Zero Dollar Decorating

First, thank you so much to those of you that offered encouraging words when I announced that I had resigned from teaching to spend more time with my son.  It certainly helps to know that there are plenty of others out there that have taken the same leap of faith and found that it was beyond worth it.

Second, Operation: Zero Dollar Decorating is about to commence.  As you have already read, I do plan to spend some money on decorating, but that money will not come out of our checking, savings, or be put on a credit card.  I will only spend cash that I can make by selling things on Craigslist.

That's the short version, here's a slightly more detailed breakdown of how I plan on doing things.

The first thing that I need to do is get this house clean!  I put off so many chores over the last few busy weeks and our house is a disaster.  While I'm getting things clean and organized, I'll also be pulling items that can be sold on Craigslist.  I have a bunch of accessories that no longer go with our living room since I changed up the color palette.  We also have plenty of items that haven't been used in years and it's time for them to find a new home and stop taking up space in my house. 

While I'm waiting for things to sell on Craigslist, I'm going to start on some projects that I already have the supplies for.  Here's a short list of the projects I can think of right now:
-paint the laundry room
-paint an old trunk for our bedroom
-paint the second floor hallway
-begin second floor hallway gallery wall
-make-over on builder grade chandelier for dining area

Looks like I have a lot of painting in my future.

Since it may take some time for me to get some cash in hand, you can expect a bit less decorating around here and a few more recipes and mood boards. 

Today I'm going to be cleaning like a mad woman!  Fun!  That's not sarcasm, by the way.  I'm genuinely happy to be cleaning my house rather than sitting through beginning of the school year work days.

Have a great Tuesday!

One Thing In, One Thing Out

We don't have much room to store unnecessary stuff at our house, so when something comes in I try to get an item that we already own out.  Judging by the state of one of our junk drawers, you could guess that I'm not very good at sticking to my own little policy. 

Today, however, was different.  I followed my own rule and the olive green drapes that were in our living room have found a new home thanks to Craigslist. 

They will not sit in a closet for years taking up space while I wait for them to be useful again.  Plus, the cash I got for the drapes pretty much covers the cost of the new ones.  Woo hoo!

This weekend I plan on taking care of our many junk drawers (and closets) to make up for a couple years of not following the "one in, one out" rule.  Wish me luck.