Posse, my darlings! I had it allll planned! I was going to wax lyrical about lightweight leathers in downward-shifting temps, which is what we’re experiencing right now. Last week it was in the 90s, with 200% humidity. As of yesterday, it’s been in the 70s, with lowering skies and a decidedly Autumnal feel to the air.
And that’s as far as it goes becauuuse… the kindness of my friends !! OMG! So… y’all know about my POrCh! It is my beloved, even more than my bathroom – and that’s saying something. And I’d originally planned to have just a hangin’ out kinda space, with some comfy old chairs and maybe a Mason jar full of sweet tea and WHO AM I KIDDING!???!! Despite my efforts I just KNEW the porch would end up glammed-up because Musette ain’t no Mason jar kinda gal, no matter how many gerunds I drop! (and ick on the Sweet Tea). It started with thrift-store DR chairs and table that gave me hives every time I looked at them. And the original ‘seating’ area, with my sorta busted wicker wingbacks… etc etc. So I waited until clearances happened and got the sets I had been ogling since early Spring. Started with the chairs – and a neighbor – a very HANDY! neighbor – put them together for me (my job was to hold the parts and make sure they were matched up correctly). Then… OMG! A similar set of DR chairs – $197 for a box of two – marked down to $45/box! And there were TWO boxes!! O, Happy Day!
Then…
Well…. I reaaaally wanted the sofa because it’s rare that I just have another person here – it’s usually 4 or 6 – but it’s been a rough 18 months on the work front and I just couldn’t see myself spending yet MOAR money on furniture, even though it was on clearance. A Very Bestie of Bestness heard my whiiiine and… Birthday & Christmas & New Year & Valentine’s Day & Easter… all rolled into MY NEW SOFA!
…. the part where Hijinks Ensue…
Assembly Required. The most terrifying words in the quotidian Universe. Directions said ’40 minutes’. I now know how Gilligan felt on the 3-hr tour. My good friend M came over to ‘help’ because she has a spatial acuity that I lack and she can Figure Things Out. Lunch (because that is my superpower and people need to eat, bust a move on this sofa and BOOM! Done! 90 minutes tops!
Not this sofa. This sofa Ate Our Lunch. Ridiculous directions, parts not marked, etc. We started around 2p. We just finished about 30 minutes ago ( it’s nearly 9p). Well worth the struggle, though. The sofa is well made and once I talk some ‘guy’ (my contractor) into making sure that everything is tight (it currently is – sorta – but those screws need to be really tight. Oh! and have I mentioned that there’s a special place in Hell for whomever decided that An Entire Sofa (comprised of 3 interlocking sections) needed to be done with a beensy Allen wrench? I’d like to make that person eat a BAG of Allen wrenches! And no laxative for YOU, bucko!
However! I wore Daim Blonde (thanks to Cinnamon for the nudge). I feel like I’ve been run over by that sofa! But I smell delicious – that apricot giving a nod to the actual season (the end of stone fruit ) with the lovely suede weaving in and out of it. Uncle Serge really hit the mark with this one which, along with de Profundis, is at the pinnacle of Sergedom, imo. Ymmv, in which case… MOAR for me!!!
Squeeee! for my SOFA!!! and phenomenal friends!
Love the porch! On really hot, humidly horrific nights I’d be tempted to sleep on the sofa with a fan and/or portable aircon. Would need a mozzie net drape too, but that would look so glamorous in a White Mischief way
That is so very nice! I love how you set it all up. (Glad I could enlarge the pic.) That couch and chair are just my style. You have some marvelous plants there too. I can see why it all makes you happy! Enjoy!!!
I hear you on the weather too. Even though we’re back in the 90s all week, the nights definitely have a fall feel. Even I like it after this completely crazy summer.
This weather is NUTS!!! We’re flirting with 90s again, too, but the nights are glorious!!!
OK I laughed all the way through this but I would 100% have given up around hour 3 and said “nope, hire someone” so I’m glad you had a more stubborn friend there to help! It looks absolutely gorgeous and I am so, so happy for you, cuz I know how much it means to you <3
If I could’ve found someone to do it? You betcha!!! But M and I discussed options – and slim pickins’. In the end we prevailed!!!
What a huge accomplishment! Loved the thrifty bargain hunting, the patience you exhibited while waiting for stuff to be marked down. That sofa sounds amazing. The whole porch in fact. Wishing you pleasant early fall weather so you can enjoy it to the fullest before it gets truly cold. ?
Dina! Thank you!
… and it’s only going to get better… once my Cranky Contractor can do the outdoor kitchen and the table… (!)
Love covered porches. Don’t love Allen Keys.
Your space looks amazing. Enjoy!
I really need to try Daim Blonde again.
If you like a lighter stone fruit accord then you might like DB. It really is magical, in a quieter Uncle Serge way.
And I’m okay with Allen ( whomever he was) creating the Allen Key/ wrench- it’s the lunatic who designed the sofa… with 30 screws, in stupidly placed areas, requiring a small Allen. THAT’S the guy I want to punch in the throat. Preferably with one of those Allens
I love your porch! V glam.
When I drank I used one of those handled mason jars (watered down white wine on ice- I wasn’t a committed drinker) now it’s cold unsweetened iced tea, out of the bottle. Because I am re-fayened, dontcha know.
You are MOAR refayened, dahlink!!!
WOO HOO! So excited that your porch is now the porch of your dreams Musette. I love the idea of you and your mates spending languorous afternoons drinking,. laughing and chinwagging till the cows come home.
YAY
Portia xx
It’s FABULOUS! And I hope some day you and Jin can come enjoy it with me! Xoxo