House Updates--Kitchen, Living Room, OH MY!

We have been BUSY this weekend with house projects. First of all, I should probably tell y'all that we re-arranged the living room. This actually happened several weeks ago in order to make room for a desk so that we can extend the life of the laptop that started to shut off anytime it was moved. You can see what the living room looked like before {here}. And here's what it looks like now:

Obviously, I still need a chair for the desk!

You may have noticed that there are no longer any throw pillows. Well, after making the throw pillows, I discovered that my husband apparently has a deep seeded hatred for throw pillows and likes to throw them across the room with all his might any time they happen to occupy the same couch (not even seat) that he is. He also likes to initiate pillow fights with toddlers. Needless to say, the heat-bond slipcovers were toast in about three days. I thought about sewing them, but I actually think I'd like something a little different and have been keeping my eye out at Ross and TJ Maxx--I just have such a hard time shelling out $8-$12 on a single stinking throw pillow! Sigh.

You know what I *did* do though? I took the advice that {Amanda} and {Nessa} gave in that previously linked post and put some scrapbook paper in the back of the hutch. For those of you just tuning in, the story with the hutch is that I have always wanted to paint it, but Justin thinks painting wood is practically a mortal sin and would rather give it away to a "good home" than paint it. He really likes it and the matching buffet, and so I have tried to incorporate it into our decor, because it's his home too. I thought that the scrapbook paper was a great idea that might make it feel more contemporary without doing any damage to the wood. Also, I wanted to display some of the blue/turquoise Pyrex that I'm now the proud owner of instead of just wine glasses, and I thought it just needed a re-do. I found a packet of scrapbook paper on sale for $2.50 and thought I'd give it a go. Anyway, here it is:

I also took a cue from {Katie} and made a yarn wreath for fall:

Wreath forms were more than $10 at Michael's, so I just used some plumbing foam insulation that I duct taped together instead. In retrospect, I definitely should have used thicker foam, but oh well. Live and learn. Our door is metal, so I just hot-glued some magnets to the back to attach it to the door.

Justin has also been hard at work this weekend building shelving and a work bench in the garage. I cannot wait until we can (a) actually walk in the garage and (b) actually find the things in the garage that we're looking for:

AND MOST EXCITINGLY--THE CABINETS IN THE KITCHEN ARE DONE! 

Yes, all that bolding and caps was totally necessary. 

First, here's a "before" pic--actually from the MLS listing before we bought it:

And now:

Yep, it was totally worth all the work. Totally. I have no idea whether improvements like the kitchen and building shelves into the garage are things that we'd recoup if we ever go to sell, but they were all such small investments that really give a lot of bang for their buck in terms of us loving the house and using it to its full potential...so it's worth it to me!