This week, we found out that Genie is moving to Boston this summer! She wants to minimize the amount of stuff she lugs across the country, so the move means no new furniture aside from the pieces she's already bought for her budget makeover. We'll have to do more with less. So far some decluttering, rearranging, and a couple new pieces have made a big difference. Click below for more pictures.

The new dinette set (shown in the top photo) goes really well in the alcove. We put the old chairs in basement storage, centered the desk, and decluttered the space.

Two bookshelves and the sofa used to be crammed along the west wall, which made this side of the apartment seem heavy and cluttered. We rearranged some furniture, leaving one bookshelf and opening up the exposed brick which faces the kitchen. Traffic flow now moves more easily through this area.

Before, the living room furniture was oriented to face the TV. By moving the sofa to the south wall and turning the swivel chair to face both the sofa and television, we created a conversation area. We went bold with accent colors in this room. We added the 2nd-hand orange lamp (which Nicole cleaned inside and out) and the brightly colored throw. We found the orange mats in another part of the apartment and used them on the coffee table to coordinate with the lamp.

We moved the second set of bookshelves into the room with the dinette set to provide storage for books and a few office supplies. We wanted to replace these shelves with a credenza that would hold some supplies behind closed doors, but the shelves will stay now until the summer.

Amount spent so far: $90
• Dinette Set, $45 at Jubilee Furniture
• Orange Lamp, $30 at Jubilee Furniture
• Desk Chair (not shown), $5 at Jubilee Furniture
• Vintage Throw, $10 at GoodWill