Look What I Did Today!

This is our "before" pic

A dear friend of mine is an interior designer. I asked her for some ideas on what to do with our overly-large bedroom. I know, having a large bedroom is not REALLY a problem, but it just didn't look finished, no matter how much I put in the room.

When I began contemplating a stripper pole (don't worry Mom, I'm only joking) and tanning booth, I turned to her for help-- and she suggested custom built-ins.

I LOVED the idea--but I didn't love the price tag. She then told me about the mother of all good deals: IKEA; apparently they have GREAT built ins... the only catch is YOU have to assemble them.

If you know me, you know I've been an IKEA groupie for years... buying stuff here and there. For goodness sake, my bedroom outfit (when I lived with my roomies in the city) was IKEA... in fact, I invested in a new set every few years because my taste was always changing.

And don't even get me started on the kid's stuff! Such a great deal-- and more importantly, durable!

Long story short, another friend of mine that was interested in installing built ins bit the bullet on the IKEA Liatorp series. After hearing her thoughts, I immediately followed suit. I bought them yesterday and arranged to have them delivered today (for the record, $99 to have the folks at IKEA deliver the ridiculously heavy furniture is worth EVERY penny!).

They arrived at 10 am... and by 9:30 p.m... I. Am. Done! And so am I, unfortunately.

I'm seriously EXHAUSTED! I built those "son-uva b's" all by my lonesome, except for the hoisting of the middle shelf, to which I referred to my muscular hubby to hold it up.

Needless to say, my manicure is shot. My back is aching. And I'm keeping my eyes open with toothpicks (and wine).

But you know what?! My bedroom is GORGEOUS, now! Here is a little preview of the progress I made throughout the day:

Now I just need to invest in accessories... and apparently a larger TV. :-/