vintage suitcases used as an end table ~ tweaking in the living room

 I last left you here...where I was moving tables and was using the black cabinet as

an end table in the living room.

 That black cabinet didn't seem "right" to me, so I decided to play around

with vintage suitcases/trunks. I'm liking this arrangement much better. This

lamp base was my grandma's. The suitcases - both thrifted over the years.

 Can you tell this is Zippo's favorite napping spot? He's in the original (first)

photo and now this one!

 That black cabinet used to be here next to the black ladder bookshelves. I moved

the cabinet to the end of the hallway and then made a new arrangement using a

vintage suitcase and  wicker chest, a stool, and a bunch of plants.

 This area in front of the windows is always hard to decorate, as it's right when

you walk in the front door. The black chair was a long ago Goodwill find and the

little table belonged to my grandma.

 And I just have to tell you all ~ good news on the AC and furnace front! My friend's

son, who does HVAC on the side, came over yesterday and was able to fix the

problem. It was the transformer on the furnace. Like I've said, I know we're living on

borrowed time considering both units are the original of the house - 26 years old! -

but with living on one income right now and a kid in college, the huge expense of

having to replace both units would've been...well, basically impossible. I'm incredibly

grateful that it was something relatively simple and that the cost wasn't too much.

Linking up to Cozy Little House Tweak it Tuesday
and
Show Me What Ya Got #167 

great weekend, changing some things around, and a hot, sticky mess

 Hello, friends! I hope those of you in the US had a wonderful, long holiday weekend.

It was a quiet Memorial Day weekend around here. One of my aunts visited

on Saturday for a few hours and then Tim came home on Sunday. Brian grilled

fresh bratwurst sausages from the butcher and I made potato salad. It was just the

three of us and it was perfect. Monday was hot and humid and our AC wasn't working

so we hung out in the basement family room and watched movies. Then we went out

to dinner and sat there for two hours having a great conversation. It is so cool to

be at the point in your life where you can have an adult conversation with your child

on a variety of topics. I'm so thankful we have such a close relationship.

 I moved some side tables in the house. I had a black cabinet next to this ladder

bookshelf, under the home sign. I replaced it with a lighter arrangement. Not too

sure what I think of this yet...you know me, constantly rearranging things! It might

be different later this week. Sometimes I just have to play with things and live

with it awhile to see how I like it. Other times, I know immediately if an arrangement

doesn't work.

 

I put the black cabinet next to the couch as an end table.

 And then the black spindle table that used to be the end table, got 

moved into Tim's room.

Speaking of Tim's room (that we're still updating), I found a red rug at IKEA...

 and ordered a masculine winter comforter from overstock.com. It's cotton

and very thick - great quality. But obviously too hot for the summer. So the red

and white checked thin cotton quilt will stay on the bed for the summer.

Back to moving tables around...this black table that you see in the corner of my

office was previously in front of the living room window topped with a lot of plants.

 I then moved those house plants out onto the front porch for the summer.

 So I mentioned at the beginning that it was hot and humid (my bare feet are sticking

 to the hardwood floors and even my kitchen cabinets are sticking to the frames!) 

and that our AC isn't working. We thought it was an electrical issue in the basement

 so we had an electrician come out to the house today. He did fix some loose wires in 

the basement light fixture that Brian recently put in and then we had him install a new

 outlet in Tim's room on a wall that didn't have an outlet. But the electrician said that 

our AC and furnace not working was not an electrical or circuit issue. The weird thing is,

 the furnace and AC stopped working exactly when Brian was installing that
replacement light fixture. We are crossing our fingers and praying that we don't need
 a new furnace or air conditioner - or both! But we also realize that we've been living
on borrowed time...

Both the furnace and central air conditioning unit are the original units of the house ~

25 years old! The electrician said it might be something as simple as that we need

a new thermostat - which is also original to the house. So now we have to have a 

heating and AC man come and check things out. Frustrating and nerve-wracking,

especially with having financial constrictions.

I am now heading out to my air-conditioned yoga class. Good thing I

don't practice hot yoga!