the decorating bird flew over

When I was a kid, my dad used to tease my mom when he would return from a train trip to find the house rearranged or spruced up and say “oh, the decorating bird flew over our house!” Well, I got that tendency from my mom I guess because the second my husband leaves for more than a day or 2, I’m planning projects. He’s been in California for a week and a half and I took on a few little projects to fix up our family room. I’ll do a full post later (when it’s done…).

So I have this awkward basement layout. It’s long and skinny and it’s sole purpose is TV/movie watching. It’s my husband’s room, but it needed something. I was particularly wanting to improve the balance of the room by putting something on this blank wall. See?:

Just lots of electrical box covers for future speakers, outlets and switches. Sad. I’ve been wanting a bookshelf and reading chair but it would be pricey, so I settled on the idea of a table. I searched junk stores, yard sales and cheapo big box stores for something I liked but didn’t want to spend $200. Then I happened upon a rummage sale and found this!:

$30 and it was mine. I snagged some paint on the way home then went to town on it. And ended up with a nice little surface for decorating:

I already had the trunk stuck in a closet. It now holds extra blankets for TV watching. I purchased the lamp on clearance at Target {back to school/ dormish stuff}. I framed a piece of the rice paper Stephanie mailed me from Japan. And in that little bowl on the tray? Doggie treats, convenient when we come in from a game of fetch! This little spot will be perfect for seasonal decor switcharoos, too. I’m just so happy with it!

As for the rest of the kinda dismal-looking room, it’s gotten part of a makeover, too, to better match the new, prettier side. You’ll have to stay tuned for that.

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