joujou papillon

One thing I did while I had all that time off of work was follow two of my good friends around and tell them what to buy for their new house. Sounds pretty annoying of me, right? I’m pretty amazed they’re not sick of me yet. (unless they’re lying to me. Wait…are you lying to me??) I love putting together a home. They needed all new furniture for their new place, so this was a clean slate! How could I not put my two cents in and go shopping with them every day and convince them to love the things I loved? Clearly I had no choice.

It started out with an email I sent them of all of my go-to stores for all things for the home. We decided this is a good public service message and should be on this here blog for you all take advantage of and learn from. Are you looking for a whole new house? Or maybe just one or two items? Here you go…a list of great (and affordable) stores to get some pretty darn amazing things.

Z Gallerie

Montecito Panels – Aquamarine  |  Athena Chandelier

(Oh dear. I just fell hard for that chandelier.)
One would think Z Gallerie had super expensive things. And sure…some things are. But other things are totally affordable! Looking for some amazing accessory to throw on your coffee table? They got it. Need amazing curtains? Got it! Their curtain panels are just as much as they are at Bed Bath & Beyond. And wouldn’t you rather have something amazing and on-trend than something drab? Yeah…that’s what I thought. They have gorgeous mirrors and artwork that are great prices for what they are. I breathe a sweet sigh of relief the second I walk into a Z Gallerie. Hello beauty, I’m home!

Anthropologie

Latte Bowls  |  Color Pop Juice Glass

None of you are surprised by this one, are you? I just saw those little color rimmed juice glasses the other night. They’re adorable. I might need ten of them. What’s good to buy at Anthro? Lots of stuff! The table linens are pretty pricey, but you can find them on sale often. Their bowls, plates, glasses, knobs…those things are small enough that they’re affordable. Sure, you can get cheap glasses at the 99 Cents store, but are those special? Heck no! Just think how happy you’ll be drinking out of these beauties. It’s the gift that keeps on giving. Speaking of gifts…always buy gifts for people here. Give them something classy that they’d never buy themselves.

Cost Plus World Market

Ivory Whale Soap Dish

I still just call it Cost Plus. Sue me. They have a number of good and affordable things here. Rugs, curtain panels, mirrors, artwork, lamps, furniture. I even let said friends (see: first paragraph) buy a gorgeous peacock-colored chair with rivets on it here. Do they thank me every time they sit it in? Sure they do. The one thing you need to be careful of here is not to get too many things for one room. It can start looking Moroccan real quick! (Unless you’re going for Moroccan. In that case, have at it. And don’t forget to paint your wall teal.)

Pier 1 Imports

I like Pier 1 for some furniture, mirrors, pillows, rugs. We bought our headboard there, my awesome joujou desk, the mirror above our fireplace, and other random things around the house. Always check Pier 1 for stuff. You might find treasures.

IKEA

I could do an entire post on IKEA. In fact…I might have already. What to look for at IKEA? Everything. I’m not exaggerating. I convinced said friends to do an IKEA trip. Then of course I told them I had to go with. Good thing I did! They hadn’t been to IKEA in years, and I have the IKEA routine down pat (surprise surprise). They tried to make my go through the store backwards. You know…go against the arrows on the ground. My OCD had a complete panic attack just thinking about it. So they let me take the lead. Whew. That was close. They (and me) bought a bunch of little stuff they needed for the house, and even bought a dresser and console for their tv. Which is gorgeous! Totally love it. They also fell in love with this awesome rug that has random red circles on it. They’re going to go back and get it. I can feel it.

West Elm

Their furniture is pretty pricey, so I probably wouldn’t go that route. But their bedding, rugs and accessories are totally comparable to other stores. Super good quality, and on-trend. All very important when you’re designing your home. West Elm even supports Etsy sellers, how ‘about them apples? Imagine your handmade stuff being sold at West Elm. Dream come true!

Urban Outfitters

Zigzag Rug  |  Marquee Alphabet Light

I know, seems weird. They mostly sell clothes (and awesome spiked studded driving gloves). But they also have great lamps and rugs. You can only get them online. Who wants to get me that giant “A”?

Crate & Barrel and CB2.com

They have good, modern stuff in these places, too. Good for accessories, rugs, kitchen stuff, office stuff. Furniture is really good, some kind of pricy, some affordable. CB2 is online only. I’ve never ordered anything from there, but really like some of the stuff on their site.

Home Goods, Marshalls, Target

This is pretty obvious. The key to these stores is to go often. Especially Home Goods and Marshalls. (I’d add Ross to the list, but I hate Ross. So I won’t mention it.)  They get new inventory every week, and things go fast! So if you see something you like, you’d better snatch it up fast! I wouldn’t trust furniture at Target, but would at Home Goods and Marshalls. (Better pick up some awesome clothes while you’re at Target.)

So there you have it, folks! A not-so-brief rundown of my go-to stores for house stuff. Hope you enjoyed the ride. Do you have a favorite store you always hit up? I’d love to hear what they are!