Owl love you forever

Only three days left before we move in and I would say we're about three-quarters of the way there... phew! I've had a hard time getting motivated these past few days (the beautiful weather is a bit distracting) but the majority of our stuff is either packed or already in the new pad. Ryan's parents were kind enough to give us a couch and loveseat which we moved in just a little bit ago. After some tricky maneuvering, three flights of stairs and one busted head (freak potted plant accident)... we have some serious seating!

To be honest, the only thing I've really dedicated extra time to the past few days is cleaning up a mirror I found at a thrift store a few years ago.

When I found this piece I couldn't believe someone hadn't snatched it up yet, (I may, or may not have been on an owl buying spree at that time) but I never gave it the tlc that it deserved. The time has come for these perched pretties to shine! Armed with glass and wood cleaner, towels, q-tips and the Pet Sounds album by The Beach Boys, (which I listened to twice during this process) I went to town on every nook and cranny. Looks good, eh?

Big news

First things first... I am making a vow to never let my tupperware cabinet, or any cabinet for that matter, look like this again! Yikes, right? But I must say I had fun doing some late night kitchen sorting with my roommate Jason a few nights ago.

As I mentioned before, our kitchen is going to be yellow... so you can imagine my excitement when I inherited these dainty little shot glasses (unfortunately the matching booze wasn't included, but I'll take what I can get!) I also got a few platters, a set of plates and some mugs- thanks for the generosity, roomie!

Another great find hiding in the back of the cabinets... these porcelain "brass" handled mugs. I believe I picked them up around the holiday season two years ago from sbux (thank you holiday discount) but I have never managed to put them into use... What is wrong with me?!

Anyways, the big news is... I JUST GOT THE KEYS!!

I did a walkthrough this morning with the maintenance dude, and while there are a few issues to attend to, (broken door on medicine cabinet, tiny and semi-gross shower head in the corner of the bath and the switch in the main bedroom does nothing) he said they will all be fixed during the next week before we fully move in. Whew! I wasn't looking forward to using that shower but I think an update will change my perspective...

Lastly, I've decided that I want to share some things besides all the "stuff" I'm doing with my apartment. One of these is our ever-growing record collection. Over the past few months I've started to solely use the record player in our dining room if I want to listen to music at home. It's so refreshing! I plan to take this habit with me so it seems like a great idea to start sharing some of my favorite music with you...

The sun is shining, the windows are open and Fragile, by Yes is the perfect soundtrack to the day. Early 70's progressive rock- I love you. At about eight and a half minutes 'Roundabout' isn't the longest track on this album, but it sure is my favorite! At a close second is 'Long Distance Runaround' - but really the whole album flows so well, why am I picking favorites?

Oh hey

In exactly ten days my boyfriend and I will be moving into our new apartment. For the past two years we have lived with two other guys in Chicago's Logan Square neighborhood. I have fallen in love with the tree lined boulevard and the shops that surround the heart of the square, so when we decided to find a place on our own I knew we couldn't go far. Much to my delight I found a charming little place not too far from our current apartment and about equal distance to all my favorite places!

This is the first box I packed for the move and it is full of my favorite knick knacks. Mostly elephants a few owls and a chicken.

After filling a few boxes with books and movies I decided to take a coffee break. I also managed to stop into the vintage shop down the street to do the opposite of packing. A few weeks ago I found a little black dress and a funky oversized fish necklace at A Touch Of Vintage. I have underutilized this shop in the past, but with a great find today I think I may become a regular...

A lovely three piece yellow set of serveware and mustard measuring cups. Since our apartment is going to be painted all white I am picking an accent color for each room and the kitchen's is yellow. Earlier in the week I started working on a pegboard that will hang in my kitchen. I found this tutorial in the Design*Sponge At Home book. It will hold pots and pans and one day in the future the herbs I plan on growing...

In case you didn't know, my name is Ashley and I hope that I can share with you the things I find inspiring. The next ten days will be filled with packing, planning and plenty of thrifting. After the big move it will be time to decorate and I am excited to share the experience!

It was a long day but I filled and labeled all the boxes I sat out for myself. Thanks to the siren for the cardboard and caffeine required to make this day a success.