apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

i just love that shade of blue/green. do you know the name and make of the paint color? it's very relaxing. yes, very interesting bedspread.

Cute, Cute. I really love how you used the complimentry color of the roses and reds with the greenish blue. It really calms down all of the hot colors. Also love all of the Target stuff.

Um, yes, we need to know where that bedspread (or quilt) came from...

We need Pic 2! I'm desperate to see it.

That bedspread looks like a folk-art Polish paper-cutting! Love it.

Where did you get that wonderful bedspread?

Where did you get that bedspread? I love it!

"I use color to hide stains!"

I love the honesty and unpretentiousness of this entry.

Is that a faux zebra rug? Love it. Where can I get one for my living room?

Absolutely fabulous! The colors the motifs, ohh to die for! You go girl!

Great place. The fact that this is not my personal style and I still love it goes to show how well you worked with colour here!

Isn't that a suzani (bedspread)? I love those.

I seem to be the dissenting voice. I do not like the bedspread at all. Pretty much I love your choice of color but the bedroom looks completely out of balance to me. The cool green, and leaf print with the chaos of the bedspread does not work for me. And what's going on with the lamps? A traditional lamp paired with an Asian lamp? And the canopy is way too heavy. I'd like to see this bedroom brought into balance. Commit to Asian. Buy another Asian lamp. Find a new bedspread, maybe in red. You did a much nicer job in the living room, except your media storage is out of control.

Absolutely loving the first pic with the suzani (the root "suzane" by the way means needle and to sew). The second pic seems more conventional and less inspired in comparison to the first.

This isn't the only place recently where I've seen a hot, bright color paired with a cool, icy color as the big design choice. This one's working for me on a gut level partly because of the generous use of black... the trend as a whole is one I'm having trouble getting my tastes around, though.

i agree with peggy's comments, i don't really see a color scheme or an aesthetic. i also find the canopy frame without canopy somewhat odd.

i'm surprised that after all the controversy that iris (irene? the one many people found too girly) generated, that this getting the raves it is. i thought iris' entry was much stronger and more cohesive (and not all that girly either).

i must agree, tell us where you got that bedspread! i love it. the rug too, i've been looking for one.

I love the graphic elements in the room (bedspread, rug, bare canopy) and feel that they work against the neutral backdrop.

Some brainstorming here-
I find that the visual busy-ness of the storage unit is fighting with the rug pattern somewhat - could the unit go opposite the couch? Also, something about the white door looks a bit blah to me - wouldn't it be fun to paint the door orange to match the bedspread? Also, the framing, matting, and hanging of the artwork seems more conventional than the style of the room. I would remove the leaf print from the head of the bed (it can't be comfortable to have it behind your head anyway?). Maybe group the prints in a more relaxed way?

Thanks for the comments!
The bedspread is a suzani from Afghanistan. I bought it on ebay.

The paint color is actually a blend – we picked two colors we liked on a swatch, and they gave us something in the middle of those too. Its Benjamin moore.

The sitting area is actually part of the bedroom – its right off to the right of the bed.

The rug is faux zebra! Another ebay purchase.

As for the mix of styles— the left side of the bed is mine, the right side is my husband’s. He chose his lamp, and I chose mine. They don’t match obviously, but that’s us! We just picked what we liked!

i love the first photo, of the bedroom. the bedspread is genius, and it's well paired with the leaf print. the wall color seems to be pulled from the green at the center of the flowers on the bedspread, which is always a good move. the strong lines of the bed are just austere enough to match but not overpower. i agree that the lamp choice is a bit unconventional, but honestly the bed and wall color are brilliant and this is not the "most cohesive aesthetic" contest so i really don't care.

but. and this is a huge but.

i think the sage color that works so well in the bedroom is hideous in the living room. mostly because it clashes badly with the red accents. sage and red can be paired, but i think you need a nice deep cozy traditional red to make that work. all this pinky sleek modern stuff is terrible in terms of the way it interacts with the color of the walls. there's also a lack of cohesiveness with the art on the walls over there that doesn't help your color issues. and as cool as those zebra rugs are these days, i don't think it works well here.

I like some of the elements here (leaf print over the bed, paint color), but overall the aesthetic is too random for me. I think Peggy said it pretty well.

i think the green goes well with the red - because it's not a sage-y green. I think it would look better if it were more of a robin's egg blue, like the other contestant's room (yang?)
but - I like the use of the contrasting colors with the black & white, and the natural fibres.

I LOVE the beadspread, the mix match lamps and the wall color!!! I love that you don't commit to just one style...it looks real!

And the sitting room...love the rug and that wave picture on the far right....what a talented photographer....where ever did you get it?

Ksenia, I would love some tips on what to do with the artwork! Do you have any ideas?

and Sarah - a relative actually took that photo of the wave as my husband and I were getting married. We got married at the beach last October!

First photo is great! Love the bedspread!

The bedspread is amazing!

yes, the bedspread is nice. however, not sure about that wall color. it could have "pop" with another color or just plain old ecru.

LOVE this entry!!! At last, a bedroom that is bold with color and design, but at the same time looks like two different people actually sleep there every night! Bravo to letting your husband pick his own lamp--inspired me to pick my battles and let my husband stick it out with his.

Love the bedspread, love the vibe, love it!

Hmmm...There are definitely things I like, especically the suzani bedspread, but to me, they seem to be fighting each other. Is the bedroom Pottery Barn by way of Martha Stewart, or is it a gypsy caravan? Either one would work, but you can't be both simultaneously. I'd repaint in the lightest color from the spread, then replace the leaf over the bed with an ethnic textile-style print that picks up at least two of the other colors on the bed. Try an exotic metal lantern next to the bed instead of the rice paper one, and maybe keep the glass ball lamp just to be perverse.

The 1st picture above the fold set the bar very high for the second picture that I was a little disappointed below the fold. That bedspread is amazing, and I LOVE LOVE LOVE that you paired it with the calm green of the wall.

That blue-green I see on my moniter just cannot be the colour you have on your walls. It's just not strong enough to carry the other elements of the room. So, I'll assume my moniter is at fault and refrain from voting on this one.

Even with some mismatched items in the bedroom, I like the overall affect (although I personally dislike those anal bead type lamps). The walls in the sitting area might benefit from a deeper Earthier shade of green or possibly a cocoa color. The red accents seem pretty random, I'd ditch them for a dark green.

LOVE IT!!! Great taste and versatility! Quite
unique! A winner for sure! Are you an interior
decorator?

Jamie,
For hanging the artwork, could you arrange a bunch together in such a way that it doesn't form rectangle or square but rather has bumps on the sides to look more casual? Hard to tell the relative dimensions of artwork and walls that you are dealing with.

I had to come back to this entry a couple of times to really appreciate it. The one thing I think detracts from the overall balance of the room is the lighter colored wicker parts of the beside tables (or whatever is being used as bedside tables). The cool wall color lightens the overall feel of the space enough that it could support dark wood, or black side tables. I think that this would be more in tune with the strong architecture of the bed, and the boldness of the suzani. Having said that, though, I lack the wherewithall to come up with a unique, inspired interior like this, so I give it high marks!

when i looked at your use of texture and colour, in such a brave and exciting way, i wee'd a little. you're good lady, your tickin the boxes. i love you.

the bedspread is a great use of color - but it shouldnt be the only one. In the second picture your color seems spread too thin.

I really enjoyed the vitality of this entry. I like the unmatched lamps and love the bedspread, energetic feeling and in balance.

I love the suzani, but I kind of get the feeling the suzani is doing all the style work for you. The first picture is great because it features the suzani -- although I also think the plant picture goes well with it -- not sure why, other than that I love plants and the color green! To me it works, and I didn't care about the non-matching lamps. But I think the person who designed the suzani should get most of the credit. The picture seems to show how one great piece can make a room if you let it dominate and get out of its way. And I think you did that in the photo, but probably not in the room as a whole!

The second picture just looks average -- it doesn't have one great piece in it. I love pale green, I love red accents, I love zebra, but this room looks un-decorated, as if it never got pulled together. Looks a lot like my house, in fact!

No -- actually, the green leaf art works because it's similar to the suzani -- a simple, bold, undulating outline in silhouette, not too much detail. The black posts of the bed also work for the same reason -- similar thickness, black on white -- they frame and enhance the artwork. The artwork is the right size for the space. These elements are brilliant together. I take back what I said about the suzani-maker getting all the design credit. You contributed too. I really love it!

Jamie, I just noticed tonight that you were from Raleigh. Morrisville here...Cool!

Don Ricardo #8

Love your whole look. The look of your bedroom was featured in DOMINO magazine DEC/JAN! Same use of color. And where did you find this bedspread? I have to have it. Please let me know. Thank you, Amy