Laurie - your place looks great. I was again admiring your wood floor. Your touch ups are great and you are making this place your own. I'm also in the "declutter and organize phase" - it feels good, doesn't it?

I love your blog - it makes me laugh, some days I cry, but never dull....

This is gorgeous and awesome! Also, if you need to declutter some more, please come to Pittsburgh...I have 650 square feet for you...

You are inspiring and amusing. Every time I read about your decluttering I get up and throw some stuff out. Thanks for all your help with tidying my house;)

You might ask your landlord if you could paint. I used to manage an apartment complex and the state regs required us to repaint after a tenant had lived there over 1 year. So, when long term tenant wanted to paint, I could say yes, as long as I had color approval (meaning no black walls please!). I fiugred that if we had to paint anyway, what the hell. The tenants loved me, occupancy stayed stable, and all was well with the world. Ha.

Laurie, your weekend projects turned out really well. Especially the basket thing. I've got the same problem with our television, VCR, game consoles, computer, stereo, printer, telephone etc., wires all coiling up in the same place. What a cool idea! Thanks! I'm glad that you are feeling better too.

I love the picture but the thermostat is THEE most coolest thing on that wall.

You know that, don't you?

Just another tidbit for rental decorating. (I grew up an army brat who then went on to live in many rental units so I still cannot bring myself to do permanent things to the wall of the house even though I now own it, co-own it with the bank).

Two words: Painter's tape.

We wanted to place a border of cork board squares around my daughter's room. So I placed a square piece of painter's tape on the wall and then placed the permanent foamy glue square on top of that and then attached the cork board. Once she gets tired of this, it will be easy to remove with NO HOLES in the wall! And the cork is very secure on the wall (we tugged on it a bit plus it has passed the test of being laden down with teenage memorabilia.)

If your doubled sided tape fails you and you need something stronger, give this a try.

Cary, that is a seriously BRILLIANT idea! Thank you!

Shari, that ancient thermostat is too funny for words. And it works!

Wow, fabulous ideas, I love how the coffe mugs coordinate with the paper AND great solution for the TV, I have the same problem with computer cords, maybe I'll have to knit a woolen basket thingy since wool is the one material we have in abundance in our house.

I still always, always love you and your projects.... it looks great! Still reveling in the revelation of your hard wood floors. Competitive Feng Shui.... sometimes, it happens.... Rock on, CAP!

uhm...double wide what?

Love your post today! I am missing my family a bunch on this 9/11 anniversary - nobody in my family died on that day, I just miss my family today - and your post cheered me up a lot!

Sometimes mindless chit-chat is a very soothing and comforting thing indeed. A nice buffer against nameless, general anxiety. So chat away, because you are doing a public service and probably saving many people many thousands of dollars in therapy bills.

LOVE your home projects, too. Frank and I are in the unpacked phase of moving in together, but now we need to do more general de-cluttering. As for your relationship corner, maybe the next time you're in Little Tokyo you can pick up one of those pink maneki neko cat sculptures I'm always going on about and put it there. Pink is supposed to bring luck in love and relationships, or so I'm told.

Happy Tuesday, and hugs to you!

I love your decluttering and home improvement projects!

I usually just lurk and read, but had to come out to ask if it's a Southernism to use 'piddling' as a synonym for doing a little this-n-that? Where I grew up (Michigan) 'piddling' means peeing, as in: my cat was piddling in the corners, not the litterbox!!

I *heart* double-stick tape! Best invention since sliced bread, I tell ya. And you say it's a small thing, but the improvement in that little shelf above the sink is tremendous. It looks So. Much. Better. That is my kind of home improvement, the kind you can do for practically no money and it totally looks like something Joan Steffend would have come up with. ("Decorating Cents" is my most favorite HGTV show!) The way the colors in the wrapping paper match the three hanging coffee mugs makes me way happier than it should! :)

Love the cubby redo and you even organized your electrical cords! Oy vey, there is no way I will ever be able to match your feng or your shui.

However that there thermostat is probably one of my company's (Honeywell?) products.

psychomom is in the house

Piddling is indeed a Southernism for "just doing this and that." I have a friend from New Jersey who thinks this is just too funny. My philosophy is that anyone who drinks something called "pop" shouldn't make fun of those of us who piddle. hahahahahahah.

The only one I can't seem to stop saying no matter how hard I try is "fixing to." I am always and forever fixing to do something or other. It's pretty funny. Also, the weather is often fixing to change, or fixing to rain, and my Jeep is fixing to break on a regular basis. Yup. Fixing to.

I noticed my calendar has "Patriot Day" on today's square. This did not exist pre-9/11, did it?

MonkeyGurrl, I have no idea...? It's not on my calendar. All I see is that tomorrow is Rosh Hashanah.

I love hearing about your small fixem up projects. It is inspiring to just tackle that little corner or that area of the counter that I hate and have been ignoring. I think what you are finding, is that big projects don't have to be overwhelming because really, they are just a series of small projects that can be tackled one by one.

Good, healthy, coping skills girl!

Also, I like how shot glasses = "vintage glasses". And that you didn't kill your neighbor.

Some of us like your stories. Keep 'em coming!

I like your appropriate use of the kitchen cubby holes. Some people do the weirdest things with them.

Well, I guess I should check in on the neighbors later... just to be sure....

Wow! You're really getting good at this decorating business. Please, please keep it up...... it's actually making me want to get up and make my home a happier place to live.

Thank you Miss Self Helper you!

So if your TV is in your relationship corner, does that mean The Universe is going to set you up with a hot Hollywood sitcom star?

today is my anniversary. which only goes to show you, good things still do happen. (read: we've been married for three years and haven't killed each other yet)

Also- my grama was raised in the south. and instead of Ya'll, she always says Yins. have you ever heard that before? Other southerners i've talked to have no idea where she came up with it!

are we still allowed to talk about Jason Statham?

Patriots Day is the new term used for September 11. I'm not sure what that means but I read it in the paper this morning.

Today is a hard day for me. Besides the terrible things that happened on 9.11.01, my mother's funeral was today in 2003. I was in NYC that day and have no recollection of anything else related to the second anniversary of the attacks, except my mother's funeral.

I'm sorry if I bummed anyone out. I just feel so sad.

I went and read your Southern writer's article, and I just want to point out >>y'all<<; not ya'll. Yankee editor though I may be, you all can use y'all long as you get it right. (Regional English should be preserved and quotes quoted precisely.)

Nikki's grandmother's "yins" is from Western Pennsyltucky, ie Pittsburgh.

My favorite Southern ruralism is the way we tack a preposition onto the end of everything.

Examples:

"Where's my spatula at?"
"If you're going into town, I want to go with."

Your chitchat is not mindless or just "distractionairy" (love that word, btw), it is meaningful. Look at all of us who read your blog everyday and get something out of it.
I love all your creative solutions to things! You have also helped me get out of my head more and actually live my life. so thanks for all your chatter!
and I don't think there's any solution for those swingy coats, except to burn them. They look cute on stick figures, but not on girls who actually have breasts or eat. (who thought it would be a good idea to have a piece of fabric hanging straight out from a large part of the body anyway???) I much prefer a chic wrap coat.

Here's a link about Patriot Day: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patriot_Day
apparently it was created by Presidential decree soon after the disaster.
(love your blog and mostly lurk, but sometimes, if I can contribute, I will).

Nikki, down here in So. Illinois we say "youins" when addressing a small familiar group, "Y'all" if there are aquaintances involved, and "all y'all" if it's a big group.

Is that similar to your gran?

I love the new-imporved cubby and solution to cord hell, Laurie. When are you going to post pictures of the whole house's before/ after shots?

I love your decluttering. They are such great ideas that I wouldn't have ever imagined. I am in need of decluttering pretty bad and I might need to steal your TV basket idea.

Looks great! And about the TV, you need to start watching a LOT of George Clooney movies if it's in your relationship corner, because you just Never Know.

Your house looks great! And your post is great too. I can't believe anyone didn't know what a double-wide was. I couldn't get much more Yankee, and even I know that.

If I had a space like that above my sink I would keep my spice jars there. Since I don't I keep them on two shelves of a cabinet next to the stove, loosely alphabetized. If you have a suggestion for how to keep about 40 (yes, really) spice jars so that 1) they are either hidden from view or attractive 2) I can instantly find the spice I need, I would be pleased to hear it.

Also, any advice on how to get this danged song out of my head would be deeply appreciated. Yes, I know it's my own fault.

Impressive AND inspiring. And what are you SUPPOSED to put in a relationship corner?

Oh God, we have resurrected the ya'll vs. y'all thing. At this point I'm so happy it makes people shudder that I will NEVER spell it another way. Well, not on things like this that have no professional editors anyway.

I'm ORNERY like that. hee.

Hello! you just uncluttered your relationship corner! *nudge nudge symbolism nudge* how's that for fenging your shui?

everyone in my area calls young girls "momma." well, in my part of town, many of the young girls *are* mommas, but i think it's cute and endearing to call little girls- 5 or younger- momma, as in "whatcha need, momma?"

You are indeed inspiring. Thanks for posting all the great pictures - just goes to show how easy it can be to make things look nicer without a lot of work or expense.

Jann, I tried to go to the store and buy the cute Trader Joe's checkout boy for that corner but he wasn't on sale that day ;)

I think you're supposed to have something pink or red, or ... a little help anyone? From people who know the answer...? I am still confused myself.

I do have a woven cat bed there with a red blanket in it.

OH! And Lucia!! I have tons of spices, too and super limited space, so I bought four of those lazy susan thingies (you can get them two-tiered, as well, from Target) and put all my spices there. I also found some magnetic spice cans at Cost Plus market that stick right on the fridge and I love those, too.

Laurie,

I think you get more done in one single day than I just THINK about getting done in one month.

Cheers.

Small things ALWAYS matter, even when we don't think they do! Your place looks great, homey and warm and ready for what is sure to be a season of creativity, inspiration and woo hoo. (After all, it is the woo hoo that makes life worth the living!)

Even if you DO end up sitting next to someone and chatter on about those several terrifying moments when Feng Shui paralyzed you... it's not the end of the world. I do it all the time and I've stopped wondering if other people could possibly care about the genius of how I've decorated my home. But it makes me happy so I keep on doing it. Otherwise I'll just force a conversation and be more of a dork that way.

OMG, there's someone in NJ who calls it POP?! Are you sure they're not originally from Upstate NY? lol!

Hello Michael's 40% coupon, I love you! Although some weekends my love is divided between that and the Bed Bath and Beyond coupon!

YAY!! the kitchen cubby is sooooooo happy now! Also Real Simple had a photo layout of some designers house this month that totally used your file by color book scheme!! :)

Laurie - I love all of your entries! They are inspirational! They also make me happy. :) I tried this book - "Move Your Stuff, Change Your Life...." and it was great! I was single, living in my condo with my cat, wanting to make a few changes and I read the book. I followed its principles as best I could - I especially concentrated on changing my bedroom. Anyway! I "fixed" my $$$ corner and relationship corner. Within two months I got a HUGE severance check from work, and met the man I eventually married. Although, perhaps I should have specified in the $$$ corner that I didn't actually *want* our company to be bought out resulting in losing my job! But I did receive a good chunk of $$ that allowed me to go back to school and become a nurse. I think why Feng Shui really does work is that it clears out the clutter, making space for good things to come in to your life. :)

How many times can I say it? You rock! love your decorating energy, the sharing of the before and after pics, Drew's wise advice. After I read a feng shui book I was very upset because it turned out that my TOILET was in my money corner.

I think I love you. The tidying photos made me weirdly happy. And I am a messy, pack-ratty, cluttery person.

You are inspiring me to clean and decorate. Go you!

Love the redone cubby. I redid all my cookbooks recently - by color - and they give me great joy now when I see them on the shelf. All your home-self-helpiness has inspired all kinds of changes in my house - and therefore my psyche. Thanks.

No More Wasted Paper has a lovely entry about 9/11 today. http://nomorewastedpaper.wordpress.com/2007/09/11/here-is-new-york/

I took a moment to reflect and then got on with my day. Oh, and nice decluttering Laurie.

I LOVE the cubby over the sink-- it's so cool!
And while I never heard my grandmother (Mississippi)
"use "yin's" my Nana (Arkansas) used to say

"They who takes what isn't his'ns soon will find his home in Prisins"

And thank your for the happy chatter- I think we need it today.

Thanks for the link to onlineathens. what a great story. Yea for us southerners! :)

And if I could add a little tip: If you can find a screen (we found one with picture holders in it for about $20 at Hobby Lobby a couple of years ago -- I know they can be had on the cheap) such as 1940s movie actresses might change clothes behind in the more risque scenes, you can put it in that corner in front of the TiVi when you have company so as to minimise the harsh tech appearance of the viewing accoutrement.

Oooh, that's weird. I just looked at an open kitchen cabinet-y area in my condo this morning and thought that putting something along the back wall of it might be a way to spruce it up a bit. I was thinking pictures or artwork but this wrapping paper idea is brilliant! Thanks Laurie!

Magnetic spice cans? Brilliant! (I don't know where I would put a lazy Susan.)

I accidentally blogged a regular post on 9/11 last year, and felt like a right heel about it when I realized a few days later.

When I was in college, I dabbled a little in the Feng of Shui business. Turns out my dirty clothes hamper and all my shoes were piled in my relationship corner. Ah well.

I am really liking your decluttering efforts. I keep mentioning "Well, Laurie is decluttering and her house looks awesome" to my husband (who is generally against changes in his habitat)... He doesn't quite understand the knitter/blogger/catperson family the innernets has created.

So that was long. In short, great job on the shelf. And I say wrong things at wrong times too... When I was younger (but not that young) I nervously chatted off how human flesh would taste more like pork than chicken.... at my Uncle's funeral. Eek.

The taste of human thing was something I once saw, with its logic based on human DNA being more similar to a pig than a chicken. Yeah I watch Discovery TV too much.

I like the changes you're making to turn your house into a home...

All in all, I think you're becoming my hero!

Oh, decluttering, how I love thee!! The grad student husband and I are getting ready to move 70 miles so that he doesn't have to drive those miles every day. Given that we've been married 15 years, been in this house for 12, and had both sets of parents dump the stuff we had left at their houses we have a lot to get rid of.

Which is why I enjoy your posts - anything that gives me ideas to simplify and declutter is wonderful. We're probably going to end up in smaller space until he graduates and have to move again.

And your comment about a relationship with The Weather Channel cracked me up - my husband is working on his PhD in meteorology and he actually records shows from The Weather Channel to watch.

Count me in as another who loves your decorating and the inspiration to do it! What a difference with the cords behind the tv, it looks great! I love that basket with the red blanket, too, didn't realize that was a cat bed. I like the pic of your girlfriends and the cubby hole above the sink. Well, okay, just say it - I like it all! :)

Poor Colleen in MA, I had to laugh! Toilet in your money corner! Yikes!

About the word "yins", my mil is originally from southern Indiana and her relatives there talk like that. She doesn't say it anymore, she's been in Texas for 50 years so she says "y'all" but the first time I heard them talk when we went up there for a funeral it was like a cross between a Southern accent and a Northern one. Those border states like Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio have a bit of a Southern crossover in the southernmost sections of the states.

er, um, I get so wordy, too, sometimes! How come I can never just comment with a few words or couple of sentences?? Argh.

That is an *amazing* improvement, CAP!

Will you decorate my house? :-) We're covered in dog hair instead of cat hair, but sure could use some of that creativeness! (DH calls my decorated style "eclectic" - as in, 'nothing matches'. )

Ok, i've lived in alot of different places, so i've noticed lots of different wierd dialect things. And some of them are downright WEIRD!!!

In Minnesota, (this is something I have NEVER heard anywhere else) if something is cute, locals say "Oh, for cute!" or "oh, for dumb!" or "oh! for stupid!" and it really irks me! because...what does that even mean?!?!

And the whole Pop Vs. Soda thing! I've called it pop all my life, because I was raised in the capital of West Virginia (ohio!) and then moved to Wisconsin, where it's called soda. people made fun of me for calling it pop!

Another thing about Wisconsin! a water fountain!? nope. In WI they are called "bubblers"......yah. really. my first day in school there, someone said something about "over by the bubbler" and to this day, i have still not been as confused as I was that day (holy incorrect grammar!)

Also in wisconsin, there are no G's!!! the word "thinking" becomes "thinkeen"...having = Haveen....it's wierd.

I love each improvement you post! I'm working my way through our place one room at a time, thanks to you. Last weekend I actually Did. The. Mending. Shocking.

I second the recommendation for "Move Your Stuff, Change Your Life...." - - it's a great, funny, and easy book on using feng shui (no charts! no "northwest aspect" nonsense!).

Continuing to stalk you and loving it!

I dabble in the old feng shui myself and am no means an expert but it really is about changing the way you think. So just think of the TV in the relationship corner as putting in your order to the Universe for a hunky sitcom like boyfriend (but I would be specific about which one you want - someone like Al Gore rather than Ted Bundy)... And dealing with the cords was definitely good feng shui as feng shui does not like electronic equipment or cords... Good luck!

You're inspiring me to do some easy improvements... love the cubbie above the sink!

Oh, Laurie, you are inspiring me more and more every time you post something about your home improvements. As we have *no* budget for decorating at all, I especially love your really inexpensive ideas. This could be a new book! Really! I'd buy it!

You are so cute. And Drew is, too!

He's totally right, btw, about feng shui... Shouldn't cause stress or confusion, just increase peace and harmony.

Love how low the prices of your little home improvements are!!

distractionary chitchatting
this is my favorite phrase of late. it completely describes my son, who never shuts up.
Your shui looks veryvery nice!

I couldn't agree with Ms. Rich more (re: Southern grammar). And I was raised in the North! (But I am descended from Scots-Irish and dearly love the South.)

Your relationship corner looks so clean and neat and tidy. You set the bar pretty high there girl! Your kitchen cubby is a picture of cuteness too!

One of the nicest framed images I've seen was in a friend's little flat in London. When I complimented her on it she laughed and admitted it was a piece of wrapping paper that she stuck in a fancy shmancy frame. Who cares where it's from...it's art!

Your place is really coming along. I read the article on Southern grammar. With me, she's preaching to the choir. I was born & raised in WV and then had the audacity to live in Tennessee for a while. I LIKE my accent - as a matter of fact I LOVE my accent and the phrasing I learned mostly from my dad. It has a rhythm that is almost musical to the ear. Who wants to sound like a Northern news anchor, anyway?

Cup hooks are one of my favorite tricks -- they're so versatile! I even used them to hang outdoor Christmas lights at my old house.

you're like mac gyver!

and i love that photograph. that little red umbrella must makes it.

Awesome refernce: All your sinks are belong to us.

They set us up the tub.

The sink area looks good too!

Just wanted to say that I love the blog and you've inspired me to start decluttering my life. Looking at your pictures makes me realize how much STUFF I have that could be organized or tossed.

Laurie,
Love your post most every day, and this was another laugh-out-loud one. And the comments from your readers are always hilarious.

I find that the Midwestern twang (of which I have been accused of having -- is that gramatically challenging to say, or what?) tends to change most double "t's" to "d's" in words such as "pretty." It's no longer "preTTy," it's "preddy." Or even "pruddy." And that's not pretty. But I say it, too.

Also, I grew up in Indianapolis and we used to say "Coke" for any kind of soft drink. As in, "I'd like an orange Coke, please."

And I'm getting that book (Move Your Stuff...) from my library.

You're fixing to do stuff? Well, I might could do it, too!

I recently said, out loud, "I swanee, I'm gonna knock that cat into next week!" And when was the last time something tickled you (having nothing to do with physical contact)?

Southern dialect is doing just fine, y'all!

Hey Lucia! You asked about spice organization... this is the best solution I've found:
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=18288.0

And Laurie, love your cheap and chic home dec solutions. You'll be painting up the joint in no time! (Rental deposit be damned!) Don't forget to put some money in a red envelope in your money corner! It works!

If you are not sure what to say, you can wish me a happy anniversary! Three years today :-)

Happy Anniversary Lynne!!

I LOVE the Paris photo! Looks like something from a travel magazine. (Whereas mine look like something a 5-year-old took.) Also, wantwantwant tiny lazy susan for 4.99! Where did you find it?

Your Feng Shui-ing makes me want to Feng Shui, too. Nice job!!!

Yay for Southerners-especially their quirks and interesting ways of expressing themselves. I must stick my oar in and say that it should be "y'all" seeing as how it is a contraction of "you all". And the plural is indeed "all y'all".

And along those lines, "distractionary" could be my new favorite adjective...so many uses, it will really come in handy!

So, now that we have that straight...Laurie, your cubby looks divine. You really have the creative touch.

Dearest Purl - Inspiring and amazing! I'm totally copping your wicked good "fix your house, fix your life" attitude. It's amazing how we just let our lives move along without us while we wait for the 'next best thing'! My decarpeting is this weekend (Doesn't that sound vaguely dirty? Alrighty, just me then.)

And Soba in her War Room - freakin' priceless. I think I'm going to make that my work screensaver.

You've inspired me! I'm having a bit of a bad run of luck lately. I'm going to try a Free/Cheap Makeover and see how I do!

Hmm, color coordinate the books? I have 1 tiny shelf lets try...MADE me laugh so hard! It looks so much BETTER!

You are an inspiration! Anyone have ideas on cheap ways to organize a closet? Mine is a disaster, and I can't seem to get a handle on it. I really want one of those $2,000 professionally organization thingies, but who can afford that?

I forgot to ask you what you thought of Kim and Todd's final designs on 'Design Star' and who you are cheering for?

I really like Kim's overall design style and her attitude, especially how she handled that sad mobile home, but I wonder if the female viewers will choose hunk over style. I know I enjoyed watching Todd work without his shirt but I don't really need a half pipe in my living room.

Thank you for making me laugh and smile. I love all the changes you've made, too. Good job!

my grandmother is a master at making small talk during awkward moments. (not surprisingly, her people are from shreveport and south carolina.) my sister once brought her new boyfriend over to a family lunch -- he was wearing multiple leather bondage accoutrements. we all sucked in our collective breath when he sat down next to grandma… but she simply turned to him and said, 'those are interesting! did you make those yourself?' and proceeded to completely knock the wind out of the poor boy's sails.

the rest of us named him 'bondage boy,' though.

Oh my goodness, Laurie. I LOVE you.

(Not in that way.)

Seriously, I just look forward to your posts so much.

And also, I love all the little things you've been doing to home-ify your house.

How's this: My BFF@work has a PERSONALITY. She breezed in this a.m. around 10:20 (her usual), and, as a joke, said "Dead Man Walking".

Our co-worker "lost her husband" last month.

Laurie, you are very inspirational. Thanks for your positive spirit and your great example. Tomorrow I will start decluttering. No, reallY!

Barb

Love the progress!!
The shelf looks FAN-tastic, although I am slightly bias seeing as I too have that exact mini lazy susan. I keep my spices on it in the cupboard and I love it so much I was seriously considering getting another one... but then I realized I am not quite THAT lazy.

;)

My grandmother always accused my sister and I of "piddling and diddling" in the morning when we should've been getting ready for school. We were not peeing, merely taking our time. I love how those persons from up North are amused by Southernisms. =)

(my computer highlighted "should've" as misspelled, but not "Southernisms"....)

I just can't get over your floors. Awesome! And I love the before and after shots. What's next?

You're doing an awesome job decluttering and making your house a home! I'm really impressed.

Anyway, is there any chance I could get a close-up of those vintage glasses? I have 4 that are really similar - they were my grandfather's whisky glasses and they're one of my favorite things. I'm just wondering if they're the same or not. My email is rachel@mauby.com. And no worries if it's too much of a pain!

Thanks for all the laughs (and occasional empthatetic tears) - your blog is one of my very favorites!

You roock CAP. I love how you tidied away your cables but for anyone thinking about this who doesn't have a spare basket hanging around, Ikea has a fabulous cable organiser so the cords don't get tangled - you can also get this flexible piping that hides the cords away.

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50035115

oh my goodness...you had a link to ronda rich! she is one of my heroes! i love her b/c she is not ashamed of showing she's a southern woman. if you get a chance, read her books. i admired her even more after i read her book about being in nascar and how she broke through barriers. she did it by being a lady and not pushing her way angrily in an area dominated by men.

and such a small world...onlineathens.com is owned by the company i work for...

Love the post, but I just have to add, that it isn't easy to talk too much about nothing to strangers....for instance, I found myself on the verge of a much needed vacation, and my co-worker talked me into a bikini wax. The fact that she was the one waxing, should have warned me right off. Soon after the torture was over, I found myself running off at the mouth to anyone who would listen about how I tried to stop after the first strip, promising to walk only to the left! I think endorphins or adrenaline, or something must have convinced me that people needed to hear this stuff, especially how if I wasn't single, the territory might be less sensitive! So here I share this with you as well, may we forever fill conversation with distracting babble that comforts others through incredulity!

Here in southwest Arkansas you don't "take" someone to the hospital or to town--you "carry" them. As in "I have to carry my mom to the doctor."

Love the picture of your friends. I have a very small bathroom (so small you can't cuss the cat without getting fur in your teeth) I have decorated in a sea shell/ocean theme. A couple of years ago I was needing a new arrangement or picture for the bathroom. My oldest daughter happened to send a snapshot of my granddaughter and grandson (then 10 and 6 years old) holding hands and looking out at the ocean. I had it blown up to 8x10 size and got a great frame at Hobby Lobby for half price. Looks great, was cheap, and makes me smile inside every time I look at it.

I LOVE your creative space saving / feng shui improving ideas.

I tend to go cheap and use plastic storage bins everywhere...they work, but they probably don't do much for my feng shui, huh?

Anyway, I totally dig the house photos and house projects! Thanks for sharing!

It's the small things that make the big picture seem so much more doable. Love the basket idea and how neat and pretty your sinks look.

lady, that cubby is gorgeous! you make me want to go toss a bunch of junk that's been sitting around my room since my latest move!

Gift wrap! Fabulous idea, and it looks great in there. I used gift wrap a few years ago to cover the tops of two old, beat-up TV trays, then covered them with a couple coats of varnish. Voila - useful and cute. You can decoupage with gift-wrap cutouts to transform an old piece of furniture into something beautiful. There are so many great designs and you get a ton of it for a few bucks. Can't wait to see what other ideas you come up with. :)

PS: I'm voting for Kim!

You inspire me! Just done the divorce thing, moved into a new place and am making it my home. Thanks for all hte enthusiasm and helpful hints. I love the picture of friends in frames idea. (Not framed friends!) Michaels, here I come!

Super double-plus awesome job on the spiffing-up! And Nikki, oddly enough in the Boston area a water fountain is also a "bubbler", but soda is "tonic". A shopping cart is a carriage, police drive "cruisers" and the corner store is a "spa" (haven't heard that one in a while, though, or "French cleansers" for dry cleaners. Sometimes you'll see it on a store sign if it's an older neighborhood store). I do get a kick out of the regionalisms.

Now, think about knitting some pretty edging for the shelves! you can stick it up with double stitch tape.. and every day, at the sink, admire it.

it can be white cotton or use a colored cotton for contrast.

and as for hanging things, 3M makes command adhesive velcro tabs.. they come in 2 sizes, and 2 large ones will "Hang" a power strip--on the wall, on the leg/back/side of desk..anywhere.. all my outlets would be behind furniture except for the use of power strips.. and all my power strip have become wall mounted (and i don't have cat hair to deal with--just dust!

you can hang pictures and other stuff with the 3M stuff.. Just about all my stuff on the wall is hung that way --no holes, easy to reposition, good stuff.. They seem expensive... but patch and touch up a newly painted wall a few times, and they are cheap! and they allow you to reposition/redecorate so easily!

What a cool post! I love your humor, and the decorating is superb. Love it. Love it. Love you. I look forward to your blog entries every day.

Hi there,

I did a one day feng shui workshop and one thing I remember the woman saying is about pictures. She said whenever she works on a single person's house, one who is looking for lurve, she usually finds they have artwork of empty landscapes, or maybe with one person in a portrait. She said you should hang pictures on your walls that you want to mirror your would-be life, people having boozy lunches, couples, families walking along a beach, etc. I tried looking for pics like that but I came to the conclusion so many painters must be loners, 'cos those happy pics were rarer than a sunny UK bank holiday weekend. Anyway, looks like you've got the right idea with the great photo of you and your mates.

Loving all the home deco stories, keep 'em coming.

I've tried to subscribe to your blog, but the technology doesn't seem to want to work for me. Dang innernet thingy! Anyway, hope you read down this far. I've been inspired by your posts and have revised my thinking about housekeeping "chores". I've spiffed up my spinster chez to the point that my neighbor asked if I was moving! My carpet removal and outside painting were way overdue. Now if I could just pick up the phone and make that dentist appointment!

I thought I'd let you know that you can starch material (from the fabric store. Wash it first so it doesn't bleed) onto the walls for wall paper and when you're tired of it or you're moving you just wash it off the walls too.

I admire your creativity. Everything is looking terrific!

Don't mean to be ignorant, but what is a swing coat? Fashion never seems to make it's way to Vermont.

Oh Laurie....I was away all summer and had no idea about Roy until you mentioned it today. I send heartfelt belated condolences on your loss. I too have lost in the last year so I know how you feel.
Your Feng Shui and decluttering are so inspiring to me! We moved into this house 2 years ago and I still haven't quite made it "ours" though some steps have been taken, like carpet removal, one room painted and another wallpapered.
My window treatments need serious help....can you send some DIY mojo my way, sugarplum??

This is better than watching the DIY network, I swear. I walk around my house now looking at the clutter wondering "what would 'Crazy Aunt Purl' do here?" BTW, your welcome to come by anytime & help with the de-cluttering of the world in my little corner of it :) I don't have a 'mall of America' but I do have lots of yarn here!
Congrats on the booktour, now come to central NY! Tell your publicist you can have a booksigning right here on the farm.

Your paper behind the kitchen shelf reminds me of a "quickie" I did to hide the back of an ugly (and not fiscally replaceable)medicine cabinet. Michael's has tons of scrapbooking paper to choose from, so I bought enough sheets to overlap for the pattern and used magnet strips to stick it to the back of the metal cabinet. The bonus was that I had to take out the glass shelves and they actually looked pretty after a good cleaning! It's also fun to get the plastic lace runner stuff from a fabric or craft store and use it to line the shelves. I am all about gracious living! Personal motto: If you can't fix it, decorate it!

I love your refrence to "all your basses are belong to us". Funny!

Love the small redecorating tips, Laurie. I'm doing the same thing a little at a time. We've moved into a much bigger (instead of smaller) house and I'm trying to find things to fill all this crazy open white wall space. I'm learning that things don't have to be super expensive in order to make your house a home. A few small frames, some additional knick-knacks and we're already looking better. We still have painting to do, which I'm totally procrastinating on, but things look pretty good, for a start. I love your hiding the cords idea, so original and functional.

I had a similar tv conundrum - I actually watch relatively little tv these days, but just enough that I can't cut the cord, so to speak, and put it away entirely. Weekend before last, my mum and I took a trip to IKEA to pick up a cheap-o Billy bookcase (which I colour-coordinated my books, on, btw, and it makes me extremely happy to look at it)

I was also looking for a simple tv solution, but everything there took up way too much room for how much I use the TV, and the size of my tiny flat. Then my mother had the brilliant idea of using a bookshelf with open sides/back as a tv cabinet. It was $50, and it fits TV, dvd player, and all my dvds etc. It's neat, it's pretty, and it keeps the boob tube available without making it the complete focus of the room. It's amazing what a difference it makes. My home feels so much more like a home, now.