A Short List of Things I’ve Been Doing

Posted: December 9th, 2009 | Author: ab | Tags: , , , , , ,

1. Decorating for Christmas. But not too much. I still have to put up the tree/wrap presents/make teacher gifts/discard teacher gifts due to burning/make more teacher gifts/lose my mind. But: all of my gifts have been bought. Boughten. This is a miraculous and beautiful thing.

Is it annoying to use images I uploaded to Flickr weeks ago? I apologize. Not enough to stop doing it, but just know that I feel bad about it.

The delicious sunburst mirror came from a local store, so I am sorry to say I can’t tell you where to get one of your own. Also, the cute white stockings came from Walmart, so judge me as you must.

2. Making curtains out of drop cloths. I mean, come on. Have you ever seen a cooler idea? I got it from the Internet. Here’s what you do: Go to Lowe’s (or Home Depot, or your local hardware store, but I checked all of my options and Lowe’s had the best quality fabric). Buy 2 drop cloths. Wash, wash, wash and dry the drop cloths. Now, wash them again. I hope you have a big washer. Cut and hem the bottom edge (I bought 12′ x 15′ drop cloths, because my windows are 120″ wide and my ceilings are 10′ tall. I stitched the long side to about 10′, and hung them at 9.5′ or so. (The ones I bought were already finished on all sides, with a shirttail hem.)). Hang. THE END.

3. Furiously searching for and downloading pictures of bathrooms for the addition we’re planning in the new year. I don’t know if you can tell what I like from this randomly chosen set of inspiration photos. They are all so different. We are very excited about this project — it’s been on our list of things to do basically since we moved into our house 6 years ago. And there is a teenager I know who is super happy about not having to share with her parents anymore. Hey, kid: THE FEELING IS MUTUAL.




4. In an unexpected development, I’ve taken on a real, live, paying decorating client. I am scared and nervous and exhilarated. It is kind of a trial run. The fun starts after the holidays. More details as they come. The excitement makes me write in little sentences.

I’ll not reveal the identity of my client, but they are closely connected to this person:

Obviously, I’ve written several private meetings into our contract. Consultations, if you will. For art.

16 Comments on “A Short List of Things I’ve Been Doing”

  1. 1 Ashley Inzer said at 5:25 PM on December 9th, 2009:

    I just love your writing style and humor. Made me giggle lots. thank you.

  2. 2 Georgia said at 7:42 PM on December 9th, 2009:

    Absolutely love your blog. Just wondering where I can purchase twinkle lights? Are they any different than the regular christmas lights?

  3. 3 Raina said at 8:52 PM on December 9th, 2009:

    Do you know happy and excited I am when a new Hashai post pops up in my reader?

    VERY.

  4. 4 ab said at 9:00 PM on December 9th, 2009:

    Aw, Raina. You’re just trying to get laid.

  5. 5 Natalie said at 9:41 PM on December 9th, 2009:

    love the drop cloth curtains! i saw an idea like that but for a table cloth…using burlap. i want to do something like that for our dining room..i love the earthy but sparkly christmas styles! great post!

  6. 6 the brick house said at 10:27 PM on December 9th, 2009:

    looks great as always. you never disappoint.

    i’m excited to see what happens with the new bathroom. we have a pit of a shitter that needs a total gut redo. It may be six years till we pull it off…GIVE ME HOPE.

  7. 7 susan said at 11:41 PM on December 9th, 2009:

    yay for the startup design bidness! yay for the new loo! yay for the drop cloths, and your outfit with them mighty sparkly jack purcells makes me say YAY again! (and hey- walmart ain’t so bad if you buy in moderation from them) I would be suckered in more if there was a single wally-world inside the inner loop of Houston.
    happy hollandaise. ( i *think* i just made that up- but i’ve had coupla glasses of wine, so maybe its just cheesy)

  8. 8 ab said at 5:10 PM on December 10th, 2009:

    Thanks, guys!

    @the brick house: I think it will give you hope. If we can pull it off. Watch this space!

  9. 9 Katie Ambrose said at 6:50 PM on December 10th, 2009:

    Why are your baseboards always so darn clean?! It’s unnatural!

    BTW - thanks for posting something new for me to stea… I mean borrow.

  10. 10 erin@designcrisis said at 9:11 PM on December 11th, 2009:

    Did you meet this new client while having your gallbladder removed? I am a bit afraid of your answer.

    Great job decorating! You almost (almost) make me not hate Christmas.

    Almost.

  11. 11 susie q said at 1:11 PM on December 14th, 2009:

    Love your drop cloth curtain idea. I’ve been wanting to upholster furniture in worn-out drop clothes. Don’t love your secrets, though. Spill the beans!

  12. 12 Julie said at 4:49 AM on December 15th, 2009:

    After drooling at your flickr photos I am now in new found blog heaven! All my favourite images in one place! Thank you. Now, can you spill a secret? Is that great rug wool or sisal? Where can I hunt one down similar?

  13. 13 ab said at 10:41 AM on December 15th, 2009:

    The rug came from eBay, so I can’t tell you where to find a similar one. It is wool. I have seen cute affordable zigzag rugs at West Elm, have you tried there?

  14. 14 Julie said at 6:34 PM on December 15th, 2009:

    Thanks for the reply, ab! I’m from Australia so I was counting on an ebay store or the like. I’ll just keep my eyes peeled :-)

  15. 15 joanne said at 4:44 AM on December 22nd, 2009:

    Just bumped into your blog, I’m loving it. You have a very lovely home. Excellent taste.
    xx

  16. 16 Name (required)beth p said at 12:26 PM on December 23rd, 2009:

    You’re going profesh! About time. Allright, well, I have a living room that needs help and an account full of cash for it. Lets talk.