Sneak Peek

If you're following me on Instagram, you've already seen this. But - for those of you who aren't on instagram - and for those of you who follow so many people things get lost in the shuffle, I present to you a sneak peek at the new decor of my living room.

I know you've been wondering what the heck was going on over here and so I figure it was probably best to polish things up a bit and get a sneak peek photo for y'all to take in until I get it all pulled together.

One thing I learned living in a space that is about 830 square feet (BTW: That's smaller than some of these other blogger's bedrooms) is that every room needs to have function. I fought against that for a long time, deciding I needed to have pretty photos for the blog and instagram, and leaving more than 1/2 of the VERY SMALL apartment unused most of the time, although inspiring.

So with a new goal in mind - having functional and beautiful spaces - I switched it up. I'm still not finished, but in this view you can take in what has probably become my favorite piece of furniture, a Scandinavian pine cupboard turned television cabinet. It's the PERFECT size to hold nearly all of the design books I kept after paring down, and random TV equipment. Wires from the television are hidden as best as possible with beautiful coffee table books and a bowl I bought in Lima, Peru filled with moss.

Another of my trinkets in the background, a 200 POUND concrete urn, with the most beautiful patina holds a dracena tree that I've yet to kill over that last 3-years, potted with fresh moss I collected from around trees in our neighborhood.

The space will feature slipcovered furniture mostly due to the ease of washing as we live with two rambunctious pups. The chairs seen here are done in the most glorious shade of gray linen. The same gray, luckily and unplanned, as the cotton roller shades you see on the windows. Curtains are no longer, that space now filled with art and sun-washed turtle shells.

I'm still looking for a large deacons bench for in front of the window, which will have a striped linen cushion, and some gorgeous antique textile pillows.

Wanna shop the look? 

Changes and Updates

If you follow me on instagram you probably saw this picture from the weekend. A sneak peek at the the changes that have happened in the living room. This has been a long time coming, and I know that for those of you who enjoy reading all about my interior challenges, fails, and triumphs, this little photo is probably not enough to whet the appetite. But the photos of this new space require a story. They require explanation. And I've not gotten that pulled together. Nor have I bothered taking my camera out of the closet to take good pictures of the space.

This end of the room is finished. Certainly, if money were no object and I wasn't saving for a house, it'd all look different. Entirely different. But this is an exercise in budgetary restraint, and acceptance of both form and function, and not simply form. Pretty rooms are easy. Putting together a room with money is easy. But putting together a room that has to be functional, pretty, and inexpensive - that's not easy.

This end of the room is pretty well pulled together. It's pretty enough for pictures and feels "good enough."

The armoire was a SMOKIN' FIND! Secondhand. You'll never even guess what I paid for the thing. The real struggle was getting it home. I had to rent a van, enlist a friend to help Tyler and me get it in through the window! It won't make the curve of the staircase in the hallway, so both top and bottom sash of the window have to come out and it got hoisted in (no small endeavor) that way. But isn't it a beauty? Totally worth it!

The seagrass is 10x13. I've had this since I moved into the apartment. I don't really count it as part of the budget for the redo.

The dhurrie is from Safavieh, and sadly, I really can't recommend this to you. I mean, it's pretty, but it's not a great weave. It's going to have the be replaced soon, and the reality is that it's just too expensive to get just a few months out of. I've done everything I can to try and keep the weave from coming loose, and have even gone to sweeping the rug instead of vacuuming, but let's get real. That's not my life. I am not going to whisk a rug. I have bigger fish to fry. If I find a deal on a really great one that I feel like you should invest in, I'll definitely let you know.

The green velvet chairs are inexpensive, pretty, and while you have to put them together, I've found that they are very sturdy. I didn't intend for them to go here, but they made their way over and I didn't hate them, so they stayed.

The art is part of a set of 4 original paintings done for me by the very talented Dianne D. Ballard. I blogged about them here, right after I had them framed. Modern and abstract art is a HUGE deal these days, and I'm so grateful to have these pieces as part of my collection. If you're interested in modern or abstract paintings you should definitely talk to Dianne! You can commission a painting from her or contact her about available work by emailing her at diannedballard@gmail.com.

The English brass wall sconces were found on eBay. I got a great deal on them because they didn't come with the glass hurricane shades. Those I found on a separate listing, and I swear to you when I put them together angels sang. Ok, maybe not that. But I love them.

The coffee table is HEAVY HEAVY HEAVY! Bronze and glass. I've been researching this piece since I bought it this summer, and I've not come across anything like it. Hollywood Regency for sure, it isn't Maison Bagues, but it has that sort of feeling about it. Either way, another SMOKIN' FIND! Secondhand.

The blue and white chinoiserie lotus bowl is from Richard Stone's instagram store: Topiary Home. He finds the best things.

The brass pharmacy lamp is by Jensen. Pretty good deal on them here:

I apologize for the photo quality, these were taken with my iPhone. The REAL money in this space went into fabrics. I figured that all of those could be reused in a future space, so I spent the bulk of my budget there.

The wicker chairs were a secondhand deal. A pair of them with no cushions set me back a little over $100. Of course, once I bought foam, and fabric - well, they weren't exactly a smokin' deal anymore. The floral is by Kim Hoegger Home, and you can purchase from her website directly.

This configuration was one that I fought for a while. Mostly because of the ugly radiator under the window. But I have a solution for that which is forthcoming - don't worry, but also because the sofa is huge! But the more that I realized that this living room was essentially just a hallway into the bedroom where the television was, and the more depressed that I became that I was spending all of my time in the bedroom, the more I realized that I needed to do something about the function of the living room. When you live in a 4,000 square foot house, you can afford to have beautiful formal rooms that are essentially used once or twice a year, and stay camera ready at a moments notice. But when you live in 800 square feet, you HAVE to maximize and use every square inch. So, this is where we are. Comfortable sofa facing a beautiful armoire which hides a massive tv that we watch often, particularly with winter here and fewer and fewer options sounding worth the hassle of going outside and dealing with the snow.

The sofa is a story in and of itself. That'll get a post eventually. It's manufactured by a company in North Carolina called Klaussner. They sell directly to furniture stores and designers. It can be purchased at retail through Birch Lane, with a variety of slipcovers. I actually got mine from a local warehouse that receives pieces ordered from the Wayfair company that were either not accepted or returned. When I bought it, it had a blue slipcover. It had never been used, and was in excellent shape. But the blue wouldn't work for me. So, I had my workroom make a slipcover in white, which I think looks better than the one that they offer, but I am biased.

The matchstick shades are from Lowes. The curtains are custom, euro pleated double width linen, and the rod is from Target. Yep! Target.

Here's the other wicker chair, with the Kim Hoegger Home Modena Floral in Summer cushions. Another pharmacy lamp and garden stool. The little bamboo leg footstool is in need of a makeover, and it will get one soon. It's one of those "deep winter projects" we all love to hate. And yes, those are extension cords! I've got a work order in for them the fix that outlet today.

The bookcase was the perfect solution for this entry wall. I love books. LOVE THEM! And I have so many, even after getting rid of what I thought was nearly all of them. I found this bookcase for a steal, solid wood, ugly but what are you gonna do? It's a bookcase! I painted it (still need to do touch ups) and loaded it up with books. I'm not finished because I still needed to paint the bottom portion of the bookcase - so right now those books are on the floor in the dining room. One thing at a time.

The large blue and white chinoiserie lamps are so pretty, aren't they? Those and the temple jars on the floor are pieces I was able to score for a pretty great deal. The basket tucked under the table is from Pottery Barn. I got it ages ago, and they no longer carry it.

The table was another SMOKIN' FIND! Got that on Facebook Marketplace for $40! Couldn't believe it. Of course if you add up the lamps, the table, the jars, the basket ... it's all about the high and the low, right?

The green Alpaca blanket on the chair if from my summer trip to Peru.

And from behind the sofa looking toward that armoire. That beautiful brass bowl that the tangelos are in is from my dear friend Joan, who you can find via her blog or her instagram, for the love of a house. I'm still waiting for a shade and finial for the other lamp, they forgot to pack them. I've draped one lamp with the jungle beads and woven belts that I found in Cusco.

There's still stuff to do. I would like to build a sort of crown for the bookcase, something to raise the height and make it look a little more built in. I need to hang more art, and tackle the dining room. But it's a piece by piece thing around here. I promised Tyler that I would finish this before I do the bedroom, sort of a difficult promise to keep - but I'm trying.

Hope you enjoyed the updates! Keep your eye on instagram for more - and I'll be back later in the week with a few more book reviews!

Chintz, and Wicker, and Chinoiserie oh MY! A peek ...

There are so many pieces left to finish in this puzzle, but the living room is starting to come together. Once I get it all finished, I'll have to make time for photos one weekend during the day - and give you all a big before and after. Til' then, you can follow along on instagram for sneak peeks here.

Fingers crossed I finish it before Christmas! 

Rug Vista Rugs

Part of the struggle of good design in any room is figuring out what should go on the floor. Not only do you want a beautiful rug, you want one that has the longevity and quality of your investment. That is why when I looked to find a rug for the new dining room design at the apartment, I chose RugVista who has a giant selection of beautiful rugs in gorgeous colors and patterns perfect for any room.

Whether you are looking for oriental rugs, modern rugs, kilim rugs, or antique and semi-antique rugs, Rug Vista has over 31,000 rugs for you to choose from, fast and free shipping, and a 30-day money back guarantee.

I wanted the dining room to be a warm and colorful space. As you already know, the room extends from the living room, creating the T-shape, and it was important to me that all of the colors in the new design extended into this space too. Rug Vista has a super user friendly website that makes shopping by color very easy, and fun.

After hours of looking at rug after rug, I had narrowed my list down to three. And then I started scheming. I landed on their Handloomed Fringes Collection of rugs and chose the light blue.

Isn't it beautiful? The website warns that the color may be a bit different from what you see on the monitor, but when it arrived, (extremely quickly I might add) it was exactly as the website had described it.

The overall color plan for the new design features three colors total: a brilliant sort of emerald jewel green (mostly in the way of a stunning velvet), a wheat color that just barely meets the mustard line, and a richly saturated light blue that perfectly blends with the blue and white porcelain pieces. When I found that perfect color of blue in the Rug Vista rug, I knew I found "the one". 

The Handloom Fringes rugs are woven by hand in a loom. The warp is cotton, but the pile is 100% wool. There are so many steps in this process, including shaving down the pile, then washing and giving the rug more luster by allowing it to sun dry. The finished product is an absolute piece of art. 

Fair warning here, because this is a wool rug, (like all wool rugs) you're going to have some shedding. Each time I vacuum the rug, I get a little bit more of the loose wool out of it. Initially, I had some worries - but I've found that this has done no harm to the rug, and that the amount of loose pile in the rug has nearly disappeared.

The room is still in finish mode. I have curtains, and art, and lampshades, and clean up to do. But before I gave you the finished details of the space, I had to give you a glimpse at this gorgeous rug from Rug Vista and let you know that they are currently having a wonderful Autumn sale, with prices that are up to 60% off! 

Make sure to take a look at the vintage colored carpets like my Handloom Fringes in light blue. It also comes in nearly every other color imaginable, in sizes that are perfect for any room, large or small. 

Be back soon with more room details! 

My Media Room

Sometimes you have to live with a pet before you give it a name. Don't you think? You have to give them the time to show their personality, see how they are going to behave, and really get it right. And then there are those times, you just know right off the bat what you're going to name them and for the rest of their life you think "I couldn't have picked a more perfect name." I think that rooms are the same way.

Sometimes, I can walk into a space and know exactly how I would design it down to the very last detail. That's what happened with my living room and dining room. I knew from the moment that I saw the apartment where the carpets would go, how the furniture would be arranged, even the color palette. And then there are rooms that puzzle me. Rooms that I need to live with for a while, addressing the flow and the character of the space, questioning how I live in the rest of the space and how that room could best be used full time. 

That's precisely what my second bedroom was: a real puzzle! For most people it's not hard, a second bedroom means a guest room. Throw a bed and some lovely bedding in there and you're done. But that's not what I needed. I don't entertain company that needs a place to stay. Any of my friends visiting from out of town are more likely to get a hotel simply out of the need for privacy and comfort, so then what does this 100-square-foot room become?

Here it is standard issue. Blah carpet, plastic mini-blinds, a basic box. What do you do? An office? Well, I tried that. A desk, some bookshelves, and even a few tables and the dog crate all sort of squished up against the walls, not at all inviting, and the door was constantly closed to the room. It was ugly, not inspiring for me to work in, and more than that, it wasn't a space I wanted anyone to see. I essentially had a sign on the door that read: "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here." 

When I stopped using it as an office space, it became a catch all for anything and everything; chairs I had bought with the intention of reupholstering but never did, boxes I thought I could use again, 5 rolls of 24" wide bubble wrap I got on sale and had no place to store at the Cross Bottle studio, you name it - it was in there. The only reason I was in the room for longer than 5-minutes was to get the dogs from their crate, where they sleep.

I would walk in with laser-like focus, refusing to look around the room. Door knob, crate handle, and door knob again. I finally had enough, and I began to treat myself as I would a client. I sat down and created a list of things I'd like the room to be: beautiful, welcoming, useful, clean, comfortable, an extension of the living and dining room. Then I wrote down what I needed the room to have: a television, the dog crate, a place for an infrequent guest to sleep, chair(s), more light, art. 

Before I knew it, I had a quick rough drawing of what I thought would work:

Rough, and scattered with notes, but I could see this working. Of course, it's easy to draw anything you want on paper, at some point you have to establish a realistic budget, and possibly start to narrow the expectations. What could I spend on this? The answer: not a lot. I wanted everything to have a beautiful, pulled together feeling, but I couldn't afford to spend what I spent on my living room to get it. So, I rolled up my sleeves and I pulled everything out of the room, and started a massive sell off of things: chairs, desks, books, blue and white Chinoiserie ginger jars ... everything had to go. I pulled up the carpet that came standard issue with the apartment, and put down the same wood-look plank vinyl that went in the living and dining room. Then I ordered an 8x8 seagrass rug, and built the custom daybed/sofa that would extend from wall to wall, just about 10 feet. Having the 10" memory foam mattress made wasn't easy (or cheap) - but soon I had enough of the room finished to drop this little teaser on instagram:

Here you can see the daybed/sofa with pillows and the wall sconces behind. This was prior to any of the finished cushion covers or the back cushions being measured, made, and installed. I chose to use a larger foam for the mattress because I wanted this to be a comfortable and convenient bed for my very infrequent overnight guests. Since it's been finished, I've actually napped here more than once, and this weekend - the room gets it's first visitor! 

Once the back cushions were installed, and art was hung, I put out this picture:

Now you got to see more of the pieces of the room. The coloring was VERY similar to the living room, as were most of the materials. I had chosen velvet, linen, and cashmere on throw pillows, but made the decision to go with inexpensive pre-washed bull denim on the daybed/sofa. While it still wasn't an altogether inexpensive piece to build/construct, doing it with this fabric made it less of a drain on the budget.

Even with this picture though, the room was not finished. It needed window treatments, and I still had to fashion some sort of beautiful cover for the dog crate. For a room that's only 10x10, it presented a lot of hurdles. But, now I'm done! (For now, anyway.) And I think I've got some pretty nice photos of the space to show you. So, without further ado, let's take a look around my very small, but very cozy media/guest/reading room.

Another look at the before ... 

After

As you can see from the before photos of the room, it has two windows. This one, which the daybed backs into, is finished in a beautiful off-white linen roman shade, and bamboo roman shade behind for texture. This is actually the same linen used in my living room and dining room for the curtains.

Seat cushions for the William Sonoma wicker chairs ($125 for the pair on Facebook Marketplace) are going to be upgraded to an HD foam so that they'll be more comfortable for television watching and then covered in a print, which I also plan to use for pleated shades for the wall sconces. Eventually.

A second shot of the room without the messy pillow styling and book on the daybed (although, to be honest, it often looks less like this, and more like the first pic. Books everywhere, pillows on the floor and a blanket all willy-nilly.

The ottoman is Thomasville ($95 on Craigslist) and I added turned feet with brass casters that I found on eBay for a more tailored, sophisticated look.

The massive brass candlesticks were found at an antique store in Sanborn, NY.  I kept the art here in the same black and white or sepia tone that you'll find in the living and dining room, and the wall color is the same SW Dover White throughout. Some of the art was purchased in Jacksonville, Florida. Other pieces were purchased from the private collection of the art broker I used for the fine art in the dining room. African violets planted in terracotta pots sit in blue and white bowls.

I used inexpensive bull denim (about $12/yard) for the daybed cover and pillows, and had everything professionally sewn by my incredible work room. If you're in the Western New York area and you need anything completed, please reach out to me and I'll share her information with you.

A lot of people have asked me on Instagram how I am keeping the white fabric clean with the dogs. (I love this photo of Louna, she looks like she wants to know, too!) Because I live in an apartment, I have to leash up the dogs every single time we go for a walk. It gives me the opportunity to wipe off their little paws a little easier when we get in. (I know a lot of you are lucky enough to open up the back door and let them free!) I also swear by Oxiclean White Revive. It's an ABSOLUTE MUST if you have white slips, sheets, or cotton/linen upholstery.

The table beneath the tv has a custom cover in rich chocolate linen, banded with a double row of braided jute tape, but it also does double duty. The dog crate is under there! When Arlo and Louna aren't curled up in their crate asleep, this custom cover keeps the room looking neat, tidy and beautiful.

One of my favorite things about this room is all of the texture. Though there isn't much pattern going on, there is a TON of textural variety.

The little plaster table was an antique store find ($35), and I'm so happy that I picked it up when I did. I think that it looks lovely here.

Before

After

A better view of that crate cover. The television is hung on the wall, but of course in an apartment, I'm not going to go through the expense of having those cords ran down through a chase in the wall. So, the accessories do an ok job of hiding necessary cords for now, until I find an alternative. This window is done with curtains in the linen, along with a roman shade and the bamboo blinds. A grasscloth tray sits on the ottoman, glass coasters stacked for drinks.

Pillows on the daybed are a mix of the white denim that the rest of the daybed is covered in, chocolate mohair, and camel colored velvet. The throws are herringbone, tan and white cotton. I bought 8 matching blankets for movie nights when everyone needs a little cozy curl up. 

Moving out of the space and into the living room, you can see how this room relates to the rest of the living and entertaining spaces. Just off of the living room through a small hallway, this media room has a nice flow, in and out of the adjacent rooms. (In case you're wondering, the door here is now ALWAYS open.)

Thanks for coming along on the tour, I hope you like what I've done with the place. We'll sneak out quietly. Louna is in the middle of her favorite show on Hulu, "Fixer Upper". I think she want's to go live on the Gaines' farm in Waco, Texas. That, or she thinks I should get some shiplap. 

My New Bedroom

Before I get started with this post, which has been in draft for MONTHS, my good friend Joni of Cote de Texas posted a wonderful blog all about my apartment which includes this room, and the new media room/den/guest room. So, when you're done here - go over there, take a look around and say hello!

If you read my blog with any regularity you know that I change my mind about my personal interior design as often as some people change their underwear. (Not kidding, even a little bit!) When I moved into the new apartment last November, I quickly threw the bedroom together, spending most of my time and money on the living and dining rooms. Eventually, I knew that I would need to do something with the bedroom - but I honestly figured that I would have moved to another place before it really started to bug me. 

I was wrong.

Just to recap though, here's what the old bedroom looked like when I moved in: 

Now, this is what all of the apartments look like when you move in. Fresh carpet, paint, and mini-blinds. It's nothing fancy. But, it's in a FANTASTIC neighborhood, and I'm close to work, friends, and it feels safe. Which is important in a home, rental or otherwise.

At first, I really just loaded furniture into the space: 

It was fine, nothing really to jump up and down about. Even looking back at this photo I think to myself: "what the huh? What were you thinking Artie!?" The carpet drove me batty, and the posts on the four poster bed were much too short for it to look as sophisticated and lovely as I had wanted it to. 

The redecoration process started with getting a new bed, this time, no posts. The room was just not symmetrical or large enough to host a canopy bed. Something I knew to begin with, but paid no nevermind. Then I tore up the rug, and put down the same flooring as in the living room with another large seagrass rug. 

After that, I sort of stalled. Did I want to paint the walls? Did I want to fill them with artwork? The answer never really came to me until I found a 44-yard bolt of Valdese Weavers Mattress ticking for what I thought was an absolute bargain. My mind exploded with ideas, and I finally decided on upholstered walls. If I only knew then ... 

Here's the thing. I'm gonna level with you. And this is SUPER important, because I don't want you coming back to me telling me how big of a jerk I am because I made it look so easy. If you think that painting stripes level, plum, straight (whatever term you wanna use for RIGHT) on a wall is hard, try upholstering a wall in them. IT'S IMPOSSIBLE! Oh, and as if THAT isn't hard enough, the pattern run on the bolt was horizontal not vertical. Yep, I had to SEW the pieces together to get the full height to reach the ceiling from the floor. You ever sew stripes together to meet perfectly? Did you succeed? 

Cut back to me inventing cuss words. 

It was by far the most incredibly tedious thing I've ever done. ABSO-EFFIN-LUTELY! I must have stopped and started over a dozen times before I just settled on it being charming that the stripes didn't line up. It'd have that carnival fun house vibe, "Are these stripes crooked or am I having a stroke?" You know, that's the thing you don't see when you see all of these gorgeous rooms with their perfectly striped wallpapers and upholstered walls. Someone got paid SERIOUS MOO-LAH to put that shit beautiful fabric up there, and paying someone who does this for a living was not something I was willing to do in an apartment! (Que the choir: He's just a poor boy, from a poor family ...)

When I went back to look at all of these wonderful inspiration rooms I had saved with striped or upholstered walls, I started to see that they were filled with small faults, too! "Maybe I wasn't so crazy afterall," I thought, "maybe even when you spend THOUSANDS of dollars to have this professionally done, you can still have human error?"

At the end of all of it though, it wasn't half bad. Honestly, if I hadn't been drunk on wine when I tacked half of it up there, it'd probably look better than it does now ... (don't judge me ... it was the only way I was gonna NOT throw it all out in the middle of the street!)

Of course getting the fabric up was only half the battle. Then I spent hours, nay DAYS with a glue gun and ribbon finishing off the edges. WORST. JOB. EVER. INVENTED. And why in the hell is ribbon so expensive? 

But it's finished. So, without further ado ... here's the before and after...

I hope you don't stroke out! Proceed at your own risk. 

(Insert Waiver of Liability Here)

Before (again)

After

When I bought the bed, the headboard was upholstered in a sort of light cream linen. I reupholstered the headboard and wrapped the box spring in the same fabric as the walls to really give the space a more tailored look. I love the same fabric being used throughout the room, and the pop of those white velvet curtains against the chocolate brown. By the way, if you're looking to purchase the bed, I highly recommend going through Amazon. It's pretty inexpensive, AND FREE SHIPPING! Whoohoo!

A lot of people who have seen this room in person ask about the art. Why it's hung on the walls the way that it is, and whether or not I have intentions of adding more art to the gallery. The answer for both is simple: I don't know. When I finished the walls in this room, I struggled with whether or not to put art on them. After a little while though, I knew that all of the art I had stored needed a place to be seen, and these walls were just going to have to be the perfect space. (Whether they are, or not!) I really just let the art speak to me. It's hung low in some areas, high in others. Nothing really "goes" together, it's just an eclectic mix, which is why I think hanging it this way really works. 

The bedding is the same as the other bedding I had, but I went for the taupe version this time, instead of the blue. I also layered the suzani that I bleached onto the bed as well. Surely you all remember that I did that, right? Bleached the suzani? 

The Way Before, Before

In the old apartment, the suzani, as purchased in the standard black and red. I bleached it (on purpose) hoping that it would come out beautifully, and shockingly, IT DID! It's the most beautiful combination of tan/taupe now.

Before

After

Here, you can see that the carpet is no longer there, replaced by the wood laminate, topped with seagrass and a chocolate and cream dhurrie. What can I say, I got a little obsessed with the stripes. One of my favorite things in this room are the antique slipper chairs on either side of this dresser! I actually found these already upholstered in this chocolate and white ticking, and they worked beautifully against the wall here. One day I'm gonna have these babies recovered in something fabulous, but for now, they look like they belong.

More scattered and collected art here, along with the television. Now that I have a den with a television, this tv isn't really necessary. But, sometimes the dogs and I like to curl up under the covers and watch a good movie, so it'll stay, even it's only turned on once a month! 

 Before

After

I moved the bed over a bit, kept the table, and the lamps. The tiger velvet pillows and the antique suzani really help give this bed some interest, but I love the simplicity of this duvet cover and shams. The art on this side of the bed was purchased in Florida, original oil duck billed bird up top, and an antique post card of an alligator in the St. John's river on the bottom.

Blue and white doesn't play as big of a role as it once did, but I still have a few pieces scattered about in here. 

 Before

After

The same Chinese nesting tables are on this side of the bed, along with the lamps and my trifle dish filled with change. The art above is a watercolor from a Florida artist, purchased an art festival in Lewiston, NY; and the Bert and Ernie piece is a screenprint by an artist who works in movie parody. His stuff is hilarious! 

After

The mirror stayed. I love how much light is reflected from the windows in the front of the apartment. In front of it, a bench with French legs was slipcovered in the same stripe as the walls, headboard, and boxspring. It was finished with the chocolate brown ribbon trim that the walls were finished in. Beneath it (and atop it) design books found a new home, along with the Louis Vuitton valise, and some blue and white pieces.

After

After

The urn on top of the books is filled with coral, which I've been collecting for a bit. In fact, since these pictures were taken, I've added two new pieces. I may actually have a problem!

 Before

After

Here's a pretty big change. The bookcases are gone. They moved into the guest room for a little while, and then I eventually sold them to make way for the changes that occurred in there. The television still hangs here, this time on the wall, with the dresser beneath it. Two slipper chairs with white slipcovers flank the Empire dresser that was under the window. 

After

I love the plaster column capital on the dresser, which hides those television cords beautifully.

And now ... a few more shots:

I told you the blue and white was still around. I love this plate! The hand-painted chinoiserie side table is another favorite piece.

Arlo, looking in the mirror. (The apple doesn't fall far from the tree! HA!)

Louna, just wants to be left alone so she can watch Netflix. 

I have to say, I'm really happy with this space now. It feels "finished" and much more thoughtful than the old bedroom. Slowly but surely I'm sure I'll change my mind about how much I love it, but for now - it's probably my favorite room in the whole apartment - wonky stripes at all!

Hope you enjoyed the tour - now head over to Cote de Texas for more apartment pics! And, if you're here from Cote de Texas, welcome!

By the way - I've finally started working in my Cross Bottle Guy studio again, and I have 8 beautiful new pieces available on the Cross Bottle Guy website now. Run over there and take a look at the new loot!