On July 1st it will officially be THREE YEARS since I moved into my apartment in Queen Anne/Fremont = QueenMont.  This is the first place I’ve ever lived alone, and I have to admit I completely love it.

I was overwhelmed at first with the idea of decorating an apartment by myself, but once I embraced Craigslist there was no stopping me.  I bought two couches, matching slate living room tables, a dining table, shelving units, and an entertainment center all used on CL.  I picked up a new living room set from Costco Home, which no longer exists, and then with LOTS of help I painted a few choice walls KIWI GREEN, hung pictures, and I felt like I was good to go.

Well this spring I started feeling discontent with the living room.  I just felt like there was too much STUFF.  My ski’s didn’t have a home, there was too much crap on the walls (even though I did love my shrine to Big Sky Resort), and I was over the giant TV and the couch that never got used.  So I embarked on a redecoration project (some would call it ‘nesting’) – here’s what my living room looked like ‘before’ (sorry I don’t have more/better ones):

To start I sold the couch, the TV, and the big entertainment center.  I bought a new, little black TV stand from Target and put in 5 hours of elbow grease to get it assembled (next time – POWER DRILL!).  I  scored a great deal on a new flat panel TV, picked up some cheap lamps from IKEA and Cost Plus World Market, and pgot some ‘fancy’ pillows from ROSS.  Whalah!

Phew!  Everything just feels so much more open and welcoming now!  Not to mention I get so much more light without that couch blocking the way!

My favourite is that I found fabric to match my fancy pillows at Goodwill, which I cut and hung to cover the UGLY grey cabinet that I had above the ‘window’ into my kitchen.  I think it does a nice job of accenting the Olympia Beer Crate Toppers which are a fun, and geographically relevant, family heirloom.

I’ll be celebrating my 3-year apartment-anniversary down at Smith Rock this year for the second annual 4th of July Climbing Trip, but I’m so glad to have a calm, relaxing place to welcome me home.