Free stuff!

Well.... close to free. These are my latest additions to my place. Its been hard to find furniture for my place since I have all these wacky ideas of what I want to do with it. So, as I am figuring out a way to make these wacky ideas become reality, I've taken in furniture temperarily. Of course, I wouldn't want to pay too much for temperary(which will probably still stay around for a while) furniture . So, I went trolling around on Craigslist. That is were the bench was found. Listed price $75. June haggled it down to $50. Nice! Especially, when anything bench like that I've seen has been more into the $200 range. And, I had been looking for a table for a long time too. But, everything that I like is $500 and above. There was one I really liked that was $960. Sigh, just too much for my blood at this stage. BUT, I was checking my apartment building's community email group and someone was offering a table for free. Yep, free! Just needed to go by and pick it up. I was looking for squarish table, but this white round table would do for the time being. It's an Ikea item. And, it was in a very good condition. Plus, the folks giving it away were very nice. They even helped me take it apart. And, the table and bench actually helped me set the color tone for my kitchen. It actually hit me when I was at the Chocolate Bar with June. Basically, the Chocolate Bar's colors. Dark brown, orange, white, and a lighter brown. Something in there. So, I've owned my place for a year and have lived in it for less than half of that time, but its still a work in progress. Whew, its a long process...

Oops, I done it again...

So, I got myself another game system. Well, actually, my wonderful girlfriend got it for me for Christmas. I wonder how she knew? But, I keep telling myself that I shouldn't pick another gaming system up because I end up not using them as much as I should to get my money's worth. BUT, I had been thinking about picking up the DS for a while. Over a year. Then, they came out with the DSlite. That made it even more portable, which made it more buyable. :) So, as time went on, the idea of picking one up just made its way into my little brain more frequently. I did a little research and found that its really got some good games. Not just shoot em up kill em games. But, more in the direction of just fun strategy games. Games that make you think and work the mind a little. Don't get me wrong, I like myself a good shoot em up game as much as the next gaming nerd. I splattered my fair share of heads with a snipper riffle and ripped out a good amount of skulls with their spines still attached as well when I had to work off some frustration. But, that can get old after a while. And, I'm getting old and my mind could use some working out. :P So, I am very happy with the DSlite. Plus, the games are more affordable than the PSPs. So, now, I have Brain Age and Mario Kart so far. Love them both. By the way, I have a 34 year old brain. That's down from a 52 yr old brain. June is down in her low 20s. :) Anyway, the DSlite has been a good buy so far. I would highly recommend it. Now, I just have to figure out how to do get things done and play games at the same time......

NYC tree

With the hectic pace of getting things done for the Christmas holiday, I really hadn't had time to do any kind of decorating. I overheard my girlfriend mention that she wouldn't mind a small tree, and this image of a tiny tree emmediately popped into my head. You know, those tiny cheesy trees that some take-out places have sitting on their counters. But, I didn't know where to find them. As I was running around one day picking up a few last items, a tiny tree sitting on top of a cash register in a 99 cent store caught my eye. It was absolutely perfect! Exactly what I had pictured in my mind. It even came with decorations(tho we added a couple of our own) and even lights! The perfect size for my tiny NYC apartment. So, I ran into the 99 cent store and snatched up my 06 Christmas tree for $10. I couldn't wait to see my girlfriend's reaction. She loved it! We hurriedly took it out of the box and put it together. It was truly perfect. It now sits on my TV shelf. It has turned out better than I could imagine. Merry Christmas to all who read this and a Happy and Healthy New Year!!

SOFA!!!

Finally!! My sofa arrived! It's been 8 long weeks since I placed my order. Why so long? It would have been delivered a week later if I went with the original color, but I decided to go with one of the optional colors. So, they have to put in the request and have the sofa made. It's a pricey(to me) sofa, so I figured I might as well get it the color I want. It was actually between this Tetris Flannel(brown) and a white color. I really liked the white, but thought it would get dark patches very quickly. So, I went with the darker color. I can't say that I'm totally happy with how dark the sofa is, but it is really growing on me. Like a fungus.... :) And, it wasn't as comfortable as the one in the store. But, I think the comfort will come with time. It's already starting. :) I was nervous up to the last minute because they told me that I would have to remove my front door to get the sofa in my apartment. And, I had no idea how I was going to do that. When it arrived, I was so very happy to find that removing the door was not necessary. They brought it in, screwed the legs on, and it was sitting in my apartment. After 8 weeks, here it was. As I had hoped, it has defined the area quite well. Now, everything will start to take shape off of the sofa. It sets the height, position, and color that other items should be. But, for now, I need to take some time and enjoy the sofa. Woohoo!! Sofaaaa!!

bathmat

So, the other day we were finishing up some Christmas shopping and just stopping into some shops to check out possible apartment items. We happened across this bathmat. Plush, worked with the colors I wanted in my bathroom, and it resembled the pattern of the mushroom on the Super Mario series. I wanted it emediately, but thought it would be too much. We were at West Elm. Checked out the price tag and realized that it wasn't too horrible. So, I carried it around for a bit just making sure I wanted it. After a few more rounds of the store, we checked out. To my surprise, I was charged less that half of what was on the price tag. Don't you love when that happens? I got a great bathmat for about $10. Nice!!

recycle!

Whew, it's been a while. I haven't done much on my apartment for a bit. Kind of taking it easy and saving some money for some larger items in the apartment. But, one evening my girlfriend and I watched a couple of inspirational movies. "Who Killed the Electric Car?" and "An Inconvenient Truth". I'm no activist by any definition and have no desire to be. But, I would like to do what I can in my everyday life to not add to the cancerous effect that we have on this little marble we live on. So, I decided to start recycling. BUT, my place is SO small. So, how can I have some recycling bins and not take up too much space and also not have exposed cans of soda to attract pests? Of course, bins with lids. But, do I want blue bins for the obvious recycling appeal or do I want a different color that flows better with the rest of my kitchen. My girlfriend mentioned whit bins and it just sounded right, so the color was set. Now where to find this item? As usual, Ikea is the first place to look. At first they had great recycling blue bins for under the sink use. Then, we happened across these white bins in the kids section. They're actually diaper storage bins. But, they were perfect! The right size to fit perfectly into a tucked away corner and they had lids that snapped on. Plus, the bins were small enough to work with the usual bags you get from any restuarant or grocery store. And, that was the start of my "recycling center". :)

organize!

Just took another trip to Ikea! Love that place. This time, I picked this little item up. It's a wire organizer. Since my place is limited in space, I do not have space to use my drafting table as just drawing area. I have to use it as my "office". So, I have to try to make things as efficient as possible and as clean as possible. This organizer will give me a place to tuck wires and place chargers. And, not have them sitting on the table top or hanging off the side. It's a good buy at $13. And, its tight enough to the table that it won't hit your knees. Nice!

I also picked up these hooks. I was actually looking for these round knob like hooks, but it seems that they were out of them. And, I had been waiting a while to find hooks for my bathroom. So, I settled on these. They're not horrible, but not ideal. They're basically blunt hooks. Very simple and clean design. They do serve their purpose. I staggered the placement for a little funkier feel.......well, at least not a normal feel. Yep, I still have the old holes that belong to the previous hook system.

And, I placed three hooks lower and off to the side on the door to hold my laundry bag and whatever else needs to be placed lower.

HDMI

You won't believe what I had to go through to finally get this player to work. For some reason, all the players that I bought didn't work. And, the fourth one I had delivered(UPS) was damaged. I went to two stores and returned four DVD players before I figured out that I was doing something wrong. I didn't read the manual. I couldn't get the HDMI connection to work. When connected the picture on the tv was just flickering and looked like it was not connecting at all. I connected the component wires to see if there was any difference. The image was flipping and it was pink. I finally openned the manual and looked at the troubleshooting section. And, of course, there was a solution. Read the proper pages. And, taadaa, I had myself a fully funtional HDMI upconverted multi region dvd player. Not HD DVD, but I'm going to wait till they work the bugs out and reduce the size, and price, to upgrade. And, it looks pretty nice too. Not bad for around $90. Just remember to read the manual before running to return it. Some of these players need their video functions activated or set to the right output in order for it to work properly.

And, below the dvd player, that is the DVR Digital Cable Box. If you have a HD capable tv set, you definitely need to upgrade to this tuner. It gives you the HD channels and it records shows. Its been great because if you have shows you like to catch, like we do, it frees you up a bit from a tv schedule. And, allows you to finish that dinner, finish up that work, work out, whatever you need to do without worrying about missing a show. PLUS, it has two tuners, so it can record two shows at the same time. It's $9 more a month on top of digital cable, but its totally worth it.

blinded

So, I haven't had the time to actually get proper window dressing yet. I had taped up some packing paper that came in some with Ikea items. Go figure. Then, one day I was walking around in a store and came across these great items. They're Redi Shades. And, I remembered that my sister had these and remembered thinking that I should get them when I get a place....... So, here I am, I picked them up. They're great for temperary window shades. They have a clean look and are durable. Then, you can take your time finding ones that you'd really like without having to worry about a "unfinished" appearance. They offer the shades in a few materials. Paper, fabric, light blocking paper, and black out. I picked up the fabric. I went with that so that I could keep them for a while and they wouldn't rip easily. And, they let light through. They're cheap, have a nice clean appearance, and they're easy to install. Another item I was very pleased with. Well worth the money!

Shaadoom

This is my latest addition to my apartment. A gift from my girlfriend. Yup! It's the original mushroom from Super Mario. The one the makes you grow big. Yay! I saw it in passing one day when we were on Elizabeth St. in Chinatown. I expressed my excitement, but we decided to come back for it at a later date. We came back and it was no where to be found. We never figured that they would be such a hot selling item. But, I was devastated....... okay, not really. More of a dissapointed. My girlfriend comforts me. :) So, we left the store a bit defeated. I looked it up online and couldn't really find it, so I sort of gave up on it. About a week later, my girlfriend surprises me with a box. It was open, so I just thought she was excited that she had recieved something she had ordered online and wanted to show me. As I got closer to opening the box, she got giddy. It was very cute. But, I still didn't know what she was getting excited about. Then, I opened the box to a little mushroom sitting in a bed of stuffing. I lept out of my seat and joined her in her giddiness. :) Shroomy(?) is still waiting for his final living space. But, for now he sits atop my left speaker. :)

new view

I realized that I hadn't taken any pictures of my place as a whole for a while. So, this is the view that you get when you come in the door. It's a mess now. I actually transitioned from renting a larger place to owning a smaller place. So, I have a lot more things than I have space for. But, its good. It'll force me to get rid of things that I don't need. I'm a pack rat, so that's a good thing. Presently, as you can see, I'm using a Aero bed as my sofa. Nice....not really. Kind of ghetto, actually. But, I am in the process of saving up for my sofa. It's kind of pricey, but really quite comfortable. I think the sofa will be a big step to making my place feel more like home. And, it will help seperate the room into sections of defined spaces. So, here is my space as it is now. It's cluttered now, but hopefully it will clean up as I move farward.

signs

I was really excited about this little item. I visited this hotel down in the lower east side. This really trendy spot. One of the coolest things that I saw was the "do not disturb" sign. Usually, its a flimsy piece of paper, or in the nicer hotels a flimsy piece of plastic, that you hang on the handle on the outside of your door. This place had these magnets. One side has the "do not disturb" and the other has the "please clean room" sign. I thought it was one of the neatest things about the place. Actually, it had a bed that I liked too. But, I couldn't just take a bed. But, these little signs, I'm sure everyone took theirs. So, now its found a new home on my refrigerator door. Reminding me not to disturb the food. :)

see the lights!

So, at the end of my construction, I needed to find kitchen light fixtures. I put this off thinking that I'd take my time picking one out after construction. But, my contractor told me that the installation was included in the renovation. So, now, I had to scramble around searching for fixtures that fit in my kitchen. I needed two. I went to every store in the lighting district right outside of Chinatown. Everything I liked was too expensive. They were all over $200. I was bummed. And, getting tired of my funds running low. Too much output and not enough input. I was tired and just wanting to give up and just leave the old fixtures with the bare bulbs where they were. Then, one evening, I ended up in Home Depot. One of my favorite stores these days. I found these lights. They worked really well for my kitchen. The polished silver and frosted glass combination matched the wall cabinets. The best thing of all, they were only $35 each. So, I figured why not. If I don't like them, I can take my time finding replacements. And, for the time being, I'll have these fixtures up and not unsightly old exposed bulb fixtures. But, I was pleasantly surprised. They actually work quite well with my kitchen. The frosted glass sides actually spread the light very nicely and eased the spotlight effect of these lights. And, here they are lit. Not too shabby for $35, eh? Yes, I know, the stickers are still on it. I tried taking them off, but they are leaving a residue. So, I have to find some time to take them off with a cleaner in hand that won't leave marks. All in due time.

more bang for your buck...

So, I'm slowly adding little things that make my place a nicer place to be. Cheap solutions to make things feel and function at a much higher quality. This first item I added was from Ikea( of course). They are the Rationell door bumpers. You know how when you close your cabinet doors you get this somewhat harsh bump sound? These are your solution. You can get a set of 6 for $10. See the protruding stem on the end of the grey structure? That catches your door before it slams shut. And, slowly closes your door silently. I have to say that it is one of the best buys I've made yet. Super cheap with wonderful effect! What more can you ask for?


My second item was cabinet handles. I was going to go with rods to match my oven, but I couldn't find the right length. And, I needed a way to open my cabinets. So, my solution, low profile Grip handles that attach from behind so that they do not leave holes on the front of my doors in case I want to add in the future. For the more visible handles, the ones located on the base cabinets under my sink, I attached them a little farther back to give the front an even lower profile of an appearance. These handles were again a product of Ikea. At $3 for a set of 2, you can't really do any better. I might go with the pricier rods in the future, but these will do just fine for now.

1st stove meal!

First food item cooked on my stove. Ramen noodles!! And, in my new Ikea bowls. Part of a set of 18 for...... near free. Anyway, Ramen noodles!! One pork flavored. While the other was beef. YUM, haven't had home made Ramen noodles in the longest time. Mmmmmm.......

that's me!

Finally, after nine months, the management company of my building put my name tag up. Small, but in a way, it makes it feel a little more "yours". Now, I just have to wait for them to change my name on the buzzer at the front door...

a touch of Ikea...

So, we've been taking a lot of trips out to Ikea. They've just got the right products at the right price. I thought I'd show a few items to show how they would look in a actual home. Here, I have the Grundtal wall storage system install above my tiny counter. I needed raised storage in order to give the counter a cleaner feel. I'm actually the most thrilled about the dish rack. It folds up when not in use. Very very useful in a mini kitchen. :)Here is the Lyngby rug. I looked around for a bit for a rug that would work. I was iffy about many rugs. Once I saw this rug, it clicked. It's nice and soft. And, it has a soft bottom side as well, which is good for the floors. And, in the background, you see the Lack shelf on its side with the legs. Yes, I will be cleaning the wires up behind my "entertainment center". :)
This is my temperary dining set that my sister donated to me. I actually like it a lot. It has a small tea house feel. I wish I could find two more of those stools. They're actually a older Ikea item, but they are not offered anymore. The table is actually a Lack table. Side table, I think. But, it works well as my kitchen table. Simple and clean lines. Nice!!

2nd dish!

Aaaaand my second dish iiiiissssss...... curly fries. Haha. The GE oven with Advantium technology didn't do such a great job this time. It required three extra additional added cook times. The foil might have made a difference. And, in the end, it wasn't as hot as we'd like it. It was still good, but not as good as deep frying the little things. Maybe, that's the difference between baking fries and deep frying fries? Anyway, they are a nice golden brown, aren't they?

and accessories...

So, this is one of my first pieces I purchased for my place..... well, first piece beyond all the appliances, cabinets, TV, etc. So, this is a Lack shelf from Ikea. They also suggested using it as a TV shelf on its side. So, I decided to add Capita legs to raise the shelf off the ground a bit and to give it that "not a Lack shelf on its side" look. One thing did worry me tho. When I was predrilling the screw holes, the shelf walls felt very hollow. I'm hoping that it will hold my entertainment system without crumbling under the weight. Perhaps I'll add two more support legs.....

Cookies!!!!

So, I finally test drove the oven. I started with a simple Pillsbury Hershey's chocolate chip cookie test. I started with just two. So, if it went horribly wrong, I would have ruined only two cookies. The great thing about this oven is that it requires no preheating. Nice! And, it has preset food times. See the little silver knob? I just use that to scroll through the menus. Shoot it better have some interesting features. I paid enough for it....

And, here is the finished product of my first ever venture into making cookies.... Not the greatest looking cookies.... a little uneven... but, all in all, not to shabby. I placed them a bit too close to the trench, so they got a little warped. Now onto steaks and turkeys! :)