Library Full of Books

I have been yearning to have a library my entire life and when we bought our new house I knew that this Sitting Room off of our bedroom would do the trick.

Before Photo

Before Photo

Before Photo

My husband and I borrowed my In-laws mini-van over the weekend and headed to our "local" Ikea (actually 1 1/2 hours away) in search of Expedit storage systems.  After writing down all of the locations of the various units we wanted, we headed down to the warehouse and began loading up our cart full of very heavy boxes.  Then disaster struck.  Ikea was completely out of the 5x5 Expedit system in white.  I had my heart set on the white for our library and after a few tears (pregnancy hormones for sure) I decided that the birch option would work just fine.  I think that it was just a shock to my pregnant self that they didn't have what I wanted and I just needed to sit on the idea of something different and let it sink in for a few minutes before really making up my mind.  By thoughtful (and rational) husband even offered to drive up again to by the white unit when it is back in stock, but, tearful as I was, I realized that was a silly thing to make him do.  The birch unit went right on our cart and away we went.

Alphabetizing like crazy!

It's a tree house, not a fort!

We put the unit together the next day while our son napped and were pleased that it didn't really take that long.  Next came the fun part for me.  We pulled all of my many boxes of books out of storage and I began alphabetizing them.

Logan liked making a "tree house" out of the newly emptied boxes.  I have no idea why he insisted it was a tree house and not a fort.  Look below for the finished room...

I'm really happy with the final result.  I can already tell that I need to evaluate the size of my book collection as there is no room for growth at this point, but I'll worry about that later!  We stacked two units for a higher bookcase and anchored the unit to the wall for safety.  Logan has already added a few of his books to the library which I think is super adorable.

Library- Bit of a Makeover

I like books, a lot.  I have boxes of books in our storage room waiting to find a home and I have the perfect spot, just no shelves to put them on.  We've been in our house for about 9 months now and those books have been very patient.  Their wait is about to end as we're planning a trip to Ikea this weekend to pick up some Expedit bookshelves (like the images below).

via Pinterest

via Pinterest

The perfect spot is in our Sitting Room/ Library off of our Master bedroom, shown below.  I would love wall to wall with a built-in look, but door and window locations in the room make this impossible.  Vent locations in the floor mean that I need to keep my distance from books, as well.

(The bookshelves will go where the couch is currently shown- with the crazy kid)

We are going to buy the 5x5 unit and a 1x5 unit and stack them.  I want to go for a floor to ceiling look and I can't wait to organize my books on them.  Now I need to figure out how to organize...by genre, author, or color.  Hard decisions need to be made!

Sources for Free Stuff and Deals

This is a tiny bit out of character for my usual posts, but people keep asking me where I get some of my shopping deals and free stuff, so I thought I would share the wealth. These are all sites that I use on a regular basis.  I'll try to keep this updated, too; it will save me the trouble of emailing the list to people as it keeps getting longer and longer!

Money Back from Shopping:

1. Ebates- By far the best and easiest way to earn money back when you are already planning on purchasing something online.  Go to their site first, search for your retailer and click on the "Shop Now" button.  It will automatically credit your account and pay you quarterly for the money you have earned.  This is a great site, because it has promotions frequently with increased cash back and lists a lot of relevant coupons for retailers on their site page.  The real bonus is that you get $5 for signing up here.*
2. Slick Deals- Comprehensive site that lists all of the best shopping deals going on across the web.  Users rank the deals and Slick Deals lists the highest ranked deals on their home page.  You can, also, search for a store or particular item and it will list any deals that might be happening.  I check this website before I buy anything online as it points me to the best deals.  Check it out here.

Free Stuff:

1. Bzz Agent lets you take brief surveys to see if you qualify for their product campaigns and then invites you to participate.  They send you free full size products and coupons to pass around with the intention that you will talk to friends and family about the new product and spread the bzz.  There is an additional short survey at the end of each campaign.  I get a lot of free stuff by participating with Bzz Agent every year and  probably participate in about 12 campaigns a year by trying out food, toiletries, makeup, and cleaning supplies for free.  Sign up here.
2. Vocal Point-  The site has free full size stuff to try on a regular basis and all they ask is that you review the item by giving them a little feedback while talking to your friends about the products.  It's quick and easy and they send you emails letting you know when they have a new product to try.  Their "try and tells" include anything shampoo, beverages, to new movies on tv.  Check out the site here.

Swap Sites:

1. thredUP- A swapping site for gently used kids clothes, books, and toys.  You post a box and if it's picked you send it out for free with ThredUPs postage.  If you find a box you like, you pick it and pay $5 (+ shipping) and it is sent right to your door.  I ordered a box and it came within the week packed full of name brand and gently used clothes for my son.  You get $5 for clicking the button below and joining.*

Blogs Promoting Free Stuff & Discounts:
I suggest subscribing to these blogs to never miss out on their deals.

1. Freebies 4 Mom- She posts links to free stuff daily and, also, posts about discounts, giveaways, and sweepstakes.  Her blog is great and really compiles everything for you if you want to get lots of free stuff in the mail.  Check out her blog here.
2. Baby Cheapskate- This is geared towards someone with kids and highlights deals on products, samples, and ways to save when raising children.  Great resource if you're looking to buy some big ticket items and want to find a deal.  Check out her blog here.  (PS: She let me guest post on her blog about my son, Logan's nursery a while back, see it here.)
3. Money Saving Mom- An excellent source for coupons, discounts, frugal shopping tips, and free stuff.  Check out her blog here.
4. Coupon Connections- Very comprehensive site listing coupons and deals for groceries and big box retailers.  Tips on how to use coupons to their full advantage and retailer policies are, also, included. Check out her blog here.

Surveys:

1. Pinecone Research-  This survey site only opens up its panel to new people a few times a year.  If you are interested in joining, I would suggest looking at this website and seeing if you can join yet.  They pay $3 a survey and frequently send free products to try.  I just received a jumbo sized package of Pampers Diapers a month ago to test.
2. Synovate-  Research site that sends you qualifying surveys and then products to try.  There are follow up surveys after you have used the products and then they pay you $3 to $200 a survey.  Some of the surveys can be lengthy, but I have been compensated $200 for an extensive survey before so that makes it worth it to me. Try it here.

*I get compensated for referring people to denoted sites.

Big Boy Bed!

I had been looking for a vintage wood headboard at garage sales all summer long and finally snagged a fantastic deal about a month ago.  I purchased a headboard and footboard for $1.  The only problem was that no support rails were included.  We stopped at a local Thrift Store a couple of days ago and found the needed rails for $10.  Hence, the late completion date even though my son's room has been painted for a month now.

My $1 bed find!

Steps to refinishing our vintage wood bed:

1. Find a bed (seemed like a long process for me, but paid off in cheapness!)
2. Sand bed to pull of smooth stain/varnish finish and make a decent surface to paint.
3. Prime bed.
4. Paint bed (this step will most likely need to occur more than once).
5. Put it all together!

Paint/Primer Application

Logan (sans shirt) likes to help!

Step 5 took us the longest amount of time after we realized that our existing bed rails would not work and that we needed to buy a different kind.  Then, we realized that our box spring was a little too wide.  Argh, but we decided to do without the box spring anyway so that the bed wouldn't be too high.  My husband made wood slat supports to act as the platform for the mattress and they fit perfectly in the rails.  Until...my husband testing it by sitting on the bed and the rails spread a bit, thereby dropping the newly created slats.  At that point he created additional support by using a threaded rod to pin the rails together at their midpoint.  We've got some highbrow engineering going on in this bed!

Everything now works perfectly and Logan spent an excited night barely sleeping on his big boy bed.

Final Ideas for the Nursery

My tweaking of the nursery is almost done.  Now I just need to actually implement the decoration!

Here's my revised color board with the rundown of all the elements...

Things have changed a bit, except for the wall color. 

Purchased:

• Rug- Dash and Albert
• Front Facing book shelves- Ennospace
• Manzanita Branch and origami paper for Paper Cranes
• Curtains w/ rod at ceiling
• Storage bins at diaper console
• Replacement fan with light (From Menards)
• Old Book Mobile (hardback book purchased used)
• Roller Coaster Photo and Frame
• 6 Aluminum picture frames and mats (from Hobby Lobby)

Things already owned:

• Crib-Walmart Parklane 3-in-1
• Ladder Bookcase
• Changing Table (actually a high entertainment center)
• Eames Rocking Chair
• Side Table (garage sale find)

Things yet to purchase:

• Sconce
• Fitted Sheet
• Wall Color- Will use a low VOC Glidden paint  color matched to Behr Harbor 520
• Ceiling Color- Glidden Stone White GLC30

Everything is ready to start.  I'm hoping we can prep. and paint within the next week or so.  Did I mention that the baby is not due until November, I like to plan ahead, way ahead.

A Few Things

I have a few links and inspiration that I want to share from the last week.  They are all pretty random, but I really like the ideas:

via ohdeedoh

I love how quick and easy these homemade dominoes look.  I am itching to make a set and give it to someone.

via Babycheapskate

I read Babycheapskate all the time to check pricing on baby and older related items.  She clues me in to great deals all the time.  This last week the blog showcased a list of cheap or free summer activities that I plan on implementing with my son when he has daycare off.The list includes going to a storybook reading, catching a free summer kids movie at a local theater, etc.  You can find the complete list here.

via ohdeedoh

I really like these table legs, now I just need to get my hands on some reclaimed wood!