But, this one was on sale (still is apparently) from $399 to $189. It was advertised for a kids' room, but I don't care! I was excited, then got upset it wasn't showing up on my bank account. Turned out it was back-ordered. So, they just delivered it yesterday. And left it in the snow. Fortunately, I wasn't far, so ran home to drag it inside. Today we had another snow day, so instead of teaching, I put it together!
Here is the box that doesn't look so big, but sure was heavy and awkward pulling in through two doors by myself on an icy porch:
One thing you will learn about me quickly (and already know if you know me) is that I am borderline OCD with my organizing. I organize EVERYTHING. When I was an RA in college, I used to beg to alphabetize the 400 name cards for our residents because I thought it was fun. Yeah...that bad. Anyway, I think it's easiest when building or assembling something out of a box like this to put all the like pieces together, in alphabetical order. Yes, it takes a little bit of time, but I think it saves you time (and frustration) while you're assembling. So, I pulled out all of the styrofoam onto my freshly swept and mopped floors to empty the box, and organized the pieces:
Then my cute little pup, Akela made herself at home in the box. She thinks she's a human child. I'm not even kidding:
Then, I got to work. It wasn't so bad really. The most annoying part was the styrofoam balls sticking to EVERYTHING. I had to wipe every piece off before I used it...twice. The instructions said to use glue, but I didn't have any. So, I'm hoping it all stays sturdy...at least for a few years. The first part went pretty fast. I got all these pieces put together in about 20 minutes:
I was excited it was going so fast. Then, I went on to the next step. Yep...put the middle piece in upside-down. I'm not usually someone who does everything carefully and then goes back to finalize it. So I had already twisted the cap locks and hammered the plastic covers into the cap lock holes. I had to undo all that, so there were a few casualties:
I got nervous then. What if I didn't have enough?!?!? (Turns out I did, thanks to the "spare parts" bag). So, I fixed it!
That took a while. Then, came the really challenging part. Getting the giant, heavy top on to perfectly line up with the TWELVE rods into the correct TWELVE holes. Not an easy feat with just little ol' me. But, after a lot of adjusting, re-adjusting, walking around like a clumsy cartoon character carrying an oversized painting, and stubbing 4 toes, I did it! All that was left was assembling the drawers and screwing on the front and back panels.
In all, it took about 2 hours to complete, start to finish. That includes time to take it out of the box, organize, clean off the styrofoam clinger demons, and putting it all together. It took about another hour after that to rearrange and get all the electrics hooked up. But I am SO pleased with it. It's much bigger than I pictured it, but that gives me a little bit of room in front of the TV for some decorative something. I'm excited because I have my cable box, DVD/VCR AND my old Playstation 2 hooked up. There is room on the other side of my TV for a wii...when someone gets that for me for my birthday (hint, hint). It's not the most durable piece of furniture, but it's made of real wood, not the composite stuff, so it should at least last 3 or 4 years if I'm easy on it. Okay...here's the finished product in place and all:
I have a sore back from being hunched over and moving big pieces probably the "incorrect way" but it's nothing a couple of ibuprofen and heating pad won't fix...and totally worth it. Have ya'll built any furniture lately? Ever tried building something by yourself? Let's hear those stories of failures and successes! And does anyone have any secret weapons to lure out all the styrofoam demons so I don't still find them months from now?
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