apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Please for the love of God tell me the name of that improbably beautiful color adorning the bedroom walls. I want to dip my whole world in a bucket of that paint.

this place isn't awful, but i have two slightly bitchy criticisms.

1. the dining area. i know dining rooms can be hard because they're always smaller than you want them to be. but the proportions are just way off here, especially for an interior designer. i think it's the chairs -- they dwarf that table and the room itself. i also think such a tiny dining table isn't a good place for framed photos and little nicknacks. there are tons of other shelves and little occasional areas where one could put that sort of thing rather than cramping everybody's style on an smallish dining room table.

2. funny the opening bit mentions her being the queen of de-cluttering. WTF is up with the 4 foot stacks of magazines in the livingroom? a few magazines in a rack or on the coffee table, ok. a good organizational system for the ones you're using as a design resource, very good. even a bin or cupboard where they're all secretly stashed would be better than these massive and unattractive towers of clutter. all in all i think there are too many nicknacks here, most of which don't seem to be of a personal nature. they're just gewgaws and they overflow on every possible surface, reducing the flow of the space and the functional use of the surfaces and furniture. i'm not one of those cold spare minimalist people, but i feel like a lot of this could be edited or at least better organized.

that is all. sorry that wasn't very constructive.

The Opoponax:
While normally I would agree with you about the magazines, in this home I can see that they are just magazines and could probably be severely edited down in 5 minutes or so. She obviously wants to keep them. I think it's ok to keep things as long as you know what and where everything is. I actually am a minimalist, and this house has a few more knicknacks than I would like, but I really like the general feel. I don't necessarily think the dining room is out of proportion.

I too am a little perplexed that this is an interior decorator's home...It's seems a little amateurish in the way it is furnished and the execution of the look is "off". I am by no means a professional in this field but I expected a little more from someone who does interiors for a living.

The bathroom is quite nice, and that blue in the bedroom is astonishing. But I would expect someone who practices feng shui to have much more compelling "flow" in their own home. That dining area says to me: hip bone bruises, knocked-over knickknacks, The Shining, the scrritchh of wooden chairs on wooden floor, and two people will have to watch themselves eat.

damn you guys have your fangs and claws out today. forget about ever seeing my place!

I'm telling you--I'm one picky chick and this place is amazing.
rs

People must be grumpy today because of the moon or something. I think this place is just so pretty and peaceful! I'm always pleased when I see a place featured here that looks as if it's evolved over time, and like a non-obsessive person lives there, and not like someone bought it all at once. Of course, this person starts with a great house, darn her, but she does a tremendous job with it. I like big furniture in small spaces. The only placement I disagree with is the sofa in front of the front door.

And then there is the cat. Why always a pet pic? I love pets, but...

What's the dining room paint color, Tamara? I think it's perfect for that room.

COW RUG!

Right now, in my universe, cow hide can do no wrong.

That is the only WHITE bathroom I've ever fallen in love with. It just floats. As long as someone else cleans it, I will follow it with a pathetic devotion. The floaty effect in the bedroom is gorgeous, too.

I'm curious how anyone ever sits at the two back chairs in the dining room. Love the color scheme -- just feel very fat at the prospect of getting back there, but the vignettes on the table also leave me suspecting the corner is rarely used for dinner for four.

The living room didn't look cluttered to me -- it looks styled, judging from the arrangement of the magazines and plants.

i actually really enjoy the dining room...i like the use of color with white and i think the scale is quite dramatic with the large furniture for the space...didn't mind the magazines stack up either.(but then again that's coming from a person that archives his mags!)

In LA, large dining rooms come at a premium and I suppose she has surrounded herself with the things she has collected, loves, fitting them into her home. I think the colors she has used are very pleasing. Decorators often use their homes for staging. I see many areas in her home that show her talent; and, I love the Chinoiserie trunk used as a coffe table, although I would like it even better without the glass top, but if it is an antique I can understand the need for protection.

P.s. My favorite room is the bathroom! Adorable!

i should clarify that i do like it a lot, and though it isn't to my taste i think in most ways it's fine. it's just the two things.

also, my problem isn't that she keeps magazines, but the way she keeps them. i work with designers, and they keep magazines to use as resources. but they keep them in ways that are efficient, attractive, and accessible. not piled up on the floor. at work we have an entire bookcase of those IKEA magazine files which are grouped based on publication, issue, period, etc. sometimes i even get sent out to magazine archive shops (yes, these exist) to pick up old issues of magazines for period projects or important back issues we don't have. but again once we get them, we store them properly rather than just piling them on the floor.

Opoponax, you've probably figured out by now that with the house tours, people who are described as "declutterers" or homes that are described as "minimalist" are usually close but not quite. There are a lot of things I like about this place, but the owner certainly does have knack for finding "the perfect little goodies for every nook and cranny," which isn't my style at all. I love everything about that dining room--even the scale weirdness--except the junk on the table. Imagine just one crystal bowl of fruit on the table. Lovely.

How are the curtains in the bedroom hung? They look great against that beautiful wall color.

Sorry, "junk" is stronger than I meant. I'd change it to "stuff" if I could.

Marisa, believe the bedroom curtains are hung using grommets rather than hooks.

Isn't there a famous decorator who referred to accessories as "beautiful junk" or something similar?

I'm assuming she moves the stuff off the dining room table if four people are eating, but in the meantime uses the space for what she likes to look at.

To me, having to move stuff to eat at a table would be a big pain. One of my criteria for good interior decorating is "functionality," but I also know that when it comes to decorating, I'm way out of step with the majority.

We all have things we like to look at. To me, the problem with crowded vignettes is that the items compete for attention and none of them are shown off to their best advantage. Crowded vignettes also have a Victorian feel that isn't my style at all.

I think the color in this place is great. And I love the wood doors.

MEOW MEOW MEOW. HISS. folks...

I love people who know the minds and hearts of people they've never meant and can say what items are not close to their heart. Could be every memento means a great deal to her.

Of course, some people are so rigid in their ideology of thought of what does or doesn't work so anything that deviates from it has to immediately be pointed out and attacked.

Feel free to point out suggestions or personal issues, but COUCH your comments accordingly people.

I love the place. Some of the choices aren't mine, but I'd kill to have my place look this uncluttered.

Quite nice. I tend to agree that the dinning room furniture is a bit "big" for the room, but otherwise I find the entire home very warm and inviting--a place in which one could live, rather than a cold bare showroom.

Shari, would you mind giving an example of a comment that you believe is couched properly? According to your own rigid ideology, of course. ;)!

I don't think anyone in this thread has been particularly personal or vicious. People who want to show off their places on this site really ought to know that not everyone is going to drool in envy. And for someone who is so quick to lecture on etiquette, your using the uncomplimentary phrase "rigid in their ideology" seems a bit hypocritical.

I'm getting tired of people climbing on their high horses when someone dares not to applaud.

There. I broke my vow never to feed the trolls. Back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Tamara,

Your space is charming. It's like a tudor home I once visited in Wendover Bucks near London. I love the orange dining room, although it would be nice to see a custom roman shade, a rug beneath the table, and perhaps a few more colors, or even just a third color, like peacock blue.

I also love the bedroom wall color, can you reveal what color that is and who makes it?

In the bedroom, I imagine a hooked rug at the end of the bed with a large trunk to store things with a pretty vintage quilt in folded neatly on top.

I really like seeing such lovely spaces, especially ones that are so imaginative and warm. Your home looks like one that I'd enjoy visiting, having tea and a chat, dining over a roasted chicken with vegetables with freshly brewed iced tea.

Your cat is adorable, by the way.

Thank you for welcoming us into your organized lovely home online.

Best,

Holly

The bedroom is wonderful. The first picture looks like it was taken with a misty filter - romantic!

I love it-- especially the office. The pieces seem a little large for the dining room...and I too would love just a single bowl in the center...but overall I think I agree with her upstairs neighbor.

What an amazing place! I adore it, truly. Tamara, you must have a very good person to do slipcovers.

As to the negative comments; I'm sorry you were bombarded by them. Your home is wonderful, beautifully thought out, relaxing, graceful...

Beautiful place. The green of the living room to the deep poppy of the dining room look great.

I don't mind stacks of books and mags - they give the place soul. It's a personal home and not a rigid showroom. I like seeing that - proof the person who lives there is not uptight.

LOVE (the concept of):
Lamps in kitchens
Art in a laundry room
"Real" furniture in bathrooms

Kudos!

Overall its meh.
However I really like the bedroom. Agree with everyone else on incredible color on the walls and love the overall serenity of it. The bed is very nice too.

I really dislike the dining room and i think there are too many knick knacks and bric-a-bracs.

I am torn on the living room. The room itself has great bones but I am not feeling the yellow walls and would love to see the living room with more clean lines.

The office is fabulous.

okay so maybe better than meh but i would love to see the whole apartment have the same feel as the bedroom

Jeffrey,

Actually, the post you gave would be what I considered a GREAT example of a perfectly phrased response.

I don't think everyone should applaud everything.

I'll admit my comment may have been colored from reading other posts over time from certain individuals that always seem to be very fixed in their response and take a particularly hard edged criticism. It's not that they don't have legitimate points sometimes, but it's more of the way it's said.

I'm also happy to admit I may have been overly sensitive yesterday as I am PMSing.

But, yes, I have a really strong opinion that couching comments is important when you're talking about people's homes.

And if you think that makes me a troll in your eyes, oh well.

It's a nice place and it's always fun to see how others design their homes. I agree with the folks who fell in love with the bedroom wall color. My gut reaction to the place overall is that it's clearly a house with no dogs or children living in it, which some of us just automatically won't relate to. That's not a criticism; just different strokes, etc.

love every paint color, looove all the white furnishings...LOVE THE DINING ROOM PROPORTIONS...they're perfect!

Fantastic! I would love to see some more pics of the kitchen.

One person's knickknacks are another's objets d'art.

But then again, I think minimal, hotel-like interiors are too studied, unimaginative and dull, dull, dull.

I love this space, particularly the living room color and interesting accessories.

This place is fabulous. The colors are incredible.

hi this is tamara
thank you for allllllll your comments, it just goes to show if you ask 100 people their opinion you'll get 100 different answers. may i take a few minutes of your time to express my life as i know it at 50!

my house is a revolving door for my south african fiance, family, friends, out of town guest and 3 outside cats. it is a misconception that white is hard to live with, the "ikea throws that i keep on the furniture (expect when parties or photographing occur....lol!) i wash weekly and my slipcovers 4-5 times a year at a laundrmat with powder bleach "biz".

as a artist i need a clean palate to work with for i am constantly working on enhancing my clients style, i find white furnishings and the boost of color on the walls inspiring for my spirit. the instant gratification that comes from monthly magazines (it astounds me that i can be in touch with the world thru this form of communication) i guess i see it as organized clutter or better yet a art form. (there are other thing to get my knickers
in a twist about).

the dining room table and chair, wow you should have an opportunity to snuggle in that room it is a space of pleasure and warmth for those of us who have the opportunity it is like a living library we find ourselves sitting, dining, drinking, reading, ibooking, petting kitties for hours in those comfy chairs as the world passes by. for those of you who don't hang out in the kitchen at a party, i guess you will never know, for those of you who do welcome to our experience.

i sincerely with the best of intension have the home that makes my spirit soar, for it is the only place i can keep private for myself and loved one, the world can comment on my exterior but the interior is like my soul, it is a reflection of what keeps me ticking. i believe a house should hold the passions of the person who lives in it, it's a reflection of the homeowner a living
history.

thank you for your time, as to answer your questions...
the paint is from the old color palate of sherwin williams, but still great colors:
1/ bedroom: CRYSTAL CAY sw 1463
2/ dining room- CHINESE RED sw 0057
3/ living room/hall: - LEA GREEN sw 1407
we affectionally call it "merlin eye green - the stately maine coon cat you saw"

slipcovers where made in oc/lbc area if you are still interested in a resource contact me.

i think i answered your questions....may you be inspired to create the home of your passions........sincerely, tamara