MONDAY MUSINGS: FURNISHING A HOME

I’ve lived in my home for about a year and a half now, and for the most part, it has all the necessities that make a home comfortable: a couch, curtains, dining table and chairs, bedroom furniture, a few pictures on the walls, books on the shelves, etc. However, the house is far, FAR from finished (although, a home is never really finished, is it?) and aside from the many furniture items and accessories that are still needed, I’d love to replace many of the items we already have…

Yes, I readily admit, I’m one of those crazy women that is constantly moving furniture around, adding new accessories, removing old ones, tossing some and painting others. And committing to a piece of furniture for more than a year? Forget it! (Sorry honey)

Unfortunately, I’m quickly realizing that furnishing a home is not cheap. A single rug can cost thousands of dollars, a few pieces of decent artwork: another thousand, custom curtains for a single window can be a couple hundred big ones, and curtain panels and rods for an entire room yet another few hundred…I think you catch my drift here.

This is exactly why I began getting a little more crafty – it’s so much easier on the wallet!

This shelving is simply a few Anthropologie brackets and board panels purchased from Lowes which I then stained in Minwax Ebony, painted in Annie Sloan’s Old White, hand distressed, and finished with Minwax wax in natural. I collected most of the ironstone from flea markets and junktique stores – the entire collection cost under $70.

This Pottery barn inspired chalkboard takes up a huge chunk of wall in my dining room and cost me no more than $25 (for the mitre box). The wood was free – left behind the shed in my backyard by the previous owners of the home.

This wall gallery above the bar in my dining room is a collection of frames mostly purchased from Michael’s at a 40% – 60% discount. (You can see that I still haven’t filled all of the frames! And a few of them are a wee bit crooked…)

This bread board rack in my kitchen was quickly made with an old weathered piece of wood and a few hooks purchased from Lowes for about a $1 a piece. The letters for “EAT” were a $2 a piece purchase from Michael’s that I spray painted.

Unfortunately, for all the money that I save, I want to spend 5 times over! My living room is an excellent example….

1. Wall Art Gallery  2. Faux Bougainvillea Branch x5    3. Kensington Sofa   4. Sofia Chair    5. Caden Nailhead Stool x2   Grand Total = $3,712!

This doesn’t include the curtains and entertainment unit I desperately want to replace, and another piece of wall art I want to include on the wall opposite of the future wall gallery!

Yes, transforming a house into a home definitely takes its toll on the wallet, and lots and lots of patience…

What do you think are the priority big ticket items? And how have you otherwise managed to furnish your home on the cheap?