a more complete living room

As my last post said I went to IKEA last weekend to get some shelving for our living room. I knew which ones I wanted to get, but once I got there I of course picked out some different ones. :-) The ones I wanted were $69.99 each,  I of course picked out ones more expensive.. But I was willing to pay more since they had a little more character. I wrote down the aisle and section they were on and once Emily and I made it through the store we went to get them. To my surprise when we got downstairs the shelving that I had picked out were marked $79.99 - not $99.99 that was posted on the display upstairs! YEAH! Not sure why they were marked down but I didn't care! Here is what I got:

{IKEA Expedit Shelving Unit}

{Adam putting them together}

{Adam starting to put his records on the shelves}

{and complete}

The brown rug was my purchase from Urban Outfitters. A 5"x7" chenille rug for only $29 - it must have been a return or something to be marked so low! It's a good thing I got it because I got an email today from Urban Outfitters saying that my charcoal rug I purchased was on back order and they don't anticipate getting any more in. I'm kinda bummed because I think the charcoal one would look really good, but for the price difference I'm happy with brown for now.  We defiantly needed a rug!

The only negative about the shelving is that I had to move the end table and lamp from the one end of the couch. I think it looks pretty good between the 2 chairs {at first I was really worried that the owl lamp would be too big next to the little chairs, but I think it works}

I'm really happy with how they turned out, and Adam's records fit perfectly which was the main reason for getting shelving! I'm still working on accessorizing the shelves, but for now I love it. I feel like we have a cozier/more complete living room now!

Trip to IKEA

Adam has a pretty large record collection, and he listens to them almost every day! His records have never had a home except for laying around in the living room and lining the guest room wall. So we've been on the hunt for some shelving to house them. At one point we considered building something, but after my mom priced some wood we found that getting something already built would be about the same cost and cut out the tricky building part & painting.

I've been parusing magazines and blogs trying to find some ideas and inspirations for a shelving unit. That's when I came across Chic Little House. The layout in her living room is the same as in ours and I loved the way the shelving looked on both sides of the TV.  Would this work in our house?

{I did a little quick photoshopping to see}

Yup! I think I like it!

So an IKEA trip was quickly planned. Adam hates IKEA, so he came up with a plan, "I'll stay home but I'll put together anything you bring home." DEAL! I was already planning on meeting my bff Emily so it worked out perfect! I woke up early Saturday morning, got ready, made Em & I sack lunch, and hit the road! We met at Bridgeport for a little pre IKEA shopping and coffee. While there we went to Peets for coffee {yum!} Anthropology {where I got some cute soap and lotion for the bathroom} and Urban Outfitters {where I found a rug that I had just ordered online only in a different color for $29 - instead of $49+ shipping online, I got it}. Then we were off to IKEA. I had made a list of things I needed with measurements and also packed a tape measure, trying to cut down on the indecisiveness of "will this fit?" "will this work?" "do I really need it?" that is inevitable to happen there! 

A few hours later, and a few extra things in our cart that wasn't on the list.. and we were done! I was happy with my purchases.I dropped Emily off at her car at Bridgeport then headed home.

This is what I bought:

 

 :-) Wondering what it is? Check back soon for an update!