We are a hot mess

I mean in our decorating style. See I am a fan of IKEA furniture, I love the clean lines, the little touch of funk, the pop of color (and it's usually affordable). However, I am also a fan of old stuff, I love vintage, the shabby/rustic chic movement look makes me drool. It seems that my personality is battling itself.  Not only that but I also have Andy to consider. I really don't think he cares how anything looks as long is it is functional/comfortable. You would think that wouldn't be a big deal but it kind of is when he is insistent that it be comfortable (I'm all for comfort but sometimes style wins out, hello 3 inch heels anyone?) So we have a giant hodge podge of ideas and opinions that we are trying to ball up into one smooth, flowing style that will look beautiful and make us feel great when we are in it. Turns out that's pretty hard.

It has actually been stressing me out a little how different not only my own tastes are but also Andy and myself. We are at entirely different ends of the spectrum, where I believe style and beauty reign supreme, he believes that comfort and function are the most important aspect when choosing items for the home. We are going to have to compromise and I know it, but I know that we can handle it. Luckily we are in agreement on one thing involving decorating and furnishing the new house and that is a budget. We have already decided that we will not break the bank to make our house a home, we will DIY, thrift and shop sales so that we aren't taking on any debt to create a space we love. If we are in agreement on the money aspect I am sure we will figure out the decor issues, right?

New Obsession

Ever since the wedding I have had this hole, I mean for the year or so before the wedding I spent my time looking up ideas, trying to find things that I could make myself to make the wedding unique and pretty. When there was no more wedding I had a hard time with all the free time I had and crafting had turned into a drug for me. See I have a lot of nervous energy and I get anxious at times, crafting really helped me to calm those feelings and  let me feel useful. Now that I'm working I feel useful but a lot of the time I still have no projects (other than cleaning) to put that anxious/nervous energy in to. That is until I found http://ana-white.com/ and fell in love. This was the answer to my crafting withdraw. I obviously need furniture for our house and what better way to save money than to make it. So this past weekend, Andy and I set out for Home Depot and bought wood and supplies for this project and this project. The first project (the crate shelf) was my own undertaking, and in my humble opinion the result turned out pretty good:

As for the chair, I'll admit that was a bit too much for me by myself so I more or less just assisted Andy but it is looking like it will turn out pretty well. It is by no means done yet, there was a problem with the leg and I want to paint it too but I think it will be fantastic once it is completed. Here's some pictures from the work site and the nearly completed chair:

There were a few shots of him bending over but I thought he might not appreciate it (trust me though, he looks hot, well, to me). Isn't my husband truly awesome? I think that we might make a habit of this woodworking together thing. It's a great way for us to bond and we have something really great as an end product. Though I think if it becomes habit I'm going to have to learn how to not be afraid of the saw. And just for fun, some future plans I think we might be working on: a headboard (as we currently have none) and a bench/storage (our hall is looking a little drab), plus another chair or two for the deck plus a little coffee table. Love it.

What projects do you and your significant other do together?