Cheap yet (hopefully) chic!

So I am a saver. I feel guilty when I spend too much on something I don't really need. And if I spend a lot on something and then see it for less later on...oh it’s the worst!! When it comes to home decor or furniture I am a 'free is always better' type of person. Now mind you, I don't make 100k a yr. and have an extensive savings that allows me to purchase 'discount' furniture for 200 bucks. I'm sorry but 200 for a couch? No thanks. I'll make my own for that price!! So my 'saving' methods may be a little 'below' your standards and you know what? I'm ok with that! I know what I can afford and right now....it's not that much!! I should start applying this to grocery shopping because i tend to spend WAY too much there! I won’t spend 200 on a couch but that much in groceries? Ehh...I need 5 boxes of name brand fruit snacks and a 24 pack of mountain dew right? I have started clipping coupons but i keep forgetting them at home and the Kroger checkout lady never seems to accept "I left them at home but can you count them anyways?" I started writing a grocery list of specific items i have a coupon for so we will see this weekend if that helps. Anyways, back to the saving I actually do. First off, let me preface this by saying 1. I have no problem with stopping and loading up some random piece of furniture i found on the street (depending on the piece of course) and 2. I utilize the dollar tree to an obsessive extent. So now that you know where I’m coming from...let’s get started. 

These are part of my ALL PINK
bathroom!

First let's start with the dollar tree. Did you know that you can get almost anything there?? Tupperware, candles, brooms, dishes and so much more! It amazes me! There is a huge store right down the road from my house so I am super lucky!! So the first thing I got from this 'store of dreams' was flowers. I love flowers! I love the look, the ambiance, the smell, a lot of other things that I won't waste your time explaining... but my problem with them is that they die. And then I have to go back to the store, spend another 12 dollars on another bouquet just to have them die again. It's a vicious cycle. So I went to the dollar tree last week, saw FAKE flowers for a DOLLAR (hence the dollar part of dollar tree) and thought "the heck with real flowers! These beauties will never die!" The only issue is they don't smell and guess what else the 'Tree sells? Scented candles! In flowery scents. Problem solved. So I got about 10 individual flowers (if your picking up on this whole 'everything’s a dollar' thing then you know that means I spent 10$) and then I saw vases and thought 'score!' plus they’re plastic, huge plus since  glass doesn’t fare well in my house. I also found these white rocks that I put in the bottom of the vases to keep them from falling over and because it just looks so stylish. 

The rocks haven't worked  so well
for these...the cat has knocked them
over twice!

*not from dollar tree! These are from Lily for my birthday!
 "Lilies from Lily"  I included them because it was just so darn cute!

So My house if full of pink flowers. I am in love with all things pink (much to Jon's dismay) and so when i have a choice in color...guess what I choose. In fact if you have ever been in my bathroom you know that Jon sat back and let me go pink crazy. Everything from the towels to the rug is pink. Even the fake orchid is pink. Its ridiculous. But I love it and its my house so...I'm gonna go with it. 

so colorful!

The next awesome thing I got from this magical store was place mats. I was actually inspired by my mom when she informed me of the sweet deal she got on some at this very store. It was slightly difficult to find 6 in the same color but I succeeded! And they are so bright and happy its like bringing spring into the house, although I think the flowers accomplish that also. I got some Tupperware, a broom and some other odds and ends, but they're not nearly as interesting!!

The table was also free...not to brag or anything...

So now its time to cover the free furniture! First off, a lot of the furniture we have we got for free from a great place called The LifeBridge Center which helps people get whatever they may need to make a house a home!! When we first moved in, Jon and I joked that the only thing in the house we had actually bought was a picture of Marilyn Monroe from Blockbuster. But the two great finds I have found myself (both from the side of the road) are a coffee table and a couch. Now before you freak out at the idea of furniture from the street, remember what I said before, its not for everyone!! And not everything put on the curb is worth stopping for...trust me! But the coffee table has held up for almost a year and the couch is wonderful!!  Its white and has that 1930's feel with the exposed wood legs and

The cushion is stained so thats a white blanket covering it up.

all! The fabric isn't in the best condition but, as i posted before, it is on my list of things to do! Also the house it was in front of is about a block away from my house. I drove by in the morning and it wasn't there but upon driving by it again (about 3 hours later) I saw it and therefore established that it had not been sitting outside for days or anything. Plus it smelled normal (I made Jon do the smell test) so we're good! The plan is to reupholster it and make it as good as new! We'll see how that goes! So to sum all this up, dollar tree dollar tree dollar tree....and if you don't really care what others think (or you have a husband and his friend to go load it up for you) then that stuff on the curb may not be to bad! I think that especially applies to dressers, entertainment centers or shelves (which I also got!) because they're easily repainted! So have fun being thrifty and feel good about all that money you saved!!! And there are my ideas for staying as cheap as possible! Now its time for your adventure!! I reccomend starting at The Dollar Tree. 

Spaghetti Carbonara

I'm back...with an actual recipe!!! I know...you're having trouble containing your excitement. I'm right there with you! It was actually a spontaneous idea to make the recipe in the first place, let alone blog about it. Jon wanted to get a frozen bagged pasta (we've become addicted to Voila garlic chicken pasta) but then I had a crazy thought...why not make pasta? Weird right? And then I remembered this recipe...and the rest is history.  So first off I want to give credit where credit is due. This recipe is from Redbook and its amazing! Also, I got a whole stack of these (and other great magazines) from my friend Joleen and so technically this wouldn't be possible without her! So lets get right into it! The recipe is actually online, which means I can copy and paste! Perfect.

• 1 pound(s) spaghetti
• 3  extra-large eggs 
• 1/4 cup(s) chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon(s) hot red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon(s) salt
• 2 tablespoon(s) olive oil
• 4 ounce(s) diced pancetta or thick-cut bacon
• 1 tablespoon(s) minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup(s) frozen peas, thawed
• 1/2 cup(s) freshly grated Parmesan cheese

---

Directions

1. In a large pot, cook spaghetti according to package directions, about 8 to 11 minutes. Drain noodles, reserving 1 cup pasta water.
2. Meanwhile, whisk together eggs, parsley, pepper flakes, and salt.
3. Add oil to a large, deep skillet and cook pancetta over medium heat, stirring frequently, about 6 minutes or until lightly browned. Add garlic and black pepper and cook 1 minute more, then reduce heat to medium-low.
4. Add pasta, egg mixture, and peas, plus half of the pasta water, to skillet with pancetta. Stir and cook 1 to 2 minutes, adding more pasta water if necessary, until sauce has a creamy consistency. Mix in grated cheese; serve immediately.

Now I made a few changes to this recipe (I call this pulling a Rachel Ray) so its up to you if you want to change it like I did. First off, I have no idea what pancetta is so I used chicken instead. I suppose I could of googled it but Jon said "I've had it with chicken before" and that was enough for me! So chicken it was. Also I added more parsley. Anyone who knows me, knows that I love parsley so it stands to reason thats I would use an excessive amount. And I just got a lot of fresh parsley from my mom (best brithday present ever!) so I figured I would put it to good use! Other than those two changes, I followed the recipe. Now I can't honestly say that I did this whole meal by myself, Jon helped. He grilled the chicken and cut it up so everyone give an "atta boy" to him. 

In all, the meal took about 30 min. to make. You know how they say a watched pot never boils? It's true. At least 15 min. of the time was spent waiting (rather impatiently) for that darn water to boil. 4 quarts of water is a huge amount!  And another side note, the recipe says it makes 6 servings but seeing as how it called for a pound of pasta, I think Jon and I will be eating pasta for the next week. But the recipe turned out amazing so I don't mind! 

Thats a lot of pasta!

Yum!

Final Thoughts: as I have said the pasta was amazing! This is definitely one I will make again! Jon said it was his 5th favorite meal I've ever made (apparently he has a list going). So HUGE success! So peeps, now its your turn!! pull out this recipe when you want to have a delish meal, impress your friends, or get onto your husbands 'best meals' list. Enjoy!!

Jon loved it!

 Jons List of best meals:

1. He didnt know...typical 

2. The chicken fajitas

3. Im going to say this one

He went to bed so the list is temporarily unfinished. Tomorrow I'll have to ask him what else because honestly, I don't think I've even made 5 meals!

Finally something new???.....not so much

So, quite obviously, I have not been posting to my blog...actually I haven't posted since 2010. * awkward pause* so now I will give you a set of excuses that 'kept me from this' including (but not limited to) : I'm a full time student!!! I work 20+ hours a week!!! I need to have me time!!! OK, now that thats done let me be frank...I am failing as a housewife! And mostly for lack of trying. Although truly, the 'roles' in our house have shifted a little so its not entirely my fault! Jon is now home almost every day and I'm at work or school everyday so it just makes sense that he would cook...after all he's home and he's a heck of a lot better than I am! But no more excuses. Soon (hopefully, fingers crossed) Jon will be working more, I'll be working less and the whole "make dinner, keep the house clean, etc" will fall onto my (slightly unwilling) shoulders. So I better get started. I have a few home type projects I want to do over the next few weeks (which would be incredible if I did, seeing as how they've been on my to-do list since mid-July) and I am going to give it my all to complete said tasks. Ok, maybe give it 85% of my all for the first few days...I'm trying here!! So the list is as follows
1. My neighbor threw a shelving unit away (in the summer, its been in my closet ever since) and the shelves are in good condition, aside from the paint. They are half pepto-bismol pink and half lavender. Not exactly the easiest color scheme to work with. So the plan is to sand these down (only if absolutely necessary) and repaint them black. maybe even do a shiny/lacquer type coat...but I don't want to get ahead of myself here, after all I do have a few more projects in the works. So paint shelves. easy right? Lets hope so.
2. I have a calendar of Marilyn Monroe pictures. I am completely obsessed with her....ok obsessed may be a bit dramatic, but I do like her. so I want to put these pictures (the good ones) in black frames and make a sort of Marilyn collage (with a few other selected pictures) to hang up. Maybe in the bedroom so people don't think I'm too weird...then again I am posting this on the world wide web so maybe the living room would work... either way....cut out pictures, put in frames. Easy.
3. This should be the simplest of them all. I have an old expo white board from work and I want to paint it over with chalk board paint. I figure, the board was free, the paint's like 8 bucks and the kids would loooove it! Grandmas chalkboard is a hit, so I should have one..right? This should easily qualify as the quickest task...so maybe this one first?
4. The most difficult, and the one that will probably take more than a few weeks to finish.... I found a couch on the side of the road (this side of the road thing is becoming a pattern....come to my house sometime and ask what furniture I "found"). Anyway, the couch has a beautiful frame and is very 'sitting room in France circa 1930' (actually google '1930 couch' and you'll know what I'm talking about). The only (minor) problem with this couch is the fabric is a little worn. So I want to reupholster is. *GASP* (Sorry, the sheer magnitude of this project just hit me....). This is the task I am looking forward to the most/dreading more than all the others. It will take a lot of time but I feel like the end result will be so rewarding!! I can say "like that couch? yeah I did that". I'm going to qualify this one as too difficult to focus on but has a promising future.
So people, there is my (some of it at least) to do list home wise. Hopefully this weekend I can start on some of the projects. I'll post before (because i know your dying to see the pastel splashed shelves) and after (because I want to prove I can reupholster a couch) shots. Wish me luck!!! The adventure begins.