Monthly Archives: March 2010

how to make it in america

People seem to either really like this show or really hate it. I’m in the middle. I’ve enjoyed the episodes I’ve seen and I love seeing Victor Rasuk of Raising Victor Vargas as an adult. Plus, anything with Luis Guzman in it is worth watching.

What moves me the most is the introduction. It celebrates New York, a city I’m accustomed to scoffing at– because I’m always defending Chicago to New Yorkers– and makes me want to hop the next plane. I think one of my filmmaker friends needs to make a little video tribute to Chicago. Who’s up for it?

And, hey, New Yorkers: that hot dog at :29 in the video? It has nothing on a Chicago dog. Just saying.

recreating in cape town

I came across Recreate, an online shop based in Cape Town, while doing more research on those beloved suitcases sitting in my front room and posted about artist Katie Thompson’s suitcase chairs over at ReadyMade today.  Now, I’m browsing through some of her other pieces.

How cool are these cookie vases?

Katie says, “Yesterday’s baked batch… Today’s fresh field. This baking tray was left out in the rain… it would never bake again… framed in a Perspex box, it is now the Cookie-Vase…”

Check out more of her reuses here.

P.S.  She ships worldwide!

back porch chronicles

The weather did not cooperate, but I toughed it out in three sweaters and my North Face to update the back porch on Sunday morning. Chicago was gray and gloomy, windy and cold. Spray painting black chairs orange brightened up the day considerably.

This little re-do cost me less than thirty dollars if you don’t count around ten bucks for Krylon’s H20 Latex spray paint, which is the worst paint I have ever handled. I bought two yellow canisters for my chairs and both sputtered out dribbles of paint after ten seconds. Refund! Thankfully, I had some orange left over from my spice rack project.

There’s not much to say about spray painting. It’s easy and fast. The city of Chicago does not officially allow sales of spray paint inside city limits, but some hardware stores starting with A and ending with E sell it quietly.

The spray painting was finished quickly and I still had energy, so I looked around the house for things to tinker with. I get in this obsessive zone where I have to change something, anything and I can’t sit still until I do. That’s when I saw my junk store plates sitting all lonely and unloved on a windowsill. I had some plate hangers left over from that spice rack project. Perfect for our barn-red porch wall.

A few bangs of the hammer and we’re done. I ran out of hangers and still have tons of plates so this is just the beginning. Plates, so far, seem to be a good idea for outdoor art. It doesn’t matter if they get wet, you can clean them easily, they won’t rust. And I don’t have earthquakes to worry about so they won’t fall to the ground.

Upcoming projects still on tap for the back porch: painting an outdoor rug, sewing new seat cushions for the chairs, getting my plants out there just as soon as this weather decides to support life and finding a little iron or wicker couch frame or bench to lounge on. Cross your fingers for decent temperatures this weekend!

good’s neighborhood infographic contest

View the submissions here and the winner here.

diy headboards & my ugly bedroom

Note: The bedroom has been updated since this post!  Check it out here.
My embarrassing little bedroom. Yes, that is primer on the wall.

I know, I know. I said it was back porch project weekend but I don’t think the weather is going to cooperate. If it doesn’t, I need to have a backup.

So, I’ve mentioned that our apartment is… ahem… vintage. It hasn’t been updated in decades (I think) and a lot of the rooms sorely need TLC. Take our bedroom for instance. The once-wooden floor, which I assume was beautiful, was at some point painted a dusty brown. A brown wooden floor. As you can see from the pitiful photo above, that brown has endured scratches, paint splatters, dust, dog hair; it’s a f^&#$(g mess. But I don’t have to cojones for that project quite yet.

I was going to settle for painting the room. I primed it way back when we first moved in —
Note to former tenants: midnight blue in an already cave-like room? What were you thinking? Also, I am sorry for constantly shitting on your home. You left it filthy, poorly-maintained and there were mounds of dog poo in the backyard. I am still bitter.
—but haven’t actually added, ya know, paint. But painting the room involves asking hubby dearest to move the bed to the craft room and sleeping in there and all that jazz. It’s March Madness. I’m not messing with that.

I have decided to settle on creating a headboard. A cheap one. One that doesn’t involve paint.

Photo Credit: BHG

This room is soooo not my style but I am definitely digging the window panel headboard. And wouldn’t you know, there has been a wooden frame in the alley for three days (Diana, I failed, I should have grabbed it immediately) and I swore I was going to come home and go pick it up while I walked the dog. I hope it is still there tomorrow.


Photo Credit: BGH

The suggestion here is to mount vintage hankies onto canvas. I’m not sure that would work in real life. I feel like my head would constantly dislodge everything. Either way, it’s cute but probably not for me. Plus, painting a frame around each one is involved. I said no painting.


Photo Credit: Little Purl of the Orient

Okay, this is adorable. The little girl, the granny squares, all of it. But I am 27. Darn it.


Photo Credit: AT

If I could get away with this… I just don’t know how you pull it off. First, I’m not that fashionable and I don’t think I have anything cute enough to hang. Second, it would get dusty and that would annoy me. Does it get vacuumed? What if you move your pillow and the thing falls on you while you sleep? It’s cute but probably not for moi.



Photo Credit: Domino (RIP) via AT

Okay, love. Love, love, love, love, love! Since our bedroom is the size of a shoebox, the bed is, like the bed in the photo, shoved up against the wall. This DIY headboard makes that an asset, not a design mess. I am sold. But how do I do it? Two big wooden panels? Cover them with batting and fabric? Is that it? Eureka! Let’s see if I can pull this off. I know I said this weekend, but give me… um… two months. Just in case something comes up…



Photo Credit: Young House Love

Actually, wait. Some more internet sleuthing led to this awesome tutorial on how to make a fabric headboard from Young House Love. Wooden panels aren’t involved. I can just use an artist’s frame for stretching canvas. Thank you internet!

Do you have any ideas for DIY headboards? I would love to hear them.

And I apologize for subjecting you to that horrible photo of my bedroom. Wish me luck on transforming it.

positive friday

Happy Friday from Chicago!  If you’re looking for some urban eye candy from this oh-so-beautiful city, check out RedEye’s user created gallery of fave Chicago streets.

This weekend, I am looking forward to:

-  checking out the POST Pilsen Market
-  spray painting my outdoor table ‘n’ chairs, weather permitting
-  sewing new pillows for the couch
- visiting a new thrift store
- uploading photos from this amazing gallery/living space I visited on Thursday so I can share them with you!

Anything good on your weekend horizon? Enjoy it!

out to the porch we go!

Photo Credit: AT

While it is still hovering below fifty degrees here in Chicago, there’s no reason not to drool over some photos in anticipation of spring finally hitting us in the Midwest.  Let’s peruse some porches, shall we?


Photo Credit: AT

The stacked planters make great use of limited space. Click here for some great raised beds from Earth Easy.


Photo Credit: The Design Files

Yes, this is outside! The vintage signage, the chairs, the little blue stool. In love.


Photo Credit: WeHeartIt

Hanging candles in a vintage vessel.  Super pretty and romantic.


Photo Credit: RedOrangePink

Sweet table + blue chair. This area of Flickr user RedOrangePink’s apartment garden makes me feel right at home. See more here.


Photo Credit: dcfkaf

My day job is at a fancy schmancy restaurant and we go through tons of wine crates.  Would be neat to spray paint and use as porch storage.


Photo Credit: WeHeartIt

The star light is so cute! And yellow always brightens up my day.

Now please excuse me as I go shiver myself off to work. Let’s go, Spring. Haul your ass to Chicago so I can decorate my porch.

spare room?

This photo comes from a house tour AT posted a few weeks ago.  Flipping through the set, you notice that not much indicating a person lives here is left lying around.  And hey, I definitely wouldn’t mind sleeping in this room.  But where’s the alarm clock?   The reading lamp?  The cell phone charger?  The earrings on the nightstand? The slippers at the foot of the bed?  Where are all the essentials?

While cleaning up on Sunday morning after the wonderful party we had on Saturday night I realized that I kind of like my apartment sans the junk I leave lying around– even though that “junk” is well contained and prettily organized on shelves, countertops and in files.  Before folks started arriving, I stashed everything not needed for the party into our spare room and I was having a hard time bringing it all back out I still haven’t brought it all back out.

It’s pretty nice to not view a stack of bills upon entering the apartment after a long day at work even though they’re inside of a beautiful vintage metal tray.  Who wants to be face to face with responsibility all the time?  But here’s the flip side: if the bills aren’t out where I can see them they’ll never get paid.

It’s also nice to not have the toaster oven cluttering up my already limited counter space.  But who can imagine hauling that thing out of the pantry every time I want a piece of warm pie?

I’m really enjoying not having four pairs of shoes next to the door.  But if they’re not next to the door, I have to unlazy myself and go into the already cluttered closet to find them and deal with an annoyed husband wondering where I hid his Clarks.

Where’s the toothbrush?  Hell, where is the soap?

All of these photos we drool over in magazines and on websites have to be mucho stylized ’cause it’s rare that you see a pair of shoes by the door and how can ya not have at least one pair of shoes by the door? I really like the aesthetic of this home.  I just can’t imagine keeping myself organized enough to pull it off.

What about you? Could you live in a super spare apartment?  Where do you stash your stuff?

vintage vignette

Flowers from Trader Joe’s are brightening up and spring-ifying my apartment this week. Does anyone know what kind they are? I admit that I am a flower novice and know almost none by name.

Vintage carafe: $2.50
Short blue vase: $1.00
Tall blue vase: $1.50

positive friday

happy bday okunola

Happy Friday!
And more importantly, Happy Birthday to Okunola, the best husband ever.

This weekend, I’m looking forward to:

- finishing the Pilsner I just cracked
- a gallery opening
- the last few hours of 50+ degree weather tonight
- another chance to wear my awesome snow boots tomorrow when the temperature drops
- Okunola’s birthday party
- thrifting, of course
- sleeping in on Sunday

How about you? Any big plans for the weekend?