ikea | Operation Home

Remember in this post, I complained that all of the boring stuff like rotting walls and termite treatments had stolen our money?? Well, I became girl-on-mission after that. Because really, I needed to shop. Bad. Yes, I am that girl. And really… could I have logistically gone decor shopping at this point (on a budget, obvs)?? Probably. But would the guilt have eaten away at me because we were *supposed* to be saving our pennies for new appliances? Yep. So, I started selling stuff that we had laying around on Craigslist (finally) to feed my decor shopping habit sans guilt. Total win-win. Joey had been asking me to clear out that stuff for a while anyways. I just hadn’t gotten to it. So, this selling-of-the-things really benefited all parties.

After 2 weeks, I had raked in $135 guilt-free dollars to spend on decor. So, where did I go?? IKEA!! Clearly. And just to brag on myself… I spent that money like a champ. AND even came home with $16 of my Craigslist dollars!!

So, what did I get?? Well… let’s check out the living room… Look closely at the below shot…

Notice anything different??

Hint: I posted this shot on Instagram yesterday (If you missed my last post, I’ll be updating Instagram with home updates between posts from now on, so follow me there to stay up on the action)…

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A post shared by Christina Spragins (@christina_spragins)

Here’s another shot:

That’s right!! The rug (the Ikea Valby Ruta runner), large white planter, and plant (which sadly (though, not shockingly) isn’t doing too well)!

As soon as I put this rug down, it was all over. This was THE ONE. AND I couldn’t be happier with the quality of it. It’s thick and plush. I’m seriously impressed being that for the most part, in the past I’ve been somewhat underwhelmed by the quality of Ikea rugs

Now, honestly, I have to say that the above picture appears as if it’s in technicolor to me. The red looks REALLY red and the blue in the poufs, REALLY blue. Maybe it’s just my computer screen because, in person, this lovely runner is more of a muted red and the navy on the poufs is actually deep, dark navy (not royal like it looks to me here), so they go well really together. The navy pulls from the blue-grey tones in the rug and those bluish-grey accents along with the khaki tones in the runner, coordinate with various tones all over the room. The fact that it’s a more traditional pattern looks awesome with the more modern furnishings on the other side of the room. It was EXACTLY what the room needed to make it feel well-rounded. Plus, the busyness of the small pattern balances out with the busier Fort Worth print on the opposite side of the room.

I seriously cant get over how the rug really warms up the space. Here’s a shot from the dining area…

Heart.

I also snagged that striped runner on the table on clearance (it was just over $2 and I bought two to extend the length of the table).

I love that I’m now at the “layering” stage of decorating this room. Switching out my placeholder items that I happened to have on hand for ones that I really love. Playing with different patterns to add depth. I still have a ways to go before I call it done, but these little tweaks really go a long way to making it feel like home.

Here’s the opposite side of the living room as it stands now (Ignore that magazine rack beside the media stand… I’ve since moved it and will include an updated pic at the end of this post as to where it ended up (fornow))…

So, anyways… There are a few changes in this view. Namely the three basket planters. And while I LOVE them, looking at this photo, I’m not a fan of how they’re displayed. I think they’re too high. And not cohesive enough.

I may try hanging them on a rod at differing heights or perhaps a rack or grid of some sort to make them feel more united. They’re definitely staying on this wall for sure… just not in their current arrangement. So, consider this stage one of multiple stages.

I do love the dimension and life they bring to the wall, though. Currently, I’m using three Young House Love hooks that I found on clearance a year or so ago at Target to hang them. Though, like I just said… This will be changing. It just feels a bit piecey…

You may have also noticed that the chair corner of the room looked a smidge cozier…

That’s because I snagged a copy of Young House Love’s new book, Loveable Liveable Home. And I love it just as much as the first… maybe more! That is also a new fake Ikea plant you see in a clearance pot from Ross. Details make a difference, y’all.

Now the only blank wall that’s left is this guy…

I *think* I know what I want to do here, but it seems to change daily, so we’ll see where we end up.

And if you didn’t notice, there’s another little Ikea find chilling by the TV. I just couldn’t say no to him..

I mean, could you say no??

As for that magazine rack beside the entertainment stand…

It ended up here as a magazine/blanket holder. I adore this little thing. I found it at a thrift store for $6 and sprayed it gold. I love how it plays against the more modern furnishings we have. Here’s another shot with an equally adorable kiddo (who is *clearly* as enthused as I am about the magazine rack) 😉 …

So that’s sort of where we are with the living room right now (minus one fabulous, pretty plaid find that I got on clearance at Target… I posted on Instagram about it if you wanna see). I’m still trying to motivate myself to rehang those woven planters, and am currently on internet-stalking mode to find what I’m looking for for the TV wall. (insert mischievous cackle)

Aside from that, I’ve made some changes in the master bedroom that I’m eager to post about and Lucas’s room has gotten a nice revamp that has me positively giddy. Like for real. Oh yeah, and the shed is almost done. Finally. We actually decided to just go all out and get a nicer shed (both for aesthetics and lifespan) thanks to another Craigslist selling spree and we couldn’t be more thrilled to have made that decision. I’m slowly learning that there are some areas that you need to splurge… it’s a total departure for a cheapo like me, but a good lesson for sure.

So, anyways, have a wonderful, safe Halloween and I’ll be back soon! 🙂

That’s right, folks! Madness, I tell you!!!

So, in order to really review the changes that’ve gone down as of late, let’s look back at the journey that our dining room has taken up to this point. Because I like journeys. And progress. Progress is good. So, when I revisit a journey it makes me feel like I’ve accomplished something even though I’m not done yet. It’s like giving myself a pep talk. I guess that’s what this blog really is, huh? One giant pep talk. Plus, it’s fun. And I like it. I like to blog. I like a lot of things today. It’s a good day. Wow. #patonback

(*coughcough*) Anyways. Moving on… when we purchased the house, the space looked like this, complete with beige carpeting that was just BEGGING for stains…

So, we changed out the carpet for ebony laminate and plopped our furniture down on moving day…

…and added a rug, curtains and shelves…

I liked the space well enough like this, but it just wasn’t right. Something just rubbed me the wrong way. Annoyed me. Made me twitch. After much deliberation, I realized as much as I loved the rug, I couldn’t help but feel that it was competing with Drex (my beloved mid-century buffet) and our awesome 70’s stone fireplace. Ya know, the two pieces that really should’ve been stealing the show to begin with. There was just a lot of brown happening. Too much. I thought that maybe painting the table white would help change up the tone of the room and allow the rug to work in the space. So, I did that…

The process was pretty simple… I cleaned the table really well, wiped it down with deglosser, then painted it with a coat of Zinsser shellac primer followed by 3 thin, even coats of Sherwin Williams Proclassic Extra White in Semi-gloss.

Once the paint had cured, I tried the rug again…

But I just couldn’t do it. The white table didn’t take away from the orangey-brown tone of the rug at all. And I was having trouble envisioning the space without it. So, we removed the rug…

(Excuse the red chairs in the corner… I tried them in the space, but they didn’t work.)

Once the rug was gone, something still bugged me. And I was having trouble imagining the space with a different rug. The ideas just stopped. And that was when I realized that I needed to simplify further. The chair covers. Although I really loved them, the busy pattern really limited the other elements that I could add to the space. I needed something more neutral and simple.

So, I visited Ikea and picked up six of these deep grey covers….

I switched them out once I got home, and now the space looks like this…

(Note: I’ll be ironing them soon)

You guys. I finally feel like I’m onto something here. Things are jiving. I love how the cool grey tone of the covers makes the gorgeous wood of Drex pop….

And the subtle texture of the woven slipcovers add interest and depth without being too overwhelming…

And they allow the fireplace to shine from this direction….

(Now to paint those darn built-ins… Oh,yes.)

I feel like the room has been cleansed. It has a whole fresh new outlook (like me today, apparently). 😉 Now, I have a much clearer idea of what else the space needs in terms of a rug and other accessories. This clarity of thought is also bleeding into the living area as well. Now I have a much better idea of where to go decor-wise. Sometimes you just gotta strip to figure it out (wait…).

So, anyways, this is kind of how things go for me when it comes to decorating. Trial and error. I live with things for a while to see how I like them, change things up until elements start clicking. I think sometimes in order to figure things out, you just have to clear the space. Cleanse the palate if you will, to get a fresh perspective. More often than not, my first decor move doesn’t work, but it gives me a good base to work off of. And that’s all part of the fun.

So, with that, I hope you all have a great weekend! Tell me your thoughts on this… Do you ever think a room will go in one direction, only to strip it down and go another? How do you handle that?