Now that we are well into the new year, and I am finally getting used to writing “2013” instead of “2012” I’ve started thinking about goals for our home this year.  Assuming we stay put for a bit, I have quite the laundry list of things I want to check off in our little apartment.

First things first, I have to take our Christmas Tree down (gasp) – yes it’s true.  It’s brown, and SO DRY it’s not even funny, but with Kris out of commission, I haven’t been able to take it out yet.  So really… it’s not my fault. Once I get the Christmas tree down, and the millions of pine needles swept up, I’ll be able to tackle my 2013 list for our house.

Let’s start with the Bedroom. Soak in this god awful “before” picture… this one was taken just after we moved in… you can’t see the wall of boxes at the foot of the bed… this was the “good” area so you can only imagine what it looks like outside the frame.  With this horrid image in your mind, you’ll really be able to appreciate the improvements, as I post some “afters” this year.

A month or so into living here, I hung a few mirrors, replaced the lamps, flipped over the duvet, and added a few new throw pillows.  A slight improvement, but still… blah.

This fall, after making absolutely NO headway on the bedroom, I got some faux fur pillows, and a fuzzy throw to refresh things, and this was pretty much where the room stood before having our new bed delivered last month…  With this image in your mind, here is what is on the list for bedroom updates…

Bedroom Updates:
  – New Bedding
  – New Rug
  – Upholstered Headboard
  – Relocate quatrefoil mirrors
  – Hang something else above the headboard
  – New TV Stand
  – New curtains (possibly move existing silk panels to living room)
  – Rewire and hang chandelier
  – Hang something above armoire
  – Hang something above TV
  – Get rid of gold metal stand

Quite the laundry list, eh? I have a feeling that as the room evolves, the list will get longer, but that’s where it stands for now…

Ok moving on to the dining room… so it turns out that I have only one single picture of our dining room, and it’s of the window – you can’t see the awesome Craigslist table and chairs that I got for $50 total, so I’ll have to update you with more photos.  For now, here is the single picture I have…

I love the pale aqua color that I painted it when we moved in – especially paired with the brown silk curtains, but this room still has some updates on the list…

Dining Room
  – Sand and re-paint chairs
  – Sand and re-paint dining room table
  – Reupholster seat cushions
  – Replace Art
  – Re-paint bookshelf

Next up is our hallway – I already have some updates here, but still need to photograph them.  More to come there, but with this most recent photograph in mind, here are the updates on my list:

Hallway:
  – Wire up a lamp (the overhead light is ghastly at night time)
  – Replace dwarfed sunburst mirror
  – Paint walls for greater contrast with the linen closet
  – Organize linen closet

Finally, the living room – this room has definitely gotten the most love in terms of feeling “finished,” but again, I have a long list of changes to make.  Some of them small, but some of them big.  I doubt we will get through all these changes in 2013, but it’s always nice to dream… here is a reminder of how the living room looks right now…

And here is the list…

Living Room
  – Paint trim white for contrast against creme colored walls
  – Add a new standing lamp
  – Replace lamp on the side table (get rid of faux finished monster)
  – Sort out art on wall behind black love seat (gallery wall, larger pieces, abstract??)
  – New sofas (in my dream world, this would happen immediately)
  – Replace wicker chair
  – Replace / revamp cheap ikea table with something taller

Ok, that is a lot to do, but I think we can make some of these happen for sure.  Some people might think it’s crazy to put this much time and energy into a place we don’t own, but to see where it started compared to where it is now makes me feel like it’s completely worth it.

Well… ALMOST…  I can’t bear to take down our tree just yet!!

Growing up, I’d get so sad every year after Christmas.  After all the excitement, the holiday was over, and all our pretty Christmas decorations would get put away.  My mom would opt for really simple, clean, white decor, and I thought it looked stark and bare in contrast to all the garlands, ornaments, and lights.

As an adult, I get it now.  Out with the clutter, and in with the clean slate.  I think white is perfect for this purpose, and these rooms are fabulous, post-Christmas, “clean out the clutter and simplify” inspiration… Don’t you think??

Source
What could be better than a few graphic black and white throw pillows mixed in with a fuzzy blanket, cow hide, and lots and lots of white.  Nothing.  Nothing is better.

Art can get really pricey really quickly, and while Etsy is a FABULOUS source for online art, so are old books.  The library in my neighborhood had a book sale a few months back, and walking by one afternoon, I ended up taking home a very random book of prints.  Perhaps a coffee table book at one time??

To be honest, most of the prints in it are tattered, and not so impressive, but there was one of a peacock that I flipped to, and I knew I had to have this book!

The page was incredibly tattered, but I was able to scan it to a digital copy, upload it to Shutterfly, and have them print out a high resolution image to frame.  It just came this week, and I am dying to frame it and put it up in our entry!

There was another print of a red and white flower, but I’m not completely sold on it… it would be great around the holidays, but I don’t know if it would translate well in other seasons.

It would be pretty in a series with other botanical prints, but unfortunately the other floral prints in the book are completely non-salvageable.

I have a special plan for the frame that the peacock is going into, and he is going to find a home in our entryway in the not so distant future!

The book was only $3, so I think it was a huge win!  What do you think?