This is how I want the light to stream in each weekday morning. Images by Leslie Thomson over at Etsy are making me feel spring-timey. Maybe they’ll give an added bonus– inspiration for spring cleaning, perhaps?
Entries categorized as ‘inspiration’
spring is on the way…
March 18, 2010 · Leave a Comment
Categories: fresh etsy · inspiration
Tagged: Leslie Thomsen
look! vintagey suitcases on the wall
March 16, 2010 · 4 Comments
I’ve been bumbling around the interwebs tonight, trying to find the perfect way to display two amazing suitcases I found at Salvation Army a few months ago. They’re currently acting as dog-steps so my pup can gaze (bark) out the window but I’m a little tired of the placement. Above is an inspiring photo via everyone’s favorite megablog.
And here are my own. Not the best photo, but you get the idea. What would you suggest I do with these babies?
And oh, yes… the price? $24 for both. I love thrifting.
Categories: inspiration · my home · thrifted
Tagged: luggage display, luggage storage, thrifted luggage, vintage luggage
inspiration board by me
February 13, 2010 · 5 Comments
Let’s take a look-see at some homework I stole from mirrormirror this morning.
Paola is taking Decor8’s Blogging Your Way class and one of the assignments was to make a physical inspiration board to sum her blog. I loved hers so much that I decided to do my own.
I used three different fabrics in different areas of the board, mostly cause I love pattern and partly so I get my ass in gear and start sewing again. The kitchen in this photo is from an old issue of ReadyMade. All of the cabinets are made from discarded materials and it was one of the first do-it-yourself kitchens I saw in a magazine that I fell head over heels in love with. I still haven’t seen anything like it since.
I love street art, outsider art, self-taught artists and DIY art projects. Fine art is amazing and inspiring and equally loved, but as an unschooler, the former appeals to me more personally.
Della Wells’ art is all over my home. My dad has been gifting me her work for years and she is my absolute favorite Milwaukee artist. This little card was stolen from the catch all bulletin board in my front room. It’s more at home here.
Making the collage led me to two questions:
One. How many boxes of mementos do you have? How many containers are stuffed into your closet-where-things-go-to-die right now with photos, ticket stubs, love letters, ribbon, wrapping paper, notecards, receipts, coins, paint sample card thingies, magazine pages, etc.? I am embarrassed to answer this. I still have a receipt from the first time Okunola and I ordered take-out food together. It was Thai.
Two. Have you ever made an inspiration board? Or maybe a scrapbook? Where is it? Do you reference it?
I’m thinking of taking all of the stuff in my boxes, sorting them out, and continuing to craft little collages to hang around the house. I ran out of space on this board; there are so many more things that I want to be visually available all the time. What use are the objects I keep if they’re hidden away?
So, spill it. Where’s all your precious junk hidden? What are you gonna do with it?
More notes on what’s in my collage here.
Categories: inspiration · my home
Tagged: della wells, inspiration board
renovating for rent reduction?
February 12, 2010 · 1 Comment
Could you do it? Commit to renovating your city apartment in exchange for a reduction in rent for a long period of time? This couple in New York did. $19,000 worth of improvements (including labor and materials) in exchange for a $400 a month reduction over a four year period.
I wonder if my landlord might be down for something like this… after all, my husband was the one who sent me this link. I think he’s looking to get his hands dirty, don’t you?
the yucky before
the pretty after
Slideshow here. All images via New York Times.
Categories: inspiration
teensy tiny bedrooms
February 5, 2010 · 13 Comments
When my husband and I began searching for apartments last year we knew one thing: must. not. live. in. a. loft. Tired of trying to make our industrial loft into a home (an entirely new post, but my thoughts can be summed up in the hilarious Unhappy Hipsters blog), we were ready for a vintage Chicago apartment with all of the “perks”: wonky heat, uneven floors and shoebox-size bedrooms. A year later, and we’ve yet to actually do any serious work in those tiny bedrooms and it’s time to get started. My thoughts are all over the place execution-wise, evidenced by the photos that are inspiring me to get it together.
I love the striped floor and girly headboard. The floors in our bedroom were painted brown by previous tenants. Since the room is so small, it’s a good candidate for a first try at floor painting.
In love with these pillows, the unfussy bedding and the little sconces above the bed.
This is a much bigger bedroom than I could ever hope for but the colors are calling me. Not quite sure how I feel about the headboard. Is it leather?
The oversized headboard just might work in our space but the bench at the foot of the bed is a no-go. Our queen size bed fits into a tiny nook with no space at the foot of the bed for anything. Finally, the lace coverlet is completely impractical. Still, I’m loving the overall design of this cheerful room.
Which one is your favorite?
Photo credits: RoomLust, isuwanne, WeHeartIt, BHG
Categories: inspiration
Tagged: small bedrooms, tiny bedrooms
black and white
February 3, 2010 · 2 Comments
I spent part of the weekend combing through old copies of Elle Decor for little photos to put in my twenty cent thrift store frames. One of my favorite issues featured Nate Berkus’ apartment and I recalled immediately falling in love with the piece in the right hand corner that reads “God Bless America” over and over. While I’m betting it cost a pretty penny, I think you could easily mimic the writing in your own home with chalkboard paint and a piece of wood. If you’re just looking for black and white text with no fuss, check out some cool posters.
$770, Restoration Hardware (YES, $770!)
$38, The Love Shop
$18, The Love Shop
$18, My Sweet Prints
$18, Field Trip
Categories: inspiration
Tagged: black and white posters
turquoise & orangey-red painted thrifted frames
January 28, 2010 · 2 Comments
Hmmmm, I love these two colors together. If you’ve seen my kitchen, you know that I was a year ahead of Pantone’s color of the year with my bright turquoise walls (and initially terrified that I had chosen such a bright color!) An orangey-red spray-painted spice rack soon followed and since then, I can’t get enough of the combo. Especially with some black and white.
Image by Dottie Angel via Art Wall.
Also stumbled upon Dottie Angel’s beeeeeautiful blog today. She has fabric covered glass cabinets, too!
Categories: inspiration
Tagged: artwall, dottie angel, thrifted frames
blog love!
January 12, 2010 · 2 Comments
Many of you voted in Apartment Therapy’s Homies. Even Urban Casita got a few nominations… Thank you for that! The list of nominees is a great source for perusing new blogs, and I thought I’d post a few that I recently discovered. Happy browsing!
Categories: inspiration · pretty stuff
Tagged: apartment therapy, dee dee 9:14, his house; her help, making arrangements, mirror, room lust, the homies
inspiration: necessity is the mother of invention
January 10, 2010 · 2 Comments
I’ve posted about my mother-in-law’s home in Nigeria, but needed to share again with new information on how she put together her children’s play room.
Sheila Walker writes:
“It was great to see the kids’ play table again! It was a bunch of wood sides from a crate, nailed together. I painted it red, then had a piece of Formica glued to the top. The light overhead was a plain market basket that I painted white, and I had an electrician put a light bulb fixture inside, so the light would shine down on the surface. The little baskets and wooden bowls for their Lego and stuff came from the local, traditional market. As they say, necessity is the mother of invention!”
This inspires me to use what I have in the New Year, instead of easily partaking in conspicuous consumption. I don’t believe in New Year’s Resolutions, but this is something we can all strive towards going forward, don’tcha think?
Categories: inspiration
Tagged: 1970s nigeria, basket as light fixture, nigerian home
a thought for today
December 24, 2009 · Leave a Comment
The world is before you, and you need not take it or leave it as it was when you came in.
James Baldwin
Categories: inspiration
Tagged: james baldwin
