My Sun Porch

The other day, the colors of the leaves changed... and just like that, fall arrived.

I have a great view of it from my porch...

Click to enlarge!

I spent a lot of time collecting things to make it cozy out here... the papasan from Craigslist, the little white desk from an estate sale (that a stranger so lovingly delivered to my home after it failed to fit in my car), the hand crocheted throw from another sale, the houseplants, the Jesus candles, the ceramic animals...

There is only one problem.

AND OH MY GOD, they are having the time of their little lives up there.  AND - I have a gap between the light fixture and the ceiling... AND - I am not even kidding you, as a type this, I could actually SEE one stick his head out the gap and peer down on me with a leaf in his mouth.  AND HE ? SHE ? SQUEEKED!  AT ME!

So as you can see from my photo above... I have enlisted the help of my little squirrel Dream Pet - and also, evidently, Our Lady of Guadalupe.  Hopefully they can work together to convince the squirrels to go away and make a home somewhere else, because my landlord sure isn't in a hurry to do so...

Second Hand Dining Room

Since moving in in June, I have barely finished unpacking.  There are still a few boxes here and there and a bunch of stuff that is very disorganized with no home yet.  I have prioritized my dining room though, and it's almost done enough for me to be satisfied.  Here is a glimpse:

In this room I have south facing windows, and I just love how the sunlight streams in throughout the day. 

• The orange curtains were about a dollar at an estate sale, where I happened to grab a large amount of fabric that I have been able to use in different rooms in my house.  
• The chair was six dollars at the Village Thrift on Kedzie.  I bought two of them but had to make two different trips because only one would fin in my car at a time.  I spray painted it white.  
• The horse paint-by-number was also from an estate sale - I love it, and probably over paid for it - eight dollars.  
• The little magazine rack was five dollars at another estate sale.

Total for this little corner: 20 dollars!  YAY.

Here is what the other half of the window looks like - as you can see, the chair is totally not cute without the white paint... I just haven't gotten around to that yet with all the rain.  The hamper is probably the most expensive thing in the photo, which I splurged on at Home Goods one day ($40!) because I was sick of all my fabric laying on the floor and I needed a place for it.

I originally bought this little black bookcase for my sis, but it didn't fit in my car, so after my fiance carried it home we decided to keep it here (! He's the best!).  Anyway, it holds most of my craft supplies so I made little curtain for it out of the rest of the fabric from the estate sale.  I love that the plaid has a bit of orange with it - it makes it a nice unexpected match for my orange curtains!  I made the chalkboard out of an old window...

I hope to share more little corners of my apartment as it comes together!