Price my space at The Nester's place

It's The Nester's Price My Space party today and I decided to show off our dining room. The Little Guys and I spend the majority of our day gathered either in the kitchen or in this room.

The view from the hallway leading into the room.

1. Dining room table. (World Market) We paid about $600 for this table 5-6 years ago. The price was great for this table and I even assembled it myself. It is a gorgeous dark wood, rectangular and solid. It's also HUGE. It's perfect for everything from dinner parties to crafts. I will have this table forever.

2. Dining room chairs. (World Market) These were about $120 each, which was a sale from $200. While they are not my favorite, my husband liked them and that they matched the table. I pick my battles, so I let that one go. They're really big and awkward, and we actually have 4 more hidden away in another room for when we have company. Ideally, I'd like to get black Windsor chairs and get rid of these.

3. Accent table and chair. (Flea market finds) The two were about $15 total. The lamp which is hard to see is a cute little rooster and I picked that up at Homegoods for about $30 last summer. The basket that I'm using as a drawer was a 40% off Michael's purchase and cost about $15.

4. Chandelier. (IKEA) The chandy was $35 and the shades were about $3 a piece from Michael's. After looking at it for the past 5 years, I finally recovered them with the red gingham.

5. Cafe curtains. (IKEA by way of one of my dear friends) Free. A good girlfriend of mine had these panels, and after moving out of the city and into the suburbs, didn't know where to put them. She gave them to me and I turned them into cafe curtains, with tons of extra fabric to spare. I love, love, love (big pink puffy heart!!) these. They are light and airy and I just adore the red and pink roses on them.

6. Ledges. (Target) I'm having a hard time remembering what I paid for these since I bought them so long ago, but I would guess about $10 each (there is one on each side of the window in case you can't see). I've struggled with what to put on them for years, but have finally fallen in love with the simplicity of white dishes and other odds and ends. The dishes and other decorations are things that I've had around the house, and range from Bloomingdale's to flea market prices.

The view from the kitchen into the room.

7. Hutch. (World Market, again) Both pieces (top and bottom) were a Valentine's day gift from my hubby 3-4 years ago, and I think combined, cost around $750. I knew I wanted a painted hutch, and went back and forth between black and red. After researching and researching, this was the cheapest we could find. I love it with its tons of cabinet space and doors up top.

Here are a few close-ups of some of the details around the room.

One of the ledges. I adore that Ralph Lauren plate in the middle. It's part of a set we got as wedding gifts, which also includes two darling cake stands. I know I need to work on adding to the ledges and would like to hang white platters beneath them, a la Nester herself.

I love that summer means freshly cut flowers from the yard.

The planter in the middle of the table is another Homegoods purchase. I have 3 glossy pots in it with my favorite, impossible to kill philodendrons. Elaborate centerpieces are not my style, so this is easy enough and is a cinch to pick up and move when it's time to eat or I need to clear the table.

The view of the top of the hutch. It's a little too country for me now, but until I think of something better, it's staying. I may do something with a collection of mason jars or maybe crocks. I'm not sure. I do love that weathered flower pot, though. I've had it and that plant since before we got married.
A little bit lower view of the hutch.

And in the interest of full disclosure, this is what the room looks like when the two little tornadoes aren't napping. It's a sweet reminder of the giggles and happiness that I love in our home.

One question that many people have asked is the name of the green paint on the walls. Um, I have no idea. I chose it when we first bought the house 5+ years ago, and only remember it being from a Martha Stewart paint chip from Kmart.

I took that chip to the Sherwin Williams store (can't beat getting Hubby's contractor pricing--$8 a gallon!) and have subsequently taken chips of broken plaster for them to match.

I hope you've enjoyed the tour of our dining room. This is definitely a room in our house that I love and has been worth every penny!