Friday's Organizing Item

When people first visit our apartment they usually start asking about our bookshelves and how do the books stay that way (i.e., in a very very tall pile)???

When we moved from NY to DC we left behind the massive Ikea bookshelf we had that had become the "Collector". I had books two, sometimes 3, rows deep, I stuffed dishes I didn't use behind rows of books, we had rows of CDs (and probably some mix tapes) behind books, we bought those clear plastic bins to put in the bookshelf and I dumped all of our school books and materials in them. It was essentially a massive dump. It worked, but felt cluttered and unruly.

Then, when we moved to DC I wanted no part of such a massive bookshelf (unless they were built-ins and narrow and well-designed!). Most importantly, I wanted to take advantage of the height of our apartment. So I found the Sapien bookshelf at Design Within Reach. We bought one, then two, tossed out the books we didn't need or put the ones I didn't need but wanted to keep (I do have a bit of a problem of letting go of books from my 19 yrs of school) in our storage space downstairs and now they hold all of our books. In an orderly, non-cluttered fashion.

I also use them for towels in the master bathroom and they work perfectly for this use. The shelf does not take up any space in the bathroom and the towels act as a decorative layer. Would be nice in a larger bathroom as well as a small bathroom to add some texture and interest to the bathroom. They would work even in a traditional bath with some beautiful decorative towels or some cleanlined, classic white ones.

After we bought them at DWR other stores began making less expensive, equally as nice versions. Here are links and pictures of where to purchase.

Design Within Reach


West Elm


Overstock


CB2
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*Bonus(es):

- West Elm seems to be giving the store away. Free shipping on pretty much everything and sales in the store (G Street store is better than Tysons if you are in the DC area). Plus, look out for the most recent catalog in the mail. On the front cover there is a $25 off coupon, no minimum purchase required!

- DWR has $1 shipping on orders over $500. Note their "Buy 1, Get 1 Free" Promotion -- crazy!

- Overstock has a 10% coupon they are mailing out. I have one in my inbox from this morning -- if anyone needs one, email me!

China...not the country

Today's Agenda: Thinking about coordinating china patterns...just for fun.

When I was in Raleigh visiting my Mom I ran across her china, which I love. It's Lenox, ivory, platinum rimmed. Simple, beautiful. I loved Thanksgiving when we would use the china. And family vacations when we would pop into the outlets to see if they had any other pieces that went with the pattern.

I saw Lenox's fairly new "Chirp" line in Macy's circular from this week. My first thought, was, wow, Macy's has something different in their circular. Second thought was let me check this out on the Lenox website.

The Lenox website is fantastic. Easy to use. Lots of different patterns (including Kate Spade) and coordinating glassware, flatware, etc.

I think starting with a basic bone china with a platinum rim and mix and matching with other pieces would be lovely and fun. With this china, you could use it on a more regular basis than once a year. This, this and this pattern would be fun to mix and match.

No reason that china shouldn't be fun!

New Client??

Today's Agenda: Maybe I should see if he needs interior design help?? How fun would that be!

Day Three of the Reorg!: A Retrospective

(Last Sunday's) Agenda: Keep up the stamina and continue the massive redesign/reorg going on at my Mom's house.

So far, we have accomplished a ton! We are attacking room by room and making great progress. I'll post some before and afters of the bathroom which I must say is pretty impressive...it's amazing what a coat of paint and some new fixtures can do. And I love the redesigned master bedroom closet...more pictures and final slide show of house to come!

We first attacked the kitchen + dining room -- when tearing up every room in the house we needed at least one that was done, looked nice and was a place we could refuel in. It was also where I could make the most amount of difference in the least amount of time.

Here are the steps we took in the kitchen + dining room:

- Reorganized the items in all of the cabinets to make sure that space was used properly (i.e., whatever you use most frequently is easy to get out without any clanging and using major yoga moves to get to it) and that all the space was used without stacking anything too high. Start by taking items out of the cabinets and just putting them on the floor so you have a clear picture of what you have. Make a pile of items to donate. Store items you use once a year in that hard to reach cabinet. Only keep the pots + pans you use. Consider storing utensils you don't use or are odd-shaped in a larger cabinet in a utensil holder or old coffee cup/coffee can to keep your drawers streamlined.

- Cleared off the counters of any food or "stuff just lying around on the counters" (i.e., 12 packs of soymilk from Costco!) and found a purposeful space for them in the cabinets.

- Utilized the butcher block as a workspace and put all of the work appliances (blender, food processor, mixer) in one place with containers on a lower shelf for a more streamlined look. The butcher block is nice in that is on wheels so you can wheel it to a wall close to the outlets or to better workspace based on what you need it for.

- Replaced the rectangular dining table (sad b/c it had a leaf in it!) with a smaller round table we had painted a semi-gloss black.

- Replaced outdated coffee accessories with some sleek red highlights to go off of the sea/teal green and pick up the red in the picture in the room.


- Removed excess furniture (bakers' rack, side table) from dining area and replaced those with two minimal side tables with a slate gray color top from Target. More space and highlights modern features! {And a place for my favorite ice bucket -- a wedding gift to my parents from over 3o years ago!}



- Painted the kitchen step stool a black lacquer to continue the theme from the dining room.

And, the fun part - sourcing some modern accents and dining chairs!

I dreamed about how great these lucite chairs would look in the dining room! Really tie in with the glass-faced cabinets, modern light fixtures and be a great contrast with the black wood table. I saw them at Ikea last weekend and not only are they stunning but comfortable as well!



But then we found these terribly comfortable red leather chairs at Homegoods and they are perfect.



A couple of the lucite chairs might be nice to have when 4 sit at the table. Until then, it feels like this modern lounge. {Especially with a G+T in a beautiful highball glass and some John Legend in the background!}

A Vintage Evening

Today's Agenda: Book tickets for an event on Thursday in DC at the Anderson House. This museum is a beautiful building in Dupont Circle that used to be the winter home of a diplomat and his wife (and cost around $750,000 to build in the early 1900s!) and is a real hidden gem. They are hosting a tour and wine tasting Thursday night where you get to see even more of the house. Here are the details:

A Vintage Evening: Tours and Tastings at Anderson House
Thursday, July 23, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Experience Anderson House at night with behind-the-scenes museum tours, featuring the secret staircase, and wine tasting in the garden, which is not normally open to the public. Light refreshments will be available. Fee: $10 for adults, $5 for Society members. Reservations required. Register online now or e-mail events@societyofthecincinnati.org for more information.

And some more info about the house from the website:

Anderson House was built between 1902 and 1905 in the heart of Dupont Circle, which was at that time, our capital's most fashionable neighborhood. At a cost of nearly $750,000, the Boston firm, Arthur Little & Herbert Browne, designed this Beaux Arts mansion to be the winter home of Larz Anderson III (1866-1937), an American diplomat, and his wife, Isabel (1876-1948), an author and Red Cross volunteer. The fifty-room mansion is Little & Browne's finest architectural achievement. The original property also included a walled garden, tennis courts, and a three-story stable and carriage house.

*Bonus #1: My Dad will be in town too!
*Bonus #2: Private events can be hosted here -- this would be a lovely place to host a small or larger party, especially in the garden area around the pool. Check out the website for more info.

Beets, Sweet Potatoes, Broccoli, Red Peppers, oh my

Today's Agenda: Looking forward to leftovers from dinner last night! For the past two weeks, I have been making food from a book called The Thrive Diet. The idea behind the book is through a diet focused on plant-based whole foods you can reduce stress and achieve optimal health (i.e., reduce body fat, diminish visible signs of aging, boost energy and mental clarity, enhance mood, increase productivity, eliminate junk food cravings and hunger, build stronger immune system, lower cholesterol, improve sleep quality).

That's a large task the diet takes on but the way it does it is by discussing what foods are best for you and giving some recipes of how to incorporate them into your diet. No calorie or fat counting, just introducing some of that "weird stuff" in "that aisle you never go down in Whole Foods" into your routine.

So, that "weird stuff" is actually pretty good. We usually eat pretty healthy but having incorporated hemp oil, coconut oil, flax seed and hemp protein into my diet over the past two weeks I feel even better -- most noticeably the cravings for sweets and (my downfall) cheese have gone away! And the recipes are easy to use and remember and modify so it isn't a chore to follow the diet. And the food is delicious!

And last night's dinner was another great example -- "Pizza" with a crust made from coconut oil, whole wheat corn flour (I couldn't find chickpea flour at WF), black-eyed peas, quinoa, cayenne pepper, garlic, white pepper (throw all in the food processor) + toppings of broccoli, shaved beets and sweet potatoes, onion and red peppers. I skipped making a marinara sauce (okay, I just totally blanked on this step!) and just added a few pads of goat cheese and a dash of salt. Delicious!

How Could I Have Lived Without This?

Today's Agenda: Unexpectedly enjoying new laptop desk! This weekend's trip to Ikea was purposeful -- return items + source home office furniture and accessories for a project I am working on. In addition to doing both, I also came home with this laptop desk (and a few other goodies as well as some great ideas!).

I wasn't sure how it would work -- would it be sturdy enough? would it feel weird typing on a slanted surface? would it look a little too much like a flying saucer?

Verdict is it is fantastic! Blends in with the room and is great for working on the laptop in the living room, and not on my lap. It's so comfortable to pull the desk up to the couch, get the laptop and mini-mouse out and go to town. I'm not sure how I was able to work on the computer in the living room without it!

Friday's Organizing Item

Today's Agenda: Streamline the "waking up" process.

Check out this coffee dispenser that may just help organize a key step in the morning routine and allow for a few extra minutes of sleep (or morning blog/internet/facebook surfing with a cup of joe!).

It claims to do the following:

* Preserve freshness of ground coffee with its airtight seal
* With a push of a button release a perfectly measured one tbsp of coffee
* Keep the counter coffee-ground free with the base the dispenser sits on

So, (1) no lid to take off coffee container, (2) no tbsp to scrounge around to find and then wash, (3) no beans to grind and (4) no miscellaneous ground bean dust to wipe off the counter (then or later). For $14.99, I'm going out tomorrow to get one and give it a try.

Oh, Miele

Today’s Agenda: Espouse the virtues of the Miele vacuum. The latest Williams-Sonoma catalog has a *beautiful* two page spread of some members of the Miele family. (Bed Bath & Beyond also has them in their stores and online.)

My Mom used to talk all about the Miele. Sort of like it was a pet or small child. Then I bought one and I knew what she was talking about. First, it’s cute. (Very important in a vacuum cleaner in case you did not realize this.) Second, it is incredibly easy to use. Third, it takes up little space. (Note that I realize these virtues don’t really equate to the virtues of having a small pet or child, but you get the idea. Maybe “the Mercedes of vacuum cleaners” is a better reference – they are German after all.)

We have The Carina (pictured above). I highly recommend it. Husband tested and approved as well. Good price point too.

Other members of the Miele Family include:

The Neptune

The Europa

The Capricorn

The Pirouette

Also, for those with limited space to store a vacuum or not much space to vacuum, they have a stick vacuum designed for quick pickups on hardwood floors and rugs that could be used as a full-time vacuum as well. I think it is much more effective than a dustbuster (at least cuter!) and not that more difficult to use or store (plus no one really likes having a dustbuster plugged in and visible to everyone and I always would find myself tripping over it!).

*Bonus: The Mieles from a cost perspective are definitely an investment. But they last a lifetime and are energy efficient – you won’t need to rush to the store to buy a new vacuum cleaner as yours breaks down right before the in-laws show up and will help keep your bills down too. The “Green” Mercedes of vacuum cleaners if you will.

Interesting Wall Shelf

Today's Agenda: Figure out who I can make buy this! I think it would look great in any room, any style. With the metal material and unique design any object would look really nice on it -- books, dishes, candles, vases/flowers. Or just alone on a bright colored wall (or just a part of the wall painted). Pretty good price too for a nice statement piece.

Mad for Marimekko

Today's Agenda: Lust after Crate and Barrel's newest line of Marimekko towels at Crate & Barrel (it's been too long since the last design). These new designs are in the store and online.

Check out:

Tamara Bath Towels in Linen or Olive



Lehtimaja Bath Towels in Mist or Indigo



*Bonus: Mix and Match with your current set of towels -- these will go great with white, gray, taupe or black towels. And then you'll be ready to switch out these for the next Marimekko design that comes out...

Friday's Organizing Item

I had resisted the "crunch can" for years now. I'm not sure why. Maybe because they didn't close on top? I thought they'd look too messy? But, I'm no longer resisting, I'm recommending.

My husband has an affinity for SoyCrisps. They are great for you and delicious but where do you store 15 bags without them turning into a crumbly mess? The "crunch can", of course. I just bought two of the argyle ones and have them in the kitchen/sitting area. They are also superb for organizing all of that "to do/grab before I go out of the house clutter" too. Like the belt I bought at Marshalls that they didn't take the sensor off of...(Argh).

Other cool uses:

* Laundry, of course
* Recycling, large enough for those bottles of rose & with handles to carry them down to the curb
* Children's toys, if they bring down the can with them too it won't hurt them at all
* Pillows, next to the bed
* Shoes, the material is pretty durable so even good for dirty sneakers after a long, muddy run

*Bonus: Lots of online & brick/mortar stores carry these -- Container Store, Umbra.com, Amazon.com and Marshalls (for $9.99 instead of $19.99).

**Another thought: I love the idea of having 5 of the black + white bird "crunches" along a wall painted a robin's egg blue (or lighter blue) in a bedroom (child or adult) with all white and gray bedding and other accents. Maybe a rug with stripes to add another pattern, yet an uncomplicated one. The repetition of the birds would be really striking, yet super functional.