Yesterday, I stopped into Anthropologie on Regent Street after work and came home with these beautiful items, which I really wanted to share with you.
Since we moved in to our newly purchased house, John seems to have fully embraced the DIY attitude by purchasing a new drill, compound mitre saw (don't ask), and by making announcements at dinner like, "It's time. I need a proper toolbox. For all my ... tools." After an exhausting process of formally "checking out" of our old flat in Islington this weekend, we had the crazy idea of renting a ZipCar and taking it straight to IKEA. On a Saturday night.
Like I said, crazy.
Except, it turned out to be pretty empty and we managed to be super productive and focused, buying only things we knew that we needed and arriving with measurements beforehand so there wouldn't be any doubts of whether or not something would fit. (Sidenote: you know you've reached a low point when you lust after a laser tape measurer. Trust me, one too many times of a tape measurer snapping back and hitting you in the thumb will do that to a girl).
We came away with a shoe rack/cupboard that also serves as a sort of console table for mail, keys, etc. in the entry-way to our house. It took a few hacks to get it right (the wireless internet hub and phone line is housed in the same area, so we had to cut the back of the cupboard to fit around the skirting board and hub), but when it was finished, it looked pretty damn good.
Because the cupboard is white, we both really disliked the stark, standard black knobs that it came with, which looked cheap and out of place. So, taking advantage of the Anthropologie sale, I bought these mismatched, colorful ceramic knobs instead, for a bargain-ous price of £2.95 each!
I really, really like them. In fact, I was so proud of this customization, that I excitedly ran past the cupboard a few times to admire our (mostly John's) handiwork. It's incredible: the whole "feel" of the house has been transformed by a lick of paint (goodbye dismal magnolia, hello clean, fresh white and grey!), and even something as minor as the shoe cupboard has changed the way I feel when I walk in the door. It feels more and more like "mine" each day.
Before I left Anthropologie, I couldn't help picking up this butter dish as well, which I'd been wanting for a while now. At £14, it wasn't exorbitant, but nevertheless a treat. One of my pet peeves is scraping cold butter onto a slice of toast ... anyone else feel my pain? Scrape, scrape, scrape.
The beautiful cloth dishtowel that I've displayed alongside the products above was hand-stitched by a family friend of ours and given to us as a wedding gift - such a lovely sentiment, and something with a purpose!
Have you ever changed a piece of furniture or homeware because you didn't like its original design? How far would you go to customize something to make it your own? I'd love to know!
