Being completely overwhelmed by the minute, insane details of buying a house has pushed me into decorating mode. It’s the only thing keeping me sane while we power through these last couple of weeks.
People keep telling me that Rome wasn’t built in a day, and I should have patience and not expect my new house to be completely finished right away. Now, do I look like I’m an unreasonable human being? Ya, didn’t think so. I know that it will take us a very long time to get our house “done”. So, when someone tells me this, I usually just smile and nod. And then continue on with my ideas. After all, I know what I’m getting myself into 
Given that buying a house is in itself insanely expensive, we have made a list of things we need to purchase for our new home and prioritized each item with a budgeted amount. We are hoping this helps keep us on track and on budget, as I’m easily distracted by shiny, new things. sigh.
Here is the list as it stands today (even though we’ll probably add a zillion more things that we haven’t even thought of yet!)
Kitchen trash can — High
Paint for Living Room/Kitchen — High
Bath accessories for 2nd bathroom — High
Driveway lights — High
Window dressings — High
Coffee table — High
Lamps — Low
A/C units — Medium
Fridge — High
Throw Rugs — Medium
Fireplace mantle — Low
Patio set — High — DONE*
Lawn mower – Medium
Outside trash can — High
Closet system — Medium/High
Whatever money is left over, we are going to tackle our main living space, the kitchen and living room. The space is really one big room, separated by an island. In an effort to be reasonable, we’re working with what we have. There’s no NEED to buy a new couch when we have two different sets. (Told you I was trying to be reasonable.)
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To make the space feel bigger and lighter, we’ve decided on a tan/blue/coral color scheme.
I’m scouring Craigslist, Ikea, Homegoods, estate sales and antique stores for pieces that I can get a good deal on and refurbish. I love DIY projects and am looking forward to creating one-of-a-kind pieces for our home. I’m also loving Overstock and Amazon for smaller, decorative pieces as well as some of those pesky necessities.
Once we are FINALLY moved in, I’ll be keeping you updated on our process, as we take our house from builder-boring to chic and fab!
Love your vision! Can’t wait to see more!
HI! I found your blog through Kelly’s Korner! We just bought our first home so I can totally sympathize with everything you are saying! It stinks when you have to drop a couple of hundred bucks on something you don’t even want to do!
I have that exact rug in your living room inspiration photo and I love it! I found it on Overstock.com and it was super reasonable and has held up really well! It’s definitely one of my favorite items!
Hi Cari! Thanks for stopping by! I’m going to have to check Overstock and see if I can find that rug, thanks for the tip
And congrats on your new house too!