The Bench and The Blinds

Way back in November I bought a storage bench that I was going to put in our dining room to store all our board games.  You can read all about that saga HERE.

I mentioned how it came damaged but Home Depot was sending out new parts.  Well, their two week time frame came and went and I still didn't have my new parts.   After several more weeks, which turned into months, and several phone calls, telling them the exact parts they need to order because they still hadn't ordered them, I had finally had it!  I just wanted the saga to end and I wanted that bench gone!  I called up Home Depot to express my frustration.  The lady at customer service was quite understanding and even gave me a $25 store credit for all the hassle.  In the end it seemed easiest if I just returned the bench to the store myself.  I wanted to make sure I would get the money refunded rather than having their shipping company pick it up and refund me the money at a later date.  So one Saturday morning the hubs and I loaded up the kids and the bench and returned it.   Returning it was a painless process, thank goodness.

I still don't have a bench, but maybe I don't need one.  We currently have our board games stored in the buffet in the dining room since that is where we play.  They don't all fit, but if I got rid of some dishes and table clothes that we don't use, I might have enough room.  But this post isn't about my dining room buffet organization.  It's actually about some progress I've made in the playroom.

I was going to use the $25 credit from Home Depot to buy some wood blinds for the playroom.  I had my heart set on white, just like I wanted white bookcases.  And yes, we have dark wood bookcases in the playroom now and I love them.  And the blinds are a medium wood and I love them.  It makes the room so much cozier.  I can't get over what a difference it makes in there.  And I'm glad I don't have white bookcases and white blinds.  I think it would have looked too sterile in there and I'm going for a warm, cozy look.

So how come I didn't get the white?  Well, it was going to cost about $180 to buy the white faux wood 2" blinds in the size I needed from Home Depot.  I had them in my online shopping cart for weeks and several times, I almost clicked 'buy'.  But I kept holding back because they weren't on sale.  I was hoping that maybe they'd go on sale soon and I could save some money.  All the while I kept searching Craigslist for wood blinds.  Finally I found some in the size I needed, but they were medium wood color.  I thought they'd work anyway, especially since they were $40 each so I'd be saving $100.  I got the blinds two weekends ago and last week I finally got around to installing them.  

Here is what the view into the playroom looked like before I hung the blinds.

And here it is after.  I got rid of the sheers and took down the valance and hung up the off white curtains that were in our master bedroom.  I do like it better with the curtains but am unsure about the valance.  What do you think?

Should I go with or without a valance?  I'll probably get a lighter colored valance or maybe a cooper colored valance rather than keep the one I have.  Oh, and I'll be hanging the curtain rod up higher too.

 It's funny how this room is turning out different than I originally planned it to look.  I'm glad it's working out this way because I am loving it even more.

Thanks for stopping by,
Christa

Playroom Progress

Last week, I mentioned how the playroom is looking cozier.  Well, here is what we've done so far:

1.  hang pictures - see this post
2.  bring in bookcases
3.  add a rug
4.  raise up the light fixture

and the best part is, I didn't spend any money.

I mentioned in this post here that we are turning our rarely used breakfast room into a more functional space for our family.  It will be a playroom / reading room.  I like the idea that it is something that can grow as the kids grow.  I've thought long and hard about how to use this space and am taking my time in putting it together because I want it to be done right, not just thrown together.  So for now it will house a lot of the Babes toys, but as she outgrows the big stuff like the kitchen set and doll stroller, we'll take those out and bring in another chair so the kids can use it to read, play video games and on their laptops or kindles or whatever electronic device they will have at the time.

Here is what the room looked like before:

We sold the table and chairs and were left with and empty room.

That didn't last long.  I quickly junked it up with all the Babe's toys so it could function as a playroom.  At this point, I was wondering if I had made a mistake.