lull

I have my taxes to work on and I've got shelves to put up but right now just let me enjoy a sweet afternoon break in our office.

hoosiers

In my Craigslist search for a pantry/hutch, I wasn't finding all that much that really suited my tastes. Tons of ugly, oversized oak monstrosities but no cute, vintage ones that suited my style. That is until I learned of a new search term: Hoosier! Not only is it a nice little movie starring Gene Hackman, it's the cabinet of my dreams. Here are 2 available in Vancouver. Sadly, they are way out of my price range but a girl can dream!

Hey, did you notice that last week I put up all new mp3 tracks? Look to your right and enjoy some new music. Last week I also discovered the most fabulous tracks on Popsheep. RePercusionesI especially. Strange and beautiful.

hello sunshine!

Ooh, I've been in love with this warm, sunny weather! It really feels like summer is just around the bend. After a nice lunch on the balcony today and opening all our windows to let in the fresh air, I'm looking forward to outdoor life once again!

This afternoon I finally went to the Sunrise Market...a haven for cheap groceries and fresh produce in Vancouver's Chinatown. It's funny that in the 5 years I've lived in Strathcona, I've never shopped at Sunrise. Today I put an end to that. I was amazed at all the variety and low, low prices. The produce stands are legendary and many Vancouver restaurants do their shopping here and I'm not one bit surprised. So much choice and all at great prices too. They also have a butcher, carry a wide assortment of organic, soy (they are afterall part of Sunrise Tofu), and other gourmet items. Awesome!

* Not my photograph! I nicked it. Sorry. Next time I go I won't forget my camera.

i'm so green

I'm trying to pick out colours for our place. Originally, I wanted white but in all honesty, I don't think I can live that way. Maybe if we had hardwood floors instead of carpet, white walls could definitely stay...but with apartment beige carpets? White ain't working! We'll be painting our office the same robin's egg blue that we had in our old livingroom. I loved that colour so much that I can't wait to see it in our new work space.

The bedroom colour is tricky. In our last place, we had a very cozy and soothing latte colour but now I'm really thinking that green would be a nice change. Last month Decor8 had some great greens but it seemed they worked best as accessories and furniture colours rather than walls. Here's some great images I've found that could become my colour inspiration. If anyone can suggest a great green, I'm definitely interested. Oh, and I stuck that white kitchen in just because I'm totally digging that pendant lamp! And I also love the pendant lamps in the green kitchen too (maybe more so!).

small homes

I like this mini home that I found via Poppytalk. At first glance I thought they had used old shipping containers to build the home, which is a material Cornelius and I have talked about using for our future home building adventures. Very cool.


And speaking of homes, our place is slowly taking shape. This weekend I finally hung up some artwork in our hallway and this weekend I plan on painting our office space.

let the sun shine in!

Thankfully, that pity party of one, is beginning to disapate! Hooray!! The sun is out and it's warm again and it really, truly feels like spring is here. And slowly, in NewApartmentLand, boxes are being emptied, paint samples are being considered and with a kick-ass hardwood door dragged in the alley, we've now got a wonderful work table for our office. Things are looking up!

And because I've got decorating on the brain, I'm always scouring Craigslist searching for that perfect vintage hutch/credenza/coffee table/lamp/etc. I'm also making the rounds at various blogs (like this one) and flickr communities for inspiration. But hey, why not get inspiration from someone I know! My friend Mel's craft room was featured in today's LA Apartment Therapy post! I love her craft room and her cat, Simon, sure has style!

big sad eyes

I'm in a funk. I'm not interested in eating, cooking, or baking which is probably why my food blog is acting like such a ghost town. The boxes are still overtaking our apartment and although we did make it out to Ikea yesterday, Home Depot closed early so we were unable to get all our errands done. The only bright spot? I decided to put up a Pity Kitty on ebay and there now seems to be some crazy bidding war. With 3 days left, it's already at almost $80! Let the pity party begin!

still unpacking

Since I've lived in Vancouver, I've moved 6 times. The last 5 times, I was able to get everything unpacked, organized and settled within a day or two. However, with this last move, my timing is completely off. We've been here almost 2 weeks and still there are boxes lining the walls in every room. I'm completely off my game! My new apartment still hasn't been transformed into something I recognize as mine. It's not that we've been lazy...really, we haven't! Our current workload is high and we're using every waking hour to finish up projects, begin new ones and we don't see an end in sight. Not that we're complaining, mind you. Work is good. It pays the rent, gets us movitated and keeps us learning....but is it too much to ask for a little break to make our new place really ours? Lucky for me, there is a 4 day weekend starting tomorrow so maybe that will be the kick in the ass we need to get this place into tip-top shape!