Sofa, So Good

Still on a roll, I was spending the wee hours of the weekend morning, trawling Craigslist, when I came upon the sofa of my desires. This was the 3-seater-cum-overnighter which I had been salivating after for a while!

On a frugality drive when I first moved, I had amassed a mishmash of furniture from various kind friends with spare furniture. Now, I finally feel ready to decorate my little cave with Thing I Love (or at least, Things I Want). And so, the hunt had begun, which included much trawling of the secondhand shops and websites of people wanting to clear their caves.

Torn. I was torn between 2 sofas, both of which I had set my heart on, and both of which were now going for a fraction of their original price. It's a sign! I'm MEANT to buy at least ONE of them! After some soul searching, I decided a single gal who's not quite "the hostess with the mostest" doesn't REALLY need a 4-by-2-seater L-shaped sofa... besides, the whole point of getting such a long sofa was to have a "spare bed" for the odd overnight guest (it's not happened yet but one can hope!). And so, for the princely sum of $200, I got myself the sofa of my desires, and had it delivered to my place this morning.

All fired up with enthusiasm, I skipped yoga class this evening to rush home, just so I could get started on piecing this together. Now, I have to admit, it DOES help to have been a Technical student previously, and to hold a decent 'O' Level in "Fashion & Fabrics". This secondhand disassembled sofa did not come with instructions. I had to piece it all together like a jigsaw puzzle without a picture.

Pieces of the jigsaw puzzle, waiting to be pieced together.

Wrapped up bits of the sofa, waiting to be unwrapped and identified.

Two hours of much heaving and shoving and meddling with some nuts and bolts later...

Ta-dah! My new sofa! *pat on own back* Now, you must excuse me while I go lie down on the bed I made (literally)...

The Karang Guni Woman Strikes again!

One man's discarded poison ...

...is another woman's treasured find! With much embarrassment and stealth, I picked this up from the lift lobby under the cloak of night and hastily carted it back to my little cave. Quick wipe down, et voila! It'll be put to good use under the kitchen counters for more organized storage! Alternatively, it could be a chic little drinks trolley...so many uses I can dream up for its second life...

On the prowl for more bargains, I hit my usual second-hand haunts this weekend. I was determined to lay my eager little hands on a bronze horse lamp I had spotted a couple of weeks ago. Unconvinced that I could not get this at a lower price from another shop, I did some price comparisons around the shops over the past few weeks. Tail between my legs, I acknowledged that this was a bargain, and headed back to the shop, waving my chequebook at them...
Spotted two other worthy lamps, agonized over the choices, spent some minutes justifying the buys, and finally plonked down the cold hard cash for them. Here they are! A bronze Qilin lamp, and...
I know, I know. Somewhat not in the same character as the other two lamps. But still very "me". Whilst the other two would give a more "sophisticated" modern asian look, this one's retro-modern. It'll blend right into the eclectic mix of my little cave. Hmm, now...where shall I place these new acquisitions to most dramatic effect?? Decisions, decisions...

Life

Most people work just hard enough not to get fired and get paid just enough money not to quit. - George Carlin

A Room With A View

Stood at my window, admiring the spectacular closing performance of the day. And yet, even with a front row seat to such a beautiful view, I still hanker for more. A view of water?

The hunt begins.