department of the interior: home decor

i am trying to get all my shit organized. in the past 9 months, the amount of crap in my house has grown exponentially, thanks mostly to books and notebooks from grad school. thinking of going to the new ikea for some wall shelving ideas since there is no floor space left for bookshelves.

anyone have small space organizational tips? also, since this is ilstyle, i want it to look good and as least-dormy as possible.

we need to get stuff more neatly organized, too. no matter how often we tidy up, our place looks messy because there's just so much damn stuff. our downstairs neighbors keep about 80% of their stuff in large storage bins in the closets, so their place looks so much neater. however, it's kind of a pain for them to get to things if they realize that they've packed something that they want to use. i'm trying to find a compromise. ikea has a giant, freestanding double closet/shelving unit thing that i'm interested in, although it would be a significant expenditure.

the amount of crap in my house has grown exponentially, thanks mostly to books and notebooks from grad school.

it's still part of the mess problem and i've been outta grad school since december!

i am a fan of big plastic bins but then i forget what's in them and mostly what's in them is stuff that could be thrown out. and yet.

i never even think abt buying furniture. but maybe i need a new couch (mine is comfortable but total 2nd hand and starting to really feel like it.) and my desk is still dominating my living space. i shld replace it wth a table and bookshelf. i don't know, i'm not really good with drawers or cupboards b/c i just totally forget abt what i have and so consequently everything is on surfaces. which is not nec a bad thing but currently looks too chaotic.

i need to reorganize in general

I'm looking at putting high wall-mounted shelves in my bedroom, ones that would turn a corner to wrap over two walls of the room. I have another 6-8 boxes of books that I can't unpack, and they're getting in the way of other pursuits (ie blocking my sewing area). I want to be able to get my books down with a simple step-stool, though -- the only drag with our 15 foot ceilings is that the top 6' of that is wasted for storage because you can't get to ANYthing without major ladder.

So maybe one shelf at 6' and one shelf at 8'? Or something.

i know plenty of people here who've put up high shelves for storage b/c there are a lot of high-ceiled apartments - they just end up standing on chairs or stepladders to get to stuff - so yeah, high shelves but not like top-of-the-ceiling high. unless you're going to make some kind of pulley+shelf system. which wld be rad.

yeah i love the bin storage idea but even the long, slim, not too tall ones don't fit under my bed bc of a weird bar in the fram. that brings up another issue of wanting a new bed, but i think that will have to wait.

i have tons and tons of books and videos and operas on cassette tape stored at my parents' house right now. i miss them dearly, but there is nowhere to put them :( i would really like the high wall-mounted shelves, but am nervous about putting them up - i am sure i'd end up with a crooked disaster.

get one of those library ladders with wheels!

To help with storage of small stuff when we moved to this smaller place, I replaced the coffee table with 4 storage ottomans - they hold all the "office supply" stuff (reams of paper, tape, pens, blank cds/dvds, etc) and all kinds of weird computer/audio cables and assorted other technology (battery charger? probably in there). They can be set up as a square, or a long rectangle, or an L, so flexible for our main seating area, and they are the right height to work as extra seating at the dining table. Also, they are still continually covered with newspapers, magazines, and books (and cats, on top of the piles) so provide the normal function of our coffee table. And you can put your feet up on them.

storage ottoman! such a good idea

ohman i want to redo my whole place now

huh. that is a good idea. i really hate plastic bins - they scream DORM to me (even if they're hidden in closets).

I've started thinking about replacing the bed, which is a queen size platform one, with a king size one. But then I think about some of the places we've lived where a king size mattress would be hell to get up into the bedroom. So what about getting two twin size mattresses and a king size platform? Would that be ultra-annoying, to have the two-mattress interface in your cuddle space? Would it be excellent at preventing middle-of-the-night restless flopping around from waking up the other person? It's nothing that's going to happen any time soon, but I wonder how it would work. All the sheets are already king size, for easier bedmaking.

my friend has a studio the size of our living room (including kitchen and bathroom) at union square that i'm sure she pays way too much for, but i am amazed at what she's been able to do with it. one wall is covered in a boxed shelving unit. unfortunately, i do not have her husband's income to purchase all this awesome furniture units.

jaq, my grandparents always had two full mattresses put together to make a king. i've slept in it. you really don't notice if you have a mattress pad and sheets, etc.

one of the bedrooms in the country has a double-twin set up, and it's a pain in the ass, but there are separate sets of bedding on each. it might be different with one set of king-sized linens over both mattresses.

4 ottomans in a zigzag shape here:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2336/2254065988_5d56986548.jpg

we had the book problem in our last house. i dreamed of having a number of some kind of short bookshelf with doors on it to hide books etc. if i had my way id get rid of 95% of our books. i read and recycle.

i guess what im trying to say is you'd be amazed what you dont miss and how much space you can end up with by throwing out/giving stuff away.

that thing that looks like a mask protruding from the wall there is a bit spooky

re 2 mattresses - I've also seen this foam thing that is a sort of T shape that is supposed to go over the mattress interface - but maybe a good thick mattress pad would do the trick just as well. I think this will be a go.

Tomboto, that is a mask. I have 2 - they used to hang in the guest room, staring at the bed. No one ever stayed too long with us :)

I re-read books, loan them out, refer to them in order to quote them for something, etc. I don't keep EVERYTHING, there's def a value judgment about whether each book is worth keeping, but I do need book space.

my apartment is semi clutter-free but will not stay that way if boyfriend moves in with his 1203483 records

I feel like I am in a constant state of getting rid of stuff.

I have more space than I need and am trying to think of cool ways to clutter it all up
I would love to live in a place like Jaq's that is just totally full of stuff, oh and also exposed brick (I hate the way red brick looks on the outside but love it on the inside. Am I weird?)

Haha, be careful what you wish for Tombot! This was how it looked when we first moved in:

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1180/1426382046_bc8dca1422.jpg

I do truly love the exposed brick walls - but it's tough to get brick interior walls w/o brick exterior too. This building is so old and has been through so much (great Seattle fire, earthquakes, etc, plus it's so close to the waterfront and the viaduct), it would be a stretch to call the exterior color "red".

I also just realized I used to have exactly that office chair on the left of the first picture, back when I had my JERKER with three swivel arms and all the fixins (rip)

It feels like I spend 3/4 of my life in that chair.

i did a really good job with clutter and not having tons of shit back when i was moving every 3-6 months. now i've been in my apt. for 1.5 years and am accumulating clutter + school shit and i do not like it.

I stopped buying books and dvds 5 years ago, stopped buying cds 3 years ago. Got rid of all except a handful. It really helps.

I've got far too many books too. We moved June 1st and I am still digging stuff out.. But slowly working toward a fantastic conclusion. Unfortunately a lack of linen closet meant I had to buy Rubbermaid containers for sheets/towels and store it in my (very large..yay) closet so I do have the dorm thing going on, but only when you start opening closet doors.

I'm painting two mis matched bookshelves glossy black right now, and I've taken the backs off and wallpapered them with this cute Victorian toile design I got off of Ebay. It's going to be adorable; I can't wait til it's done so I can show off via pictures.

(I should say.. glossy black to match three other living room pieces: TV stand, small corner bookshelf, picture frame stand). If your room was yellow, furniture is black white and red (white & red wallpaper as mentioned) - would a red couch be too much? Our old couch was lost to the move, it was one inch too big to fit through our stairwell.)

My top decorating tips, from back when I had to stage a rental in a hurry. (n.b. these are all cribbed from every design show ever):

#1: HOUSEPLANT. A plant says "a together person lives here." Easiest houseplant is a ZZ plant. Looks good, hard to kill.
#2: PAINT THE WALLS A COLOR. Any color. Easiest, literally idiot-proof, house paint is Benjamin Moore Aura. Dripless, total coverage in one coat you can do in one day.
#3: PUT PICTURES UP. Any pictures. My fave are dark frames + white mat against a colored wall.
#4: ROLL THE TOWELS INTO A CYLINDER: Like a hotel.

that is a nice plant! i shld have one! i have a jade and a vine - they are also hard to kill! i have tried!

ugh painting
yaay pictures
that is true abt towels - i have never folded them

i did nothing in the way of home decor yesterday (which was a holiday) except wash dishes. i am thinking abt new curtains.

also i am on a mission to replace my desk with a table

this is what my life has become courtesy of new house

as impossible as it seems to me, i still have too much stuff, but largely because onmoving day i looked at all my shitty alley-harvested bookshelves and 86ed them. oops. now i have shitty cardboard boxes full of books.

on the positive side, it is amazing how good it feels to actually buy furniture for a room all at once

oooh i bet. i can't wait to do that!

also i am on a mission to replace my desk with a table

-- rrrobyn, Wednesday, June 25, 2008 4:50 PM (Wednesday, June 25, 2008 4:50 PM) Bookmark Link

Ha, I'm trying to replace my table with a desk.

The old desk was too big and cumbersome, so it got put out in the yard. Since we've moved, I've got my home computer on an old nightstand and I have to crouch down on the floor to look at it.

Which is fine. Keeps me in the company of my family more now instead of holed up in a room reading zingers.

Muji has some really cute household stuff. It's on sale now but still pricey.

i need to go there. ppl keep talking bout it!

yeah i would totally give you my desk if we yknow lived in the same town, pp - it's pretty nice but way too big for my place. i somehow think it might fit in my storage closet tho. for future use. which of course means cleaning out the storage closet... scary.

the thing about having a desk instead of a table in a small apartment is that i end up eating while sitting on the couch or eating at my desk - there isn't really anywhere nice for two or more people to sit in a civilized way (not that sitting on a couch isn't civilized but yknow what i mean.) anyway, tables, tables are good. i kind of want one with a folding leaf.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3209/2616035756_16d4c4b757.jpg?v=0
I haven't painted my removable shelves but I'm off to a good start, I keep stopping while walking through my apartment to admire my handiwork! Heh.

Lovely!! I have a big raw pine bookshelf that I want to paint two colors, one on the outside and something else for the back wall. Not got around to it yet, though, predictably enough.

yeah, it was kind of a bigger ordeal than I thought because I sanded them, primed them, and then painted two coats of black - but I'm very satisfied, this picture does it no justice whatsoever.

so i did in fact get a brand new fridge on wednesday! amazing. they delivered it some time in the morning (i was at work) and i arrived home v late that night to find it all shining and white in my kitchen wowee. so i gave it a wipe down inside and plugged it in and went to sleep and woke up early the next day and was gone all day, and so yesterday evening my building manager drops by to give me the food i'd kept in her fridge during the fridge-changing operation, and she tells me, in a very sweet and kind way, that not only did the fire inspector guy (who was in the building last week checking all the alarms etc) tell her the following but also the building co-owner or whatever who bought the new fridge (and i guess helped move it in?) said the same thing, which is: this woman's apartment is a fire hazard.

i am not embarrassed or anything b/c i know i have a lot of papers and books and crap piled up in increasing piles that really need to be dealt with but that i haven't had time/energy to deal with, but HOLY SHIT! anyway, this news is some serious freakin incentive to address my Department of the Interior Terr0rwatch situation.

i might pay someone to help me. srsly.

LOL jesus find a box and throw everything in there as an interim storage/cleaning method, when you get a lot of the crap into one relatively contained pile it's easier to "start" cleaning and tidying.. and then you can use that money to buy pretty stuff! and um, a filing cabinet? :)

oh i have tried these methods
also it is more like 3 boxes
also it is not that my place is 'dirty' just that it is 'cluttered' - i mean, i keep things clean, i vacuum, i mop, i dust, i clean everything on a regular basis. except for the piles of papers, books, cds, blah, etc.

the key here is throwing stuff out
tho i wld prefer to take it somewhere and burn it all
but yeah the issue of being overwhelmed by it and so not doing anything abt it and then it just gets worse is obv the issue to deal with by yeah at least starting with filling a box up u r rite

and i am still suffering from 'what if i one day really need this photocopy of 10 random pages from raymond williams' culture & society' syndrome
BONFIRE NOW

oh God I know I have boxes of papers from high school... my boyfriend and I got really critical one night, spent three hours and threw away about... 1/3 of what we should have tossed. The rest is now sitting in a couple of boxes in our closet :P

I hear ya about decluttering... I don't think I will ever have a clutter free existance. Hence the tons of bookshelves in my apartment :)

apparently bookshelves are ticking timebombs! at least in this town

LOL oh no armageddon is on the horizon for sure!

i never bought shelves! now is the time!

in the next few months i would like to paint and put up shelving. help!

shot in the dark here but does anyone know how to screw into / mount things onto horsehair plaster walls? shit is the bane of my life right now.

i had no idea what horsehair plaster meant, but now i know!
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/oldhouse/msg0408544325999.html

home decor from the actual department of the interior - http://www.indiancraftshop.com/

elmo are you having trouble with the walls being too dense or too soft? I've run into a number of old horsehair plaster walls that have been so dense they've snapped screw heads, in which case I suggest pre-drilling and then they should hold pretty much anything. If they're too soft they should still have wood studs mounted behind the wall you can use for support.

btw I am working on an exciting home decor project involving nearly 300 linear feet of 2x2 poplar!

i died, i am having trouble mounting a vintage phone console to the wall -- it would weigh maybe 20 lbs at most and the mounting plate has 4 holes for screws or bolts, so i don't know if i need to mount off a stud? i tried to drive 1 screw in through the mounting plate but the plaster was v. dense and hard and turned to dust rather than taking the thread of the screw. i have read suggestions for toggle bolts and anchors but i don't know, as a renter i don't want to do a lot of damage to the walls since our landlords are super-nice architects who restored the place and live on site.

ask them, I'm sure they'll have a preference!

20 lbs is the weight it would be if it held a phone book, btw, but i do not think i want to do that. this is what it looks like:

http://www.ericofon.com/catalog/classic3/noteworthy.htm

except it is orange and has a shoulder cradle thing on the handset

uh

http://www.ericofon.com/catalog/classic3/images/noteworthy.jpg

tres chic, i know

whatever you do I'd definitely suggest pre-drilling a diameter hole a bit smaller than the screws you're using - this will reduce the amount of compression the surrounding material goes through so it should stand up a little better. If it has four mounting holes you should line one or two of them up w/ a stud if you can so that it's taking the majority of the weight and the others are pretty much keeping it level.

That cantilevers pretty far so the top mounting hole/s will be carrying almost all the weight. Those are the important ones.

I visited my friend's house on Sunday and it's tip-top full of Girard textiles and Pantone chairs and every design nerd thing you can think of. If I didn't like her so much, I'd Single White Female her for the apt alone.

ah I had missed this thread... As a new home owner, I spend most of my weekends thinking about all these things without actually doing anything about it.
At the moment priority is to put together floor-to-ceiling wall bookshelves. I was initially thinking of getting someone to custom make it for me but then I realized how much that would cost... So my current idea is to play around with IKEA Billy shelves and try to fit as many units so as to cover most of the wall.

I saw a picture of someone's house the other day and they'd attached molding to the front of the Billy bookcases lining a specific wall, so that it looked like they really were built into the room! Brilliant.

also, I have since rearranged the room to fit the couch better (and bought an army of throw pillows) but I want to show off my fabulous new couch.. yes, it's from IKEA, but I'm also 26 and financially independant so that's how life is gonna be for the next ten years or so. ;)

er
http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-snc1/v2128/224/57/516053577/n516053577_1259393_4197.jpg

Sunny wants a sectional so bad, but I can't give up the rocking recliner so easily.

i'd get one of those couches if i knew where i'd be living 9 months from now

gabbneb where u gonna go?

hey i made curtains!

they have poppies on them and are in my kitchen. this is also my first successful sewing project really ever. i am so pleased. /blog

!!!!
pictures!

I want so many area rugs. ALL THIS AREA RUGS. And I'm not even moving for another month. This decorating bug is TOTALLY OUT OF HAND.

did you get it did you get it????

DON'T KNOW YET but that won't stop me from looking at every sofa on the internet.

look on, and good luck, lady! you deserve the bestest sofa ever!

what is the deal with ikea - i went there for the first time on sunday and found it to be WONDERFUL (apart from uh the other people there), yet i sense some stigma attached to this brand name.

we went to eye up some glass doored bookshelves, and then came home inspired to rearrange our whole house and omg what a difference moving furniture makes! our home is so much more... homey!

also moved the cluttered work desk out of the cramped bedroom and into the living room and what a huge difference it has made to the 'vibe' of bedroom - pretty sure im sleeping better now.

^^^ xpost <3 sectional couches.

xpost2, my Ikea order arrived today. I feel a bit stigma-y about it sometimes too but y'know, I don't make a lot of ££ and I managed to get a lot of stuff with what I had. And it looks pretty decent. I would've bought more stuff money permitting. I can see why people don't like Ikea, but I think it's alright.

re: why ikea is disliked -- i think there are a few different types of stigma. i'm not crazy about a lot of their furniture because even if it's at a pretty reasonable price, a lot of it simply isn't very durable or well-made, and also for the fact that if you are looking for something other than sleek modular modern design you're pretty much out of luck. the furniture isn't horrible (except some of the chairs, which i hate), and i do have some ikea stuff, but i tend to think of it as temporary furniture, only there until i find something better on consignment or craigslist or whatever.

for other people, who are big fans if fight club and/or adbusters, it represents a sell-out yuppie corporate-sanitized lifestyle for brainwashed sheeple. one-stop lifestyle shopping, or something.

i like ikea for offering a lot of decent, simple smaller merchandise for cheap -- i went a few weeks ago and got some dishes, flour sifter, butcher block, bathroom organizers, glass storage jars, etc.

Yes, there's all of that, plus I've also heard an argument that it's a 'big box' store promoting urban sprawl and car dependency because their stores are usually in suburbs or city fringes inaccessible to those without a vehicle or a lot of public transpotation willpower.

transportation

Eh there are lots of big box stores, if it weren't for IKEA it's not like people would buy locally hand-made wooden furniture. And IKEA's flat-packing is probably way more energy efficient to ship than normal manufacturer's products are.

also they are basically socialists, which is great!

I live halfway between the two nearest IKEA stores to me -- One's in Houston and the other's in Chicago.

I've got friends in St. Louis who roadtrip to the Chicago one (or Schaumberg, whatever the fuck) to shop at IKEA.

maybe Greater Toronto Area could stand to lose one of its FOUR surrounding Ikeas in favour of the Canadian/US middle areas

geez, Toronto

I am obssed w trolling through Apartment Therapy looking for rooms I like. In particular, I want to buy a wall of Billy bookshelves from IKEA and paint the backs of the units some bright color and make them look built-in.

ooh that is smart. i need to get on this. i think shelving purchase/room painting will be my reward for turning in 1st draft of thesis!

i'm thinking i might abandon my wall shelving idea because i know i will never actually get them hung properly and i am worried about overweighting them. i may just have to find some inventive new arrangement for furniture to squeeze in another bookshelf?

http://img33.picoodle.com/img/img33/3/2/13/f_201m_b2565e6.jpg

I've gotten sooo much stuff out since my roommate moved out and I'm much happier with my place recently, now I just have to get moving on building some shelving to replace my current liquor cabinet and glassware storage, which is made of cardboard boxes.

wow!

would you like to come design my apartment?

The cardboard boxes are, admittedly, kind of rad.

Jpgs here pls

I'm sure it's some kind of mid-century cliche by now, but I can't shake the desire to paint my future living room robin's-egg blue and accent it with white woodwork and dark wood furniture and cream-and-gold carpets. It's total real estate erotica: I fantasize about washing the picture rails and putting out my (modest) Frankoma collection.

Specifically, this 8-foot-square rug:

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e66/LimitedLiabilityGirl/P11887881.jpg

I DIED, you have far too much furniture. i think you need to strip it back a tad.

that rug <3

hahaha jed I have actually thought about getting rid of the chair but it was my great-grandmother's!

Laurel before you posted the picture of the rug your description sounded very early 19th-century Federal rather than mid-century modern!

I was kind of thinking of the white woodwork being egg and dart molding, though.

would you like to come design my apartment?

― lucky girl LOL (tehresa), Friday, February 13, 2009 10:16 AM (2 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

step 1: put stuff in a closet, starting with the most important stuff and moving down from there

step 2: once the closet is full, throw everything else out.

done!

No, Brian, more like this.

Altho some of the stuff in that shot is a little too fussy for me, and the blue is too light/pastel. But you get the idea.

However, our realtor just reposted the ad for the apt on CL so we may not be moving in after all....

closet has too many skeletons for stuff!

oh no laurel I hope you get the space!

Laurel, more like this?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/colinohara/2960652988_1f9b5418bf.jpg

Yes, JUST like that. Orange/red/coral accents OBVIOUSLY to be expected. :D

Ugh, this is making me ill.

Oh dear I even have an early 1900's Remington typewriter, found on the street. I am a cliche.

you only think that way because you look at the blogs and recognise your own taste in other peoples things. it will be unique to you when you actually realise it and it's quite singular by 99.9% of peoples standards.

or rather against their standards.

Anybody have experience with temporary wall stickers? White walls are killing me and I have no desire to paint an apartment.

http://storesense4.megawebservers.com/stores/m/modernwallgraphics.com/catalog/ROUNDSQ_image.JPG

Wall stickers work and are easy. Blik is good. I especially like them applied to (non-upholstered) furniture. Get something that looks good applied to less than a whole wall, otherwise it gets very expensive.

i looked at wall stickers @ ikea but then realized that they are probably not a good idea for a rental space.

anyone have experience mounting ikea's bookcases to the wall? they all recommend you do so to prevent tipping over. how much of a pain in the ass is it?

v easy if you have a drill, rawplugs and a screwdriver.

i am really bad at drills u_u

but thank you!

Get something that looks good applied to less than a whole wall

yeah that's the key - I don't think what I posted would look good covering half a wall or just the center (6x6 square for instance). or would it

T, I've never attached ANY Ikea furniture to a wall, not even tall things. I do recommend going to a hardware store and buying a packet of wooden shims -- thin little wedges of soft wood that you can break or cut to length, and use them to slightly tilt your bookshelf backwards -- not enough to make it unsteady, but just to transfer the weight to the back rather than the front. Especially useful if your floor is slightly sloped.

One packet of shims would have lasted me three or four moves, if I didn't keep losing them in between. I can't find my screwdrivers, either.

ooh that sounds smart.

A lot of taller IKEA furniture includes a short woven nylon strap and screws to attach it to the wall - anything floorstanding shouldn't need to be anchored but the strap is good insurance if anyone pulls on the piece of furniture accidentally. It's not holding any of the weight of the piece, just making sure it stays upright.

Yeah, I'd never have any confidence in a fully loaded bookshelf being held up by a screw in a piece of drywall, if someone pulled on it that hard. I probably shouldn't be dissuading anyone from using the recommended safety precautions, though.

tza im not sure what the ikea attachments are like but you can get these safety wall straps from home depot/lowes etc for maybe $5(?) in the child safety section. theyre easy to put on and the straps are pretty easy to de/attach so you just attach one side to the bookcase, one side to the wall then hook the strap together. easy peasey. that said, im sure ikea just say that so they dont get lawsuits from people with squished shelf climbing kids

oh sounds like the strap i died is talking about

The key here is not to try to violently pull your bookcases toward you.

if you can resist

That's why I got rid of most of my books, personal safety. The temptation is too great.

yeah i mean like i was looking at the stuff and it was like 'we strongly recommend securing shit to the wall' so iw as worried that it was prone to toppling.

The ikea bookshelf in my living room actually adjustable pads on it so you can tip it slightly backwards towards the wall, no shims required. It still said I should attach it to the wall but it's been fine even with tons of shit on it.

it's not really a problem, things with a lot of weight on them stacked vertically are inherently stable, as sunny mentioned it's really just lawsuit inoculation.

if it's into drywall it's even easier, just use these dywall/ plasterboard rawplugs and you don't even need to drill, just screw them in then use the screws provided to anchor whatever it is to the wall. they're prety impossible to get out and will definitely stop a billy or whatever from toppling.

http://www.screwfix.com/sfd/i/cat/98/p1395398_l.jpg

but i agree with sunny & I DIED too - i guess it depends on how level your floors are too. anyway, those drywall rawplugs are v easy to use and worth getting.

i think i'm going to get this
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/411Yd1Ae9fL._AA400_.jpg

oooh i like that!

i wish they had it in the store so i didn't have to wait!

oh hmm it is vinyl not fabric :(

easier to clean?

not as nice/pretty :(

also fabric curtains you can generally just throw in the wash.

yeah sometimes that stuff looks better in pics than reality.

think i'm gonna frame up some stuff this weekend and work on the bedroom - living room is looking way more home-y since we moved everything round. we brought in the desk, which you think would clutter it, but it looks roomier!

guys can you suggest some wall colors for a house with a lot of wall (goes up two stories+ open plan the length of the house) and a lot of windows? all i can ever come up with is white and a goldish light brown which is lame. oh floors are honey colored wood as are kitchen cabinets. help!

mossy green

like this?

http://www.colourlovers.com/wallPaper/800x600/c/4C581C/COLOURlovers.com-Mossy_Green.png

maybe a little less yellow?

possibility. blue and green frighten me but im trying to overcome it

feelin u on that, but i knew someone w/ a really tall/open living room area that was a cool green and it really worked.

they also have a magenta bathroom, which most people would probably balk at but i think is awesome, so...

I love you, teheresa, you know this, but I'm not going to be able to poop in a bathroom that looks like the inside of a Pepto-Bismol bottle.

oh no it was a deeper/richer color than that and am not suggesting you paint yr bathroom magenta. just sayin, it was neat.

we went to a friend's place around christmas and they had a dark brown bathroom which looked surprisingly great

http://www.joshilynjackson.com/mt/sambedclose.jpeg
sort of, but a tiny bit less saturated?

So, now that I have my own place by my GODdamn self for the 1st time, I can think about these things. I am making my bedroom look moderately like the Ituri rainforest. My living room is ligth blue and white shit, and my bathroom is Chanel pink and Tiffany blue LOL

jealous!

thinking of this shower curtain now
http://www.bedbathhome.com/mm5/graphics/00000002/LEAVES%20SC%20500.jpg

i can't find anything i reallllly like, though

thats pretty!

mine is plain white right now. im on the lookout too.

I can't wait to have more to contribute to this thread. Second the green, though. Also, pale yellow is a v nice neutral that isn't brown or brownish and really brightens things without being stark white.

i've never even heard of wall stickers? neat. we're trying to figure out colors for our bathroom and bedroom. kind of stumped!

actually wishing i had those wall stickers yesterday because i haven't had time to paint but got really annoyed with my white walls.

am i going to be realllly annoyed with lack of surface area if i get this setup?
http://www.crateandbarrel.com/family.aspx?c=14236&f=14497

it is v v affordable and i like shelves.

furniture: want!!!

help!!!

30x20" is tiny! But if you think of it as more of a side table with shelves than as a desk and that works for you, go for it.

oh hey, i forgot abt this thread -- maybe I take pictures.

the two mantels are looking pretty good tbh. in the process of making curtains for the dining room.

tza i don't know if this is an option for you but the salvation army here is a great resource for furniture. not so much for the lol couches, but i've found some great stuff mad cheap.

We are still in total early stages of making apt look less like a mess -- yeah, we SLOW. But I've been trying to think of a layout that wd get the things we want into our weird space, and I finally (DUH) found a photo that reminded me that I like this arrangement of seating vs other uses:

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e66/LimitedLiabilityGirl/LivingRoom.jpg

With a flat-screen TV where the fireplace is, a leather couch on one side and occasional chairs or my reupholstered slipper chairs on the other side (because they have to be placed around/between windows, so another sofa is too much).

Now I just have to sell my roommate on it.

I've been trying to put the tv ACROSS from the couch instead of lengthwise from it, but it doesn't work in the room and I've never really liked orienting everything around the tv anyway. Although that probably IS what we'll use the liv rm for the most. Maybe not, if the furniture encourages other kinds of gathering.

i spent all of sunday home-decoring. went to a huuuuuuuge antiques fair and bought bedside tables (mid-century, kind of a browny-mustard with a dark green fine leather inlay and pretty, simple gold leaf design around edge, big surface with a shelf underneath and rounded ends) and a maple dresser from the 1890s with OMG GLOVE BOXES built into the top!! this thing is so cool: the glove boxes are small with hinged lids on either side of the dresser (which i'm using as jewelry boxes). all for under $200!!

moved everything round in our bedroom and lounge, as i'm constantly on a quest to maximize space and make it look less cluttered. i figured out a way to split our living room into both a living room and a studio, which is working out great.

i also found a great telephone table a few weeks ago that matches our bedside tables, for $15. using as a cool coffee table.

yeah i decided that desk was too small and i'd go crazy. now have to figure something else out! i was kind of selling myself on the high dining table but then i realized it probably isn't practical to buy high chairs (thinking about if the chairs needed to be used for anything else).

yeah my living room is funny because there's a huge window facing the couch right now. window tv? i have been wondering if i should move the couch to the wall but i feel like chairs where the couch is now would be a little weird.

those tables sound great, justine!

and yeah i should look at salvation army but i have to wait til i make more friends who will help me move the stuff haw!

current bedside table: two moving boxes stacked on top of each other with a table cloth over them.

TZA, there are a lot of people trying to get rid of "cafe" or "bar-style" high tables on craigslist NYC, and to be honest the all look like they were a really bad idea. If the seating is either too low or too high to sit down in WHILE carrying a drink or plate of food, it's a bad idea. :) And as a short person, I always have to HIKE myself up into those barstool-height chairs, so I hate them.

yeah, and they are usually half-backed... which is annoying.

right now i am on office quest, tho. how do i shot perfect desk + filing system for v v little $.

Second-hand table plus Ikea file cabinet underneath in a bright color.

"Cheap" desks are cheap, and ugly, and won't be attractive once they're worn a little, or be useful for anything besides Being a Desk because they're configured for files and computer keyboards. Get a multi-use table instead.

yeah. ugh. it's so much work. meanwhile i'm sitting on my couch when i do work from home and i gotta say that is uh... not really conducive to efficient productivity.

also my couch is comfortable but now i kind of wish i'd gone with the less comfortable but sleeker looking one. oh well. it was like $300 more.

i use an ikea dining room table for my desk, i love it.

BJÖRKUDDEN

it's shaped like bjork, and it has udders underneath in case i need a snack of icelandic milk

i'm working on finding a new desk, too. we currently have this old wooden desk, and i think it's really ugly, but my husband sanded it down and painted it dark green (his favourite colour) a long time ago and has a huge sentimental attachment to it. but i want something bigger and with those little sliding pieces that create extra desk space, like really old desks have.

was thinking of getting a big vika table and putting some cabinets under it, then just clearing it off and centering it in the room if people came over for eating but i kind of hate the idea of having to rearrange furniture to entertain. still undecided as to whether dining area will be office or dining. leaning towards office...

our dining room is a bike workshop :(

update to last year when I painted those black shelves (upthread) - I actually scored 4 Ikea Billy bookcases in black in perfect condition for free a few months ago, so now my whole apartment has beautiful, matching black shelves. Bliss.

I also found a functionable but not gorgeous desk on my street this summer and replaced my desk - this one is bigger and matches the colours of my fiancee's desk - we have a second bedroom converted into a study/library and we each have half the room, with shelves & desks arranged like there is a mirror in the centre of the room. I think it's pretty cute.

yeah i want a big big desk that i can move away from the wall so we can both work at it, plus it'll be easy when i'm working with big sheets of paper

that sounds like a dream!
xpost

i got this coffee table except with light-colored wood

http://img1.classistatic.com/cps/kj/090907/323r5/5500l5j_19.jpeg

and it is enormoouuusss

ooooooh <3

i need chairs. why are chairs so expensive?

btw i got super cheap desk and side table and a 4-square expedit the other day. it's a sickness. but my house is slowly looking better!

if you squint you can't tell it's all crap.

I only have one chair! Haw. I thrifted it. It's some kind of old chair that you're supposed to hang ties ont he back of (???) and the bottom opens up and I keep sheet music in it. It's kind of a ladderback chair.

xp don't feel bad about buying 'crap' furniture: my motto right now is to buy stuff that i like the look of, and for cheap. we don't know where we're gonna be in a year's time, and if we're moving cross-country - good chance of this - i don't wanna have to lug tons of furniture just cuz i paid a lot of money for it. i wanna feel free just to ditch it if i have to, no regrets.

keep meaning to take photos of my awesome new furniture but keep forgetting. the 'glove boxes' on the dresser are just the coolest things ever.

i really want a dressing table now

yeah i was just thinking about that. i really need one

getting ready standing in the bathroom feels so dorm life

yeah i usually sit on my bed or the couch but you know, i'd love a nice space to put all that girly crap and have morning ritual time.

yeah, would be really nice to stick photos and stuff on the side of the mirror, and have like an atomizer sitting there doing nothing, and all my hair-doing stuff not crammed into a box.

i need some desk ideas.

currently, our workshop is 3/4 of our living room and we have an old wooden desk in there. but we're hopefully moving soon to a place where our workshop will have its own room, so i want to buy a much larger desk - actually, probably more of a table than a desk, since i'm not concerned with having drawers and i want me and ytth to both be able to sit at opposite sides of it.

i want it big enough for both of us to work at and to maybe have folding legs or some other feature where it comes apart to make it easy to move.

is ikea my best bet for this kind of thing?

so psyched to move into new place soon and set up my own home. it has some pretty paint on the wall in the bedroom already.

IKEA is perfect, J, because they have a lot of table tops with replaceable/interchangeable legs, some trestles, some shelving things that you can rest the table on...different colors, and so on.

yeah we just stopped by there today and found some pretty suitable stuff. psyched to buy new furniture!! gonna get rid of our shitty tv stand, get a new couch, new desk, some new shelving... fingers crossed we get the AMAZING place we applied for today.

anyone have experience with uv film for windows?

This may seem really weird, but I'm considering getting rid of my bed and turning the bedroom into a combined dressing area/reading nook, and making the living room futon our official "bed". We sleep on the futon half the time anyway because the TV is in the liv rm, because we smoke in the living room, and other conveniences, but it's crazy cramped with the other liv rm furniture.

If I ditched my double bed, I could reconfigure the BR to have a real sitting area, a nice storage credenda or low shelving, and it would be a QUIET SPACE for reading or etc when one person is in the other room. The thing is, I've always been really emotionally attached to having a BEDROOM, with a nice cozy made-up BED with big pillows and stuff, but could I break that attachment if it made far more sense to?

It would be temporary, just for our stupidly small apartment -- it's not like I'm giving up bedrooms FOR LYFE or anything.

I would also simplify our bedding, like just go the bottom sheet + duvet route instead of the complicated set-up that I'm used to, but has to be re-made every day to look nice -- sheet pulled up and turned down neatly over the comforter, pillows stacked with the shams in the back, blanket folded at the foot, etc. Maybe the more casual throw-duvet and interchangeable pillow covers is more sensible in a house where no one ever makes the bed anyway???

i think this is a GREAT idea - worse case scenario, you hate it, you get another bed or move the futon into the bedroom. esp if your aptmt is small and cramped, it would be totally nice to have a 'nook' kind of thing for chilling and stuff.

its a good time to get rid of your bed anyway, iirc

Oh have I mentioned that I'm like the third owner? You are so right.

The more I think about it, the more I like this. We hate our space and it's going to be winter & really dark in there and I'm afraid we'll get depresso and fight and hate our lives if nothing changes. But when I thought about how we USE the space we have, the bedroom just feels pointless and auxiliary even when we actually sleep in it, and it's not calming, visually, to be in there because of all the wardrobe storage/shelving that looms over you.

It works better as a dressing area, imo, and moving the oversized coffee table & some furniture out of the LR and putting them into a corner of the BR is an added bonus for "being able to walk around" which I'm finding is sadly underrated in our current arrangement.

sounds like a perfect idea, except for the fact that you traditionally enjoy the "idea" of a bedroom (i can ID with this). keep in mind you're not giving up on a bedroom forever, put a painting of a bedroom on the wall in the new dressing space/reading area and enjoy your life. haw!

Hahaha oh I'm already planning how to gussy it up, believe me. I've rearranged my whole apt in my head already and made sketches roughly to-scale of where things will go, what to price at IKEA, dimensions of shelves, etc. If I had an extra $400, I could make a total re-des happen this very weekend.

Idea got KO'ed last night unfortch. Where did that living alone thread go...?

!!

for real?

i'd think it'd be weird to have your bed in the living room, but maybe if you never have guests?

It's an IKEA futon and pulls up into a couch, fyi. But now I'm loath to get rid of my bed because I might need it again sometime. Rearranging is on hold indefinitely, I guess.

Can you do something in the current bedroom to help it be more cosy? Fabric canopy/tent that hides the looming shelves?

We ended up ditching the coffee table in our new space and have gone back to the storage ottomans instead. The coffee table legs come off, so it stores nicely - it hid behind the loveseat, against the wall, when we were in the 700 sq ft loft. The ottomans are narrower (14" vs. 24") and more flexible to arrange, so we get walk-around space.

I was envisioning ottomans in my re-des space too! I remember yours, and I thought they were very smart. But my coffee table is solid teak, Danish-modern, and the size of a small DOOR, so it's impossible to store anywhere and should never go in an apt this size -- but it's what I have, and I'm not getting rid of it for a temporary housing sitch.

i had a dream about laurel's bedroom/living room conundrum lol

I advocate keeping furniture if at all possible - I've almost always regretted it, any time I've gotten rid of a piece due to space. Even when I say "we are never moving again"... well, it's always in the back of my head that we might.

Ha! What did you dream? Did it all work out?

i dreamed that i was trying to solve the problem in person

did any of the furniture fly around or was self-propelled in any way?

no, but the BF was not agreeable to anything i came up with

Laurel was wearing a black pencil skirt and ballet top

Even when I say "we are never moving again"... well, it's always in the back of my head that we might.

You are delusional -- I was JUST THINKING late last week about your obsession with moving!!! You! You have had more dream kitchens that anyone! And you keep leaving them! I had JUST accepted it was a charming eccentricity, as long as you and R were on the same wavelength etc but MAN if I had your library (and that loft!!) I would never move again. Possibly I would never even LEAVE the unit, much less move out of it.

lolololol roxy! He's not agreeable to anything I come up with either, so it's nothing personal.

I know, it's crazy. I think we might have stayed in the loft if things hadn't gotten very weird with the landlord/owner in May. Also if the new people who moved in above us hadn't been so loud in the wee hours. etc. The new place and the new neighborhood are both completely charming, and having a landlord who is also a friend (and cares about this house) and neighbors whom we know has been a revelation and may have grounded out my transient drive. I can envision staying here a long time - and the kitchen is great :)

i have two ikea half-height bookshelves that are extremely useful and also extremely ugly: so i am thinking about covering them in wallpaper. anyone done this before?

Sounds like a disaster, tbh. All those corners are NEVER going to fold or lie flat.

What about painting it, instead? You could put the wallpaper on something nice and flat, like the backing board, so you just see the print at the backs of the shelves?

:/

i saw a blog post about it and got all excited - but you're probably right. it's that chipboard/veneer kind of bookshelf, so do i just give it a bit of a rough sanding and then paint directly onto it?

I thought about wallpaper+varnishing my Billys a while back but never got round to it. It does look ace when it's done properly (I don't know how often it fails miserably though, as I guess those people don't blog about it).

Chipboard, eh? You could slap some spackle on them, maybe? Or some other kind of filler, just to smooth things out some before the paint goes on?

you can cover them tightly with thin fabric so that they look wallpapered like so

http://www.housetohome.co.uk/imageBank/o/opener1.jpg

what about contact paper?

ooh yeah that thin fabric look is nice, too!

Could be difficult to clean though?

Yeah, you'd have to unpin and launder and iron/starch it. Or you could vacuum it occasionally if you have a little vac, I guess. But I worry about that black city schmutz that gets on everything in NY, perhaps you don't have this problem where you are!

J, I finally understand what you mean by "chipboard and veneer"! I don't know why that seemed so impenetrable to me yesterday.... Something like this? Which is particle board, btw:

http://gospelfodder.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/particle-board.jpg

I still don't think wallpapering it is the answer, but I'm not sure what IS. That stuff is hard to disguise.

yeah particle board is the right word, couldn't think of it! i have two these ugly beasts, maybe i'll try painting one first.

Amazing Post on Home Interior Blog
http://styleonartfactory.com/blog/

thanks

are vintage wall murals acceptable? or are they nothing but kitschy nostalgia? don't feel like i've seen these around since they were originally in fashion, but i'd guess that maybe they're hard to come by. perhaps i'm wrong. i'd kinda like one in my kitchen anyway, but my gf is completely not buying the idea.

this dude has a bunch:
http://ewmoore.co.uk/wallposters_pg1.htm

particularly want to eat cereal in front of this one:
http://ewmoore.co.uk/images/C211.jpg

those are hideous!

i dunno they're kind of amazing in a way

amazingly hideous?

the alpine one rules! you'll come around, son

it's only the mountain one that i'd consider.

the rest are pretty hideous, it's true. would have to that seventies national geographic photography style. alpine or forest. nothing tropical or cityscapes.

haha, why?

http://ewmoore.co.uk/images/C860.jpg

http://img829.imageshack.us/img829/1868/c860.jpg

We've had this debate before...she wants to hang an oversaturated tropical sunset, I want to hang some tasteful B+W landscape photography. Still unresolved, to nobody's satisfaction.

Hmm HHHMMMM. Now that I'm settled, sort of, I'm getting THE BUG again. Luckily for my DIY fix, my bedroom is a paint atrocity of butter yellow applied in a patchy sponge pattern, with an even oranger-yellow picture rail above.

The place needs spackling, sanding, priming, and paint. Thinking, thinking....

my place needs SO much work but we are trying to stick it out there as long as possible because it's pretty much the cheapest i'm going to find for what it is. what i need to figure out is: how does one cosmetically make a place that is in serious need of renovation look like it's not?

should i take photos of my kitchen for this thread? fwiw my kitchen is kinda awesomely kitschy in a 70s grandma sort of way despite a sad lack of avocado-colored appliances

Tza: Paint! ??
elmo: YES!!

i think there is too much shit/furniture in my apartment to paint. plus the paint is actually in reasonably good shape? i think i need a pro.

My scheme: walls in silver gray. Wood trim refreshed in gloss white despite its imperfections -- the impression of cleanliness is what matters. Bedding: Navy and white geometric/basketweave/ring pattern. Accents: a clear cool yellow for pillows, yellow to repaint the bedroom door(s), cafe curtains instead of full drapes to let in more light.

my bedroom walls are a mossy green, and the living room is a dove gray. kitchen is lighter blue. all trim is gloss white. maybe i should just put up curtains or change bedding or get new rugs.

How to paint in a room full of stuff: move all the stuff to the middle. Buy 10 cheap shower curtains from the dollar store and/or the cheap folded drop-cloths from the hardware store. Cover everything in middle of room, and tape into place. Work around it.

xp those colors sound REALLY NICE!

what i would love is a renovated kitchen/bathroom and refinished floors (my parquet is SO sad). sigh.

they are not bad! i think what would really help would be to have less furniture but that is a whole other battle :|

You know, I think sometimes that "less furniture" is the answer and then I see a room like this:

http://g-cdn.apartmenttherapy.com/2612905/060611KristinCollinsHouseTour_05_rect640.jpg

and even though the busy-ness of that kind of room would drive some folks crazy, it works surprisingly well. I guess it really is all about color, scale.

To elaborate:

http://g-cdn.apartmenttherapy.com/2612945/060611KristinCollinsHouseTour_09_rect640.jpg

http://g-cdn.apartmenttherapy.com/2612915/060611KristinCollinsHouseTour_06_rect640.jpg

yeah, i think the tall ceilings relaly make the difference. i have not-tall ceilings and a LOT of black furniture. i thought it was so great that all our furniture matched when we combined possessions, but now i kinda wish there was a bit of variation.

Ohhhhhh black. Yeah. Can you spray-paint some of the furniture?

honestly, it's all ikea and that seems like way too much work for this stuff. i prefer black... just in a larger space?

You and absolutely everyone else!! :D

There are some good spray paints, apparently. You could refinish a set of something in a weekend probably. And if it's just IKEA, you won't mind taking a chance with a paint job?

Picked a 4-legged round footstool from the curb on my way home last night. Totally mid-cent, upholstered in robin's egg blue vinyl with those cigar-shaped wooden legs that everything had. Am totally gonna recover it! But in WHAT, that is the question....

Kitchen needs a complete overhaul. I won't use it unless I am wearing dark sunglasses to shield the hideousness. When dad was alive the entire drywall ceiling came down in the middle of the night. Dad didn't, uh, do the upstairs plumbing right and it just caved. We need a new one. Surfing about kitchens is a nightmare!

Look at this fabric almost every day and want it for cafe curtains/half-windows.

http://tonicliving.com/items/flatironyellow%2Ejpg

lovely!

so: Missoni for Target collection? http://www.fashionologie.com/Missoni-Target-Preview-Pictures-18689603
wld not buy the clothes, because i'm a snob like that - real thing or bust imo - but the kids clothes are cute and the housewares and pillows and things are pretty great for the price!
(of course, Canada doesn't have Target... in 2014 tho! lol)

i actually think they did an awesome job translating missoni to a lower price point, this is prob the most successful target collab yet. that said, missoni not really my cup of tea stylewise but i still think it's p great

isn't dr3w dani3l into missoni? paging dr. dr3w!

I get paid on Fri and have made a list of all the tools and supplies I want so I can patch, prime, and repaint my bedroom walls and woodwork. The total is like $260 incl spackle, primer, three kinds of paint (wall, trim, ceiling), a stepladder, and assorted tools. Oh and a hand-sander for the woodwork.

Gonna do it while my roommate is out of the country, because I fully expect TOTAL DISRUPTION and my entire wardrobe in piles in the living room.

wow! i've been needing to paint for oh 6 years and have been saying i will for 2 years. soon, soon...

Missoni is def my cup of tea and though i appreciate the translation of the patterns to a lower price point, i just personally don't usually go in for cheap knits (haha i say that as if i own/buy expensive knits all the time! lols) - maybe i'd have to see them in person to really judge. i really like the plates and cups and bowls though! and the bedspread and pillows!

linking bcuz img is lol hueg but i v much love the missoni hotel kuwait's uniforms:

http://plussixfivepsf.tumblr.com/post/6029392184/official-uniform-at-kuwaits-missoni-hotel

They're totally amazingly great, yes!

i still need to take photos of my kitchen! it keeps changing. and by changing i mean "fully manifesting the experience of grandmothering during the late 1970s"

Want to see. Now.

laurel i promise promise pinky swear i will get some photos up soon. but you can look forward to:

crewel embroidery of woodland vignettes
mrs butterworth
ducks!
boy scout mugs
pyrex pyrex pyrex

among other things

I am very excited to see your work, elmo.

ooh those are the best hotel uniforms!

okay, here are some things that exist happily in my kitchen

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6206/6050881449_fe34bcb6ba.jpg

chrome cafe stool!

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6070/6050883891_796b0f4f21_z.jpg

behind the sheer curtain is a little galley pantry with cupboards, dishwasher, and sink. top left and top right are crewel embroidery; yellow frame is a culinary print from the late 60s; propped on the door jamb is a photo diagram of ~spices~ taken from one of the time life nature books

oh and those ducks are a cool screenprint on canvas

love!! i don't really have a kitchen that can be decorated, but i'm fixated on expanding counter and storage space. i found a crappy kitchen cart/butcher block thingy with extending sides, and my husb has kindly been "antique-ing" it for me.

thanks! it took us a really long time to figure out how to hang stuff on the (infuriating horsehair plaster) walls

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6197/6050883487_0830dba2fc_z.jpg

some plates over the stove! (the floral one is a tiffany dessert plate that i found for 70 cents)

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6208/6050883357_7786679e57_z.jpg

where the magic happens. i made the curtains. right are ikea shelves i stained. spices and pyrex and the beloved dutch oven!

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6087/6050883111_0fcba65c17_z.jpg

a map! and coat rack, which is urgent & key

ha, i think those are the same ikea shelves i'm planning on getting! probably gonna paint them a smokey lavender to match the sage-green kitchen cart.

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6080/6050882975_4ddc2d7738_z.jpg

raccoons made out of yarn! schlitz! mrs butterworth! animal crackers! some cow-headed creamer thing!

THE RACCOONS. I like everything else okay but I am SLAYED by the raccoons! Also we had like 6 of that animal crackers tin when I was a kid.

So lovely and lived-in overall! I yearn for a kitchen this kitchy.

Do you find that the plates above the stove collect aerosolized oil and need washing every few months?

the plates have only been there for a couple months and we honestly don't do as much cooking in the summer, so idk, they are a bit dusty but that's it

anyway i will stop spamming the thread, you can see more stuff on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/eo2/sets/72157627327172741/

My word, I love that your kitchen is CURATED, which is basically IS, and everything is so dear. But what about a photo of the overall layout??

elmo your kitchen is awesome! We always have grand plans but never get round to doing anything.

the kitchen is basically the result of 4 years of frequent thrifting and yard sales etc etc. laurel i will try to get some wider shots when the kitchen is more tidy than it is now!

oh i didn't get any photos but you should know that we keep plastic animals in the fridge, iirc there is a t-rex guarding the butter dish right now.

your kitchen is so adorable, elmo! aw! kitchen of love and cute

Apartment Therapy routinely makes me huff and roll my eyes, but two different tours today have given me really specific ideas for making things work WAY BETTER or look way cooler in my room.

http://gallery.apartmenttherapy.com/assets/0279/5694/Shannon_Kaye-005_rect640.jpg

This is a thrifted piece of furniture, I think a dresser, with cabinets added above it later and painted to blend into the wall. So ODD if I think about it too much but really perfect for making the shelving not LOOM OVER YOU when it's so high.

http://gallery.apartmenttherapy.com/assets/0279/5874/Shannon_Kaye-0023_rect640.jpg

And this technique of painting large squares on the walls and leaving the corners white? GENIUS for my entryway.

And this is not, like, the world's greatest stroke of genius or anything but I like the wine bottles as boot trees. :)

http://g-cdn.apartmenttherapy.com/2738064/IMG_2245_rect640.JPG

Also the pic with the dresser + shelves reinforced to me, via that closet door on the right, that the crappy cheap contemporary woodwork in my room is going to be painted the same color as the walls so it will recede, while the old, ornate, original woodwork is getting a fresh coat of semi-gloss white.

Painting the trim around my (modern-day) closet in the wall color will keep that whole area from being WAY too busy. Cos there's a closet with trim around the frame but no door, and above it, a storage cabinet with more trim around it, and a door is that isn't the same color as ANYTHING else. It's all going grey.

I am loving grey so much these days. Were it not for an opinionated cohabitant, this whole damn house would be various shades of gray (except for our bedroom, which is gray-brown).

I love love grey walls and spent about 6 months trying to pick grey paint for my bedroom. But then I kept looking at apt. therapy for inspiration and got exhausted by all the grey bedrooms. I kind of compromised and did a benjamin moore blue with grey undertones.

Now I just want some kind of saffron/yellow color duvet cover or possible bright plaid. And am also looking for a huge leather reading chair that I can fall asleep in. Something chesterfield-y.

Years ago this apartment in warm gray tones in Martha Stewart Living BLEW MY MIND and it still does. Love the coffered dining room ceiling especially. Gustavian furniture is always a good look.

http://www.marthastewart.com/photogallery/home-tour-eric-pike-apartment

totally agree about gray! i had been looking lately at some pale gray things for whenever i finish up this loooong process of getting rid of stuff/paying off credit cards and can move to a nicer apartment

that place @ martha stewart is amazing

grey comes into fashion in uncertain, disconcerting times, because it is the colour of stability and security

i have a lot of grey clothes. and a grey couch. but i think painting my walls grey is, personally to me, not a good idea.

i just want to paint my walls cream or something

I am a sucker for primary colors, so I love how all colors look against a grey background.

Yeah, I want to sneak in some kelly green, as it happens.

Bought a detail sander today, the rest of everything I need can be picked up at Home Depot!!

Step 1: Spackle holes in walls, wood-fill wooden trim, sand.
Step 2: Prime all.
Step 3: Paint ceiling.
Step 3: Paint woodwork & trim.
Step 4: Paint walls.

This is the plan, anyway!!

you are an inspiration

Let's hope I don't end up as a object lesson or any other kind of cautionary tale.

haha i doubt you will!

I have a lighting problem. I want a pendant lamp on a long plastic cord for swagging from the ceiling and hanging down wherever I want light. Problem: I don't want to plug them into a wall outlet, I want the other end to have a SCREW-IN attachment that can go into the original ceiling socket, like a light bulb.

All I can find are ones that plug in. Help?

The reason is that one of my rooms has ZERO outlets but two very attractive ceiling sockets.

OMG I FIGURED IT OUT. Will take some jury-rigging, but will use something called an "eyeball socket adapter" and one of those cheap IKEA drop-light things, probably!!

http://www.commerciallightingsupplier.com/mm5/graphics/400/EYEBALL-SOCKET-ADAPTER-NRA-11_1.jpg

you could also turn off the circuit/power to that light/area in the house and proceed as: http://www.wikihow.com/Replace-a-Ceiling-Light-Socket - undo the wires to the light socket, not so hard - also as in like http://www.do-it-yourself-help.com/installing_ceilingfixtures2.html

Thank you! Yes, I could, but the one in the ceiling now is a) ornate and kinda pretty, and b) presumably original to the building. I don't want to take it out, I just wanna screw something else into it.

ah, i see!

I really want

http://images.craigslist.org/3n73ma3od5Y15Z45S4b8t62bfdd132a8b1d56.jpg

Yeah, it's a little crazy. I want it anyway. And it's FREE!

But I don't have a truck or access to a truck and so far no one has volunteered to loan me their truck, so another awesome deal down the tubes.

I am renting a truck this weekend, but it will be in DC/VA and not NY, sorry :(

Said truck will be picking up restored pressed tin panels from a 1909 high school gym ceiling. We're gonna do our dining room in tin! Anyone know how to install this stuff?

i love tin ceilings! no idea how to do that but best of luck & post pics!

Thanks, elmo, will do!

I'm trying to picture *my* high school gym with presed tin ceilings. I wish!

pressed, even

Laurel, here's what you need:
http://www.acetogo.com/photo/product/3273497.jpg
About $2 at any good hardware store

Then again better to change the plug to a socket, so gravity won't allow the lamp to fall out of the socket. Ask someone with basic electrical skills to do this, it's quite easy

Department of the exterior: anyone have any experience in choosing exterior paint for a house? Particularly any horrible mis-steps I could make?

LEE, I love those! That's perfect!! A much neater solution that the one I was considering.

No ideas about exterior paint; sorry, kk.

I had to get some exterior paint matched to the current color for some repair work; beyond that I have zero experience. If it is anything like interior paint, it is worth the money to get something of high quality imo.

Yeah, see, we're trying to kick our old color to the curb. Our current paint is a worn-out, dirty, barn red on top of cedar shingles.

Do you have to re-paint? I love weathered natural cedar, if that's an option.

We considered it, but would prefer to cover it up with fresh paint. It would be a lot more complicated to strip the current paint off.

Oh god, sorry, of course. Thought you were replacing the shingles or something. Definitely paint.

Well, no, I mean, it's a good suggestion! Someone I was talking to said that the raw cedar look is a selling point for some, so it might pay off in the end to do it. It's just that we have a lot of other stuff on our plate, too.

hmmm, I moved from downstairs to upstairs and didn't tell this thread! the horror! we moved a year ago, and had a month before moving in to paint everything, which was awesome. On the weekend, we sanded, primed and painted our living room table from green to black to match the bookcases I linked to upthread!

painted table! we are going to buy a piece of glass to go on top, and probably put pictures between the table & glass. probably will encourage friends to leave behind ticket stubs, etc. I also have a few hundred I could stick under there 0_o
http://s3.amazonaws.com/imgly_production/1929676/large.jpg

corner of living room - there are those bookshelves!
ALSO: when painting, be SURE the grey paint you selected is not a very deceptive green because it will look so weird in your apartment if every other wall is a shade of blue! ;_; tell guests that your husband picked it (but only when out of earshot, as he warned you the grey swatch wasn't right and you said 'grey is grey')
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/310084_10150302778433578_516053577_8022629_5602951_n.jpg

I also found a badass dresser on the side of the road and am using it as a sideboard in my dining room to store all the platters etc that we received as wedding presents. People like to give platters! I probably got 20 or so, many handmade and ceramic, a few plastic, tin, etc. It's crazy. Platter party!!
http://s3.amazonaws.com/imgly_production/1930472/large.jpg

I need a better solution for my bird cage. Who wants to come mount it from the ceiling? Laurel? Bueller??

oh man, weathered cedar shingles are the best thing ever. i want a cedar-shingled geodesic dome, even. xps

this side of the room is cooler

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-I7KNk9MioUc/Tlj7VsFKBqI/AAAAAAABJZo/-2A56dtgD7k/IMG_9457.JPG

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/308453_10150308567103578_516053577_8076647_6547776_n.jpg

not so sure about the picture frame on the right but I wanted to get pictures up on the wall before the photographer came to shoot the boys getting ready (as above) for our wedding :P

I was recently in a vacation spot with a lot of cedar-shingled houses and cottages and with it's combined with white batten-boards and white window and door frames, it is pretty much the cutest, freshest look going. If you can get another however-many years out of your existing shingles with just repainting, though, yeah I mean there's no rush to sell, right?

I feel like color issues depend more on the style of the rest of the house, its era, the surroundings. Can you gis for a similar building?

if I had all the money in the world: home edition

http://media.offbeathome.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/4/files/2011/09/2.jpg
http://offbeathome.com/2011/09/rhino-octopus-walrus-chairs

kkvgz, not sure where you live but when we were looking at houses our realtor told us that if we got cedar shake singles, we pretty much needed to strip and then restain/repaint for longevity - not sure if this is just a mn thing because our weather is balls but you might want to check into that.

next weekend i am going to finally paint our library if it goddamn kills me but i am so indecisive about color. i know that books are colorful so neutral etc but i am so goddamn sick of having a house with varying shades of off-white/eggshell/ecru all of which look the same to me so

I look forward to yr puce library

thinking of pulling the slate blue out of the loveseat that is number 4 in this picture that lives in there right now

http://ficdn.fashionindie.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/8c5056d382ollage.jpg.jpg

Hard to go wrong with exterior paint from a major manufacturer - there are no special needs (no snow-drifts, etc.) down here so I just use Sherwin-Williams A-100 or the Kelly-Moore equivalent on our jobs.

For interiors, I am a Benjamin Moore devotee after having a horrible time with cheapie stuff from Walmart as a poor student.

Why are DRUM. LAMP. SHADES. so incredibly hard to find?? Zero taper, completely straight sides. Search for "drum lampshade" and see how many of the results are in fact tapered. Stupid retailers.

Perfectly cylindrical lampshades unpopular with retailers because they can't be stacked partially overlapping each other, and thus take up too much shelf space. Manufacturers know this so they make them slightly conical or tapered.

I just channeled my inner Martha Stewart and painted the ceiling of the covered front porch sky blue! Apparently this is also historically appropriate for my era of house, but in reality I was just envied the blue-sky porch ceilings of my neighbors.

want

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6107/6354959663_370ab6c550_m.jpg

that deserves to be larger
WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANT
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6107/6354959663_370ab6c550_b.jpg

Ohhhhh that's niiiice. Is that platform heated? It should be! Cute dog, too.

fern
apples
green alarm clock
dog

perfect

also obvs the living/lounging/eating/sleeping space
i have another pic i scanned but there is a corner missing because i used to make collages out of this book

these people look so satisfied with their lives!

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6059/6354960929_c2808bda05_b.jpg

your dog bed doubles as dining room! it's the portrait of comfortable colorful sloth.

My bedroom windows, it turns out, are over 6' tall inside the frames. This means material for the window-shades I wanted to make will run me $130. Am I insane? I considered drapes, too, because IKEA et al sell them cheaply, but then I'd need 4 panels, plus rods and mounting hardware, which is also gonna add up. Plus you're limited to what they sell.

I really want this fabric:

http://tonicliving.com/items/varennayellowroll%2Ejpg

that is nice!

i have a desk problem. it keeps being covered in stuff, mostly paper stuff.

i only have a 1-bdrm apartment and my desk is in the middle of my narrow living space. i think i need some kind of wall-based shelving/filing unit. and to not be so disorganized re: papers, books, pens, electronic equipment, nail files, christmas cards, all the things.

I love that fabric, Laurel! Get it and make the shades because it's going to look far better than any drapes you can get for a comparable amount.

The lined drapes I like are almost double that. :( So I guess Tonic Living, here I come.

rrrobyn, I feel ya. That giant dresser/credenza I bought? The top is currently edge-to-edge covered with random shit. Cleaning task for tomorrow.

Shelving is always AWESOME. I <3 shelving.

Oh haha wait, I totally lied, it's not $130. A yard has three feet in it and I'm the world's biggest flake. It's only $50.

My goal is to coordinate those shades with brown bedding and these:

http://ep.yimg.com/ca/I/yhst-81115173642111_2190_207068051

I bought two panels at IKEA the other day *for* $50, so sounds like a good deal!

ooh those crazy pillows!

i really need to up my department of the interior game

in my head this now means buying some pretty throw pillows

laurel we bought curtains and a curtain rod and mounts for our v large front window at IKEA for i think $65 total and they look really nice, i think.

I'm glad to hear that! Do we rate a photo?

robyn I don't understand throw pillows at all, I try to and I love them because they're so colorful and there are so many, like CANDY for your HOUSE, but seriously who SITS ON THEM?? Or sleeps on them. Nobody.

finnstyleis having a marimekko sale and i'm having trouble not buying everything

i already have a whole bunch of stretched marimekko fabric and really need to have stuff on my walls that is not marimekko fabric but i jusssssst cannn't stoppppp

I'm glad to hear that! Do we rate a photo?

haha sure:
http://i1224.photobucket.com/albums/ee366/lamp11/Picture007.jpg

IS THAT WALLPAPER? IS THAT YOUR WALLPAPER? Oh well done.

I have probably ten throw pillows on our L-shaped couch. We lean on them! Rest our heads! Put them on our laps for coziness! Only time I've seen someone sit on them is when the dog curls up all cutely in a ball and sleeps there.

LAMP ARE YOU AT JANE?? That looks like the Jane tree. Love the walls/apartment vibe!

i got these military-animal bust images on super huge throw pillows for the bedroom (black on a sort of taupe colour)

http://img0.etsystatic.com/il_570xN.215909076.jpg

http://img0.etsystatic.com/il_570xN.155787868.jpg

and also two lamps like this

http://img0.etsystatic.com/il_570xN.187577776.jpg

except one of the vintage shades was totally fucked bc the seller failed to properly package them at all, and now i'm having the hardest time finding replacements.

also gonna repaint the antique night tables i've had for a while, hang some more art and buy new bedding.

yeah, we just put it up last month. we also painted and installed new light fixtures and blah blah blah. pic in better light:

http://i1224.photobucket.com/albums/ee366/lamp11/Picture002.jpg

http://i1224.photobucket.com/albums/ee366/lamp11/Picture003.jpg

xps - no, like east part of little portugal close to trinity bellwoods

I really love that paper. I couldn't put it in my place but I adore looking at it. And it's perfect with the candle sconce.

Now you just have to paint the inside walls of that window niche a nice light-sucking charcoal grey to be in keeping with the darkened historic library theme.

haha we just painted! it doesnt show very well but its a very cool mint green with a bit of a grey tone. it looks nice with the rest of the stuff we have in the room, i think.

I once moved into an apt with the kitchen painted somewhere between mint and pistachio. I was unsure about it at first but it was soothing to look at every day, it made me happy to prepare food in, and now I miss it. I'm sure your green is even better and goes great with that sofa that seems to have really cool squared lines.

holy wow at that wallpaper. where is that print from?

it made me thing of charles burchfield for some reason. ok i'm starting a thread for prints/patterns so i don't overwhelm this thread.

You know what's really fun? Trying to identify as many of those sf/f books as possible from their spines. Do I spy Sean Russell's Sea Without a Shore down in the middle column? And is that a Tad Williams on top?

And I could swear there's a Thomas Canty or two.

all I really want in my dept of home interior is a giant awesome bed with awesome sheets, a sweet minimalist couch with maximalist comfort, a swimming pool, a climbing wall, a terasse, a living room that opens to the (well-ventilated kitchen) and a good vacuum. Also: art.

And yeah some kind of mythic organizing system for all my ridiculous shit.

Of that list, I have...a vacuum.

I probably want cool wallpaper too! But would hardly think of it! I need a decorator! One day!

I just keep hanging all sorts of found crap on my walls that i think looks pretty. it's good. the bedroom walls are starting to accumulate religious art and floral dinner plates. i have added plenty more yarn art to the kitchen. also i am going out to look for moss / ferns / small plants today because TERRARIUMS.

oh oh and i got a cute edward gorey print for xmas, it is of two bearded dudes in furs touring in a motorcar, i adore it but haven't hung it up yet

The Gorey sounds wonderful!

I need to get some things framed for shur. Maybe I'll go to Marshall's today and see what ugly things in frames are going for.

West Elm sent me a coupon for 15% off. Yes, that makes that $100 bath rug totally affordable, thanks.

our house is like ski lodge with white walls instead of wood. its got a mezzanine with a balcony looking down into the living room. All very open plan. lately I've had a vey strong desire to tile the kitchen walls and bathroom walls. considering the walls are so white and tall in the rest of the house would this be a mistake. im not thinking ceramic but instead glass tiles like these:

http://www.mybestkitchen.net/glass-tile/

Prob not this extreme but something along these lines

am i crazy?

We did a bit of our bathroom in mosaic tiles. They can get way expensive if you're doing a large area so make sure you shop around and haggle for a good price. You can get coloured grouting as well that will finish off the look.

any regrets? and where did you do it? walls, shower? etc

No regrets but it was part of a major renovation we put a lot of time and money into! Did them around the bath up to the ceiling, which was a p huge area.
Was admiring the glass tiles in Sherlock last week as well....
I did find that a lot of them have this iridescent sheen which just makes everything look shiny and pink regardless of the underlying colour.

yeah that iridescence is what has me hooked. Thanks for the info. Maybe I'll start with a subtle kitchen backslpash and see how much more I can handle from there.

My insane pillow cases AND my shade fabric are here!!!! Bedroom re-do before Monday!

OMG the shams come in a cute little self-fabric drawstring bag. <3 <3

Excited for you! And btw I am in NYC, whatcha doing tomorrow other than sewing???

Oh damn! Tomorrow afternoon I'm supposed to have a rehearsal in Bushwick that may end in tequila drinking and leave me unfit for any other evening pursuit! I'll ilx-mail you my phone no so we can make last-min arrangements in case things free up.

Sounds good!

I've been thinking a lot lately about buying some things but my question is.. what is the A.P.C. equivalent in furniture? (Besides 'mid century modern' even if that's what J Touitou says it is..)

quincie, if you're online today, get in touch! I don't have your phone no and my rehearsal for today has been cancelled. My evening is yours.

Was just looking at a house tour on Apartment Therapy and it struck me that the home in question has SO MANY DIFFERENT PLACES TO SIT! I counted at least 4 different rooms with couches, chairs, chaise longues. For two people.

I don't really mind, or blame them, it just kind of feels like they didn't have ideas for what to do with the extra rooms, and tbh there's no floor-plan so many some of them aren't whole rooms but just niches or something. But there's no studio, no sewing area or craft room, no instruments in sight, no sign of more books than you could put on some display shelves, no sign of any hobbies (and no kids). If you don't have hobbies like that or you don't showcase them at home, I guess that's all there is, is more ways to sit around?

I think this is such a cool idea:

How To: Create a Paper Cut Map of Your Favorite City
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/how-to-create-a-paper-cut-map-of-your-favorite-city-164811

^ things that make me wish i loved crafty things more. but, like, lol @ "the steps look simple enough" - i could never do this, at least not as a fun activity - i'm like "this is why we made the machines!!" haha. i got frustrated just reading about drawing the lines, let alone exacto-ing all that.

Hah! Fair enough. I'm not generally very crafty but I have little bursts, I feel like I could do something like this fairly easily (but I'd probably pick a smaller area - my small neighbourhood of Toronto, say, to keep it simple).

I've been thinking a lot lately about buying some things but my question is.. what is the A.P.C. equivalent in furniture? (Besides 'mid century modern' even if that's what J Touitou says it is..)

I've been thinking about this quite a bit since you asked and yeah, I think the closest to an A.P.C. equivalent in furniture is probably the Eames work for Herman Miller and the Saarinen work for Knoll. Modern while comfortable and not at all imposing, not cheap but not insanely expensive, works in just about any context. Hard to think of many manufacturers now that are doing similarly versatile work, although there are some companies reaching for it (Atlantico, Blu Dot, Arper).

for some reason i am thinking about folding down my fold-out couch/love-seat so that it lays flat (it is similar to a futon rather than a proper couch) and then i will have a flat surface for lounging. i think this is inspired by recessed lounge areas/giant couches...

I'm going to learn upholstery! I have all the tools and books plus a room full of 1940s furniture.

I just have to master plumbing first. Ugh. :(

HEY GUYS

what do you think of my new wall unit?

what sort of rug do i need for this space?

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7141/6842200019_b648eb8435_b.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7157/6842206129_51381f2bd5_b.jpg

sorry about the shitty cellphone pics by the way - also it's lit very badly but i'd just finished installing it so i was dying to take a picture

I like all the pieces of furniture, but that room seems very crowded. Can you move the shelving unit to the left side of that wall and away from the window so the tree isn't in front of it?

unfortunately there's a door just to the left of the frame, and there's a door just to the right of the bookshelf

my back was more or less to a wall when i took that pic - unfortunately it's just a small living room and i sort of feel the urge to at least be able to entertain at least two friends

i think i need to move the tree and get rid of the speakers, or figure out somewhere else to put the whole stereo arrangement. i would really like to put a bunch of hanging plants in that space but i'm not sure i have time for that right now and i'm worried about plants dripping onto my precious midcentury swag

the other option would be a nice shelf of succulents and miniature palms in and around that west-facing window but there doesn't really seem to be room for that either

the wall unit is sort of stuck there because of structural reasons and the tree is there because of photosynthetic reasons ... you might notice the tree is in an extremely hideous pot - but i rescued him and i have a hard time abandoning plants or moving them once they seem comfortable ... i'd put the stereo on the wall facing the windows but there's a heater there ... maybe i could still make it work

I just had to disassemble and put away my monolithic slab-topped coffee and side tables in my current apt, and the place works TONS better since I did. Tried to make them work but they really need big rooms because of their scale, and I don't have any big rooms right now.

Judging by your pic, the first thing I'd remove is that coffee table. Use little pedestal/candlestick tables or a pile of books next to each chair, in its place.

The door to the right of the frame isn't stopping you from pulling the shelving unit like 2.5' to the left, where the rocker is now, and letting the tree breathe in the corner by itself.

Keeping in mind that I can't see what's out of frame, this is what I would do:

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e66/LimitedLiabilityGirl/Floorplan.jpg

Uerrhghg that thing between the two side-chairs is the bentwood stool that the laptop is sitting on, in your photos.

i like that plan a lot, and i'm not wedded to the coffee table the way i am the chairs and rocker

the only thing is that moving the wall unit is kind of a no-go, mainly because drilling half-inch holes into that empty space on the left is problematic (there's conduits there)

would it still work with an off-center shelving unit or would it look funky?

a relevant piece of info is that the distance from the window to the bedroom door (out of frame on the left, next to the rocker) is about 100" wide (8 1/4 ft iirc), the armchairs are about 32 inches wide and the bentwood magazine rack is about 18" wide.

do u really want a carpet in that room?

I recommend making scale cut-outs of your furniture and room and playing around. Usually find that 1'=1" works well.

i wonder how hard it would be to do it in google sketchup

mainly i want the rug because the room gets *very* bright in the afternoons as light bounces off the floor. the floor itself is nowhere near as nice as it looks in that picture. it is more orange than brown and because of poor lacquer application there are matte spots and dark spots all over the place (could also be dog pee from previous owners).

in the winter and on spring and fall nights the floors are quite cold because of a crawlspace under the house that gets no light, and i was hoping a rug would help maintain some foot insulation.

finally, i find that having rugs in your house is the ONLY way to get your 20-something friends to respect the "no shoes" rule.

my original plan was to use a big wool pendleton blanket (somewhat tatami-style in my mind) but having bought a few now i am realizing they are much too thick for furniture to sit on

id go for s.thing monochrome and textured

a lack of rugs in living areas really makes a room feel cold/echo-y. bc that is a small space with a lot going on, maybe a rug in one solid colour, a neutral that complements the other room colours

Was going to rec a woven grass-style/sisal/outdoorsy rug for summer, maybe with a fabric border for contrast? You could put your blanket down in the winter, but make sure there's a non-slip pad under it.

like a flokati? except the one time i actually had a flokati it shed crap all over the place.

i have been looking for a simple, woven off-white rug but everything i find either looks like something you'd buy at home depot to put on your deck or like a giant bath towel

one of the most unfortunate things about the floor is that it makes persian rugs look really bad

that's an xpost to lamp

I don't think I'm grokking the "blankets too thick to put furniture on" idea because carpets--pile carpets are like an inch thick, plus padding!

Sorry, itt Laurel gets rid of all your furniture and tells you to like what she puts in your house. :/

Flokatis stop shedding at some point? I have one from 1997 that's fine, but I've put it through the washer a bunch of times, that's probably thinned out the strays.

haha theres a sort of muted white broadloom in the bensen catalog that i think would be perfect for that space but i cant seem to google find it

anyway i dont think color would be too bad as long its not ~bright~. something like these: http://www.modernweave.com/modern-movement_197categ.html

i am kinda biased cuz those are really beautiful but we have carpet already and tearing it out and refinishing the hardwood is just too huge a project atm

Those ARE beautiful. Overstock.com also has a lot of options for not that much $$.

http://ak1.ostkcdn.com/images/products/3/P11448023.jpg

http://ak1.ostkcdn.com/images/products/P12375684.jpg http://ak2.ostkcdn.com/images/products/4/278/P11992867.jpg

Or, quite frankly, I love this one as an anchor for the room:

http://ak1.ostkcdn.com/images/products/75/920/P13711648.jpg

I fall in love with at least two rugs a week, tbh. How I would love to furnish a whole house.

some people seem to "get" the blanket thing and other people look at me like i'm completely bonkers

this was the inspiration here: http://www.tpor.jp/item/mensnews/mn563.html

i liked the coziness of the pic and it reminded me of my armchairs

how about this old chestnut: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/20072067/

i think my parents even have one i can steal

For the price of that IKEA one, you can get something better, I think.

Like this!

http://ak1.ostkcdn.com/images/products/L14040197.jpg

that ikea rug is p scratchy ime

i really like cowhides and had one in my old living room (ex-wife owned it) but i am really afraid of offending my vegan friends, especially since i have like three animals in glass boxes in that room also and my fridge is full of pork products

the amazing thing about cowhides is you can spill anything short of heavy oil on it and it won't stain

haha theres a rug on abc carpet called the 'lhasa' thats really beautiful and would suit the room and maybe split the difference btw the blanket and something more carpet-y but its like $3400 (down from $6300!) but if you can find something machine made thats similar i think itd really work

would suggest removing everything from room, finished plan should be similar to this:

http://etc.usf.edu/clipart/40600/40690/pb_sq_40690_md.gif

hm my rug budget is around $200

don't think everything in that room adds up to $3400, even w/ POWERBOOK included

er sorry MACBOOK PRO

hey what happened to suggest ban?!?!

Don't mind I DIED, he's obsessed with looking at fewer things. I think his apartment has one chair, one rug, and some cardboard boxes.

oh yeah abc carpet is the type of site i can only depress myself looking at but its often p easy to rip off stuff you find on really high end blogs/catalogs and im always just as happy with the stuff i find at the flea market and not having credit card debt

Two of these Ikea rugs fill my living room...

http://images1.americanlisted.com/nlarge/rug_ikea_beige_checkers_40_glen_rock_8617756.jpg

....arranged in an L shape, not side by side - like my living room itself.

http://fuckyournoguchicoffeetable.tumblr.com/
lol tho tbh i like a lot of stuff i see there

God every single photo on that thing is from Apartment Therapy it seems like. They all look familiar....

haha I 100% agree with 'Fuck your Keep Calm and Carry On poster' and 'Fuck your thing that says EAT in your kitchen' but a lot of the rest I'm a little jealous of. Except a book stack because fuck getting a book out of that thing.

haha yeah i laughed at those too
and i don't understand book stacks! is there a device to keep them stable? and so that you can take books from the middle of them? or is it truly a crazy stack of books??
i also only half understand colour-coordinated bookshelves - my initial reaction is 'how can you find anything if you don't coordinate your books by theme??' but i realize that some people really do remember the colour of a book, i mean, i sometimes do. but still, it doesn't seem very efficient. pretty though.

but yeah there are many things in those pictures that i covet

I might be a teeny bit jealous of the card catalog, and my grandpa once built a platform bench that I wish I had, but everything else can bite me. Books arranged by color or wrapped in brown paper jackets or shelved with the spines to the back all send me over the edge of my temper almost immediately.

i really like the nelson platform bench as coffee table, for instance
and many of the couches are simple and awesome

The secret of the book-stack.

i'm a fan of frame clusters, if the pictures are good
i can get behind luggage stacks, in a way

xp

what is the secret??

ohhh

haha our apt is v apt therapy tbrr

i even have 4 of those walnut eames chairs that i bought from someone on craigslist

(haha my ilx theme is one where the underline in the link doesn't show, so i don't always know things are links)

dissing MCM / apartmenttherapy is pretty weak IMO, up there w/ "fuck your skinny jeans! fuck your vans authentics! fuck your carabiner w/ keys on it!"

i mean talk about easy targets

I read AT every single day, don't think I don't.

And designsponge.com and Door 16 or whatever that one is called, and the Victorian renovation in SF blog and some others.

i don't read that tumblr as a full-on dis though

apartment therapy always reminds of when in contemp novels (male, always male) authors describe a certain kind of home as containing 'the artful but disposable furniture, carefully chosen, that also sat in all the other now empty apartments' or w/e but not in a bad way, like those sentences make me mad and i can think of at least five novels last year that did that because it totally mistakes how nice this stuff is, and that its not really all that disposable or mechanical idk im just rambling in defense of my wall of midcentury oil paintings and my danish modern coffee table and my minimalist bensen bed frame

I like fuckyournoguchicoffeetable because they seem to, at least so far, have a pretty good sensibility for things that have gone from fresh to cliche. The issue with a lot of home design blogs is that they tend to turn spaces into a collection of trends rather than the reflection of a personality - they've been good for design, but bad for good design.

well i must admit i recently stopped reading apartment therapy because it does get really really samey but come on it doesn't take a genius to point out when somethings overexposed! (the overexposure kind of does it for you, no?)

and yeah, i agree with fuck your

-- wall clusters x 1000
-- ornamental vintage whatever (typewriters, card catalogs, taxidermy)
-- graphic design-y posters
-- thing that says eat in kitchen

the barcelona chair / egg chair disses are weird though - those are amazing pieces of furniture! who wouldn't want one?

I hate the Barcelona chair

fuckyournoguchicoffeetable

!

why would anyone put a collection of empty birdcages in their apartment? why ONE?

barcelona chair looks like a mousetrap imo, maybe someone should add that functionality to it

http://www.core77.com/reactor/images/designersblock/barcelona_spikes.jpg

only a mercedes and not a maybach? ... i don't know, my friend had a cream one with a matching ottoman, it was amazing to fall asleep on.

i was at a movie theater the other day that had fake ones in the lobby.

The only time I've seen a Barcelona chair that looked really comfortable was in someone's house where the leather was really old and cracked and the edges were worn. It seemed lived in! Normally it's so unapproachable. But maybe I'm just traumatized from years of designing law firms.

that worn-in type is the best barcelona chair, but we can only strive to make it such

what's really ostentatious is the barcelona "couch"

laurel!

thanks for the advice - i didn't really follow your advice EXCEPT in spirit ...

i moved one danish armchair and bentwood magazine stand / side table thingy so that they are facing the wall unit directly, and at a right angle to the window. i moved the rocker so that it is also at a right angle to the window - now the rocker and near armchair are facing each other. i also smashed the plant deep into the corner and spaced out the placement of the speakers and window chair.

i wish i had somewhere else to put the tree and turtle tank, but that's one of the only windows in the house that gets direct sunlight - the south and east facing windows all miss out on morning sunshine because there are tall trees shading the backyard AND the house is on a graded lot so the (southeastern) backyard is higher than the front yard.

if i could move the turtle tank and the plant i would follow your advice to the letter, except the armchairs would be facing the wall unit.

i suppose i could put the turtle stand in the window (and the stereo on the facing wall) but that means getting a new bookshelf for art books (can't be sitting in the sun) and probably also would mean cleaning out the turtle tank twice a week due to the algal bloom it would probably create to have *that much* sunlight.

I'm glad you're happy with the room! I hope it's a little more restful now but still fulfills its social fxn.

the point that got lost in that rambly post is that i am definitely transitioning from chairs and side tables spaced radially around the coffee table to chairs and side tables arranged perpendicular or parallel to the walls and facing towards or away from the wall unit.

without evening moving the furniture much but just re-orienting it so that it's more gridlike has already opened up a ton of space and avenues for movement into and out of that cramped corner.

it's a bummer because i like that danish coffee table but i guess the next step would be to switch that out for a skinny rectangular coffee table. maybe a fuckyourgeorgenelsonslatbench?

I wouldn't put any coffee table in there tbh. I don't think there's room. That's what I meant by using little side tables or stools or piles of books or etc to put next to chairs instead. I figure in theory all you need is a place to put your drink/cup of tea, that's what the side table is for. Coffee tables are mostly decorative and/or footrests as far as I can tell, because they're a bitch to set anything on when you're actually seated in a chair or couch.

i finally got some shades for the naked bulbs hanging down from the ceiling and after taking in a strong scent of burning plastic while making dinner realized that i was supposed to actually attach the shades to the fixture instead of just letting them rest on the bulb

I'm kind of anti-coffee table tbh, as a tight skirt-wearer and cocktail-drinker. They're murder to reach down to/over every time you want to take a sip. Plus they have to be stepped over or around by everyone who sits down or gets up from the couch/seating area.

i think you're making sense re: the coffee table. friends sitting in the rocker are already using the wall unit as a wet bar, more or less.

hey there is a famous midcentury swivel chair that is very very simple and made in two pieces of bent wood. it does not look fancy or design-y but just like a very simple, straightforward task chair. anybody know what i'm talking about?

it is like if you put a herman miller eames bent plywood dining top onto a swag leg swivel / rolling base, but the seat and backrest parts are smaller and less flamboyant than the eames shapes, sort of a transitional thing from 30s industrial to 50s midcentury, looks like something a WWII architect might sit on

the Nelson chair maybe?
http://www.homeofficesolutions.com/common/images/products/main/herman_miller/nelson_swag_leg_chair/herman_miller_nelson_swag_leg_chair.jpg

no it's not that crazy. it doesn't have armrests. it has a simple rectangular backrest (wider than tall) and a simple rectangular seat, both of which are mildly rounded-off and subtly bent.

i said swag leg but i realize that's wrong now - it isn't angled the way a swag leg is.

hmm sounds kind of like a generic Enco-style factory stool?

http://www.use-enco.com/ProductImages/0171770-11.jpg

yeah i think that's the right brand, actually. i kept wanting to say an ARCO chair but i knew i was thinking of the arco lamp.

the difference between what i was looking at buying and that one:

1) legs are more "modern" looking, meaning they don't bend down to a perpendicular foot, they just stick radially out and terminate in legs

2) the metal was some sort of fancy black anodized stuff, like what they use for the legs of nelson slat benches

3) the seat was flatter, no "bump" in it

4) the back and seat are closer to the same size

terminate in WHEELS, not legs

http://vintageindustrial.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/18.jpg

^^ very very similar to this, except with wheels and no "gooseneck" bump on the pipe to the backrest

also, made in the USA based on a classic design and available for under $200, often paired w/ heywood wakefield TV tables as a tiny desk/chair set

mega LOLs at I DIED's floor plan suggestion. typical bloody architect.

(my suggestion would be very close to same)

i should post my floorplan ... my landlord - who is either a self-employed handyman or general contractor, not really sure which - designed and built the house himself. the bathroom is like 20 feet long and 5 feet wide and has one entrance at one end to the master bedroom and one entrance at the other end to the kitchen. my bathroom is a hallway!

it does make sense in the morning though - get out of bed, enter bathroom, use bathroom, exit at other end, i'm standing next to my coffeemaker

whoa i'm impressed by hallway bathroom

also, sorry for being a dork who can't follow display-name changes, but whois the late great?

nnnobody

moonship journey to ponyhair nikes

i am both horrified and envious of the hallway bathroom tbqh

thx for clearing that up for me :)

i think for those of us who have tiny bathrooms, the huge hallway bathroom seems like some kind of dream/nightmare

it sounds like the kind of bathroom that could have furniture in it, like a chair and a bookshelf, as i have boggled at in certain home decor magazines

Ha, yeah me too. I'm trying to figure out if I can put a shelf in our bathroom somewhere. (I actually don't think it's that small, but it's arranged awkwardly.)

i need to put a shelf in my bathroom too

my bathroom is small but i have seen even smaller bathrooms here in montreal and in nyc. at least i have a full-size tub, is what i'm saying.

i asked guy i'm dating if we could go to the country tmrw (he has a car) but now i kinda just want to go to ikea
lol/eye-roll-at-self

also, sorry for being a dork who can't follow display-name changes, but whois the late great?

I'm so glad you asked, I was wondering too!

Also two days later but lol at the Barcelona chair that will eat you.

I have a full-sized tub, but you also have to dry off in it, because there's not enough room to swing your towel/elbows around anywhere else in my bathroom, because the tub takes up half of the floor. It's bigger than V's, though!

This is my dream tub.... has an overflow channel around the sides that recycles any water that falls into it back into the tub, so you can fill itright up to the edge and splash around with wild abandon. The laminar-flow spout drops water from the ceiling to fill the tub. Has a champagne-bubble generator that produces tiny air bubbles that float upward very slowly, clinging to your skin all the while and feeling great. Did I mention there's room for two?

I want want want!

http://www.homebuilding.co.uk/files/ascent-homebuilding/images/hro810_baths4.jpg

http://www.us.kohler.com/common/images/bathing/483x333_images/aaa89482.jpg

that looks like it might cost more than my car

they start at about $5,600, more if you want those colored lights inside. Faucet not included.

that's why I want want want, not have have have....

there's an easy trick to converting a normal tub to something that makes champagne bubbles, but it involves a lot of champagne

I stayed in a hotel recently that had a shower that was basically just water falling out of the ceiling. It was like showering under a waterfall. Amazing.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LOpKkZGIRA4/Tb_5eSSzkqI/AAAAAAAAATY/Q5YTUAFthe8/s320/regendouche+douchekop.jpg

Argh I hate those things.

Why? You don't like getting drenched?

Actually, water falling out of the ceiling more like this one:

http://s7.decofinder.com/0/2/zoom-autre/vig3/433/433907/Regenpaneel_Hansgrohe_France_Raindance_Rainmaker_Ø_600_Mm_Avec_Eclair.jpg

I'm quite the aficionado of awesome showerheads - I own a few and occasionally swap them out just to change things up. Good-quality wall-mounted showerheads that attach to a standard shower arm (or an extension) are actually quite affordable and easy to install, like this one:

http://designawards.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/performingshower.jpg?w=480

you do need decent water pressure for these to work though.

Aghh I hate those 'rainfall' showers. They look cool but they had them in the hotel I was at last week and I just wanted a quick shower without washing my hair or taking my make-up off but NO CHANCE of that. Plus the pressure was crap so the water was just dribbling down from the ceiling. We did look at tons of showers when we did our flat up but we just went with a huge shower head that you can adjust.

Is it a US thing to have the head fixed to the wall? I get a bit IA about it. Our one here is and it's quite low down so my husband can't even stand under it. Showers in the UK are usually on this vertical pole so you can adjust the height easily and take them off if you want to hose under your feet or whatever or even around the cubicle when cleaning.

I think fixed to the wall is standard here. My brother-in-law is 6'8" and has spent most of his adult life taking showers on his knees.

Most showers in the US have fixed heads that sprout from the wall, but the UK-style hand showers on flexible hoses that can be mounted at any height on a vertical pole or removed and aimed anywhere are becoming more common, as are large fixed-mount "rainshowers" permanently mounted in the middle of the shower stall. I wouldn't mind having both in my shower - as others have noted, they serve different purposes.

Yeah, it's impossible to keep your hair dry in a ceiling-mounted shower, and I don't always want to re-do it.

UK shower heads so ahead of the curve
wall-mounted ones are often good for water pressure but hose ones are much more practical for awesome cleaning power in those hard-to-reach areas... i've seen systems where there are both, and that is neat

I had no idea the flexible hose shower heads were UK standard. It's really easy to swap out a standard shower head with a hose shower head. Pro tip: pry out the water flow restrictor while you're at it.

i love giant rainfall shower heads - my parents have them in all showers + independently controlled flexible hose + each has hot and cold taps! so you can bask under a lukewarm monsoon while you spray a superhot jet between your toes

however on an ecological level these things are indefensible in the southwest usa

just met a dude off craigslist to look at a danish 70s alba office chair. turns out someone had hacked it onto a sixties swivel base w/ wheels stolen from a ... KEVI office chair

that's what I was thinking of! a KEVI!

http://bloggiwog.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/kevi.jpg

Aghh I hate those 'rainfall' showers. They look cool but they had them in the hotel I was at last week and I just wanted a quick shower without washing my hair or taking my make-up off but NO CHANCE of that. Plus the pressure was crap so the water was just dribbling down from the ceiling

The one in the hotel I stayed at had great pressure and was just amazing all around. I always wash my hair when I shower so not getting my head wet is a non-issue for me.

okay guys im in love with those small glass (sometime sea glass?) tiles. I'm thinking a neutral color for the kitchen backsplash. Expensive much though???

I love them but they're kind of aggressively "modern" when used in en masse. Suspect unless you & your bathroom/kitchen meet certain other criteria, it's best to use them in an accent capacity, or small spaces.

Kitchen backsplash might be perfect! Use a colored grout, though, because it's going to be impossible to keep white/clean.

or maybe some color (our mostly brown and white walls, floor and decor could probably use it):
http://st.houzz.com/simages/463256_0_8-7842--accessories-and-decor.jpg

yay! I always feel like im making the right choice when Laurel gives her style approval <3

I love them when they're blue and blue-green and green, because they have such a water quality to begin with.

xp loooool I don't know if that's a good idea but it's nice of you to say so.

Kitchen backsplash might be perfect! Use a colored grout, though, because it's going to be impossible to keep white/clean.

Laurel OTM, always go at least a shade darker than the tile w/ your grout. White grout should never have been invented.

my ex-wife and i had those installed in dark brown with gold sparklies and white grout on all of our bathrooms floors - they were beautiful but *very* fragile. if you drop anything on them, they break. we had C&B walnut slat floor "mats", and when you'd shift your weight on those wrong they'd break. they'd even break if ladies walked on them in too-pointy heels.

Putting glass on a floor is maybe not a great idea.

they're floor tiles

I wouldn't believe everything you read. Until the manufacturer starts guaranteeing them not to break under normal use including walking on them with shoes, and pays to replace them if they do, they are not floor tiles.

sad nonetheless

I have the dark brown with gold sparklies! Or one of the many, many varieties of that anyway. Not on the floor though.

want

http://cdn.theatlanticcities.com/img/upload/2012/01/09/BookBike.main/largest.jpg

though i suppose it wouldn't be so hard to mod a regular bookshelf/wardrobe as long as it was anchored to the wall

i wouldn't want my bike projecting into the room like that ... on a related note, i gotta distrust any furniture that's shown sitting at an angle in the middle of an empty room, rather than inside a house. i have a hard time picturing where i would put that (except backyard / garage / shed) where it wouldn't just be in the way. maybe if you have a bigass (10 foot wide) foyer?

don't get me wrong, the idea is awesome. and i guess maybe it's meant to go in the garage?

hahahaaa garage

i live in a 1-bdrm apartment on the second floor

i don't have a garage either, or a foyer

i think it's meant to go in a "loft-style apartment"
...

seriously, knowing me i'd just lean my bike up against it 75% of the time

what i really want is a level/pulley system that i hook my bike into and then it is taken up to the ceiling and out of sight

now THAT's a good idea

those are really p easy to install

i've been meaning to do it for 6 years

just like i've been meaning to paint my apartment

maybe 2012 is MY YEAR

If you just got home from a bike ride on a wet day, dirty water would work its way down and drip from the bottom of the tire. I wouldn't want one except in a shed, garage, or unfinished basement.

hey everyone!

i moved the tree out of the living room and spaced things out in the living room the way people suggested and it looks 1000x better!

i was wondering if there was any interest in doing ILS house tours or if that's kind of corny.

yeah, but I wouldn't want it on public ILX tbh. maybe a super secret facebook group!
My mum just announced she's thinking of redecorating their living room although it will be some kind of compromise between her and my dad as to what they get. My dad has zero taste/style bless him, just wants some snazzy wallpaper or something, and my mum doesn't know what she wants apart from 'something plain' so this could be interesting.

I've got a for real TASK CHAIR getting delivered this week after months of my spine indicating that it's very unhappy spending 60 hours a week in a knockoff swivel tulip chair.

http://freedomchair.org/wp-content/uploads/freedom-chair.jpg

I hate the way task chairs look but my apartment is pretty much turning into an office anyway.

got my kevi

http://bloggiwog.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/kevi.jpg

it's a second-generation rabami-built one though so the rolling-part with the casters etc isn't quite as good.

how comfortable is that chair?? i need a new desk chair too

Congrats on refreshed living room, dude.

Do any of you guys have the Houzz app for iphone/ipad. its like 300K+ interior dec pics that you can browse and save to an ideabook. so great.

ok going to risk being corny because everyone's advice in the past was so good

so if my place looks kind of spare keep in mind that my two roommates both moved their stuff out recently and so i've only had it to myself for about six weeks during which i've been trying to dig out from the detritus of living w/ recent college graduates.

so i took the "general advice" to clear out my living room and move the tree. i figured that aside from a little dog, i'm really the only one who needs to go in and out of my bedroom, so i got over my fear of blocking the bedroom door and spaced everything way out.

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6039/6879328320_915c117c59_z.jpg

so now there's this empty space between the fake shell rocker and the turtle tank. i was thinking of putting in maybe three tall cactuses (ex gf took all the little cactus buddies away away), like one cereus peruvianus, one euphorbia tetragona and of course who could resist a fabulous old man of mexico, a cephalocereus senilis?

My one advice with cacti is if you are a drunken stumbler, or even a sober klutz, don't put cacti in your main footpath.

I know nothing about interior design but I know plenty about the perils of alcohol/lack of coordination + C4 plants.

I mean...cacutussis.

there is a lot of space up there on the wall unit for little plants, also gotta get to the ceramics guild sometime when they have a sale. i was also thinking of replacing the "boob light" on the ceiling with a hanging fixture but i can't make up my mind what the space needs

it's ridiculous that i haven't restocked my succulents though, especially since there's this cactus shop literally a block from my house where they sell little ones for $0.75 apiece

http://s3-media1.ak.yelpcdn.com/bphoto/QAtPOotgt7fQzq_veeuU6A/l.jpg

i've lived with cactus before and i don't drink so i think it'll work out but i was also considering some sort of ladder-type shelf with little potted succulents on it, don't think there's room for a bench

anyway cactus dream house

http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lpvfyazHYb1qbh6tno1_500.jpg

i mean look at that tetragona

http://the189.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Maurizio-Zucchi-Life-Among-Cacti-3.jpg

haha vah1d are those the life nature library books from the 60s? i have been slowly completing my dads childhood collection of those

i dont really have any other advice i think the room is plenty full enough? theres space on the shelving unit for some nice potted plants and i guess id paint if thats an option for you but i mean, i think its a p nice layout in that photo

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7060/7025429131_c3439a4c8a_z.jpg

it's not too congested, i don't think

but the entryway still looks shitty

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6211/6879331604_8065573750_z.jpg

was thinking i could brighten it up by installing a simple hydroponic planter in the window, like this one i saw at a local elementary school

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6056/7025557833_c997b21e19_z.jpg

j/k but maybe i should move the tree to that window next to the bike

right now the tree is serving a screening function between the "dining room" and the "office"

http://www.flickr.com/photos/44557375@N00/6879331792/in/photostream

http://www.flickr.com/photos/44557375@N00/6879333888/sizes/z/in/photostream/

i got that ficus a pot that's about 2x the size of the one in the pic, gotta get some fresh soil from the nursery since we've had lots of rain and it got into my stash in the yard and now the bag is sprouting weeds all over, then i am gonna replant it in the bigger pot and sink it in at angle to straighten it out, probably going to trim the top 1/3rd as well

whoops

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7085/6879331792_2517c4f134_z.jpg

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6222/6879333888_7e46850d84_z.jpg

kitchen is ... pretty bad

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6224/7025434429_a380b21caf_z.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7073/6879323082_a58936d897_z.jpg

chicken soup about to happen tonight

next to which is the entrance to the "hallway bathroom"

poke your head through the door and you see this vent that pokes through right to the living room heater

and some garish posters i put up right when i moved in

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6117/7025414065_2c42d27cc4_z.jpg

which i haven't take down because when i shower

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7135/6879316560_a70742e6f5_z.jpg

i trip on the patterns

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7193/7025552637_683d1258a1_z.jpg

shower is dark and nasty and i installed this horrible wire rack from target that's now covered with rust stains. all that product on the bottom is my dog's.

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6055/7025420703_07d7133501_z.jpg

was thinking someone should knock out the shower wall on two other sides with a sledgehammer and install glass blocks there too

then people on the deck could watch me flex as i shower

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6058/7025420379_c93abe02e1.jpg

you can see the deck from the ugly side of the kitchen so i guess you could check out the shower from there

deck is actually foul enough as it is

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6103/7025423173_a38fb799ec_z.jpg

there was a torrential downpour on sunday and i had to let the dog out to poop, and he chose to do it on the deck, and as he was coming in i watched the wind pick up the painting off the fence, flip it over and smash that poop flat. need to get to that instead of taking cellphone pics of my house.

and then on the other side of the bathroom hallway is the bedroom, which looks out onto the driveway and street and has no privacy at all, so i was thinking if i ever bought this house or one like it i'd smash up the driveway and park on the street and put it in a big garden because i'd rather have a private garden than a driveway

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7042/7025426717_9eed4fbe0e.jpg

at least it does get a lot of light since it faces west and has so much street exposure, it really does look like this in the early afternoon, it practically glows

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6232/6879518826_ea8d90ba73.jpg

i have a jolly wooden companion on my bookshelf who came home from the pasadena rose bowl (please ignore my books)

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6060/6879326206_aa3ab6666e.jpg

anyway pardon my blogging, i've been cooped up home sick for four days over the past two weeks and i've been de-cluttering like a madman.

now i just need a shit ton of plants, a kitchen island, some bathroom storage, and some rugs and mats for the floors and i can be done

new living room arrangement is looking so much friendlier, late great!

Agreed! And what an awesome, gorgeous deck.

the other side of the deck is bare and empty so i was hoping to put in a barbecue, a picnic table and a big sunshade but summer is still a couple months away

yr interior style is pretty great by the way, love the tables and chairs in particular.

late great you have a v nice apt but i still want to know if you have those life nature library books

it's actually a house w/ a backyard!

yes they are nature library on the left (almost complete) and the science library on the right (far from complete)

i am actually on the verge of tossing them, from a science point of view they are very very badly dated, and they really only come alive in the special sections

i think the nature ones are actually p good all things considered and they have some rad photos

ill buy some off you if you want

they're not mine, they're my parents ;-)

i was thinking of replacing them w my complete tintin or asterix sets, not sure which would be more racist though

what I would actually consider trading them for would be a nicely curated collection of early 70s natl geographics w bright yellow spines

'curated' is a stretch but thats actually doable

i have a set of stroboscopic image viewing books too, shit like crystal structures of gemstones and photos of minerals and fossils, i should break that shit out too

tell me which ones you're looking for and i'll try to hook you up

late great, do you own or rent? If the former, I can think of alot of ideas for the kitchen. I can tell you're American because of the oversize-but-space-inefficient appliances that are ubiquitous here, like those over-the-stove microwave ovens that combine a feeble exhaust ventilation fan with a microwave that's wide and yet too shallow to fit a pizza box into.

Glass blocks around the shower quite nice imo.

microwaves gonna go, gonna put in better hood

I love your house, dude! I also now want that cactus dream house.. I have no plants. These were my 'if I lived here I'd do it like this' thoughts as I scrolled through, no criticism really because I think you have great taste!:

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6058/7025420379_c93abe02e1.jpg
I could see a couple low, wide cupboard or bench under this window

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6039/6879328320_915c117c59_z.jpg
I would put both black chairs side by side and move the little side table, possibly beside the bucket chair

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6232/6879518826_ea8d90ba73.jpg
cool vase would upgrade that tree - or paint/collage over top of the terra cotta one.

Scrubbing Bubbles is pretty decent at getting shower junk out! Might work on the rusty bits, too. Or steel wool!

Trippy bathroom pictures ARE trippy - that's so beautiful! But outside the shower they are not quite as stunning. Maybe framed, hung horizontally? If it were me and I were not super attached to the images (I can't really tell what they are, you might be of course!) I would cut each picture in half, top and bottom, then hang three wide, two tall. Or split in half vertically if you can find 6 frames to match! You could then even scatter them a little, i.e., not necessarily hang the pairs together.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7060/7025429131_c3439a4c8a_z.jpg

I feel like the framed picture is maybe a little too high, but I know it's a PITA to change that (always easier to add another hole that will hide the previous! Heh. I am a lazy tenant) and of course you know I'm frame crazy so I would frame that cute little blue picture.

Still jealous and love the home tours! Please to show how other ILXors live!

I think I really want the new tubular-frame couch IKEA is putting out in August. Not that I have anywhere to put it in my little rooms, but maybe I can work out a deal w roommate where I put it on his side just so I can have it for the future....

http://media.dwell.com/images/480*331/IKEA-PS-collection-rectangle.jpg

That's so Jetsons! I wonder how comfortable it would be though - if you were to lean on the arms, would they crush down since the support only goes halfway?

I'm not that hard on furniture...I dunno? But it has the summer house/porch-furniture quality of lightness and a lifted-up structure that makes it not monolithic...I like to be able to see under things. Sure, there are couches that you can actually sit on the arms of that I would love, but they won't fit up my stairs and cost more than $250.

Oh wait I lied, it's going to be $900. Rule that out, then.

I hear your pain - when we moved into this apartment we had to ditch our couch because it wouldn't fit up the stairs either. Glad IKEA has collapsible stuff (which is sturdy as long as you don't collapse it too often). $900? Holy shit. Our L shaped replacement couch was $1400 but at least that has the decency to give us 12 feet of couch!

i have a feeling that IRL that tubular couch is gonna feel really creaky and flimsy and rock back and forth when you sit in it.

I'm sure you're right, but probably not moreso than that bamboo porch furniture that everyone had for a while? Which would have been worth it if it were a few hundred bucks. But not for a grand.

And by "a while" I mean like 1964, at least in the case of my grandparents.

the quality of the IKEA stuff is generally as good as what you pay for, so I'd imagine the $900 sofa would hold up MUCH better than their $200 one.

Yeah, the other stuff in the new PS collection is priced extremely reasonably so I figure the $900 sofa must actually have cost that much more to make than the cool bamboo-frame cube tables that are only $35. I just don't have a thousand bucks.

craigslist a nice used one

that's my solution to everything, i just buy shit that was expensive when it was new 30 years ago and is now beat to fuck (aka PATINA)

which of these task lamps do i need

robin's egg blue?

a cute white tensor?

schoolbus yellow luxo?

canary yellow luxo?

fake jielde signal from pottery barn teen? but yellow or blue? also it kinda looks like a cheap POS and takes chandelier bulbs.

for reference, my desk

the first one

i am leaning toward the canary yellow luxo right now

here are two others that i'm on the verge of ruling out

this beast here weighs 20 lbs, shipping from montreal is $100 on top of $150 price tag, takes some weird type of bulb that i'm not sure they make anymore?

this thing is rather awesome but looks too small to really be practical. but really awesome.

yeah i guess my fear is that the canary yellow will overwhelm the room, i think the robin's egg blue will look nice w/ the wood desk and wood floor and the map and orange table accents etc etc

there is also this lapis luxo but it's a "real collector's item" and so a little more expensive than the appearance justifies

how do i know you know anything about lamps, lamp?

i think there some pix of my apt itt, other than that, idk