Go Micke-y!

Thanks to my boyfriend, my nicely painted Ikea Micke desk now has one less hutch resting upon it! This weekend my boyfriend put anchors and screws into the concrete wall and hung up my Home Goods hutch. Here's my desk area before:

Youch! That hutch is heavy, right Micke? Never fear!

Ah, much better. Now I'm not worried about the hutch toppling over to squish me while I'm sitting at the desk!

Edward is Dead

You heard that right. Remember Edward? Here he is in case you forgot:

Well, he bit the dust. I got him at Anthropologie for $10 (I know, a total ripoff). Anyway, good news is that I took him back and was given a full refund. Since he broke after just a few short weeks of normal use!

I picked up a new knob for only $3:

This guy doesn't have a name. I think he's long sold out from Anthropologie's clearance section. Too bad.

I did like Ed, but this guy was a heck of a lot cheaper. And he's held up pretty well so far. 

Kudos to Anthrpologie for taking responsibility for defective products and giving me a full refund!

Eva!

In this post, I wrote about how the condo is quite old, and the bathroom as pretty poor ventilation. I started using a dehumidifier last week. I also used Eva (yep, my dehumidifier has a name) last week during a shower. She wasn't able to keep the mirror or window from fogging up, but it did make a noticeable difference in the humidity of the bathroom afterwards. Here's the water level a few hours after the shower:

And the water level a few hours after that:

So, Eva definitely picked up a lot more water in the same amount of time running after a same-day shower than she did running after the bathroom hadn't been used for a shower in a week+. No, this does not reflect on my hygiene habits! You will have to just trust me on that one.

The Return of the Cup Pulls

I just can't get enough of the satin nickel hardware! As you read previously here, I changed out the hardware in the kitchen on the drawers from knobs to satin nickel cup pulls. Now I've done the same thing on the other side of the kitchen. 

There are two 'fake drawers' in front of the sink. I thought they looked a little bare:

(Notice that one of the pictures above is before the renovations, and the other was taken during the renovations. The renovations that are still going on, by the way.)

So I decided to add cup pulls on that side of the kitchen as well to make it look a little more finished. I discovered partway through the process, read: after I had already drilled a hole in the wood, that I couldn't get the long screws up behind the board to go into the cup pull because the sink was in the way. Whoops. So I ended up just gluing them on with liquid nails. Normally I wouldn't ever consider such a cop-out solution, but since these handles are just for show and they won't ever actually be used, I figured it would work OK. And, so far so good! Here they are:

And here's a picture to show you how I can keep it real:

Ewww messy kitchen during renovations!! I think the fake drawers look much better now!

Sunday Reads

From DIY Diva (see article below)

Here I've listed a few articles I found interesting this week on the internet.

• A Size 2 is a Size 2 is a Size 8: A brief history of women's clothing sizes - I know that I am confused by them!
• Showdown Over "Showrooming": Often shoppers will go to brick and mortar stores to price compare and see an item in person before buying it online. Target is asking its manufacturers to produce products that are brick & mortar specific.
• How to Make a Glass Jug Lamp: Kit from DIY Diva makes a lamp out of a glass jug. I actually bought the exact same lamp kit from Lowe's last weekend!
• Is JC Penney the future of retail?: JC Penney released a new pricing structure. I started watching the company when they hired Ron Johnson (of Target and Apple fame) last year. 

Lenda Hand With These Curtains, Will Ya?

Bad Ikea puns aside, I figured it was high time I talked a little bit about the window curtains in the living room! You can see them in this picture:

They're from Ikea and they're called Lenda. They cost $29.99 for a two pack and include hem tape and tie backs. The tops of the curtains are tabbed and look like this:

I didn't want the living room curtains to look that way, so I just folded under each tab and sewed all the way along the curtains in a straight line. Easy-peasy. I also didn't use the hem tape because I don't own an iron. (Ew, ironing is boring!) So I sewed the hems up too.

Ikea curtains are a pretty stinkin' good deal because they're so long. These curtains come in lengths as long as 118"! The drawbacks are probably what you'd expect - the fabric quality is so-so and there isn't a fantastic choice of designer patterns. You'll mostly find solid colors.

Here is what the curtains look in the daylight:

And here is a better view that includes the curtain rod and tops of the curtains:

The curtain rod is from Target and its color is oil rubbed bronze. I recommend curtains from Ikea because they're cheap, of adequate length for tall ceilings and big windows, and they get the job done! Looking at the picture above makes me realize how badly I need to add art to the walls...the to-do list never ends!

Cashmere & Cheap

Target has some really fantastic 100% cashmere pieces on clearance. I bought this cozy hat for only $3, marked down from $19.99:

They have scarves, gloves, and hats in tons of fun colors. Check out the full selection here. The prices in the stores are definitely lower than online, but the online deals are good too. I'm not a snob that will only wear cashmere, but it definitely makes a difference in comfort and warmth.

This is just a public service announcement. Now I will get back to work on my home renovations and regularly scheduled programming!