012

Life Gets Crazy

Life does get crazy sometimes and I'm usually pretty good about rolling with the punches- and actually even find joy and humor in them..... As I sit in my home, in July in TEXAS, with no AC, lemme tell you about how the last 2 weeks have been cray-cray.......

So after we got back from Padre, Hubs was planning on leaving again for another business trip-- to San Antonio-- and was planning on making a few stops along the way to see some old college buddies. My mom was coming in from Houston to visit and I had some house projects that I was excited to get done......... But you know how they say to make God laugh-- tell him your plans........

So I was  all ready to knock out a couple home projects when I woke up violently sick on June 20th. I have never ever ever been so sick in my entire life.... Hubs had to rush home from work to get me dressed and to the doctor since my vomit count was up to 7X since I had woken up 2 hours before. Couldn't even keep down pepto bismol. Ended up having bloodwork done and a shot of antibiotics in my hip :( The doctor said food poisoning but IDK.... I had cooked dinner the night before (for our anniversary) and Steve was feeling just fine. Something about my white blood cell count being high. It always makes me wonder how they count those things anyway.... But I did not recover for SIX days. And most of that time I was also viciously nauseous. Pretty much felt like I wasted an entire week of my life. And spent me most of the time hovering around a toilet. And I spent some of those days completely alone since Steve left for San Antone. So thankful for a mother-in-law who was close by, willing to have me "visit," bring me soup and jello, and is okay with me bringing the pup. I'm not sure what I would have done without her. Prob would have just cried and cried.

So my mom came to visit right as I was finally feeling alive again. We watched Breakfast at Tiffany's (for inspiration for a bridal shower I am planning for a friend), went shopping, bought some fabulous shoes from DSW and a gorgeous new top from the Limited, made Jello poke cake, ate strawberry ice cream, ate some delicious pasta salad--- my new FAVORITE recipe--- and volunteered at the church. Oh and did I mention that I tried to start my car one of those days and could only go in REVERSE?!?!?!? No matter what position (including park) i tried to put the gears in, I was only going in reverse. So AAA call later, 2 guys have shown up and diagnosed my car with two different problems..... and finally got it drive-able (by ZipTying the broken part back on---- oh. thanks. now I feel safe) I got it up to my favorite Goodyear, where our car guy, Greg, sees us regularly. Hubs still says no new car. I'm still working on him..... Then, on the same day as my car troubles, our home AC goes out. Landlord comes over and it miraculously starts working again. (of course, right?)

Well Steve comes home, my mom heads back to H-Town and life is good. And we even managed to score a King Size bed (w/frame) at an estate sale for a whopping-good-deal. We have slept together on a full-size for 2 years now so this has been heaven to us. Despite it being from an estate sale, the mattress looked brand new and had been in a mattress-cover since the day they brought it home. PERFECT! Got the old bed moved out and the new one in. Thankful for strong men who could lift that thing! One of Steve's buddies brought a truck over to help and we took him out to dinner (Mi Cocina) as a thank-you. Around 10pm, we returned home to a broken AC unit. So much for enjoying a wonderful first night on our new bed. The AC guy came out today and said the fan is broken. Still under warranty so they just have toget a new one-- he'll let us know when he gets it........... At least we have a portable AC unit in the bedroom and it's cool enough outside tonight to open the windows. Even the pup has been less than thrilled about the inside heat. Going anywhere away from the portable AC unit in the bedroom is miserable so projects and dishes and cooking and life are on hold.

Projects to come:
  • Ditching the home-office idea and converting it to a guest bedroom----huuuuge project
  • Kitchen pantry organization
  • Bedroom Vanity area (almost done)
  • Hosting a Bridal Shower/Brunch (Breakfast at Tiffany's Theme)
  • posting pics of the gift I gave my sister for Sister's Day
So we might not have AC at home, but I did make some delightful Dr. Pepper Ice Cream tonight. Life is good :)

Amanda