Monday, May 31, 2010

Budget Finds: West Elm




The latest West Elm catalogue arrived in the mail this past week. Luckily over this long, holiday weekend, I had some time to relax and peruse the pages. Here is what caught my eye:

1. Metal Picture Ledge

Photo courtesy of West Elm
I keep going back to picture ledges of all kinds. They can be found anywhere from Target to Ikea. But, West Elm is the only place that I have found with metal ones. The question is: are they worth paying over $30 for?? Especially when the ones from Ikea and Target are significantly less? Perhaps I could consider buying afore mentioned, less expensive ones and giving them a coat of metallic paint?? Now we are cooking...

2. Weathered Wood Hanging Strand

Photo courtesy of West Elm
Not only does West Elm have these in wood, but in the catalogue there is also a oyster shell option. Could be cute addition to almost any space, especially if it was DIY'd...which could be a total possibility!

3. Recycled-Glass Lanterns

Photo courtesy of West Elm
I absolutely love these! So much in fact that I purchased ones similar to these last year. But they were not from West Elm. And I did not pay $9 a piece (or in total for that matter) for them. I found my little lanterns in the dollar section in Target. And mine were only $1 a piece (go figure). I rounded up 6 in total last season. I went with all clear glass, but there were colors too (I want to say green and blue ones). They make great table accents for late-night, outdoor, summer get togethers. The lanterns could also be a great addition to a casual summer wedding. For those of you looking for your own budget lanterns, I did see more at Target this season. But it was a while ago, so good luck hunting!

Here are both lanterns for your own judgement:

West Elm's version


My Target find

What do you think? A pretty close match...especially when you are saving $8 each!

Have you seen any great pieces while out and about that could easily be DIY'd? How about more budget friendly options of higher price alternatives?