Five Reasons to Make Your Bed

Duvet Cover / Bench / Blanket / Similar Rug

Okay, so I don't know about you, but I was NOT one of those people who made their bed. Like, ever. We would make our bed on days we changed the sheets or when we had people over, but besides that? Nah.

I mean, I have a long history of not making my bed. I have to assume at some point in my youth my mom made me make my bed every day, but by high school that definitely was not the case. And not only that, I also stopped even using a top sheet for a while - so gross, especially when you consider how little I washed my comforter!!

I wouldn't say it was a New Year's resolution, but about halfway through January while I was still in the deep end of the disease that would not end (was it the flu?!) I decided I would start making it every day. Now, this did not have strong conviction behind it, because I've made that particular decision before and given up after two days. But I don't know what happened this time - something clicked! I've missed a day here or there (mainly on days when I have to be out of the house before the sun is up!) but for the most part my bed has been made every day for two weeks now. And you know what I learned?

1. It makes you feel accomplished

I mean, really, what else are you able to check off of your to-do list by seven in the morning? Or, you know, ten in the morning - no judgements here. But really, starting my day by accomplishing one tiny thing really sets you up to have a good morning and a productive rest of the day too. Making your bed just gets you started on the right foot.

2. It seriously takes one minute

I mean, really, let's face it, I'm pretty lazy. I would probably lay on the couch all day if the option was available. Making the bed on the regular always seemed weirdly daunting (probably because I was half awake whenever considering the task) but seriously? It takes one minute. One. Out of my entire day. Making my bed takes such a minimal amount of time, but makes such a big impact on the room.

3. Clean bed, clean room

If you've ever seen me sharing outfits in my bedroom on Instastories, you know that keeping the bed made is the least of my worries. I'm incredibly messy and have a tendency to make piles I never pick up. But - BUT - when the bed is made, it's the weirdest thing, but it makes me want to keep the room clean. Which is not a feeling I've ever felt before in my life. After taking the minute or two it takes to make the bed, I've been picking up anything on the floor and straightening up a teeny bit too. It's probably still less than five minutes total of my day, but that tiny bit of effort daily means my room has not once turned into a pigsty since I started on this making the bed journey. It even motivates Jeff to keep things cleaner too!!

4. No going back to sleep

I don't know about you, but sometimes I used to get up in the morning, take a shower, and then wind up back in bed. Does that ever happen to you? I would either try to catch a few more winks, or pull my phone or computer in there with me and snuggle on down. Now, I make the bed as soon as I get out of it, which forces me to get the day started. Now I have to do my morning Instagram scrolling in an upright position instead ;)

5. It just feels good! 

Climbing into a neatly-made bed at the end of the night is just about the best thing ever. Yes, it is so much better than wrestling your sheets back into place or having to arrange blankets before you can climb on in.



So tell me - do you always make the bed? Will you now?

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Celebrating One Year of Home Ownership

Okay, so this post is a little late because we actually moved into our condo back in November, but I was so busy with the holidays that I completely forgot to post!

A little toast on the day we closed

Buying a home, especially in the crazy real estate market in Chicago, was super scary - it feels like you're signing your life away! But now, a year later, I'm so glad we did it. I seriously love our place. Jeff and I will literally look around all the time and talk about how we can't believe we actually live here.

The coffee table

It has been fun (and challenging - making decisions is hard!) to decorate a space that's truly ours for the first time, but we're finally starting to get to the point where it's feeling done. Before living here, Jeff and I lived together for two and a half years, but we rented Jeff's dad's house down in the South Loop, which was fully furnished from when his dad lived there in the early '90s and was totally not our style. Helloooo, giant glass dining room table! Now we have a place that's full of furniture that we found and love, and almost full of art we love (seriously, making decisions is super hard).

Dining room update

The year hasn't been completely easy for us. We thought we were moving into a completely move-in ready home, but it seemed like for the first couple of months that everything that could break, did break. I guess that's what they say is going to happen when you buy your first home, but I still wasn't ready for it! We had our oven, dishwasher, and freezer repaired in the kitchen, a leak in our roof fixed twice, leaking windows repaired, a big patch of moldy drywall replaced (and repainted by me!), and had work done on our fireplace and furnace - whew! I'm hoping that year two is a bit easier, both for our wallets and for my stress level!

The deck!

We also got the chance to do a little construction we wanted, and added a deck to our roof! The gigantic private roof space was one of the major selling points for this place, and I'm so excited that we factored a deck into the cost and got to build our dream deck space. Of course, we went a bit over budget (mostly because I really wanted some shade #palepeopleproblems) but I think it was totally worth it. We had a bunch of parties up there this summer, and also went up by ourselves just to relax or have a drink under the stars (and airplanes - we live right under a flight path!).

So what am I still working on, besides a little more artwork? Our bedroom! You'd think that would be one of the first spaces we finished, but I was more concerned with getting our main living space in order, and had a lot easier time decorating little spaces like my office, bathrooms, and hallways, than tackling our bedroom. On Black Friday I finally found some lamps I liked and ordered a gigantic floor mirror that was on backorder and was just delivered on Saturday. We're still looking for a chair and footrest, somewhere for Jeff to put all of his shoes (#highmaintenence hahaha), and finishing touches like art, pillows, and some updates to my vanity (which still looks like this!! Holy 2012!). I eventually would like to replace our bed frame and nightstands too, as those are our only remaining hand-me-downs from Jeff's dad, but I'm willing to wait a little longer so we can save up for those .

While this year has definitely been a whirlwind, I'm so glad we decided to take the plunge and become homeowners. I can't wait to make a lot of new memories in our home together!

P.S. I realized while looking for photos for this post that I haven't shared any updates in a while, a lot has changed!! I'll be sure to share some new pictures soon!

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National Hot Cocoa Day

Mug / Jingle bells / Wood tray / Gold reindeer / Candle

I'm not usually one to celebrate a "day" since there's basically a day for everything these days - pizza, socks, the Dewey Decimal system...

Leggings / Slippers

But I mean, hot cocoa?! Who can say no to that? Any excuse for drinking hot melty chocolate covered in marshmallows I'm definitely down for.

Sweater / Similar Tee

I don't drink coffee or tea but still love a hot drink now or then, and hot chocolate is my go-to. Unless I'm in with co-workers and don't want to be mistaken for a small child in the morning when they're all ordering espressos, in which case I go for the good old fashioned chai latte ;) "Kids temperature hot chocolate" just doesn't roll off the tongue quite as well.

A few years ago I got a jar of fancy hot cocoa mix in a gift exchange, and to date it's probably one of the best gifts I've gotten in one of those. I found some adorable jars with rose gold hardware in the dollar section at Target last month, and decided to put together a jar of my own to put into a couple of white elephants this year.

Gold label

Antler tray

The gift itself is super easy. Once you find a cute jar, fill it up halfway with cocoa mix, then add layers of chocolate chips (I went with milk chocolate Ghirardelli chips - yum!!), mini candy canes, and of course marshmallows! Paired with a cute mug (I found this one at Walgreens - no, seriously! Isn't it cute?!) or a bottle of Baileys or RumChata and you've got yourself the perfect gift!

So tell me, what kind of gift do you usually put into a gift exchange?

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The Deck!

You guys, our roof deck is done and furnished and ready to party! Building the deck was my first experience with construction crews, and while it was a little stressful making decisions and pushing for them to finish (it took over double the estimated amount of time) it actually wasn't as bad as I thought it might be. Now that it's finally done I am so excited to have such an awesome outdoor space. We've had parties on back-to-back weekends, as well as lots of hang out sessions up there by myself or with Jeff and a bottle of wine.

I was a little stressed picking out furniture - I mentioned it here but we don't have anywhere to store furniture indoors over the winter, so whatever we bought has to stay outside through Chicago's brutal winters. For our downstairs deck we picked this fairly expensive dining table and chairs set that supposedly can withstand the elements, but for upstairs we decided to go the opposite route and get cheaper furniture since the direct sun and exposure to the elements were likely to mess up whatever we bought. That doesn't mean I couldn't find something cute though!

Sectional - Wayfair / Flower Pillows (similar) - Target

We were debating between a sectional or a couple of smaller pieces, but I'm glad we went with the sectional. It's big enough to lay down on and great for a party, and the stripes are so cute. They have faded a bit already, so be warned if you're considering this set. We decided we didn't need a dining set up here since we have one downstairs, and the chairs from the downstairs deck are perfect to bring up here for extra seating for having a big group over. 

We also didn't need a dining set because we had them add a bar! The bar was definitely an extra but I'm so glad we decided to add it in. Having the bar is perfect for hanging out or for using as a buffet, plus it gives us a bit of extra storage. It has a granite top, which supposedly can withstand whatever Chicago can throw at it. It weirdly is always dusty though - where is all of the dust coming from?!

 Bar stools - Target (We went for folding bar stools so these are also easier to store) / (Yes, our last name is Barry, and no, we didn't steal that sign!)

The other add-ons I'm so glad we went with besides the bar are the full-shade pergola and the ceiling fan. Since I'm, you know, afraid of the sun, being able to be on the roof and not worried about burning is huge for me. We initially were just going to get slats, but our contractor took one look at me and suggested a fully-roofed section instead. Having the roof and fan have also been really nice because for some reason every time we have people over it's super sunny and 90+ degrees out, so they have wanted to hide from the sun and catch a little breeze too.

In case you're wondering about specifics, the decking is Trex, which is faux wood that doesn't need any upkeep. All of the wood on the paneling and roof is pressure-treated pine. If you're interested in learning more about the deck company we used or our experience just shoot me an email - I'm happy to share! 

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Dream Deck

We're in the midst of building a deck on our roof, which means I'm in the midst of daydreaming about the final space. We've got a week or two left of construction, so I've been trying to narrow down my choices of furniture and accessories. Of course, like every home renovation project, we've gone a bit over budget (whoops!) so I've been trying to pare down my wishlist. We also don't have much space to store furniture indoors during the winter, so basically anything we buy has to be totally weatherproof (most pieces that are "weather resistant" actually have to come indoors for part of the year if you live somewhere that experiences a true winter).

Those limitations don't mean a girl can dream, right? If I didn't have to worry about budget or weather, here's what my dream rooftop deck would look like:

Couch / Rug / Banana Leaf Pillow / Striped Pillow / Clock / Umbrella / Planters / Lounger / End Table 

Seriously, those striped loungers? Dyyyyyying. So so cute. If you're totally into stripes, the couch comes in a striped version too. I haven't been able to find anything similar in totally weatherproof materials though, so I think I'll find striped and banana leaf pillows instead to spice up less exciting pieces. Wish me luck!

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All That Glitters

So I was trying to pin gifts for some gift guides and thought I had pinned tons of great ideas. Then I went back and looked at my gift Pinterest board and realized I had pinned all gold stuff. Apparently I'm a magpie. And terrible at picking gifts for people who aren't me. Here are the few pretty pretties I found:

Bloom Calendar / Bird Scissors / Yay Coasters / Jewelry Stand / Pineapple Cup / Polka Dot Cocktail Shaker / Hello Gorgeous Coffee Mug / Narwal Candle Holder / Odds and Ends Tray

Also I couldn't help myself and ordered that jewelry stand. And a smaller matching jewelry stand. And no presents for anyone else. At this rate, it's going to be a rough holiday season on my bank account ;) 

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My Closet Takes a Small but Important Step

So this is a little embarrassing, but my closet has basically been a disaster zone for the past couple of months.  In our current place I have a walk-in closet for the first time in my life, and when I moved in I thought I was never going to fill it.  Umm, yeah right.  It's basically crammed to capacity.  I still haven't managed to get a dresser (ummmmm, whoops) so everything is in there, all of my clothes and all of my accessories.

Yeah, aaaaand with just one shelf in there, it turned into a bit of a shitshow.  You can barely make out that there's a basket on the shelf, which was my attempt at organizing my purse collection.  Yeah, that worked for all of five minutes.  And then I had all of my exercise clothes and pajamas and jeans and whatnot on the shelf, which turned into an unstable huge pile that would periodically fall on me.  Not. Fun.

So what did I do?  Sent IKEA to the rescue, of course!  I originally thought I would add another shelf and use the supports as dividers, as Pinterest has shown me many a time.  Then I saw this baby, which is supposed to be a bookcase, but when turned on its side makes a bunch of little cubbies.  Perfect for organizing my bags and shoes!  Plus, since it's not that high above the shelf below, I'm forced to keep those stacks neat and organized so that things actually fit there.

So, it's getting better.  Since taking these photos I sent three bags of clothing off to my sister so it's a little less crowded in there.  Next steps include actually getting a dresser (it's only been what, 14 months?) and figuring out something to do with my four thousand other pairs of shoes.  Dream steps include getting matching hangers (ha!) and converting the boy's office into a closet so that I don't actually have to mess with this space anymore ;)

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The Powder Room

I finally got around to finishing the powder room on our main floor after considering it for the past couple of months.  Doesn't the name "powder room" just sound a bit pretentious?  It turns out, it is pretentious: the name come from the 18th century when people had a tiny room to go and re-powder their wigs in.

Our tiny little powder room was in serious need of a facelift.  All boys lived in our house before I moved in, and for some reason decorating the bathroom was not a major priority for them.  I decided to tackle it partly because it's something everyone sees when they come over and partly because it was much less daunting than trying to do something with our manly bedroom.

 

There's no storage in the bathroom and no space to add anything, so this basket on the floor is for extra toilet paper, soaps, and candles.  I may just put a towel on the top of the stuff inside to make it a little prettier.

 

The rug, towels, basket, and trash can are from Target.  The mirror and frames are from Michaels.  The prints are from Eye Poetry Photography (cut from a 2011 calendar).  The candles are from Ikea.

Bedroom, I'm coming at you next!  Or maybe I'll be easier on myself and tackle the other bathroom :)



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Le Weekend

My weekend was fantastic, the perfect mix of relaxing and activities.  Between going out for dinner and drinks with some friends, hitting the bar to watch the playoffs (ahem, the boyfriend was watching the playoffs), and going to class, I managed to get in some good laying time on the couch and worked on a couple of projects around the house.

A couple of shelves on our bookshelves are now considered done:

Others still require a bit more work:

I hung my fabulous new print from Parima Creative Studio:

And I set up what the boyfriend is calling "our love shrine" (I'm still planning on painting the table different shades of mint):

The print came from a giveaway from Rachel at Life Unsweetened:

So all in all, a fairly successful weekend.  I hope you had a good one too!




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