Weekend Project: A Bit of a Scrape

So, as I mentioned in my earlier post the foundation people left several big holes in our floor when they left and now it's up to us to decide what we want to do about covering them up again. We've been told that ceramic tile is not a good idea as this house will most likely need to have the foundation "tweaked" at least every few years or so and tile will crack at the slightest slip past level. If we had decided to stay here I would have opted for hardwood throughout, but cost-wise that just isn't practical in the situation we now find ourselves in. So instead we are going with a top quality (not terribly ugly) linoleum tile (hah! oxymoron) in the kitchen and bathrooms, and we'll most likely do a laminate in the rest of the house.

In the concrete bald spot left by the foundation people in the spot where the fridge once stood, we noticed that this house has had at least 6 (that we can count) layers of new linoleum laid over the years. Now if you consider that the house was built in '85 it means that we're talking a new layer about every 4 years without a single person taking that extra step and removing the old layers before adding the new. Now ordinarily P and I would have done exactly the same thing and slapped our layer on top of the pile... alas the hole being completely stripped bare would have caused a noticeable dip underfoot. (I know this because my lazy nature caused me to check before going ahead with plans to remove old lino) Rats! Foiled again!

Admitting defeat we traipsed off to Home Depot to find the necessary lino removal accoutrements. We were advised by a perky sales clerk that all we needed to do was stab a few holes in the surface with a Stanley knife, spread a bottle of linoleum removal liquid, wait an hour and then commence scraping. P had a better idea. Something he learned while researching the project online (I know...) he wanted to try lots of soapy water... I don't know why I let him talk me into it... I mean, isn't soapy water also what you use to clean this kind of floor? How much soapy water is it going to take to loosen 6 layers of lino from their home of 25 years.

We did decide to get a... well... scraper I guess is what it's called. There were two options... the $8 version or the $30+ version. Here's where being thrifty sometimes bites you in the bum... "Why pay more just for the extended pole?", I asked. "I plan on doing it in small intervals anyway," P agreed. Together we chimed, "We don't need the longer handle!" And with that we walked out of the store with the $8 model complete with spare packet of blades.

Turns out, 6 layers need a heck of a lot more than some soapy water and a tiny scraper. We're definitely going to have to bring in the big guns on this one. We're going to need to get a few bottles of the toxic remover for a start, some spare blades for our Stanley knife, and at least one Big Boy Scraping Implement... Judging from the smell coming from under those layers, it probably isn't a bad idea to look into some Kilz or similar primer too... just in case we have a damp issue as I suspect. But most of all I sense the need to stock up on pain killers and Band Aids for surely we're going to need them before this project is over.

Spilling on my Splurge

As you know on Friday we had to make a trip out to San Antonio for visa stuff. It's quite a trip to get out there, and well... I wanted to make the most of it, so when we drove past signs declaring the San Marcos Premium outlet stores along the way I begged P to make a pit stop on our way back.

You see, I had secret insider knowledge on the San Marcos outlets... unlike our local Round Rock Premium Outlets - severely lacking in home decor stores - the one in San Marcos had not only Pottery Barn/Williams Sonoma outlet, but also Restoration Hardware AND Crate and Barrel SCORE!!

Of course, given our commitment to saving money and get our debt paid off by August the plan was merely to window shop, and return when the debt was behind us.... but y'all know me better than that!

By the time we got there it was already late in the day and we were hot, sweaty and irritated, so we decided to pick just one store and spend "a little money" as P likes to say.

I ran into Pottery Barn as fast as my legs would carry me. After reading about Katie's fab finds at her local PBO I was certain that here I would get the most bang for my buck.

I must say, I was pretty disappointed. The incredible deals that Katie finds regularly, $16 lamps, $7 placemats were nowhere to be seen. Instead, it looked just like a regular store, only the prices were moderately lower and the selection smaller.

(still need to remove tag from rug. Whoops!)

Determined to find a bargain I headed to shelves with bright red placards announcing 30% + discounts. And that is where I found these little beauties for $6 and $7 respectively.

(Please ignore ugly center piece, it doesn't work.)

I also found this cute table runner (at last the perfect length for our 6 ft table) for just $12 beans. And finally snagged the perfect father's day gift for my father in law from the Williams Sonoma section of the store.

It seems I need to spend more time figuring the place out and learning where to look for the excellent deals Katie Bower finds. But I am up for the challenge and am looking forward to our next trip out there... It's good to have a reason to look forward to a visit to your local immigration office for once! Honestly, I could have easily walked out of that store having spent A LOT more than the $30 I did.

OK. SO you're thinking... GEEZ Ros, $30 does not blown budget make! Ahhh, but there's more...

So on Sunday I was cruising my fave online stores, trying to distract myself from the idea of work the next day, when I decided to take another peek at JCPenney. Now, all in all, JCP is totally not our style and I rarely see anything there that even remotely interests me, but like I said, I was bored and in need of distraction.

As usual, I headed first to the clearance section and that's when I saw these! Yep, that's right, less 50%! After a quick Google of the phrase "JC Penney Coupon" revealed a further 15% discount available for the month of May these were in my cart quicker than Grease Lightning.



Grand total spent on 3 blinds for living room windows: $82
Grand total savings on 3 blinds: $92

Husbands comments? "Are you kidding? It would have cost you more NOT to buy them!" God bless him! :)

So, the blinds are the perfect color to go in the living room and were the perfect price.

Curtains were next on my to-do list, but the ones I wanted from Ikea are $30/pair so those will remain on the list until after my birthday as we renew our commitment to saving... PSYCHE!



Yesterday I receive my weekly Ikea sale email and lo and behold, but are the very same curtains I wanted for the living room not marked down to $9.99 per pair?!?!?! This is a-freeking-mazing! I am NEVER this lucky. I think the big man upstairs is watching over me.

Throw in the free Ikea breakfast and we're there with bells on, (right after we acquaint ourselves with a local church of course. We've much to be thankful for this week!)

Now on to the important question... I need your opinions... grey, white, chocolate or beige?
Remembering that we (currently) have a grey/brown sectional sofa, white accents and will have a combination of blue/grey and brownish paint on the walls. Here's the "color story" again to refresh your memories.... (Gah! I still love that phrase)

Paint

Shades
Table (must still update you on the "finished" look)

I created a poll on the right side -------> I need help!