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the boxes are dwindling down (slowly, but surely…phew!) and as i am putting away one thing after another i am thinking [...]]]> real quick: head over to mama marchand‘s to enter to win a pair of my reusable sandwich bags! and a handful of other fun things!

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the boxes are dwindling down (slowly, but surely…phew!) and as i am putting away one thing after another i am thinking about the last few places we’ve lived in. we’ve done it all…with the extremes being a 1600 square foot, 3 bedroom house with double garage to a 600 square foot 1 bedroom walkup in the middle of downtown. (and i can’t fail to mention that those two places happened in that particular order!)

but since that teeny apartment, the places after that have been somewhat similar in living space. i feel like i’ve gotten pretty good at figuring out ways to creatively and efficiently live in small spaces, with what often feels like a family of four (since gracie and ava truly are the size of 2 additional adults). here’s some pointers for you…in your current home, or if you ever need/want to downsize in the future. (and note in these pictures, i haven’t unpacked any of my boxes of accessories and knicknacks!)

choose furniture pieces and styles that have storage.

i experienced the hassles of this in said apartment, when i soon realized that none of our side tables or coffee table had even a shelf. just in the day to day life having a drawer and shelf on a table tucked next to the sofa helps immensely, with the books you are currently reading, remote controls, etc. this goes the same for everything…a desk with lots of drawers, a headboard with niches, hall table with a lower shelf for bins or baskets.

get creative with electronics.

i know this can be limiting to those who are not techy…i’m blessed with a husband who knows a lot, and knows how to figure it out if he doesn’t. when we didn’t have a spare wall to put a desk for a computer, let alone a separate office, we incorporated our computer and entertainment center together with two shelves flanking a stereo cabinet…the computer utilizing the tv as our monitor and using wireless keyboard and mouse from the sofa. this completely eliminated the need for a separate desk or office, and actually has been really fun to have our screen saver be pictures on the tv throughout the day, having perks like our itunes going through the surround speakers, and even being able to watch past episodes of tv, online, but fullscreen on our tv. (was that as confusing to decipher as it was to write?)

don’t be afraid to use something for multiple purposes.

our buffet is currently our sofa back table, our entry table, as well as our buffet storing all our serving and china. it’s even been an entertainment center in past lives. need to have your dining room and craft room be the same space? use a cabinet or credenza to hold decorative pieces on top, while the inside is filled with all your supplies. small dressers or desks make great nightstands (and a cute look!). we have a pair of upholstered stools as extra seating and accents in our living room, but if we have extra guests for dinner, they pull up to the table just as easily for me and wil to sit on.

be willing to live with less!

i feel like i’m always needing to purge, and i feel like i am always acquiring stuff and have no where for it. but i do know it’s sometimes refreshing to realize you don’t need tons of multiples of certain things. i struggle with this one, though. i have a soft spot for a junky little side table or cool chair if it’s a good deal and i see potential in it. but we make sacrifices like not shopping at costco as much because we don’t have the space for 60 rolls of toilet paper at once. on the flipside, if you can justify it with your priorities and lifestyle, having more of something might be ok.  it’s the same as budgeting…if going out to eat is really important to you, and you’ve allocated within your income a substantial budget for it, then by all means, eat out and enjoy. cooking is really important to us; we might have a bit more kitchen stuff than average. and we are ok with it.

look up…take advantage of wall space.

if you own or your apartment doesn’t have issues with it, than by all means take advantage of vertical storage! hooks over doors, shelving units, a spice rack above the stove to free up one more cabinet for something else.

don’t forget about the hidden, automatic storage spaces.

under the bed and under the sofa (if on tall enough legs) are prime spots for those odd things like skiis, extra blankets, wrapping supplies, etc. just make sure the stuff is managed in boxes and shallow tupperwares.

consider a storage unit.

we’ve had to do this a couple times, as we continue to jump from a home with a garage to one without and then back again. if your budget allows it or your circumstances are temporary, sometimes a storage unit, even a small one can really give a bit of relief on being able to put away that stuff you can’t find a home for and/or don’t need to access for a period of time. especially for things like camping, christmas decorations, etc. and sometimes it helps you get rid of something…you’ll pack that box of that thing you can’t get rid of, and then when you move 6 months later, you’ll realize if you can live without it for 6 months, than maybe you don’t need it at all!

i know my sister wanted some pictures of the new place, and i know these don’t suffice (sorry, dena). but hopefully these thoughts help one of you out there with a small space that has you stumped!

among the to do list of actual drawings to complete, i’ve got my eye set [...]]]> i’ve gotten started, and feel good about the few new drawings (or ideas of drawings) that i intend to add to my portfolio (all initially from school) before sending it out to potential firms & companies.

among the to do list of actual drawings to complete, i’ve got my eye set on a website template that i think would do well in showcasing said drawings…now i just have to pull the trigger, pay the money (ugh), and start getting it set up. i could dilly dally with trying to find a friend to help set one up, but honestly, i think it’s better for myself and my timeline to just go with the predone route, with an online company i’ve personally used before at my old job. i won’t give anything away about the website until it’s complete though…

here’s a drawing i just completed…a perspective line drawing of a remodel on my parents’ house…based on a few photos of the back deck. i’ll eventually do a rendered version (a random example here), but remember, i’m taking this just a little bit at a time! i wanted to see something completed before i got myself too deep into a bunch of unfinished drawings and then throw my hands up in defeat.

have a great day! i’m on to the next task!

on the verge of change.

at the end of this month we’ll hopefully know whether we [...]]]> i think of mary poppins, and when they sensed the winds going in a different direction, a change was about to happen. everything definitely feels like the edge of something.

on the verge of change.

at the end of this month we’ll hopefully know whether we are staying in this house, or going. it doesn’t seem like we really can afford to buy a house, but we are looking. our needs are too specific to find a place to rent (which would cost us more than a mortgage payment) so it just makes sense to see what’s on the market. maybe we could find a foreclosure or short sale.

and i’ve really been trying to step back from what i’m doing right now and take a long hard look. every few months we have to reevaluate our budget. we don’t use a cash system, periodically enter our transactions into a spreadsheet, or even look at it every day. but dave ramsay’s concept of allocating every penny to know where your money is going is something we hold firm to, and visit every couple months. and this time around i saw that we make enough money to survive.

but to thrive? to grow? to give? to work towards something? not so much. wil is a hard working provider. he doesn’t make a ton, and often works harder than his title and paycheck. his work ethic and skills are solid. there’s no need for him to do any more than he already is, so when i calculated that we need to make more, i felt the gut in my stomach.

i’m a capable, young wife without children to care for, so i really feel like the ball is in my court to step it up. looking for a career job is still not something we (i) desire for me, but is there something out there that makes fiscal sense? yes. when i stepped away from my job and stopping actively looking for jobs, wil and i agreed together my venture would be threefold…get a nobrainer part time job (check), pursue etsy as a fun way to be creative and make a few bucks on the side (check), and my deepest passion, pursue freelance architectural rendering. this is what i care about the most, yet put the least of efforts into since this spring.

why? am i so gripped with fear? with the worry that i’m not good enough to do it professionally?

seeing the budget in it’s current state put a fire under my chair. but also, it was the encouraging husband, who in the nicest way reminded me how many times this summer i have told him i’d pursue this, and then done nothing. yuck. big time fail of letting me and him down.

but maybe something’s changing. maybe the wind is blowing in a different direction. i am going to take this opportunity to temporarily step away from what i thought was important at the time, and reevaluate things. make plans for living. make plans for drawing. make plans for getting a portfolio made, emailing companies, putting myself out there. saying lots of prayers.

if i stick with my plan, i hope that i am not on here as much, for a little while at least. i think i’ve started to see myself struggle with placing too much time and importance on the online world, not really getting me anywhere. i’m not giving anything up, so if you see something on etsy you’d like to buy, the store is definitely not closed. or if you have a thought, please leave a comment because i’m still around, and hopefully keeping you in on the process. but with the changes in our life right now and the path we’d like to place ourselves on, i need to take a long hard look at my plans. and then, DO THEM.

here goes nothing!

my computer background right now... via pinterest

maybe i’ve been watching too much mad men, but all the sudden, i cannot get enough of that retro, danish, streamlined, warm wood, 40′s-50′s-60′s finds…

wil and i have decided to cut back our spending (we hardly spend any [...]]]> i don’t know what it is, but i have become obsessed with midcentury furniture.

maybe i’ve been watching too much mad men, but all the sudden, i cannot get enough of that retro, danish, streamlined, warm wood, 40′s-50′s-60′s finds…

wil and i have decided to cut back our spending (we hardly spend any as it is) just to be more frugal and try and be smart with what we do pay, but i still am sifting through craigslist to see what i can find. i was too late on some amazing two tier side tables to refinish for only 20 bucks a few weeks back, and i was only a few hours late today on this really cool desk for 50 bucks. (i hate calling on craigslist things, but i probably could have had this if i had called, instead of emailed, since i emailed about an hour after the listing went up and got no response, but found out it was sold when i called about an hour ago)

i really feel like i don’t want to buy new cheap things anymore, but instead find some awesome cheap old things to revive or refinish (if necessary) to have in our home.

it really didn’t help that this last week, i was in atlanta with my boss to go to the design center and a huge antiques market. this market, is two ginormous warehouses full of vendors that come from all over to sell antiques. we wake up at 5:45 (4:45 nashville time), and walk around while most of the booths aren’t even there yet or are just setting up…if we go any later, all the good things are gone! but for alcott, we are looking for entirely the opposite of my taste for my own home. french and italian pieces from europe from the 1800′s…interesting chests, gilt mirrors, sconces and lighting from ancient churches and homes, etc. we have vendors we frequent, a handful with thick french accents as they tell you what little village they got that particular piece from.

anyways, every 4 or 5 booths though, something catches my eye, and it seemed like this month, there was an abundance of great mid century finds. one booth had an amazing pair of chairs with curved wood arms and a rusty tweed fabric. oh so great…in alcott’s terms, they were a good price…for me not so much. but i saw so many side tables, chests, nightstands that were within reach (like a pair of nightstands for 200 bucks!). i wished my strongest of wishes i either had the money or had a place for them.

seeing these midcentury things, only makes the desire stronger…and unfortunately, i have a few blogs that i have come across that i frequent… this one being my favorite. she makes me wish i lived in an older bigger city, because every few posts or so, she has a picture of something amazing that she found on craigslist for a great deal. our nashville one just doesn’t have much of a variety on cool vintage things…and if so, they are snatched up before i can get to them like the last few things.

*sigh*

we get to celebrate a number of things while we are there:

two big sites were on our plate this morning- the uffizi gallery (extensive renassaince paintings) and the accademia (the david). upon our arrival in florence i started reading the guidebook to get a feel for the area and our plans, only to find out that unless you want to stand in freakishly long and [...]]]>

two big sites were on our plate this morning- the uffizi gallery (extensive renassaince paintings) and the accademia (the david). upon our arrival in florence i started reading the guidebook to get a feel for the area and our plans, only to find out that unless you want to stand in freakishly long and slow moving lines, you need to get reservations to these two places. and of course, sometimes you have to call a month in advance in order to get a time slot. one piece of advice to future travelers: read through your guidebooks before you travel!

i was able to get a time at the accademia (easier to get a time a few days in advance), but as the uffizi was booked through next week, our only option was to wait in line. you don’t necessarily have to have a reservation to get into the museums, they just confirm you can get in at a certain time without waiting in line- especially since most places only allow so many people in at once. knowing this we planned on heading to the uffizi first thing in the morning, right after it opened. good thing we did because the line was already decently long. once we grabbed our spots, it just continued to grow and grow behind us.

while standing in these lines, we’ve found a good percentage of the people around us are american. spoke to two girls who just graduated college and were on a month long trip throughout europe. we’ve met quite a few people at the train stations, laundromat, etc. with similar itineraries. i know we thought we wanted to do a month in europe at first, but i don’t know if i could have done it. it’s just too exhausting to never be on a regular schedule, room, diet, language, etc. maybe i am just a travel wimp.

back to the day…we got to the uffizi around 8:30 and stood in line for a while- definitely not as bad as if we tried to hit it in the middle of the day. we were ushered in and immediately surrounded by hundreds of italian paintings by michelangelo, da vinci, boticelli, giotto, and of course many more. it was interesting to see the subject matter of the time…i decided i don’t think i would want to live during the renassaince. yes it was the rebirth of humanity and art, but it seemed so dark. mostly all the paintings revolved around gruesome religious stories or martyrs or christ’s suffering.

our museum walkthrough ended around 11, and being the normal americans we are, we were ready for lunch. but nothing opened till at least 12! and to make it worse, everyone opens their cafe doors and displays before they even open… we walked to kill time and found a little corner cafe with great little pizzas. they were wonderfully simple. it makes me wonder why we feel like we need to slap all sorts of meat and veggies and sauces on our pizzas, when a combination of just good bread and one or two toppings and herbs make a great meal.

with a large chunk of time between lunch and our reservation for later in the day, we relaxed, later had some gelato (we can’t get enough of it- especially when it’s on every corner), and sat and watched a busy piazza. around the corner was our next stop, to see the david.

although we had reservations for 4:30, we got there a bit early, and waited in another long line. seeing that the line without reservations never moved at all, i was happy to have made the call, but we still stood outside forever. we watched a nearby street vendor desperately try to sell cheesy prints of italian paintings and scenes to passerby tourists…without luck. our time was called and we made our way, thankfully no later as the temperature was starting to increase!

in the first room we saw some awesome sculptures by michelangelo- probably my favorite sculptures thus far due to the fact that the entire series of 5 or 6 was unfinished. each sculpture was of a figure, only halfway emerging out of the rough stone, revealing every chink he made with his tools. the visualization of his process was more impactful than the perfect polished finished products we are so accustomed to seeing.

but of course, our sight was not long after distracted to the end of the hall where the david stood. a huge sculpture of 17 feet (plus the 4-5 foot pedestal he stood upon), he demanded everyone’s attention. unfortunately no pictures were allowed, so we couldn’t capture him, but it won’t be easy to forget the site.

we laughed as we left the museum, realizing that we stood in line longer than the time we spent inside the museum, at both places today. surprisingly, florence has felt more “touristy” than rome or even paris (paris was probably the least!). maybe because this city is the smallest of the three, and the visitors are so concentrated around the few sites here.

either way, we enjoyed what we saw and went straight back to our room. the temperature is up to the 90′s today…we were happy to waste a couple hours out of the hot streets until dinner. wil is checking for a good place to eat right now in the book. it looks like we’ll have another leisurely evening together enjoying to drawn out meal, and later preparing for our big day trip to cinque terra tomorrow (yay for more train rides!).

here’s a video while we were bored in line at the uffizi…get ready for some edge of your seat action. oh and by the way, if you can tell in the video, yes, my cheek decided to break out in the last couple days (without me thinking of bringing any medication). what fun.

ciao!