lookin’ at lighting.
we’re really narrowing in our finish selections so lookin’ at lighting…
we need 3 small pendants in front of each window & 1 larger pendant or chandelier for the dining room. check out the elevations & plan to see where.
a couple cute options for the small window pendants…
$90
$99 each
$150
& some options for the dining room…
$372
$299
$215, looks small but it’s 16″ wide
$450; lots of great other fabric options from R&B too!
$225
$325
all pics are links to the lighting source.
random collection of lovely.
love the barcelona chair; love the wallcovering; love the nightstand doubling as a dresser
tiles that melt my face…
both very different; both very cool.
business cards for meeeee!
i’ve been working as an interior designer at an architectural firm since college & i love it! we primarily do commercial work so i haven’t had a lot of professional experience in residential design. and by “professional” experience i mean, getting paid. of course i help my family and friends (sometimes without request) but more and more people recently have been asking about hiring me to help w/ their homes. so flattered!
since we’re down to 4 days a week at my firm (that of course came w/ a 20% pay cut) i’ve been jumping at the chance to make extra money! plus i really am enjoying bf’s renovation & am definitely interested in getting a better taste of the residential world! not to mention, commercial construction is really hurting in ATL. idk what’s going to happen at my company if things don’t change!
so i’m going to try to do a little more on-my-own on-the-side residential work. i recently blogged about heather’s renovation & she so generously recommended me to her coworker! i am meeting this coworker over the weekend to see how i can help her.
the moral of this ramble… i decided it’s time to get business cards! i can’t very well use my real work cards for my on-the-side work! i found this super cool website… www.moo.com! they have mini business cards! anyone who knows me knows i am a sucker for anything smaller than it’s usual size. plus they offer all these beauitful patterns/designs for the back of the card! so i hand picked a variety…
i even chose some simple color combos i thought were nice…
this girl is excited!!!
designer inspiration; alphabet cabinets.
it’s easy to just see the super cute lettered cabinets but look closer… this kitchen has a ton of great features!
glass tile; narrowing in.
if you haven’t already seen my slight obsession with this spectacular amazing fabulous teal color please check out this post!
the world wide web tells me the above picture is Sherwin Williams Oceanside SW6496
but i think i want something more like this for bf’s kitchen >
i had off work friday (did i mention we are down to 4 day work weeks + a 20% paycut??) so bf and i finally (i’ve been beggin to do this for 8 months) went to a tile showroom to look for a backsplash! check out the kitchen elevations for a visual.
so is this glass tile wack or what?! it’s around $22/sf (ching ching!) which is way more than bf wants to spend so we are considering doing a accent band of this across the backsplash and the rest will be a white/neutral simple (aka cheaper) porcelain tile. something probably like a white subway tile.
but to be frank, i feel like white subway tile has gotten way overused recently. every joe schmoe uses it & everyone ooes and awes- snooze fest! (no offense to you if you’ve used it; i’m just talking about me and my personal preference) so i’d like to find something a little different than your typical white subway… i.e. i really like the crackled tile look b/c it’s a little vintage looking & just adds a bit of character… or maybe a different shape like a 1×8 or 2×8.
i really think we (me, really) have come a long way in the decision making process here w/ the kitchen! i’ve been so wishy washy & now i’m finally starting to feel like i’m narrowing in on a design concept. cabinets will be white… floors will be engineered hardwoods… walls will be dark teal… backsplash will be glass tile + porcelain tile!
(but if i do change my mind please don’t hold it against me)
cabinets; done & done!
the cabinets have been ordered! there is no turning back now…
kraftmaid dove white
click to view larger
flooring; hardwoods it is!
the flooring journey has taken us through linoleum twice, cork, hardwoords, tile, & tile again! the decision has been made! engineered hardwood flooring it is! we were obviously back and forth b/w tile & engineered wood but in the end wood won the battle b/c this house already has 5 different 12×12 tiles throughout including in the hallways, foyer, and even a bedroom! so after taking that into serious consideration we thought it was best to avoid looking like a tile showroom!
one of my reps brought me this engineered handscraped wood & offered us a great price $3.50/sf! this is very similar to the ones we previously liked @ $4.95/sf.
now we’re deciding b/w these 2 stains. bf likes the lighter better but we all know darker is more in these days. i think the lighter shows the wood better. sometimes i think when you really go dark w/ hardwoods you lose a lot of the beauty of the wood b/c all you see is dark dark dark. anyone else feel this way?? for example;
so idk… i usually tend to lean towards dark woods but both are pretty… your opinion?
i wish there was a stain in b/w these two.
this will be a glue down installation since we’re on a concrete slab. since bf & i are essentially clueless and neither of our dads have any experience w/ this type of installation bf has called in the professionals.
see all flooring blog post here to follow through the journey & be sure to check out the hardwoods post to get a little lesson on the difference b/w solid and engineered wood.
my apartment therapy post… i missed it!
couple weeks ago i emailed megablog Apartment Therapy with a “good question” post about a piece of furniture. they replied and said they would be posting it. awesome!
so after about 2 days of continuously checking AT for the post i added AT to my googlereader so i could make sure as not to miss it. well… apparently i missed it!
i emailed AT dude this week and said, i didn’t see my “good question”posted; did it go up? well of course it did! all of 3+ weeks ago… regardless, several AT readers answered my question and solved our furniture mystery! thank you! check it peeps; AT what was this furniture piece used for?
we are sinking about sinks.
bf has been looking at low divide sinks like this one where the center divide is lower so that a big pan or pot w/ a handle can fit easier. anyone out there have 1 of these or heard anything about the functionality? i can’t seem to find any reviews!
so blogosphere, i need your help! if not this low divide sink, then what? what is your opinion on kitchen sinks?
1 bowl?
2 bowls?
2 bowls like this?
or like this? 80/20?
3 bowls?
i think i like the 80/20 two bowl sink but i’ve never had one like that. you?
retro furniture finds via craigslist atl.
this is what you get (plus a whole lota crap) when you search “retro” in the craigslist furniture category;
$250 for the pair. need to be reupholstered preferably in a lovely retro colorful print.
looks a little dingy; no big. but i wish it had the cool wire crossy base. $75.
this sofa has mucho potential. needs to be reupholsterd but it’s only $100!
and best for last! this baby is mine…
(assuming it hasn’t already been sold *cross yo fingers & yo toes*)
for an easy $40 it will live in the newly decorated & painted guest room at bf’s house {blogged about here}. the guest room right now is a just bed in a room so i haven’t posted pics. i will consider painting and reupholstering this chair/table combo after seeing it.
teal; turquoise; whatever you want to call it, i can’t get enough!
so i’ve been thinking about how badass this color is & then i saw the below pic yesterday here which just reiterated the badassness for me;
those blue pillows aren’t really the right color; close but no cigar. they would have been better off going w/ a different color but nevertheless, that wallcovering is cool and the draperies are spot on…
clipboard gallery.
i am going out of town today… me & 4 of my best girlfriends are getting together! so excited. i’ve worked about 50 hours this week & i’m getting sick. i hope this girl time filled weekend revitalizes me.
so i don’t have much time for a post but wanted to share this idea w/you which i really dig…
this last pic isn’t as great of an example of good design (scale, balance, color- it’s all a little off to me) but i included it b/c of the kitty pictures. my very very special kitty Cindy went missing on sept 25th and i still haven’t found her. needless to say i am devestated and still dealing w/ it. i had her for 7 years and she just poof! disappeared overnight. sorry to be a debbie downer but this week has been crazy, i don’t feel well, i miss cindy and to top it off the Thrashers lost again last night! WTF THRASHERS! i need girl time bad!
have a super weekend you
heather’s renovation; new fireplace.
couple weeks ago i posted about {heather’s kitchen renovation}. in addition to helping her w/ the kitchen layout & elevations we discussed updating the fireplace a bit. i told her i would sketch something up so that’s what i did! she may or may not pull the trigger on this part of the renovation but regardless, i think the new fireplace sketch looks pretty good so i wanted to share. maybe someone out there can use it! i have to say, i think it would be an AMAZING improvement!
right now those white columns on the sides are just drywall… they are a cheap & cheesy looking. plus that mantel is a wee bit high to mount a TV above.
so i am suggesting removing the existing mantel and adding a new lower mantel; wrapping the drywall columns in wood & trim & adding a base; & adding wood panels, trim, & molding above the mantel for the TV. all the wood & trim would be white.
(click on the sketch to see bigger)
as you can see the bottom of the TV would be at 5′-2″…. this new “TV above the mantel” trend has really taken off in the last few years but i often see people straining their necks or having to slouch back in the sofa to get see the TV b/c it’s too high! and you know that just drives me nuts!
do you have a TV mounted above the mantel? too high? just the right height? i tried looking it up online to see if there is a industry recommendation… all i found was how far you should sit vs how big your tv is, nothing about how high the TV should be mounted.
dear TV manufacturers and/or TV mounting hardware manufacturers,
i’d like to make this request.
thanks a million!
micaela
