Extreme Makeover Apartment Edition

Lately I've been really disenchanted with our apartment. While it is a decent size for a one bedroom apartment (734 square feet), we have a ton of shit and not very much storage. We still have stuff in boxes from when we moved in June, which is really pathetic. In order to mend this situation, we've made these goals:

1. Come up with a different arrangement for the furniture. This will probably entail moving some stuff into the bedroom, because right now our livingroom is very overcrowded.



2. Get rid of stuff. This includes the washer and dryer that have been sitting on our balcony. Any takers?



3. Come up with creative storage ideas. We've put the bed on risers so we can store stuff underneath it, but haven't yet purchased storage containers that can slide under the bed. I'm think that buying a flat screen TV would save tons of space, but Matt isn't convinced. :)



This is a picture of the model apartment in our complex (ours is the exact same layout):

While that looks nice, the model apartment doesn't have the following items that we have: 2 bookcases, TV with stand, desk with computer, loveseat.

I've been looking at Apartment Therapy all morning to get ideas, but I am not feeling inspired. Any suggestions?

Home improvement on a budget

This past weekend Matt and I went to Moab to hang out with my parents and to actually get a glimpse of the sun. In case you didn't know, it's been raining constantly in Salt Lake for the past couple weeks.

On Saturday, while the dudes (Matt and my dad) went to the hardware store and did other manly things, my mom and I stopped by an estate sale in my parents' neighborhood. While I was tempted to get some of the bling-blingy Waterford Crystal, $80 was about $75 past my budget. Instead, my mom generously bought me two barstools for $2 each, since our new apartment has a little bar area.

The stools weren't in the best condition, so I washed off the wooden parts and took the seats off. My mom helped me re-cover the seats with some leftover fabric she used to reupholster her dining room chairs. I feel weird about copying her and using the same fabric, but I liked it a lot and it's treated with Scotch Guard, so it hopefully won't stain when the inevitable spill occurs.

What do you think? Hopefully there will be more home projects in the weeks to come, including a DIY headboard for our bed.