The Blue & Wooden Bedroom Furniture Set

My inspirational Pin I found for my master bedroom set.

             I wanted a house. I didn’t know how I would afford it, or where it would be, but I wanted a house that I could paint, replace floors, put in wood accents, and decorate! Boy, do I love decorating and scrolling through Pinterest to find all the beautiful houses and things they put in them!
​              As I mentioned in my last post, I had started struggling with the 9-5 lifestyle almost immediately after my first day at my big girl job. At first, I was in a position where I didn’t get much work to do and I was stuck in a windowless cubicle area for 8 hours straight. That was a big change from my big open fields at Kutztown University! I missed the sunshine. I missed seeing people and taking coffee breaks with friends and all that stuff that comes with a big change. “Why am I here, God” was a question I asked daily. 
            In passing by a few cubes, I started getting to know some of the other people in my cube area. One guy told me that he was a financial coach on the side. “On the side?” I would think to myself. “How does he find time in the day to work a full job, work a side business, and have a life?” As I talked with him, I got sucked into his way of thinking about setting goals and dreaming big and wanting more. I wanted to see what he was talking about. I wanted something more…
            I will spare you some details, but I did work with this guy to try and start my own financial coaching business. It was hard to dedicate time each day and spend weekends going to talk to people about their finances. After some time, I realized this wasn’t for me. The “it” I was looking for. But I don’t regret trying it because I learned so much about how to manage my own finances and I learned that I really wanted to start a business… just not financial coaching. 
            After two years of working with this financial coach, I was also working on finding myself a house. I had been working my corporate job for two years and could not wait to spend my money on a house that I could fix up and make my own (oh yeah, Tyler’s house too). I am so grateful to the financial coaches who taught me lessons on how to protect myself and how to budget and save money so I wouldn’t feel guilty spending it. But most importantly, I am thankful for them showing me how to dream again.
            I was so excited for the new house and all the pretty things I could make/buy and put in it.  Oh, boy! I could go searching for old pieces and fix them up! I am totally a do-it-yourself kind of gal. 
         I could not bring myself to a large fancy furniture store like Ashley’s and pay over $600 on a bedroom set. And hey, maybe you can, but I think of all the old furniture in the world and how people just toss it to the side once they are sick of it or it gets a scratch on it. The furniture can, and must, be saved!
         I started collecting and painting the blue and wooden bedroom set that is in my house (see @cozzicreations on Facebook for the before and after photos!). I had two old side tables my Nana had left at my family’s farm when she moved. Even though they had some water damage, a bit of sanding, staining, and painting made them looking fresh. I found a chest of drawers on Facebook Marketplace for $20 bucks. My love, Tyler, and I took a nice little road trip to New Jersey for that beauty! And I found a local gem at my new favorite thrift store. They have loads of used furniture for a great price! The large dresser was $25. 
            I spent $45 on furniture and another $40 for the paint. I know this fixing up business is not for everyone but there is a whole community of people out there that would love to fix salvaged furniture up for people and sell it to them for a few bucks less than that at a furniture store. And the best part, it can be totally customizable to go with your taste and décor. If you can’t tell I am passionate about this! I am a resourceful person and if I can help others use that to save old crappy furniture from going into landfills and keep some money in their wallets, then I have found my purpose in this world. 
            A big lesson here is don’t be afraid to dream and go against the grain of society. Even if you are just starting out in a career, it is ok to dream of a big beautiful house for you to live in. Even if you are stuck at a job you don’t particularly like, it is ok to think about your dream job or having your own business! The only way you can get to these dreams, however, is through action. You cannot sit on the couch and think that you are going to stumble into your dream job tomorrow. There is no better way to step toward your fullest life than to try new things. Even though I did not want to be a financial coach, I at least tried it! I learned about how to budget and get the things you want in life. I saved for that house I wanted. I made it possible to fill it with all the beautiful things I dreamed of. I am not sure if I would have been brave enough to spend money on a house without that experience. So many things can be accomplished in your life if you take the big dream and break it down into manageable goals. Just try, what do you have to lose?

---