Archives for November 2011

apartment tour: living room

And so it begins… a little series I’m doing this week on the blog. I’ve decided to break up the tour into different rooms, so you can get the most bang for your buck. I’d like to begin here with the living room because this is my very favorite room in the whole apartment. I love cozying up on the couch after a tiring day at work, drinking hot tea under a thick blanket while I watch my favorite shows, and enjoying weekend mornings relaxing with a cup of hot coffee while the sun streams in.

The best part of this room are the couches, and the fact that I got them for $100 at the global thrift makes them even better. Yes, you heard me right. One. Hundred. Dollars. For reals. The pillows on the couch are from West Elm, and the one on the chair I snagged at Flat of the Hill on Charles Street. It cost a pretty penny, but I was too in love with it to pass it up. Plus, let’s not forget the couches were $100. My mom actually found the curtains on-sale at Kohls (I struggled for awhile finding some I liked), and I added little touches here and there, like the vase and picture frames to bring the place together. I decided to do lots of different patterns to keep the energy high and so far, I think it’s working out just perfect. Love love love. Warm and cozy, like a living room should be.

What do you think? I hope you like it. Check back each day this week for more views of the place!

 

what I’m listening to.

Alright, everybody. I’m not even going to try to hide it.

I’m totally listening to Christmas music.

Every single day this week.

On the way to work.

And back.

I know, I know, call me crazy. But once the winter light hits ya gotta give me something to look forward to. Something to hold on to to keep my chin up. Because summer’s a thing of the past, and snowy cold days are ahead.

So Christmas music it is…. and I’m rocking out to it.

SO far, I’ve been mostly listening to Pandora to give me some variety in my Christmas tunes. But there are a couple of specific albums I really have my eye on…

I want the She & Him Christmas Album for reals. Like, so much I think I might buy it today. Or should I wait until after Thanksgiving like normal people do? At any rate, this album will be mine in the near future.

I also really want some vinyl records. Christmas ones, to be specific. Zan’s got this old record player that we hooked up in the living room and I’ve been loving on it for the past week. Everyday after school I come home and pop on a record. Billy Joel, Neil Diamond, Jackson 5, even Mozart has been playing throughout the walls of this apartment. So now, since the season is {almost} here, I’m on the lookout for some good old-fashioned Christmas music. I’ll probably be thrifting a lot this weekend looking for some to please my addiction.

Addiction to Christmas music, that is.

Happy Holidays to youuuuuuuuu.

Have a merry weekend! xo!

Meet Coco…

Meet Coco.

Coco the cat.

Coco belongs to one of the families my sister and I babysit for. He lives in a penthouse on Commonwealth Ave. It’s a tough life lounging all day long upon California kings and spending the evenings in front of the warm marble fireplace, but someone’s gotta do it.

thoughts for a tuesday.

Well, hello, Tuesday. I see you’re back around the block again. Tuesday is such a random day. It’s better than Monday, but not as good as Wednesday, which is nowhere near as good as Thursday. Anyways, here are some thoughts to keep it real:

1. Slowly, but surely, the artwork is going up in the apartment. Curtains are done, and projects are coming to a close. On Saturday I did a DIY paper pom-poms projects that came out pretty awesome. It’s cheap art, and I love it (picture below is pre-finished project). All we need to do now is put up the nice curtain rods. Then, I’m hoping to get out a mini-apartment tour for your viewing pleasure in the next week or two. Mostly though, I’m excited to sit back, relax, and enjoy it once it’s finished!

 

2. Last night I went to a book club meeting. It was just a catch-up meeting, so there was no book to discuss, but even if there was, we only ever talk book-talk for under 10 minutes every time (if that). We’re mostly in it for the wine, and the cupcakes Marilyn made last night weren’t too shabby either. Next up: The History of Love. I’m excited. I’ve been wanting to read it for awhile.

 

3. The dance party at school was {almost} a failure last week. Until I turned things around for the better. We invited the parents in to listen to the stories and dance along too. I could tell the kids liked having an audience for their storytelling, except NO kids would dance around the grown-ups. WHAT?! Well, the girls were shimmying and shaking a little, but the boys were glued to the floor. They would not budge an inch. After 2 songs, I said a nice thank you to the parents and we bid them farewell. I KNOW my kids were too shy to break it loose in front of so many parents, so once the door was closed, I turned up the music. It got pretty wild in the room, just as I suspected it would. SO I documented it and sent it to the parents, just for proof that they can and DO dance. The parents thought it was priceless, and it is. You can view the hilarious video HERE.

 

4. Last weekend I took a walk over the Longfellow Bridge to capture some fall pics of the Boston skyline. I loved walking in the cool air and the sunshine. I felt like such a Bostonian and feel so happy to live here. I’ve made it a point to document as many places around Boston as I can through instagram. You can follow me if you’d like at {nannerburns}. My sister once told me I spend more time taking pictures than actually living, but I beg to differ. I think I pay more attention to things now that I’m trying to photograph the everyday. This IS living. I notice things I would never have noticed before, and I capture images to remember days and moments. Memories fade, especially the simple ones like the walk downtown, or that random Saturday brunch in the South End. Pictures though, pictures can easily spark that memory again, and bring it back to you for years to come. Pictures are my favorite. Pictures are forever.