It's the Holiday Season

The last three months of the year are undoubtedly my favorite.  October is full of fall, and pumpkins, and warm colors. And don't forget Halloween. November marks the start of colder weather, which always kicks my home body tendencies into high gear. Then comes Thanksgiving with the great food and family time. Then the Christmas Season. Not gonna lie, I've been known to listen to Christmas music in July. Or even watch Elf in September. December means I can openly show my Holiday Love in stead of closeting my festiveness.
Last week bf and I went on the hunt for a Christmas tree! For the past three years I've had a 3.5 foot tree that fit nicely on a table top, but this year I had my heart set on a full size tree. Target pulls through again, and we bought a 7ft slim tree absolutely perfect for the spot right in front of the window.

My favorite ornaments: the pine cones

Cozying up on the couch with a book and some hot tea in the glow of the Christmas tree is one of my favorite feelings in the world. 

Harvest colors

Seriously you guys, I can't stop making boards on Polyvore. I've made one for what I would wear on NYE if I were going somewhere fancy, one with colored skinny jeans (I desperately want a pair), and one for my ideal living room. I won't subject you to all of the boards I've created, but I thought I'd share this one.
 

Surya ART81-23 Artist Studio Small Rug, Spa Blue - Home Furniture..., $113, Ferm Living Power Birds Wall Sticker – Black, $110, KARMA LIVING Pom Pom Blanket Yellow, $60, Product Detail - Bright Fringe Pillow, $17, Highbury Fall Garden Dupioni Pillow, $29, Cinnamon Chai 22oz Soy Candle: Home & Garden, $15, IKEA Rotera, $3.99, View All Candles - Candles - Bath & Body Works, $2.50

I'll be working this Thanksgiving, so I won't be headed back to Wisconsin for the holiday. I briefly considered making a small Thanksgiving feast and hosting a few friends but since I'll be working third shift the night before I just don't see myself having the time or energy to do all of that cooking. Especially since I've never even attempted to make that much food at once before. If I had decided to have friends over for the holiday meal, I'd want all of these things making my apartment festive and cozy. 

PS- Have you tried Woodwick candles yet? They are fabulous! Not only do they smell wonderful, but the wood wick crackles as it burns and creates the coziest atmosphere. 

The To-Do list!

As soon as my camera cord finds it's way out of hiding, I will share pictures of the new place. The unpacking is almost completely done, furniture is in place (although I have a feeling I'm going to be playing with layouts a bit), even pictures have been hung. As I said in my previous post, this place is feeling quite homey already but there's still quite a ways to go until I'll consider it a finished product. So here's my to-do list:

1. To start with I'll need one of these pretty pretty chalkboards to write my list on.

This one belongs to Emily of Cupcakes and Cashmere, but I'm hoping to make one for myself in the near future.

2. Separate Rooms- even though this place is still technically a studio apartment, there's a bunch more space (way more than anything I've had since before college) and even separate living and bedrooms. The one problem being that there is an open archway between the two and not an actual door. I'd like to get a screen or even a patterned curtain to separate the rooms.

3. Window treatments- I always put off dressing my windows until eventually I just forget about it and live with plain old venetian blinds. This year, hopefully I find something that strikes my fancy enough to make me spring for something a little prettier. I tend to get overwhelmed when looking at window treatments, however, so I may just end up with floor length white Ikea panels.

4. A new coffee table. Enter Craigslist, the search will be on. I bought most of my current furniture off of a college housemate when she moved off to work for Google, and I moved into my first solo place. The table is from Ikea, and probably the smallest coffee table they have. It was great when I had one room to fit everything in, but looks a little awkward in the now larger living room.

5. Craigslist search numero deux- a new couch. The current loveseat is also a hand-me-down and it has definitely seen better days. I'm also considering a slipcover, but it seems likely that I'll find a decent couch on craigslist for less money than buying a slipcover that won't look sloppy.

6. Artwork! Artwork! Artwork! With more rooms comes more wall space. I need more things to hang on walls. Again, I've got some ideas but they're going to take some searching.

The good thing about starting this blog is that "researching" has led me to a dozen really, truly, amazing blogs that have some pretty great ideas for decorating/renovating/DIY projects on the cheap. I've never been very good at finding things at flea markets or antique shops, but I'm inspired to give it a go!