apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Pound cake with real vanilla beans, fondue drizzled with truffle oil, a pasta with slivers of Parma ham. It's such a treat to get to cook with the real deal, isn't it? This year why not give your favorite cook a few of these small luxuries - and ask for one or two yourself!

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Wasara, the achingly beautiful disposable tableware from Japan, is finally on its way to the US! Biodegradable, compostable, made from renewable resources and oh so lovely, Wasara has until now only been available in Asia and Europe. But Branch, an online store based in San Francisco, is about to change that.

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We asked for photos of your Thanksgiving tables and feasts, and a flood of photos came pouring in. Here are over 65 photos of readers' Thanksgiving celebrations. Look for a grandmother's silver turkey platter, a cheerily decorated kids' table, leek and Comte stuffing, a beautifully set table for two, prosciutto-wrapped sweet potato wedges, and much, much more!

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With the Fall 2009 Kitchen Cure in full swing, we have perhaps the most perfectly timed kitchen tour for you today. This tour comes from reader Daniel, who "inadvertently" started his own kitchen cure a few months ago. He wanted to just take care of one small problem: a cracked floor. Well, this repair ballooned into a much larger project, but the end result is a marked improvement!

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What with the flaming tap water and the ecological problems with bottled water, we're seriously thinking about investing in a water filter. But most countertop water systems are awfully ugly. Need something more in line with your design sensibilities?

Take a look at five beautifully designed models in this water filtration system from Aquaovo.

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It doesn't matter how much counter space you have — it always seems you need more during various times throughout the year. For many it's the holiday season, but if your space is small, it could just be cooking a real meal instead of reheating take out.

This cutting board-countertop extension might be exactly what you need.

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We recently engaged in a fruitless and exasperating search for good-looking, reasonably priced beverage dispensers. Too bad we didn't see these then.

Do you have a recommendation or tip for another good glass beverage dispenser?

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Jean Greenfield's husband did most of the major work on her beautiful vintage-inspired kitchen in her Arts & Crafts-style San Anselmo home. Jean is no stranger to the food industry; she has worked in it for 30 years and maintains a website called My Recession Kitchen.

The kitchen is very tiny, but it makes wonderful use of the space with floor-to-ceiling cupboards, a built-in tool rack, and slide-in extra counter space.

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Spacesaving, good-looking, genuinely functional dish racks are hard to find. This new folding dish rack from black + blum hopes to fill all those requirements, and more.

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It's taken homeowners Scott McDougall and Ray Goodenough almost 10 years to renovate the kitchen of their 1923 house in San Francisco's Mission Terrace neighborhood. They approached it in steps, resulting in a kitchen that feels warm, authentic and evolved. Read on for tales of their renovation adventures, some amazing 'Before and After' shots, and a look at what's cooking now in their kitchen.

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The Los Angeles neighborhoods of Silver Lake and Los Feliz are havens of residential modern architecture, and last weekend we got a chance to peek inside several of these gems during the 2009 MAK Center Architecture Tour. Built between the 1930s-60s, most of the homes we visited had relatively small kitchens, but they hardly felt cramped.

Check out some of our favorite colors, solutions, and decorative touches from the tour.

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The kickoff of Apartment Therapy's Room for Color contest has us in a colorful mood. We have been noticing some colorful pieces for the table and the kitchen from around the world, so here's a quick trip through some favorites from Japan, England, Finland, and Europe.

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Given David Letterman's recent, ahem, notoriety in the popular press, we couldn't resist showing you this 1987 clip with him and Julia Child. Julia was trying to make a hamburger but something apparently went wrong. So she improvises, to devastating effect, keeping Letterman's sarcasm at bay with a blowtorch and her natural wit.

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Oftentimes when people talk about things being on sale, we flip over to check out the prices and they aren't exactly what we call "bargains." Just because something is 15% off doesn't make it a deal!

So we tried our hardest to scavenge the lowest of the low when it comes to kitchen clearance. For example, the money plates above ring in at only $.50 each! Take a look at the rest of our gallery of finds.

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