New Digs

I’ve been promising to post pics of my new living room makeover.

First, a piece of advice: grab your sunglasses, or else your retinas may be singed.

:->

Ready?

Okay, (wow, that hearkens back to my cheerleading days of yore…anyway!) keep in mind that the lovely orange wall color that I showed you in one of my first blogs was in a home we owned. As we do not own this one, I left the walls alone. (Though I’m still undecided on painting all the doors. I think it would look cool.) I decided, instead, to give myself a budget of two hundred dollars and make over the living/dining room and the kitchen, if I had any money left. With some great sales (I’ve learned that shopping while the honey is deployed can be fun. He’s not around to say, “purple and orange…what are you thinking?!) I was able to stay on my budget and ended up recovering nearly anything that wasn’t tied down.



Yes, the kitties were worried. They thought we might be moving again. Even after their cat tube remained safely ensconced in the basement, I still don’t know that they liked my choice in spring color palette. I was going for bright floral colors…as I can barely keep perennials alive and need, therefore, to have my flowers fake and fabric. I wanted purple and orange, with green and black - green to represent the leaves and stems and black for my black thumb. No, just kidding, I needed the black to keep the bright colors from taking over everything. I based a lot of what I did on an orange trench coat that the hubby brought back from England for me last year. He's got great taste in clothes and I thought it would make a great jumping off point for the color scheme.




I decided to make the pillows reversible, so I can just flip them from stripes or flowers to a solid color. I’m really happy with it. The dopamine is coursing through my system. And, my husband, to his credit, just tends to shrug. (Especially after I told him that I kept the old, darker, more sedate pillow covers.) A friend of ours’ did ask what the love-of-my-life would think. Um, did I say he wouldn’t be home for a while, and I’m the Libra in the family? Besides, even if he hates it, he can just delete the photos I sent him. See? It’s a win-win situation!!!





I have a dress-maker's dummy in the living room and I tend to dress her in a complementary color to the rest of the room. I thought she turned out really well. And, that part of the makeover was free, as I just pillaged my own closets. Besides, I can't just keep the scarf and fuschia coat hidden, now can I? Everyone should get to enjoy them!



I also have a couple of belly-dance hip scarves. I pulled those out and added them to the color explosion. Zoe and I are both fans. The boys just try to eat the coins. Sigh...



There are still a few dark colors left in the room. But not many. :-) Most of them are in the form of Zoe, the grey one, or the black parts of Neekie. Lucky is still the color of sunshine and fits right in. He's well-camoflaged now and I think he enjoys hiding in plain sight to stalk his sister. (He's currently sitting in her patch of sunlight, blocking it...just because he's her little brother! Boys!!)



I was chatting with that cute husband of mine the other day and he reminded me that when I first moved in with him about eight years ago, he made an observation. He got up, opened the closet to remove his uniform for work, and told me that he now had a closet that looked like a clown had exploded in it. Well, Baby, you now have a whole bottom floor that would feel like home to the trapeze artists from Ringling Bros. Circus. And, I would love to say that the cats like it too...

but I think they're just keeping their eyes closed more often than before.




Maybe the husband will have to do the same when he returns. But, as for me, I'm now deeply involved in making some new art for the walls. I scared the guy at Home Depot when I told him about it. When I get done with the blow-torch, I'll post pictures!!! And, that, of course, is another great piece of deployment survival advice: use fire!! It makes the deployment go by much faster. (Along with the fringe benefit of your neighbors leaving you alone! Crazy lady with torch! Check!)

Peace, love, and blindingly bright living rooms to you all!