Artsy Fartsy

Nothing makes you feel old like buying art does (and being totally excited about it).

I've been wanting to put up a framed picture in our living room for quite some time. The room has a cut out for a picture and all that we have had in the cut out for the last 11 months is a nail the prior owner's left for us.

There are good things and bad things about buying a house that someone else had already lived in. Good things: landscaping is usually done, you don't have to buy draperies, usually the walls aren't stark white, etc. One of the bad things is they leave behind stuff because they are too lazy to take them down (I know, because I'm one of those lazy people).

Exhibit A - wall hanging nail thing-a-ma-bobbers stuck in a wall that is impossible to get to unless you want to have someone boost you up to the lower wall, and climb up to the higher step, risking breaking your neck. Yes, those little dots on the wall are picture hangers.



Ok, TOTALLY went off on a tangent there! Anyway, my birthday is coming up and I was thinking of asking my mom about helping me get a picture to hang up in that empty spot in our living room above the fireplace.



So my mom came over last night and we decided to get started on the project. I took a picture in Venice during our honeymoon that I thought would look good in the room. My mom had helped me crop the picture so it was vertical instead of horizontal. After 20 minutes of measuring, we realized it was an awkward space and I was starting to stress out because I was worried we would have my picture printed, matted and framed, and it would look lame.

I think it was my mom's idea to maybe go to Home Goods and bring a picture home that would be approximately the size that would need to fit the spot and see if we like it. Rob and I headed down to Home Goods and found 2 oil paintings we really liked. In the end we decided to use one of them downstairs in the living room, and one in another wall cut out upstairs (one of the pictures happened to be a painting of Venice - how ironical!).

I am so happy with the results of our living room - I told Rob I finally can love this room. It's complete.



Here is the old empty space upstairs in our hallway (note there is no nail, thanks ex-homeowners! You practically leave a nail in the ceiling to hang a picture, not in the designated cut out? Sheesh!):



Buddy was helping.



View coming up the stairs:



View coming out of our bedroom:



Next projects: pictures/art for dining room, change out fixtures in bathrooms, buy wine fridge to put back in wet bar (thanks ex-homeowners for taking that with you, leaving a huge empty space), new paint in spare bedroom, re-model master bath (that's a BIG project), patch up walls in office, get centerpiece for dining room table, re-do mantle decor in family room, paint master bedroom, etc.). My goal: complete one thing off the list in the next 11 months.