apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

A peacock's tail has such an unusual and unique look. It's easily one of our favorite animal patterns in the animal kingdom. This great little rug, available at Urban Outfitters, manages to capture the beauty and elegance of the peacock.

Check out the full post on: Ohdeedoh

Name: Kurt, Sparrow and Simon the cat
Location: Hoboken, New Jersey
Size: 950 square feet
Years lived in: 2½

Before I became a contributor for Apartment Therapy New York, I wrote in to Good Questions asking for advice on paint colors. I had a funny experience with the question and almost as soon as it was posted online, I started changing my mind about what I wanted to do with the rooms. It took me a couple tries but I finally found a paint color I love and decided to paint both the living and dining room and the hallway with Tundra by Benjamin Moore.

At the Apartment Therapist's family Thanksgiving last week, I worked with my mother's very traditional dining room, building a centerpiece out of plants cut from outside and many, many votives.

• Cure Clock: 1 week to go
• Assignment: Read Week 8: Throwing a Party
• Members: 1,735!

>> New Flickr Group: AT Home Cure
>> Submit your photos directly to AT

Only a few days left. Now is the time to work very, very hard, because you will soon be back on your own again. In writing the book, I really wanted there to be at least one calmer week before the end. Week's seven and eight are therefore both a little lighter and meant to allow you to slow down as you approach the end and catch up if you need to.

Have you ever wondered where stockists at the cute vintage boutiques go to get their wares? No, those things weren't left to them by cool blue-haired aunties. Englishtown Antiques & Used Furniture, about an hour outside of Manhattan in the green part of New Jersey, seems to be where all things in the universe are deposited.

Last week we blogged about the White House state dinner and the reality-TV wannabe couple who crashed it! Have uninvited guests crashed one of your parties? How did you deal with the crashers? Tell us below the jump.

The New York MTA just announced a new program in which items from retired subway cars will be available for purchase — and everything must go. Collectibles include station signs, maps, vintage tokens, lighting fixtures, seating and even the doors.

Italian home furnishings brand Poliform and their kitchen design brand Varenna have developed an inspirational site that showcases their products and the possibilities of small spaces. My Life in 80m² — that's about 860 square feet — is a beautiful collection of photos and ideas that maximize functionality.

I spotted this kitchen the other day and just had to share — is it just me or does this kitchen inspire you to make little pretty French macarons?

Recoup some of your costs this festive season by using Bing to search for your holiday gifts.

Bing Cashback is a great way for you to save money when you shop online. Find great deals on products from hundreds of brand name stores that you know and trust. You’ll earn a percentage of the product price as cashback. The search advertising fees from participating stores are passed on to you. After we wait for potential returns and exchanges, your saving will be rewarded to you by your choice of a deposit to your PayPal account, direct deposit to your bank account, or a check in the mail. It’s that simple. And it’s a great way to save some cash this holiday season.

Late last year, my Mum moved into a colonial farmhouse located in Connecticut’s historic Litchfield County. Surprisingly, the old home was in “turnkey” condition — that is, except for the barn out back. Built in 1944 as a hen house, the semi-finished outbuilding was just begging to be converted into a workshop. Now, nearly one year later, we’re about to kick off renovations and Apartment Therapy has the inside scoop on our coop conversion.

This gorgeous cork lamp is the perfect accent piece for a vintage style abode.

Highbrow Furniture is an ideal online source for designer furniture — if you know exactly what you want. While the website has been around since 1999, the site's user experience has changed little in the past decade and basic functions like search are poorly executed and often don't work. So why do we continue to look at Highbrow? They carry a great selection, offer free shipping and are very clear about costs on their many custom fabric and finish options.

Q: It's been two weeks since we've moved into our new apartment and although I promised myself to take it slow, I really want to get rid of the red color as soon as possible! Any ideas what colors would go well in this room? Our pink fridge in the kitchen is also visible from that area which makes it all the more tricky to find the right color. Thank you in advance!

Sent by Ceren

We spent a lot of time in the Kitchen over the last four days, whether it was preparing our Thanksgiving meal or foraging for leftovers two days later. Had there been a mirror in there, we might have been able to talk ourselves out of that third slice of pie.