My First Visitor

I spent half the day last Friday preparing for my sister to see my new place for the first time. I definitely did not want to disappoint since I had spent weeks talking it up. I mopped, I dusted, I disinfected...And finally, I put the finishing touches on her room. I made the pull out couch into a comfy bed with a down comforter and plenty of pillows (even one with a picture of us on it-how cute). In a basket on the bedside table, I put a beach towel, bath towel, wash clothes and some toiletries as if she were staying in a hotel. She loved the extra touches that made her feel like a special guest, because she was-my first overnight visitor! Thanks for visiting sister!

And everything was taken from my stock at home. The basket was lying around. I took the towels from my abundant towel collection. I have a case of hotel toiletries that I collect from hotel stays that are perfect for traveling or giving to overnight guests. Depending on where you live, you can add things like a beach towel, sunscreen or Solarcaine-like I did since we live near the beach. I even gave her the red bath towel because I know she loves the color. The ideas are inexpensive, but thoughtful and really go a long way in making your guests feel special and prepared for the weekend activities.

So, in case this post hasn't made it clear, I like to pamper my guests-so please come visit!!!

So Cheap, I Practically Stole Them

I generally don't like to tease myself by going places when I don't have money, but it's hard to pass up a garage sale when it's on your street! I walked down the street last Saturday with our dog, and stumbled upon a garage sale-ok, I knew there was one on our street so I went looking for it! I had no money on me, but just thought I would look. The guy who was having the sale was moving and getting rid of a few plants. I asked how much the larger plants in pots where and he said...$1. I thought it was too good to be true, considering the plant was probably between $5-$20 (my wide range is due to my lack of buying plants) and the pots were probably worth $20. He was also throwing in plant stands. Obviously this was a steal. So I said I would be back and rushed home to break open my piggy bank, literally, it broke :( I walked back, looking like a kid in a candy store, with a plastic bag full of quarters-no joke! But who cares because I scored 5 plants, 5 pots and 3 plant stands for....a whopping $3.50. Totally worth it. Now let's hope I can keep them alive!

A Cheap Date

I have been sticking to my plan of spending as little money as possible, and I have to say I am really proud-and surprised. It has been rough not being able to go to the gym (or leave the house for fear of spending money!), but my bf and I have managed to keep up with some exercise. The other night we went on a 10 mile bike ride along the beach. Yes, it was to have a drink, but it was happy hour-so that was cheap. On the way back we spent about an hour searching the beach for seashells and found a tide pool that was full of cute little crabs and other sea life. So we brought a few seashells home. I was contemplating how to display them as they soaked in a solution of 50%, 50% water (I did some research).

When they were clean, I decided to plop them into our fish, Moses' tank. Because we live so close to the beach now, I thought he should be able to enjoy the sights too! So far he is loving his beach themed tank. I wonder if I could add sand?

I thought I would share this beach find. This piece of seaweed is huge-and exactly why I do NOT like swimming in the ocean. Imagine one of these things wrapping around your leg!!!

Climbing the last hill to our house on our bikes, we stopped to look at the beautiful sunset. It was a fun little date night-and oh so cheap. I think we will do it more often!

From Fun to Fun-ctional

I still absolutely love my huge coffee table from Z Gallerie. Everyone who comes over comments on just how cool it is. There is just one problem. I am so protective of it that I don't like things to rest on it. But isn't that what a coffee table is for?!? So I went on a search for a solution to this problem. At first a thought adding a glass top would allow the table to be fully functional. However, after calling a few glass companies, I discovered that it would cost around $150 to cut a piece of glass this big. So I went for a more affordable solution. And the table went from something that looked fun...

to an actual functional table. I purchased this huge round serving tray from Pier 1. Now it provides so much function for the table. I can put candles, keys, phones, remotes, drinks and appetizers on the tray without feeling nervous about ruining the table! And unlike the glass top, I don't have to worry about cleaning fingerprints all the time. I am so happy. The round tray mimics the pattern in the textured table. And the color of the wood matches perfectly with the reddish brown leather couches. Problem solved!!!

Oh Spray Paint, How I Love Thee

What do you do when you have an abundance of black frames, but wish they were white?

-Go to Home Depot
-Buy two cans of Rustoleum White Semi Gloss spray paint
-Clean all frames, take out glass and pictures and set aside
-Put cardboard on floor outside to protect the ground and place frames on cardboard
-Spray paint evenly over all frames until they are white
-Let dry for a few hours in a ventilated area
-Lay out frames on floor inside to find a pattern to place on the wall
-Hang 'em up
-Sit back and admire your wall of frames

Instead of spending $$$ on all new white frames, for just under $8 I was able to get 11 new white frames and have a little fun with a DIY project. Cheap and easy and pretty. Thank you spray paint!

Trick or Cheap

Being jobless=being moneyless. So this year's Halloween decorating budget=$0. Thankfully I had a few things lying around-as in a few bags of cobwebs and plastic spiders and one skull candle. It's not much, but it still looks like Halloween at my place. Anymore cheap decorating ideas-send 'em my way!

Room With A View

After a ton of unpacking and organizing and cleaning and doing it all over again, I can finally get back to blogging. Although there hasn't been a lot of down time, I make sure to take some time to check out my view everyday. So I just wanted to share. This should make some people jealous and want to come see this view for themselves (hint, hint).