I looked a long time for some metal shelves to put in the entryway to our front door. The reason I looked so long is because I wanted a deal. I searched Craigslist, eBay, a couple garage sales, but people were asking quite a bit for their used shelves.

One day I drove past a house that had some shelves out by the curb for garbage pickup. Alright! They looked good from my drive by, so I asked my husband to go pick them up in the SUV. But we were too late! Someone else was looking for their own metal shelves and beat me to the punch. I was disappointed, but I finally came across these Lerberg shelves at Ikea for $19 a piece! They weren’t free, but I didn’t have to spray paint anything and they were easy to put together.

I like the idea of plants and gardening, but I haven’t put much effort into it as of yet. Half the pots here are empty, as you can see and, honestly, Marcello waters the plants more often than not. I do get my moments of inspiration, though. You see those three small insignificant sproutlets in the bottom right? Those are seeds from a lemon I bought at the grocery store. I thought it would be great to grow my own lemon trees! I painstakingly cut away the outer shells, grew them in a moist paper towel and then planted them. Then I read that they will produce lemons in about 11 years!

Outdoor metal shelves: Ikea, $19 each
Colorful pots: Clearance aisle at T.J. Maxx, $22

Also see room inspiration and Ikea finds >>