alahoop's Profile

Display Name: alahoop
Personal URL: http://twinklesandtwigs.blogspot.com
Member Since: 10/21/08

Latest Comments...

Yes. We just put up curtains in our dining room after living here for three years. I don't know why I didn't at least put up sheers on tension rods, or something, while I looked for panels, but I didn't. I knew the room needed something, but I never found quite the right thing (that wasn't going to cost a fortune)--there are five windows, and a radiator under the three on the front of the house. I finally bought, and hung, some curtains a few weeks ago, and it made a HUGE, HUGE difference. I knew it would, and I wanted curtains, but it still surprised me how much cozier and put together the room looks now.

The curtains on the windows with the radiator will never close properly, but all of the windows have sheers. I made sure that the panels are wide enough though, so they don't look cheap.


Apartment Therapy on Covering Your Windows Renovation Diary
6/17/13 9:25 PM

I think they look fantastic together (and I agree with the suggestion to get those curtains in the RH picture!). Leather is tricky, because it can be hard to find fabric pieces that look good with it too, but nobody wants a matched set. I think that because the colors of the leather are so different, it won't look like you were trying to match and failed. I'd love to have those two pieces in my living room!


Can I Mix Different Leathers in One Room? Good Questions
6/13/13 10:46 AM

I have a picture hung between two windows, similar to the one in number eight. It's our sunroom, and there are windows on three sides and a large arch into the living room on the fourth, which leaves very little wall space for hanging things. The windows are curtained two-thirds of the way up, so the picture hangs in front of the curtained area. I think it would bother me otherwise.


10 More Unconventional Ways to Hang Art
6/6/13 8:35 PM

This is too cute, and I love your idea of accessorizing the figures to represent what you do at certain times of day!


DIY Playmobil Clock De Rien, Madame
6/1/13 4:30 PM

I know that one of the previous owners of our house died in bed--probably in our bedroom. It doesn't bother me in the least. The house was built in the 1920's, so it's very likely that others have died here as well.

Our old house was built in the 1890's. I never heard anything about the history, aside from things about the owners just before us, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if something terrible happened there. Some areas of that house were beyond creepy, and there were a few too many unexplained things that happened.


Would You Live in a Home that was the Scene of a Crime?
5/30/13 7:12 PM

I absolutely love this. I think it's my favorite entry so far. I really like the colors.


Bradley's Bungalow Character Small Cool Contest
5/25/13 9:24 PM

I fell in love with a sofa from Room and Board a few years ago when we were couch shopping for our old house. Our living room was small, and tricky to work with, but the loveseat version would have just fit where we needed it to go. The problem? $2,000+ price tag. Although we could have bought it, I ultimately decided that I was not comfortable spending that much on a couch at that time, no matter how much I loved it. Because of the size constraints, we were extremely limited in options, and we ended up with a loveseat from Ikea which was over $1500 cheaper.

We moved a few years after we bought that couch, to a much larger house. The scale of the loveseat was too small to work in our living room or in our den (although we did use it in both rooms while we shopped for new furniture). Now, the Ikea couch sits in a back porch, where, once again, it is the perfect size for the only spot where a couch would work. It's in a room with windows on four sides and is subjected to intense western sunlight on a daily basis. I'd never put the pricy Room and Board sofa back there, but the Ikea? Who cares if it fades.

I also have three thrifted couches between my living room and den. Did I consider the full sized Room and Board sofa after we moved? I did. We have kids, dogs and cats (and just today, one of the dogs had an upset stomach on one of the couches). I don't regret for a second deciding against my dream couch and "settling" for cheaper furniture. I've moved around enough to realize that, much as I love our house, we may not stay here forever. Would that couch even fit in a different living room? Who knows. We can never foresee what the future will bring.

And for whatever it's worth, the stuff I bought in my twenties that I thought I'd love and have forever? So over it.


Coming to Terms with a Knockoff: Original vs. Reproduction Furniture Design
5/23/13 2:48 PM

I use an old changing table that we didn't need after my youngest outgrew it. I'd stuck it in the garage to get it out of the way, and one day I realized it's the perfect height to stand at and work, plus there is plenty of storage on the two lower shelves.


15 Ideas for Organizing Gardening Supplies
4/26/13 1:47 PM

The point is, some of us can't get Ikea products. I am not a huge fan of Ikea furniture, but we have an Expedit, and although ugly, it is sturdy and holds a ton of stuff. I'd like a larger one for my laundry room, but we don't live anywhere near an Ikea, and even if we felt like making the 6 hour round trip drive, we couldn't fit it in our cars.

I wonder if anybody has any experience with the Way Basics? I have been looking for something similar to the Expedit, but everything I find is way more expensive, and seems flimsy and cheap.


10 Alternatives to Popular Kids IKEA Products
4/23/13 12:41 PM

The neighbors at our last house (our first) were awful. It seemed like a nice area (for a starter home), but we had a drug dealer living next door. There were cars showing up day and night, pulling into the driveway for 10-15 minutes, leaving their music blaring, then leaving. The neighbors themselves were noisy as well, always playing loud music, yelling and fighting in their driveway. I had the police non-emergency number memorized. Six months in (we bought in the winter), I told my husband I thought we had to move because I couldn't take the constant noise, but a few weeks later they moved out. I was so happy I almost cried. After that, another drug dealer moved in across the street, same things went on there, except the guy who lived there was quiet. There was a drug raid, with dogs and a SWAT team and everything, and then he moved out. After that, he rented the house to various friends and relatives, most of whom were okay, except for the last person who lived there before we moved, who was also a drug dealer.

That wasn't what made us move though. We weren't in a good position to sell our house, so we kind of stuck it out, until the house next door (not the one where the first drug dealer lived) had a bunch of windows broken during the night, and then was shot at several times the next night--as I was putting my newborn (we have two other kids too) in her carseat to go to the store--I'd have been out there when it happened if I'd left a few minutes sooner. It really freaked me out. We cut our losses and got out of there as fast as we could. It took a few months, but it was worth it.

Now we are in a neighborhood we love, and the neighbors are great. We hang out with them, go to gatherings, have the kids over to play, and consider some of them good friends. On of our neighbors here actually apologized about branches from his tree falling in our yard during a storm. At the other house, a neighbor dragged branches from her tree that fell in her yard, and put them in our yard. And when my husband mentioned them, she acted like she didn't know where they came from (we didn't have that kind of tree in our yard, and we saw the branches in her yard that morning!).


Considering Your Neighbors When You Choose a New Home
4/11/13 9:40 PM

My family and my in-laws all love our house. I've heard "it's not my style, but..." more times than I can count, but I don't really care what anybody thinks about the decor. I'm just happy that they all feel comfortable here and like to visit!


What Do Your Parents Think of Your Home?
4/4/13 4:30 PM

So cute. Also, what nccata said! Our Goodwills charge outrageous prices for everything--that little dresser probably would have been $30 here.


Before & After: A Fresh Look for a $5 Thrift Store Dresser
4/3/13 11:19 AM

This is adorable, and I think my kids would love them, considering that they are sensitive to artificial dyes, so we haven't dyed eggs in a few years (I haven't worked up the motivation to try natural dyes yet).


Last-Minute Easter Egg Decorating Idea A Daily Something
3/28/13 6:13 PM

I have an emerald green velvet sofa, and it really does hold up well to cats, if you don't mind constantly removing fur. I still think microfiber is the best choice with cats (but, I know, yuck). Ours isn't a slipcover, but we have kids and cats, and it spot cleans well.


Upholstery Dreams: Velvet
3/25/13 10:25 PM

Wasn't this room a Room for Color entry a few years ago? I loved it then (unless I am thinking of a different room), but it looks even better now!


Suzanne's Warm & Cozy Bedroom My Bedroom Retreat Contest
3/19/13 1:48 AM

@ Borealis, @Rainybeth, yes! That was exactly what I was going for with this color: something warm and cozy in the evenings, but bright and cheerful during the day. And I agree that it's perfect for a bedroom. :)


Natasha's Cozy & Cheerful Bedroom My Bedroom Retreat Contest
3/16/13 1:06 AM

I love these stairs. All of the woodwork on the lower level of our 1920's house is unpainted, but the upstairs woodwork is white. I'm always going back and forth with myself on whether to paint the stair risers (and maybe the spindles, or whatever they are called). It seems like a lot of work, but I really like how the ones pictured look.


Weekend Project Inspiration: 4 Ways to Give Your Stairs a Makeover Real Simple
3/15/13 10:38 PM

Thanks! I found the lamp at a thrift store, with the shade. Unfortunately, there isn't anything on either to indicate where they are originally from.


Natasha's Cozy & Cheerful Bedroom My Bedroom Retreat Contest
3/12/13 4:44 PM

I love all of these, but especially the first one. I've always loved Jenny Lind style beds.


Jenny Lind Style: Adult-Sized Spindle Beds
3/12/13 11:18 AM

Gorgeous color! I really like the rest of the room too--including the window treatments.


Jenika's Color + Pattern Bedroom My Bedroom Retreat Contest
3/11/13 8:18 PM