Only $10 but needs a pelmet box

Still working on the bedroom. Yesterday I was going to go to Hobby Lobby to see if they had any major discounted stuff to start some kind of project on but knowing me a little $3 item here and a little $4 item there ends up being $30 of crap I don't need in the house. Yes, a project would be very nice right now but I have other priorities at the moment.

I scooted down to Tuesday Morning because I hadn't been there in a while and took one of the shams with me to look for two things. One would be a throw pillow or two so I can get rid of the matchy-matchy pillows and/or a curtain to cover the tacky maroon tab top I have on the window. I found a panel for $10:



Close up of the pattern (need daylight pics but it was cloudy today):


It's horribly plain as is though but I LOVE the fabric and it's close enough to the tan/gold on the bed that it works. What it needs now is a pelmet box (much more casual than that as I am not a curvy person, haha) since a valance just isn't my thing.

So, after I got that hung up with a super cheap ($3) rod from Target, I started to look at the bed a bit more. Who needs all those stupid pillows? Three matchy-matchy pillows I don't like so off they went:



I do, however, need some pillows on my futon so I may find some fabric to cover them with and use them there.

So, this last weekend I did a major cleaning of the apartment. I had to stop working where I was because of the physical aspects of it were making it very difficult on my already bum wrist, elbow and shoulder (back through my trapezius muscle). Long story short, I ended up at urgent care because of the sinus infection, my arm and a badly infected finger and she told me to lay off the use of the arm for a minimum of two weeks and consume massive amounts of ibuprofen. I did some of that. I couldn't stand it anymore so I got to cleaning. The dust was bugging me so I did what closely resembles spring cleaning...it took me two days and three times the amount of time so as not to mess with the arm but it's done! YAY!

One of my projects was cleaning, with Murphy Oil Soap, my big dresser:


(Sept. 16, 2009)


(Jan. 19, 2010 - and yes I have left out some of the Christmas stuff elsewhere)

Back story: My mom bought that at an auction house back in the early to earlier of the mid 70s. (Refresher of the mirror.) I have no idea how old it is and in the years I have had it (since 1986 or 1987) I have only dusted and oiled it.

So, I attacked it with a white cloth, Murphy's and as much elbow grease my arm could muster. The entire left side of that dresser turned the cloth black! The top was just typical dirt and the right side was dirty and had some black on the cloth too. The left side of the front also turned the cloth black but the black grime faded as I went to the right side. I can't for the life of me think that it was something I ever did. So, deducing where it's been over the course of close to 40 years, the black is most likely soot from a coal fueled heat source back in the day. It is an antique so that only makes sense. I used to be a slob but that could not have happened under my watch!

So Murphy Oil Soap, I love you. Perhaps you can see how much better the grain stands out now. I really need to get it professionally refinished as that's not a project I can tackle nor would I on such a fabulous piece of furniture.

Next up is to make a pelmet box and that's a project I think can be done inexpensively and it has a good purpose. Funny how when you add something to your house it somehow can mean a new project. No matter, I like being busy!