Goodbye, ugly brass grappling hook!

I still need to show you some of the fun finds from last weekend's shopping spree, but I thought I would start with one of the larger items we purchased.

As I have mentioned previously, I hate, hate, HATE the builder brass fixtures around our house. We are slowly but surely swapping them all out for oil rubbed bronze and frosted glass fixtures. Well, one of the worst was the ugly brass candelabra-style fixture in the dining room. It was one of the first things you see when you walk through the front door, so it HAD to go fast! My husband just swapped it out this afternoon for one of our shopping spree finds.

Here is the ugly grappling hook already removed from the ceiling:


And here is the new fixture!:

Soooooo much better!

We took down all the Christmas stuff yesterday, so the house feels a bit refreshed, but more empty. Just means I need to do more decorating!

Oooh! And I'm so excited...I am holding a swap meet for my girlfriends in early February. Everyone is going to bring 5-10 new or gently used items they don't want, and we'll take turns swapping them for each other's stuff. I suggested stuff like decor items, small appliances, books, DVDs, jewelry, handbags, etc. Really anything. Can't wait! Maybe I can get some more stuff for the house!