apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Joan had a breakdown LONG ago.

Mine was not so much about color.

But never professed to be.

I like the color choice for the walls, it compliments the wood and coordinates well with the other surfaces and agree it's a far better choice than going warm.

I'm not seeing a whole lot, but I like what I see. I'm not a fan of blue generally and especially shiny blue, but something about the texture in the wall with the shininess and with the stove appeals to me. Nice. It reminds me of fake distressed wall texture that resaurants pay interior decorators to faux or all over.

I wish we could see more of the kitchen.

I love that wall color! It just shines, and makes me smile. I especially like the way it's perfectly coordinated with the bits of color on the little bowl in the first picture.

Great work. It's not easy when one can't rip out cabinets and countertops and start from scratch. And it's good to see something that looks "real".

I really love the color in the 2nd photo. What is the name/brand of the paint you used?

That blue is beautiful, would've liked to see more pictures of this room.

I see Elvis! Yahoo!

Good to see you in the contest! I love seeing people from these comment sections showing up in the entries themselves.

I dig your blue... it's a happy color indeed.

The color is wonderful - very happy - and the bowl and the flowers - so fresh.

Great job opo! These pics make me want to see more. I especially like that first still life with the silver pitcher full of flowers and the bowl against that beautiful blue wall.

Looks great, but I really think an Eames chair would be a great impact piece in that space.

I love this, especially the second photo. Would you mind telling us what color it is and who makes it?

Huhn? An old stove, some eggs and a dirty dishtowel?

I could see this being being very cheerful to come into on a dreary winter's day (like today).

I like how the color pops and matches the retro feel of the stove, the pipes and the countertop. I myself have a sad little renter's kitchen and tried to paint it with a warm green since it's a kitchen, but felt claustrophoic and kind of sweaty in it as it's very tiny. I ended up painting it a cool, light blue just to be safe, but wish I had gone with something more cheerful and personal now.

why do the people who leave negative marks, not leave feedback?

I especially love the way you've chosen a color that makes the drab wood cabinets look cheery and warm.

"Better to draw from things you already love than to venture out on some strange whim just because you saw it in Elle Decor"

Dont worry opopo, it'll be a cold day in hell before this place makes Elle Decor

so opopo,
with all the criticism you've dished out in the past, it's sort of refreshing to see that you are all talk and no action.

jessi in oregon, I normally don't leave feedback when I give a negative mark because so many people get so nasty. Sort of a "if you can't say something nice," type feeling. On this one, though I love the color (I have it in my bathroom) and appreciate the limitations, I think the overall effect is kind of "eh" compared to the rest of the entries.

Cheerful kitchen:that still life in the first picture is truly "un angolino delizioso". Neat teakettle on the stove.

Agreed - I was always suprised by opo's comments - usually rather harsh, so I was expecting perfection, or beyond perfection in every sense.

So many comments to reflect previous comments, but I will refrain - it'a a nice color!

I voted no, because this is basically part of a painted wall in a kitchen with no other... decorating or obvious artistic intent.

It is a pretty color, granted, but this isn't The Pretty Color Contest.

Can't fairly judge this one. The shots are very tight and all the focus is on the wall colour without seeing the whole space in context.

Though from what we can see I have to say that wall colour clashes badly with the cheap oak cabinets. If you could stain the cabinets to a deep chocolate brown or ebony it would be a better pairing.

I agree with a few of the others...for all the crap that you've posted in the past, you've got no skills.

Ahhh, the anonymity of the internet.

-Bobby

Aah Opo. You've run into the same problem that I had - pictures are both too accurate, and not quite accurate enough. It's hard to tell from these photos what you've really done with the space as a whole. This looks like a lovely fun little cozy space and I love the wildflowers, but I'd say some curtains might soften up the harsh light and be a way to complement the color. I do love the Elvis album as wire-hider.

Also, nasty commenters, not everything has to look like it came from a DWR catalog. Keep telling yourself that. And lcw, you beat me to the Eames chair crack, darn you!

For those who are surprised that Opo's kitchen isn't perfect and rarefied, re-read her posts. She dislikes spaces that are too ordered, too showroom, too devoid of warmth and humanity. I'm not surprised this is her kitchen--it's quirky and down-to-earth, just as I suspect she is.

You're kidding, right? LOL...just kidding Opoponax. I voted No Way, Jose because I can't really see the kitchen and how the whole look is pulled together; you didn't really post a good, full pic! I do love the color of the walls. I'm thinking of redoing my walls with something similar to this.

Well, at least I'm not the only one who lives in a normal apartment verses the multimillionaires who frequent here with their lofts, duplexes and condos (owned, mind you).

Opop, I'll give you credit for posting your own goods after making mean-spirited comments about most everyone else's spaces. Although, as far as color skills – I like the choice, but just pulling a color off a favorite picture isn't enough to get a positive vote on this one. Maybe if we'd seen more of the space?

I voted 'no way' because it's just a color on the wall that I see. No design skill. Just paint.

All is not equal. Some people have the freedom to do what they want in a space they own. Others have rentals. Some have lots of money to invest. Some, alas, do not (but hopefully will one day).

Still, the idea is the skillful use of colour given the conditions you have.

Given that the wooden kitchen cupboards and countertop are nothing to write home about (or at least, they aren't my taste) I think this entry falls because the paint does nothing to make it better. It's not because I don't like the colour itself, I love it, but I don't think the kitchen is improved at all by the paint job.

Nice color! I agree with Anne in Reno that curtains or a fabric Roman shade could be a really nice way to bring color into this to make it a true contender.

I also agree with ocgrl, and if anyone shouldn't be throwing stones about nasty comments, it's Bobby Jones.

I like the color. I'm a huge fan of the color blue this color seems more blue green which I also love. You went with a semi-gloss I see makes sense in the kitchen especially if you actually cook. That's my problem - I just painted and although I so wanted color I ended up with the same boring semi white paint. I had to change my stove which I love cause after a while ( I do cook often) the color white on appliances starts yellowing or something). Anyway, my counter is white tiles which again is sooo boring. I simply added colors in the smaller appliances n my lil knick knacks. Love your space- thanks for sharing and inspiring me- maybe nxt time I'll just shock myself and do it!!

Huh? Clutter + old cabinets + blue paint = fabulous? Right...

To quote opop on a colored wall in someone else's earlier entry: "meh"

Hmmm...interesting choice. Turquoise. Tres trashy. People who live in glass crap shouldn't throw stones, opooponast.

I voted no way. Don't know what kind of theme you are trying to go with the kitchen or maybe you just don't have one, but with that color blue in an old kitchen like that just isn't working for me. Maybe if you had a decoration or two on the wall underneath the cabinets or an appliance or two on the countertop possibly I could get more of a cheery vibe from it.

It just seems deperessing to me.

I would have liked to see more, but I like the way this blue works in the space.

And I don't get the "Opo's a Big Meanie...nyah!" comments. Right now I'm *flailing* in my space and I've found her commentary on my pics to be both courteous and useful.

Ah, now I realize why I'd ignored Opo's comments in the past. I agree with some of the others in that a nice wall color does not a decorator make. Or a designer. Or an artist. Or equate with talent of any sort. This wall color, though fine by itself, does NOT work well with those cabinets. And simply splashing a color on a wall, taken from an accent color in a single bowl, is not being creative with color, especially when that color doesn't really work all that well in the space. Where's Jonathan when we need him?

hmmm ... I think the counter-top stuff is too close together and crowded. Why not put that jar of preserves in the refrigerator? give those utensils are larger container?

boring boring boring.... this is the worst entry so far.

the landlord's gonna be pissed when he sees what you did.

I think the color is beautiful!

This is the first entry I have seen that actively and purposefully considers the refraction and reflection of light on a detailed scale when choosing a color. The result is a color that is diverse as people's clothing - a color that goes with sun, water, dirt, rain, snow, all kinds of food and all kinds of people who could be invited as guests. The reflectiveness of the paint has been chosen to exactly match the refletiveness of the surrounding materials. This is a color that makes your guests feel at home instead of making them feel that have entered a foreign domain controlled by the inhabitants. I think old and young, rich and poor, depressed and happy would feel comfortable as guests in this apartment. And I think this is one of the few colors that can accomplish that.

Is this real? I'm actually asking the question in all seriousness. When you look at it - the color, the bowl the color was picked up from, the utensils, and right on down the little jam jar and the Elvis record - I think we're all being played. Is it really so far-fetched to imagine that someone would orchestrate a mock photo shoot of a truly mixed-up space like this, Best in Show-style, just to get us all worked up? I think this entry rises to the level of farce, and is far too improbably kitschy to be real.

i must agree with Pedro and a few others that shiny turquoise paint on a bumpy wall does not go well with light brown cabinetry. it would fair better with a darker finished wood. there is also a glittered way-to-dark purple towel haphazardly stuck to the fridge [too] near the wall and cabinets, creating even more clash between colors and textures. i voted "no way" because the contest guidelines include showing how color works in a space. since this owner did not want to re-do or alter the existing cabinetry, turquoise was a poor use of color in the space, which is was too limited in the pictures for me to make a positive opinion on.

Take it easy on the OPP. Whatever you think of her kitchen, she is clearly working the program to make her space good for her. Personally, I don't like blue and brown together, but that's just me - it seems to work for a lot of people. I do like the lack of clutter and clearly she has been doing the work of the cure. Lay off her.

Matilda~Best therapy I've heard so far!

I don't think that blue is depressing or badly matched with the cabinets.....considering it's a rental...and how limiting life in a rental can be I think this is decent.

I am surprised however- that someone who is so analytical and critial of others spaces wouldn't then be really on target with their own acessories and homewares.

I think if the space was staged better there would have been much less backlash....but this is about color- and those colours are in fact nice together.

The negative comments seem to be coming from personal perspectives....

Lay off - - are you KIDDING me? This woman has single handledly ruined thread after thread across this entire site. Always critical, bitchy and defensive. What the hell did she expect?

I hear that, reap.

I love what you did with the bedroom.

I don't think the worst of Opo's comments are even a quarter as nasty as some posted here. Don't you people have enough nastiness in your daily lives? (work, commute, illness, etc.) Why do you want to contaminate this space, that is supposed to be fun? I used to think that someday I'd post pix of my place here for some advice. But now I say no, thanks. I don't need something that's a source of happiness and comfort be torn to shreds by strangers. I miss "the old days" of Apartment Therapy when people were constructive, pleasant and supportive, like Maxwell himself seems to be. I guess even virtual places can suffer from too many people knowing about them.

Athalie, Cielo, Philip, and the rest who are defending this entry, step back and look at it, don't think of it as being opoponax's apartment.
Just looking at it without any prejudice against her at all, I thiink it is a nice blue, but that's it, it is not a unique or creative or inspiring use of color. It is really just "eh". This isn't a contest about having a neat kitchen or "working the program" it is a contest about color and just simply using a pretty color and the walls around a really shabby kitchen is not enough.

The negative comments are apt, no matter what place (mentally) they are coming from.

And, I should note, there is nothing truly nasty here. And, looking at it with prejudice, nothing that she doesn't deserve given her big talk all these months and years.

very nice color. I'm not sure how well it "goes" in the sapce, but then again, almost nothing can help the gawd-awful kitchen cabinets most landlords throw into their rentals. except a good fire.

seriously, though: as someone who has had to work around said gawd-awful cabinets in two NYC apartments now (and who has no desire to remodel a kitchen she doesn't even own), I enjoy seeing what strategies people try to come up with.

I think Opoponax lives in my neighborhood! Yay, Opoponax! Good luck! Love the paint color.

Roger Doger: the opoponax is not that clever, she just isn't. She really thinks this is great and thinks she is better than all of us because she isn't rich and doesn't "decorate" like a magazine, and is a socialist and doesn't have health insurance and all the lame shit she been saying all along. And this is a great excuse for her to chalk our negative comments up to personal feelings.

The fact that on various threads she's claimed to be an artist, a filmmaker and a graphic designer is laughable given this entry. Her need to be right, her bragging, her big talk, the craziness;it's very telling. If you ask me, she has Narcissistic Personality Disorder and since there is no cure for that particular problem, I think we all just need to ignore her and let the people around her in the real world deal with her myriad problems.

I have to say this is the best thread in the whole contest.

What's up OPO? you're awfully quiet this time 'round...

mother. fucking. hilarious.

Take it and Mememe are both right on.

And why ARE so many of you being so defensive of Opo when the negative comments in response to her entry pale in comparison to her negative attitude and bitchiness towards others? Btw, my negative comments weren't spurred on by the fact that this entry is by Opo, but rather by the fact that this is simply a very poor entry for this contest.

If this is her "Happy Kitchen" seems like she's not been spending enough time in it

To borrow a line from Gertrude Stein, Opo's kitchen has "...no 'there' there". For all of the pointed criticisms and barbs she has thrown at others I did expect to see some modicum of talent, and clearly there is none.

However, I don't think her place is any worse (in fact I like it better) than several other entries that have been little more than paint jobs (that ghastly pink kitchen immediately comes to mind) that got a lot of praise. Fine to not like someone's design, but taking whacks at Opo just to help salve some old wounds isn't very fair.

First I'd like to say I love the color. Obviously not everyone w/agree. That's ok. What I find sad is how everyone who this contestant left a not-so-nice comment to is attacking her now. I've never seen anything like this - it's just too funny! You all need to step back and take deep breaths (it's a freakin contest!) so relax. Not everyone is going to like the same colors, not everyone is going to like the same decor or have the same sense of style that does not mean anyone elses style is better or gives anyone the right to insult someones taste or their personal space. Act like grown ups with a lil more respect towards one another. This is sooo high school. I applaud each contestant that has entered this fighting ring circus of a contest. It takes a lot to share your personal space and be attacked about what your doing or done wrong. I've heard minamalist attack those of us who like displaying their treasures and vice versa. Give it a break will ya? Each entry has it's own beauty and I personally luv 'em all. Too bad there are only a couple that win (i think?) anyway, thank yourselves that not everyone in this world shares your same style and taste because my God that would be sooooooo boring and there would be NO CONTEST!! Lastly, I'm hoping that everyone on this site would at least think about what your going to write in your nxt comment - be fair, be nice, and remember don't comment something you would not want to be commented to u.

needs more colors yellow and orange go good with this color

Easy folks! Bring this one in for a landing or we'll have to close it down......Remember, just putting your pics up here is a big step.

I'd be interested to read a well-reasoned argument from one of the folks who voted Instafinalist.

Oh n by the way Opoponax as well as myself and others I'm sure do not live in modern apartments most of us live in non-remodled apts that do not allow you to paint kitchen cabinets. You can, if you choose, remodel but that can be costly and sometimes in a rental not worth it unless your planning to rent there for a long time. So, under the circumstances I think her kitchen is fine. Not everyone can nor might not want to live in a newly remodled, modern apt. many, like myself prefer something with age and character instead.

I like the first photo, as a photo, I think it's beautifully realistic. The blue recedes the wall and brings out the orange tones of the wood cabinets and the warm color is repeated in the living things in the space, the center of the daisy and the brown egg. The amount of color and the balance in the photo feels right to me.

However, the second photo doesn't feel warm to me. For some reason it feels really cold, maybe it's the glare and the black frame on the elvis poster, maybe it's the mismached jars on the counter or the white stove next to the yellowed countertops. Maybe it's that the color is too saturated for the whole kitchen.

Whatever it is, thanks oppo for your feedback on my apartment. I too am a graphic designer (but you wouldn't know by my apartment). I love color, but can't see painting since we live in a rental and plan on moving in less than a year. So, I'll have to find more creative ways to bring in color.

Just an observation: neither Opo nor Jasmine can spell or use proper grammer. Hmmmmmmmm.

What is also really funny is that most if not all of the really nasty comments posted here are authored by people who are afraid to use the names they ordinarily post under.

and my 2 bits, you can't spell grammar. what does that prove? hmmmmm.
Do you all think that to be entitled to have an opinion about an art form that you have to be an expert practitioner in that art form? If so, there would be no art history departments, no New York Review of Books, no Rolling Stone...

Opo has the balls to show her apartment, she offers constructive criticism to those who seek it in the Cure threads, and refuses to worship at the altar of DWR when others drool over perfect, showroom style rooms like Pavlov's dogs. There's no crime in that.

i'm not really sure how to, or whether to, respond at all here.

i certainly have no plans to respond to the whiners. you don't like my apartment. don't worry, you will never be invited over.

i would also like to thank those who left kind words. i'm glad others like this and see what i'm trying to do here. also, hello to my fellow cure-takers!

a few other responses:

the color is Behr's Winter Surf. it's a really interesting color because it looks so different in different lights and at different times of the day. it was also incredibly, incredibly difficult to photograph, and i'm still not happy with the result.

believe it or not, this really is almost all there is of this kitchen. the only thing missing is sink area and the view from the other direction, which is dominated by the fridge (which you can partly see in the first photo), a metro shelving unit, and the trash can. the whole space isn't bigger than a minute.

one could look at this as "all you did was slap a coat of paint on the walls", or one could see it as "all you needed to do was slap a coat of paint on the walls." this is a kitchen, people, and a 75 square foot one at that. there's no furniture, and not much room for more art than i've already incorporated. i've got herbs growing in a sunny flowerpot and my kitschy cow gravy boat set in the windowsill. there's a mat you can't see. and when you have less than 10 feet of narrow counter space, you learn not to crowd it up with extra appliances, utensils, and doodads. if i owned my own place (or it seemed like i'd spend the next 20 years here), i'd gladly rip out the old fixtures and get new ones (preferably green-painted ikea like that other entry!), tile in a proper backsplash, etc. but i don't own, and who knows what a year or two will bring? so i've chosen to decorate with paint and colorful kitchen tools (most of which you can't see here, alas). if you've ever clicked over to my flickr set, you'll see that it's much better than it used to be.

and one more little side note -- i have never, on this site, claimed to be an artist. i have also never to my memory bragged about being a 'designer' or 'filmmaker'. i was accused of that by my little bogey-person in the comments of another contest entry. i'm not really sure what i am, yet. my career is in a creative field, i have made and worked on films many times, and the bulk of what i do with my day on the job is design-related. i don't say that to brag or gloat or try to make my opinions sound more correct. it's just simple fact. what am i supposed to do, lie and say i work in finance or teach kindergarten?

one thing design is about, much more than having the right stuff or styling your place like a magazine shoot, is making your space work for you and accomplishing specific aesthetic goals. my goal here was to create a kitchen that is functional, organized, and attractive as possible under the constraints of budget, time, and my very small space. in my opinion, i've accomplished all those goals. thus, i feel pretty confident about my skills. and that's all i really care about right now.

Yes Opo has the balls to show her apt, but when she basically pontificates and comes across as a know-it-all, one would have expected something better than this crap. Therefore, all harsh comments are justified.

To (my 2bits or whateva)~
Check your own spelling before you correct others. Thank you ocgrl for that "observation" Just goes to prove some folk just don't get it. My spelling is bad as well as my grammar but so what? I'm perfect in my field of interest-which doesn't require perfect grammar. I have degrees in my field of work that pay very well. So, think before you stick your foot in your mouth.

While,Opop. may have made negative comments in the past (as many people have), I don't remember them being overtly nasty or personal, but whatever...I hate reading all these off-topic pointless posts that clutter up the blog. I haven't visited the blog recently, because I find those kinds of comments annoying. I don't think everyone on here is a design professional. I certainly am not, but I still feel that I can comment on what does or does not appeal to me. Would that be reflected in my own apartment? Perhaps not...it's easier to criticize than to do, which is why we need others' constructive criticism.

For an on-topic point, I like the color of blue..and especially appreciated that you were working with cabinets that are much like mine in my rented apartment. I do think I've seen other entries that have a more sort of complex treatment (like in living rooms where there are accessories and layers of color...), but it's not awful either.

Rock On Opoponax! I am proud of you for taking your stance and reasonably defending yourself.

But why would such a reasonable and informed (longtime) AT reader make a submission like this one. You have seen all of the other entries, right? There are some heavy hitters this year, and it only takes a "reasonable" amount of asethetic sense to weed out the winners, which I KNOW you are capable of doing. So why? Why enter this room, when all you have to say about the space is:

"this is a kitchen, people, and a 75 square foot one at that. there's no furniture, and not much room for more art than i've already incorporated."

This has nothing to do with whether or not you own or rent, are a designer or a teacher, are rich or poor - its a contest and your entry is sub-par. The wall color is lovely, but thats it. People should be submiting EXCEPTIONAL entries that actually have a shot of winning. Some of the entries have just blown me (and judging by the comments) and everyone else away - this entry was weak, and not one we would expect from such an active AT member.

If you are "working the cure", well good for you and the best of luck - but please, submit your entry when you are all finished and actually have something to show, because no one wants to be bothered with another photograph of a nicely painted wall.

Ok, I've got to know... is the Opoponax based on the "character" (for lack of a better word) in Black House? It's funny to me because that's what I call my cat.

I had to vote no way. If these are the 2 pics that best represent that color used in the apartment, I don't think it works. Mostly bcs the color doesn't really work imo.

And I know Opo says she doesn't go by 'rules' but one thing that these photos reinforced to me is never use gloss on bumpy walls. Gloss paint highlights bumps. Go as flat as possible if you're not going to take the time to sand. Even in a kitchen, flat is fine as long you add a small additive. Any person at a paintstore can guide you.

Well, I'm impressed that Opo painted the heat pipe in the corner blue along with the walls. I've been putting off painting my kitchen because I know it's going to difficult to get around that pipe, especially now that it's hot! :-)

I am convinced there are like three highly affronted people with Eames chairs posting over and over, which is kind of cracking me up. I have never seen so many anonymous posts or random names that are clearly meant to send anonymous messages (schadenfreude?!)

Seriously, this is not a winning entry, but people who are posting over and over need to not take this so seriously.

What would be ironic if if Opopo's apartment was chock-full of Eames chairs! That would crack me up, but she's made it pretty clear that she is a struggling artist and that she isn't into high-end furniture like DWR. Her entry seems to exemplify this outlook.

I even love the posts exhorting her to get into the fray, because it's so clear that those posters are dying to see hurt feelings/anger.

Okay, so re-reading, she is not a struggling artist, just a struggling creative type. Sorry 'bout that!

Not as sorry as she is! Y'know what would go great with these walls? Tammy Fae eye shadow! I bet sister oppo would look good, eyes a-flutter, in her kitchen, color a-nutter!!!

Good answers Opo

The blue color is nice. The bleach spotted dish rag in the first photo is nasty.

And it's "grammar" not "grammer".

What "bleach spotted dish rag" are you looking at?

a couple more things. that '75 square feet' comment was a direct response to people who said i should have more appliances, art, etc. on display to better layer colors. also to those who wanted to see "more" of the kitchen. not a defense of "my space sucks, because, hey, it's really small and c'mon, it's a KITCHEN"

also, in my defense about why i chose this, submitted these pictures, etc. knowing what the competition would be. i didn't. i submitted my entry relatively early in the game, when there were only a few entries up on the site. not many of which were the big showstoppers of the contest. the only mistake i really made was in assuming that those entries were representative of the bunch to come and not working as hard as i could to get better photographs or choosing more wisely which part of my space to submit.

but you know, i entered this contest with more of a "hey, what do i have to lose?" attitude than a "omigod i MUST WIN THAT C2 GIFT CERTIFICATE!" approach. i did it for fun and to see what people would say.

and man has it been fun reading these comments today...

constructive criticism: I'd take the picture in the evening with no flash, or at least when there is less glare from the outside. borrow a wide-angle lens for the shot and give us more! also, i'd add some window treatments. i know it's a kitchen, and I don't have a curtain in there, but I do have a little metal bird hanging in the window. In any case, I think that window has some untapped potential!
I love blue and green, and blue-green, so I do like this color. since this is an older apt, I imagine these are plaster walls and therefore having paint show the texture is not a bad thing.
The color looks very saturated in the 2nd pic, and the whole thing reminds me of a 50's diner. If I were you, I would work with that, and you're on your way with the elvis record.

thrifty people can still have good taste in home decor. stop defending this nonsense, there is no good use of color here. that's it.

Big props to Opoponax for replying to her critics with such grace. This isn't a prize-winning entry but I've always been impressed by the constructive criticism she offers up (namely in my own "Good Question" posting). I really hate to see so many posters gleefully ripping her place to shreds but maybe it's just a couple of disgruntled Eames fans, whose apartments Opoponax criticized, posting under many aliases.

To:My 2 Bits, I can't spell either, but it never fails that someone who brings up grammar spells it wrong. Bad move dude.

I am very opinionated and have very specific ideas about color, as many people know and I have had some very heated clashes with opopnox recently. She can be very harsh and I think that is why so many people are afraid to use their names, I;m a little afraid right now, but what do I have to lose?

This is what I;m gonna say: I think this is a really pretty color and it is a good place to use color especially given the limitations of a rental apartment. But, this is not a winning entry. You could have done so much more even with those limitations.

Just looking at your pictures I have 100 simple cheap ideas. for instance:
-stripes of paint or a detail bringing the brown in like a painted pickstitch or a pin stripe an inch above the counter backsplash.
-The cabinets do not need to remain like this, you can use contact paper, foamcore, sheets of veneer tacked on with liquid nails or any of a million art supplies that could be inexpensive and removable. A visit to kate's Paperie might give you a hundred ideas.
-You could cover them with picture frames with tinted black and whites. You could use photoshop (or even microsoft word) to tint any photo or scanned image a hue of the blue on the wall. -you could use any framed art you already have, using those 3m removable hooks or ook nails and later fill them with plastic wood when you move.
-You could create collages with some of the graphic design elements that you like then laminate them and place them in the center of the cabinets using the edge rails like frames.
-You could use masking tape and a decorative paint technique to create a frame on the cabinet (the masking tape stays on until you remove it if you start with a very clean surface). Just mitre the corners and paint over the tape then fill the center of the cabinets with anything that you like.
-You could even use a flour paste with glitter in it that will wash off when you leave to give the cabinets something beyond what you have to work with.

To begin with.

Leslie in Adams Morgan- they sell a roller that you can use to paint tubes and pipes and such, it is called Shur-Line Quick Pro Pipe Roller. I am sure any paint store can order it for you.

Colleen,

I think your post was very constructive, actually. I just have to say, though, why would people be afraid? I really doubt that opoponax (or anyone else here) is going to hunt someone down in person because they didn't like semi-gloss.

I'm not singling out Colleen, because "afraid" just have been a figure of speech, but the mean posts in this thread show that some people take a message board way too seriously. No one is going to literally kick your ass over a post, and if Opoponax or anyone else has completely different tastes, WHO CARES?

Opo - you are right, this has been a blast.
I love this years color contest comments!

But especially this thread, even Maxwell had to step in and start enforcing.

When you lie, sometimes you forget what you lied about.

"i use a PC at work and a Mac at home. which is ironic, considering i'm a graphic artist and that's one of the things Macs are supposed to be best about. whereas, seriously, at home i pretty much just surf the net and such. and my secret PC gamer streak would be much better served by a machine that can, well, run PC games. in addition to all that, my office is pretty dependent on this one graphics program which isn't available for Mac. which is probably going to bite me in the ass when i get out into the 'real' world of the Officiallly Trained Million Dollar Graphic Designers' Club (tm).
Posted by the opoponax at 10/02/06 7:03 PM"

colleen -- i am really quite flattered, but please, you can stop being afraid of me now. i am a tiny 5 foot tall white girl with limp hair and a raging sinus flare-up. what, do you think i'm going to track you down and throw empty claritin packets at you?

i remember a different kitchen entry in this very contest which was dissed for using paper to dress up the drab cabinetry. i feel like no matter what i submitted, it would have been ripped to shreds. which is partly why i chose the kitchen. i'm prouder of my bathroom, but it's my refuge. i'd hate to have to associate it with a bunch of shitheads on the internet.

i know there are lots of ways one could kick it up a notch in the kitchen. i've debated back and forth about painting or refinishing the cabinets. and i think a lot of your ideas sound cute. but it's not for lack of ideas that i've let things stay laid back in there. seriously, it's just not me. it's kind of like why i don't wear makeup or heels or miniskirts. and people will stop me and say, "oh, you'd look so cute with a little bit of rouge." yes, i probably would. but i wouldn't look like me. and the same goes in my home. i'm sure i could have the most discofabulous glittery kitchen in the world. but it wouldn't ever feel like my kitchen. this does.

re: "but it's my refuge. i'd hate to have to associate it with a bunch of shitheads on the internet."

You have some nerve.

wow. the claws are really coming out here.

i never said i wasn't a graphic artist or that i'd never said it here. i said i wasn't AN ARTIST (i'm not), and that i'd never BRAGGED about being a designer, filmmaker, what have you, or held that up as some reason my opinion should count any more than anyone else's.

ok. i've been outed. i'm a graphic artist. lead me to the guillotine...

and p2.

do you really think that some of the comments in here are not prime examples of shitheaddery?

i mean, come on.

ok, backing away from this thread...

I just find it funny that when the claws are pointed at you, the negativity aimed at you, and the "constructive criticism designed to "help you", suddenly *we* are the sh!theads.

But I do give you total credit for entering the contest.

it's not you, or any regular poster, or anyone who didn't specifically get insanely, ridiculously out of hand who that comment was directed at.

people are not being shitheads for criticizing me, in general. i expected it, and a lot of it is constructive or at least 'point taken.' it's stuff like this:

"the opoponax is not that clever... thinks she is better than all of us because she isn't rich... is a socialist and doesn't have health insurance and all the lame shit she been saying all along...

The fact that on various threads she's claimed to be an artist, a filmmaker and a graphic designer is laughable given this entry. Her need to be right, her bragging, her big talk, the craziness;it's very telling. If you ask me, she has Narcissistic Personality Disorder... "

which, i'm sorry, as much as i might deserve it for being mouthy in the past, is just not right or fair or appropriate in any way. AKA shitheadded.

Opoponax: I am not afraid of you physically, I am tall and strong and have great hair because of my superior DNA. I am afraid, or more to the point, discourgaged by your snide remarks and unrelenting need to be right.

I realize that my ideas are so very cute and twee, but you live in a rental apartment and are often complaining about money and rich people on this board, that is why i offered only inexpensive ideas, I felt you would have mocked me if I offered something in my own price range; you know you're not the only one who feels she can't win. I hope you do do something with those cabinets, and I hope you'll share the kitchen with us when it's done.

One last thing, if you felt no matter what you submitted it would have been ripped to shreds, why didn't you submit it under a different name? And then see what people said without the gauze of knowing it was you. I mean, I could never tell from these pictures that this was your kitchen.

Maybe you should try that for the next contest. A project no one knows is yours then you can see what people really think of your work.

just an FYI: Graphic Designer and Graphic Artist are not the same job. You can certainly be both, but you can be a graphic artist and not a designer.

re: "i feel like no matter what i submitted, it would have been ripped to shreds."

Why do you think that is?

Not being snarky, actually interested in your answer...

Opo isn't scary. What's really frightening is when people start talking about their "superior DNA" and their money.

hey, can anyone post a link or two to some of opo's nastiest comments? I'd like to know what all the fuss is about.

Yeah, colleen, when do we get a glimpse of YOUR picture-perfect manse?!?!

Patrick, I'm not sure what you're driving at. Did I say something that led you to this comment?

In any event, this is my last place in the link below. We recently moved and have been living amongst the renovations. But, i'd be happy to share once things are completed.

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/ny/pet-decor-2006-entries/my-designs-dreamy-colleens-gilded-cage-011071

Oh, I see it, "my own price range" yes, that sounded bad. I miswrote, I was thinking of two things, I was going to say, in a higher price range or what my prefences would be, then I just edited to say something else and I messed it up. I type too fast.

Just wanted to see where people with "superior DNA" were living these days.

Oh Lord I didn't see the other one. NY and Patrick (too)!?! That was a joke about the DNA. In response to Opoponax's comment about being a 5 foot tall stringy haired white girl, which was also in a joking tone. Please, I am sure opoponax didn't even take that seriously. For heaven's sake. Does no one around here have a sense of humor?

You all need to RELAX.

You are definitely the same colleen I thought you were.

I was "kidding" too. Maybe you need to relax.

I have an excellent sense of humor, btw.

Patrick, would you please e-mail me.

This entry is not worthy of a prize when placed next to other contestants. This is her place and it works for her.

what's the problem?

My goodness, people. Let's pass around the "chill pills". I'm not quite sure what I missed here, but if we are to judge anything solely from the above two photos - I've got to say that I think it is quite attractive. I don't absolutely love it or want to copy it, but I don't live there either.

Sigh.... this has been most entertaining! Voted No. Just like any other entry that doesn't really tell me anything from just looking - seems more worthy of a ColourTherapy submission. I do like the colour, reminds me of my home office.

Regarding the negative comments - considering the ire here that Opo has sparked in the past, I'm not surprised and quite frankly found the anon responses most entertaining even when they have been particularly cruel. If I recall correctly she did indicate not so long ago that she was considering removing her entry before it was posted...dare I say that wiser heads did not prevail...

Ummm, I know this is an old comparison, but is it just me or does this thread have the same kind of mean-girls-vibe that the public had for Kathy-Lee when Frank was set up?

If we can get back to the AT mode...The kitchen looks clean, which I'm sure was difficult to achieve with an old in-need-of-gut-rehab kitchen. But from all these thread entries, I like to gain something that I want to try or feel that I can attempt to try. I'm not getting that from this entry. I don't see the paint-color catching the refraction of light. If I wanted to spruce the kitchen up I think that I would have painted the steam pipes a slightly darker/deeper shade with a splash of metallic. The window trim appears blotched. The excess paint should be cleaned up. If "the formica countertop" that "is worn and stained from years of use" really bothers you, I would replace it. In a small kitchen, it would not cost that much, as in paint and supplies don't cost that much. If you feel that you have "a lack of space" that "means lots of open storage," then I don't really understand the three-object still photo that you submitted. It just seems that the corner would be to valuable space-wise for that kind of artsy display.

Apologies to Colleen. She's gone to great lengths to let me know I offended her and that she feels like I am picking on her, which certainly was not ever my intent.

Patrick2: You are a true gentleman. Thank you.

Yes, a true gentleman who uses his real name.

Patrick is also a phenominal designer and a super decorator and an all around good guy. He didn't have to say anything nice to me tonight but he did, I didn't deserve it, but he was still a gentleman. That says more about his character than anything, you know?

The truth is I don't use my real name because I don;t have the guts, but he does and that is really huge.

Colleen's post guised in "humour" did come across as demeaning. This excerpt is very telling:

(to opoponax) " I realize that my ideas are so very cute and twee, but you live in a rental apartment and are often complaining about money and rich people on this board, that is why i offered only inexpensive ideas, I felt you would have mocked me if I offered something in my own price range; "

A wry bit elitist of her.

opoponax, keep being yourself. Props for sticking up for your space. If that's how you like it, then ultimately that's all that matters.

Do yourself a favour though, discover who Charles and Ray Eames were, and you too may get an appreciation of their body of work. See past the trendiness and you may actually like what you find.

i know who they were and what they stood for, and why their designs were and still are so innovative. i love the eameses and most of their work to death.

that's why i find their designs' use as bougie status symbols so annoying. it just runs so counter to what their stuff was designed for.

oh, and p2 wanted to know last night why i assumed i'd be subjected to this.

well i knew i was in for it in general after not being terribly polite in some threads on this site. at that point i was basically aware that if i could dish it out, i was going to have to take it. but i was prepared for that and perfectly ok with it. and then the debacle of that thread where people started coming out of the woodwork for no particular reason to harrass me. that was literally 2 days before i had to make my final decision about my submission. that was the thread that led to me choosing the kitchen, and the thread that told me that it wasn't just going to be gloves-off, it was going to be insane. maybe i should have decided not to enter at all. but honestly, i was curious as to what people would think and whether the positive comments would outweigh the assholery. i also definitely wanted constructive criticism, which has been really helpful here despite some of the other stuff.

for instance window treatments. this is one of those areas i'm just not very skilled at yet, and am kind of tiptoeing around the concept of how to do a window treatment without it looking too overdone, or whatever. i sort of like the idea of something really classic and almost kitschy, but it would have to be laid back and sensible. that windowsill gets so grimy, and i'd hate to find myself washing curtains every weekend.

also, colleen. and i say this without trying to attack or pick on you at all. your comments about my "price range" and suggesting all kinds of cheapie Trading Spaces decorative fixes did come off as sort of condescending. not necessarily towards me specifically, but towards anyone who rejects the class-oriented hierarchy of home decor. if you can't afford your DWR and Room and Board and custom tiled kitchen, well then your only recourse is to hide behind a cheapo craft project. which isn't true AT ALL. i like my apartment (well, most of it). i decorate not to hide the shame of being a renter, but to enhance what, at the end of the day, is a pretty cool apartment which i really love. my M.O. isn't so much to mask flaws but to bring out something cool i might not have noticed before. which i feel that i've done here so far.

Thanks, Colleen, for the info. about the shur-line quick pro pipe roller. I'll look into it in the spring when the heat's turned off!

Leslie

I loved the color of the kitchen wall but like some, I was disapointed with the fact this was all there was to the entry-colorwise that is.

I rented for about twenty years and the last place I would show is my kitchen, since by nature as a renter, it's one of the places in the apt. where you have the least input/control. I would love to see Opps other areas (bedroom, den. etc.)

This thread has more fallout than Chernobyl. Yechh. I haven't read many of OPP's posts, but I don't think most of this was necessary. You could paint a large house with all the blood that was spilled here.

It seems people took this all too seriously. Just remember though, "a critic is someone who knows where you are going, but can't drive the car."

I see turquoise, tan, black, white and silver-very nice!

My first kitchen, a rental, I painted the same turquoise. It really woke up the nasty yellow/brown/white linoleum and made a dreary kitchen I couldn't alter very livable. Maybe this kitchen isn't fresh out of the catalog-du-jour, but it's bright, clean and fun. Love the elvis touch!

I think I may be the only freak in the universe not bothered by those rental cabinets. :p I think they actually work nicely with the blue.

And I like the naked window. I'd hate to wash kitchen curtains all the time when I could just wipe down a naked window and enjoy the light and my birdie canisters instead.

I think I may be the only freak in the universe not bothered by those rental cabinets. :p I think they actually work nicely with the blue. There's a nice harmony to me about all the elements in the shot that look lived in and happy.

And I like the naked window. I'd hate to wash kitchen curtains all the time when I could just wipe down a naked window and enjoy the light and my birdie canisters instead.

I think it's great that OPP entered. It gives us all a lot of context in which to place her past and future comments on other threads, and for that service, I thank her.

As for the color in this entry ... it's certainly a pretty shade of blue. I would have preferred to see it set off by other colors -- perhaps more plants, perhaps with different accessories, but the kitchen has the beginnings of that urban-rustic look with its emphasis on different textures and one strategically "funky" color.

I'm not sure if this is correct, but I think Opo once provided a link to pics of her apartment, possibly under a "cure" thread, and I remember being surprised, considering her strong opinions, that it seemed rather like my home-- that is, imperfect and a work in progress, which she freely admitted.

And I felt relieved. Because I have opinions too that don't necessarily reflect digital photos of my home. I hate clutter aesthetically but somehow I manage to live with it on a continualll... daily basis. I don't think you necessarily have to "walk the walk" to post a comment. It's still your honest opinion and as long as you don't misrepresent where you're coming from, I'n not going to hold you to living in a spread out of Elle magazine.

That said, Opo likes her space, so this may not apply to her directly. I'm just saying.

Brava to Opop for her entry, since she knew she'd be slammed. That takes guts.

I love the blue color, esp. its texture (is that the photograph, or does it really look like that?); wish there were more to see.

All the snarky comments -- how rich! how silly! how interesting! AT demonstrates just how like a "real" (bricks and mortar? flesh and blood?) community an Internet gathering can become, with the difference that traditionally private sneers of disapproval can be turned up louder and made public under the safety of anonymity.

...what a marvelous species we are...

Quick clarification -- I don't mean the snarky comments are marvelous, I mean that the intensity of the emotion and the insistence on expressing it makes us a rather marvelous (if also frustrating, confusing, infuriating) species. Taken to extremes, huge disasters result (wars, for instance, and various forms of reprehensible abuse, among many possible examples). But in this forum, the vibrant language of some of the negative posts inspires chuckles. This is *not* to celebrate or chuckle at those that are pointlessly cruel and stupid, of which there are several.

So, happilyeverafter is your real name?

Fair question. Real name is Robin [as in Batman, red breast, Rockin', etc.], which I think will become my new sig.

This is my official last posting as happilyever (though that perfectly describe how I feel about my home).

Thank you, P(too)!

O-poopy-pants and Pattycakes (patrick the other one) sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G. you babes were made for each other. pattycakes is just jealous of this fab kitchen. his colors ain't as bold and true blue. patty=pants, send us links to your apartment pics from smallest coolest and let's have at it! let us eat cake! pattycake!

Look at what this thread has done. Joan has had a total nervous breakdown.

so i've been browsing my flickr set of pictures of this kitchen, and i'm really kicking myself for shooting new photos to submit here rather than just submitting two of those. i reshot the kitchen because i wanted my submission to be a bit more styled. i think that really backfired. i kind of felt that if i submitted the flickr photos people would poke fun at the wire sticking out of the wall, trash can in full view, cooking clutter on the counter as we're in the middle of dinner prep, etc.

but A) so what? and B) the whole reason i made the color choices i did in here was so that the kitchen would look good every day, not just after careful styling. i wanted the functional to be decorative in its very act of being functional (if that makes any sense), rather than the functional needing to be styled away. i think my art directing just sterilized it and made it seem like something it's not. not to mention that the styling made it look like 'all i did' was paint a wall and that there weren't any layers or accents or contrasts going on. the layers and accents and contrasts ARE the very things i ended up art directing out of the shots.

this is NOT, by the way, meant to be a defense or a plea to vote for me anyway on the basis of my flickr set. it's just a rumination. do whatever you want, i don't care.

i'm very new to AT...actually since this contest started and my coworker had showed me his submission. which inspired me to submit mine, however it may or may not be posted since so many entries were submitted.
but i will say that from being on this site practically everyday since the october 8th, i've learned a new word...aptly named snarky. needless to say b/c of so much snarkiness (almost every single entry has them, and some have multitudes..) it has really taken away from the underlining purpose, which is sharing/learning new design/artistic/painting ideas.
however being an artist,a single mom and a renter on an extremely tight budget (i have NO problem going to the thrift store...they have some of the neatest things!) i have gotten quite a few inexpensive ideas from many of the suggestions/constructive critiques.

opoponax i love the color and texture of your walls. the composition of the first photo reminds me of an french country kitchen. simply beautiful! :-)

thank you for sharing your home.

dredsista--
If it's any consolation, the contests seem to bring out the worst of the snarkiness. Afterwards, it settles down a bit. So hang in there.

Oh c'mon Dredsista, the Snarkiness is what keeps you coming back day after day! Admit it.

I will save you 15 minutes reading this thread and summarize:

1. This entry is pretty bad, but at least she'll get a book. We love the book!

2. People are often ruthless on the Internet and always have been.

3. The Eameses rock.

This is a very late post. I've been away from the site for 2 weeks.

Love the color and the spareness of the space. In fact, I kind of am digging the high gloss paint that actually accentuates the uneveness of the walls. Gives it a whole new texture.

Alas, the space/photos don't give me enough to go on to say yes on this -- not that it would matter given I'm past the dealine, but they do really pique my curiosity to see how the rest of the apartment play.

Is the rest of the space so well edited and utilitarian with splashes of color used to enhance that aspect? That would be a rough discipline to pull of well, but if you did, I expect there's a sort of raw soul to your space that you must love to come home to.

Now to add my 2 cents to the off topic nature of these posts. Folks, it's true that in the past some of Opoponax has posted some pretty rough, ney, rude comments. And that she was a bit rigid in her ideology. But then one of two things happened. Or both...not sure.

One i found out that she was in her early/mid-20s so a bit of her rigidiness (which really isn't the right word, but let's go with it) seemed almost age appopropriate.

Or two, somehow she started to couch her criticisms a little better. And by god, her comments didn't come off just as putdowns, but more as being insightful. Not all the time, but recently I've found her comments really have added a lot into the mix.

Could be I just started approaching her feedback differently, so it came off differently. I don't know.

I think it's great to have different take/points of view on any given post or problem.

i got the stains of my formica with bleach neat out of the bottle and left to stand for a bit then whiped away hopes this helps!