First of all, let me start this post off by saying that the enthusiasm I received from the last post is just the right sort of positive energy I needed, thank you so mucho! Yes, I am the type of person that needs to know that what I am is producing matters, I apologize for my neediness in advance, but I hope that you know that it means so much to me that so many of you took the time to tell me so. It feels good, and makes this feel like there is some”one” (aka “people”) on the other end.
It also feels like a fresh start, for instance instead of texting two of my best friends asking if I should buy these chairs or not (who I also did ask), while trying to reason my way through it, I’m gonna ask you guys at midnight, 3/4’s into a bottle of Champagne, on a Thursday, what you think.
Basically, I am Alaskan Bush person now, and I barter. Jeff an I made a furniture/cabin supply budget of $4k going into this adventure. We’ve allocated every, penny and spent 3/4 of it thus far. This is where the bartering comes into play… We were planning on spending $350 for a leather ottoman (noticed first at the thegoldhive.com) and then I got side tracked by these two olive drab, army green canvas covered chairs from urban outfitters that just might be perfect for in front of the fireplace (and they are on sale!). I had no idea they existed until I saw Sarah Samuel Sherman post about how much she loves her set on her IG story. I screen-shotted them to show you, me, Waff, anyone – is that OK? Yes, they cost more than the ottoman (by $250) but I think we could spend lightly the next few weeks and make the difference up. Is it worth it? I think it could be super cool to sit in front of the fire place on these beauts, and it brings in that desperately needed bit of cabin-green, plus of course the functionality of sitting. They look good from the back too! You already know that I’m sold. It’s gonna be good. Now the bartering begins.
While they look really nice, I’d worry that the pillow sides would get slouchy and out of shape very quickly.
Honestly, I am worried about that too. Fingers crossed that won’t be the case.
they have such cool camp/safari vibe. I say go for it. You could still sneak a (cheaper) leather ottoman in, right?
Also, meant to comment on your last post. I dig what you have going on on the blog. You do you, at your own pace. I love your garden posts and cabin plans. So excited to see what you do with the place.
Hey Helen! I would love to sneak a leather ottoman into the equation, maybe after we close. Thanks for your comment about the blog, I think I’ve tried to keep up (barely) with what’s going on in the blogging world, and I just can’t cut it. Gonna just do it the old fashioned way and let it be what it is.
There’s nothing like scrolling through your daily blog reads to find your blog mentioned! :)
As for my ottoman – I got it during the craze of the 6-week One Room Challenge. I searched high and low for something that had it’s casual look and dimensions. For that, it’s perfect! However, it’s kind of like a big balloon. When it sits by itself it looks plump (too plump) but when I put my feet on it, it deflates and my feet sink in. I’ve adjusted the filling a bunch but haven’t landed on the perfect amount. I think I’m going to get some rigid foam and replace the soft filling to make it hold more of a rectangular shape and hope that helps. I’ll be sure to update you and fellow readers as soon as I figure out the perfect hack.
Until then, enjoy those green chairs – I love ’em!
Hey Ashley! Such a bummer to hear about the filling, thanks for sharing. I’ll keep my eyes peeled in case you do come up with a solution for it. I have to say it looks awesome in your space, especially with the blue!
CHAIRS! CHAIRS! CHAIRS! CHAIRS!
! ! ! !
Get the chairs! Have you purchased furniture from Urban before? They wear super fast. BUT, for a second home that isn’t getting as much use, I think they’d be worth it.
Never have I ever purchased any big piece from UO before, and I like your angle! I am a little wary of the quality, but at the same time they look so good, for a reasonable price. They won’t get as much use as the sofa and womb chair in the main seating area, so fingers crossed.
Love the vibe you’re going for. I think the chairs are super unique and you’ll kick yourself if you don’t get them. Leather ottomans have been a staple for years and you’ll always be able to find one if you have to wait a while to fit it into the budge. Who knows how long the chairs will be around?
Yes, you are right. I can always get a leather ottoman, I can’t always get these chairs! I think they are exactly the piece I was looking for, and the price is hard to beat.
Love the vibe you’re going for. I think the chairs are super unique and you’ll kick yourself if you don’t get them. Leather ottomans have been a staple for years and you’ll always be able to find one if you have to wait a while to fit it into the budge. Who knows how long the chairs will be around?
CHAIRS!! (although I’ve had that exact pouf saved in my Etsy favorites since last summer, ha!)
Jess! What do you think of the pouf? Does it keep it’s shape? I love the look of it. I’m going to need way more leather in this space.
I have no green whatsoever in my gray-navy-red little world, but I think the army green is neutral enough that it would GO! So yes, GO for it!
Hey Kay! I’m hoping it will work. Our house is all shades of blue and I love it, but green is my favorite color and I’m excited to use it a bunch in this cabin!
CHAIRS! Also, did you see on ChrisLovesJulia that you can get early access to Urban Outfitter’s sale (and extra off) if you sign up for their loyalty whatever, which is just email and birthday? Check out their post for more info, but that might make them even cheaper ;)
Monica! I did see the early access thing, but I couldn’t figure it out because I am an old grandma, so I just went for it and bought the chairs. Most likely I’d spend all the time signing up just to find out that they’d only let you do one deal, or one promo code at a time. Usually I try and get all the deals though :)
If you want MY opinion (and you most likely don’t) I’d say “no.” Not a fan. But you do have excellent taste Scoops, don’t let me deter you.
I do want your guyses opinions, for real! I did pretty much have my mind set when I started writing the post, but that’s not always the case. I appreciate you letting me know what you think. I was on the search for something with green canvas, and I didn’t know exactly what ‘it’ looked like until I saw these chairs. I also like the look of these butterfly-style chairs from Target (which I found after the fact), they are much less expensive (and a bit inexpensive looking).
I dig the look of those chairs and think they’d be perfect for a cabin. I like that they’re much cheaper than my current chair obsession (https://www.westelm.com/products/origami-leather-lounge-chair-h2136/?cm_src=PIPRecentView). Too bad the green doesn’t go with anything in my house, or I’d be tempted to get that chair myself!
BTW, I meant to comment on your last post. I actually found your blog pretty recently, after a comment Daniel made in the comments at Manhattan Nest, and I have to say I’m really digging what you’re doing here. (I spent like 2 weeks reading your archives.) It’s actually really bummed me out how many of my favorite bloggers have turned into paid “lifestyle” bloggers, and it feels like every damn post is shilling something and it stops being relateable when people get so much stuff for free that they can basically buy their way out of decorating/renovation issues. It starts to feel like the fun and joy is going missing now that they’re pretty much required to post, and I stop being so interested in reading. (Plus all the annoying popups and ads make the posts really hard to load on my old Chromebook.) I’d much rather read a blog where there are posts only when there’s something you want to share, vs feeling like you’ve gotta crank something out. Like, I get why people do it, and I can’t say I wouldn’t be tempted if the opportunity arose, but it still bums me out.
Anyway, I love your house and your evolving style and am super excited to see what you do with your cabin project on a “real person” budget and timeline instead of getting a bunch of sponsored stuff and making it instantly into a magazine spread.
Hey Lori! Thanks for your comment, and sorry for the delay in reply. We headed out on a week long vacation the morning after I posted this (dur), and I am just catching up now. Whoops! I totally missed that Daniel mentioned me in the comments, of course I had to head over to his blog and see what he said. Made my day to be listed in his top reads, he’s still one of my favorites – thanks for letting me in on it :)
First of all, those WE chairs rule even though they cost a buttload. I don’t know how I hadn’t seen them before. I have no room for green in my house either, and I’m excited to have a place to use it now – it’s my favorite color.
I totally feel the same way about a lot of blogs that you do, and on a selfish level it bums me out that it’s not the same as it used to be. That being said, it just is what it is. I think a lot of bloggers feel responsible to the reader for creating a certain type of content at a certain frequency because some readers feel entitled to content. It is a paid bloggers job to produce content and to keep an audience happy, and inspired, I get it. I can’t say I blame either party. It has become a weird cyclical relationship between readers and bloggers. Yes bloggers want people to read and look at what they write, and readers want access to the inspiration, and information they find on blogs. The whole relationship changes when ads start popping up all over blog websites and a lot of post are sponsored. Also, I agree that it becomes unrelatable when it goes straight to posts filled with freebies that require a “team” to produce.
I realize it’s kind of a copout because I’m skirting the line, I have ads now (the last three or four months), and I use affiliated links when applicable, BUT my net “income” is less than $100 a month which I in turn I spend on a service that helps me with security and back-end-wordpress stuff, so in my mind it’s a wash. I actually feel like a dummy for not getting some of that chedda’ earlier on to cover my costs. I can see how a reader might see it differently though.
I’m not really going anywhere with this, other than the fact that I agree with you. I love reading blogs, and I wish there were more good ol’ ones around.
YYYYYeeeesssssss!!!! Buy those chairs. One day, you’ll be like “Way back in 2017, I decided to take the plunge and buy those green chairs, knowing they were perfect for the next chapter”. Can’t go wrong with UO furniture, high design for a small price. Do it!
did you see this? your chairs!!!
http://sarahshermansamuel.com/a-frame-living-room-before-after/
Sweet! Good to hear that you endorse UO furniture, this will be my first purchase. I can’t wait to get these babies up to the cabin. And yes, I saw the post! That lady is speaking my language r n. We have v similar ideas about how our cabins should look.
Long time lurker, first comment from a former MPLS now NYC peep. Dooooooo Eeeeeiiiiitttttttt. Cabin vibes all the way! Plus, 2 for the price of almost one- rationalize like that last 1/4 bottle of champs.
Alecia! You speakin’ my language with that ‘champ rationalization. That is how one should make all of life’s important decisions. Seriously, I was doing the math and I was all like “basically it’s the same price as that ottoman” … (not)
Ooh. This might be what our sunroom needs. We painted the room an olive color, got this CB2 sofa
https://www.cb2.com/breton-black-metal-sofa/s267345
and have an old Nate Berkus for HSN (!) olive and cream rug. Now we just need chairs to balance it out. The only concern is that the room is TEENY like most sunrooms. I may need to have a consultation with you on the arrangement…
Sargeypoo! Why am I spacing on your secret “sunroom”? Seriously, I am not remembering this space. First of all, love that sofa. Secondly, I am sure Matt will be happy that you are not blowing the rug budget and instead reusing a rug you already have. I would be happy to consult!
They look light enough to pick up and move around which is kind of key at the cottage. Sometimes you want to be right next to the fire and others you want to be with the group–or even move them out onto the screen porch if needed. Although this rambling is due to 3/4 of a bottle of wine and some serious procrastinating on my studying–studying does not get easier with age, season or location (the cottage screen porch should be awesome for studying but just makes a person resentful and prone to drinking and commenting on blogs).
I thought about the move-ability too, Becky! Especially when we are entertaining larger groups and not everyone wants to sit on the sofa. Ha, I love your 3/4 bottle of wine perspective on studying, sounds pretty solid!
Nice army green chairs for the fireplace. Love this post.