Dining room debut

Since early 2009 I have been itching to redecorate my apartment. It took me a while to convince myself that it wasn't a frivolous endeavor, and to find my style. But it's finally starting to come together. One of the easiest rooms has been the dining room because it's so small I have to keep it pretty simple. This room was also the place where I first started experimenting with mixing textures and colors based on what I've learned from all the design blogs I read. It's not 100% done - I still want to get a new table* - but I'm very happy with the way it turned out.

Here's a rundown of the various elements in the room, where they came from, and the cost:

Wall Paint - Valspar "Woodrow Wilson Putty" from Lowe's ($21.75/gallon)

Silver Frames - IKEA RIBBA frames 8 3/4" x 11" (only $4.99 each!)
Canvas Rose Prints - Home Goods ($39.99 each)

Table runner - Home Goods ($13.80)

Updated pictures for frames - various photogs ($39.08)

Total cost of the makeover: $192.03

I already had the chairs (JCPenney), centerpience (Bed, Bath & Beyond), mirrored hutch (mom), and extra chair (JCPenney, cover from Target) so those were repurposed in the makeover. And I sold an old side table I didn't need for $10 on Craigslist, so that money offset some of the costs. Even so, this is a pretty cheap project for such a dramatic difference in the way the room looks. I love it!

And just for comparison, here is the closest I have to "before" pictures, taken right before a holiday party I had in 2008:

*My current table is a very traditional Ducan Fife style table that belonged to my great-grandmother. It's increadibly well-made in solid mahogony, but wasn't taken care of for many, many years so it's in rough shape. It's a bit too traditional for my taste otherwise I'd just have it refinished. But instead I'm going to sell it to an antiques person who can really restore it and use the proceeds to get a more contemporary table in a dark espresso finish.