apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

oh my, i love the bathroom towel holder!

Nice use of color and great artwork. What are the squares on the one wall? Paint?

So. friggin. cool.

Love this! It FEELS like the southwest to me!

love it , love it , everything about the apt.... I also heart your bathroom!!!!!

great place! love it, love it, love it, but... can we make a pact that after say, June 1st, we all delete or peel off or paint over our wall silhouette stencils? for me? thanks!

I love the wall art. is that drawn or a paste on? how does one go about doing that?

It's very nice. I wish it was bigger.

Tony G.

i adore this apartment...very nicely done...i cant even imagine the amount of painters tape and how much measuring went into those treatments, bravo!

*also, k in ditmas, it looks like the "towel holder" is simply two orange wire tree sculptures from ikea...i have four of them throughout my living room, they come in a lot of colors and are so fun (and uber cheap)...i love this application of them too, ingenious!

What are the squares on the one wall? Paint?

posted by boomer on 2007-05-16 16:13:16
Thanks for all of the really great comments so far!! To answer a few questions..... Boomer and Substance12- all of the artwork on the walls are painted on. They are not made from stencils or wall decals...The grid wall- we hand taped off the type of grid we wanted and mapped out our repeat. For the fern/flower- i made a drawing on 8''X10'' paper, multiplied it by a coefficient (which blew it up to 900%). I taped off the stems, and then hand drew the petals. I used a white water soluble sewing pencil to sketch out my ideas then painted them in. The pencil allowed me to make real sketches and later go back with a brush and water to remove the lines. As for the bathroom- we taped it off with 1'' tape every other inch in order to get the sticks level. I made my own stencil for the pills. I cant even tell you how many hours have put into the paintings, but they are one of my favorite parts about our apt. Im happy to know so many of you feel the same way. Hope my answers helped the questions. :)
-ammo

I love this apartment!

Nice use of Ikea, and some great DIY solutions, but I just can't imagine anyone lives there. I love clean spaces, but there are so few personal belongings, photos, plants, whatever, here. It feels like a very well-lit furniture showroom or hotel.

yeah, i just cant get behind this place. it feels entirely too much like a hotel room. and im so over wall stencils.

I love your creative solution for the kitchen cabinet doors -- it's a great way to modernize framed cabinets.

I think this place is awesome! Ammo, i'm so proud that u are SO organized!! I love the color of the bedspread, it adds such a punch of color that makes it stand out. And that wall painting, oh my goodness i'm going to have to steal that if i ever get a house, i LOVE it. The bathroom is amazing, totally not what i was expecting, but i love it, you guys did such a great job, good luck!!

nice colors... very clean! I think the lack of personal touches makes it seem a little hotel-y though. Would be nice to have a glimpse of the dweller.

Great job for such a small space. Looks like your hard work paid off, it's wonderful!!!

This place is HOT HOT HOT... that's not double hot, it's triple hot.

I'm going to go chug a triple strength rockstar dedicated to you so that I can experience this place on a body shaking caffeine rush...

Nice music selection.

Who's number 1? Eric y Ammo...

Who's number 1? Eric y Ammo...

One more time...

Who's number 1? Eric y Ammo!!! Jaaaaaa

This is the far and away better than all the rest in the contest. The clean yet distinctive lines of the wall in the main room make this place have the appearance of a show place (not a hotel). The tree is complimentary in design and tone enhancing the dimensions of the room. I appreciate the colors of the bathroom and the splash of orange provides a decisive characteristic lending a feeling of a much larger abode and distinctive sections to your environment. Love the wine rack by the way. Seeing through the kitchen cabinets allows us to see your stuff and believe you do eat there, and seeing inside your closet adds more proof that two normal folks have the usual stuff efficiently stored away. Kudos on your organizational skills!!! This place totally rocks and has the appearance of the work of a designer! What are your occupations?

I like it, I do but I still feel like it has no life to it.

Um...song title/artist please? (I've heard it a lot before, just don't know anything about it).

Such Great Heights by the Postal Service

I absolutely love this place. Everything is so creative and unique...no detail was overlooked. Its such a great use of color, pattern, and space. Beautiful! I've never really been a fan of the clean, modern look, but this entry may make me change my mind.

yes, the thread that is going through about the emotion of the place - I get it too - and it just hit me what it is.

i also live in a small place (i guess everyone who entered does!) and have a library card and an ipod, blockbuster, etc. but at the least the things i am using for the moment are present.

the book i am reading is on the coffee table, a glass and dish on the table - the shoes i am wearing sit at the entry to the apartment.

even clean organized folks at least use stuff to live their daily lives, so when a place seems so neat that this stuff is out of sight it can also feel "not lived-in" or to restrictive. It seems as though you might feel uncomfortable taking your sweater off and draping over a chair even temporarily, and most people would not find such an atmosphere comfortable...

i think its the organization that makes it feel stifling, like i don't want to scuff the floor or i should leave my coat on


i think i like organized places where the stuff becomes part of the design of the place (like hong and im's (sp?) place from dwell) b/c it brings humanity (the rest of us are not so organized that we put our bag away in a closet as soon as we get home, or wash the cup as soon as we drink from it, and if some of us are, i don't necessarily seek them out...

Guys, two people are living in 390 square feet. It's probably a constant challenge to stay organized and out of each other's way, so I really don't see why it's a big deal that they don't have, say, a book sitting out. And, Sassy, putting a bag in a closet every night is really not a huge deal. I manage to do it, and I am far from a naturally organized person. (Now, magazines are another story entirely...)

I think this is very creative, particularly with the use of paint on the walls. They almost rival Curtis, and that's a high compliment!

Amazing!!! The wall decor is outstanding and simpley unique. The color coordination is excellent. Well thought out idea. LOVE IT!

I agree that it's not a big deal at all that they didn't leave their stuff out. Why is that necessary? My theory about why this is an issue for some people here:

It's the brown. (And the discipline of actually really truly having only three decorating colors.)

Honestly, I don't think they would have gotten so many hotel comments if it weren't for the brown walls and curtains. And yet I don't remember anyone ever complaining about the brown per se.

OMG! I love it. Sexy sexy sexy! It clears my mind when I see the photos of the place. I wish I could keep a clean studio with no clutter do it but I am too lazy. This place makes me feel like I really need to throw out a lot of crap in my small studio. I love the walls, the flow and the overall ambiance.Simple yet sexy sexy.

Loves it!

Love it!!! You guys can come do mine when you're done!!

Wow, What an amazing place! I Love it!

Knowing Eric personally makes this an interesting thread.

All of the "negative" comments are actually justification that he accomplished his goal.

Before this project even started Eric would describe to me the environment he is most comfortable and happy in. It could be paraphrased like this:

"I just wish I could live in a high end lounge or hotel. Clutter makes me uncomfortable. I like clean lines, and I love mid century design. Lighting is my all time favorite design element. I just have to figure out how to get there with no money"

I must be on the same wavelength as Eric. It is very hard for me to understand this "cold" feeling that people describe. I never feel cold in this apartment. I always experience an overwhelming relaxing calm.

It's too bad you can't experience the space to it's fullest with him inside. He could be his own addition. Enthusiastic about life, full of great stories, and always ready to hand you a glass of wine.

Seriously, this apartment IS Eric Meeks, and I think that is the ultimate goal of this competition. Oh, and he is lucky that his beautiful girlfriend was willing to spend hours and hours and hours painting to make his dream come true.

Haha, thanks for the great comment. Luckily that beautiful girlfriend of mine shares the same vision and without the two of us this space wouldn't be anywhere close to where we want it to be. Ammo, you are the most amazing girl in the world, and this apartment reflects that. Your determination is unmatchable.

Everyone: thanks for all the great comments so far, it makes all the hard work worth it and I hope you get to meet Ammo tomorrow at the party. Sadly, I am out of town on work, so I will miss you all. Good luck and congratulations to all the other contestants, I am sure you all feel that your hard work has paid off as well.

Beautifully decorated, but I'm not seeing the small-space design here. But as long as the inhabitants love it, then all's well.

LOVE It!!!, the design, concept and color palette give a great flow to the space.....For your bed issue, I could recommend you to look into a stylish Murphy bed. There are ones that are made to look like consoles and open down horizontally so your feature wall doesn't get obstructed. GREAT JOB!!!!

I would love to spend a few days here--there's no denying it's beautiful. But I dont' think I could live here. I need plants and natural light. That may be where people are getting the hotel vibe.

Love it. Love it. This place has creative use of space with bold elements on the walls. It's the kind of thing that a risk averse person like me would never do. The owners have great taste in furniture and the use of colors in such a small space is just daring. Great job!

I really like the colors... shades of brown with bright teal works very well. The lighting sets it apart as well. Nice finish, guys. How about hopping over to the East coast and working your magic on my place? ;-)
-Laura S.

I love the colors, patterns, clean lines, modern look, creativity and use of space.
The wine rack in the kitchen it like art work.
Your talent is unique!
Excellent Work!

I hope that one day I'm able to create such a cool space to live in!

this is one of my most favorite apartments in the history of this contest.

I don't doubt this for a minute:
"Seriously, this apartment IS Eric Meeks,"
But this can't be right:
"...and I think that is the ultimate goal of this competition."

It's obvious that this is a perfect expression of the designer; it shows in every detail of this place. But do you doubt that that's equally true of every other finalist's entry? Just look at the honorable mentions alone: each one is a full-bodied, enthusiastic, passionate, and determined expression of the inhabitant. And I dare say that every single contestant in this contest is proud of, and really, really happy with - and probably justifiably so - what they've done with their place. Surely successful self-expression can't be the central criterion of success in this competition.

Eric has done a wonderful job creating this space and the painting I know took many hours to do. I just wish that Eric would give some credit to the people at Twenty2 who created the patterns that he so wonderfully painted on the walls.

Eric is amazing. I wish he would come and design my house. I love the creativity and one of a kind ideas.

do they mention the drawer pulls anywhere as being something they can renovate? for some reason, despite everything going on each photo, that was the most distracting element for me... everywhere they are except for the kitchen. honestly, the kitchen and the computer station/bar is the only part of this apartment that works for me. all the decorative elements match, but all the decorative elements stand out so it feels... jarring.

Obviously being in the actual space would be different, but just by viewing the pictures-- I'm finding it hard to breathe and relax!

Archnrrrd: If you follow my blog at modernself.com you will see that I have consistently given credit to twenty2 wallpaper. In fact if you read the comments you will see that twenty2 has left comments like:

robertson
December 18th, 2006 | 11:44 am

"hi. please let us now when you are finished. we would love to see our “acco 20″ pattern blown up to that scale! good luck with the painting."

and....

"we still can’t wait to see the finished product. thanks for the shout-outs."