jaucoin's Profile

I have three hanging in my bedroom. One a family member made for me when I left for college, one that I made at summer camp during my teen years and a small one that my mother gave me. I think grouped together they look great (they are each a different size but have similar colors) and are appropriate for my bedroom.

They're not for everyone or everyone's home, but I like them in mine.

If I'm out shopping, and I see something I like, I'll pick it up and carry it around with me. I'm usually in the store long enough to realize that I don't really want/need it.

I also try to only go when I need something, that way I'm not aimlessly shopping. It's fun to window shop, but also know what I'm really there to buy.

It's also good to remember that it's okay to go home empty-handed if you didn't find what you were looking for. Don't settle for what you saw that day, find something you really love and are going to wear/use.

My SO and I recently did a wardrobe purge, and it was awesome. We just set limits to how many of each item we were allowed to keep (10 pants, 20 tops, 5 jackets, 5 miscellaneous items, etc.) and stuck with them. It was really difficult at the time, but I'm glad we did it. I'm so much more aware of what I'm buying (rather, not buying) when I go shopping.

Some friends of mine have chalkboard paint in their powder room. They did vertical stripes on the lower part of the wall and chalkboard paint for the top half. It looks really nice and modern (when there isn't stuff written on the walls). I've never noticed it being particularly dusty in there, but she keeps the room pretty clean (they have people over pretty regularly) and washes the walls when they fill up.

I'm pretty sure we had something similar when I was a kid. Except it was made by Tupperware, and there was a square one and a wedge one. This one is much more classy and grown up, though.

I have a strand of red and a strand of pink lights stapled to the ceiling in my living room in a swirl pattern. It's really nice when you need to see but don't want brightness. Sets the mood quite nicely. I also have a strand of blue in my bedroom.

If people would stop referring to them as 'Christmas Lights' and more as just strings/strands of lights I think they'd seem less cheesy to have up year round. We just have it in our heads that they are Christmas lights and that's when it's appropriate to have them out.

But I understand that they're not for everybody. I'll enjoy mine until the wind changes.

Mine is pretty bare. You never know when you'll have people over for board games...or sake bombs.