Lust for Light

A few weeks ago I scored this vintage light fixture from the thrift store for a dollar.

Yes, an dollar. Much as I thought that I admired its elegant simplicity, after DH wired it in for me I realized that what I actually admired was its teensy price tag. Although it's loads better than the hideous faux Tuscan monstrosity that came with the house, I think my rather plain entryway needs more pizazz.

Whilst cruising the web I found this amazing Meri Drum Chandelier from Red, a fab home goods store in Fredericksburg, Texas, just outside of Austin:

It shines! It sparkles! It exudes major sophistication yet still manages to be a smidgen edgy, and I am quite certain it would transform my boring hallway so that all who entered would fall to their knees and bask in its pizazzarific glory!

It costs $2500.

For that kind of cash I could have a car. Or a pony -- which, let me tell you, is what I want. What I really, really want (although the neighbors would KILL me). And I have this pesky mortgage to pay, so what's a girl to do?

Improvise, naturally! The Meri Chandelier is constructed of pierced resin, and it's the light shining through the holes that gives it that necessary element of surprise. I was thinking of buying and rewiring this fiberglass drum shade from Meteor Lights and (artfully) punching 8,000 holes in it to simulate the look for much, much less.

I might even lacquer the outside white and gold leaf the inside for some, you know, extra pizazz.

Hey chair, want to get together later?

I know I'm probably wearing you down with my Jonathan Adler references, and I promise this is the last one for a while.  However, am currently LOVING the portrait chair in the room shown above.  Now, I'm a pretty good super sleuth so I could probably find the original if I wanted but I'm sure I'd be lead down a trail of tears ending with a god-awful price-tag.  Always the one to save myself the torment and agony inspired by the unattainable, I thought i might just figure out a way to reproduce the sexy little number myself.

So, here's what I'm thinking, I find a basic chair, like the Ikea one listed above (only without the stupid wimpy chrome legs).  Then I can project an image onto the back, draw it out, then threaten Matt with the life of his stupid cat and make him cut it out for me.   A few magical paint by numbers minutes later et voila, le chair.  What do you think?  Am I flying too close to the sun on beautifully lacquered wings of wax?

ps. if anyone wants to send me a gigantic snail pillow for christmas, I'll totally understand

We're totes homeowners... what to do now

OMG, so Matt and I just closed on this house last Tuesday and we're happy as a bunch of peas in a gold-leafed pod.  I've posted some pics of our new digs below, the outside is cushy with a big yard and a crazy front porch.  The color isn't my first choice (Matt loves it, of course.  But then again, he has no say).  The inside, however, is a massive fixer.  Ok, medium fixer.  

It was built in 1984, and boy does the inside show it.  Did you see that hot mess of a tile job around the fire place?  Poor Matt spent 3 hours last night tearing it out.  We've also already ripped out the carpet, the baseboards and all those pesky carpet tacks.  Did you know that carpet is totes tacked to the concrete?  Scheesh!  Who want's carpeting that badly.  Gross, my eyes are bleeding.  So, I've enrolled Matt and I on team renovation, membership: 2.  Cross your fingers that he doesn't divorce me, at least not until the kitchen is remodeled.  I've been seeking inspiration across the entire world wide web and have found some glorious pieces of furniture, rooms I'm willing to kill my cat for and, of course, miles and miles of disgusting granite.  I know, dear readers, that you realize that granite is the avocado green of the millennium.  It is barfy and you should never ever touch it, look at it or breath near it.  

Jen Perkins over at Naughty Secretary Club has been posting some hot rooms on her blog and she's also started this magical flickr group the Practical Encyclopedia of Good Decorating and Home Improvement.  There are lots of badassical gems over there that I urge you to check out immediately.

I'm also pretty hyped up on this Jonathan Adler room right now.  It's a wee bit too minimal for me (where are all the creepy flea market treasures??) but the layout is almost identical to my living room and those crazy dog statues make me want to crawl under a well upholstered sofa and die for not thinking of them first.  

 Jonathan, you make my heart sing.  For now, I have to go glamorously patch concrete holes.  I'm totally going to go all Naomi Campbell style on the renovations, so don't you even worry about me.