Say what? "No Soliciting" Signs are Tacky?

Apparently some people think this. Apparently these people don't get solicitors at their doors! lol I just picked up a small sticker that fits in my screen door. But it must be minuscule (or invisible) because my door bell continues to ring.

After the following conversation, I decided to make my own sign.

Ding! Dong!
Me: Yes?
Solicitor: I'd like to show you my cleaning products and get your opinion.
Me: (pointing to sign) Isn't that soliciting?
Solicitor: No, I don't consider it to be soliciting.
Me: Well, I do.
Solicitor: No, I don't think it is.
Me: Can I buy your products if I'm impressed with them?
Solicitor: Yes.
Me: (closes door)

My new sign:

No Soliciting

Solicitation so·lic'i·ta'tion n. [suh-lis-i-tey-shuhn]
1. To petition persistently; importune: solicited the neighbors for donations.
2. This means selling something.
3. Requesting donations.
4. Advertising
5. Surveys
6. Viewing my phone bill to see where you can save me money.

7. Saving my soul.
8. And yes, YOU too. If you don't know my first name, then don't ring my doorbell. TIA!

I'm taking votes on how long it will be before my house gets egged. By the way, for those of you in need of a nice unobtrusive sign, I found these.

The Final Reveal

I know I promised this months ago! But what can I say? Life happens. :)

Here is what I was blessed with when we bought the house:






First things first: new paint, carpet, and light fixture.



Life was hunky-dory. Until we got a great deal on a king mattress and a new bedroom set. The new bedroom set is a warm cherry color, which looked awful with the gray walls. I wasn't ready to give up the gray yet so I moved that color to the Man Room. Then I was off to find a new paint color that would complement the furniture and carpet. It turns out that those two items are mutually exclusive.



Eventually I decided on Sherwin William's Kilim beige. After a couple months, I HATED it. Well, hated it with the carpet. Other than that, it's a good color so I moved it to the hallway.

And the new color I chose? Ralph Lauren's Natural Gray. The same color that is in my living room.

A quick reminder of the before:



And now the After... Tada!

(Inspiration for earring organization from Making it Lovely.)

I was ready to give up the plum accents, thinking it wouldn't work with the wall color or furniture. (It didn't look so hot with the beige wall color.) But it turns out I was wrong! Yea!

Project Cost Breakdown:
Paint: $26
Carpet: $216
Installation: $75 (family friend)

Ceiling light: $40

Light switches and electrical outlets: $15
Duvet: $80
Sheet set: $60 (originally $180)
Quilt: $35 (originally $70)

Curtains and rods: $72
Wall decor: $70

Knickknacks: $20 (All bought on clearance.)
Total cost: $709

I know I didn't include the cost of the new mattress and furniture but I strongly believe you can make over a room without purchasing new everything.

Still left to do: buy lamps for the nightstands, actual artwork for above the bed, a classier alarm clock, replace the recycled curtains, and a couple more decor items. Maybe some more exciting sheets. But for the most part, it is done! Done! What do you think?

Ahem! (tap tap) Is this thing on?

I'm back from my hiatus. I know it's been a while. I wasn't in the house-renovation mood for a while. Then I found some more interesting things to take care of...

Introducing Linus and Lucy:



The night we adopted them, we had no intentions of bringing home a cat, much less two! We only went to get information on the adoption process. But Matt and I came across these two 6 month old kittens and couldn't say no. The two littermates were found in a local warehouse. They were starving and underweight. The foster mom, Rose, was at the shelter so it was great that we had the chance to ask a lot of questions about their personalities and needs.

I completed the adoption paperwork that asked the standard questions like:

1. How long will you give the adjustment process? (Duh! As long as it takes!)
2. Do you have any current pets?
3. If not, what happened to them?
4. Can we contact your vet for references?

I just answered very vaguely that I had a cat that was recently put to sleep. I didn't mention Fatty by name. The vet was xx Animal Hospital. The foster mom was reviewing the paperwork and looked up to ask, "Was Fatty yours?" I just looked at her bewildered, wondering how she knew. She said she works at that vet and knew about Fatty. I knew then that these two kittens were meant to be.



However, I really do have some house updates. Whoohoo! I finally got a paint color picked out for the master bedroom. (And painted!) I bought some new bedding and spray painted a bunch of decor. I was really happy I was able to reuse some of the previous decor. Initially, I didn't think the plum and lavender would work with the new furniture.

So here is a taste of what's to come:



I need to clean the bedroom of cat toys and clutter before taking more pictures. Then I'll give a full before/after update. I'm so excited. This room has done a complete turn-around, if you'll remember:



Scary stuff!!