Last week I showed you guys our new swag light. Pretty groovy, right? In that post, I promised I would disclose about the chair and little cart, so let’s get right down to it and dive into those details.

I originally ordered a gray modern chair for the space with a hefty price tag of $350. It arrived and the chair was absolutely gorgeous. However after sitting in it a grand total of TWO TIMES, it broke. the wood snapped completely in half and we had to ship it back.  Not only was my self esteem shattered (never fun to sit in a chair and break it!), but I was back at square one with no chair for the space.

But the space didn’t stay empty for long. Bridget and I made a trip out to Habitat for Humanity Restore (the one in Joliet, for you Chicago folks) and we found this chair for only $37. I made sure to test it out really good to make sure it was sturdy and stable. Lucky for me…this bad boy was built well and wasn’t going anywhere. It wasn’t exactly the style I was originally going for, but I figured the wood tones and light teal upholstery would actually work well in the space. Plus, for $37…you can’t really go wrong!

I then hit up one of my favorite thrift stores in the city (A World Through Rose Colored Glasses in Bucktown) and found this little cart for only 5 bucks. Storage and a place to rest my coffee cup?! Sold!

I’m not gonna lie, the cart was incredibly disgusting when I found it. Spider webs, dirt, grime, dust…you name it, this little treasure was covered in it! But it wasn’t something that a little TLC and bleach couldn’t fix. One little bath for this guy and it was ready for styling.

It is the perfect size and I love the extra storage that this little cart provides. Win, win for me.

The chair wasn’t in bad shape at all. All it needed was a wipe down and it was good to go.  I paired the chair with a pillow for a pop of color, and my Ikea sheepskin for some texture. That’s all it took to bring it from 1984…to 2014.

I’m pretty happy with my reading nook scores all for under $50! Will I keep them forever? Maybe not. But for now they’re pretty darn fabulous and I’m very pleased with the final price tags.