Home Redux 2009...part 1

I have to say that I'm in a panic, with the economy tanking, so many shelter magazines are closing up shop...Country Home, Domino, Blueprint and my fav Budget Living have all closed in the last year or are set to close. Where will I go for ideas and inspiration? What will I read when I take the kiddos to B&N? I've been doing a lot of Internet surfing lately and have discovered a bunch of new blogs on home decorating/improvement. Some are very cool and while not 100% my personal aesthetic I can appreciate all the budget friendly ideas and the DIY spirit.
I'm still on a mission to whip my home into shape this year...don't get me wrong, it's not like it's the pits, but I have to admit my style has changed quite a bit since we moved in nine years ago. I think originally I was more traditional with a bit of shabby chic/country cottage mixed in...now I definitely have more a modern eclecticism thing going on.
I've been doing a bit of thrift store shopping lately. So far my finds have been 2 lamps and 2 lamp shades for $26, a scroll worked wall clock for $6, a rug runner for front entry $8, a cabinet for the china that sits on top of the buffet for $17 (which I may or may not paint...can't decide yet). I also reworked 2 lamps that I have from my mom. They are classically shaped bell jar lamps that originally were a peach color (gotta love the 1980's), I've spray painted them once before in a hammered metal silver color, but this time I spray painted them "claret". They look very nice if I must say so myself and they were just the right price, free! I'm pretty happy with my living room. I'd like a rug, but while the kids are little and so messy I think I'll wait to buy that oriental rug I've been wanting. I also saw two midcentury chairs at an out of the way thrift store that I couldn't stop thinking about. I finally had my girlfriend, B. go and get them for me. I have no idea where I'll put them...but a deal like this can't be passed up. I'm going to recover them in a cool modern fabric and they will look awesome! I have a mirror from my mom. It's that crazy 1970's Home Dec. stuff they used to have parties for...it's this hideous bronze color, but I like the shape and will either spray paint it white, black or silver. I haven't made up my mind yet. Paint...the great unifier. Love it!
My next project is my dining room or as I like to call it the multipurpose room. I have two pieces that belonged to Mister's grandmother. The quality of the pieces is excellent, but they have seen better days so I'm going to paint them. I've already applied wood putty to all the nicks and gouges in them and used my palm sander. Next I'm going to prime them. That'll be next weeks Tackle It.
I've also been collecting picture frames for forever and I'm going to paint them all black. The color palette in my house is autumnal colors, lots of golds, browns, reds and greens so black is a great neutral for that scheme. If I had a lighter color palette I'd go with white accents, but since I don't...it's black baby!
I'm excited about all the pending projects and I can't wait to see it all finished.