apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

THIS should have been a Color Contest enry!!!

Love the green armchairs. Any idea where those came from? Anyone? Bueller?

holy moly - Marilyn's apartment looks like someone's been squatting in it. throwing away what is obviously trash should be the first thing on the list!

I'm still stuck in the kitchen!! =(

Maxwell,

I am going to Paris over Thanksgiving and tried to book the Hotel Therese. They were full, but we did get into the Hotel Verneuil.

I am finding lots of great info in the AT archives to help me plan this trip. Which reminds me -- how is the plan to improve the site's search capabilities coming along?

Thanks!

hmmm and I thought the clutter at my place was getting out of control, now it seems i live in a sleek and clean apartment

sara,

That's kind of the universal struggle around here. The BF thinks we have plenty of room, I feel that it's super cluttered. I don't know how much more I'd have to purge/reorganize before I don't feel that way.

Isn't that the cutest living room? Now I want to go wallow in lime-cilantro candles.

Having just dealt with endless packing materials and still having bits of stuff that haven't found their niche, I totally feel for you, MarilynGP. Your apartment will seem three times bigger when you've dealt with all the unwanted or displaced stuff.

It's now possible to sit on our patio, thanks to the Pier 1 outlet marking the hoopie-shaped rattan chairs waaaaay down. There's room for another pair, but we're going to live with the space for a bit and see if something else more interesting finds us.

No, the chair cushions are not beige. The color scheme is red-orange, yellow-orange, yellow, lilac, and green -- which sounds weird but is a standard mix in pot plants (verbena and lantana).

Somehow, this is like going to an Apartments Anonymous meeting. Well, it is an 8-step program, so that's not much of a reach. Posting embarrassing pictures of my condo makes me face the problem. And seeing everyone else's pics makes me realize I'm not the only one.

Clara Vu, your living room is absolutely delicious, SO inviting!

kathryn, if you use google, you can search all of the AT site by entering site:apartmenttherapy.com and your search term. hope that helps. another ATer gave me that tip a while ago, but I forget which one (Jamie Pup, or P(too)?)

Something about Clara Vu's colors makes me want to eat something delicious. On closer inspection, I think the rug shocks me because it reminds me of stickum tiles in the kitchen.

damn, i knew i shoulda placed that bet... i KNEW you'd go pier one, wende.

actually, i think pier one is probably a better choice in your situation. IKEA really only carries a few rattan patio/sunroom options, and they don't often rotate out their designs. whereas pier one offers quite a few different outdoorsy choices and the designs change quite often. which means nobody will come to your house and say, "ooh, how's that Karlslund chaise working out for you?" it can just blend in and be enjoyed on its own terms.

i also think those are really fresh color choices.

just did my ideal floor plan and had the BEST idea about my new drinks cart/bookshelf. it has casters and handles. which means if i situate the desk just right, i can have it tucked into the corner next to the desk for storage, and then pull it out when i want to access the books. this'll save space and also reduce the visual clutter without either hiding or sacrificing my books. not to mention saving them from the barrage of heat they'd take if i kept them in front of the radiator full time. now let's just see if it works off the page...

Is it Cure or anticure if I just lined my kitchen cabinet with fresh tin foil?

Yeah, I should have given a prize for the first person to post "Pier 1" as the answer. I'd been eyeing the hoopie chairs at the Sacramento outlet for at least a year, so happiness reigned at finding them here. Plus we get new levels of design irony from how they echo the shape of the satellite dish. (Photos tomorrow, after I've potted the new cactus.)

The rolling cart placement sounds excellent. You get to take full advantage of the rolling!

also, i get to be all Donna Reed when i serve up my books. there's just something so postwar about a rolling drink cart that one actually rolls to serve things from. you know, in my mind. the fact that most of the titles on that shelf are either feminism or graphic novels (or feminist graphic novels) makes it that much better.

i am loving the idea of furnishing my place in period style, but in a way that would have the original inhabitants of the 40's and 50's spinning in their nursing homes.

how does one re-pot a cactus? with gloves, i hope...

Aargh! Maxwell's speeding up the cure, I can't keep up! I thought I had until Tuesday night/Wednesday to get my kitchen done...I can't believe I'm failing already...

and by the way:

jucyfruit -- all cure, baby! the only thing is that foil rips easily. maybe you could use clear contact paper or something over the foil to keep it in place?

last night i was helping a friend assemble an awesome space age tinfoil-and-orange-tape reflector for a weak light fixture in his place. i'm all for the creative use of tinfoil in interior design.

Skyway Kate,
I'm a bit off Maxwell's schedule too. I 'start' the week on Saturday and work like mad through the weekend. Over the remainder of the week (juggling work and life), I wrap up the task and start any prep items to do for the next week.
So, if you were planning to finish cleaning the kitchen this week ... you can scrub while anticipating the next task which should be a lot more fun and will give you incentive to get this task done.

That living room is gorgeous!

Landing strip... I had nearly talked myself into buying a new something (closet organizer shelves thing) for my landing strip, when I decided my bedroom needed more help than I'd been planning to give it. So now the money I'd earmarked for a new landing strip something is going to go to different window coverings/draperies and a headboard covering in a warmer, richer color (at least for the winter months). So now I'll have to make do with the wire rolling cart that I really don't like, but that is functional, for my landing strip. It'll give me a chance to perhaps find something I'd like better than the closet organizer shelving thing, anyway... when I went back to the website and looked at it again, I wouldn't be any happier with the look of it than the look of the wire rolling cart.

I like the idea of a rolling cart, I just want a more solid one, that looks better. If I ever have people over in the winter, I'd need the space where the cart sits for their coats, so a rolling cart is ideal. I'll find a nice one someday... ... ...

Where did you get those lovely orange lampshades? I am finding such a hard time finding intersting colorful shades.

i'm having real trouble with the landing strip, which is my last Deep Treatment task. mostly that our entrance hallway is narrow and already used for book storage, so there isn't one cohesive area where all the landing strip tasks can take place. i think i've happened upon a partial solution though, which will (of course) require me to wander the aisles of the container store after work tomorrow.

smallcitybeth's comment about the rolling cart (and my new rolling bookshelf in the bedroom) got my wheels turning, so to speak...

Shanabanana- totally agree this is AA, apartmenttherapy.com style!

Holly in DC - don't be mean! This is A(t)A, and we all need to have support in our times of need. She's very brave to post the truth.

Opoponax, you need to take a pic of your Donna Reed moment to share with us all. =)

Ugh... I'm still working on the kitchen! I only got halfway through what I wanted to this weekend, but by Sunday I just couldn't face it anymore.

The good news is that our hallway/stairway already looks 100% better after doing the floors week 1! Yay! So I have a little bit of freedom to keep working through the kitchen mess. I took some before pictures of it... EEK!!! I'm scared to post them, it's terrible!

BTW: Anyone need a completely unused fondue set? Haa haa...

Well, the patch on the wood floor has turned into "doing" the entire living room floor--as anyone who knows anything about these things could have told me--and didn't. I'm grateful! We're committed and we'll be so happy when it's done.

We got the storm windows up today--woke up to snow--so figured it was time. It felt absurd to be outside washing windows in temps just above freezing with sleet spotting them up again!

Bought some red and white gingham flocked vinyl table cloth material today--I'm going to use it to cover my four dining room chairs...Cost me $5! Pretty exciting. I'm hoping it looks more funky than tacky....

I still have the fridge and oven to do (sigh)....

About the landing strip: because we have a very narrow entrance way, (and a front door and back door. I'd much prefer living in one of Sarah Susanka's homes which combine both entrances into one.) we have about FOUR different areas that function as the landing strip.

Not sure what to do about that....

I'll probably have more pics tonight.

Yes, we must have the Donna Reed moment!

Tonight, I swear I will go through all the crap that collected on the kitchen island (again) and sort it into where it goes, so that the landing strip is ONE basket on the island and not a fringe of receipts and envelopes.

I'm hoping the husband will be possessed by a demonic spirit that really wants to put doors on cabinets, assemble a lamp, and maybe hang some pictures. That's probably too much for one evening, but I don't want to get used to the stuff not being done.

The spikiest of the cacti is probably getting repotted with the help of one of the potholders that doesn't "go" in the new kitchen.

Okay, here's a clutter question. Filing, how long do people keep things? Bills, bank statements, etc. I'm really bad about filing things in a timely fashion, probably because my filing cabinet has so much in it. Not to mention that it's a cheapo model whose drawers don't open all the way.

What are your filing solutions?

My filing solution = piles of paper and receipts stuffed into envelopes. I too would appreciate any tips or pointers. I have a plastic hanging folder container, but it's buried way down in my closet and not easy to get to.

We have to clean the oven too? Oh man, oh man. I already invited my friend over for dinner tomorrow and haven't even begun my kitchen! Maybe I have to pull an all-nighter!

Yay, something I don't have to spend too much time on! I'm really happy with my front hall/landing strip right now, so I can keep plugging away at the kitchen! We went oven-shopping this weekend and it turns out if you want them to install it for you they won't let you order it until they've come and measured the hole in your wall and if it's the wrong size they just leave. So we've got a buddy who is going to come by on Wed. and hopefully enlarge the hole in the wall to the proper size, and THEN we will go get a proper oven and put it in ourselves.

Oh, and the mister just revealed to me that he'd be willing to spring for stainless! Goodbye nasty avocado green! I hate retro when it is non-functional and probably unsafe.

Oh, and Wende good luck with the cacti, I remember having no luck with garden gloves, hope the potholders work out better for you. Also, where I'm from the big box home stores (Lowe's, HD) as well as snooty food stores (Trader Joe's, Wild Oats) all carry orchids and other neat plants so if you've got any of those I'd check 'em out.

Two or three good size chunks of styrofoam (from a disposable cooler) work well enough for the cactus transplant. Styrofoam sticks nicely to the spines.

Congratulations on the impending departure of the avocado oven! Stainless will look great against the brick.

It turns out my puncture wounds were all from picking my cactus out of the trays at Lowe's -- what I bought are succulents and didn't have quills (much to my relief). Not an orchid to be found, though. It may be that the climate here is too dry for them. The whole vegetation issue is VERY different here, to the point where grocery shopping is sometimes extremely strange.

Wow, thanks for all of the great comments! My husband's really excited that we're famous. :) To answer some questions:

The chairs are Mitchell Gold Elliott chairs. The wall color is by C2 paint, I think it's called banana or something. And yes, the lamps are Ikea with the shades covered with fancy paper. I do about one crafts project every 2 years or so and that was it. (Coffee tables, side tables, and rug are Ikea too.)

In other cure news, I've been thinking about some Room & Board dressers for the bedroom under the TV, and thinking about how to take epheme's advice and warm up the bedroom a little. The walls are actually a really nice blue/periwinkle (shows up badly in the photo), but I think some non-blue accessories could help balance things.

Wende! I know you could do this yourself, and possibly have, but just out of curiosity I googled orchids phoenix (no quotation marks, just those two words) and found that there is an Orchid Society in Phoenix and a place called phoenixorchids.com -- probably not quite what you're looking for, but at least it shows that there are orchids somewhere in phoenix! Good luck with finding some.

Smallcitybeth -- Thank you! The weird thing is, my own Googling efforts hadn't gotten me anywhere, so yours are much appreciated. (Was I so bleary that I spelled it "phoeniz"? Possibly.)

You're welcome, Wende! (When I'm bleary, I spell my name beht, so I can completely understand if you put a zzzzzzz-zee in phoenixzzzz)

wrtrmaus and ATL -- there's some detail on what papers to keep and what not to keep at lifeorganizers dot com (click my name, and hopefully it will link you there). flylady.net also has some info on that subject. For myself, I keep anything tax/bank/finance related for 7 years. That doesn't include store receipts unless it's for an item under warranty. The current year's stuff is separated into categories in hanging files in an easily accessible file box. At the end of the tax year, everything for the year goes in one file and goes into my "archive" file box (I gave up on file cabinets, and I have file boxes that stack on each other, see my flickr picture of my landing strip closet). I can then get rid of (read shred) the stuff in the oldest file. If I actually get that step done. Since I started this system, I find it much easier to deal with my paper that needs filing. Paper that isn't in that category is still taking over my desk, though!

There is a list of what files to keep/what to throw away in the Apartment Therapy book on page 160...it is quite helpful.

I finished up the kitchen this afternoon with a good mopping of the floor. I didn't get to be a thorough as I would have liked due to a nasty head cold---the junk drawer still needs to be gone through and I didn't get to the under-sink area. But it looks a thousand times better.

I am also considering the possibility of grocery shopping every week instead of trying to buy 2 weeks worth of food in one trip. I think this will cut down on the amount of food wasted, not to mention the amount that is stuffed into the fridge at any one time.

I think I am going to be a little unorthodox in my approach to the upcoming week. Due to the lack of much of an obvious "landing strip" in our house, and also due to the fact that I desperately need to get some work done, I am going to spend Week 3 on my office/sewing room. This room is such a disaster that I might need to carry over into Week 4. It is also the most essential part of the house for my creative endeavors. I feel that it is necessary to get it under control as soon as possible.

Ok, does anyone know, when the Ikea description of a light says "Light source is sold separately", does that mean it doesn't come with a bulb, or that it doesn't come with the cord/socket/stuff to put it into the ceiling? I can't tell if I'm buying a fixture or just a shade.

For the dining room, hopefully.

Anne - "Light source sold separately" just means the bulb! Everything else is included. Which light are you thinking of getting?

Eek! Week three already? Fortunately, the kitchen is basically finished. I bought a pair of Ingolf chairs from Ikea in a cheery tomato red, and they brighten up the dining nook considerably! I'll post progress pictures after I pick out a curtain for the kitchen window.

The Out Box currently occupies the space that will become the landing strip, so that'll need to get cleared out this week. At least, I think that's where it's going to go....*sigh* Sometimes I get so tired of making decisions!

wrtrmaus -

There's a link to a pic of my filing system on my name. I use 3 ring binders to file all of my stuff. It keeps everything together in order and makes it really easy to take with me if I need, and move the mundane filing in front of the TV to entertain during the tedious task. I've been doing it for about 3 years and have stuck with it.

Yikes -- I don't know if I can stand this much motivation! 277 views! I could have gone on in relative obscurity if Maxwell had not put a link on the front page. (I just decided to make my pictures public yesterday or the day before so I would at least get *some* attention.) This is definitely trial by fire. I'm trying.

Marilyn--just think--you had 277 people over to see your living room--and you didn't even have to worry about where to put their coats! It's an amazing room. Be proud.

Though, I have noticed it breaks Maxwell's 80/20 rule and his colour guidelines.

Do I understand this right?
1. A room is to be 80 per cent neutral, 20 per cent colour.
2. Neutrals are black, white, brown and all shades and tints in between.
3. With the 20% left over, some rooms should be "cool" (blue, green, purple, black) and others "warm" (orange, red, yellow, white)
4. Ne'er should warm and cool be mixed in the same room.

I guess it's #1 and #4 I have the most trouble with--why 80% neutral? Wouldn't that be bland?
And I can't imagine a "warm" room without pops of "cool" accessories and vice versa.

What say you?

Oh--I uploaded a few kitchen pics. Comments are welcomed on any of the photos I have up--if I didn't want feedback, I wouldn't have posted them.

Glad to see you back, smallcitybeth. I was worried about you. Were you affected by the storm?

ooops--Marilyn, I'm sorry. I thought you were the owner of the green/orange/yellow room above!

I clicked on your link and I think you are extraordinarily brave. At least you are willing to do something about it--I've known people who have lived like that and just gave up for a long time.

You can totally do this! Have you found www. organizedhome(dot)com yet? They're fabulous clutter busters--and a big emotional help.

Keep posting--and posting pics of your progress--it'll inspire us all!

Alana,

I think the 80/20 rule and the "warm/cool" rule are there to help people like the ones in the blurb at the beginning of the chapter - people with no style or sense of what colors look good together. I'd wager that most of the people who read AT could pick out three colors that look good together, warm cool or otherwise. It's just a guideline to help those who really have no idea.

Thanks to everyone who left filing tips, I hae several options to consider, and lots of sorting to do.

I managed to do my dishes and wipe down my sink and stove after dinner last night. That's progress, trust me.

I think the 80/20 rule can be very useful for most people if you loosen it up a little: I think you basically want 80% background color (close together shades of one color) and 20% accent color that "pops." By that rule, I think my living room complies - the walls, birch furniture, and couch are all kindof light yellow background color, and the chairs, lampshades, and pillows are accent. I also agree with Alana's point about warm room with pops of cool, etc. My favorite color inspiration is books by Tricia Guild - White Hot and Painted Country are my favorites.

I always struggle with this - I love colors and it's so hard to not buy something I love because it just won't work in the room I want to put it in - but I find ultimately I like the whole room better if I stay disciplined.

Of course, I've seen places by people with real artistic talent that violate all of the rules and look great, but for the rest of us I think the rules are useful.

Marilyn - another great anti-clutter resource is www.flylady.net. She shows you how to make decluttering and housekeeping work with the rest of your life - my real breakthrough with clutter happened after I read her book. Good luck!

Alana in Canada -- thanks for your concern! It's great to have friends. I was away from home for a few days, staying with my elderly parents after my mother had a mini-stroke and a fall. She's doing okay now, so I'm back home, and getting back up to speed on my Cure tasks. We didn't get a storm here, just scattered flurries yesterday, which added to the Mondayishness of Monday! (I washed my new ski jacket last night, because it's cold out there!!!)

I mentioned earlier that I needed to get out the ladder and do the up-high bits of the kitchen. I decided last night that it would be wise to leave such gymnastics to Saturday morning when I'm more alert (yesterday was a very Mondayish Monday), so yesterday evening I started cleaning up the landing strip closet. Made decent progress, I'm pleased to say.

Tomorrow is donation day (our building has a once-a-month pickup by a charity), so I'm getting my outbox cleared out tonight. The new quilt is going (good thing it was really cheap!) It didn't agree with my allergies. (allergies, grumble, grumble, grumble...)

I guess I should have breakfast and get to work. Sigh. Working for a living really cuts in to my AT time!

good point, calcifer - "colors" (IE, not beige, white, or black) can be neutral and as such, count towards your 80%.

Misspenni -- Your place has some great features! Your "before" photos are reminding me of when I moved in with the husband, back in Minneapolis... the dining room had its authentic built-in china cabinet... and a lawn mower sitting in the center of the room. This was not an artistic statement. It was the actual lawn mower that should have been used on the lawn.

I'm totally with you on substituting another room for "foyer" if the other room is what is preventing you from having a landing strip. I have the same problem (permanently) -- certain items cannot be removed from the kitchen island until they have somewhere to go in the project/TV/guest room.

Some of the popular Color Contest entries violate the 80/20 rule violently, and some that follow it are distinctly unpopular. So I'd agree with Amy that it's a guideline to unparalyze people and/or to help diagnose what's bugging them about a room, rather than a hard-and-fast design rule.

Wrtrmaus quoth: "I managed to do my dishes and wipe down my sink and stove after dinner last night. That's progress, trust me."

Oh, yes! Oh, yes! Dishes are actually a worse problem if you don't have a large family, 'cause you think, "Oh, well, it's only two plates, why bother?" Three meals later, it's six plates, and the counter is MIA. How well I know this!

Believe me, it was a revelation this morning to realize that I could unload the dishwasher* while putting together breakfast, then put dirty dishes in it, rather than leaving the dirty dishes on the counter all day. (*the first we've ever had!)

Regarding how long to save stuff for taxes (receipts, etc.) ... you should save EVERY receipt and cancelled check regarding home renovations INDEFINITELY. When you sell your home, it's the only way to deduct the cost of capital improvements ... and that can be many years down the line! Despite the fact that I lived in a limited-equity co-op with a price fixed by the board (in which my kitchen renovation did nothing to increase the value of the apartment but was simply an investment in my standard of living), I saved every single record and receipt. Eight years later, when we decided to sell our apartments "on the market," I was able to deduct all of that expense from my profit!

Wende: Congratulations ... isn't it wonderful? I now have a dishwasher for the first time, too ... and twice a week, that is the sweetest sound to hear!

Oh to have a dishwasher! How wonderful it must be, Wende? What part of Minneapolis did you live in?

I use a list from Real Simple regarding what financial records to keep -- click on my name for the link to the article.

For storing this years paperwork, I have two files and these have worked very well for me.

The first file is a small accordian envelope (10" x 4") to file receipts by the month. This is a great place to keep them organized and neat until I have time to deal with them - which is, honestly, not always when the credit statment comes in.

The second file is a letter size accordian file for statments and bills - all filed by the month. This file is covered in chocolate brown cloth with a grograin ribbon tie - so it looks pretty if left out on the table.

For longer term storage, I have a file box with metal rails for hanging files. It is rattan and looks great as a small end table next to a chair or sofa. I have 20 years of finacial records stored in there with room for more.

Best thing I own is a cross cut shredder. I keep my plugged in and ready to use near the front door when the mail comes in.

Both the accordian file and rattan box were from Hold Everything - wow, I miss that place. I won't use a file cabinet as I can't stand how they look and I have no where to hide them. There must be somewhere to buy something similar. I know I'd love another rattan file box. Does anyone have any sources?

I've been playing catch-up with the book; it's very inspiring. I especially like the Outbox idea. I thought I was so good at decluttering - my motto is Always Be Purging - but it turns out that my closets and cabinets are still full of lingering objects. My furniture is a hodge-podge of IKEA, my mother's parents' stuff (Eastern European immigrant Jewish stuff: fake Colonial-ish and random) and my father's parents' stuff (Eames and some interesting things they must have shipped here from their Euro travels). My mom keeps giving me vaguely French country-Victorian-Shaker-whatever stuff, and I recently realized that I don't like any of it!

So, my outbox is now full of things: chairs I feel guilty and torn about that had belonged to my mom's folks', jewelery I never wear, a bellydance veil I never use, a ton of crap that looks like it's from someone else's life. Very interesting to see that one can still be attached to something they NEVER use and don't even really like. That's why this whole Outbox idea is so smart.

Here's a question for fellow artists (and maybe writers, too) out there: what do you do with your old sketchbooks and drafts? I have stacks of them, dating back to art school. I know there's some valuable info scattered throughout some of them. I want to tear out what I need and throw the rest into the recycle. Is this a terrible idea? They're mostly full of thumbnails for old illustrations and comics.

Can't wait to keep purging!

i've been contemplating the 80/20 rule a lot lately. it's sort of a revelation, even as someone who has no problem incorporating color, balancing color choices, etc. in general. because when i look at even the most colorful spaces which are successful, they do hold to the rule. the interesting ones do it in unorthodox ways, but it still works.

think of it this way: everything the eye sees counts. in the photo of calcifer's living room above, the floor is entirely neutral, and i'd hazard to guess the ceiling is white, which makes that neutral too. the wooden side and coffee tables are neutral. the couch reads neutral, a sort of buff or camel color. the only real pops of sheer, pure, definitely-not-a-neutral color are the walls, the chairs, the lampshades, and the pillows and quilt thingie. and compared to the huge spreads of floor, ceiling, couch, etc. those really don't take up a lot of space in the room. thus, approximately 80/20.

i also don't think neutral necessarily has to mean a brown, grey, or white -- it just has to be a mild color which is easy on the eyes and can take a back seat to the pops of a brighter color. pale blues and greens can definitely read as neutrals, as can subdued yellows.

CathyinMN - thanks, I'm never sure with IKEA. I'm looking at their pendant lights for the living room and wondering if I could get away with the LARUM paper pendant light or if it might be too modern for my house (and annoying to keep clean). I'm also looking at the EGELSTA pendant and the FADO pendant, but I'd need to see them in person before I could decide for sure. Looks like there might be an IKEA trip in the works soon! Hopefully before we get any more snow in the mountains!

Oh Jane -- you should have heard our cries of joy just over getting a double sink instead of a single one in the kitchen! We gazed at the dishwasher as if we'd just emerged from the uncharted rainforest and were seeing Western Civilization for the first time.

Skywaykate, I feel as if I have Sold Out to adore my dishwasher so. For 20 years of adulthood, I considered myself above such mundane considerations. I quoted articles on the Zen of dishwashing (while avoiding actually washing the dishes). I baked 23 smallish cakes for our wedding without a dishwasher, and while balancing the mixing bowl on either the stove or my hip, as we had no counter space in Mpls either. (We lived in Whittier. If you find the fourplex on First Ave with the metal zebra in front, we owned the one just north of that.)

Leela, you're the one who knows what from your past work is valuable to your future work. Rip away!

Anne -- the words "snow in the mountains" just made me shiver! We had a few flakes yesterday, and I'm just not ready!! (but then, I'm never ready for snow!)

Leela -- I'm not an artist, but I like to think of myself as a writer. I'm in the process of sorting through my multitudinous drafts, bits of ideas, etc. One advantage to being a writer (in contrast to a visual artist) is that most stuff is on 8 1/2 x 11 paper, and thus easy to file. I'm sorting drafts and things into hanging files by topic or tentative book series, or whatever, and shredding what I don't keep. I don't want to throw it directly in the trash, I want to shred it first. I'm sure there wouldn't be anyone going through the trash hoping to find something they could send off to a publisher before I got my act in gear and sent it myself, but I just feel better about shredding my drafts before disposing of them. (I'm not disposing of all my extraneous drafts, though -- I want a clear record of where I've been in the long process of my writing projects!)

All that shredding has resulted in the fact that I've gibbled my shredder, and will be shopping for a new one forthwith.

leela -- i'm not a pro and haven't been to art school, and thus have much less stuff than you probably do. but i've got my 5 or 6 sketchpads crammed behind the couch. this works well with any furniture that of necessity must go against a wall. the container store sells an acid free archival quality under-bed box which would be perfect for this sort of thing.

i'm lucky to be a child of the digital age in both my writing and my art, so i've got most of my work saved on my hard drive, backed up in my iPod, and backed up again on disk. i often email things to myself if they're published to the web. i also have a very small file box of papers, mostly journalism i published in college, my senior thesis, etc.

my roommate, less digital and more professional than i am, has stacks of drafts on every available out-of-the-way surface, from the top shelves of all the closets to the tops of the cabinets in the butler's pantry. towers of 8.5x11 paper up to the ceiling.

Leela, I just recently cleared out the vast majority of 25+ years of artwork. Presentable art, quite a bit from high school, was posted to freecycle as 'free to good home. Would rather it be on your wall & enjoyed, than under my bed.' Went over quite well, all found great homes that probably couldn't afford original art otherwise. To me, that was a great side bonus.

A few pieces I was very particular about where they went - again, all found good homes, this was just more labor intensive. My personal faves stayed, even if they are still under the bed till I figure out where to put them.

Re: filing. I'm crazy with paper, and I'm constantly trying to tackle it, but what I've done recently which is very helpful is only keep utility/phone bills for 3 months (you probably only need the previous month's, if at all, but I used to keep them for a long time). When the next month's comes, I take the one from the back of the pile and shred it. I'm trying to go electronic with these--because it would be much easier to store electronically. I put my receipts on a spike on my bookshelf to check against statements when I get around to it--which is not all that frequently! I then keep only the receipts I need for tax or warranty purposes.

I keep bank statements for 3 years.

I keep tax records indefinitely, which isn't difficult as my tax returns are very basic.

I have files with my statements, bills, and other things I need frequently in a pandan file box on my bookcase. The ones I want to store are in a filebox in my closet.

My biggest paper problem are pieces of old writing, publications, and misc. pieces of things I find I have a sentimental value towards. I can't seem to get under 2 fileboxes despite my best efforts. Oh, and I didn't even count the smaller boxes of letters, publications, and college writing assignments--of which there are 3.

Wow, such great tips. Alex, I like the idea of having a shredder near the door so you can just get rid of the unnecessary things before you get too far into the house. And Christine (TOIDC), scanning receipts and paperwork...what an intriguing solution. Storage space is very limited in my apt (especially w/all my crap).

Update: I gave my fridge the beatdown it deserved last night, even scrubbing the top of it! I've done about half of my kitchen, but have also resolved to do the Cure to the best of my ability. No need for excess stress, right? It's supposed to be fun in my opinion.

With that said, should this area (click my name, please) become my landing strip? I share my apt, so I'm not sure if I should have my landing strip in my room instead. I would love to have some kind of console here, framed art, and then a place for mail and keys.

ATL, I actually would just add a coat hook or two and a place for keys/mail. I think that little nook is gorgeous, and may be the landing strip even if not designated as such.

Yes, on here far too much today....

that looks like a great spot for the landing strip, ATL. is the landing strip something you could share with the roommate? i mean, ultimately it's just a coatrack and a place for shoes, bags, mail, etc. i could see not wanting to leave your mail or maybe your bag around if you don't have a close relationship with your housemate, but i think the best place to leave your coat and boots and such would be near the entrance to your home.

Some of you had asked about what to do with tupperware...I have a pretty good solution that's worked for the last year+. I have 3 clear rubbermaid containers that are 1/2 the size of the flat but full size ones, lined up on the bottom shelf of a cupboard, because that's how they fit. When food containers/tupperware is washed, it goes into the clear containers, usually wherever they'll fit. When you need one, you slide out one of the containers until you find the size you want, and the lid is usually around there because they were washed at the same time, though it's easy to slide them out to find what you want if it's not right near the tupperware itself.

This way, I don't have to worry about organized the tupperware cupboard the way my mom always seemed to do about once a week, nor get DH to follow some system he just won't, and we can utilize an ackward cupboard then as well.

Will try and take a pic tonight and post tomorrow. I think the one I found on target.com in my name is the right size.

I mostly finished the kitchen this weekend. It was a huge job, and I still haven't cleaned out the fridge, the freezer, or the cleaning supplies cabinet. Sigh.

I realized this weekend that the paint job in the kitchen is contributing to the clutter - the wall colour is a bright blue and then I tried to do a retro-looking border in harvest gold - the colours don't go together or with the countertops or floors and it looks really hodgepodgey. So, I think it would be within the bounds of the Deep Treatment to paint the walls.

I think the entranceway should be easier; it's not as bad as the kitchen was. I hope.

Oh, and I know that was for "last week's" cure, but since I'm behind the times on this, I finally thought about that as being a good solution.

Anna - nice progress!

Everyone else...think I should be working instead of posting?

skywaykate; nice tip on the plastic containers. Mine are in two drawers and have been driving me batty for years. Keep on posting!

Ok, I'm almost done with week one just a couple of spots to vaccum. It took a little courage to post my pics, so be nice. But I encourage comments and love constructive critisizm (after all I'm a designer) so peek away.

Cure 'Tragedy'! After spending my weekend cleaning the kitchen, my neighbors caused a flood last night that coated my kitchen in water and falling plaster. Now there is a huge hole in my ceiling, a smaller hole and lots of water damage. I cleaned a lot of it up, but stopped when I realized that the repair was going to make another big mess and that I'll be cleaning the kitchen again this weekend. This is really throwing off my cure schedule! Am still going to tackle the 3 remaining lower cabinets tonight, but then am moving on to the landing strip. Will circle back to the kitchen when this is resolved. Ugh!

on tupperware. I use the gladware stuff, I always buy the same size and I always give food away in the ones other people give to me. I have a few ikea tupperware containers and I usually use those for longer term freezer type storage. My husband puts away the dishes, if I have odd pieces, my cupboard is sure to look crazy the next time I open it.

Oh Jacquelyn--that's awful. Fortunately, that never happened to me--I did flood my own kitchen once and caused damage in my own basement (and my flute molded...but that's another story!)

Perhaps things would have been worse if you hadn't cleaned? I think you are wise to just move on and do what you can about the other areas of your apartment.

And Anna--painting better be part of the deep treatment. I'm just now washing down my cabinet doors to repaint the white strip. True, I'm painting them white, again....but it counts!

I love your colour scheme--but if it isn't working, it isn't. That's a love;y arrangement above your stove. Hope your stuff doesn't get as grimey as mine does.

Time to go back to work....

I've been wanting to put two LACK shelves on top of each other, on castors, as my landing strip/bookcase for my books that are currently being stored in my closet, unaccessible. LACK shelf in question:
http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?topcategoryId=15561&catalogId=10103&storeId=12&productId=11317&langId=-1&chosenPartNumber=00045560

However, the lack shelves are as long as my landing strip area, and if I wanted to have a rug to put shoes on, and to hang a coat longer than waist length, it wouldn't work there. So I'm thinking an EXPEDIT instead (and not on castors, not a grown up type of thing, will use regular SS-like legs)...what do you think?

Link to EXPEDIT, I'm assuming brown-black? Link in my name to current pic of landing area in question (and I'd place it horizontally). http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?topcategoryId=15561&catalogId=10103&storeId=12&productId=11499&langId=-1&chosenPartNumber=40047675

That would make my neutrals in the room include dark brown...is that ok?? I don't have a ton of options (as in places to put my landing strip), I could get a smaller table, maybe glass, instead, but I also think the EXPEDIT would be a practical piece to having the future, especially if we have kids....

Jacquelyn, that's horrendous! I hope you can recover the kitchen in time to stay on track. If not, maybe you could forgo another area in your place that doesn't need as much help in order to spend another week fixing the kitchen.

Anna, I actually like the colors in your kitchen, but if they bother you then you should definitely paint them. Nice job cleaning up!

ATL, I love your "landing strip" area! That shoe rack from IKEA is ubiquitous. I think I am going to paint mine. Isn't IKEA great for quick, cheap storage? The San Diego IKEA is mere minutes from my house!

Skywaykate--I think the expedit in black brown will solve your problems admirably. A couple of questions though--do you want to put it up on some sort of legs--or leave it flat on the floor?

#2. It's quite a chunky sort of modern feeling piece--will that work for you (and it might, just want to check)

#3 it can be difficult to find a way to have "closed" storage should you want to switch to that. Did't I just see something on this site with expedit (the big one) and baskets? It looked great.

Skywaykate--You have made me start thinking vertical and not just horizontal for the landing strip. Hmmm...

A progress update:

Second coat on 1/2 of living room floor done. Still have to do two coats on the secong half.

Got the trim of 3 of 5 kitchen cabinet fronts washed, sanded and painted. DH is sanding the trim on the other two. (Bless him.)

I recovered the seats of my four "dining" room chairs with the tablecloth fabric I got yesterday--and they look hideous. As a result of this AND Clara Vu's apartment above, I've decided that come Spring, I will be re-painting the red dining room and the brown living room a soothing shade of yellow. Sort of like what I have in my kitchen now. I love my kitchen decor--even though physically it drives us nuts.

I feel quite at peace now. Thanks to the cure.

Oh my, Jacquelyn! What a mess! What a pain!

Yes, I'd definitely try to keep going with other areas that are more within your control. The kitchen now has its own timetable, and it's not like you're going to leave the holes there.

Skywaykate, dark brown would look nicely sculptural with your dark woodwork. Brown/black will look better than white -- white-white-WHITE laminate fights off-white walls, especially if the shelf is open-backed.

IKEA is such a lifesaver for affordable storage that is clean-lined and visually quiet!

hey you guys -

I need some bookends! Any online resources? Preferably mod/minimalist, a shot of color (esp. robin's egg blue or brown)...Ikea's are totally not what I'm looking for.

i think staples and office depot sell the classic black metal library-style bookends. retro, minimalist, and utilitarian.

http://tinyurl.com/yjrwkt

they have a few more similarly minimalist styles if that's not really what you're looking for.

unfortunately, i've never seen them in colors other than black. but if they're relatively low-use, you might be able to spray paint them if you go about it the right way.

Amy in Richmond, the Container Store has a bookend in plain, chocolate leather (well, "leather-like"), very simple:

http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?PRODID=74349&CATID=74531&searchId=5953883&itemIndex=5

The IKEA trip is officially confirmed! Now it's jsut down to whether I can restrain myself to curtains and light fixtures or if I delve into office organization (note, none of the pictures show the disaster that is my desk, or the full wackiness of the computer area by the piano) and other sundries. Hopefully the fact that the trip is scheduled to occur directly after the arrival of a paycheck will be canceled out by the fact that the trip will also be occurring in a car with two other adults, a baby and two large German Shepherds (therefore, I can't buy any furniture).

The IKEA trip is officially confirmed! Now it's just down to whether I can restrain myself to curtains and light fixtures or if I delve into office organization (note, none of the pictures show the disaster that is my desk, or the full wackiness of the computer area by the piano) and other sundries. Hopefully the fact that the trip is scheduled to occur directly after the arrival of a paycheck will be canceled out by the fact that the trip will also be occurring in a car with two other adults, a baby and two large German Shepherds (therefore, I can't buy any furniture).

I just came to see if anyone had had anything to say about my photos--and you did, you did! (Insert Sally Field's Oscar winning goofy moment here)

Thank you so much. It's a great motivator. I have to go and meticulously wash the other half of the living room floor and then put down the varnish (by hand, with a two inch foam brush)and I'm bushed.

So thanks for your kindness-it makes a difference!

...just wondering what it would be like to have access to the Container Store, or Ikea, or DWR, or West Elm, or places like that... (I'm not an online orderer, though I like to browse in online "stores") We have some fairly decent stores, but not the ones people on AT are often quoting or suggesting. Hmmm...think I'll go do some internet browsing and daydreaming...

Anne, how much do you suppose you could strap on to the top of the car? (lol)

I have finally managed to get plans onto the flckr site - before and after. I haven't managed to borrow the office camera to take photos of the apartment - and I will - but in the meantime, any comments and thoughts about the proposed changes are welcome!! I really would love some feedback.

I am still adding to my style tray - I managed to get a couple thoughts in tonight.
It's really hard to keep up with all of this - plus the work on the apartment - plus my job. But it needs to be done.

Oh Beth, don't give me ideas! I don't really need that much stuff, I need to keep decluttering. All I really need is curtains, they're taunting me, I swear! Who puts in these 36" high windows everywhere?! I will not put eight foot curtains up to cover a three foot window!

Alana in Canada -- I've just been playing "put the comment on Alana's pictures" over in Flickr. What fun! You have done an incredible job on that floor, and on the over-the-stove shelves. How are your arm muscles? The thought of you doing the rest of the floor with your little sponge brush makes me feel tired, and also makes me admire you. Well done!

Now I'm gonna go play in someone else's Flickrs! Or maybe I should rearrange some books in my entryway bookcase first, and play in Flickr later. That would be a good thing to do.

Thanks smallcityBeth--I've got about 3/4's of 1/2 the floor washed, taking a wee break while I switch out the water. I have wax splotches and paint dots...thus the meticulous washing....

Yes, I would love acess to those stores, too. I enquired about a year ago--and even though the Pottery Barn HAS a store in Toronto--they won't ship in Canada! Can you believe that? The Container store won't either--so drool all you want, but it ain't gonna happen (sigh).

I'll check out your comments on my next break.

i am so jealous of you guys with your updated photos... i might have to take some this weekend.

though i won't be able to get into my true Donna Reed glory until i move the desk into my bedroom. which is still a relatively murky concept as it involves some kind of furniture purchase.

Hah! While picking up a white extension cord at Long's for the office, I finally found some respectable magazine files that weren't overpriced or too tall to fit my shelf. This feels like a triumph! However, my velcro fasteners for corralling cords turned out to be the wrong kind. But I'm 2 for 3 here so I won't complain. I feel so productive!

Well, thanks to all the comments, that break lasted longer than it should have!

Thank you all.

OK--all washed, now to the verathane.

Hooray! 1st coat done! And I just realised I can't get into the room to turn off any of the lights--and the curtains are wide open.

Oh well, I'll plan better next time. I was reading--I think it was deWolfe--and it was recommended that one varnish one's wood floors every two years or so. Ugh.

Thanks for cheering me on.

Tomorrow is clean up and tidy day--my m-i-l is coming from a long long way away day after tomorrow--that's why the big push. I'm not usually QUITE so masochistic.

Oh yeah--and coat #2. yay.

If we are supposed to varnish every two years or so, it explains why 4 1/2 years since the last touch up, mine look so beaten.

Any other hints/info on what I need to do to these floors?

Thanks!

Jacquelyn - oh! oh no!!! Good luck with all of that, I'm sure it's not fun and won't be for a while...

Anne- have a great time at Ikea!!

Alana- you're my hero with your floor, I don't know if I could do that, and I probably should, esp. since it's been 3 years since we moved in. Good questions too, I think the chunky modern will work with my overall scheme, I like modern with a touch of 40's (I think that's the best timeframe to describe it).

Wende-I was thinking that too about the color question, so thanks for the confirmation.

I started tackling the kitchen last night, really got into it, but then forgot to bring my camera to work to load the in-progress pics up. Grrr.

I re-measured my landing strip and it would be 10" bigger than the EXPEDIT turned on its side, long-ways, so I wouldn't really be able to have room to be able to hang coats, except if I moved my current message board away from the door, which I think I'll do. (You can't see the message board in the pics--will take a better picture tonight.)

I do have that beautifully well organized closet for coats just a step around the corner from the landing strip, but I know that DH doesn't like to bother with it most of the time, so if there's a place to just really quickly throw it up, I think I can manage that. I already have a great wall-mount 3 hook set that I can put up.

So then I was thinking that one of my pieces of large art (on the tiles) could look really nice right above the bookcase/landing strip. And if I put the bookcase on legs, I'll have enough room to slide shoes under it.

And if we're entertaining, it can either serve as a sideboard, or we can easily slide it into the bedroom if we need the room to be able to open up the table all the way.

As for the open storage, I'm thinking two pretty bowls (Mr & Mrs) for our catch alls on top, and some baskets below if we feel we need them.

It feels so wonderful to be purging the odds and ends from the kitchen!

I'm going to try to get some pictures uploaded of the "before" tomorrow or friday. I've already selected my colors for the office and painted three walls (a light gray). There will also be a red accent wall, which I'm gonna try to paint on Friday. Everything in the office is going to be black (with tints) and white and red.

I'm also going to ikea this weekend to scope out shelving/storage furniture, both for the office and the art studio.

Well, I got the fridge and freezer cleaned out. I didn't take before pics, but let's just put it this way: 3 kitchen trash bags full of stuff went to the dumpster. Yeah, it really needed a cleaning.

Now on to the landing strip, which is a little complicated. I'm moving most of it into my old bedroom (where my clothes still live) to keep shoes and jackets and coats and scarves, and only plan to have a small shelf and maybe a hook for one coat by the door. There's so little area there that anything more just won't work. So I have to clear out space to put up a landing strip, install hooks and shoe racks...this is going to be a bigger one than the kitchen.

Skywaykate--have you though about a hall tree for dh coat? I'm not sure 10" would be enough room, though. Sounds like you've gotr a great plan.

Tara--I just used minwax "polyshades" it's verathane and a stain in one step. You really do have to do your whole floor this way, though as it won't blend into an existing finish--assuming there is any left on the floor.


PREP:

Wash the floor with TSP (trisodium phosphate available in the paint section of the big box store) and really hot hot water. (Wear rubber gloves.) I use two pails when I'm washing this way--one with the tsp and one plain water. I use the second to rinse so I don't have to change the water as often. (Don Aslett recommends this method in case anyone wants to know more about it.)

Then, over worn and dirty spots, sand very lightly always in the direction of the wood grain. We used a fine wire britstle brush to get at spots when we needed to go deep. It looks like a biggish toothbrush.

Wipe the dust away--preferably with a tack cloth but a wet rag will do too.

GETTING DOWN TO IT:
There's a ceratian rythym with the brush: you want to keep all your edges wet and "feather" each area into the next. 2 coats is advisable as you will inevitable miss spots with the first coat.

As well use REALLY strong light--it also helps if you can call someone in to get their eyeball right down to eye level and check for missed spots before they are out of reach.

Wear comfy "sweat suit" type clothes and even knitted slippers so you don't leave any marks.

I hope that helps. There's lots of info out there on how to do this.

You might want to look into the varathane kit:

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/ny/paints-stains-finishes/verathane-renewal-wood-floorrestoring-system-013395

It retails at $100 here--too much for just a small area. (Though now we want to do the hallway and my daughters toom too.)

Good luck with your floors. Wood flooring is such a pleasure--it's almost primal--why have something that causes you pain, when with a little (ok, a lot) of effort you can have joy?

Sorry to wax poetic, on you, must be the fumes.

No problem, and thanks much for the information. I really enjoy the wood floors, but I'd rather have them look nice than 'lightly sanded' which is how they look now. I get to redo about 500-800sq.ft. of wood flooring, which is the main areas of the house. The bedrooms (thank heavens) look fine.

This may wait until summer, when other things will make it less complicated. I plan on painting everything over the winter, regardless.

Now, the joys of doing all this with felines....

Tara--one thing--when you are painting, tape your drop cloth to your baseboards! The most frustrating thing was scraping off tiny flecks of paint from the floor. Hot water to soften, a scrapper to pick them off--and then a lot of trying to get them up--even when they were loose they seemed to have static cling.

Once your refrigerators are tidy inside, may I strongly advise giving them a toss-and-wipe whenever you do a significant grocery run? I'd completely failed to notice that ours looked like something out of CSI, due to someone splattering a red drink all over the door racks.

Having caved and bought the least offensive autumn-colored chrysanthemum bouquet while at Fry's for loss-leader chicken parts, I'm trying to gather my resolve to arrange them.

Now I'm so inspired that I'm sorting through crap instead of doing my actual work...I need to get some drawing done before I can go back to the purging. I need to take some photos and post them, as soon as I can find the right wire.

I'm definitely going to get rid of at least 90% of my sketchbooks. The ones from my school days are more interesting than my professional sketchbooks, which are mostly very dry roughs of commerical work. Not something I'd look at again. Thanks for the affirmation - I think I just needed "permission" to toss sketchbooks!

That said, in my parents' attic there are boxes of my high school and college journals and - ugh - letters from old boyfriends and now-disappeared friends. I have been meaning to burn them for years. Now I've resolved to do so, as soon as it gets cold and my folks start building fires again. No one needs to read my bad 11-grade poetry. The world will be a better place without it.

I refinished the wood floors in 2 rooms of our rental (with the blessing of the landlord). I did all the work myself. I did one room at a time; the first room I did last fall and the second I unintentionally started during one of the hottest weeks of the past summer. It was really rewarding work, but physically exhasting. Not to mention, the fumes from the stain are unbelievable. I opened every functional window and door in the place and kept them open for days. It wasn't too expensive; the most costly part was renting the sander. I love having wood floors! So much better than carpeting--I think my allergies have improved because of this.

And Tara, I have 4 cats and had to keep them away from the floors while they dried. It was a bit of a challenge that involved plastic sheeting and masking tape, as well as stratigically placed furniture. But it can be done, even with my stuborn, spoiled fur-brats!

Wende- sometimes my english is not quite as good as I would like to believe it is. What is loss-leader chicken parts?

Our floors were refinished before we moved in here, 4 1/2 years ago. There is no longer shine in the heavy-traffic areas unless I put down polish every couple of weeks (rarely happens). I'm thinking I can 'touch up' the finish without having to resand and the rest? Am I right? I can put down a fresh coat of polish-y stuff (varnish?) that will be good for a few years?

I will get pictures up ASAP, btw. Still need to get film developed and/or give in & buy a digital camera.

Francesca -- It's not your English that's the problem. It's that I used two colloquialisms in a row to describe something found only in suburban America. Some of the New Yorkers are probably scratching their heads and wondering what I meant.

Chicken parts = The boneless, skinless chicken pieces that supermarkets sell to people who don't want to roast a whole chicken. (It's too hot here to use the oven!)

Loss-leader = The supermarket dramatically lowered the price to lure shoppers in, hoping we'd buy more expensive items, too. So I got a lot of chicken breasts, cheap, and put most of them in the freezer.

It is so weird having to relearn how to shop like a suburban American, with sales and coupons and planning ahead to stock up. In San Francisco, I just went to the corner store every day.

People looking for a cheap laugh can now see photos of my flower arranging with the ghastly mums. There's also a cat photo as a bonus.

Tara - you can buy disposable cameras that will get you a CD when you develop the pics (Kodak makes one), so it would then be super easy to load them to flikr. Unless you want an excuse to buy a digital camera, then by all means, go right ahead!

Don't expect too much discouragement in buying things from me these days...I'm trying to find a way/an excuse to get a smart phone/PDA myself...

I have a good 35mm camera. The delay is in getting them developed; I believe with any such purchase I can get the pics either of the 'net or on a cd to get the digital images.

Digital camera=instant gratification

Probably will get one this weekend, if I have the money left.

Tara,
I'm still in the traditional 35mm camera mode too. I have too many other tech gadgets I need to buy (new cell phone, laptop, MP3, ect). My little camera works great - but I'm glad to know I'm not the only one living in the dark ages. (even my mom has a digital camera!)
Thank goodness they develop film on CDs. Of course, I COULD borrow the digital from the office ...
Just bought a roll of film at lunch to take photos in the morning.

Well, my curing this week has been mostly theoretical. I slipped on the front stoop monday and twisted my ankle.

On the plus side, I did spend 5 minutes sitting in
place I don't normally spend time in. However, since I wasn't really reflecting on how the pavement introduces visitors to my home, but thinking "I wonder if I can stand up?," I'm not sure it really counts.

This weekend, I hope to goad the husband into helping me re-arrange the living room and finish all the kitchen projects I got half-started last week.

oww...i have my own cure-related injury now as well...I was hanging my new curtains and fell backwards out of the chair. I guess I punctured my hand with the screwdriver (the side, thank goodness). I don't need stitches, but I'm sore and feeling silly now. But at least the curtain is done and it looks nice. I'm going to take it with me to the BF's mama's house to use her sewing machine and replace/reinforce the handstitching I did, but for now it's good.

Keep up the hard work and let's keep those injuries to a minimum!

Hmm, this is sounding like a theme. I think I have a stress fracture in my foot (not from purging, though!). It's making purging a bit difficult!

Oh Anna and Amy!
I hope you both heal soon.

I didn't actually wash my fridge, but I did take the science experiments out and start my turkey soup stock. I'll turn it into soup to welcome the m-i-l and b-i-l tomorrow night for supper.

Stalled.

Waiting for glue to dry, paint to dry and the varnish of the second coat on the floor to dry.

I'm not digitial either--that's why you see before AND afters (generally) at the same time! I'm trying to remember to take pics as I go...just that getting through 24 when it's film takes longer than it does with digital too.

Wende--thought of you today while I was in Home Depot--yup, the had orchids. They were $35 Cdn--which isn't much over $25 US. (I think.)

Hey, Alana, you deserve some stall-itude! You've been working pretty hard the last little while. I was zooming through Hallmark this evening, and saw a Christmas ornament that's a little ladder, paint can, etc., and says "Home Renovator of the Year". I thought of you!

I'm not digital either -- I'm happy being a photography luddite. It's just a bit more inconvenient when it comes to posting before and afters. I think I'll get a 12 exposure film this weekend, so I can post a progress report without having to snap my way through 24. Not that my progress is stunning, but I wanna show that there has been progress. (Last night I spent some time devising a draft stopper that looks a bit better than the stop-gap measure I was using -- an old crumpled sheet. I've seen oodles of them in Linen 'N' Things, but they're filled with insulation, which, with my allergies, I wasn't keen on. Besides, I like to do things "my way". The new draft stopper started its life as a 3/4 inch thick wooden dowel, which I wrapped with some "fat quarter" quilting fabric that I decided I was never going to use. It's not elegant, but it works.)

Hope everyone with injuries recovers quickly, and hope everyone else avoids injury. It's our apartments we're supposed to be curing, we're not supposed to need curing ourselves! :)

I'm like this, though, smallcitybeth. I get going on something and it's non-stop, 24 hour go-go-go. I'm so jazzed up. I was thinking about how WHITE my photo boxes look in my red dining room--I bought them white so they'd be easier to cover, actually. Never intended to leave them white.

Tried fabric a few years ago--beautiful quilting cotton--and $30 and 3 boxes later I realised this wasn't going to work.

Well, I had a brainstorm. Packing paper! I checked it out in Staples today and didn't like it--too thin, the colour off. And then, and then, only a few feet away, (and I quote) "#60 quilted kraft paper" One 12 inche by 30 foot roll cost $5.94. It'll do 20 of my boxes (without lids). I have only 11 to cover--so I think I'm good.

I'm on a roll--and I have to stop late tomorrow afternoon for four days. Hope I can get the momentum back.

And congrats on the draft stopper scb! Will you take a pic and show us?

the oppoponax's first law of clutter physics:

every purge is immeiately followed by an equal and opposite spending spree.

blew more cash than i care to admit to on winter clothes, a new pair of kicks, and a groovy fabric-covered chinese lantern. granted, lighting in on my list of improvements and hey, it's getting colder and i always need winter things. but bleh. what am i gonna do with all this stuff?

"Quilted kraft paper" sounds like something I'll have to find a project for! And I was in Staples tonight, but I was focussing on shredders (didn't buy one, the model I thought I wanted turned out to be very very small. I'd be dumping out the basket every two minutes (Mailmate Shredder, looks good on the web, is really small in person). I shall have to go back to Staples and check out the paper.

Yes, I'll post a picture of my draft stopper. (I'll include it in the pictures I take this weekend, all being well) Pictures both hanging up neatly, and in front of the door, doing its work. I put a long wire on one end, which serves a double purpose. I can hang it up when not in use, and when I'm using it, I can hook the wire over the doorknob -- no stooping down to pick the thing up, and I'm hoping it might keep the thing in place when I'm actually using the door. That theory has not yet been tested.

Take a deep breath, opo. It's gonna be OK. You will find a home for these things, honest. You've heard of the two out one in rule, right? Maybe that'll help.

And I think it's great you bought a few things you needed.

Oh and SCB: 1st dumb mistake--don't use GLUE! Repeat after me: "a gluestick is a dry adhesive and doesn't make paper buckle."

2nd dumb mistake: too hard to explain...but the second box will be much better!

OH and scb--you are NOT allowed to buy any Kraft paper until you have a project for it. It's not going anywhere!

Guess I'm jumping in at the right time. I'm stuck on picking a color for my hallway. i have a bunch of photos, but not sure how to upload them to the site.

Since it seems no one else is awake right now--I'll tell you--you have to go to Flickr and "open" a free account. Upload yur pictures there and then "tag" them with apartmenttherapycure.

If you want to send them to the group:

Go to "Groups" search for apartment therapy, join, then go back to your photos and "Organize" them into a batch file. Then click the little tag at the top that says send to group.

I hope you can figure it out from these instructions!

Here's a link to flickr: http://www.flickr.com/

I hope that works.

Anna & Amy! Hope you are on the mend and healing quickly. Leela...what have you been stressing about so much that it fractured your foot??? 8-)

I sprained my ankle on Saturday night, and no, I wasn't drunk, even though it happened at about 12:30 am. I wasn't even tipsy, just happy because I was relaxed, had actually gone out, and just spent 2 fun hours with the DH who has been crazy busy as of late.

The new Walker Art Center (Minneapolis's modern art museum) addition has these funky circles of grass within the concrete and I stepped in one in my lollygagging home that evening, and apparently it had sunk down, because my ankle went with it too! (Link in my name shows the addition and the circles--great addition, glad to live three blocks away--but stay away from absent-mindedly walking across the circles!)

I can't wait until I can post a picture of my girlfriend's landing strip, it's genius! I was at her house for a meeting and I spend the whole time cooing about it--and telling them about AT!

She has a condo that's basic, and when you walk in, there's really no hallway, closet to the right along the dining area wall, dining area to the right, walkway to the rest of the apartment straight ahead, and openning to the kitchen on the left. But there's a wall just past the entry to the kitchen where she hung two shelves (like LACK, but from Menard's, an HD-like store), to serve as her landing strip.

The lower shelf has two baskets that hold her photos from a recent LONG trip to europe which she would, of course, want to keep accessible, and then the top is for placing mail, keys, etc.

She said that she didn't want to invest in a piece of furniture that might not fit in another place (though I told her that was unlikely), so she just did this, for a grand total of $40.

The other thing I love that she's done with her place, besides the color in the kitchen and the great furniture pieces she's bought, is that for her backsplash, she put up white-painted punched tin. I can tell anyone who'd want to know more about that if they want to know how to do it, but I just love it!

Nothing cure-wise to speak of otherwise, so I'd better get to work!

I've been rehearsing for 2 different dance performances (one is over now, the other is coming up) and teaching 2 bellydance classes a week, and working out a lot. I don't think purging broke me!

I love reading about everyone's discoveries and discards. I must go look at peoples' photos.

Ugh. I've been on an emotional rollercoaster for the past 36 hours. A very dear friend dropped a big bomb (non-health related, fortunately) on me Tuesday night, and I ended up taking off from work yesterday to process it and be with him. But I actually got a lot done on my apartment because working on it took my mind off of things. lol

So here's what I've been up to:

Kitchen - Still haven't been able to find a curtain that I like for the window, but I've decided to take a break and put my efforts into the landing strip.

Landing Strip - The landing strip is going to be a convenient little pocket of space to the side of my front door that currently houses the Outbox. I really will clear it out in the next few days! I'll also be cleaning out the living room closet, since that's where coats and sundry winter items go now.

I feel kind of bad about just saying what I'm doing and not really contributing to the group, but I'm just too spent for that right now. I'll do better in the future!

Alana -- Everyone has orchids, except in Phoenix! It's probably time to get my brain around desert gardening and start getting excited about succulents.

You guys are scaring me, breaking out in twisted, scraped, and broken parts! Stay off the wounded bits and read decorating books, y'all.

It's chicken tonight, oh yes, oh yes. Cheap, cheap chicken. Living in a sprawl city has at least forced me to take up cooking most nights.

Wende - you may have already explained, but why did you move from your beautiful spot on SF to sprawl city where they don't have orchids??

Cathyin, don't feel bad. I've been chatting but not posting what I've done, myself. So, here is what I've achieved so far:

Kitchen - pantry cleaned. Counters staying cleaner in general. Cabinet handles have been cleaned (were black, found brass underneath the grime) and the ones that cleaned to silver instead of brass were spray-painted brass. Acceptable match.

Living room - New floor plan designed. Catch-all basket nearly empty, coffee table staying clean, partial redesign already done. Tenative color choice for largest wall made; will start getting paint supplies this weekend including sample of the color so I can paint a test swatch on the wall.

I will also be completing other simple repairs - main thing I need for this is a bottle of that expanding foam insulation. This will fix a lot of little annoying things!

Study (between two rooms above) - huge amounts of backup disks transfered to computer & coallated & weeded, paper-drifts under control, office supplies streamlined.

I have made progess. I just can't see it yet lol.

Ugh .... when do you all have time to do all this work mid-week? I can handle one small cleaning task a night AT BEST. Generally I'm busy enough tackling the dailing clutter.

My weekly chores are focused on running errands like replacing batteries in ALL my remotes since they all died AT THE SAME TIME, film for the camera (and now a new battery for same since it died too). But varnishing the floors or cleaning the entire kitchen - DAMN!!! --- you all are inspirational - and keep me humble.

This weekend I start skim coating the walls prior to painting. It is a messy messy job that must be done. I am hoping to get all four coats up and sanded over the weekend - ha ha.

Skywaykate -- The move, the move! Over a year ago, the husband had taken a really fabulous IT job that we believed would be based in San Francisco, with occasional trips to Phoenix. It turned out that, to be effective, he needed to be in Phoenix virtually full-time. He loves the job; his employer is great; it's a good career move. Okay, commuter marriage, we can do that.

But then our neighborhood in SF started to decline (shootings right where I walked home from parking the car after teaching night school!). My career was not progressing as I wanted it to. And my analysis of how the bursting of the housing bubble in Northern California would play out -- well, I'm predicting an economic disaster that would wreak havoc with the job market. Phoenix's economy is also vulnerable to dropping housing prices, but its sources of growth are more diversified -- Arizona is one of the few states that has seen job growth from industries other than real estate and healthcare.

What's the Bob Dylan line about how you don't have to be a weatherman to know which way the wind blows?

Despite my grousing about the challenges of a new climate and a new decorating scheme, I love Phoenix. We have a relatively urban lifestyle, as people count it around here. We have a higher standard of living; it's quiet; cool stuff is affordable; it's WARM; people are friendly.

Once we've taken the GMAT in a couple weeks, I need to cut loose some time to start documenting the arts and design scene here, as there's a lot, and I'd like to get out and chatter with people.

Alex - never fear, I'm totally with you. Because I didn't do it over the weekend, I pushed myself to start the kitchen purge on Tuesday. I'm already a week behind (I thought it was going to be a Wednesday starts the new week, not Monday, therefore I'd only be a couple of days behind), and will be more before I finish the kitchen because I don't get a lot done during the week, either.

I've posted up 4 new before pics...2 of spots in my kitchen, and 2 of my desk at work. I've decided to 'Cure' that, too! I was going to take during pics for that just now, but the batteries are dead on my camera. D'oh!

And whomever it was that told me that thinking about my landing strip would help propell me through the grudge work of the kitchen, so true! Purging and reorganizing does feel good in it's own right, though.

on shredders: if you buy one, be sure to check the specs to see if it can be on longer than two minutes.

I bought a cheepie a while back and couldn't figure out why the moter keeps overheating on me. I turned it upside down and it says: 2 minutes on, 4 minutes off. So now I have to shred on commercial breaks. And 5 pages at a time, I'm lucky if I get two.

When it comes to shredders. Buy more, expect less.

Alex, I agree! I work all week and that's part of why I'm behind. That and I can't seem to get my husband to pick up his side of the bedroom. We had a talk, back when I started this in august, made it part way through the first week and the bedroom floor was never cleared. Then I started doing other things and forgot the cure because I couldn't get past week one.

He wants some spot in the house that is "his", something personal that no one else enters, cleans, or goes through. I don't feel like the bedroom is the right spot for that, but as for now that's what it is. I'd like to make half of the office that space, but I feel like I can't do that till I get through with the cure.

At this point, I feel like I need to just move on and forget that there's a second half to the bedroom, although I feel like I havn't really finished week one.

Any suggestions for me?

ps. I plan on taking more pics tonight, the ones on my flickr are the pre-cure pics.

Jessi,

Your bedroom has a his half and her half? - you have electic tape running down the center of the room? ... but probably best if I stay away from that one.

I think (and this is only my opinion for how little it is worth) the bedroom in a sacred space for the marriage. Keeping it clean and making it a lovely place is an expression of the relationship and a recognition of the relationships importance. Maybe if you try that line on him, on a good day, it might get him to think .... maybe.

I rather my boyfriend dismantle a bicycle on the kitchen counter - grease and all - that make a mess of the bedroom - not that I would love the grease, but I've been there (bless his heart), blinked, picked up the phone and ordered pizza.

Honestly, I would have picked up his stuff by now with the broken window theory in mind. And..... I'm not married ... so what do I know. Jeez, don't listen to me. Ignore all thoughts above. Every relationship is a series of compromises - this is yours. Be thankful that you can close the door when company comes ...... and hopefully vacuum/clean underneath once a week - ick.

The Cure has also been creeping into my workplace as well. I've been staring at my desk, trying to think of ways to move furniture around in my [shared] office. Good times.

I vow that this weekend is going to be highly productive for me. I WILL get back on track!

Thanks for all the positive thoughts on my ceiling. In the end I finally finished cleaning the kitchen and the dining room -- washed the walls, light covers and all. I'm sure there will be a mess to clean up after the ceiling is fixed, but I needed to finish and move on. Had a big outbox pile that I emptied -- I want to put up a hidden camera to watch who takes what. Right after I put the outbox in front of my building my SO saw two guys from a contruction site down the block come by and they took this very girly decoupage box that my mom gave me because it was cute -- which it was, but it served no practical purpose in the apt. and it had to go.
Did all but the vacuuming of my landing strip last night, it got late -- will finish tonight. I was able to do some catch-up with this because miracle of miracles I actually had a landing strip -- little drawered stand with space to tuck extra keys, pads and pens for the dog walker...bowl on top for keys to go into in the evening, doggie shaped hook on back of door for leash...I already read and recycle mail every night -- only way I have found to stay on top of it and am same with email inbox, otherwise I'd lose, forget, be late etc.

Discussion of husbands and SOs leads me to bring up that mine wants to start a support group for mates of people doing the cure -- not kidding. Named it AT-anon.

Computer at home is/was cranky last night, so I didn't get to the photos and flickr project yet, but will. Alana -- thank you so much for the how-to lesson, I know it is going to be a big help!

The his/hers half was not discussed, it just sorta happened, we have two closets in our room and the bed is in the middle. For a while it was just a mattress, and last year when I was on a business trip to LA, he drove up to seattle to buy the frame, and bless his heart, assembled it as a surprise despite the ikea directions.

He really is a sweet guy. The "personal space" thing stems from someone "cleaning" his room for him as a child. My dad talks about how his mom did that to him and so he always left our rooms alone, so I guess I don't relate too well.

Technically if there's halves in the room, his dresser is on my side, but personally, I'd rather the bed be turned at a 45 degree angle (I think he might be afraid that it might fall apart if we try to move it). It's not like we havn't talked about it, we just havn't come up with a solution that works yet.

Also, I do technically pick up a few things from the space: Dishes and clothes. So it's mostly papers, books, weights, computer disks and other random things.

So funny, two posts in a row that are about exactly what I'm experiencing...

Alex -

Thanks so much for you post! I was thinking of posting the same question. It'd good to know there are other people here without superhuman productivity. Yesterday my sum total accomplishment was switching the dresser and the bench in my front hall.

Jessi -

I just had that "I need some space that's mine" discussion with my husband last night. Lucky for me he's a bit more flexible - he's willing to wait until "someday" when we have a big enough house for him to have a whole room!

Can you "cure" your office, then make half the office his space, then go back to your bedroom? We don't have an office - just a corner of the livingroom - but I've tried (with only moderate success) to make that mostly his space. And included a lot of closed storage!

Clara

i can TOTALLY relate to wanting a little space of one's own while in a one-bedroom live-in situation. i once lived with someone i was dating and the hardest part was not having any part of the apartment that was just mine, just the way i liked it. if i ever did that again, i would need to have a little nook somewhere that was for me.

Although it is not always a luxary we can afford, I am a firm believer in the "a door for everyone" rule -- and usually the door translates into a space as well, but definitely a door. Because you can close it and get some privacy and give it a good slam when needed. Just my two cents!

Ahhh .... to have a room of one's one. Yes, yes yes ..... very important - don't know how all of you manage -- particularly those of you in studios. Extra special relationship merit badges to each of you!!! I, for one, am in awe.

101 reasons why I am not yet married.

Alex--since you are on here today--I want to make sure to thank you for your taking the time to comment on my photos of my space. I replied there--you don't have to look, just wanted you to know how much I appreciate it.

About time: I don't know how you women do as much as you do, working. Every little bit is an accomplishment. And it might help you all to know that I'm lucky to be a sahm. (That's why the severe budget--but I'd rather that than work outside this home anyday!)

I'm at -3 hours and counting.....everything just about put back together.

Keep truckin'.

Calcifer,

This was my day yesterday .......

I finally found someone that sells the little bitty battery for my DVD remote -- a small bit of metal the shape and size of a communion wafer. I went to three stores to find it.

I got home to realize that I could not find the little piece of plastic that holds the little battery in place. Hmm ... no DVD remote. Okay ... won't play the DVD that just came in from Netflix. FINE

Next - trying to get something done, I put the new film I purchased at lunch in the camera to take photos for the Flckr site. I then discover the battery has run out on that too!!

At which point, I poured myself a chilly martini and decided to take the rest of the day off.
Perhaps there is a magnet in my apartment.

The only thing I seem to have accomplished in the past 24 hours is to offer opinions on other peoples photos on Flickr.

Jacquelyn -- I just don't know what to say except I am so in awe that you haven't thrown in the towel. You are definately an inspiration.

Dumb question which I am sure has been addressed before: how do I upload a pic to the AT flickr pool? It's on my flickr homepage but I can't tell how to move it.

Hi, Leela!

First of all, it's good to tag your pics with apartmenttherapycure. Then you need to join the apartment therapy group, and do what I've copied from someone's response to someone else in the "Whoo-hoo" post thread. There's a link to the Apartment Therapy Flickr group at the beginning of the aforementioned "Whoo-hoo" post. Here's what was said to Anne about how to get one's pics into the Group (I'm not sure I did it right myself, but here goes...)

The person replying to Anne said "I figured out you need to go to Your Pictures and click on each picture so you can click on the Send to Group icon. First you have to join the Apartment Therapy Cure group. Then when you click on the Send to Group icon, it will appear in the pulldown menu."

Good luck! Hope this helps!

Bella -- if you happen to be on here, I just left a comment about your question about dealing with paperwork on the Week One-Long Weekend thread (the Whoo-Hoo post).

OK! Done! Thanks so much! My pics upload under the name "flimflamdamn" (long story). One pic uploaded so far, of my outbox. It's a hot mess! More pics soon as I do some more gimping around.

The red velvet chairs belonged to my grandparents, and to me they're very Eastern European Jewish immigrant decor. Not at all my style, any more than plastic slipcovers and fake fruit (two other ubiquitous style choices on that side of the family). In her house, no one ever sat on them. They sat stiffly and perfectly next to the couch, where everyone sat, and across from Papa's recliner. They died, I was given the chairs, and they sat stiffly in my house for the past year and a half. I painted the woodwork pink in a desperate bid to make them interesting, but I just don't like "traditional"-looking stuff like this - not even sure what to call it, but it's fussy and makes my chest feel tight. We never ever sat in them and guests were afraid of them.

Old perfume, boots I never wore, a sake set when I HATE sake...how did I end up with all this crap? I replaced the red chairs with one pretty butterfly chair, which my cat immediately showered her approval on by passing out in and shedding all over it.

I heartily second the thought that every resident of a home needs a space - however tiny - that is solely theirs.

I've got a variation of the his-side/her-side dilemma. Our front room serves as living room,library, office and dining room. But only I have a desk.

When he's home, my husband works at the "dining room" table. At dinner time the table gets cleared off onto, you guessed it, my desk. This irks me.

Clearly, we need designate some space for my husband to put his half-finished projects, books he plans to read, etc. This space needs to include an "inbox" where I can set things for him to deal with.

I'm normally not a fan of baskets on bookshelves (mostly because we need those shelves for books!), but I'm not sure what else would work. Have any of you found an elegant solution to this problem?

I think there are a couple of us Annes floating around, I am going to start clarifying from now on (well, if I remember). It's great to hear about everyone's progress, it's making me glad we don't have wood floors though, that's for sure! While I would like to cover our respectable neutral shag carpet with interesting rugs someday, it is definitely ignorable for now.

However, the real news is we finally went and bought an oven! Not that it will be showing up for another week and a half (oh the joys of being nonstandard) but I feel like that will be a big weight off of my mind. The current nifty retro avocado green one somehow manages to leak when used, the top oven no longer heats up, and the light finally went out. I took that last as a hint and am trying not to use it anymore until we get the new one in. It's funny how you never realize how much you use something until it's gone.

My husband and I share a studio, which gives us each our own area, though it's very tight, and I'm actually not sure this room can be cured so much as managed. We're both messy in our own ways. I wish we had our own separate studios - we're both full-time artists and could use the space, but such is New York.

I don't have any bookshelf advice except, weed your collection regularly! Go to the library instead of buying books, especially if you read a lot of fiction. And whoever brought up shredders before, yes! I loooooove my shredder.

Clarification that should have been included above: some of the items on my 'finished' list above, while recently finished, were started several weeks ago. The longest one was the cabinet handles; I used a slow cleaning process of soaking in soda first so it took since July or so, and I finished last weekend. Superwoman, no, stubborn, - very.

I will post pics to flickr when I get them back; probably Saturday. I plan on rearranging the living room Saturday as well; will take pics again then & will try to get them up soon after.

Alana - by now I believe you have guests. Enjoy and hope everything looks great & goes well.

Jacquelyn - good for you, to keep going around the other issues you can't control. I'm not sure I'd have that much patience.

I realize now after a few posts that the space I was planning on making for my husband in our office didn't really meet his needs at all.

See, I'm the artist, so I need the desk and the wall of storage. He's the sports nut, video game playing, movie watching, science fiction reading guy who occasionally needs to sit down and write a lesson for a class.

I also can see this when I look at the "interview" pic I just uploaded to flicker. I guess we need different types of spaces.

So I'll devote this weekend to finding out what he needs out of his personal space so I can reclaim the bedroom!

Hey folks,
I just scored some great organizing baskets at Michael's craft store. They are having a sale - 40% off all baskets - I bought 10!

jessi in oregon -- well done, figuring out about the different needs of you and your husband. Now, good luck on working out just what he does need, and how to make it come about.

And thanks for the tips about shredders. I bought a new one this evening (went to Office Depot tonight). They didn't have the heavy-duty one I wanted in stock, so I got the next one down from it. It's still heavier-duty than the one I had, and has a 10 minutes on, 20 minutes off, cycle. The old one was 5 minutes on. I've tried it out, and it works well. It's also much easier to empty -- no more lifting off the top of the shredder and balancing it on something while I empty the bin. Yay.

Think I'll go and do something with my landing strip now.

(oh, and Carolyn, well done to find those baskets! be sure and show us what they look like.)

Wow, what a downer. I just went back and looked at the comments on my color contest entry. Serves me right for not looking at the other entries before I sent mine in. Next time I'll wait until I can afford an Eames chair to replace my ugly futon. Should I not have sent it in? I was proud of my exciting new color in an all-white (at the time) house and hoping I'd get some good feedback on what else I could do with the room. Might have to rearrange the furniture just to cheer myself up.

Speaking of which, does anyone else have the periodic urge to rearrange furniture? I used to do it all the time but now we have protein furniture that is harder to move and it's less fun.

Sorry to spout that out on here, I love hearing about what you guys are doing - I wish people would post more pictures, esp. of their new landing strips! It's so fun to see what everyone has been up to, even more so since I have been in a holding pattern this week (meh).

Leela - I totally agree with you, having only one bookshelf I am vigilant about weeding and it can be difficult. I need to go to the library more but my local nifty independent bookstore will trade my books for store credit and thus further my addiction... it's a vicious cycle, I tell ya! The mister has the same problem with CDs but isn't as vigilant with the weeding so we've got stacks on the living room floor right now. It's ridiculous.

Do you think it is possible to have passive-agressive cure envy? Because my upstairs neighbor got me again last night and I'm starting to feel like a marked woman! She came down to raid my outbox -- which is in the hall outside my door -- which is totally cool and brought her dog, also cool. That is until he peed on my landing strip doormat! Not kidding. Much less dramatic than the kitchen, but the fact that these mishaps are following the cure?? No way that is a coincidence! LOL.

Re: shared space issue...I bought the small size of these wall pockets from container store:

http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?CATID=74551&PRODID=60006

for the SO and hung them near the computer -- if I need to get stuff out of the way, I put it in the pockets. So far so good after about a year of this system...

Is anyone else having a problem getting to the less clean and purge related assignments -- like the sit in an unused portion for 10 minutes, decide on adding/subtracting color? My catch up list of those assignements is getting ridiculously long. And flickr is still a distant dream.

We had already planned to update the dining room before I started the cure, so i guess that technically there is a little side 1 room cure going on at my house, but it is just a new china hutch and I was going to paint the table and get new chiars, but I found a set of tables and chairs that already had the look I was going for on craigslist -- also featured on AT Scavenger yesterday. So I went to look at them last night and bought them -- cheaper than the new Ikea chairs and big time saver over the sanding/painting project. Plus more authentic as they are old. Next week I'm getting the new china hutch and it will be all done. I painted a while ago and these updates are to match the paint and feel for the room, so it is not too much work really -- just some shopping and schlepping (3d floor of a brownstone).

I managed to get the landing strip vacuumed last night -- my downstairs neighbor is going to think I have a disorder because I've run the vacuum about 4 days in a row at this point! I keep vacuuming the kitchen and dining room so that it looks really nice (pets). And I did the main hall in the apt as I wasn't sure when else it would fit in the cure -- just cleaning the walls (dog rubs on them, YUCK!), and dusting and vacuuming.

OK, that is my update...Awesome to read/see everyone else's progress -- go us!

Oh, Anne (in Reno), that's too bad! Some people have been really snarky on those color contest posts, especially about things that really don't have anything to do with the color part of the room. I wish they could try to stick to constructive suggestions. And -- Eames chairs are not everything. I will go back and re-read the comments so that I can be more supportive (and so that I can grumble to myself about some commenters), but in the meantime, good for you for posting, good for you for injecting color into your home, and don't let the alligators get you down!

Oh -- by the way, I'll be posting pics of my landing strip sometime this weekend. I, too, am eager to see other people's solutions.

Anne (in Reno) -- forgot to add that I'm tackling the diy picture frame this evening. I will take step by step pictures and post them for you (posting will happen after the film's developed, later this weekend). I hope the last picture will show a framed picture on the wall, and not me tearing my hair out! Wish me luck!

hey jacqueline, how are those pockets, qualitywise? i was looking at them the other day when i was at the container store trying to get my landing strip on. do they hold a lot of stuff? do they start looking ratty?

my landing strip is still taxiing on the runway, so to speak. i've had some good ideas, and now i just need to figure out how to implement them. everything that serves my purposes at the container store seems to be white and/or plastic, which is unfortunately not the look i'm going for.

this is my problem with the container store, actually, as much as i love them. all their coolest stuff is very very modernist and shiny with clean lines. but my apartment is centered on texture and natural materials and gloabal/vintage tradition. i go in there and it's all i can do not to bring home anything futuristic. they have baskets and such, but they're all outrageously expensive compared to the simple corbu-inspired white plastic boxes (which i secretly like better anyway; i think my next apartment is going to have to be more shiny white/black).

Anne(in Reno), I went and read the comments on your contest post. People are mean sometimes -- even if they just think they are being witty -- and I'm sorry that they found their way to your (or anyone else's!) post. It is not helpful. The color of your walls is fabulous and you are doing a great job working within your budget and taking helpful hints. But at some point, you just have to ignore what other people say because even helpful comments take both sides of the issue -- ie with the hanging of the quilt.

Also, the contest limited you to 2 photos...if people saw you flickr page they would realize that your have got great color working for you -- like the entry way. (BTW, I went to Home Depot for a chip of it after you were kind enough to give me the name and they were out, but I found some other great options)

Don't get discouraged -- you are doing a fabulous job!

the opoponax -- the quality has been good and I have not had any falling apart / getting ratty problems. I thought they were a bit flimsy myself at first, but they have settled nicely. That said, they don't get tugged at daily or anything, so maybe that is what is saving them?? I spent some time looking at options and they were the best ones as far as price/look I found for me and I'm happy that I got them. good luck!

Jacquelyn, I too have trouble w/the less hands-on assignments and more theoretical/philosophical ones [e.g. 10 mins, the hands on all the walls]. I guess I'm too impatient to do stuff like that.

And Anne IR, that's exactly why I didn't enter the contest. Some ppl can just be mean for the sake of being mean. I wonder if they're just like that because they are in the safety of their home and not face to face!

Happy Friday all.

Hi Jaquelyn: thank you for the pocket link to the container store. I have three offsprings whose mail still lands on me. I think it will work if I use those pockets on the inside door of my coat closet. Out of sight and out of the rest of the mail.

Just posted all my end of week one, lets dive into week two picks. I read my week two chapter last night, so tonight after work I'm ready to start digging through my kitchen cupboards. Anyway, I'm open to good and bad feedback on my pics. I feel more confident now that the floors are clean. Well, except for that half of the bedroom that we discussed yesterday.

jessi in oregon -- you have done a LOT of work this week! Wow! I just looked at your pics, and wanted to pat you on the back! Now I have to get back to work. Coffee breaks are definitely not long enough when one has an AT Cure addiction! (and I keep checking for our new Cure Post!!!???!!!)

OK, I've posted some more pics, under the name "Flimflamdamn". And man, photos make everything look so much smaller, and so much pokier!

Anyone have any advice for how to replace/deal with those "ceiling boob" style light fixtures? Our mid-20th century co-op has one in each room, and while I need overhead light, these fixtures are so dumb! Can they be covered with something else?

well, if you own, it seems like you could just replace them with something you like better. i know there must be a way to hook a pendant into the wiring from a "ceiling boob", though i've never done it and don't know how.

there are a couple of good minimally invasive options if the idea of changing out fixtures doesn't inspire. one is to somehow hide the ugly fixture. this weekend i'm going to replace the glass part of my overhead fixture with a nifty chinese lantern. i hear there are also ways of masking them with fabric, paper, etc. though you might want to be careful about fire hazards and such.

the other idea is just to not use the overhead lights at all and go for lamps instead. including, if you wanted something that suspends from the ceiling, lamps installed with those bulb kits that plug into regular outlets.

Ooo, Leela! I might be able to help with this one. I had the same kind of fixture in my hallway (though I think mine was slightly smaller than yours).

There's a type of outlet that screws directly into an empty lightbulb socket. Get one of those from a hardware store and a pendant light that's large enough to cover the thin metal plate that's holding your existing fixture to the ceiling *and* has a plug. I used the Knappa pendant lamp from Ikea. Take the glass cover off your existing fixture and replace the lightbulb with the outlet. Bundle up the cord so that it's very short and use a superstrong 3m adhesive hook to hold the light up right by the ceiling. Plug the light into your newly created outlet and adjust its height and position until it covers most of the metal ceiling plate.

The hardest part is rigging the light to hide the fixture plate. It took a lot of fiddling, but now it looks great. I put a couple pictures of the results in my flickr account (link in my name).

Cathy,

really, most hardware stores have those? That's so cool. I wish now that they had one for ugly-ass ceiling fans.

Yup, most hardware stores have those outlets. Admittedly, we did have to go to two different places because the first one only had a big industrial-strength variety.

They were in an aisle with a bunch of other outlet-related products (like duplicators and adapters). Just ask if you can't find it on your own!