AT cure - my attempt

Before and afters

2006-05-20T17:26:00.000-07:00

Here are the before and after photos for my landing strip, my bed, and some seeds I planted. I still need to work on lighting and art, but I'm happy with the way things have progressed.

Bedroom: pillow

2006-05-08T19:59:00.000-07:00

Here are my new pillows. These were a good find at Kohl's: they match my color scheme; they're satiny; and they only cost $15 each.

Bedroom colors

2006-05-04T22:45:00.000-07:00

For my 'glacier' bedroom, I had been wavering on how to finish off the colors in the room. I already have a blue duvet cover and brown sheets (see previous posts colors, patterns & before & after), but was unsure how to finish it off to make the room work. Maybe some light brown and some lighter blue? some purple? light green? I couldn't decide.

Right under my nose was the answer: a print I bought in Alaska called "Glacier Moon" by Byron Birdsall, yet to be framed. Since I'm planning to put it in the room, I pulled it out to check out the colors. It gave me all the answers.

Blues, a hint of purple, white, and brown...

Flowers!

2006-04-26T23:16:00.000-07:00

Tulips everywhere...

I didn't take photos of the last bunch of flowers, so I thought this would be a good break from I-cleaned-X-today.

In the bathroom, I get three flowers for the price of one!

Style Tray: colors, patterns

2006-04-25T14:55:00.000-07:00

I've been looking at colors and patterns for my bedroom (blue and brown) and my living room (red and black?).

Some things that strike my fancy...

Living Room: This reddish print is a easy-to-remove wallpaper from Sherwin Williams. It would be interesting to put this up on one wall; maybe the one with the bookcase to see as you come in or the long wall behind the desk. It would definitely be dramatic. I'm still trying to avoid paint as a renter.

Bedroom: I need to add a color to the blue and brown to make them work together better, mainly cooling off the room. Some potential color palettes include a purple and white, though I'm not too fond of the light green with the rest of the colors. I think it starts to look too trendy, which means I'll probably hate it eventually. I'm not fond of the butterfly either, but I like the color combination. The purple has cool and warm characteristics, so it's an interesting bridge. I had been thinking about lighter versions of the blue and the brown, like a sky blue and a camel color, but I'm not sure how that would work.

UPDATE:
I was looking at some of my spring clothes and I noticed that one of my skirts has the colors I want to use in my bedroom, minus the green. That's the last photo with the funky design.

Progress: weekend boxes

2006-04-24T15:16:00.000-07:00

This weekend I started in on some boxes in my closet, specifically ones holding stuff from high school and college. Both boxes contain paper filed in file folders by year or category. It's fairly organized already. The idea for both of these is to eventually merge some of the contents with my photo album, just to give it a little extra something.

I went through the high school box, throwing out old essays and copies of school newspapers. There's still a lot, like dance photos and letters and college applications, among other interesting goodies, but it's not as stuffed as it once was.

Then I started in on the college box. This is about the same size, but I managed to purge more. I need to replace this box with a file box to have it fit better.

So, one box each. Not bad for me. The next box was full of plaques. At one point in high school, they were covering most of a wall above my dresser. Out of the 10+ I found, only 2 meant enough to keep around.

I've got a couple piles in my living room now: one for goodwill, one for my mom to look over to determine extra sentimental value (and if she wants to keep anything), and one of stuff to be sorted and put away.

I'll feel better when it's not all over the place.

Landing Strip

2006-04-24T05:22:00.000-07:00

Where should I put my keys and purse and mail and coat when I get home?

I enter directly into my main living space. There's no hall to use to make putting stuff down easy. See my floor plan.

To the left is my mock-up of a possible solution. You can see there's not much space behind the door and the wall heater makes it hard to put anything nearby. When my front door is completely open, the door knob hits the wall heater, thus preserving a sliver of space behind the door for a shelf. To the left of the heater is a doorway.

Right now the keys and mail go on the coffee table. I'm fairly good about sorting the mail and moving it from there fast into a recycling pile or a basket to file. Some stuff goes straight into recycling before I even get near my apartment. My purse goes on the floor next to the coffee table, The hall closet around the corner is full of shelves, so it doesn't work well for coats. I put an over the door set of hooks where I put my frequently-used coats (or if I'm lazy, they get thrown on the couch for a while. I swap my shoes to slippers on the floor between the door and the couch, but shoes tend to pile up there (there's just under 8" of space on that side). As a side note, in my de-cluttering phase, I've cleared everything off the bottom shelf of the coffee table so it doesn't look as bad.

I've been thinking about putting a little something behind my door. I (barely) have space there for a 12" wide x 4" deep shelf for mail. Since that's not deep enough for magazines or for any sort of console table, it won't serve the all-emcompassing purpose I need it to.

As a compromise, perhaps I'll just add a couple hooks for a coat and purse, and a shelf for flowers and small pieces of mail.

I like this Craftsman hook by Atlas Homewares. Maybe I'll get 2 or 3 in the bronze finish.

Any recommendations?

Style Tray: Bed Pillows

2006-04-19T12:10:00.000-07:00

Bed Pillows

Most pillows I've seen in blues and browns don't match my colors, and the ones that look like they come close are really expensive. That's why I was excited to come across this pillow cover at West Elm. The blues might be a little off, but there might be enough variety of shades to not matter.

$12.99 at West Elm.

I'm not sure if there is too much white. I'll have to do a photoshop mockup.

UPDATE: I just found out that West Elm is all out of the color combo I wanted. Grr... Back to the drawing board.

Progress: Bedroom - new bedding & LR pillows

2006-04-16T20:55:00.000-07:00

I'm really excited about my new bedding. I found a glacier blue duvet and chocolate brown sheets and I love them and the combination. My room has more color now. yea!

Now I need an accent pillow (and I'm hoping fairly small) to pull the two colors together. What I've found is that typically the fabrics have a lighter sky blue with the brown, so I haven't really found any matches yet. I might have to make one myself. All the 'designer' pillows cost $60+, and that sounds like too much for a little pillow to me.

Other things in this room: I'm contemplating a headboard, but I'm unsure what color to use. Ideally I'd have a chocolate brown bed frame and it would take care of itself. I *really* need to take down the framed photos. I don't know what I was thinking when I put them up, but they're way too high and look a bit weird in that configuration. As for window treatments, I'm still thinking about color for that too. I like the blue and brown in here now, but it's mixing the cool and warm colors and the rest of the room needs to push it in one direction. I was thinking more to the cool side, but I'm still trying out ideas in photoshop, etc.

Before & After:

I'm on an accelerated 'cure' because I have to study for exams too, so I'm trying to get a little more done.

I'm continuing to get rid of stuff.

I also got floor pillows for my living room. I cleaned out the bottom shelf of my coffee table and put the pillows there to pull out for additional seating on the floor. It's also nice and soft to rest feet on while watching tv.

Floor plan

2006-04-13T16:37:00.000-07:00

Style Tray: Stickley sideboard

2006-04-13T14:27:00.000-07:00

*sigh* I was looking at Stickley furniture and I love this sideboard. I don't know what it is about it, but I do.

I like this photo of it, found on the Stickley web site.

The piece looks well-crafted and still looks pretty clean without swirly decoration. I also really like it in combo with the wall color.

Catalog listing

I am afraid to find out what it costs. I don't know where I'd use it other than to put a tv on it, and that seems to wreck it for me. I'll add it to the living room style tray anyway.

[photo is from Stickley Furniture]

Before: Bedroom

2006-04-12T23:19:00.000-07:00

This room is the most problematic. It's my dumping ground. I clear out the living room for company and anything that doesn't already have its own space gets dumped on the floor in here. I'm going to try a mini one room cure in here while I mainly do the deep cure.

Photo 1: Door
During colder times of the year, I hang coats here. The part of the room you can see from here is where I keep art that hasn't been hung. There's a tube on the floor and a couple unframed prints between the armoire and the wall. For part of the cure I'll finally get them framed.

Photo 2: Bookcase
I used to keep the laundry in the closet, but then I added a lower clothes rod and didn't have the space. The shelving next to the bookcase is supposed to be used horizontally. I had planned on using it somewhere, but it's been there since I moved in. I'd like to display some of the models on top of the bookcase a little better. I have two lamps and thought I could use one on each side table, but for now I only have one table.

Photo 3: Bed
I like the maroon and the hearts, but I'm tired of them and there's not enough color. I'm really not that girly, so the hearts don't really feel like me even though the maroon does. I'm planning to do glacier blue and chocolate brown in here. I figure adding color to the window will help. I'm renting, and I'd like to avoid paint. I'd rather not have to repaint if I can avoid it, and I don't know how long I'll be here.

Photo 4: Armoire + Dumping Area
I don't use the bolster and should probably get rid of it. Here's another set of skis that I use less often. This IKEA armoire is the elephant in the room. I'd really really like to get rid of it but right now I need the extra storage it provides. It's especially useful in getting my suitcase off the floor and out of the way. Reducing storage to allow me to eliminate this is a long term goal. The majority of stuff inside could be stored in a dresser, probably about 3/4 of it. I store scarves on the doors so they don't wrinkle (or take up space).

Photo 5: Dumping Area aka Outbox
More random stuff for my outbox. The box on the left has items to give away, and the other box is most likely going to be given away too. I've been working to make this outbox pile get bigger.

Photo 6: Closet - left side

Photo 7: Closet - right side
I added that extra bar and it's still full... how does that happen? I have two file cabinets stacked in here on the far right, tucked into the alcove of the closet that's usually unreachable. I also keep my robe on a rolled up piece of leftover carpet that has been here since I moved in. I really should put up a hook and get the landlord to take the carpet away.

Before: Bathroom

2006-04-12T23:10:00.000-07:00

This is another room I don't plan on doing much with. It could probably use some more color, but I'm ok with it. CA poppies and jasmine on the wall.

Photo 1: Toilet, shower

Photo 2: Sink and mirrors

Before: Hall

2006-04-12T23:02:00.000-07:00

Photo 1:

This is what you see if you turn right from the living room, before the tv. I'm been meaning to hang this mirror, but there are a couple things holding me back. I need to hang it at the same height as the circuit breaker, and the mirror isn't wide enough to cover the panel (and the panel isn't centered in the wall). So - what to do? I've thought about hanging fabric over the whole wall, but there's still the issue of how to attach the mirror. Lengthen the hanging wire? I've also thought about getting an artist canvas and adding a cross brace to it. Then I can hang that on the wall and attach the mirror into the cross brace and avoid the circuit breaker entirely. Any ideas?

Photo 2: Hall closet

Sure it looks like it might be organized, but I think it needs to be easier to remove boxes when I need them. The red and yellow tool boxes are especially hard to get out.

Before: Kitchen

2006-04-12T22:48:00.000-07:00

Photo 1: Exterior wall side of kitchen

I love all the cabinets in my kitchen, considering this is a rental. I think I have as much space (maybe more) as my parents in their 1800 sqft. The downside is it allows a lot of stuff to be placed in there and forgotten.

Photo 2: U-shape

In here, I think the only things I'd think about doing are put something at the window and reorganize the cabinets.

Photo 3: Kitchen table

I really really like my table and chairs and the photo of Boston up above.

Before: Living Room

2006-04-12T22:10:00.000-07:00

These photos were taken after I removed the extension to the desk and stored the drafting table under the bed. Looking counter-clockwise around the room:

Photo 1:

This is what you see when entering my 1-bedroom apartment in northern CA. I know Maxwell says not to see a tv first, but I don't know where else it would work given my existing furniture. I'm not replacing any of it soon - saving up.

I like the green broken glass lamp on the floor, and I know it doesn't work here, but I don't know where to put it.

I think the light hanging from the ceiling would be more fun in a color other than white. I have too many neutrals. I hardly ever use it since it's hard to plug in and the whole room has recessed lighting on a dimmer.

I have to angle the speakers away from the tv, otherwise they cause interference and my tv screen gets some funky colors around the edges. I should probably get speaker stands or move them somewhere else, but where? I've just been ignoring it since sound is still good.

I have more dvds than I have storage for at this time.

Photo 2:

On the bookcase I have tealights, photos, aroma therapy, and a beaver candle. The ottoman hides the wireless router, cable modem, extra tealights, and free weights that are underneath. Ok, it doesn't really hide them, but they're there. The bags are the result of recently cleaning out part of my closet. The opening on the left leads to the kitchen.

The metal poles next to the chair are left over from my taking apart the desk extension last week.

Photo 3:

Here's my desk and love seat. The desk takes up a lot less space since I stored away my drafting board, but now the art isn't centered on anything. I'm not really sure where to move it. The love seat is plaid, so I went with a black slipcover, but it doesn't fit that well, and I've found that it has faded after a few washings. I originally thought I'd do this room in black and red against the beige walls, but the black has faded and maybe it's time for a little change. I like the reds still. I pulled the color out of the japanese print on the wall. There's some green and blue and yellow in there too, but I wouldn't want to overdo the color.

My pink and white desk chair is left over from my childhood. It's comfortable enough for now, but I really don't use it much anymore. I thought about a slipcover, but it would have to be short to avoid getting caught up in the wheels.

Photo 4:

In the winter, I often keep my skis leaning against the wall because I'm constantly taking them down to my car every week. I don't have a place to store them that's accessible enough to put them away each week.

The windows are blah. I don't know why the couch looks purple; it's really black.

I'm planning to put some hooks behind the door for coats and purses. Right now I put my purse on the floor next to the coffee table.

I'd like to clear out all the stuff on the bottom shelf of the coffee table and use it for a couple cushions for floor seating.

The issues in this room are mostly little - finishing touches, moving art around, de-cluttering, and adding some color. I'd like to pull the color from the Japanese print on the wall.

The AT interview

2006-04-12T15:04:00.000-07:00

I wrote down my answers to the AT interview, which is supposed to help you determine your style. If anything, I think I'm still where I started. I know that my style is a combination of mission/craftsman and modern. I like warm wood pieces and old world craftsmanship with visible joints and all that. I'm also drawn to clean lines and sleek looking furniture.

My kitchen table is a glass top with funky metal bending legs that kind of make it look like a spider. I wouldn't have guessed that I'd buy a table with a glass top, but I absolutely love it, even years after I bought it. I like Finnish design with wood as a predominant element. The coziest place I know is my parents' cabin, with it's low ceilings, exposed beams, knotty pine walls, wood-burning stove and open plan. There's an intrinsic warmth to it. I don't want my apartment to look like that because it's not appropriate, but I'd like to reproduce the feeling.

Interview:

Actress: Audrey Hepburn, Sandra Oh, Mary Lynn Rajskub (Chloe on 24)
Actor: Hugh Grant, Bill Murray
Artist: ?
Writer: Neal Stephenson, Bill Bryson, Dave Barry
Music: ska, opera, big band, Harry Chapin, upbeat melodies
Restaurant: always trying new
Automobile: Audi TT roadster, Mini
TV Show: 24, Gray's Anatomy, South Park
Clothing: ?
Style: sophisticated, fun, functional

Where have you lived?
Born: San Jose, CA
Grew up: San Jose, CA
As an adult: college - Boston/Cambridge, MA
now: Mountain View, CA

Role Model:
1: together, consistent, adventurous
2: poised, classy, involved (and goofy)
3: knowing, take charge, places importance on personal interaction

Problem with the apartment: disjointed, unfinished, pieced together

What would the apartment say the problem is? I need color and energy and fun!

What one thing would you like to do more of? finishing touches - hang art, add color, add window treatments?

How would you like your friends to describe your home? comfortable, warm, stylish

====

I answered a bit slowly, which means that I make decisions carefully. Yeah, which is part of the problem... I find it hard to make any decisions at all when it comes to design of my place.

Because I didn't really name an artist or clothing, I'm supposedly less visually inclined. I hope not - I work in the design profession! Well, I tend to go for unknown artists and I don't have one in particular whose work I drool over, so I left it blank. I tend to really like wood block prints and things that are segmented or stylized. It's hard to explain. The image is of a print by Byron Birdsall I got in Alaska that I need to frame as part of the cure. I don't care about designer clothes, so I really don't pay attention.

As for the home quiz, I scored an 11 out of 16. That means my home is 'healthy'. Head is ok, Heart had 2 nos, Breath had one no, and Bones had one no. Basically, I need to make my home beautiful and use it to express my style while decluttering and making repairs in a reasonable amount of time.

Tally ho! :P

Which cure? and what to change?

2006-04-11T14:50:00.000-07:00

I picked up the 'Apartment Therapy' book on Friday, and I've been reading it. There are certain things that I don't think I can do. I don't mean to start off on a negative note, because I'm excited about changing things. Maxwell talks about putting one months rent into improvements, but I'm not looking into buying any furniture right now. And I certainly don't have that much money to throw around. I've got to make do mostly with what I have, and it's not bad. He says that desks and bookcases from IKEA are ok, but everything else should be nicer furniture. Well, that's what I have as IKEA furniture. I also have the chair and ottoman. The tv corner stand and the coffee table aren't IKEA, but they're cheap veneered particle board. I'd like to replace them if I can find something I really like within my budget.

One thing he mentions is that the tv shouldn't be the first thing you see when you enter the room. In my place, I'm not sure where else I could put it with all the other furniture still working. That kind of bothers me, since I've been perfectly happy with the layout of my living room, except for the lack of seating. Given my layout and current furniture, I can live with it. I think I can solve the seating issue by storing large cushions/pillows on the bottom shelf of my coffee table. Also, then you'd have a place to put your feet that's soft instead of an ottoman.

There are two options for the 'cure': deep cure and one room cure. I think I'm going for the deep cure in organization and decluttering, with some extra focus on my bedroom because it really needs to be more comfortable. I really like my bed and mattress, but I think I'm getting sick of the red in there. Right now I have a deep maroon color for the sheets and a white duvet cover with stylized line hearts on it from IKEA. I like the combination, but I'm getting tired of it and would like a little more color. There's not much when the bed is made.

I'm thinking of my favorite color for the bed - a glacier blue (or maybe a bluish periwinkle). That would be the duvet cover and the sheets would be a chocolate brown. That's similar in style to what I have now - light on top and dark sheets underneath. Then, since the blue would be the dominant color on the bed, I'd go from the chocolate colored drapes with light-colored shears over the window.

I think I'll have a photograph of Whistler (Blackcomb Glacier by Greg Griffith) over the bed. If I remember correctly, the copy I have is sepia. Would that look good with the chocolate and 'glacier' in the bedroom? Sounds perfect: Glacier bedroom. I think it's a bit small: maybe 5x14 or 10x30? Maybe the drapes could pull out the sepia color instead. Don't know how I feel about that. I'll have to test out the colors. Looks like I *really* need to get that photograph framed; it's still in the tube mailed to me from Canada.

For the rest of the art, I need to do mockups - make copies of the size of art or include some of their colors and put up on the walls to find the best location for things. I don't think I need any more, but I do need to come with good places for the stuff I have. I might need to add a large piece (that I don't have) to the living room wall.

mission de-clutter...

2006-04-08T14:48:00.000-07:00

I managed to put the slipcover back on my couch after washing to cover up the plaid. And I did recycle some more magazines. My pile for Goodwill is growing. I took a few 'before' photos, but they're a bit fuzzy and the lighting is bad. I'll have to take some photos on Saturday when I have some daylight. Perhaps I should do some storage-container shopping this weekend. I think that means Target, the Container Store, Walmart maybe? I need to measure the shelves in my closet and figure out what'll fit best for my needs. I was in Kohl's yesterday and I saw some cool fake leather storage boxes, but the small one (12x12x4) was $14! What a ripoff.

to cure or not to cure...

2006-04-06T14:47:00.000-07:00

I think I'll take some photos for the AT cure before I clean my apartment any more (but I'll clean up my bedroom a *little* more. It needs to be somewhat presentable and not a disaster. I think the photos would be for me only, as the 'cure' takes place during the entire studying time for the next architecture exam. I'll see how I feel about it after I read the book.

Apartment Therapy Book

2006-04-04T14:42:00.000-07:00

Apartment Therapy is starting the 8 step home cure. I'd like to play along, but I'm not really thinking about spending money right now and I can't paint, so all I'd do would be to clear up clutter and move around some art. I don't think that really qualifies for the whole thing, and I think the 'before' and 'after' photos would be too similar. Maybe I'll stop in Books Inc for the AT book today.

Other things to go through (in time):
photos - albums and boxes and digital (and Hawaii!)
books - in bookcases and boxes; what can be donated and what do I read all the time?
closet - mega reorganization, go through the knick knacks; what is an important memory and what will I not miss?
jewelry boxes - how to organize, where to put it/them?
clothes and shoes - all types, what is showing wear and should be retired?

I think I'm going to start getting rid of at least one thing when I get a new thing. We'll see how that works.

Living room progress

2006-04-03T14:39:00.000-07:00

I've been able to take the extra piece off the desk and build the second shelf. I moved my monitor to be in the corner between the two shelves and went through all my computer supplies. I trashed a bunch of old manuals and junky computer parts and consolidated the paperwork and disks I still need. I moved the printer and scanner to the shelf at the window and put the GG bridge sculpture and the japanese stained glass on the shelf against the wall. For the time being, I have all the desk supplies and computer cd cases below that shelf, but I think it would look better with them below the other shelf. Things in my living space are shaping up. Time to work on the bottom shelf of the coffee table and the bookcase. I've also got to figure out if there's a good way to store all my drawings that are currently under the desk. That's not really an ideal location.

I got a plant this weekend, so that's on my coffee table. I'm hoping I can keep it alive. I think the items on the top surface of coffee table should be: book (maybe), coasters (could go on bottom shelf), and candle; keys are ok too. Mail should go out of view; for now I'm putting it in the basket on the bottom shelf, but that's really not big enough. Knitting should be moved out of there, as well as the aromatherapy box and christmas cards and whatever else I have there.

Other things in that room to attack: cables - especially next to the tv; location of the 'broken glass' lamp; dvd storage.

Decluttering continues

2006-03-30T14:37:00.000-08:00

I've been cleaning my apartment, well actually more like de-cluttering. I moved the drafting board under my bed and got rid of a few boxes taking up space under there. It felt really good. I moved my computer monitor to the corner of my desk and things look more open now. I need to get a longer ethernet cable. There's still a long way to go, but I'm getting rid of stuff. I packed up all my drafting supplies into one box and my tool box and it all fit. yea!

All the stuff that belonged in other rooms was put into a bag for future sorting. That way I don't have to think about it right away. I took out all my recycling and shredded old bills and statements and filed the new stuff. My coffee table is mostly cleared off and I'd like to keep it that way. I want things to be cleaner, not a dumping ground. Also need to fix the bottom shelf of my coffee table. It seems to pull out whenever I move it. That's what I get for buying something at WalMart. It's mission-style, but it's cheap. From now on, I'm only getting quality furniture. No more crap. When I moved in, I wanted it to look finished, not spartan. I accomplished that, and now it's time to start thinking about nicer things. Note that I just said thinking...

Last night before I went to bed I put all my dishes away and washed and wiped down the sink. It felt freeing somehow to have a clean kitchen (and bathroom) this morning. I know that sounds goofy, but it's true.

I want to get a drop leaf table, one that folds up to be 12" deep and extends out with leaves to be ~ 5' long. When folded, the leaves hang almost to the floor. It would be great to have a small side/console table that I'd be able to open up for dinner parties. That's the idea. And it would be great anywhere I choose to live.

Tonight I'm thinking about removing the extra piece of desk and searching for the missing keyboard tray again. I put it somewhere so safe I can't find it now. Maybe it's in my storage cabinet by the cars? I've got a huge box of stuff to give away; I really need to get rid of it so I can fill it up again.

Storage

2006-03-22T14:28:00.000-08:00

In my apartment, I have a fairly good amount of storage space. There's a hall closet lined with shelving; a bedroom closet two doors wide with clothing rod and upper shelving; and tons of kitchen cabinets. I've added an IKEA armoire that I had in my last place.

As for storage boxes, I currently have a mismatch of stuff, with much being in cardboard boxes. One of the main things is that they'd have to fit in my closet and still be easily removed. I have a tough time removing my tool box and drafting box from the hall closet because they're stuck up against the side next to the door frame. If I had two storage boxes, I could put one on each side and put things easy-to-remove like pillows and tool boxes in between. Right now I have the long plastic containers and they take up almost the whole shelf, making the empty side almost unreachable. This requires measuring.

Storage boxes:

these are not clear, but they have a cool clear flip down door to access stuff without unstacking.
http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?CATID=71227&PRODID=10014821

clear, useful, multiple sizes, cheaper
http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?CATID=71227&PRODID=59840

I could probably find stuff for cheaper at Target or IKEA.

First stage 'to do' list

2006-03-22T14:04:00.000-08:00

To do list:

1. Hang mirror in hall; on a fabric back? to hide elect. panel. Maybe I could buy an artist's canvas w/ an extra cross piece to hang the mirror on, then hang the canvas from each side of the elect panel.

2. Frame Whistler photo & Alaska print and hang (where?)

3. Organize clothing. move what I can from armoire into closet on left side and move out shoes.

4. Get rid of the junk under my bed. I don't need to save styrofoam packing material and I'm not moving anytime soon, so most of the boxes can go away.

5. Clean up the desk and put the drafting table under the bed.

6. Assemble the second shelf for the desk. put printer on/under it.

7. Remove extra panel of desk

Stuff, I mean, my stuff

2006-03-22T14:01:00.000-08:00

The start of the de-cluttering...

I need to purge some clothes, or at the very least, start to organize things by season and activity. I've got tons of winter wear that I don't use much here in CA other than some sweaters, but I'd hate to purge it and find myself moving to Boston. Right now it's the ski jacket that gets the most use. I bemoan the fact that I haven't had any reason to pull out my wool coats.

And then I have warm weather activity wear, like sarongs and surf shorts and a snorkel and mask and fins. Then there's rollerblades and climbing gear. Man, I really need a garage (all this stuff is important!). Also, where do I put my ski rack during the summer months? I've used the car 'til now. It looks a bit silly to drive around with a ski rack in CA in July.

What I really need to do, is get rid of most of the clothing in my IKEA closet thing, or reorganize it to go in my closet. Then I could reclaim that space for storage for neatly organized plastic storage boxes of sweaters, outdoor gear, drafting supplies, college and hs memory boxes, linens, etc. I think that's realistic.

My closet shelves are not being used to full potential because they're unreachable w/o a chair. *lightbulb* Maybe that's where I should store my ski rack! on the top shelf of my big closet! Hmm... do I have room for that?

Tall/long things: skis, vacuum, laundry, ski rack, file cabinets, tent, folding chair

Furniture and design and my apartment

2006-03-10T12:15:00.000-08:00

The Apartment Therapy contest has started me thinking about my apartment. With the laptop now, I don't really have need of a big desk for a computer, and I haven't used my drafting board in at least a year. I think it's time for the drafting board to get folded up and stored under my bed. But then I'm left with a *huge* desk (I mean, the 30x42 drafting board took up only half of it). I should probably get rid of the desk, get a couch bigger than my loveseat, and move the tv to the wall facing the couch instead of the corner.

I'm totally envious of the places that are both warm and modern. I like the clean lines of furniture but still need things to look lived in - as in, no stark empty white spaces or too many horizontal glass surfaces. I'm not a minimalist. Since I'm not about to buy any new furniture at the moment, I'm thinking about moving things around. Maybe I'll pull out the plan of my apartment I played with when I moved in.

Sigh. Who would've thought the purchase of a laptop would spur this whole thought process?