knick knacks drive me nuts

I've never been a fan of clutter and extraneous stuff. Despite that natural inclination, putting down roots in one location has had a noticeable impact on me and the things that I keep around. It's been a few years since the time when I drifted around the Northeast and all of my worldly possessions fit into a Corolla. It's alright to have two bookshelves full of novels and twenty pairs of shoes when you don't plan on moving them anytime soon.

You go from a sedan to a 10-foot square bedroom to a two-bedroom apartment to a whole condo and thing are bound to accumulate. I'm not sure if I keep finding bigger living spaces to fit all my stuff or if I buy more stuff to fill up the extra room. It seems almost like a little of both. It starts with finding a shell a little bit bigger than the last, with a little extra room to grow into and it provides the perfect excuse to gain a few pounds of objects.

I found out recently that this natural penchant of mine has a name and even an ideology behind it: minimalism. After scouting around some blogs laden with dangerous ideas, I felt inspired to take back control by someone urging interested parties to start small - empty a junk drawer, clean out a closet, donate some clothing. I knew immediately where I'd start. My embarrassment of a makeup drawer.

Impressive, right? Not for most women but consider this: my daily makeup routine includes foundation and if I'm feeling fancy, a little mascara. So how in God's name did I end up with green eyeshadow? Why do I own an eyeliner sharpener when I don't own any pencil eyeliners? And, oh gross, is that lipstick from high school?!

I was ruthless. I kept enough to brush up nice for weddings but gone is the real nonsense. As a bonus, I found a little bottle of Purel, which is now safely in Beau's work bag and destined for his cubicle (I fear for his immune system now that he sits next to a guy that hoards dirty tissues). I'm hoping that the other surprise that I found will interest someone who's reading this.

Nestled in the back of the drawer was a full bottle of Burberry's Tender Touch perfume. It was a slightly off-target birthday gift. Much too girly and floral for me but I'm sure it will be perfect for someone else. There's where I'm hoping you come in. I'd like to find this bottle a new home and I'd much rather give it to a friend or reader (do I have any of those?) than Freecycle it. So, if you're interested, leave me a comment and it's yours. First come, first serve.

As for the Bucket

We hopped the ferry to Nantucket for our very first wedding anniversary

Guess who's back to flickr? Friend me if you use it, too!

My First Refashion

It's difficult for me to say "No, I don't like that" when someone buys me a piece of clothing. That's why I've had a white dress sitting in my closet for two years that was downright unwearable.

The elastic top, the oddly placed waist, the horrific neckline. Nope. Can't do it. But I also have a hard time disposing of those items. It just seems too wasteful. So this past weekend, I reinvented the dead-end dress into my new favorite summer skirt.

My last skirt project lasted months but this took only a few hours over the weekend. I detached the top, installed a zipper and gave it a clean waistband. It's officially saved from the donation bag! Do I hear the Salvation Army calling my name?

Mental Health Day

I came home early today to indulge in a few of the activities that always help when I'm upset. I:

Folded underwear

Read a chapter of my current book, The Cider House Rules

Watched a slow loris get tickled

Snuck a few handfuls of Beau's Peanut Butter Pows

Filled the CD player with super girly music - Enya, Regina Spektor, Frou Frou, Feist and the soundtrack to (500) Days of Summer

Banged pots and pans around while emptying the dishwasher

Caught Anne of Green Gables on PBS

Ate really buttery toast

Snapped the ends off of asparagus

A Budding Romance with Fonts

Alright, alright, it took me three and a half weeks to finish this project but it's done! Gone are the ratty, ugly pillows that came with our couch.

You are getting sleepy...

I stripped them down to reusable filling and recovered them with linen and our first initials in felt letters ala this tutorial from Design Sponge.

Aww, together forever... on the couch

Of course, the first thing that Beau said was, "Now everyone is going to think we went to Rutgers." I guess I'll eventually have to reupholster the couch in UMass colors to clarify.