I like to change things up…a lot. I just am not the kind of girl who decorates a room and then leaves everything there for years. I am constantly tweaking, adjusting and switching it up. I have been this way my entire life. I just cannot help it! Nesting took on a whole new phase a few weekends ago and I rearranged the living room. This included a spur of the moment mini road trip to IKEA. Which, by the way, is now the land mark in which Quinn judges all things. Quinn, “Is that bigger than Ikea?”. When we were there he said, “I feel like an ant!”. Ikea does have that affect on you.
I went for one thing, a bookshelf. And then, of course, I had every intention of browsing for other things. Well blog friends I would like to introduce you to the Ikea Hemnes Bookcase that is now living in my living room.
I decided I needed some spring in my house. It may be below freezing outside, but my living room is SPRING! The long-time, hard-working Ikea shelf got the boot. After nearly 7 years of service I just couldn’t be married to it anymore. It now functions as toy storage downstairs. Once the shelf was up and I started playing around with it I realized I needed a pop of color. I couldn’t find contact paper I loved, I toyed with the idea of painting it, but in the end I know me and I know that come fall I might be digging some orange again. So I decided on the easiest and least committed way EVER to add color.
I (okay, Ross) cut foam core board down to size and I wrapped it in wrapping paper and popped the board into the back of the shelf. The hardest part of this WHOLE thing was finding wrapping paper. I finally found a good selection of solids at Party City for $.99. I love how it adds a pop and I love how when I change my mind I can just pull the boards out and wrap them in different paper. Super duper easy and perfect for those of us who just cannot commit.
The run down. The bottom shelves hold bins of toys for the kiddos. The ruler crate was a flea market find. It holds Skylanders–Only the coolest accessory in home decor ;). Keeping it real folks–life with little ones. A stack of HGTV Magazines and This Old House magazines, because I just cannot bare to get rid of them. They hold so much inspiration! The green basket was actually a mini-DIY project from E’s room that has since been displaced (now that she has moved into her big girl room).
I seriously just picked up that bowl from Target, on clearance for like $2-something. The wooden ampersand and gorgeous fabric covered books are TJ Maxx finds/birthday presents.
Any and every Ikea fan out there recognizes those boxes. They are empty now, but I am thinking I will use them to hold photos/Project Life supplies. That way I can bust it out and preserve memories whenever the mood strikes. You all know I am on a huge Project Life kick, right? Seven months of 2012 done. Woohoo! The globe is from the same flea shop as the ruler crate and the pictures once sat on a ledge in the living room and were displaced in the living room re-arrangement.
A nice versatile shelf. I like that I can store the kid toys on the bottom and play with my pretty things on the top. Not that I have that many pretty things, but you know what I mean.
I cannot wait to share the new living room set-up with you. I still have more to spill on Eleanor’s room (check out the latest on her room makeover here). Seems like whenever I have time to snap pictures of her room is when she is napping in it. Quite the conundrum. Anyone else get bit by the spring bug and do some rearranging? FYI- other than the Ikea boxes, the rest of the shelf decor is stuff we already had. I love shopping my house–how about you?
You can see more of my house (although a lot of it has changed recently) in the house tour and check out lots of inspiration in my project gallery.
Sharing this project with: Home Stories A to Z: Tutorials & Tips Link Party, Tatertots & Jello: Weekend Wrap Up Party, Thrifty Decor Chick: Before and After Party
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