apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

What's makes a more casual vibe: hanging art directly on the wall or hanging picture ledges so the art can lean against the wall?

Help! I'm upgrading the lighting in my combined family-kitchen upgrade. I replaced the kitchen fixture with an energy star fluorescent one. Replaced the ceiling fixture over the kitchen table with a Mibo pendant: this included having to move the wiring to center the pendant over the table. This went ok: dh cut the cord a little to short, about 4 inches too short, but I can live with it. For the family room, I had in mind to add 3 uplights, two on each side of the sofa and one behind the ent. center, all controlled by wireless remote control. The thingy part that plugs in the outlet covers the switch, and I cannot plug anything other in the outlet. Could I use a power strip and plug the thingy in it?

meggethpixel - your place is looking so great!

Lady J,
I suppose the more 'casual' vibe would be putting the pictures on a ledge. But every time I see that in someone's home or in a picture it seems all wrong to me. For one thing, the artwork was not made to view on an angle. It was supposed to hang straight. For another, the ledge often sticks out in a way that looks awkward to me. And the whole set-up seems too temporary. It's true that hanging artwork up makes it look more finished, and thus maybe less casual, but you can play with the framing (or omit frames, in some cases, if you want it to seem less polished).

Now, having said all that, I could *imagine* a context that would make the ledge option look natural and integral to the room. This would probably require that the room have a lot of softness and other objects in it (which yours does). I'm curious to see what you decide!

Francesca,
I use power strips everywhere to put any plug into it. But dealing with so many extra wires all over the place is actually one of my BIG tasks this week, so I'd be interested to hear what others do to solve these problems.

One issue I have (which sort of relates to Lady J's question about casual art), is whether nailing wires down with clips makes the place look too formal and, well, anal. I have a wire running down the wall from a socket mid-way up. Yesterday I installed one of those little white clips and taped the rest with a special invisible tape - but it looks too neat and flat!! Like way too much effort went into it. If I were taking a photo of the place for an AT contest, of course I would have it this neat-looking. But for actual living, what do you think? (ah, again, the difference between photography and life looms large....)

I got a late start, but I am doing the cure in my master bedroom suite. I am DEEP cleaning. I took down 60 yards of sheers from the windows and from the eight foot headboard I had created, and fluffed them in the dryer. I had not noticed the Fluff setting before. It's like dusting the draperies. I have cleaned everything, even the ceiling. It feels like a different room already. I am going to swap the furniture, and change the color of my dust ruffle. To my surprise, the head board was recreated in a few seconds, (it took me forever the first time), but I am changing the rods and window dressing, which is taking time. I have organized my dressing room with enough laundry baskets to sort as I go, and next I deep clean the bathroom. Since my closets are orderly, I skipped the sort. Later, I plan to use Ebay to thin them out. I think I can be finished in two weeks.

Maxwell, thank you for this great endeavor. I wouldn't have done it without AT. And since I started late, I am going to keep going. One more room at least.

LadyJ- I use ledgers in the spare bedroom to display family photographs, some hanging, some propped to the wall. I change them frequently, except the very old ones or the ones Im really attached to. The frames of the propped pictures look better if thin and uniform, and I have tried to stick to wood frames for all. The non-photograph art is on the walls in the other rooms.

Lady J - Crate and Barrel sells really thin ledges here that would give you the casual vibe for which you're going (and one that I really like). because they are thin, they don't allow the picture to sit at that great of an angle while the lip on the front keeps it from sliding right off.

Hope that helps!

Jodi - thanks so much!! i can't wait to see your place so post more photos soooooon please! you're is my favorite, just because you used the expedit as a divider :)

actually, I don't think whether the piece is hanging from a wall or resting on a ledge is what makes an arrangement casual or formal. That has more to do with the relationship between and among the elements. Formal is everything in its neatly ruled and balanced place. Casual will be a bit "off". Formal caters to the logic of the mind. Casual to the logic of the eye.

I am finally sorta back in gear after a break where I spent too much time playing ray man. I got a bunch of stuff at ikea today and the Awesome Room should be sorted out and set up by next weekend. I don't know if I'm going to get my day bed for the living room this month, but def next.

awww, thanks meg! the past few weeks have been slow going for me. i wish i had the drive that you do! i'll try to get it into gear and post more soon. =)

Hey Maxwell, will there be a cure in the summer?

:)

in the interest of therapy and cure, are we ever really finished.
"It is done." People did not like it here, was not Kurts last words.

Hah! Un-One-Room related Cure progress, we kind of spilled over from the master bath to the master bedroom this weekend, and was it ever epic! The mister's closet had a bout five years of files sitting next to a filing cabinet and way too much clothing that was bought as costume-related stuff and never worn. I now have two boxes of papers to properly file in my FILE CABINETS (including the deed to the house and the title to his car), as well as 4 bags to donate and 4 to consign or attempt to sell. It is shocking and he was totally into helping with it. So a really good day, weirdly enough. The shelves I wanted to buy for my side of the closet turned out to be 1/4" too big so I am going to end up doing them myself eventually, but the goal for the rest of the weekend is to take a load of stuff to the consignment store. So not bad, for not hearing from the tile guy, I am trying to be Zen about it.

MeggethPixel/Meg -- I love your dining room! Is that chalkboard paint on the top of the table, too? It just makes me itch for some colored chalk! Cool.

Zooza & Anne (in Reno), you'll be happy to learn that I'm *not* going to get dark green drapes for the living room, because... ... ... I chose a loveseat today! Didn't order it, I have to save up my $$ first, but I chose it, and it's going to be (you guessed it) dark green. I looked at umpteen fabric swatches, and saw some I liked fairly well, some florals, and one called "Can't Complain Green" :) ! But then I found a green called somethingorother emerald, and a floral called Meadowview, which wasn't a traditional, old-fashioned floral, but has daisies, and other meadowy flowers, and I was torn between the two. I said to the saleswoman that I wished my chairs were the dark green, and then the floral would look so wonderful with them (I thought the light green chairs and the light green floral would be too pale together), and she said, "Well, two toss pillows come with the loveseat, you could have the loveseat in the dark green, and the pillows in the floral". I put the two swatches together and put the picture of my chair on top, and I think they all look wonderful together! Great incentive to save, save, save, now that I've found a loveseat I like. I was limited in the styles, because I want it to have a twin-size fold-out bed, and there just aren't that many twin-size sofabeds around, but the style will go well with my chairs, and with my personality. So now lighter drapes are definitely what will be needed. But I'll wait on them a while (gotta save that money, anyway!)

Hopefully, here's a link to it... It's the Savona, the smallest one. This isn't the floral I'm talking about, by the way...

http://www.englandfurniture.com/ourfurniture/product.aspx?pid=14

Looks like an oversized armchair, but the seat is supposed to be 37" which is just a few inches shorter than my parents' loveseat. I figure as long as the two people who are sitting on it are good friends, or want to be, it will be okay. It's the sleep option that I'm particularly interested in. Also the 52" width including arms will fit nicely into the space available.

All of which has nothing to do with the current topic of conversation or of Curing, but I'm excited about it, so I just had to spew forth. Longwindedly, as usual. Thanks for reading (if you haven't dozed off already).

Way to go, everyone that's been accomplishing things while I flipped through fabric swatches!

Smallcitybeth, choosing a sofa has everything to do with Curing, as it's usually the biggest thing going on in the living room (with the possible exception of large shelving units or really gigantic rugs). Congratulations on finding one that makes you happy!

On a totally different note, someone needs to study the influence of the Roomba on home decor, given that if you want your whole floor clean, you can't have little corners or furniture where the legs are too close together or curtains that puddle on the floor. Roomba-ing lends an entirely new dimension to vacuuming:

"No, you can't chew on that cord!"
"Get back here -- you're not done with this room."
"Noooooo, don't make that sulky beeping after you've gone all the way under the bed."
"Leave the cat alone!"

Yes, I'm avoiding all sorts of actual exertion right now.

I just got a Roomba as part of this Cure, and it has completely transformed my relationship to my floow. For one think, I'm now obsessed with getting all of my electrical cords everywhere in order!

Indeed!

Just finished sending a firm email to the company that hasn't shipped my replacement lampshades...

...being a long way post-decluttering in the most obvious sense, I've decided that the theme of my Cure is:

(a) Removing emotional/intellectual clutter from my life.

(b) Creating an environment that welcomes growth, but not just totally random growth in 82 directions.

Deciding this in week 6 raises questions about getting "done" in any meaningful sense in the next two weeks, but since things look tidy, that's not my biggest worry.

SCBeth, I was at someone's house last night where they had a smallish loveseat like that with a huge ottoman and the mister and me were alternately trying not to fall asleep on it together and discussing how much we needed one in our living room. Just sayin, have you considered an ottoman?

Also, I envy these Roomba owners, but between amplifier cords, shag carpeting and a sunken living room, I fear I will never realize the joy of Roomba-ownership. Sniff...

This week the lamps and lampshades at JoAnns are 50% off. They were still on sale as of Sat but I dont know how long it will last. There is a pair of lamps I am going to get there today for the bedroom. Yesterday I got a great shade for the lamp in the living room (it was previously shadeless). The light in the living room is so much better now. I cant wait to get the bedroom lamps this evening.

Anne,
If you can have ramps for you pets, why not Roombas? Wende, creating growth in not in 82 directions is a goal of mine. The cure is giving me the room to explore and implement some interests/talents that I have not exercised in many years.

On that note, I'm looking for both some vintage clothing (1920's and 30's) and a way to display them as art. I thought that one of the curers was a vintage clothing person, if so can you contact me? I'm open to any ideas (I only have JonathanB great Kimona art), I'm looking for a way to display a women's outfit that gives the feeling of dance.

actually, I collect vintage clothing as well as kimono. To be pedantic, kimono are vintage clothing.

Displaying vintage clothing can be done on: walls -- just crucify that kimono on a pole -- from hooks and hangers -- over doors, cabinet as well as closet -- on dressmaker's dummies -- something I wish I had the room to do since it gives the clothing life and movement without reduction to anecdote -- clothing store figurines -- not a favorite of mine, since it looks forced to me -- and of course live models -- which is alas out of my budget.

You can also drape vintage clothing/textiles over chairs, tables, case goods, and the odd piano.

hope something in all that helps....

Anne (in Reno) -- Oh my, wouldn't a huge ottoman be nice??? Don't go putting ideas in my head!!! ;) Okay, the idea's already been put there, and I'm going to mull it around, because a fine idea it is. Thanks!

Wende (in Phoenix) -- your two themes are excellent food for thought.

I didn't do sh*t this weekend. I'm sorry. It just wasn't happenin'.

Question: can you paint a semi-gloss on top of a matte finish? Most of my place, except the kitchen and bath, is in a matte paint. It's very dry, no sheen and always gives me a 'dry' feeling. Since the place is so small, and the hallway so narrow and dark, I thought a semi-gloss or gloss might be more conducive to upping the play of light.

Thoughts? Advice? Expertise?

Lady J - from my experience you can easily paint semi-gloss on top of matte, but doing it the other way round can cause problems. My study used to be matt, then I painted it with vinyl semi-gloss. It was too shiny for my taste, so I then decided to paint it back to matt, and that was a nightmare. I had to use a special base coat in the end. So, my advice would be that you need to be absolutely sure it's what you want and then go for it!

Right. I'm back from my weekend away, rosy-cheeked and ready to go (we went to the seaside - very relaxing). I've taken Maxwell's pep-talk to heart and have written a list of what I plan to achieve in the next two weeks. 'Done' for me (in terms of the 8-week cure) will be all the basic spaces laid out (i.e. sitting room, dining area, kitchen), kitchen cabinets in place and being used. I've got about five or six days I can set aside for house stuff, plus the evenings.

But... I still need more time and will continue working hard and not letting up after the official cure has finished. I reckon I need at least a month to finish everything off. And the flooring I want might take up to eight weeks to arrive, so that will be even longer.

I'm feeling perky about the whole thing again now. :-)

p.s. smallcitybeth - thanks for the book recommendation on the last thread - once I've finished 'Home Comforts' I'll check that out.

lady J. - semi gloss is kind of intense. for my money (and I've painted A LOT of rooms in my 22 yrs due to my parents obsession with old houses) I always go with an eggshell finish for the walls and a semi for the trim. Eggshell is definitely better than satin too.

Also, I pretty much can't think of a single situation where painting wouldn't be an improvement. Even if you paint it the same color (even if, lord forbid, it is white hehe), it will make it so much fresher, cleaner looking and bright! You are $30 and a few hours from completely transform your space... do it up!

... just don't buy Dutch Boy Paints.

Lady J - Semi-gloss paint will highlight any unevenness or flaws in the walls much more than flat does. I agree with Meg that eggshell is an excellent compromise. Any "textured" finish looks better with eggshell than with flat, too.

Also, do you have a use for a lavender-filled toss pillow in "your" colors? I used to have the bedroom in the same kinds of colors and textures you're using, but I don't any more, and it seems a waste to have the pillow just sitting in the linen closet.

I totally fell off the wagon ... and the longer I did, the more reluctant I have been to come back and feel behind. Partly I'm still waiting for nice weather to paint things, but I think that's mostly an excuse.

What is the difference between eggshell and satin? I always go for satin, so is eggshell more matte?

If a line of paint offers both eggshell and satin finishes, the satin will be shinier.

Angorian! Let's do this thing. Something is better than nothing.

I painted my 2nd half bath at the end of last week, and I hate it. It kind of looks "hospital" blue. Aqua, but not a good kind of aqua. It looks great in natural light, but now so great in any other kind of light. I had put everything back up and together after painting just in case it looked better finished. It doesn't. I decided I needed to re paint-quickly.

So Sunday we went to the beach instead. It was sort of nice, and my son wanted to shovel in the sand. It seemed more important than painting that room again at the time. Although I love this cure, and am learning more about me, my family, and the effect our house has on our family, sometimes you just have to kick back and live a little.
Today, my son and I went to Lowes and picked out a yellowish paint for the mud room and a lavender-pink for my 1/2 bath. I feel refreshed and ready to go.

I wasn't sure if I was going to have an 8 week party, but I am going to have a small group of family and friends over for my Son's birthday at the end of the month. We're not a pony and clown birthday family here, but it will have a nice cake. Chocolate. Yum........

Yet another reason I live in the "urban" part of Phoenix rather than out in the 'burbs... having ended up filing a BBB complaint against the seller of replacement Medusa lamp shades... I walked next door and bought a fresh lamp. Yup, an estate sale shop just went in adjacent to our complex.

Wende, let's have photo of that pillow? Pillows are one of my vices, but who knows.

Duh, visuals!

the pillow I was thinking of
another pillow cover (cover only) that could use a good home
both together to demonstrate different colors

If Lady J doesn't bite, these still do need a good home that isn't mine.

Mmm, gorgeous pillows, wherever did you find them?

Wende, I love those pillows, esp. the pink/purple one! But I must decline. There are currently 7 pillows too many here. Lavendar filled seems like a great travel pillow. I use lavendar spray on my pillows at night.

Thanks for thinking of me.

Anne -- one in a gift shop in the Castro, one in an Indian store in Davis (I think). Like Lady J, I magnetically attract throw pillows...

...anyone who wants 'em, email me (drwende at yahoo dot com)... I'm trying to be aggressive about making space for new experiences...

how wacky. go to vegas (didn't win anything there) and come back to see myself quoted! thanks maxwell -- this is MUCH better than anything i could've won in vegas (though if you have a chance to get there, the glass flowers covering the light in the entrance way of the bellagio are breathtaking).

lady j,

try exposures for a nice selection of picture ledges of all types.

I think I needed a break from my hectic schedule..I'm planning to do some major make over with my house and intend to go for a trip for a while...I'd like to visit those lovely scenery in time...
For now, i have to prepare the things I need for the make over and of course my car for the trip...I've checked out all my auto parts and luckily they were all in excellent condition except for my GMC brake dust shield which needs some replacement..
But anyway, i find this post very interesting and worthwhile...It gives me new and better things to do...

Thanks a lot..I'll just visit from time to time for some updates...=)