The Bargain Life

A few weeks ago i went to Ikea and found shelves that i want for my bedroom, but they happened to be out of stock. i went back last week…and they’re still out of stock. This time i asked when they would be getting a new shipment, and they said it would be 11 weeks, i’m not even going to be living in my house by then!

The shelves in question are Stripa shelves. i wanted to put 3 in a row along the wall opposite my bed to display my records and the 8 white picture frames that i got at Target 2 for $1 months ago, which have been sitting in a bag ever since. i may shop around elsewhere, but West Elm wants $34 a shelf instead of $8. i think i’m just going to accept defeat on this one.

my life is incomplete without you!

I happened to wake up early this morning, so I went to a bunch of different yard sales. I bought:
- a metal canister – 25 cents
- a pair of marble owls for my roommate (she collects owls) – $1
- a hand-cranked ice cream maker – $1
- a pair of stacking containers – $5
- a box of miscellaneous tupperware [not pictured] – $2

I also went to one yard sale where they were selling a whole bunch of amazing restaurant benches in purple and lime green velvet. they were around $100 each, but I seriously need a purple velvet sofa in my life. I resisted the urge, but they’re selling them tomorrow too…

Stefanie and i are looking for a third roommate right now, and consequently our common areas are looking spotless and stylish. (my rooms on the other hand have filled up with the junk we don’t want out on display). Here’s a look at our house and some of the bargain solutions we’ve come up with:

after i killed the potted petunias i bought for this window shelf, i put up a spectrum of colored glass bottles, which looks really pretty when the sun is shining through. i added blue and green vases that i got for 50 cents each at a thrift store since most of our empty bottles were orange and brown. total cost: $1.

also pictured: hello kitty toaster: $15, Stefanie’s vintage owl cookie jar, 2 clear bottles i painted the insides of that got demoted from the shelf, small plant and pot from Ikea: $2, Target kettle: $6.

the wooden bowls on the end of the counter were $1 each at a thrift store. i put my keys in them right when i walk in the door so i don’t loose them.

we replaced an ugly wall-mounted mail sorter with a swirl shaped coat hook for $5 from Home Goods. the mail now goes in counter-top sorters from Target for a few dollars a piece. on the other side of the door is a $10 ikea magazine rack.

the set of 3 canisters was $3 at a thrift store, and on either side are the 50 cent ikea plant pots from the dead petunias, which now hold miscellaneous junk.

on the window shelf are two $1.50 Ikea plants in $.50 pots, which are nearly impossible to kill. the center plant and pot is Stef’s. we put up 2 empty Orangina bottles and a few wind-up toys to fill the space.

this is the view of the dining room from the kitchen. i picked up the chair for free on the side of the road. i may reupholster it, but i love how retro the orange tweed is. the bust is also a trash pile find, this time from my roommate, and i think it will end up in her room eventually. our kitty tower, previously blogged about, lives in the corner.

i made the window bench out of 2 cabinets that we found in our basement crawl space, which i repainted and sewed cushions for with Ikea fabric. the pillows on the bench right now are just leftovers from the living room.

the kitchen table and chairs are from Ikea via craigslist. Stefanie bought the stool at Ikea just for the sake of having stools at that counter, but they are too high and we pretty much never use them.

Stefanie had this dresser and didn’t want to use it anymore, but she couldn’t get rid of it or diy it because it belongs to her family so we’re using it as a sideboard. we detached the mirror to make it look obvious that it’s a bedroom dresser. the runner is a folded-up tablecloth. the drawers hold all of my tools since i do most of my crafts in the dining room.

our living room is a bit bipolar since al of the major furniture is Stefanie’s, and a lot of the accessories are mine. for most of the time we’ve lived here i’ve just left it as a vintage feeling room (i do like all of Stefanie’s decor choices), but it’s in the process of having more modern pieces incorporated into it.

there’s no overhead light in the room, so we added an Ikea knappa pendant lamp. i still think $25 is too much for a bunch of pieces of plastic, but look-wise it’s worth it.

both sofas came from Emory announcements for $40-$50 each. i want to reupholster the wing sofa with something bold and modern, but right now it’s got a comforter cover over the center of it as a temporary fix, which looks surprisingly good. the pillows are all either from Ikea or made with Ikea fabric. the quilt on the sofa is from Anthropolgie, so it was obviously not a bargain, but it is really comfortable for a quilt.

the triangle end tables, coffee table, and the boxes in the coffee table are also from Ikea. the round table behind the sofa is an antique that Stefanie got as a gift. it’s Dylan’s favorite place to sleep.

all of the artwork in the house is from our friend who lived here before us. she lives in a tiny apartment now, so we’re holding it for her.

here we’ve got the credenza that i made (previously posted about) holding the TV. the mirror that we took off the dresser in the dining room is propped up against the wall. it does have hanging hardware, so so might actually attach it to the wall. the cubby bookcase was either free or really cheap, and it’s good for stashing the clutter.

the chair was a bit of a splurge at $50, but Stef really liked the unique shape. it’s got a towel draped across it because the cats like to sleep there.

this $5 orange chair is kind of hideous, but it’s also the most comfortable chair in the house. the cats agree: Dylan likes to lie on top of the backrest.

there haven’t been any posts recently not for lack of projects or lack of bargains, but for lack of camera. i brought my camera in to be repaired a few weeks ago thinking it would be a simple repair (and it’s still under warrantee), but really it got sent out somewhere to be fixed and i still haven’t gotten it back. i’ve actually done a lot of projects both big and small recently: turning old cabinets into a bench, installing a curtain, making a cardboard drawer divider, etc. but i’ll have to wait to get my camera back before posting them.

in the meantime, here’s a collection i compiled of the best items at Ikea for under $1. it’s no secret that i adore Ikea furniture, but their small items are equally awesome.

click “read more” for links, prices, and reasons you’ll love it.
Read more

Does anyone know of Etsy sellers who sell prints of their works for cheap? Preferably bold graphic stuff. I’ve been browsing and found a few things I like, but there are so many sellers.

I have a bunch of Ikea Nyttja frames and I need something to put in them. Of course I have about a million ideas: doodles, paper cutouts, art prints (Matisse cutouts maybe), magazine clippings, Marimekko postcards, Warhol-ized photos of my friends and family, scrapbook paper, scrap fabric, collages, etc. I also have quite a collection of band posters, but now that I’m not in a dorm anymore I don’t really want to plaster my walls with them. When I have too many ideas it usually ends up with none of them being put into action.

$24.99 seems a bit much, but I love the simple sleek design of this magazine rack from Target, and it would definitely help with the clutter in our living room. I can’t decide whether or not to buy it. opinions?

This “cat pueblo play tower” from Target (online only) is so beyond adorable and well-priced at $31.99. Unfortunately my cats don’t need it anymore since I already bought them a “kitty scyscraper.” Part of me likes this a lot better even though it’s not really my style.

I bought this “kitty skyscraper” at Target last week. It was $30, and I contemplated for a while whether it was worth it, but in the end my ridiculous love of cats beat out my cheapness. I’ve loved cats my whole life, but couldn’t ever have one (mom’s allergic and dad hates them). Now that I finally have cats I’m obsessed. I am 21 and already a crazy cat lady.

While I’m showing off cat furniture, here is my cat Ted’s little corner.
Ikea Bastis tent – $6.99
Lova bed canopy – $14.99
and usually there’s a $2.49 Irma Blanket in the bottom of the tent.
Ikea has some seriously adorable pet furniture. They just introduced cat tunnels that match the tents. I would have picked one up last time I was in the store, but they were out of stock.