Sometimes it pays to be a crazy neighbor stalker

I posted Sunday night about the dining room and needing more textiles and I said “In a perfect world, I’d love a long upholstered bench or settee along the wall.” I kid you not, Monday morning I was driving down the street and in one of my neighbors yards, next to a crazy high pile of stacked furniture, there it was…a long wood and velvet couch. It was just like I had always imagined, it had a lovely 70’s style wood frame, obviously refinish able, with upholstered seat cushions and a button tufted back! (I wish I had a photo of it in the yard…crazy hoarder!)

I seriously did a triple take! I even turned around and drove back by slowly, but then went on with my errands. When I returned home, I decided it was time to take the dog on a recon mission and take a better look at the couch. Yep, still loved it!

Later that evening when I picked Jesse up from the bus, I started to tell him about “our neighbor with the stock pile of furniture in the yard” and he interrupted to tell me he saw a couch in the pile that he thought I would like! FATE! The couch was obviously meant to be mine, but I still had to figure out how to approach the neighbor. I wasn’t super comfortable knocking on his door, so I thought I would just continue my stalking practices waiting for a sign that it was for sale.

Tuesday on the way to work I went out of my way to drive by the house, no car in front. On my lunch break I took Leia on a walk by the house, no car. Then on my way back to work he passed me! With a huge desk strapped to the top of his station wagon! So my hunt would have to resume after work. On my way home from work I passed by again and he was in the yard! I ran home and grabbed Jesse and we took Leia on another walk! I think that I look less suspicious if I’m walking a dog.

He was right there at the sidewalk unloading a bunk bed, from his car. Obviously! I mean this guy was 71 (he told us) and all he does is load and unload Goodwill furniture from his car. He tried to convince me that I woudn’t be interested in any of his furniture, but was thrilled when I was happy to pay him $15 for it. He even whispered to Jesse “your wife has bad taste.” I won’t even go into how long we spent listening to his stories about the people he meets at Goodwill, or a woman with the same name as our dog, OR how awkward it was when he insisted we come inside while his 19 year old aspiring bartender friend (who he had only met the previous day at none other than Goodwill) was in the kitchen showing him how to make cocktails with cherry coke! But by 9:30pm it was MINE!

It really is going to look lovely! I am working on picking the perfect fabric and color for the wood! I can’t wait to get started on it. Unfortunately we will have a 3/4 finished walkway that we need to complete first. But hopefully in the next few weeks.

I purchased some new curtain panels for the dining room from World Market which I am excited about. I think it definitely adds more color and gives me more color options to pull from!