Missed Opportunity

Found this beauty at Goodwill the other day and had to leave it at the store. Darn my tiny apartment!!!!

I love the campaign dressers that I've seen all over the blogs and am kicking myself for leaving this Drexel (yes, Drexel!!!) vintage campaign dresser. 

(STYLEBEAT)

(Pencil Shavings Studio)

(My Little House Design)

(Style By Emily Henderson)

Somebody please tell me that it was the right thing to do to leave it at the store. Oh, and did I mention that it was only $19.00?

TOTALLY REGRETTING THIS DECISION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bamboo Chair

I can't get over how adorable my new bamboo chair is! It was a major steal and I've been browsing all my favorite design blogs for ideas on how to style it. What do you think? :)

Coral Ring Holder

I came across this gorgeous pic the other day (via Pinterest, of course) and was inspired to try it. 

(Originally posted on Luxe Report blog found here: http://luxereport.blogspot.com/2012/07/luxe-decor-trinket-tray-giveaway.html)

Here it is in my home:

I'm totally digging it! 

Blue & White

 I'm loving this cute new blue and white vase I recently picked up. Not so much loving all the cords hanging out all around our place.

Favorite New Finds

Recently I stumbled across a few awesome finds that I just had to share with you.

I always head over to the lamp section whenever I'm in a thrift store. I'm a bit obsessed with lamps and already have far too many for the small space we live in. Despite the fact that we already had four lamps in the living room, I knew this one had to come home with me. The details of the Greek key design on the sides of the lamp made this purchase a no brainer!

I swore that previous lamp would be my last lamp purchase but low and behold, a few days later I found this stunner:

Does this lamp scream "Parisian elegance" or what?!? LOVE IT. It sits on my vanity now but eventually plan to make it a focal point of a room. I have promised the fiance that this will  for real be the last lamp.

These blue and white vases are some of my new favorite decor in the house. I plan to blog about my blue and white obsession in an upcoming post. If you haven't jumped on the blue and white bandwagon yet, you should definitely try it. I promise they go with just about every decor style.

I also found some gorgeous new artwork to add to my ever expanding collection. What do you think?

I've been trying to find more about this artist on-line but so far have come up with nothing. If anyone knows this artist, please share!

My fiance and I can't decide yet whether we love or hate this last piece. You can tell that the artist was very skilled- the eye's on this man are exquisitely detailed. For now he sits hiding behind a lamp on top of my office area. 

Would love to hear your thoughts on all these finds!

Transitioning to Fall

I'm still here!

School is back in full-swing and it's taken a little bit of time for me to get back into the groove of everything. I love this time of year when the weather gets crisp and cool, don't you? Love me some tall riding boots and a cashmere scarf. Add a pumpkin spice latte and I'm in my zone!

I've started transitioning the house into some warm fall tones. As I've mentioned before, almost all of my accessories and many of my tables are from thrift shops.

The cashmere scarf and boots are all ready to go!

Found this adorable brass bow today. Holds my vintage Coach purse just perfectly.

It's always nice to have some fresh greenery in the house when the weather starts to turn cool.

Fresh white towels are all ready to go in the bathroom. A must for when it's cold in the morning!

Can't wait for the trees to turn colors.We love this park and hope to walk these trails every chance we get!

I promise to update more and not get into the habit of going weeks without a post.

Enjoy the weekend!

Corner Dilemma

Have I mentioned that we live in a teeny, tiny place? Well, we do. I have tried to maximize every empty space and corner of our apartment to get the most bang for our buck. One of the tricky spaces that I have struggled with lately is the kitchen. The kitchen itself is very narrow (galley style) and we don't have much room to even move around. Today I came across the perfect table to put in the corner. The space is awkward and has closet doors that open to a utility "room". Unfortunately, the hot water heater and pipes take up the entire space leaving the closet completely unusable for us in terms of storage so we never need to open the doors.

This antique game table was small enough to tuck away in this previously unusable space. I already had the chair and now it has turned into a cozy place to catch up on emails and drink my coffee in the morning. 

It also has adorable details like this cute lion head drawer pull. I love it!

My apologies for the poor quality photos. I wanted to get the photos up ASAP and just snapped a few with my phone. 

Corner dilemma solved! 

Friday Catch Up

Today marked four years since I have been with my fiance. He is such a wonderful man and has always supported all of my endeavors, no matter how quirky or mundane. We celebrated our anniversary by going to a very popular restaurant in town and then to Barnes and Noble afterwards. Since tonight was a special evening, I busted out my absolute favorite pair of shoes that my mom purchased for me years ago while in Europe. I only wear them on special occasions because I want them to last forever.

My pretties. 

I was also gifted with a book that I have been wanting for a very long time. My fiance flipped through it and mumbled something about how you could basically get the same information from a catalog. I've read about half of it and so far find the book to be an insightful read that makes you think about how and why you decorate a space. If I may, here is one of my favorite quotes from the book thus far:

"Good decoration solves problems elegantly"- Deborah Needleman.

So true! Especially when you have a teeny tiny apartment and each room needs to serve multiple purposes. 

In addition to being a fun read, the book is also filled with beautiful watercolor pictures that could even be framed if you so wish. I would highly recommend the book!

Happy Friday and enjoy some time with your loved ones!

Favorite Vintage Finds

Hello all. My sincere apologies for leaving you hanging after my last post. I have been very busy this past week with meetings and my practicum, but I promise to post photos soon of my home tour. In the meantime, I'm leaving you with a few of my favorite thrift finds over the last few months. 

Lately, I have become obsessed with brass. This brass hanger is absolutely perfect for my bags, scarves, and purse. I also LOVE the blue and white striped bag shown. It was an estate sale find and found the little gold bow to add some contrast. I think it's an adorable tote!

Isn't he cute?

My brass hippo friend. 

 I only found the one brass bookend (pictured here), though I think it stands alone quite well. If you notice there's a brass egret crane hiding in the back too. I wasn't kidding about my brass obsession. I'll have to do a whole separate post on my brass finds!

I am also a collector of vintage coral. This piece is incredibly fragile and one of my absolute favorites. 

This is my other favorite vintage coral piece. 

I couldn't believe that I found this c.1940's luggage at a thrift store! I've seen some neat ways of displaying vintage luggage lately that I plan to share with you as well. 

This picture just doesn't door this cute ginger jar any justice. It is my absolute favorite find ever. I love chinoiserie and will post on all my chinoiserie finds as well. 

What are your favorite vintage finds? I'd love to hear!

No Bar Cart? No Problem!

Have you all fallen in love with the bar cart look too? There is something just so glamorous about a bar cart. I have yet to come across a  cart that is both elegant and cheap budget friendly. I'm definitely keeping my eyes peeled on those estate sale websites! In the meantime, I have made a "bar area" on top of my bookshelf. It might be slightly odd that I have a bar area above books about child development, but hey when you live in a 683 sq. ft. apartment the top of a bookshelf is prime real estate. What do you think? Those gold pinstripe tumbler glasses are just too cute and were only $1.99 for all four.

Brings to mind a little Parisian elegance, no? 

The fiance and I were planning to go to a Cubs game this weekend but have had to change plans. Maybe instead I'll photograph my apartment for you and share on Monday. 

Have a wonderful weekend! 

Greetings

Hello, everyone! Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Allie and I am currently a graduate student in Chicago. Graduate school can be very stressful at times and I am firm believer in finding an outlet for relieving stress. I know that I am not alone in finding decor and styling a creative and fun outlet! 

As a student I have limited funds to create the looks that I have fallen in lust with over Pinterest and my favorite blogs. Personally, I thrive on the challenge to define high-end looks in my home on a small budget.  I hope that you will follow me as I search for the cheekiest items to define my living space. Chic looks and not cheap looks will be the motto of this blog! 

See you tomorrow! 


Love,
Allie

Goodwill finds make for pretty tray table styling