Another project and a plea

Just a little side note of a project that I did during summer:

If you saw our apartment you were forced to look at this.
Granted, I re-stuffed these cushions and we cleaned the chair and cushions so it looks MUCH better now but there wasn't much I could do for that poor ottoman. That oh so obviously placed blanket stood to cover up a giant rip/snag down the side of our ottomon. I couldn't figure out what else to do with it so I just ignored it! Lame.

When we moved, I decided I would like to use it elsewhere so it found a home in Justin's game room in front of the couch. His chosen color scheme (seriously, he made a mood board for his room and everything--have I mentioned his favorite show is Design Star? He's cute.) is gray, red, black, and white. So I marched off to JoAnn's (which I can't help but say in a crazy obnoxious, nasal-y northern accent--try it, it's fun) to find some fabric. Luckily, their upholstery fabric was 50% off (so I snagged a way cute green trellis type pattern for the living room pillows as well). I found a deep red, linen-looking (but much sturdier than linen) fabric for cheap and sewed a cover.

To make this, I measured my pieces using the ottoman as a guide, cut them (I didn't make a pattern because I cut simple rectangles), and then pinned them around the ottoman to insure a tight fit. Once I fit them together, I began sewing my cute little box and hemming the bottom. I was shockingly easy! Here is my creation (I even had left over fabric to make the cute pillows in the background):
See the girly fabric peaking through?
So fun! And don't be too impressed--I've only been sewing since Christmas. We're not talking anything you might find on, oh say Ashley Carter Designs. And yes, that was a shameless plug for my cute college roommate. But seriously, I only sew straight, easy lines. And I am using the word straight VERY loosely. You could do it, too! And probably better than me!

And know my plea for help:
Sigh...my huge blank wall. I only have TWO walls left in my house and this one is just mocking me. Daily. Like the mean girl in 5th grade who called me Jolly Green Giant and Big Foot (but in her defense, I was 5'5'' wearing a size 8 womens...). Please help! I need something cheap, probably DIY, and I guess I'm modern comfortable--like pottery barn, west elm, and z gallerie combined. I've searched everywhere and the only things I've come up with don't seem to suit a living room.

In other news, my fun friend Amanda just won a competition on facebook for a free furniture painting clinic with a value of $175 per person! She's asked me to join in on the painting extravaganza so I need to find something to paint. I am thinking about finding a console table for our dining room...but now I need to find it!

In other news, I hung the words "AP Biology Reminders" on my board at school today...it's becoming real. I am going to be team leader for Bio 1 and teaching AP Bio by myself. I think there have been very few times in my life that I have felt so intimidated...we'll see how this goes!