Oy with the lighting already.

Anyone ever watch Gilmore Girls? It's one of my all-time favorite TV shows for so many reasons. It's so well written, Stars Hallow is super-cute, the townsfolk are such unique characters, and Lorelai is just so damn hilarious. Like when she spews out one of her many (many, many) one-liners, my favorite of which is "Oy with the poodles already!" And voila! Instant blog post title inspiration, courtesy of Lorelai Gilmore (well, really more Amy Sherman-Palladino, but same kinda thing, right?).

Source: http://oy-with-the-poodles-already.tumblr.com

So anyway, remember last week when I posted about my new super-awesome-happy-time kitchen pendant lamp I snagged at Crate & Barrel Discount Heaven for only $30? Well, on that same trip I also picked up another pendant lamp - not as super-discounted ($90, down from $199), but still a lot more reasonably-priced than it normally is.

I'll post more after photos of the entire room once I clear off the table and make it look less like a dumping ground for groceries that haven't quite made it to the pantry and more like...well, a dining room. Be glad I spared you the mess that's currently on it - we're all recovering from a wicked cold virus that has left us with just enough energy to keep us, the cats, and our child alive and mostly sanitary, which unfortunately meant the house wasn't as...er..."neat" as it normally is.

Quite an upgrade, wouldn't you say?

Maybe I'll even name the new lamp, since, like Lorelai, I have a penchant for naming inanimate objects (like my computer, which I named Fiona because it's an Apple. Get it? FIONA APPLE?! I'm sooooo witty).

Source: http://oy-with-the-poodles-already.tumblr.com

We have a light!

The light fixtures in our house are so obviously the ones that came with it. You know the ones - brassy, with clear glass and light bulbs that will burn your eye sockets to a pulp if you dare to glance directly at them. Yeah, those lights.

In a desperate attempt to stave off the Seasonal Affective Disorder that I have been afflicted with for what seems like years at this point, I drove my family to a neighboring suburb and somehow blundered into Crate & Barrel Discount Heaven (otherwise known as their outlet store).

I knew I didn't want the typical chandelier for the kitchen/dining room areas, so I was excited to find the following too-cool-for-school option:

I'm sure you noticed the $249 price tag. Although this quirky bunch of teak love was right up my alley, there's no way I would ever spend that much on a hanging lamp.

I checked the price tag, and the total came to...

$30.

No, that is not a typo. It was indeed a cool $30. Granted there was some scuffing on the inside of the lamp, and a couple of minor scratches on the outside, but it was still structurally sound. My reaction can pretty much be summed up as follows:

My handyman hubby installed it later that day. I'm super in love with it, although I'm still debating whether or not to paint/stain the outside once the weather warms up....we'll see how I feel in a month or so.

*Please note that this is not an official endorsement of Crate & Barrel - these are my personal thoughts and opinions.