Tops of 2011

Hey hey! How is your last week of the year coming along? I’m still not doing much. Other than eating. And sitting. And sleeping. ;) Yesterday I posted about the top ten posts in 2011 (based on your comments), and I couldn’t resist sharing some other tops of the year! Google Analytics is chock full of awesome little details about blog traffic (if you don’t have it set up on your blog, you should!

Top Ten of Eleven

Well hey there! Remember me? :) I’ve had such a lovely, totally lazy week…it has been absolutely wonderful. I’m still in low key mode but sure do miss you all. The end of 2011 is here…can you even believe it? Only a few days left of the year, and that means it’s time to recap the biggest projects  of 2011 here on TDC. I figure these out based on comments. I love ‘em. I do.  :) So here. we.

Merry Christmas to you & yours

From ours. :) Do you know how hard it is to get a family photo when one kiddo is in college? Nearly impossible. I cherish them big time when we get one. Especially when we’re all smiling and actually looking at the camera. :) Of course I couldn’t resist playing around on Picnik a bit: My stepdaughter is gonna kill me. I think I’ll put this on Facebook and tag her. Of course I couldn't

Head start

Well…I’ve caught the bug. Just a bit early this season. The clutter is driving me MAD and I had to do something about it. I’m still enjoying the magic of the season, believe me. (Sitting by the Christmas lights and eating my second cookie of the day right now.) I’m just overwhelmed by the stuff already. Not the Christmas stuff, just the STUFF. Usually I wait till all the holiday decor is put

Secret Santa (and a few things)

Hello there! How the heck are ya?! First of all…AHHHHHH!!!: Are you freakin’ out yet? Just a friendly reminder, that’s all. ;) I had to tell you about a FUN idea my friend Stefanie over at Brooklyn Limestone came up with. She coordinated a bunch of bloggers and we’re doing a blogland Secret Santa: How great is that? (I’m in good company, eh?) I love it cause it’s the same kind of fun I

Spreading Christmas CHEER!

Hello all! I hope you had a lovely weekend! I got absolutely ZERO done – Saturday we quite literally laid around all day, and only got our butts up to go see a movie. Today was spent visiting my grandparents who live about three hours away. It was a lot of driving time but it was SO wonderful to see them! So the Christmas list hasn’t gotten any shorter, but whatev. I’ll be all supersonic this

Right Now

Right now I’m in knee-deep in holiday STUFF. Every year I swear I’m going to have everything perfectly planned and decorated and non-stressed by now and every year about this time I laugh manically at myself. It just doesn’t happen. :) And I’m OK with that. Right now the basement looks like a Christmas bomb went off. Every year I say I’m going to keep it organized as I go: And you know…

A Christmas Tree Party!

Well, the time is here! It’s time to share all the magic – there is very little more magical than a tree lit up at Christmas, don’t you agree? There’s something mesmerizing about the glow from a Christmas tree. It calms me, makes me pause and give thanks, and makes me feel all gooey inside. :) I’m sharing the three trees we have up at our house with you today. Starting with the Bub’s FUN

Thank you Pinterest!

OK peeps…I had a whole other post planned for this evening. But then fate stepped in, in the form of our old buddy Pinterest. A few days ago I pinned a simple little recipe for easy apple dumplings: Source: oneshetwoshe.com via Thrifty Decor Chick on Pinterest   Tonight I made them. And my life has been changed forever. OK, I may be going a little overboard here. But for the love

Christmas Craftastic!

Well HEY! Hope you had a great weekend! I determined I was totally joking about being done with the Christmas decorating. :) I put up another tree and have at least one more spot I want to deck out. I think this is the latest I’ve been working on decor in a long time, but I’m having fun with it so I’m not worrying about it. I’ve used VERY little of what I’ve used in the past. It’s been fun to

Last giveaway weekend of 2011!

Heya hey! OK, so I almost forgot we have one more giveaway for the month! I'm not sure how I could have forgotten about this one cause it rawks. ;)You’re gonna love this site! The lovely folks at Wuslu.com have had such a great response to their deals, they’ve added a new site called Antique Farm House:And whooeee, they’ve got some beauties in store for you! Antique Farm House is sales event kind

My (New) Christmas Mantel

Well HEY! I’m so excited to share my Christmas mantel with you today! You know this year was especially fun for me because of the redo our corner fireplace recently went through. If you haven’t seen it yet, go ahead and click over. We’ll wait. :) OK, so here’s a quick stroll down memory lane – the big bad annoying corner decorated for Christmas: I tried my best to work with it…and I

December Before and After: Poinsettias!

Hello! Can you believe it? The final Before and After Party of the year? It’s blowing my mind how fast the year went. As I get older they just go faster and faster. Not sure I’m happy about that. :) This month I’m sharing some simple before and afters of a lovely little holiday plant you may have heard of…the poinsettia. I have long loved this holiday plant, but have NEVER purchased one for

Metallic Christmas Table

Hello hello! Hope you had a lovely weekend! I finished up our Christmas dining room today and I am smitten! Layla is kicking off our Holiday Home link ups tomorrow morning, so I had to share what I’ve been up to! I’ve wanted to change up the centerpiece in the dining room for some time now – I love those glass candleholders in the framed out mirror, but it’s been a couple years now and I

Month in review and winners!

Helloooo! Are you ready for some weekend?! I am – and it’s going to be a busy one. Today was hubby’s birthday and we have the Bub’s birthday party and a holiday show tomorrow. Have I mentioned our family has seven major events in December? My step-brother’s birthday, my hubby’s birthday, my son’s birthday, my nephew’s birthday, our anniversary, Christmas and then New Years. Whew. We are not

My Go-To Christmas Decor

Well…it’s finally starting to look like CHRISTMAS up in here! I had forgotten how much I love turning off all the lights and letting just the Christmas lights twinkle. Magic. :) As I was pulling decor out today, it occurred to me that I use the same formula every year for most of my holiday decorating. I’ve mentioned it before, but I think it’s worth repeating. I think any home can look

Nails for the DIYer

Hey hey! How are ya? I’ve FINALLY been pulling out the Christmas decor around here. Being away for Thanksgiving made me feel totally behind – especially since (like every year) I have delusions that I’ll be able to get it ALL out before December 1st. Ummm…like every year, it’s just not happening. ;) But I’m taking my time and thoroughly enjoying it. I’ve pulled out a few things here and

A fireplace redo!

Hello my peeps!! I hope you had a LOVELY Thanksgiving week! I’m so glad to be back, but the little blogging break was nice. :) I can’t wait to tell you what we were up to last week – but for now, I am SO psyched about the project that’s been going on around here over the past couple of weeks! For as long as we’ve lived in this house, I’ve had a thorn in my side…that I may have mentioned one or

Giveaway Weekend!

Well, it’s another Black Friday peeps! And it’s time to celebrate again with another great giveaway from Wuslu.com!You all know I love a good deal, and Wuslu is chock full of them – every day! They sell one (beautiful) item a day – but when it’s gone, it’s gone! You have to get it while you can and check in often to see what goodies are up. The pieces are SO unique and different, like shopping a

Thanks to you giveaways

Hello all! How was your weekend? I’ve been working on a fairly big project that I can’t WAIT to show you. It involved some tiling and a tile saw – my first time using one and I must say it was SO easy (and fun?) to use! I will show you the finished product next week. This week I’m taking the time off to be with my family, so I have something special planned for all you Squeezies. ;) I wanted to

Giveaway Weekend!

Hey hey! Another weekend is upon us, and you know what that means -- more free stuff for one of you! ;) And more fun Christmas gift ideas for everyone. You. are. welcome. I do what I can. ;) There will only be a couple more weekend giveaways this year, but I have something fun planned for next week that I’ll tell you more about soon. For now, let’s check out EvgieNev, and the cuteness that is

How to install peel and stick tile

Hello all! Hope your week is going SWELL. ;) I figured it was high time I finally gave the toot on how I installed the peel and stick tile in the laundry room. First of all, let me say…I LOVE THIS STUFF!! It’s rockin’ my world. I’m SO pleased with it. And now I’m going to tell you how totally easy it was to install. It’s just silly really. The peel and stick we used was the Novalis tile

One, two, three art caddy

Well HELLO! Hope you had a fantastic weekend! We finished up marching band season (for the most part – more on that soon!) and I am SO PROUD of my hubby, the staff and those kids. They are so crazy talented and they work their tails off all summer and fall. But I am glad to have my hubby back – for a few weeks anyway. ;) Over the past few weeks I’ve been working like a mad woman trying to

Giveaway Weekend!

Hey hey there! Well, I’m overwhelmed by the response to my last post – in a very good way. I’m so thrilled about all of your emails and thankful for the lovely comments. :) I’m SO excited about this weekend’s giveaway! (I know, when am I not?) But reheheally…this one is right up my alley! You know I’m a tool girl so I was so tickled (pink) when Jessica wrote me about Tomboy Tools:They sell

Debt free: Nine months later

Well, it’s been nine months since we paid off our last debt. (Which was the US Department of Education – my student loans. Not sure if I ever told you that!) It certainly has been nine months of living like no one else, in more ways than one. I know so many of you are fighting the good fight against your own debt, and I wanted to follow up on our story and continue to give you the motivation

Farmhouse Industrial Modern?

Last year I told you about my Suburban style. “Real” decorators – especially those on TV –- seem to think “Suburban” is a bad word. I happen to think it’s lovely and warm and so ME. Oh, the horrors! ;) Over the past year or so, I’m drawn to different styles and feel like mine is changing a bit. I just have no clue what to call it now. I don’t know if it’s all the lovely blogs out there or just

November Before and After: New Knobs

Hey there! It’s time to party down at this month’s Before and After Party! Whoo HOO! This month I’m sharing a really simple update I’ve talked about a few times – but it makes such a BIG difference (I think anyway). Earlier this year I showed you the Craigslist dresser I got for the office: I’ve purchased a few things from this Craigslist seller, and she always uses those basic wood knobs

Winners and Holiday Home!

Well hello there! Hope you had a lovely weekend!!I need to announce a few lucky winners! The winner of the Black and Decker Steam Mop is Natalie at The Bibler Family! The two winners of The Rusted Chain giveaway are Lori at Itsy Bitsy Stitches and Veronika at Love Tuvster! Congrats ladies! Please send me an email at thriftydecorchick (at) gmail (dot) com and I’ll get you connected with your

Giveaway Weekend!

Wow. You all love a free steam mop, eh? ;) I love it! After you’re done cleaning the floors, you’ll deserve to treat yourself. And I have a GREAT way to do that this weekend! One of the great blessings of my life has been blogging, for more reasons that I can count. But one of the biggest reasons is the true friends I’ve met over the past three (plus) years. Some I’ve really met, some I’ve never

A steamy giveaway!

Hello! I have some FUN for you today – this post is all about cleaning the floors!! WHOOOOO! I mean, really. Is there anything more exciting? Just CALM DOWN. I know it’s awesome. (The real awesome comes later, hang in there.)I’ve mentioned before that our previous floors were laminate. The fridge died, leaked water all over, and the laminate was toast. Fast forward a couple months later and a (

Month(s) In Review!

Hello hello! I’m back with another month in review – but this one is two, YES, two times the fun because I’m reviewing all of the projects and posts from September and October. I kinda forgot about September. ;) Because I’ve got so many to mention, I’m going to keep the talking to a minimum. I know. Don’t be sad. I started off September by showing off the lovely Tracie from Cleverly Inspired:

53 Days

Hello and Happy Halloween! Hope you had a wonderful day and evening! :) We had a great time chasing a very excited pirate around the neighborhood. And I ate a LOT of food. I mean. Lots. Well, it’s about that time folks. It’s now November…uhhh, well it will be when most of you read this…so I’m allowed to say the “Christmas” word. I’ve actually been talking and thinking about it for a good month

Giveaway Weekend!

Well hello all! Happy Halloween weekend to you! And YOU! ;)I’m back with another fantastic giveaway this weekend, cause my advertisers RAWK. MirrorMate sells custom frames made specifically for your mirror. I think most of us have those basic, frameless mirrors in our bathrooms, and MirrorMate provides a fantastic solution for dressing them up!  The folks at MirrorMate were awesome and sent me a

Halloween up in here

Ummm…people. It will be NOVEMBER in a mere days. What in the world? Less than two months till Christmas! And I still had my beachy vignette up till today. ;) The new floors kind of put a wrench in the Halloween decor – most of it has been outside till today. But I finally got a little spooky display going with just days to spare! My Craigslist buffet in the foyer was such a great find – and

Pumpkin Carving Party

Hey hey! I’m so glad you Squeezies are happy to see the mice again. Well. Most of you. ;) We hosted a little Halloween-themed shindig this weekend I wanted to tell you about in case you want to throw one together yourself this weekend! I’ve wanted to have a Pumpkin Carving Party for years and always put it off because of the huge mess I imagined it would be. I didn’t really want to do it

They’re Baaaack!!

Well, you knew it had to happen…the mice are BACK baby!! Technically, I think they’re called rats: That’s what Martha Stewart calls them anyway. Or maybe they are mice? Who knows. I just LOVE THEM. I know they give some of you the heebs, but I’m quite taken with them. Look away my friends, look away. I got a little, teensy more creative with them this year…a couple of them are

Winners, Haven and Q & A!

Well hey there! I’m back with a quick post to announce a few goodies! First of all – the winners of the last three giveaways! The lucky winners are:- $75 to Attiser:  Samantha at Samanthacwatson (at) hotmail (dot) com
- $100 to Pick Your Plum:  Teri at kleinsmith5 (at) charter (dot) net
- $100 Lowe’s gift card from Hometalk:  Susan at splw222 (at) yahoo (dot) comCongrats ladies! Please

Giveaway Weekend!

Hey all! I hope you have a lovely weekend planned! We have marching band. And then some marching band. And then…more marching band. And then a nap. ;) I have an AWESOME giveaway for you all this weekend! I always get extra excited when it’s one I would love to win myself…which is pretty much all of them. :)The folks at Hometalk are my kind of people:It’s no surprise that I’m all about anything

Let there be light!

Well HEY! Thanks for all the kind comments on our new floors! I tell you what -- I am more thrilled with them each day. I swear these floors don’t show anything! I so wish I could say I’m the I-want-to-see-the-dirt-so-I-know-when-to-clean type…but I’m just not. Sorry. ;)Anyhoo, I told you the new floors have spurred on some new projects. One in particular I wanted to take care of before they

Our “new” house!

Well, they are DONE! The floors are down, sanded and stained. It took the guys yesterday and today to get the quarter round down and painted, and then the furniture back in – so I’ve been smiling and fluffing and giddy all evening. ;) The house is still (mostly) a mess – but I’ve been trying to get the layer of dust out of a couple rooms to show you the results! I mentioned before that we

My Top Ten Tools

Hey all! How are ya? Hope you had a wonderful weekend my peeps! We stayed with my sis this weekend cause the FLOORS ARE DONE! I was pleasantly surprised late late week when our flooring guy said he would work through the weekend to get them finished up. To say I’m thrilled is the understatement of the century. :) Hopefully by the end of the day tomorrow the baseboards will be painted, the

How to Paint a Door

Well, I promised a how-to on painting doors, and I’m here tonight to tell you lucky ducks how it’s done. Hold on to your seats, this is probably the MOST exciting post you will ever read. Evah!!! I showed you my front door transformation here: I also painted the inside of that front door months ago, and I showed you that project here. I’ve painted a few doors in my day, and there’s a few

Days One and Two: Flooring Update!

Well hey there! I’m THRILLED to announce that the great floor install has begun!! Wait -- that should probably be The Great Floor Install. It deserves caps cause I’ve been been waiting for this for a loooong time. (Six weeks and three days. But who’s counting?) ;) The process started bright and early Tuesday morning – the handymen came to pull up all of the carpet and laminate. But first all of

Great white!

Well, first of all, thank you for all the lovely birthday wishes! And everyone who guessed 26 was RIGHT!! I am 26! Plus 10. Everyone who guessed 32 and younger has a check coming in the mail. ;) As many of you know, our new hardwood floors are being installed this week. I’m a jumble of so excited I could pee and totally dreading this – I’m so confused. They start Tuesday and at least for

Giveaway Weekend!

Well hey!! How the heck are ya? I’m GOOD! This is my birthday weekend – so I’ve already started celebrating. I spent the birthday money from the grandparents already (thanks Grandma!!), I’ve been eating whatever the heck I want, and I’m enjoying some lovely roses from the hubs. ;)I’m looking forward to having my girlfriends over one night this weekend, and hanging with the family the other. I

Fall Outdoor Spaces Party!

Hey there! It’s here! The final fall linky party in our Fall Extravaganza:Layla, Rhoda and Kate and I have such a blast throwing these shindigs! I hope you have found some inspiration (and new visitors!) throughout the past couple of weeks. My outdoor space started with a big change  -- yes, I painted our front door! I have to admit -- it was nerve-racking. I had been thinking of painting our

Don’t get me started

Well, it looks like we will get our new floors next week!! They will be finished on site – meaning the wood will be nailed down, then sanded, then stained. I’m so excited…just not excited about the process. It’s going to take a week total, and we’ll have to be out of the house quite a bit. I have no idea what I’m going to do with the cats, the dog, the fish or the humans. ;) I’ll just take it day

Before & After Party: Ghosts in the Trees!

Well hello! I hope you had a wonderful weekend! I got SO much done around here. DIY-wise anyway. You can’t walk through the house without stepping on a toy or a piece of clothing – but the projects went very well! ;) It’s time for the October Before and After Party, and I’m also linking this up to Kate’s fall craft party tomorrow! Linking a party up to a party --  not sure that’s even

Giveaway Weekend!

Hello there! I hope you have a wonderful fall weekend planned! Maybe some pumpkin patching? Apple picking? Leaf jumping? ;) Ohhh, that all sounds just PERFECT. Whatever you are up to, I have a great giveaway today to kick if off right! ;)Attiser is an online store with a collection of Bohemian and Indian-inspired bedding, table linens and accessories:All of their items are hand crafted, and all

Paper Fall Wreath

Well hello!! Thanks so much for all the wonderful comments on our deck and patio over the past week or so. We are just pinching ourselves – everything turned out so beautifully and we couldn’t be happier. I am so not worthy of the awesomeness. :) The next party on our Autumn Linky list is the Door Decor shindig over at Rhoda’s! I had an idea for a couple DIY fall wreaths this year, and

Our new backyard!

Well, I’m kind of cheating. I’m not really showing a fall mantel for Layla’s party. Just a fall fireplace. An outdoor fireplace. ;) I figured I can show you the indoor mantel any time – but the final touches on the backyard and the new patio were made today, so I just couldn’t wait to show you!! Is this allowed Lay? :) I hope so! Cause it rocks my world!!! OK, there are a serious

I want to hug my fridge

Hey hey! How was your weekend? We had a wonderful time in southern Indiana in a cabin with my family – we had such a blast!! Indiana in the fall is my very favorite place to be! Well, it’s my favorite place to be any time of the year, but you get it. :) Well, it’s been a month since our fridge died on us and caused water damage in the kitchen. We’ve since gotten the island installed and put

Candy Corn Love

Well HEY! First of all, thank you for the lovely comments on our deck! You all are the sweetest!! We are just so pleased with how it turned out. Sooo, last week I was trying to get some crafty mojo going up in here. (That would be up in hea if you’re hip. I’m not.) I had a GREAT Halloween craft in mind, and I got all the way to the end…and it was just, well. Wrong. :) Since I had all the

The Deck Reveal!

Well, it’s been a loooooong time coming! Our outdoor spaces are finally wrapping up and we are THRILLED. The mulching was finished today, and a few minor patio projects are being finished up this week. I’ll show you that as soon as I get it cleaned up, but for now, I’m excited to share our deck space! Warning: Picture overload. Don’t say I didn’t tell ya. ;) It started when we decided to

Last Minute Landscaping

Heya!! How was your weekend? Good I hope – the temps were pretty darn great around here and I took advantage of it! All of the activity we have going on in the backyard has kind of spilled over into the rest of the yard – but not in a good way. Our front and side yards have looked like the back for the past month or so – AWFUL. With all the workers walking all over and all the STUFF

A beadboard island…again!

Well helloooo! Thanks for all the thoughts on the flooring – it’s helped a LOT. I’ll keep you updated on our progress. (Which I hope happens soon!) Last week we saw some progress of another kind – we got our kitchen island reinstalled and I was so happy to have it back! The guys doing the work had to pull off all of the beadboard and the corbels in order to get the island up and

Picking out the floors

Well hello! I’m happy to announce we have some progress with the floors in the kitchen and family room. Nothing is torn up, nothing is laid down, nothing is even picked out. But the insurance company has given us the green light to move forward and that is AWESOME news! I’m clicking my heals over here! (OK, in my head…I’ve tried doing it for real and it ain’t pretty.) I told  you a couple of

DIY or DI-Buy?

Hey hey! How was your weekend?! We had a great one! I worked on a project I’ve been wanting to try for awhile now. Our backyard redo is finally finishing up this week…and it’s been a long time coming. :) The landscaper and his team have done an incredible job and stayed right on track, but we’ve had many, MANY issues with the deck and staining it (which I’ll tell you about soon) and it’s pushed

Never Forget

Many of you have noticed that I love New York City. It’s deep. I love it like I love a friend – I knew even before I ever visited that I would love it. I just knew. And I was right. On my first trip to NYC almost exactly ten years ago, I feel in love with the city. Hard and fast. We were there two weeks before our country was attacked. My hubby got a shot with the impressive towers behind me

The Hardest Easiest Fall Wreath Ever

Well, I’ve been at it again. It’s been a while. Almost two years – if you’ve been with me that long, you remember the hardest, easiest Christmas DIY wreath ever:I had moved on from THEDWE (short for the hardest, easiest DIY wreath EVER, if you didn’t know). I had finally put it out of my mind. The ornaments popping off. The hot glue madness. The wire hangers that would. not. bend. And I lived to

Comfort Foods

Can someone check my temperature? For real – I have been a cooking fool over the past week. Like, using my crock pot more than I have in the past year. In a week. And this, the week we have no kitchen. Well, we have one, but it’s kinda half of one – I have to walk across the house to get to the fridge in the garage. Which makes cooking way more exercise than usual. Maybe I’m burning off the

September Before and After: A New Light

Well HEY! Hope you had a great weekend! We did a lot of bumming around and being productive – a little of both extremes. :) Tonight’s before and after is brought to you by the continued science fair that is our kitchen. I showed you the mess the water damage has created, and last Friday, the madness continued. We had noticed a few weeks ago that the framing around our back door was rotting

Showing Off Tracie (and Winners!)

Well hello!! I’m back this weekend to show off another fabulous DIY blogger – I know you’ll love her! But first, I need to announce the winners of the Two Broads Design giveaway! The two lucky ducks are Hope with The Thrifty Queen and Elyssa with I Create Beauty! Ladies, please email twobroadsdesign (at) yahoo (dot) com to get your $40 credits! Have fun with them! Okey dokey – it’s been waaaay

August in Review!

Well hello! Another month has come and gone and THANK GOD, it’s September!! Although Mother Nature got all sassy pants and our temps went from comfortable 80’s to 100 degrees every day for the next three days. Har har…very funny Mo Nature. Hilarious. The good news – next week we’ll be in the 70’s! Ah yes, temps fluctuating 30 degrees in a matter of days – that’s Indiana for you. The end of

Tools for the Blogger

Hey hey! Thanks for the kind words and support about our latest fiasco. ;) The adjuster came out today and he was SO awesome – we’re hoping for good news. It could be up to two weeks before we can do anything though, and I’m already itching to have a working kitchen again. It may be a long two weeks! :) Anyhoo, I joke that I’m shocked I even have a functioning blog, let alone one that does

Our Visitor, Murphy

Some mornings I wake up and have NO clue what I’m going to blog about that night. I rarely schedule posts ahead – I’m a fly by the seat of my pants kind of blogger. This morning I was thinking of the projects I could complete to blog about, and was trying to figure out what I’d have the time to finish up. Well…I got some blog material. Just not the kind I wanted. ;) If you follow me on

Giveaway Weekend!

Hey hey Squeezays! How the heck are ya? It’s the last weekend in August – which means you-know-what (the most wonderful time of the year) is approaching quickly! (WHOO!) I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that my Sis (affectionately known on this blog as Stink Eye – go here to find out why) is getting married!! Which means I get to pin all kinds of fun wedding stuff on Pinterest now. She doesn’t

My Clutter Nemesis

Well, the hubby started back to school last week. And the Bub starts again next week. This year it’s Pre-K and he will be gone more than ever. I don’t know if I should cry or do a happy dance. I’m so confused. Next year he goes to all day kindergarten and I’m quite sure they will have to pry him from my white knuckles. ;) I am already dreading it. But it’s back to school time! I’m supposed

DIY Potting Bench with Dad

Well hello there! Thanks so much for your excitement over our patio project. ;) Today they finished installing and mortaring the fireplace. (It was dry fitted before.)Tomorrow they start applying the stone. YIPPEE!! I think the landscaping may start as early as Thursday or Friday. SO. EXCITED. Because we are on an outdoor roll lately, I got some mojo up in here and tackled a project I’ve

The Backyard Progress

Hello HELLO! The weekend is here, whoo hoo! I am SO excited to share some of the progress on our backyard project with you today. :) This is the first time we’ve hired out for anything big in about six years – the last time was for our deck. I’ve mentioned how COOL it is to see the transformation and not have to DO anything…and we realized about one day into it that there is no way we could

Pottery Barn pillows (on the cheap!)

Well hello! Hope you are having a great week! There has been awesome progress on our outdoor project this week, and I’ll show you that very soon! It is SO exciting to watch an ongoing project that I don’t have to complete myself. It’s an odd feeling to not be doing the work…but pretty a cool one. :) Anyhoo…so I may have mentioned a few times that I’m nutty for the Pottery Barn catalog. I’m

Vintage treasures

Hey hey! I hope your weekend was GREAT! I felt like we were moving constantly but didn’t accomplish much – ever feel like that? Last weekend I had the pleasure of meeting up with my friend Myra from My Blessed Life – her family was in town and we took advantage of the chance to spend an afternoon together! At first I suggested we go shopping at HomeGoods, but then I remembered one of my very

Haven tickets available now!

Whoo hoo! The time has arrived!

The Haven Conference (I told you about here) is going to be so. much. fun.

Tickets are available NOW and will go FAST! DIYers, bloggers and DIY bloggers are all welcome! ;) The conference rate is fantastic, and the hotel rate is a great deal too.

To register, go to the Haven site here and click on the “Register” paint can on the right side of the page to

Crazy for Fall

OK, I’m just gonna to say it. I’M READY FOR FALL. I’m nuts about it, and I’ll shout it from the rooftops! (Or I guess, from this blog.) Football, turning leaves, pumpkin patches, marching band, crisp temps. Hot cider. Pumpkin pies at McDonalds. YUMMO. Focus Sarah. A few of my bloggy friends and I are back with yet another set of season-inspired linky parties – this time to celebrate

Winners and DIY True Stories

OH my goodness…the weather has been nothing short of fantastic around here! I’ve been enjoying it outside…cleaning railing, after railing…after railing on the deck. Not the most fun I’ve ever had, and there’s no end in sight soon. But at least I’m getting a good tan! :) (I kid…I use SPF 145 or something like that.)I’ve got some business to take care of tonight – I need to announce the recent

Mini Transformations

Hey hey! How are you? I’m super excited because it’s only supposed to get up to 79 tomorrow – ahhh, I’m in heaven! Although that is perfect deck staining weather, unfortunately. Fortunately? Whatever. I’m back with one more post about the family room redo – are you tired of seeing it yet? Don’t answer that. :) Many of you had questions on the little details in the space so I wanted to get

A Rustic Table

Hello there! How was your weekend? We had a great one – guess WHAT? Stink Eye Sis got engaged!! :) So excited! So now we have a wedding to plan – how fun is that? We also continued to get some stuff done outside. Make that ME – hubby was out of town and I sweated out a third of my body weight (I WISH) and worked on some outdoor projects. Funny that the temps have “dropped” into the 80’s and are

Giveaway Weekend!

Well hello there! So the first week in August down, can you believe it? It’s insane. I’m so ready for fall, but at the same time I wish time would slow down just a smidge. Hubby goes back to school so soon – it feels like the summer is only a few weeks long anymore!Anyhoo – if back to school is bumming you out, I’ve got the cure. Online shopping. ;) It makes everything better. I’ve told you about

A Progress Report

I tell you what…anymore, if it’s summer my name is Worthless. It’s something that’s occurred over the past couple of years. Last summer and this summer, I might as well be a lump of mashed potatoes. With some butter on top. Ohhhh…and some sour cream! With bacon. Yummmm. Mashed potatoes… Anyway. I’m extremely inactive. It’s the heat I’m sure. And that my kiddo is home from school. And that

No-Spend July in Review

Hey hey!! How are ya? I’m back with another month in review, just in case you missed a project over the past 30 days. Because I know you would cry. If you remember way back late last month, I told you about my mission for the month of July – to not spend a dime on DIY or decor for the whole 31 days. I had a basement full of unfinished projects and to do list a mile long…so I was determined to

Before and After Party: Buh Bye Pleather

So….you remember that one time, when I was redoing my office? Yeah. It’s taken a while. I’m just so easily distracted, really. A few weeks ago one of my very best bloggy friends came up to help me out with a project. Traci from Beneath My Heart came to town and I could NOT have done it without her help. That’s what we told her hubby anyway. ;) I wanted to reupholster the chair in my office:

Giveaway Weekend!

Hello there and happy weekend to you! And you! ;) I have another fantastic giveaway for you this weekend! Whooo!I’ve had a thing for stencils for awhile now – I mean, I’ve got a whole tab dedicated to them. :) They have become quite hip of late though – and the folks at Royal Design Studio are surely keeping up with the times:I love stencils because you get a custom look, like wallpaper, but

Goings On

Hello there!! Hope you are having a great week! It’s the last one of July – can you even believe it? I’m actually writing from our deck tonight. It’s been so dang hot it’s been unbearable even at night, but it’s quite lovely this evening. And now that it’s nice out, what am I doing? Not working on anything on our HUGE, ongoing list of outdoor projects, but blogging. Figures. :) Anyhoo, first

Pinterest hits and misses

Hey hey! Sorry for the delay with this post – I was too busy screaming like 15-year-old at the NKOTBSB concert last night to get this up. :) OMG…it was SO. GOOD. Sooooo good. More on that later. I’ve told you before of my love for Pinterest – and I haven’t fallen out of love yet. :) It’s easily the best way I’ve found to organize fun stuff online. The only problem? I’ve found about 40

From Mossy to Beachy

Well, it’s the end of July and I’ve just finished up my summer vignette in the foyer – welcome to my world. ;) I’ve had most of it done for umm…weeks. Since May? There was one small detail I’ve been putting off all that time that I FINALLY just finished up. More on that in a smidge. I don’t think I’ve ever really decorated with anything beach-inspired in our house…like, ever. Until now! It

Measuring Time

When we were on vacation last week, I was reminded how full my life is. It was just the Bub, hubby, the dog and I, just enjoying each other. No appointments. No blogging. No work. No DIY. There were moments when the Bub would turn to me and say something, or I would watch him playing, talking, whatever. And I would see his face and it was like my heart stopped. Like I was seeing him

Pops of Green

One of my very favorite things about blogland is that I’ll find inspiration in the weirdest ways sometimes. I’ll see a beautiful room and focus in on the smallest little detail that I MUST find a way to make my own. I love that! I discovered a beautiful blog a few weeks ago called Maillardville Manor and it had me at hello because of the pretty spaces, but there was an underlying detail that I

DIY Trough-thingy

Hey there all! Hope you had a wonderful weekend! We were away last week on a lovely family vacation – I hope to tell you more about it this week. :) Today I wanted to share another how-to for a project from the family room redo. I’m almost done, I swear. :) When we moved the TV over the long dresser, it meant my accessory options dwindled quite a bit. Whatever I put on there had to be long

Haven Conference Announcement!

Have you dreamed about a blog conference just for the DIY/Home niche?           Have you ever wanted your favorite home bloggers to teach you how to re-finish furniture? Take the perfect photo? Use power tools?   Well, your dreams are coming true!  ;) Come to Haven and get hands-on learning with us!              Some of your favorite home bloggers are teaming up to bring all of you a

Giveaway Weekend!

Well hello there! I hope you had a fabulous week – hooray for the weekend! :) I have a wonderful giveaway for you this weekend (I know, they ALL are!) and I’ve been so excited to share it with you. When the folks at Groopdealz contacted me, I was pleased as punch, cause I knew exactly who they were:Not only because I’ve checked out their deals for awhile now, but also because one of my BFFs is

Love for my garden

Hey hey! If you haven’t checked out all of the amazing links at the Before and After Party, you are missing out! And don’t forget you can still link up your own till next Monday. Come on, join in. You know you want to. ;) I am SO excited about my garden and had to share how it’s coming along! This is hands down one of the most fun, rewarding things I’ve ever done. Delightful, really. Our

Before and After Party: Goodwill table

Well hello all! It’s time for another partaaaay! I’ve got another project from the family room redo to share this time. When I was sure we were going to order the sectional, I started measuring out the space to see what was going to be able to stay and what would need to go. One thing that needed to scoot (to another room) was the long Goodwill coffee table I had moved into the space last year.

Design Star winner

Hey all! The winner of the Design Start $100 Amex card is lucky Catherine from Cat on a Limb!!

Congrats Catherine! Please email me and I’ll get you in touch with the HGTV folks.

Remember to check out the season premiere of the show tonight! Can’t wait!

But first, link up to the July Before and After Party…in just a few minutes. ;)

One more day!

Hey there! I just wanted to make sure and remind you that you have one more day -- till Monday (the 11th) at 5 p.m. EST -- to enter the HGTV Design Star giveaway. One lucky winner will get a $100 Amex gift card to spend as they wish! Yay!

Also, because of the holiday last week, I moved the July Before and After Party to this week. Get your posts ready to link up tomorrow (Monday) evening – I

Absolutely FREE (and beautiful!) art

Well my goodness you lovelies – thank you so much for the sweet comments on our family room redo!! You all made my day. :) I SO appreciate each and every one! I’m sitting here this evening with one of my very favorite people – my dear friend Traci from Beneath My Heart: (Traci at our recent IKEA trip.) Yep, she’s here. In my house. Staying the night. I’m in heaven. LOVE her! So does the

The Family Room (Redone)

Well folks…I’ve made a few changes to the family room over the past few weeks and I’m over the moon about them. I can finally say… I LOVE OUR FAMILY ROOM!! First time in seven years peeps. First time. I showed you here how this space has driven me a bit batty for all that time. Many of you offered suggestions on furniture placement, and when I say we tried them all…we tried them all. ;)

Design Star!

Hey there! I hope you had a wonderful Fourth holiday weekend! We had such a lovely time…yet again I feel so fortunate to have such an an incredible family and group of friends surrounding us. :)I’m thisclose to done with our family room and I’m SO thrilled with it. I just need to clean it up and then take some pics. I’ll share it with you tomorrow!For today, I have a fun little somethin’ somethin

Candlestick turned Table

What up what UP? Are you ready for a fabulous holiday weekend? I’m looking forward to bunches of family and friend time and TONS of fireworks. And lots of food. Lots. :) I’m so excited about a little project I finished up today and I couldn’t wait to show you. My first day of No-Spend July went off without a hitch – I already had everything for this project. (And have for awhile.) It all

Month in Review and No-Spend July

Anyone else wondering where HALF the year went?? Can you believe it’s almost July? That’s nuts! I mean, I’ll be thinking about fall in just two weeks months! ;) Since the end of the month is here, yet again I’m recapping the last 30 days of projects just in case you missed one of them! I’m adding a little somethin’ from now on too – if I haven’t answered a question you have about one of the June

Learning to sew…again

Hello there! Hope you had a wonderful weekend! We started the Fourth festivities a little early and had a blast – I LOVE this week every year. :) As you may or may not know…if you have read this blog for two minutes…you know we just got a new sofa in the family room. And it’s created a snowball in the space (and the rest of the house, but more on that later) – but it’s the kind of snowball I

Love for The Ridge

Well helloooo! I’m writing to you tonight from our new SUPER comfy, super soft, just-the-right-size sectional. :) Couldn’t be more pleased with it, really. And I swear this is the last time I’ll mention it till I show you. ;) Soon!! Every once and awhile I find a store and I feel like I didn’t share it it with you I’d be committing some kind of thrifty shopping find. So share I do. This one just

Showing off Kristi

Well hello there! Hope your week is going smashingly. ;) I’m SO excited because we get our new sectional for the family room in just a couple of days. I am so giddy it’s just ridiculous. You’d think I was about to birth a sofa. ;) I’ve got a day of moving furniture around (yippee! I mean, really, yippee!!) planned tomorrow, and after a few more changes I hope to show you the space next week.

Master Bedroom Redo: Part Two

Hey hey!! Hope you had a wonderful weekend and a lovely Father’s Day. I finished up some changes to the master bedroom and I LOVE how it’s turning out. Yes…the master bedroom. The one I started redoing almost a year ago? Remember that one? I’ve told you before it takes me a while…and this room is no different. I’ve made some changes over the past few months and I’m SO happy with how it’s

Giveaway Weekend!

Hello hello! I’m back this weekend with a super fun giveaway! I was crushin’ on A Vintage Poster as soon as I clicked over to their site. Their designs are so fun, so unique, and SO affordable!They carry an assortment of graphics and typography posters in 25 (wow!) different colors – you just pick the design or quote, and then choose the color. I love these kitchen-inspired posters: How fun! You

Are you a piler too?

Do you ever have one of those moments…when you walk through the same spot in your house for probably the 50th time in a day and all the sudden it hits. IT is the STUFF. The I’ve been too lazy to put you away for the past week and yet I’m still surprised to see you JUNK. I swear it’s like I’m wearing glasses and someone finally cleaned them off. All the sudden I can see it all. And all if it

Caulk and Spackle, my BFFs

Helloooo there! Our gorgeous week of weather continues here, but I've been inside addressing a project that I’ve been avoiding for months. It’s the not-so-fun stuff of room redos that stall me out. I’d rather cut and install molding then do the finishing work – the caulking and spackling and sanding. UGH. These are the days I wish I hired out. :) I haven’t touched the office redo in such

Shaping Up The Deck

Hey hey! How was your weekend? First of all, I need to announce the winner of the Nudge Home giveaway! The lucky gal is Marisa Boney at marisabonney(at)hotmail(dot)com! Marisa, please send me an email and I’ll get you hooked up with your free bundle! I’ve started about 35 projects in the past few weeks that I was planning on finishing up this weekend…but then the the beautiful weather hit.

When Blogging Gets You Down

Well thanks so much for all of the wonderful comments on my black door disaster project! You all are the sweetest. I’m pretty smitten with it, and I am SO relieved for a happy ending. ;) About three weeks ago I celebrated three years of blogging – and by celebrated I mean I went “Wow, it’s been THREE years?” in my head. I could have at least made a cupcake to celebrate. Or a cookie.

When DIY Goes Oh-So-Wrong

This is the story of a fun, free DIY project gone very, very wrong. Fun…snort. Free? Whatever. It has a happy ending, thankfully. It was ALL my fault, and there may have been a few tears because of that. :) It started with my love of black interior doors. I’ve been smitten with them for years now, but I’ve always been just a teensy scared to get out the paint brush. But then I noticed a

Before and After Party: The Guest Room

Hey there! I hope you had a wonderful weekend! We had a great one…until a major DIY disaster hit. :) I’m smiling about it now (barely) but it’s taken a while for the twitching to stop. I’ll show you more about that soon (you’ll understand why I’m holding off when I show you). GAH. Anyhoo, a guest room redo has been on my radar for about two years now. Basically since stepdaughter went off to

Giveaway Weekend!

Well hello hello! It’s Friday, WHOO! I have another great giveaway for you this weekend! When the folks at Nudge Home contacted me, I knew this would be such a fun one to share:They offer “bundles” of art and pillows to help you to easily pull a room together in no time flat. The sets are in a variety of colors and prints, and they’re ALL gorgeous! And all of the coordination, fabric selection

Life with Peanut

I think it’s about time for an update on the Pup up in here. :) A few months ago I was so taken with this adorable little guy, I insisted we bring him home: He made me cry. :) My heart ached for him. He was just the sweetest. So we took him home and named him Peanut. Cause he’s just a wittle bitty NUT! His name has morphed into a few others over the past few months and they include: The

Month in review and the Blog Squad!

Howdy all! I’m back with a wrap up with the projects from the month of May. I like to pull everything into one post in case you’re new around these parts or a regular reader that just missed an oh-so-important post. Can’t have that. ;) I started off the month with the May Before and After Party, where you showed off about 375 ahhhmazing projects! Next up, I shared one of my all time favorite

Getting from good to great photos

Hello and happy Memorial Day! I hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend! We got a lot done outside, went to the pool, got a nap in, played in the sprinkler, the Pup got lots of rolling-around-in-the-grass time, and we generally had a beautiful weekend. :) First up, I need to announce the winner of the Heal My Sole giveaway! The lucky gal is Teresa at teresacline2001(at)yahoo(dot)com – Teresa be

A mirror over the mantel

Hey hey! How the heck are ya? I’m happy because So You Think You Can Dance started again tonight – I LOVE that show so stinkin’ much! If you haven't seen it, check it out – it’s the American Idol for dancing – but better I think. ;) Anyhoo, in anticipation of my friend Layla’s wrap-up of our summer linkies, I wanted to change up our mantel a bit: It’s looked like this, with a few minor

It’s Black, It’s White

It’s BW. Yeah yeah yeah! :) I couldn’t resist some MJ action. I was just a tad bit obsessed with spray paint last weekend. I had a wicked case of spray paint trigger finger by Sunday evening, there was so much spraying going on. This little project started with a lovely inspiration photo I found online and then filed right to Pinterest: I think this kitchen is so lovely – warm wood

For the love of basil

Hello hello! I hope you had a fantastic weekend! Some of you (my family) may know that I’m not the biggest cook. I know how to cook, I just choose not to. Or something like that. :) Actually, I do cook, just not as much as I should. I enjoy it when I do it. It’s the whole planning thing I have a problem with – I kind of fly by the seat of my pants with most meals, using what we have on hand.

Giveaway Weekend!

Helloooo there! Hope you have all had a wonderful week and are ready for the weekend! I have a lovely giveaway for you, and it’s come at the perfect time – that would be the time for flip flops. Sandals. Peep toes. :)When the folks at Heal My Sole contacted me, I knew they’d be perfect for a spring, almost summer giveaway!Their site is chock full of items to treat YOURSELF -- lotions, scrubs,

My garden is growing!

Well hello! I am SO excited to share a project I finally completed that I’ve wanted to do forEVER. I was going to plant my (first ever) garden last summer, but it just didn’t happen. I didn’t do much outside last year, because it was about 115 degrees with 90 percent humidity every day. Well, practically. Felt like it anyway. Anyhoo, I finally got it done! And I’m already absolutely

Spray Paint Party!

  Well hello there Squeezies! Are you ready to kick off spring…errr, summer with some fun linky parties? :) The temps are getting warmer (although they’ve dropped about 40 degrees here again this week – boo!) – and warmer temps mean ONE THING. It’s spray paint season!! WHOO! :) I have a fun little project to show you and then we’ll get on with the party! I’ve had this metal fork and

Organizing the inspiration

Hey all! Some of you may have noticed that Blogger was down for awhile this week, and when it came back up, my last post lost all of it’s comments. So if you left a comment with a suggestion (I’m looking for perennial ideas), I would love it if you would add it to the comments again. (I reference them later!) Speaking of referencing ideas. ;) Many of you have asked how I organize all of the

Sprucing up the front

Well hello there! Hope you are having a wonderful week!!I. tell. you. what. – the weather (in Indiana anyway) is freakin’ me out. I am pretty sure it was high 40’s last week, and today we hit 93. Good. NESS. It’s also rained about 50 out of the past 60 days. (You think I kid.) And now that it’s not raining, it’s 90 degrees. GOOD. NESS. So anyhoo, we have a list a mile long of projects we want to

How to make a bench (and other stuff)

Well hello! OK – I’m finally back with the down low on the book nook closet. Sorry it took me awhile, but I wanted to make sure I got to all the details and plenty of pictures! First of all – I was totally flying by the seat of my pants throughout this whole thing. If something didn’t work quite right I just figured out a way to fix it. It’s SO not perfect. And secondly, and probably most

In my shoes and giveaway winners!

Hello there! I hope you all had a lovely Mother’s Day weekend! We had such a wonderful time, and the Bub and hubby completely spoiled me. :) I am SO LUCKY to have them. I got a few beautiful pictures from a hike one of my best friend’s and I took with the kids: I think they may have to go up in the office. Someday…when I finally finish it. ;)Last week my bloggy friend Camila (of Effortless Style)

Giveaway weekend!

Hello hello! Hope you had a fantastic week and are looking forward to an even better weekend! Of course, I have yet another incredible giveaway for you all this weekend! It’s May, and even though it hasn’t really felt like it lately…summer is a comin’. That means cute tops, and cuter jewelry to go with them. I’ve been a fan of Stella and Dot jewelry for a while now, and if you’ve never seen their

Showing off Cassity

Hey all! First of all…WOW! Thank you SO MUCH for all of the sweet comments on our lovely little book nook. You made my week. MONTH! Anyway, thanks again. It thrills me to no end when you tell me I inspire you. :) I know I promised a how-to on the nook and everything I did inside, but I have to do hold that off till next week. I still need to take a few more pictures and our week has been so

Closet turned book nook

Hello all!! I’m SO EXCITED to show you the fun little project I’ve been working on over the past week or so. Well, the space is little, the work was not. ;) The idea for this project came to me over time…the first idea was to just replace the wire shelving in a closet off the playroom with wood shelves and then paint the inside a fun color. I picked out the paint forever ago to do just that.

Before and After Party: Closet redo

Hellooooo! Hope you had a great weekend! Ours was so busy…but I am SO excited about a project I’m working on, I used every free minute possible to work on it. I know I usually show you the steps along the way on projects, but this time I think I’m going to wait till it’s completely done. I know. Hate me. But this one is going so well, I think it’s going to be done this week. And I can’t

Randomness

First of all, I need to announce the lucky winner of the Pick Your Plum giveaway! That lovely lady is Kristen at kristenmadson (at) gmail (dot) com. (Please email me at thriftydecorchick (at) gmail (dot) com!) Congrats Kristen! What will you do with that extra $100?? This week I have all kinds of RANDOM running through my head – and some of that random will be spit out onto this post. :) First

DIY memo board, take two

Hey all! This week is going by SO FAST! Can you believe the weekend is almost here? If you’ve read this here blog for a while, you know I share the fails along with the good stuff. And sometimes there’s a project that’s not necessarily a fail --  it just doesn’t work the way I had hoped. Case in point – the DIY memo board in my office: I showed you how I made it back in January. After I

Above the cabinets

Hello all! How was your Easter weekend? I hope it was wonderful. :) We had a great one – as you can tell by the tuckered out Bub and dog: :) Adorable. I get asked a lot how to decorate one spot in particular – and it’s a toughie. High spaces in particular (plant ledges, above armoires) are hard, in my opinion. And the kitchen cabinets are no exception. Our cabs aren’t super tall – we

Giveaway Weekend!

Hello all! I'm so excited for this weekend’s giveaway! The timing of this one is funny, cause I’ve been thinking lately that it’s been a while since I’ve done a good crafty project. I’ve had this urge to pull out the glue gun, cause we all know glue gunning does the mind good. :)And then I found out about Pick Your Plum. It. is. FUN:Pick Your Plum...get it before your neighbor does.Pick Your Plum

Summer lovin’

Hello all! I have a quick, fun announcement about an upcoming linky extravaganza!! :) I’m joining up again with my bloggy gal pals Kate, Layla and Rhoda for FOUR fun linky parties sure to get you in the mood for the summer! We had a blast putting together our Holiday Home party, so we thought it fitting to do a warmer version: The linkies will be spread out over two weeks, so we

If I had a million dollars…

OK, I know I’m not the only one who daydreams about winning the lottery. I think about the healthy college and savings accounts we could create, paying off our house and of course, because I’m a house nut and nuts for our house, I think about all the projects we would do around here. It makes me giddy! But there’s a little bitty issue. We don’t play the lottery. And like we’d actually win if

Accidental redo

OK Squeezies. Hang in there with me on this post. I’m going to try to make sense of the way my mind works and the stream of thoughts that go on. Aren’t you so excited to get a look into how my decorating ADD happens? My mind can be a very scary place.  ;) As I mentioned last week, I’ve started a little redo of our playroom/loft. I can’t even pinpoint when it started, but it’s been in the works

Prettying up the ceiling fan

Helloooooo all! Hope you had a great weekend! A couple weeks ago I did a little project that only took about five minutes and buck to complete. So of course I had to show you. :) It all started last month when I finally addressed the massive pile of magazines I’ve been avoiding for months (years?) now. I saw an idea in one of my old BHG mags and then did a little researching online to see if

The gallery wall-to-be

Helloooo! How’s your week going? We were on Spring Break around here last week and I was an absolute slug. Really – when hubby is home all day I’m just completely worthless. All I want to do is sit around, eat A LOT and watch ridiculous amounts of reality TV. It’s AWESOMENESS. But by about Saturday at 5 p.m. last weekend, I my slothdom had run it’s course and I had to do something. And do

Giveaway winner and in between

Hello all! Whew…it’s been an insane couple of days. Lots going on (good and not so good) including news yesterday that we need a brand new (read: not cheap) air conditioning unit and $1000 in car repairs. Niiice. I’ve started an impromptu redo on a room in our home and I LOVE how it’s turning out…but for now it’s a mess. I’m in full “in between” mode around here -- doors off the hinges, wire

Covering the (nekked) windows

Remember those nekked kitchen windows? I loved how much light they let into our formerly dark space. I have lived, quite happily, with nothing on those windows for at least six months now. I decided I was going to keep them that way until I found just the right covering, at just the right price, that I loved. If I didn’t find all of the above, they were staying nekked…FOREVA!!! OK, that

Giveaway Weekend!

Hello and good day! :) It’s a been just beautiful here today, even though it was supposed to rain all day. I think I (finally) see flowers for our window boxes in the near future. Yippee! I have a great giveaway for you this weekend – the folks at Wuslu.com have such a fun site with fantastic deals. Yasmin, the owner of Wuslu, is a buyer in the interior design industry, and is able to negotiate

The sofa search (an update)

Well hello there! I think it’s high time I fill you in on our search for a sofa in our family room. I wrote about the impending purchase a couple of months ago, and I so appreciated all of your feedback on that post. As I mentioned one or 15 trillion times, our family room is an odd configuration of open layout, a wall of windows, a corner fireplace and a walk way into the rest of the house:

Before and After Party: A favorite!

Hello all! It’s time for the next Before and After Party! Whoot! This time I’m showing you an oldie (it’s been done for a few years now) but it’s one of my very, very favorite transformations in our house. LOVE. We have a fireplace in our bedroom, and yes, it’s fanfreakingtastic. Really. It was all hubby’s idea. The day we decided to add it in to our house plans, I was huddled in a corner,

Month in review (and a winner!)

Hello all! Hope you got a touch of spring this weekend like we did! It was SO nice today – just a bit insanely windy. I’ll take it though!! I’m back for another month in review, just in case you missed that one post.I know it would be awful, really. But first, I need to announce the winner of the Sentry Safe! The lucky chick is Katie Lott of Kate Congdon Designs! Yay, congrats Katie! Please

(Not) Doing it all

Every once and awhile I like to pause and show you the “real” around here. Sometimes I show you in pictures, but today I also want to tell you how very much I don’t have it all together. :) I’ve mentioned a few times that our house rarely looks perfect. OK, let’s make that never. Well, OK, maybe about five minutes before a party, but that’s it. So that would amount to about 15 minutes a year.

A mossy vignette

Well, if spring isn’t going to show up, I’m going to WILL it here. I’m planting my herbs tomorrow (inside), I’ve refused to wear my coat for the past few days and gosh DARN IT, I am decorating for it. And if you decorate for it, it will come. That’s my hope anyway. :) I wanted to spring bling out our foyer and the first project was an easy one. The inspiration came from Pottery Barn: Are

The PAPER, organized

Hello all! Hope you had a fabulous weekend! It was absolutely FREEZING here. Ugh – spring is such a tease. :) I guess the planting will have to wait till next weekend. (Crossing fingers.) If you remember a couple of months ago, I showed you how I was starting to get control over the paper in our house – once and for all. I had let it get waaay out of control, and it was time tame the paper

Stuff I like

Hey all! Thanks so much for the all the sweet comments on the board and batten in the office! I haven’t touched it since I finished – my shoulders still cry out for mercy every time I step in the room. :) Every once in a while, I’ll find a new little doodad or product, and if I like it, I’ll think – “This (insert cool thing here) is so nifty, I need to tell my Squeezies about it!” I think about

PROGRESS (board & batten) in the office!

Can I just start out with a WHOO?! And a WHEW!! Cause I’m exhausted. :) It’s been two months since I’ve addressed my office redo, and I’ve had the mdf for the board and batten treatment on the walls for about that long. It’s been piled in the garage all that time…and every time I’ve stubbed my toe, tripped over them or watched them gathering dust since January, I have thought… I MUST get

This little ($5) light of mine

Hello there! Can you believe spring is HERE?! Whoo HOO! Hubs grilled out our first steaks of the year tonight and they were SO good. If this keeps up I’ll be picking out flowers for the window boxes any day now. We had lovely weather -- perfect for spray painting. ;) We have a light at the base of our stairs that I changed out a few years ago. It used to be the most builder basic brass light,

IKEA makes me happy

Hello there! Hope you’re feeling the heat wave we are here – it’s positively balmy in our house tonight! Crazy! SPRING is on it’s way, and that makes me so happy. I’m excited to start getting my hands in the dirt again! I’ve been one lucky chick lately – I’ve taken TWO trips to IKEA within the past two weeks. I’ve only been four times, and the first two times were within weeks of each other,

How to install new door knobs

Wellllll…it only took a year. (I say that a lot don’t I? It only took a month…six months…a year.) And I’m still not completely done. But 98 percent of our doors are rid of their look-away-or-the-shiny-will-blind-you brassiness. WHOO!! There’s a few reasons it’s taken so long. First, the order was messed up back when I ordered in February (of 2010!). Second, uhhh…I dunno why. I get easily

Musical dressers

Hello all! How was your weekend? I didn’t get many DIY projects started, but I did clean our bathroom (yikes) and got one big project marked off my list – and I didn’t even have to paint like I thought I would! Score! If you remember back last May, I showed you the Bub’s big boy room redo: A few months later I realized I needed to find a new solution for his clothing storage. I had

Showing off Allison (and winners!)

Well HELLO Squeezies!! Are you ready for some WEEKEND?? :) I am! I have so many projects I want to complete (or at least start) it’s not even funny. First, I need to announce the winners of the Oriental Furniture giveaway! The FIVE winners of $50 gift cards are: 1. Nikki from Kreative Knack  2. Julie from Fresh Perspectives 3. Carly from Simon Family Says 4. Connie from Truly Connie’s

Why we’re not moving

Didn’t know we were thinking about it? We were. But…we’re not. It started last year while we were attacking our debt snowball. We looked into refinancing our current mortgage into a 15-year. To do so, we had a realtor come out to the house to give us an idea of the value. The news was not good. When I say not good, I mean…not. good. We were expecting it to be bad, but not that bad. And

Before and After Party: A kitchen nook

Soooo…remember that little kitchen redo I started oh…almost a year ago? Or so. Yeahhhh. Well, I’m still working on it. Just slowly. Very, very s.l.o.w.l.y.  :) This weekend I finally I finished up one part of the room – the kitchen table. Hey, it’s something, OK?? To get an appreciation for how far the room has come, let’s look at an old before picture I found shall we?: I was way into

Giveaway weekend!

Well hello there! WHOO for FRIDAY! Thanks so much for all of the kind comments about our decluttered basement! It is such a weight off my shoulders to have that space DONE.And now, to celebrate the weekend, I have a great giveaway for you! :)I have to admit -- I was more than a little surprised when I checked out Oriental Furniture and found so many pieces I loved. I mean, our Suburban style is

My biggest purge yet!

Hello there! Hope you’re having a GREAT week! I mentioned earlier this week that I’m DONE with the decluttering of the basement…this is huge for me peeps. HUGE. Every year for the past few years, I spend what seems like half the year decrapifying this space. This time, it only took me a whole year. :) For reals. Seriously. A YEAR. One thing I have learned on my decrapification journey is

Thrifting “lady date”

Hey all! Thanks SO much for all the wonderful comments and emails about our sweet Peanut! Many of you asked, and he’s a Chihuahua/rat terrier mix. They called him a Chia Rat. ;) We had such a great day with him. He slept ALL night last night and didn’t make a peep! We had a great visit to the vet – and he’s really healthy. (That was a relief!) And tonight he “went” outside for the first time! (

Introducing Peanut

Hello all! Hope you had a fantastic weekend! It’s been a great one around here for more reasons than one. :) I finally, FINALLY got the decrapification of the basement done. I mean, almost every single bit of it. There’s just a few minor things I want to go through, but the big stuff is DONE! I even finished up going through the guest room closet, which has been on my list for about a year

10,000(!) and month in review

Hey all! First of all, before I say anything else – I need to say a huge THANKS and a WHOOHOO! Tonight I hit 10,000 followers: I had to take a screenshot, just to remember that milestone! (I really, really hate that “followers” term by the way.) But it’s pretty cool to hit five digits. I now have 10,000 of you Squeezies! Squeezays. Squishes. :) Crazy!! Anyway, I want to try to bring

Photographs: My favorite art

Well hello all! Can you believe it’s almost the weekend already? I swear this week has absolutely flown by. I got one project completed this week that I’m really, really happy with. (GLEE!!) And I did most of it with what I had, which is always a bonus in my book. :) When it comes to filling wall space, we don’t have much real art in our home. OK, let me rephrase…we have ZERO real art. :)

Organize It Party!

Well howdy! Hope you had a fantastic weekend and President’s Day! Did you get any purging done? Organizing? Getting rid of STUFF?? :) If not, hopefully you’ll be inspired to do just that after this shindig! One of my favorite little tricks of late is a bit of a decluttering/organizing combo. I’ve discovered a new love when it comes to organizing, and it’s not rocket science. It’s the good

Winners and project FAIL

Howdy all! First of all, the two lucky winners of The Rusted Chain giveaway are… Kaitlindsay from Brighter than Sunshine and Kristine from Random Robb Stuff. Yahoo! Ladies, please email me at thriftydecorchick (at) gmail (dot) com and I’ll get you in touch with Beki. :) Well, all of my projects are not peaches and pink flamingos and fluffy clouds. Some fail miserably, and I try to show you

One linen closet down

Hello all! How are ya?! If you were anywhere in…well…the country a couple of weeks ago…you were most likely getting some wicked crazy weather. We certainly did. The temps here have been in the 40’s and high 50’s this week, and we STILL have three inches of ice on our lawn. The first day or so, I was kinda digging being iced in…by the third day of not leaving (we couldn’t even get out to the

COLOR! (in the living room)

First of all, Happy Valentine’s Day my SQUEEZIES! :) Hope you had a great one. I’ve been working on some changes in our living room over the last couple of weeks, and I’m nowhere near close to done, but I just couldn’t wait to show you! I am LOVING how it's turning out -- so excited. I don’t know if it’s the three inches of ice that have finally melted off our driveway (for the first time

Giveaway Weekend!

Hello there! I’m back with another great giveaway this weekend, and it’s one of my favorites. My friend Beki of The Rusted Chain is not only funny, pretty and sahweeeet…but she’s also super talented. I like her a lot. (Said like Lloyd Christmas.)  :)She’s made a name for herself with her stamped jewelry, but has a beautiful selection of other pieces as well. I picked out a few of my favorites

online consultations!

Well hello there! I am SO excited to announce a partnership that’s been in the works for awhile now. If you’ve read this blog for a while, you know I used to offer online consultations. I absolutely LOVED doing it, but it got so time intensive, I found it hard to keep up. Something had to give, and that was it. :) I’ve heard from many of you that you really want an affordable option for decor

Searching for a sofa

Well the time has come people…and I AM SO EXCITED!!! Yippee!! :) Because we are now debt free (did I mention that??), I can move forward with my plan for a new sofa in our family room. SO EXCITED! Excited because it will be the first time we’ll pay cash for a major piece of furniture since we moved into this house seven years ago. And excited because I am so, so over our sofa, it’s just

February Before & After: A pretty pitcher

Hello all! I’m back this month with a very simple but beautiful (I think so anyway) before and after project! It started with a recent trip to Goodwill – I don’t go as often as I used to (see my STUFF post), so I haven’t found nearly as much good stuff as I used to. (You have to go fairly often to get the good pickins.) But that day, the heavens shined down on this beauty on the top shelf:

The party is tonight!

Hey all! Just wanted to let you all know the February Before and After Party will go up later this evening! Get those posts ready to go. :) To tide you over, I just had to share this skit my friend Melissa posted the other day. I guess it’s from a show called Portlandia? (I had never heard of it till now.) All I know is, one of the writers is an etsy, blog or Pottery Barn fan. :) SO FUNNY:

Work what ya got

Well hello!! I got a fun little project accomplished yesterday that I absolutely LOVE. :) It started with some house envy, believe it or not. :) Yes, even I see beautiful homes in blogland and sometimes that little green monster starts rearing it’s head. You all know I LOVE our house, so it’s not a big monster, mind you -- just a little one. I just love little corners, niches, interesting

Giveaway Winner and THANKS!

First of all, THANK YOU for all of your amazing comments and emails about my last post. (I read every single one.) We are so thrilled and still pinching ourselves a bit. :) I think it’s going to take a while to sink in. I really, really appreciate all your support. It means a lot to us both! I wanted to make sure to announce the winner of the Amy Peters’ Studio giveaway from last weekend. Becky

Well, it’s official. We’re WEIRD.

You know that guy Dave Ramsey I keep talking about? You know how he says people who don’t have debt are WEIRD? Well, if you don’t know him…that’s what he says. “Debt is normal…be weird.” Well. As of this morning, we are officially, completely, gloriously, totally, happily WEIRD. WE’RE DEBT FREE!!! (Except the house.) Whoo, people

There was no line dancing…

But there was beauty, everywhere you looked: The Opryland Hotel is seriously one of the most magnificent places I have ever stayed. Absolutely gorgeous. And just like last year, I didn’t have nearly enough time to look around! I only got night shots, and they’re still amazing: There was plenty of goofing off: I’m trying to bring Traci to the dark side…that would be giving up the

Giveaway Weekend

Well hello! I am back from a FANTASTIC few days hanging with some amazing bloggy friends. I’ll tell you more about it soon, but I have a fabulous giveaway for you all first! Amy from Amy Peters Studio makes some of the most adorable stamped jewelry around – I love her variety and the sweet messages on her pieces. And she’s been doing this since she was EIGHT years old – she’s a pro now, to say

Showing off The Newbies

While I was away at Blissdom, I highlighted a bunch of “newbie” blogs – it was fantastic!! SO many talented ladies out there! I gave each newbie their own post for that weekend, but to keep things simple for readers I thought it would be best to condense all of the posts (with links!) into one.  :) So, here we go, in the order they were posted! A Little of This, a Little of That Young

A little love

Heya all! How the heck are ya? Hope you had a great weekend! Today I was feeling a little Valentine’s crafty mojo and worked on a couple SUPER quick projects. Melissa’s cutie Scrabble art last year had me at “love”and I’ve wanted to do it since. I threw it together with a Goodwill frame, some pink paper behind the glass, and the Scrabble tiles hot glued to the top: It would be way

A DIY memo board

Well hello there!! I am just overwhelmed at your response to my last post. You made me feel SO much better! :) I was so happy to read your comments and to hear many of you are making time to take care of YOU! It made my week! (Really.) Because of I’ve been organizing like mad, and throwing in a few more work outs in here and there lately – my DIY/crafty/decorating time has been suffering. :) I

Who’s on first?

Well hello! I’m loving all of the suggestions (and empathizers) to the paper dilemma! (Dun dun duuunnnn.) Number 9,324 I love blogging – you peeps get me. :) Reason 9,325 that I love blogging – because when something’s on my mind, I tend to yuck it up on my virtual notepad…this blog. And you guys put up with it. :) I’ve had a bit of an epiphany lately and I was inspired to write about it

THE PAPER

Well, last week it was the craft/tool/decorative stuff area in our basement, and that before was pret-ty bad. This week I’m tackling the clutter that doesn’t make a big mess physically, but it does take up a lot of space in my head. It’s presence wears on me, makes me feel completely unorganized and occasionally costs us money. It’s the PAPER. (Dun dun duuuun.) I swear to you – it is the one

Giveaway Weekend!

Hello all! I’m back with a great giveaway to kick off 2011! This one is especially near and dear to my heart – because I. LOVE. IT. and because it’s January – and you know what that means! Cleaning and decluttering like mad. :) I swear I feel more of an urge to clean now than spring or any other time of the year. I haven’t done much cleaning yet this year though – I’m still decluttering. THEN I’

But first, we declutter

Hey all! WHEW – I have been working my tail off on our basement over the past week. It’s been exhausting, liberating and a little disturbing all in one. :) Every single year in January, I start a massive decrapification of our house. I go room by room, putting all the STUFF I’m not sure about in the basement. And then after I’m done with every. single. room…I start on the basement. That’s

The plan, Stan. (Or Squeezies)

Heya! Hope you had a fantastic weekend! I spent most of my free moments working on the (final. serious this time. never again.) decrapifying of our basement. I tell you what – I LOVE it!! Oh my, getting rid of crap is best feeling. But more on that in a bit. :) My friend the Nester, (did you SEE her bedroom redo??) had a Home Goals party last week that really got me thinkin’. I have all these

I heart Craigslist

Hello all! Hope you have a great weekend planned! I’ve had a little obsession that’s grown over the past six months or so…and I never thought it would happen. My obsession used to give me heebs and totally freak me out. But I’ve learned to love -- Craig and his list. :) The heebs I used to get were actually more about selling than buying. And I’m still not a big fan of the selling part. :)

I do what I want

I may have mentioned five or 95 times that I do not like the way we set up our family room when we built our house. I so wish would have just gone with the model specs – cause they worked. But no, no, no. We had to be all, Let’s smush the windows together. Yeah! And, Let’s put in a corner fireplace, it will be so cool. YEAH! And, Let’s have all of the TV and surround system wiring installed in

Before and After Party: Installing crown!

Hey all! It’s a new year, and that means some fun new projects up in here. In between the decluttering (I’m attacking the excess Christmas decor) I finished up a project I’ve wanted to do for YEARS. I told you way back when in this post that I didn’t know how to cope or cut crown molding – so I’ve always used the corner pieces like these when installing crown: And I really love them – they

Looking back and moving forward

Well hello! Hope your New Year’s Eve was great! We spent a very low key evening at home, and it was perfect. (Have I mentioned we’ve become complete homebodies??) I’m loving all the recaps of the year all over blogland over the past week, and I wanted to chime in with a couple more of my own. First of all, I have to thank my lovely blog friends – ALL of you who link TDC. I truly, truly