Fun Ikea finds

Hey there all! I was hoping to share a big DIY project with you today but the painting is taking for.EVER so it will have to wait till next week. I always way overestimate what I can accomplish in just a couple days time.

A couple weeks back I took the Bub on a mini-excursion to Cincinnati for the day. Our plan was to visit Kings Island and then I realized we could also make a stop at Ikea. Boom -- one for me, one for him. I’m all about compromise. (Even though I think amusement parts are the bomb and the kiddo loves IKEA too.)

Our closest Ikea and is two hours away so I only make it over there once or twice a year. When I do it’s pretty momentous and I have to snap pictures the whole way through. :)

I don’t think I’ve ever been there for Christmas decor and I was SO excited to see what they had in the store. I almost grabbed the cross-stitch pillow on the left for the basement but we already have so many dang pillows down there:

I have to go back to return some stuff so that one may just make it in the cart next time.

They had at least four pillow designs that would work for Christmas:

So cozy and an easy way to add some holiday color! Don’t forget to check out their super cheap feather pillow inserts too!

I always love looking at their fabrics and I fell in love with a few this trip. I thought this log fabric would look SO cool as a runner down a table for Thanksgiving or Christmas:

Or just a funky pillow for the winter – I thought it was different.

The blue botany fabric was really lovely, although I still can’t get there with the bugs on my fabrics. I’m trying:

It’s a beautiful navy blue and so striking. Loved it. The gingham check is a classic any time of year!

This may not be new but I’ve never seen in before – they have Christmas tree fabric. It’s just a print of a tree and I love what they did with it:

My boy took this photo, sorry about the blur. :) They hung tassels and ornaments from the fabric. I just thought that was fun! How perfect for an small apartment space or a kid’s room.

They had some beautiful rugs I hadn’t seen before. These jewel toned/wash rugs are all the rage right now and this one was gorgeous in person:

I should have pulled it out to take the picture but we were hurrying to get to the park. ;)

This one was pretty in person too – it’s actually got more color to it than it looks, it’s just muted:

Here’s a few other items that caught my eye as we walked through:

The Kallax comes in a new mint green color – so fun for a playroom or nursery!:

This cabinet made my heart skip a beat – I am obsessed with gray as you’ve probably noticed lately and this was a beautiful piece:

It’s called the Liatorp -- it was seven feet tall and $500. It would be gorgeous in a kitchen or dining room! Or even full of baskets and towels in a bathroom. Loved it.

This table was more modern than I would pick for my home but I thought the lines were beautiful:

Loved the wishbone chairs too! And $600 was crazy good because it was SO long.

This kitchen island with the butcher block top caught my eye:

Loved the industrial stainless steel shelves combined with the wood top. I’m falling in love with shelves in the kitchen – it seems much easier to grab items that you need daily.

This dresser was new to me – you stack the pieces to make your own customized unit:

It would be SO cute in a kid’s room – each drawer painted a different color? Or an ombre effect with darker on top and lighter as you go up? So many fun possibilities. I couldn’t find a name for this one so took a pic of the tag:

Their lighting section is always one of my favorites. These industrial floor lamps were so cool!:

I LOVE Ikea plates – we’ve had some for years now and they hold up incredibly well. The only time we’ve have them break is when the crazy cat knocks them off a surface. Other than that they stay nick and scratch-free. I thought these designs were super cute and you could easily mix and match them:

Very Anthopologie-esque. :)

What did I get this trip? Well I’m glad you asked! Lots of little things – some Christmas stuff including this polka-dot fabric and twine:

I think they have the fabric year round but it will be extra cute for Christmas. 

I FINALLY found a fiddle leaf there – I’ve looked every trip for years! The price was ridiculously good – only $13. I should have gotten two:

If you have a fiddle leaf from anywhere else you know that’s a GREAT price! This is my second and I love them and their full, pretty leaves. I’ve heard mixed info on cats and these plants -- they are a ficus and I’ve had another ficus for years without issue. That and the fiddle leafs are literally the ONLY plants our cats don’t mess with. They eat the rest. :)

I couldn’t resist this big chunky cable knit throw:

I have a major problem with collecting blankets. And magazines. I can’t pass a good one up.

I picked up one of these bookcase lights to go over the étagère in the kitchen, thinking I’d only want one:

But now I want two and I grabbed the wrong power cord for them. So now I get to drive back! Not necessarily a bad thing cause Ikea is a fun trip for sure:

Do you love Ikea too? I don’t have many of their furniture pieces in our home but I’ve heard good things. Most everything we have from there has held up great and is priced incredibly well! This store is just FUN. If you go make sure to give yourself enough time to eat some meatballs and walk around to take everything in. :)

Let’s go shopping

Hey all! Happy Friday! I’m back with a little shopping excursion to one of my favorite stores. I like sharing spots that I think have great products and prices (and no, this is not a sponsored post!). I’ve shopped Cost Plus World Market for years now but I feel like it’s been over the past couple of years that they’ve really upped their game.

They have the same feel as Pier 1 -- I just find the pieces to be a little more unique and different. It’s a place I like to walk through just to get inspired. I don’t buy something every trip there but I always walk away wanting to buy plenty. ;)

I had to return a few things yesterday so I took some pics as I walked through to show you why I love this place so much!

They always have beautiful rugs – I loved the shaggy diamond patterned one:

They have a great variety in the store and bigger sizes available online. That sheepskin rug is way cheaper at IKEA though. :)

I have so many dang mirrors, I don’t need another one. But both of these catch my eye every time I go in:

I’m always trying to figure out where I could put one!

Their signs and art are fun too – this one is for you if you can’t find an antique antique sign:

It’s really good size by the way.

These glass signs are super cute as well:

I’ve seen the pie one around blogland lately – love them both!

We have a few of their towels – they have the most colorful selection I’ve found anywhere:

That’s one thing you’ll notice in this store – lots of COLOR. I love it.

There are a TON of decorative items throughout too. I loved this wood sconce:

World Market is one of the only places around (other than HomeGoods) that carries furniture you can actually buy and take with you. I got this foyer table a couple years ago:

I adore this table. I added the hardware to dress it up just a bit but otherwise it’s beautiful on it’s own. I love the look of the wood – it’s a natural tone with a little white wash. So pretty.

They have a huge drapery selection too:

But if you need anything longer than 84 inches you’ll have to shop online.

One of my favorite spots in the store is the lighting area:

That one on the left? It’s an exact replica of the Ballard Designs light – this one is bigger than the BD small version and $50 cheaper.

One of my all time favorite purchases from WM is the chandelier over our kitchen table:

I get asked about our kitchen chairs all the time too – those are also from World Market. If you are patient you can get their furniture on sale and they’re always sending out coupons too.

I LOVE their linens – I’ve not found a selection like this anywhere else:

I used their placemats to make most of our outdoor pillows years ago:

WM also has a TN of kitchen and entertaining products:

 

I can spend a good 30 minutes just checking out all the cute items in that section alone.

World Market also carries a HUGE wine selection and tons of unique and worldly food options. It really is a fun spot to check out! I find their prices to be pretty reasonable and for bigger items I will try to wait till it’s on sale or I have a coupon.

Have you ever shopped this store? We only have one nearby but they do sell online as well. Have a GREAT weekend my friends!

The new kitchen table

Oh my! I am so excited about not only the new space in the family room (after taking down the wall), but the fact that we have so much more space in our kitchen as well. Because everything shifted down towards the old office our kitchen space has doubled. It is DREAMY.

A couple months back (I can’t believe it’s been that long!) I asked your thoughts on moving our table and we did end up moving it between the sectional and the kitchen island. I had the light moved over and we LOVE it this way.

Because we have way more space there compared to when it was over by the back door and pantry we were able to consider a new table for the space – I’ve always had to work with a much smaller area so this was pretty exciting for me.

I’ve spent the past two months trying to find the perfect table. I went back and forth between buying and building a table. I did a combo of both on the previous kitchen table (we are moving that one down to the basement) and this time I was considering building from scratch. I had a definite look in mind and it involved these legs:

I am obsessed with the curved look of them. I wanted to go a little more “pretty” this time (compared to the more clean lines of our previous farmhouse table). Honestly though, I just couldn’t pull the trigger and start building – sometimes when you DIY a lot you like to just BUY something. :) So that’s what I started looking into next. I stalked Craigslist for solid month and almost drove three hours round trip to pick up an old table I was going to refinish. It was a basic turned leg table and I liked it…but not enough to drive that far, especially for a Craigslist table. What if it wasn’t in great shape or didn’t look like it did in the pictures?

So I started looking online but everything I liked was so expensive. It was when I was finally going back to plans of building it when I found THE ONE. I happened upon it one evening and fell in love with the shape and the legs and the size and everything…and the icing on the cake was when I noticed it came unfinished.

WHOOT! I couldn’t believe it! I never thought in a million years I’d find the table I wanted for a decent price and unfinished – I guess that’s why it cost less than others I was looking at. Most people probably want a table they don’t have to mess with. ;) But that’s great for me because it’s an empty canvas to work with:

This table is a smidge wider than our old one and much longer – about 15 inches longer with the leaf in the middle:

We’ll keep the leaf in pretty much all the time – it gives us plenty of room. At the old table the chairs were closer together so this gives us space to spread out. I’m considering chairs for the ends of the table too but not sure about that just yet.

The best parts are the details along the apron and the gorgeous legs:

I adore it. So beautiful. I cannot believe I found exactly what I wanted, seriously. The legs are nice and thick – the whole table is incredibly heavy – 100 percent solid wood. It’s made of rubberwood which has a similar finish and hardness to maple. The difference is the top is made in more of a butcher block look, not full planks.

I love that it’s a harder wood so it won’t be an issue when doing homework and writing out bills. Our pine-top table was softer and sometimes the writing would transfer. I was fine with it but would prefer something a little stronger. AND there are no grooves – it’s nice and smooth. I looked at so many tables that had those blasted grooves in the top!:

So now I’m trying to figure out what to do with it! I’ve always been a dark top/white leg kind of girl but I have to tell you I’m kind of loving the lighter look. I love the lighter wood against the chair color – and I don’t want dark legs that will match the floor too much:

At first I was considering a gray wash on the top and white legs, but we already have so much gray going on in the room. It would match the chairs and the light and the built ins and the fireplace… I did wipe on some dark stain underneath and it looks SO good, but again I think I want to go a different direction with this one.

So now I’m leaning toward just waxing it or brushing on some poly to seal it. I am loving the more natural wood look right now, but I’m not sure if I’d like this bare look long term. I think it needs something – a wash perhaps?:

As it is now you can really appreciate all the curves and pretty lines on it and I feel like those stand out more in this lighter state.

Any ideas for me? It’s a blank slate but I don’t want to do anything that’s going to be a pain to sand down and redo any time soon. I do want to do something soon though – it’s making me nervous to use it without any kind of protection on it.

I’m excited about the potential! I think it’s a beauty. :) Oh, by the way, I got it from Wayfair – my first purchase from there and I was really pleased with it and the delivery process. Plus free shipping!

Let me know if you’ve done a lighter or natural finish you love! I’d love tips!

HomeGoods quality

Hello all! So a couple weeks ago a reader asked me about the quality of the HomeGoods furniture that I own and I thought that was a great question. I’m sure everyone has different experiences – but I figured it would be worthwhile to discuss here on the blog.

I think HomeGoods is a great option when it comes to furniture. Their prices are decent (for the most part), but finding something specific is kind of hit or miss. If you see something one week it probably won’t be there the next. When I was asked about their furniture and really thought about it, I realized I only have a few chairs and a few other items from there. I know at times it seems like half my house is HG stuff! Even I was surprised when I counted them up in my head.

I do have a couple benches I’ve purchased over the years. One sits at the foot of our bed and I’ve had that one for a really long time. I have a redo planned for it but it’s held up great and it’s surprisingly comfortable.

I got this little bench that used to sit at our kitchen table and love it too:

I took the seats off and spray painted it (I bought it in black) and I still love it.

I haven’t had any issues with anything I’ve bought from there. I’m trying to think but I can’t think of any problems. Sometimes things are a bit wobbly and I’ll have to tighten them up. But overall I’ve been pleased.

I do have a few chairs I’ve purchased and a few of them are brand name -- the one in our bedroom is Lane:

My husband LOVES that chair.

I think the quality is fine, but sometimes I do notice things that are ever-so-slightly off. Like one duvet cover I bought had a button missing. A tufted button on the bench may be loose. The nail head trim on my blue chair in the living room isn’t perfectly aligned:

So I don’t know if they are overstock or if they are sent the HG way because they don’t meet inspections. I suppose it’s a little bit of both. The issues are always so small you wouldn't even notice them. Same goes for some of the clothing I’ve purchased at TJ Maxx – but some of it has little imperfections and some I can’t find any issues with.

And sometimes there are items that are kind of a mess, and you can get them for an even better deal. :) I did that with our side table in the basement and added a new tabletop:

Overall I’m always really happy with what I buy there. I’ve had a few rugs from HG and some hold up great (usually wool), some don’t at all. The rug I had in our family room for years didn’t fair well at all, but the new one is wool and is doing great. But that’s par for the course at a place like that, I think anyway.

You just need to look over the item really well before buying. And some things like sticky drawers or uneven legs can be fixed. I always keep the tags on the item for a few days so I can live with it and take it back if needed.

Generally I’m happier with the quality of HomeGoods items than I am my IKEA pieces – and they are pretty similar in price most of the time. (And I don’t have to drive two hours to get them, bonus!)

What do you think? Have you purchased from HG and are you happy with the quality? I haven’t tried any larger pieces like dressers so I can’t speak to those. Do you have a favorite piece of furniture from there? I think mine is the étagère/bookcase in the photo above. :)