What Happens When You Read Too Many Decorating Blogs

Every once in awhile, I get the urge to do some major redecorating. I've basically been feeling that way for months about our bedroom and living room, but both logic and lack of funds have restrained me. Kurt and I have agreed to curb our new furniture shopping sprees (and by "our", I mean "my") until we buy a house and know what we need to get. I'm one of those people who believe the perfect room is achieved little by little, collecting pieces you love that might not match, but go perfectly together. For an idea of my style, think of Jess's bedroom in the show New Girl. I love color, antiques, and a mish mash of styles.

Since I won't be buying new furniture anytime soon, I've had to satisfy my longing for change in other, less costly ways. We have built-in bookshelves in our living room that surround the door to our bedroom. These bookshelves are something I will truly miss when we leave this apartment.** I'm still trying to figure out a way to take them with me. Since they are a focal point in the living room, I've struggled with how I want to organize my books to make them look appealing. Before, they were arranged alphabetically by author (my anal, OCD, used-to-work-in-publishing self taking over) and Kurt complained that he could never find anything. Then, they were arranged by size and series. Now, my visual, "I need to look at something beautiful" self has taken control and done this:

How awesome are my new bookshelves, if I do say so myself? I am very happy with them. Finally. That is, until my right brain completely kicks my left brain out of the equation and I organize them by color.

**While there are many things I will miss about our apartment, here are some things I will not miss: The sprickets, the drafts, the feeling that I can never get anything clean no matter how hard I try, the ghost (though I'm developing a soft spot for him (or her)), the potential for flooding, the uneven plaster walls that I long to paint anything but white, the fact that in the past two weeks, the kitchen ceiling has begun to leak, the drawer underneath the oven has broken for no apparent reason (and the 2 screws that came undone are missing (I'm blaming the ghost)), and the two 2x4s with hooks that were nailed (yes, nailed and not screwed) to the plywood (yes, plywood) kitchen wall and hung all of our pots and pans fell down amidst lots of crashing and cursing.