BEDKNOBS & BAUBLES

Linen Lady

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J.Crew Factory Striped Linen-Cotton Shirt

I picked up this shirt at J.Crew Factory over the weekend. It’s a linen-cotton blend, making it a comfortable, no-fuss option for breezy summer days. Better yet, it shields my already-burnt skin from the sun! (It runs true to size.)

In other news, we put in an offer on a 1930 colonial-style house filled with charm and creaky wood floorboards the very day it went on the market. Even though we went $5,000 over asking, the seller decided to wait another day before reviewing offers and we were outbid. I’m devastated and have been crying on and off all weekend because of it. We’re now faced with a difficult decision today: renew our lease and stay in our apartment for another year or roll the dice and see if we can find a house in the next three weeks. If the latter doesn’t pan out, we’ll likely have to rent a different apartment and move at the end of July. (I have no doubt that our current place will be swept off the market soon. It’s in a good location and has low rent.) We’ve thought about renewing and subletting, but that seems like such a risky endeavor if the sublessee damages the place or skips town. Ugh. I have no idea what to do and we have 24 hours to decide. Any ideas? Should we just consult the Magic 8 Ball and be done with it?

J.Crew Factory Striped Linen-Cotton Shirt J.Crew Factory Striped Linen-Cotton Shirt

Shirt: J.Crew Factory
Shorts: J.Crew (old, also love these)
Sandals: Ann Taylor
Necklace: Lee Renee
Bracelet: c/o Julie Vos (old, also love this)
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff c/o Shopbop (on sale for $98 here)
Sunglasses: Dolce & Gabbana c/o SmartBuyGlasses (also available here)
Lips: Stila “Betsey”

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Comments

  5. This happened to us, we were under the gun time-wise and were outbid on 2 houses. We finally got the one we are in. Which seemed great at the time looking through my desperate eyes. I HATE this house now. It’s not what I wanted, it’s what we had to settle on (detached garage, pool, upstairs laundry, etc – which seem fine but I literally cuss every time I deal with those three things – God a pool is the WORST). My advice would be to renew for another year and then start looking later allowing enough time so you don’t feel crazed. Our previous house (in another state) we had plenty of time to look and found a gem (I miss that house). Just my two cents. Hugs.

    • Thank you for the advice. I already feel myself looking at houses with desperation eyes. It’s hard not to with a looming deadline! I agree that staying might be the best course of action. I just feel like we’re in limbo and should be buying a house because that’s what adults do, but I do think we need more time. I’ve cried every day for the last three weeks over houses and I’m losing sleep. I think I need a break and a more comfortable timeline.

  6. I don’t know if you covered this before, but have you considered staying? A good location, good price.. sounds like a diamond.

    What I see:

    1. Renew the lease and stay (my preferred choice based on what I have read so far), and keep looking for another house

    2. Look for a house and make a hasty decision in 3 weeks that you might regret just to move and get out. This has happened to plenty of folks, and the pressure of moving and finding a new place may make you bid on a place you don’t really love and/or spend more than it is worth or that you can afford.

    3. Move to another apartment (why?.. just curious) and have to rush finding it in 3 weeks in time to leave.

    Things happen for a reason. Maybe a better house at a better price will come along.

    • Yeah, we’ve thought about staying. It’s not in our preferred part of the city, but it’s perfectly fine for now. I had hoped so badly to find a home and feel like we’re moving on with our lives instead of feeling in limbo. I feel like I should have a house at 33 and I feel like I’m wasting my life a bit. (#Confessions)

      Regarding your third bullet: We feel that if we don’t resign our lease by tomorrow’s deadline, the apartment will be rented by someone else within our three-week window to find a home. I’d love it if if were still available after three weeks and we could just stay here, but I don’t think that’s a realistic options. The real estate and rental markets in Madison have limited inventory and a lot of people who need something. It’s frustrating. And, on that note, I’m not sure we could find a place that accepts cats and has a garage like we have now.

      So, we’re probably going to go with Option #1 and I feel so sad that we failed to find a home.

  7. Love that top, looks perfect for Summer.
    And UGH! That really stinks that you were outbid! I’m always horrible at making decisions but I would just ask yourself the options and see how your mind feels. That’s what my aunt always tells me to do. So ask “Should I stay?” and if you feel light that means you should stay…if your heart drops that means you want to keep looking and hope for the best.
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  9. I know it feels like you failed now, but please don’t rush this purchase just to try to beat a deadline… we weren’t under a rush except that our realtor needed our commission and pushed us into a house that had a lot more problems than we realized. I regret it every day and I wish I’d listened to my gut and took my time to find the perfect house for us.

    I know the process is slightly different in the US than it is here in Canada, but if you renew your lease and find the perfect house in a few months, can you set a longer than normal closing date so that you have a shorter amount of time to try to figure out what to do with your apartment before your move in date? We ended up with a 6-month closing so I’d have time to sell my house first. (Just, please, please, please, schedule a showing right before your closing to make sure the previous owners haven’t trashed the house in that 6-month period. Sadly, that’s what ours did…)

  13. What a tough position to be put in! And I’m so sorry you missed out on that house. In someways I think it’s almost more fun to be shopping for a home, because it’s exciting to look at the new listings. Once you’ve committed you can’t look anymore (unlike shopping for dresses where you will always manage to find the room to squeeze in one more). So try to look at it in a positive light, and think of what new and better homes will come on the market!
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