Wallpaper…

Janet and I met with an interior designer today from Urban Source. Just before we moved in we stopped in to Urban Source to check out their selection of fabrics and wall coverings. They also happened to be having a drawing for a complimentary 1-hour design consultation, which was actually the main reason we went in.

As it turns out, I was the big winner for that day. We met with the designer this morning with an open mind and a firm agenda, which Janet had well thought out. We asked a lot of questions that were particular to our space and style. Surprisingly, things went well. I should point out that even though we have a very similar style Janet has a reluctancy to pull the trigger when purchasing furniture and I have a tendency to want to purchase every piece I like and try to find a space for it.

The designer understood our tastes so we agreed to at least entertain the idea of having a 2nd meeting to discuss layout and scaling. I’m very excited to see what she comes up with. We all seemed to agree on the majority of furniture pieces that Janet and I had already looked at purchasing, but layout was of particular concern for both Janet and I.

Janet nor I have worked with an interior designer before so this will be an interesting twist to our design ideas.

My Sunday…

While not technically design related, something interesting happened yesterday. Janet and I were on our way to visit a particular antique store on the north side. It was a beautiful day out and we’ve been excited to take the scooter out since we just recently got it running again.

Anywho, we’re cruising along Broadway near Wilson and all of a sudden the scooter, Henry, sort of jumps, kind of similar to a car when it’s running out of gas. Knowing this isn’t the case since we just filled up the day before, I start to kind of steer to the left. I don’t have much room since we’re in the left lane already and I don’t necessarily want to turn into oncoming traffic. At this point the scooter shuts off and the back tire locks up leaving us skidding at about 45 mph on a traffic-filled street. Fortunately, the car behind us was paying close attention and was able to veer out of the way.

Long story short, Henry, our scooter, isn’t quite running at the moment. A friend is coming to pick it up this evening to see about fixing it. We did salvage the day, though. We ended up at Broadway Antique Market and picked up a small side table, which is what I was in the market for.

I’ll post pictures of that soon, but for now, enjoy Henry…

Hello, readers…

So, this will serve as the first official post for inside-the-aviary.

My girlfriend and I just purchased our first condo, a two bedroom beauty, on the north side of Chicago. We’re very excited, but a little overwhelmed. This site will serve as our textual (and visual) chronicle of our progress. The plan is to also take some good pictures of the places we purchase furniture, paint, etc.

Also, feel free to jump in when you’ve got some advice…