Curtains

A few years ago, one of my friends and her husband bought their first house. I remember having an hours long conversation with her about what color to paint her new kitchen. This was the first home either of them had ever purchased and they were excited to start their first project. Painting was their priority; spending years in apartments where they couldn't paint made them giddy about the possibility of doing whatever they wanted. For a few weeks, it was the only thing she talked about. She must have showed me hundreds of color swatches and it wasn't my decision to make. They eventually settled on pale yellow, a color that complimented their oak furniture. I'm sure they moved onto some other project with the same energy and obsession, but I only remember the kitchen painting project. Their excitement was so contagious. I wanted them to find the perfect color too.

When I bought my condo, I was surprised by how many people asked me what my first project would be. I would respond "Unpack," and people would either laugh at my "joke" or look at me like I was an idiot. They meant home improvement project. I didn't realize that the second you buy a house or condo, you become a home improvement project person; that wasn't in the online class I took before I was approved for my loan. I bought a place that was move-in ready for a reason - I don't want to start my first home buying experience with big projects. Even painting is a big deal. I'm a firm believer in living in a place six months to a year before any major project begins. I want to live in the space before I start changing it. Will I paint my bedroom? Probably, but I'd like to move all my furniture first. Do I hate the guest bathroom shower floor? Yes, it looks like a gym bathroom, but it works and I have years to live before changing it. I'm not going anywhere and I need to save money to do something like that.

It's not to say that I don't need to do things around the condo to make it my own. I knew when moving in I would need to set up an office space for myself. It was one of the things I most wanted when I bought a place; a dedicated work space instead of using the kitchen table. My brother gave me the idea of making the nook in my living room into my office. Genius! My living room is oddly shaped, so I was having a hard time deciding where to put furniture. Once he suggested an office nook, the whole room took started to come together. I found a desk and bookcase for the space. I spent a month contemplating office chairs (I didn't want wheels on my carpet), and finally found one that works. It's come together nicely, and I like my little work space. I work from home at least once a week and the separation is nice. I also feel like I'll be able to better organize my paperwork (because I have so much now) and my writing. Today's post is the first post written from my new desk. I hung the photos I took of New Orleans on one wall and art work by Kelly and Anita on the other.

With the office nook completed (basically), I decided to shift my attention to something I knew was going to be more challenging, mostly because I'm super indecisive.

Curtains.

Yes, curtains. Curtains are one of those things that should be incredibly easy to deal with in a home. You find the curtains you want, you buy appropriate curtain rods and hardware, you put everything up, you hang the curtains. Done. Simple. 

There is nothing simple about curtains.

First of all, there are thousands of options for curtains. Thermal, light blocking, non-fade, countless materials. What color do you want? And while you're thinking about color, if you opt for thermal curtains you basically live in a cave if you pick a color like gray. Then there's textures - do you want to spice it up with a nice weave pattern? The fact that we can literally access millions of items for sale on sites like Amazon makes curtain shopping more like car shopping. I was overwhelmed. 

I have eleven windows to cover. Five in the living room, two in the guest room, three in my bedroom, and one in the kitchen. The kitchen window is the only one not getting a curtain (for now). I kept the curtains from my old bedroom and decided to use them in the guest room. One room down, two to go. I decided thermal curtains would be a good option. It's a lot of windows and I've definitely been able to feel the cold without any window covering. I found a few options online I liked, gray for the living room, coral for my bedroom (goes with my comforter). They arrived the next day (thank you, Amazon Prime). I bought curtain rods at Home Depot. (They're in the same curtain rod family as the one for the sliding glass door. Yes, I just typed "curtain rod family.") I unpacked one pack and realized I made a horrible decision - the curtains were way too dark. They sucked all of the light out of my home and it was sad. So they had to go back.

I headed back to Amazon and found another design I like, this time selecting "privacy" curtains. This means that light will come through, but I still get the privacy of a heavier curtain. Perfect. I selected white for the living room. The company had a coral color so I was able to keep that vision for my bedroom. I looked at about sixteen different curtains before settling on these. In my rush to order, I didn't realize I ordered the wrong length. I didn't discover this until my dad came over to help me replace a part in the guest bathroom toilet and we decided to install the curtain rods. Too short! So I had to return those curtains and order a brand new set in the right length. Thank goddess for the fact that you can drop off Amazon returns at Kohl's and not pay to return items. I would have lost money on this "project" if this wasn't an option. 

I purchased curtains three times. Three times! I couldn't believe I had to buy three sets of curtains to accomplish this "small" task. Yesterday, after three weeks of ordering and sending curtains back, I finished installing all the curtain rods (also a project of its own) and hung the curtains. They look nice, and I don't feel as weird leaving the blinds up for Keely now that I have curtains. 

I don't know if Keely is 100% behind the addition of curtains to our home. He knows how to jump behind them to get into the window, but sometimes looks at me like I've ruined his life by making him work for it. However, he did discover a fun game that involves peeking out from behind a curtain like the creeper he is.

I know there's more to do around here; the guest room is still full of boxes of stuff that doesn't have a home yet (my records and art books primarily). I need to move some furniture from my parents' house to here, but for now I think I'll take a little project break. It'll all get done eventually. I'm in no rush. I'm going to sit back and enjoy my new home. 

Coming in February: It's Carnival Time - glitter purses and Nyx 2020, we discuss my new Netflix addiction, and we get ready for Women's History Month.