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more of the same

I wish I had something more exciting to show for all my time here, but unfortunately it's just been work work work around here. I did manage to have some good treats while I've been nose-to-the-grindstone-ing it here though, like this carrot tangerine juice and the amazing peanut butter, banana chocolate chip crepes I whipped up the other night when I was feeling my energy crash but needed to get some more work done. Good stuff all. Also my newly recovered 'marble' desk top makes for an excellent backdrop for food shots!

I am seeing a pattern here...

... no pun intended. My weekends though do seem to be taking on a familiar tone. Lots of working, lots of tea. I'm enjoying the productivity. Late last week I had to essentially scrap a big chunk of work I had been working on since September when I was forced to admit that it just wasn't going to work like I thought it would, and start again from scratch. With a week until deadline. So that made things interesting. Luckily I think I will be able to turn that work into something else, and I am really liking the new and different direction this project seems to be going. So it is looking as if this unexpected reworking might turn out to be a good thing? I'm crossing my fingers.

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the library

I completely forgot, in the flurry of projects for the holidays and end of year and all, that I had totally not photographed my hallway with it's new changes so I seek to remedy that now. Last month when I moved around the living room I was left with some displaced furniture, namely the big corner bookshelf, and of course all of the books. So I decided to turn the hallway into a room of sorts (it's certainly big enough) and now I call it the library. Of course this is mostly all decorative, and while I always sit in the theater chairs to put on my shoes I'm more likely to take a book to the window seat to flip though it, but still, I like this version of the space. It certainly helps it feel less empty.

I added the quiver and arrows to the wall on the other side of the niche. My uncle made the quiver and I used to shoot at hay bales in the back yard when I was younger, though I never quite got the hang of it. Still it is pretty cool looking and I like seeing it every day when I come home. 

And that's my little update. Really not even worth a post of it's own as it was just a furniture relocation and hanging some stuff up on the wall, but it gives me that nice little new space feeling for the fantastic cost of nothing, so it's my favorite kind of update!

working hard or....

I spent the weekend working with vinyl. Some call it faux leather or vegan leather which I guess is great marketing and what not but I have no beef with vinyl and for the most part, the more plastic-y variety worked better for my purposes. I spent two days cutting and sewing until my hands had a strange scissor wielding blister, some bruises and a bunch of odd nicks and cuts, but I also have a big pile of finished items and a list with lots of check marks on it. This is just a few snaps I took of work in progress mostly because the colors were so satisfying to look at as I worked, as well as a little row of mountain pillows I made after people kept asking where I got the one on my couch.

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three day weekends are my favorite

This weekend I had an extra day, thanks to Columbus day. So I decided to celebrate in proper fashion by making a plan to go somewhere, getting lost, and then acting as if that was where I had intended to be all along. Also I got a bunch of work done but more on that later.

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new shelves

For about a year my kitchen looked like this, more or less. However, I am prone to decor
restlessness syndrome and also storage woes (always) and while pondering the problem one day while cooking, I came up with a solution.

I removed the YES letters (don't worry they only got relocated) and added more shelves! Much as I loved the look of them, turns out keeping dishes above the stove wasn't the right place for storing dishes. It just gets too greasy there without a hood or exhaust. So I added some slightly longer shelves above my fridge side work table which hold some of my most used dishes (I really like putting everything in bowls even as I am prepping) and I seem to be using things so frequently that dust or grime isn't really a problem.

This solution has also allowed me to have some of my most favorite colorful dishes out where they can be seen and enjoyed, rather than tucked on low shelves or in cupboards. I like having my vintage owl and bumble bee looking over me as I cook, and I've found myself using little ramekins and miniature casserole dishes more now that they are right out in front of me.

I got the shelves pre cut and painted at the hardware store as well as the brackets. The whole thing was about $20 though I am sure it could be done for less if you were to get a single piece of wood and cut it down and paint it yourself, however, being on foot, this was the most doable option for me.

(Also not sure why but I love this photo of the setup that I took accidentally out of focus. Even as a blur the colors are so darn cheery!)

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paint it black

My closet has always been a fun space. Having a room sized closet, or one could even call it a dressing room, is a wonderful new experience that I'm not sure I will ever be able to live without now. Because this is such a luxurious extra space, since I moved to this apartment I have enjoyed playing with the space, indulging in my more whimsical or even ridiculous ideas. And while I had a good time with my cotton candy pink closet for a year, It was getting old. I was feeling frustrated that it clashed with certain clothes, or really just ended up looking too busy.

So I made a change on somewhat of a whim due to an excellent paint sale, and went from this:

To this. 

When I said I was painting my closet black I got mostly concerned feedback from friends but in my head, black would be exactly what I was looking for. I didn't want something colorful, I didn't want to do white (too bright and also would be to bland with the attached bedroom/studio all white) and the living room is gray and gosh darn it I wanted a black dressing room! So I went for it and I couldn't be happier. It is exactly what I wanted and because the paint only goes up to the molding and there are two doorways, a window and plenty of trim, it's really not dark at all, in fact it's fairly bright still. But as I had hoped black is the perfect backdrop for all my colorful clothes and various strange bits and pieces that I've added to this room.

It's like a putting a nice frame on artwork, it just make it look more finished, less crazy clutter-y and everything goes with it. I've been having lots of fun with art and accessories against the walls, and everything just seems fresh and exciting. I'm not one to wear a lot of black clothes, but I could totally see painting a lot of spaces black. And now, here's a bunch of random corners and bits that I couldn't help taking pictures of because they are just so pretty!