This was a problem for a senior citizen in Toronto who had a serious issue! Beth lives in a bungalow (no basement) and her hot water tank was located in a room behind her kitchen. The shut-off valve was rusted through and dripping, damaging her floors in the utility room and even flowing into her kitchen where the vinyl tiles were popping up. She called three different plumbers in Toronto, however they all wanted to charge her over $200 to replace about 6 inches of pipe and the valve (work would take approximately 20 minutes). Beth was able to finally get it fixed after she received our fall 2006 print directory. She contacted one of our plumbers who were able to help her out and even give a senior’s discount!

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For months, I would dream about moving into this blank slate that I could decorate from scratch. How exciting, right?

Well, I very quickly realized this was more difficult and terrifying than I ever imagined. Where do I start? Which room? How do I make sure it all goes together? Is it all supposed to look like a Pottery Barn catalogue or am I supposed to have different looks in each room? What pieces do I buy first? Why does it all cost so much?

So, I took a deep breath, and decided to do it room by room. First, the bedroom. I had a decent idea of what I wanted this to look like, so I took off to a local manufacturer and in one shot, got a bed, dresser and a couple of night tables. Done….right? Nope. Who knew that accessories were so critical? I needed pictures, little fake flowers, even a small wooden box for my dresser to make it catalogue-perfect. That only took 6 months.

Then, the living room. I decided to start with the rug. Why? Based on the advice of an interior decorator. She said to “find a rug I love and build up and around it.” Done. Who knew finding the right couch and chairs to go with it would be so hard? Brought home one set of fabrics. No good. Then another….and another. Finally, success. Only 2 more weeks to go until I have completed my 14 week wait time. Then I can start looking for a coffee table.

In the meantime, I have gotten used to avoiding the main floor of my house as there is nowhere to sit, eat or hang out. So, the decorating saga continues. I moved into my house in June, and 9 months later, I am still just so far from anywhere. I have a completed bedroom (almost - I hung up a bunch of frames with no actual pictures in them yet just to make it feel closer to finished,) a completed guest room and an office. The rest of the house is still a work in progress - one piece (at 10-12 week lead times) at a time!