Price My Space {with Nester} . . .

Over at Nester's blog {you simply must check her out if you love decorating or laughing} is a little "Price My Space" party. I love seeing how people pull off fabulous decor with little to no budget, and Nester is a consumate professional in this arena. I thought I'd price out my dining room today, not only because it's the cleanest room in the house {always, since it's at the front door} but also because it is chock full of bargains. Here we go!

1. Table purchased for $199.00 at a Pottery Barn scratch & dent store eight years ago. Two days after buying it, my nephew took a fork to it and gave it a real vintage look.

2. Four Napoleon style chairs purchased eleven years ago at another scratch & dent store for $20.00 each. They've been painted three times and I'm not wild about the current state of the seats after I spray painted them the last time, but I'm 40 weeks pregnant, so they won't be changing any time soon.

3. Chandelier courtesy of Pottery Barn Outlet for $60.00. Shades from my personal collection, which is a little out of control. I like that this "chandie" is a little masculine, which works well with the color palette in the room of khakis and blacks.

4. Artwork by cheapskate me. I pulled the "S" off the internet and printed it on my laser printer. The other print came from a library sale I attended while I was in college. I got 10 prints for $2.00. The frames were from my unused collection and were sprayed with paint from my garage stash. My brother helped me cut the mats which he already had.

5. China curio from "Four Shabby Chicks" for $269.00. It is the most expensive piece in the room, but I still think it was a good deal. It houses my wedding china and other favorite white dishes.

6. I don't know what this is called - for some reason I think it has to do with Galileo, but I got it at a garage sale for $5.00 because it was missing the little arrow from the top. It weighs about 20 pounds and gives a little architectural element to the room.

7. Ahh, the infamous wall of plates - none costing more than 75 cents - all purchased at thrift stores, garage sales or tag sales. I love that they are creams and whites of varying shades. I'm not afraid to mix my whites and neither should you be!

8. The sideboard was another great find from "Four Shabby Chicks" and was $169.00, badly in need of a scrub down and with a broken shelf inside. I love it anyway - a great surface for holiday decorating and a great place to hide miscellaneous dishware!

9. We've had these lamps our entire marriage. I got them at Fred Meyer, a Mountain West store I don't even think exists anymore. They were and still are cheap looking and cheaply made, but they work with nice Restoration Hardware shades that I purchased with a gift card from my MIL.

10. These parsons chairs were a huge steal at my local Salvation Army Thrift Store at $40.00 for the pair - already slipcovered in a fabric that worked with my color scheme. I don't love buying "soft goods" at thrift stores, just a little icky feeling for me, but I couldn't pass these up.

11. More cheap art: Large gold frame came from a garage sale for $2.oo. The pear print was a find at a thrift store, also for $2.00 and framed at Michael's Craft on a 60% off coupon.

12. Mirror from a little local store called "Really Great Finds" for $39.00 - not too cheap, but perfect size to go between my cream on cream striped silk drapes from Target. com at $39.00 a panel.

13. Solid walnut demi-lune table was a treasured find at a garage sale. It is in perfect condition, but I only had $15.00 left in my pocket. The sweet grandma selling it thought I would give it a nice home . . . bless her soul!

And that's my dining room. I'd add up the total, but it's too late at night for me to do math in my head, and as I said, I'm 40 weeks pregnant so I don't feel like getting up to grab a calculator. I just wanted to add my agreement to that of Nester's - you can do a lot with hardly any money and it doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful.