making progress

Of all the empty or half-finished rooms in the new house, the living room has taken priority for finishing since it's where we spend most of our time. At the top of our list was a new sofa! Although I loved our old velvet sofa, it wasn't right in the new space. Plus, with so much more room, it was time to get that sectional we had been dreaming of and additional furniture that we were lacking coming from a small condo.

Here are a few before and halfway photos, with after photos to follow hopefully soon!

Before
(please ignore the masking tape on the floor, which we used to mark-off the size of the replacement)

We fell in love with the Gus* Modern Jane Bi-Sectional, but couldn't quite stomach the $3,000 price tag. So, we took a photo of it over to our local furniture store, Comfort Furniture, to see if they had anything similar. Low & behold, they had a Flores Design sofa that was almost identical in design with hundreds of fabrics to choose from (without upcharges), compared to the 5 fabric choices from Gus. And, the best part, it was less than half the price of the Gus with free delivery & two pillows included!!

Halfway
Our new Flores Design Structure Sectional in Xanadu Grey!
(and a cute Missy Foo!)

We also added the CB2Big Dipper Arc Lamp.

Next on the list is two Tulip Armchairs for under the window to the left of the sofa, smaller cocktail table, drapery, possibly a larger area rug, and art on the walls (of course).

Although I would love (die) to have the real thing, these Eero Saarinen Style Tulip Armchairs from Lexington Modern are a great alternative at a budget-friendly price.

Perfect for afternoon cat naps.

Stay tuned for more photos as we progress!

overdue...shzzz

Stuart Weitzman Stilts Platform

Vince Camuto Michelle Peeps

silos

Loving the new Mike Miller collection at West Elm!

Animal Cutouts Pillow Cover
Um, hello? I kinda have to have this, right?!

Framed Silhouettes

sunset

Stylish Living in 700 Square Feet
Sunset Magazine

Thanks for the subscription, Jeannie!

little bee

Little Bee by Chris Cleave

I received Little Bee as a birthday gift and I immediately loved the cover, of course. After reading the first few pages, the writing and story captivated me as well. Little Bee is the story of two very different women and how their lives collide in a most unexpected way.
A+

Excerpt:
"I remember the exact day when England became me, when its contours cleaved to the curves of my own body, when its inclinations became my own. As a girl, on a bike ride through the Surrey lanes, pedaling in my cotton dress through the hot fields blushing with poppies, freewheeling down a sudden dip into a cool wooded sanctum where a stream ran beneath the flint-and-brick bridge. Coming to a stop, the brakes squealing from the work of plucking one still moment out of time. Throwing my bicycle down into a pungent cushion of cow parsley and wild mint, and sliding down the plunging bank into the clear cold water, my sandals kicking up a quick brown bloom of mud from the streambed, the minnows darting away into the black pool of shade beneath the bridge. Pressing my face into the water, with time utterly suspended, drinking in the cool shock. And then, looking up and seeing a fox. He was sunning himself on the far bank, watching me through a feathery screen of barley. I looked back at him, and his amber eyes held mine. The moment, the country: I realized it was me. I found a soft patch of wild grass and cornflower by the side of the barley field, and I lay down with my face close to the damp earthen smell of the grass roots, listening to the buzzing of the summer flies. I cried, but I didn't know why."

step 1

The first project for the new house was paint!
The existing color was nice enough, a neutral beige. But, we had a similar color in the old house that I had always wished I had changed before moving in and never got around to it once we were living there. So, I jumped on the opportunity to set the new house up right with light gray walls throughout to start. However, I didn't realize how tough it was going to be to find the right gray.

Here is the before photo of the color, which tended to look a little peach at certain times of the day.

Finding the right gray was not an easy task. I tried out at least 15 different paint colors before finding the right one. Of course, I found it on my last of many trips to Lowe's on the morning the painters arrived.

I wanted to use a zero VOC paint & had decided on Olympic Premium paint after lots of online research. Unfortunately, all of Olympic's grays were too blue, purple, or brown once applied on the wall. So, I looked at Benjamin Moore colors, which also took a lot of sorting through. But, the final choice was Benjamin Moore Classic Gray, which Lowe's was able to color match with Olympic paint.

Here's the after.
Benjamin Moore Classic Gray matched in Olympic Zero VOC paint.

Step 2 is carpet, which will be installed tomorrow!

we've landed!

After several months of fluctuation between selling our condo, moving back & forth between my in-laws, and surviving a painful escrow, our new house is closed & we are so excited!!!

Our new mailbox!

Betty & Missy Foo did all of the packing & heavy lifting.

Now that things are settled, Seams of Thought will be resuming its regularly scheduled programing of random posts, fashion, and the addition of a few new house project posts thrown in for good measure. No more countdown to the end, now that we have reached a new beginning.
Hallelujah!

-13

O.M.G.

via House to Home

-12

More Etsy picks.

Knoll Tulip Stool via Hindsvik

Vintage Eye Exam Chart via Hindsvik

Underwriters Laboratory Globe Lamp via Hindsvik

Mid Century Modern Wooden Salad Bowls via Southrosewindow

Blue Glass Apothecary Jars via Violet Q Vintage

Mid Century Modern Doves Jean Luce Arzberg Bayern Germany 5 Pc Dinner Setting via Modish Vintage

Vintage Ampersand Milk Bottle via Modish Vintage