House ideas

Continuing ...

I was at the bookstore yesterday and spotted some cards by Xenia Taler and fell instantly in love. It's like my heart leapt out and said, "Yes!" (They look like this and this.) While searching around online for more of her stuff, I came upon a store, and I looked for lighting, like I always do, and I saw this pendant, and I liked it. I checked with my expert design consultant, and she approved! So I bought it. It was my first AB-sanctioned house purchase, and I am very excited about it. I will rid my home of the b00b lights one by one, so help me God!

Meanwhile, I kind of like this shower curtain. And I like the idea of having something in my office where I can display unframed cards and photos in a makeshift and spontaneous manner, and if not an inspiration line, maybe something insane like this birdcage. I love bird stuff, but I don't want to go too all out with it and be a Crazy Bird Lady. (My bird prints remain my favorite bird-related item at present, and I really want to frame and hang them nicely somehow.)

Continuing ...

According to my expert design consultant, Eames Hang-It-All is cute alternative to current ugly mirror hook contraption in foyer.

I love this calendar.

I like everything she sells and her house very much.

I like the blue wall color in this post.

Newly formed crush on Thomas Paul, particularly the fabrics.

Continuing ...

Note to self: Stop shunning rugs! Rugs can be pretty. AB says these are good.

If I ever live in a home with no pets, or only with pets who are bald or don't shed, or only with pets who never throw up (sorry), I will fill it with beautiful rugs like these from Angela Adams.

I like the colors in this room.

As I mentioned previously (below), I am in the market for some new light fixtures throughout my house. I saw this one looking cute in that bedroom and was surprised to learn that it came from Target. I've had a few epiphanies about lamps and lighting. First, even though I am pro-color, generally, I find that I like lamps made of metal with skinny necks that you can adjust. (That do not cost hundreds of dollars like those, preferably.) I think they are cute. Also, I do not want any ceiling light fixtures to have little shades on them. As I start thinking seriously about all this stuff for the first time ever, it's comforting to discover Things I Know For Sure. No lamp shades on chandeliers for me!

Meanwhile, who knew Target had cute house stuff? Not me! I like this chair and the colors it comes in:

My problem with cute upholstered furniture is the fur. My cats just get everything so m-effing furry. Maybe I could somehow train them to keep them off the furniture. But I doubt it.

In another direction, I'm starting to have really radical thoughts about things I could replace in my house. Big electrical things and other big endeavors. I obviously want a new living room ceiling fan, as mentioned below (preferably with a light fixture), but now I'm having thoughts of refrigerators and stoves and kitchen cabinetry. And one day, a new bathtub. Madness! My next-door neighbor has a beautiful clawfoot tub that makes me want to pass out, it's so beautiful. One day, maybe, one day.

As for fans, I wouldn't mind one in my bedroom while I'm at it. I come from pro-fan people. I'm liking the idea of something like this or one of these, but am not sure if something that modern would look psychotically dumb in my house.

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Continuing ...

Seeing these beautiful walls makes me re-thinking my recent post about being more neutral on walls. I am indecisive and conflicted, as usual.

Can someone please talk to me about Urban Outfitters? Every time I've walked into that store, I've fled almost immediately because I find it overwhelming and everything to be kind of ugly. The overall vibe is kind of nauseating. Maybe it's because of the music they play and the fact that it's three stories tall. I started digging around the website, though, and I like a lot of what I see. At least I think I do. It's all relatively affordable, which makes me wonder if it's all kind of cheap at heart. Here are some things I spotted that struck my fancy. I particularly like that set of yellow cannisters, that storage bench contraption, and that ridiculous yet adorable (to me) blue alarm clock.

But then I ask myself: is that blue alarm clock something a grown woman should own? When do you cross the line from something that looks cute to something that looks stupid? I have no idea.

And God help me, do I want that pistachio couch? I don't know if I believe in couches without sides. How are you supposed to lie down on that to lounge while watching So You Think You Can Dance without falling off? Still, I like the look of it. I just wonder if it's super shoddily made.

Maybe something like this from Macy's would be better ... I am a fan of arms:

Or this Crate and Barrell couch ... which I like in both green and blue:

How much is a sofa supposed to cost? Who the eff knows? I am also a fan of fur-friendly furniture. That makes me want something leather. This is such a dilemma. I kind of love this monstrous camel-colored couch because it's the same color as one we had made of naugahyde growing up, but it costs $1m:

(Note: I am not saying I actually plan to spend tons of money on a sofa. This is mostly just for ideas.)

Also, I love having a ceiling fan in my living room, but it is very, very fug. Suggestions for cute ceiling fans are welcome. (I'm going through these suggestions at the moment.)

Is this cute for over a dining room table? I have no idea!

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Continuing ...

Lately I've been reconsidering splashing ferociously bright colors on my actual walls. With the colors I've been eyeballing, it's a fine line between bright and beautiful and the set of Miami Vice. Maybe it would be best to highlight those colors that I've been feeling lately (see the post below) with furniture, lamps, pillows, and other accents and be a little more calm on the walls. For example, I really like the blue on these walls and this light-ish gray. Jessamyn, who supports this concept, recommends Silver Sage and Flower Wood, for those keeping track! More soon ...

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I'm in the very preliminary stages of starting to map out ideas for changes I want to make in my house. By "preliminary," I mean I've done nothing. But I want to. So I'm going to use this post as a way to collect some of my ideas. I've been working on this for a while and decided to just go ahead and post it. I'll add to it over time. It's totally stream of consciousness because that's where I am right now.

Architecturally, my house inherently lacks any semblance of style or charm. If it's going to have either of those things, I'm going to have to create it with my bare hands. Deciding to buy a house was a smart move, but it was one I made at the very dumb age of 26, when I didn't really think through what I would really love my house to have: A front porch. Nice windows. A fireplace. Interesting angles and nooks and quirks built into the house when it was built. Basically, my house is a very boxy box. It has its good points, like a carport and a large backyard, but ... that's it. In a neighborhood filled with a variety of extremely adorable architectural styles, including a bevy of craftsman bungalows, it's sort of a dud. I know this, and I accept this, but I am now ready to embrace the power I have to make it better, to help it to do a better job of reflecting who I actually am. I am ready to give my house a soul.

I love the above photo. I took it in Campeche, Mexico, about three years ago. I love the colors, I love the walls and the wood and the way it all fits together. I want to print this, not poster-size or anything crazy, but larger than the current 4x6 print I have in an album and use it somehow in my house. Not only as inspiration for the colors and aesthetic I like, but in a place that will mean something. Really, I just want to put things out in my house that mean something to me and also look cute. This photo is one way to start me thinking in that direction, I hope.

I also really like the colors in this stained glass window project my sister made when we were kids.

In my recent foray into design blogs, I came across a quote that really spoke to me. I've been persuaded by a friend that painting my walls is priority number one. I knew she was right, but I REALLY knew it when I read this:

"The quickest way to change your life is a coat of paint.
We all go through transitions and color helps us get there faster."

Yes, yes, yes! This conviction has newly seized my heart. I can't wait to get started on the painting project. My friend and I picked out some swatches in Hawaii recently (I'll post a picture of them once I actually take it), but I still have a long way to go in this area. I've been reading up on different kinds of paint sheens and trying to get a clue because I have none.

I have some pieces that I think I'd like to keep but re-fashion in some manner. Pretty much every piece of furniture I own is brown. I am a big fan lately of the concept of repainting brown furniture. The Before and After section of Design*Sponge is a great source of ideas for this. It's where I first spotted this yellow dresser re-do that's so dazzling to me that I'm ready to copy it immediately (not that I actually know how). Yellow is another color that I am loving the idea of lately, but my problem is which yellow? How yellow? Where yellow? Etc. I keep reading about yellow to try to get with the yellow program. I like the way this yellow looks. Mainly I don't want my yellows to be (a) blinding or (b) the color of mustard. The last time I tried to paint a room yellow, this happened. Tragic on every level.

I am also mildly obsessed with the color aqua, but am not sure how to manifest this obsession in a way that is (a) healthy and (b) cute. I really like the color in a rug I already have. Aqua placemats? Aqua chandelier? Heck, aqua piano? Yes, please!

I want to purchase a photo by my friend Jessamyn. She is so very talented and just getting started in her business, and I want to not only support her in this awesome creative endeavor but have a little piece of beauty launched from her eyes and hands in my home. (Right now, I'm leaning toward this one, but I also really love this one. Among many, many others!)

Recently, I have purchased the following things:

This photo of vintage bottles from Boho Photography ... I framed it and hung it in my bathroom. I find it lovely and soothing.

This Manhattan print from Three Potato Four, a shop I love beyond reason. It is waiting to have a room built around it, at least in my mind. I love the color blue in the print, and I love the memories it calls forth about all of my great trips to New York.

These four bird prints by Geninne Zlatlkis. I love and adore them, but they're kind of an odd size for framing and I've yet to do anything with them. The colors really inspire me, though, and I like the idea of making them key in a room in some way. (The thing is that I have no idea how.)

This print ... before I learned when starting to read design blogs for the first time that this has become a giant cliche. Oh well! I still like it. Right now it's in a white frame propped against my kitchen wall atop my refrigerator. I dare say it's kind of helping me keep calm and carry on.

On that note, I really want to make an effort to incorporate actual photographs and paintings and other art by actual artists, things made by actual people and signed by them with an actual pen or pencil and not mass marketed. (I know I won't always stick to this concept, hello, KC & CO poster), but I really want to embrace the concept when I can.)

I also really like photographs of paths and bridges. They have always spoken to me. Not because they are so original or artistic but because of what they signify -- to me, they represent a journey, something beyond the horizon, something on the other side. And because they're outside in places that are pretty, and as stupid as it sound, nature is inspiring. Obviously. And the blues and greens of sky and trees and leaves and grass -- I dig those colors the most, basically. Here are a few I've taken that I like, in Colorado, England's Lake District, Costa Rica, Mexico ... maybe I could do something theme-y with these? Is that stupid?

I am very inspired by other people's houses. Obviously, my homestate girlfriend AB Chao's house is a work of art, and I, like many of you, I'm sure, have been in awe of her skills for years. (Details on latest awesome feat is here.) More recently, the home of Kelly Rae Roberts (I don't know her) has inspired me in a major, major way. I love her big, bright colors and all of her beautiful touches. The color of that green couch has really been zinging with me lately. I want to incorporate it in my new home look, but I'm not sure how. Furniture? Walls? Doors? Accents? Office chairs? Lamps? Who the hell knows? And how to pick the right shade of paint -- it seems with a color like this, it would be easy to get it very, very wrong.

I like this picture. Even though it was taken with an iPhone. I'm not sure when displaying your own photos becomes crazy and overkill-ish, though. Mostly I just like pretty colors and happy memories.

I like this pink heart house in New Orleans.

And this 8x10 photo from the '60s is very special to me. It's a night blooming cereus photo that belonged to my grandmother. It means a lot to me because of her. And also because of The Bean Trees. I need to showcase it! In a way that looks good!

My house also needs structural things done. Like a new A/C and heater and better windows and an outdoor laundry room renovation. But those things can wait for now, I think.

Here are some things I want to work on and change, in addition to what I've already rambled about above:

(1) I'd like some ceiling light fixtures that do not look like b00bs. You know the ones I mean. I like cute pendants [ALERT: I love pretty much everything sold in this store, apparently, even though some of it is $1 million] and chandeliers and whatnot, but I'm not sure where to get them and certainly have no clue how to hook them up.

(2) Window treatments. I have wide, short windows in most rooms that normal curtains don't work on very well. My curtains and curtain rods, such as they are, are a sad state of affairs.

(3) New doors in the back. This is the main "structural" thing I'd like to do sooner rather than later. My sliding glass door is on its last legs and is totally energy inefficient when being blasted by full western afternoon sun and causing my house to fry like bacon. Also, it looks heinous.

(4) Some things need to be discarded, such as ugly lamps and other ugly things, which are myriad.

(5) Reupholstering easy things I can do myself. Not sure about major reupholstering at this point.

(6) A new couch that does not come from a garage sale. My cats spend a lot of time on my couch, so this might need to be taken into consideration, sadly. I'd like a couch off of which cat hair can be easily swept rather than vacuumed, as this is my most hated household chore and one of my excuses to never have people over.

(6) If I'm keeping the twin beds when I rebuild the rooms they are in, I will need to decide on some new bedding and whether the headboards should be repainted and what color. Lately I am drawn to really bright, floral bedding. I am not sure why. I might change my mind about this. (I'm currently happy with my all white bedding in my own room.)

(7) Some cute new stuff that can be bought to spruce thangs up.

(8) A new headboard of some kind for my new bed. I don't want anything made of fabric because fabric in my house is a magnet for dust and pet hair. Sad but true! And I don't want anything too bulky. I like iron beds lately. I love and adore this Ikea bed painted yellow. Or something like this or this? Or this or this, but painted? This is, however, not a major priority at this point.

(9) I hate my shiny gold doorknobs.

(10) I like the colors in this room.

(11) I like this random tea towel. Really, I like lots of tea towels.

(12) These are cute throw pillows. So is this one.

(13) I love this Mississippi Sea print. I think I might have a print problem.

(14) I love Orla Kiely but suspect I might be very late to this party.

(15) I love this quote about design.

(16) I think maybe I should have some ledges. I like the look of a good ledge with some cute, meaningful stuff on it. Not sure where they should go, though.

(17) I like lamp shades, but sometimes I get a little paralyzed. Really cute? Really ugly? I go back and forth. Mostly, I think cute. But I don't really trust myself all that much. I like Anthropologie shades, but their prices are fairly redonkulous.

(18) I like the idea of some kind of cable from which I can hang photos, postcards, and other little bits and pieces of things I like but aren't sure what else to do with. I think this might be a good fit for an office. Again, not the most original concept on planet earth, but I still like it.

(19) I was told by a very bossy woman to order Flea Market Style, so I did. It just arrived about 15 minutes ago. I am excited!

To be continued ...