apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I saw that this morning and almost gagged. That's just crap. Those sofas must have cost more than most people make in a year and she let a bunch of spoiled kids scribble on the thing. Well, at least it is sort of Kate Spade-esque in that way.
The NY Times Home Section has been a disappointment for me lately. It used to be something that I looked forward to every Thursday.

i think it's really fantastic. i mean, i wouldn't do it with a sofa that expensive, but i think it is a pretty sweet philosophy overall, and not a bad look in the right home (ie. not your own)

That looks horrible! Must be nice to be able afford to trash a beautiful sofa like that!

I honestly think that sofa looks badass, but I have to admit... deep down this strikes me as just preposterously indulgent of the children. "the children have choosen most of the colors in the house"... let me tell you, thats how my dad ended up w/teal carpets in the bedroom and pink in the living room.

i think she can easily have them reupholstered. they were covered in muslin - which means they weren't upholstered yet.

I like that sofa a lot better than some sturdy boring kid-friendly ugly sofa someone got because they can't have nice things because they wanted children instead. I'd rather just have both, because I can't stand going in with the philosophy that the home belongs to the children, so everything has to look like it came from a toy store with rubber bumpers and easy-to-clean fabrics.

I didn't have a chance to look at the whole place yet, but so far, it's pretty interesting that the living room is intentionally decorated rather than relinquished to the toy box, with grown-up featured rugs, lamps, and furniture, and no toys lying out. It's clean for what it is. The loft space is hopefully in a kid's bedroom or play area specifically designated, but oh, who really cares. I don't have to live there.

While it won't be my choice to trash a house like that I really dig that striped rectangular rag (for my son's playroom, NOT in a living room!) Does anybody knows where is it from? Thx!

Her house is gorgeous and stunningly original. Beautiful mix of prints. No one else will have them and she won't get tired of them because her children created them (well, two of them). Love the clash of prints and rugs together.

one word: tacky

GOOD FOR HER!!

i think the livingroom would be really bland and sucky if it werent for the coloring on the furniture.

Kinda like the lively look of it all -- nonetheless (-!) -- allowing the chyldrun to dictate such major design choices gives them a seriously elevated sense of entitlement.

Closely related, a great read: "Kindergarchy -- Every Child a Dauphin." http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/015/161yutrk.asp

Fun idea. I wouldn't want to sit on that sofa though, for fear of cheap marker ink rubbing off on my clothes.

I agree with KTG to an extent. She has some beautiful things in her home that the kids aren't trashing. There aren't toys everwhere--in fact, I liked the idea of her son's toys being hung in labeled ziploc bags.

Clearly, she has given them permission to add to certain areas of the house and provide their input, which I think is a great creativity stimulant.

While most of can't afford (or wouldn't want to look at) a marker-covered sofa, I don't think it's a bad philosophy to apply to a home with children. Give them a space in the house as a unit (not in a bedroom or playroom) where the kids can contribute and teach them about art and aesthetics. Maybe let your kids paint a wall or draw within a picture molding. It's something I'd look back on fondly.

loved the whole house -- even the sofa.

I recently saw his sofas for sale somewhere and while not cheap, they aren't really what most people make in a year (unless most people make under 5k a year).

Also, nice to see a woman for a change -- and a woman who made her own damn money herself.

Most people in the world make under $5000 per year. I suppose she could always reupholster them. However, having just spent $2000 to reupholster my couch, I think that is one expensive marker party for the kids.
I do think some of her light fixture ideas are pretty inspirational, and I love the mix of high and low.

This is awesome! Way to let loose!

Gasp, gasp! OMG....I'm all for 'kid spaces/areas', but this furniture is hideous and there's no way I would allow that on this type of furniture. Great DIY project....build little kid furniture and allow them to decorate their own furniture for their rooms.

God, awful.

I wish I had the balls to do that! I love her house and esp. her wallpaper. And I love it that she encourages her kids to be creative and unconstrained.

Lord, if we're talking about what most people in the WORLD can afford, then you better just scratch this whole site.

Meanwhile, this sofa was never upholstered in the first place. Muslin is under the upholstery. So no need to REupholster since she hasn't even upholstered yet. It's kind of like drawing on the walls before you wallpaper.

The kids (or Keith Haring or whoever) didn't scribble on hand loomed silk. And Julianna points out the obvious, but of course, that never stops anyone hellbent on being offended.

Meh, it's not like the stuff is permanently ruined. Whatever floats your boat I guess. Definitely not my thing though.

I'm not inviting those graffit brats over to my place.

As for the mother, "How desperate do you have to be to allow your children to do this?"

Oy.

This is just so disturbing to me!

This is FANFREAKINTASTIC! I love the creativity of "designing" your own furniture upholstery (such as it is), and I love the paint colors throughout the house, the wallpapers, and pretty much everything else. And, what a cool idea is that to store small toys in ziploc bags hung on a pegboard??!! No wonder Ms. Bell made millions...with such a creative mind she apparently cannot only think outside the box, she can build a whole new box! Her home is an eternal celebration. I bet there's lots of laughter going on in there.

These rooms look wonderful, to my eye. I think it's important to add, though, that much of the charm (for those of us who find it charming) comes from the contrast between the childish scribbles and the drop dead pre-war apartment surrounding them. Nothing like high ceilings and gorgeous moldings to lend a hip, ironic vibe to furnishings that in my (much smaller) living room would look . . . well, not at all ironic. Setting here is key. I like playful and elegant together; takes the edge off the self-conscious wealth aspect of this place.

Totally against this. Children have to learn their place in the world, and it isn't deciding design in their parents' home.

BTW, that "Kindergarchy" article was horrifying.

Horrid.
Just quite simply absolutely tremendously HORRID.
Both in appearance and in principle.
Teaching the kids it's okay to draw and color on the furniture?! Young children don't understand you can color on THIS couch, but not on THAT one. What happens when they're at the neighbor's house or at relatives? They've been taught it's fine to color on the furniture, so they're going to do it there too.

I change my original stance.... not, it's horrid AND stupid.

I saw that article yesterday and initially thought it a bit misguided to entrust home design to one's children. But if that graffiti sofa were in one of the children's rooms, the idea might be more palatable; I would never place a piece of furniture decorated in that manner in my living room.

I have sort of mixed feelings about this. It's great that she encourages her children to be creative, but the fact that she sounds a tad disappointed that they haven't seized birds from Takashimaya and painted them seems a little odd.

It seems like there's a happy medium between encouraging your kids to be creative and allowing them to do whatever to anything in your house because it strikes them.

Of course, she's filthy rich, so I guess it's easier to not be attached to things!

I freaking LOVE it!!! So refreshing!

Love it. This person can clearly afford it and she encouraged her children to decorate.
I heard the kids are ruined - drawing on the couch was a gateway drug.

It's a very deliberate form of 'shabby chic'; the wallpapers are gorgeous, the light fixtures witty, and the sofa and chair are awful.

But I agree: if she wants to reupholster -- or upholster, period -- she can. And it's her bloody sofa, so she can do what she likes.

The Kindergarchy article is less reactionary than I thought; he's pretty thoughtful.

Ugly and ridiculous. It looks like a kindergarten, not a home.

The entire apartment looks like a smurf threw up rainbow candy on it, that or some high end daycare center for "special" children for those families where cousins marry a bit too often.
Not something I would brag about in a newspaper.

Both the apartment and the sickening diaperwhipped attitude give me the creeps.

Yuck! I sure wouldn't want to live with it. If she weren't one of the founders of Kate Spade, would anyone even be looking at this, let alone taking it seriously?

Your opinion may depend on whether you saw the article online or in the print newspaper. The photos online are quite beautiful, the ones in the paper not so much.

The comments about children being "taught their place" are interesting. She is encouraging her children to be creative. This is pretty typical in families where the parents went to universities. It doesn't necessarily mean they lack manners or sophistication. In all likelihood, they can probably go out to an expensive restaurant and make adult conversation. I doubt they run around in circles screaming or refuse to eat anything but chicken McNuggets. They also probably go to spectacularly good and academically demanding schools.

And as an adult of the house, she probably likes a little of the look, it's authentic to her, her children, and her children's friends. She wouldn't have said go crazy in here, she obviously limited it to a couple pieces. Liking kid-vandalism seems to go with her taste in other stuff, which I'm not too crazy about.

I do dislike the attitude of "we have made a big playroom of our house and let our kids ride bikes inside." It's not quite as obvious a turn as a primary colored plastic turtle toybox right in the living room, emptied, and coloring books on the coffee table, and sippy cups for your sneaky pete that most parents take, but it's indulgent of children, and it's weird.

In the case of this article, it looks to me, very obviously, this "space," some of the furniture but not all, is designated for kid fun. It even looks like they're done. I don't know that they continue to embellish it. Wherever this project was done, it looks like the kids were mature enough to realize they couldn't draw on everything, so there goes that argument. It just doesn't look like the typical "I want my kids to feel comfortable, so it's a sacrifice I made of the living room." It looks more like, "I can't decide what to upholster this and I love my kids' imaginations, so I bet that would be fun a while." Not everyone's taste, clearly, but it's not really fair to put this and that in the same category.

I'm sorry but this reminds me of my nephew who ruined EVERY SINGLE PIECE IN MY PORTFOLIO - years and years of work - by drawing on all of them when I wasn't home. My sister thought it was hilarious.

This looks pretty terrible, but Ms. Bell probably knows that already. I think these are featured to make a point about helping kids be creative and to not create a home which they don't feel a part of or in which they feel uncomfortable.

The only problem with it is that it shows how some people by virtue of their success or affluence live in very different realities than others. She can allow this because she has the money to wipe the slate clean while others do not. Others who are not living as she does can't relate to what has been done. It's a stretch too far from allowing your kids to pin up their artwork to feel a part of the home.

Personally, I think things like chalkboard walls which allow kids to draw and erase are probably better than having them draw all over the furniture as an example to the majority of people of how you can make kids feel a part of the home. However, I think the statement here is intentionally excessive.

I'm torn on this. On one hand, I think the people who are commenting that children need to be "put in their place" (what place is that, exactly? Never touching anything for the "adults" or trying to be involved in your household?) are being truly ridiculous. There's absolutely no reason why children should not be allowed to have a say in the age-appropriate decisions that go on in their family, such as home decor, since they live there too. I also highly doubt that the children do not have a grasp of what they can and cannot draw on, as it's shown quite clearly that they are able to write their own names clearly and create at least 5 year old level drawings. If a child knows their boundaries, they aren't going to go around vandalizing other people's things. It's great that the parents are not trying to confine a child's play to a single area (which stifles their ability to learn about functioning in society.) I'm also confused. Why do people seem to think that children doing what their parents told them they could do make them "brats?"

However, if the parents are not enforcing boundaries when it comes to the children's "decorating," then that can be an issue.

Call me old-fashioned but... ick. It just looks like a kid came through and trashed the place. It just looks like a mess. When I was a kid, my mom let me do whatever I wanted to my room. I painted all the walls each a different color, hung beads from the ceiling, you name it. But when I got to college, we had a nice table my roommates decided it would be 'cool' to draw all over. It's just hideous. This place reminds me of my old college apartment -- limited too that got drunk and barfed all over the place.

Gross.

Cool chandelier though.

Those posts are becoming more about "parenting style of others" rather than "decorating style of others"...How sad.
What's the difference between those folks who let their kids scribble on the couch and parents who paint the wall with blackboard paint? I don't see much difference. I can't see myself do it but cool idea.

I can't believe I wasted time reading these horrible comments. Disturbing? You know, child molestation is disturbing, not this. Really, who gives a crap how she's decorating her own house?

LOVE IT! If you can't learn how to be expressive from children who can you? Very inspiring

I think this room needs to be looked at in its own context. This is a person who spent most of her life among design snobs, keeping a house where you couldn't tell people - much less children - actually lived. Aesthetically, I agree that she went a little overboard. Artistically and politically, I love it.

Anyway, how is this any different from parents' homes which have toys on every square inch of the floor? *That's* indulgent. Letting your kids make some design calls, but keeping the house clean - that's actually pretty mature.

This is not a new concept. Illustrator Nancy Drew did it in the 1980s and her house was featured in Metropolitan Home magazine. She drew all over everything--taking a classic 2 story (like the house in the movie "father of the bride") and drew all over the walls, wood work, everything. It was a shocking mess. She even had a shop that sold her illustrated products in Minnesota. Here is her website (although there aren't photos of this on the site): http://www.nancyswandrew.com/Bio/BioSketch.htm

PS it's really hard to search for her on google, all you get are Nancy Drew book websites

This is ridiculous. First of all, someone said that a child choosing decor of a home is an age appropriate decision because they live there too...that is totally insane, a child does not pay the mortgage or rent and therefore has absolutely no say unless it is it's own room.

Second, a child cannot have this much freedom. Yes, children should be able to express themselves and all that but letting them draw over everything is saying 'Hey, there are no boundaries! Do whatever you want!' what if little Timmy goes home and draws all over mom's new sofa too? Children need structure and rules and boundaries in their lives. They do not have the ability to apply these rules to themselves or to see that what is done is one house is not to be done in another.

Why not get a sofa from goodwill and let them destroy it? Hell, that sofa could probably pay for the part of my college I have to pay out of pocket and I am stressed over all the time because I have no money and you let these little brats scribble on it. It must be nice to have that kind of money, how about donate it to the needy instead of letting little kids draw all over it? Sounds like a plan to me, but what do I know, I'm just a practical American who cares more about my neighbor than myself.

Oh, and parents, please spank your kids when they do something bad. I got spanked and I am fine, time outs don't work, ignoring them does not work. Take your brat out to the car if they are screaming in a store or restaurant, no one else wants to be annoyed by your mistake.

I agree with stickyricemama. I am disturbed by the majority of these comments. I know commenters on this site can be nasty and negative most of the time, but it seems to be getting worse and worse.

I love this post and the photos are beautiful and inspiring. I wish I hadn't read the comments. Have you considered getting rid of comments? I know it was mentioned a long time ago.

I think it's beautiful! I saw that couch and thought it was an artist piece before I read the post.
To those who object to the way these people spent their money and what they do with their possesions: you have a problem. It's their money, they can do what they want with it. To each his own.
To those who object to the "power" the kids have: you have no idea what goes on in this family, what the rules are, what the boundaries are. Get over yourselves.
To those that simply dislike the decorating style: good for you. Again, to each his own.

I used to live in a house that backed up to the tennis courts of a highly regarded high school in a "nice" neighborhood. Occasionally I would see kids graffiti-ing the concrete foundation of the courts. Once I called the principal to report it and ask whether she would tell the kids' parents. She sighed and said, "you wouldn't believe this, but a lot of parents at this school consider graffiti part of their kids' right to self-expression. They think it shows that they're artistic and creative." I guess that would be the same with all their littering of fast food bags on my street when they left campus for lunch. Self-expression.

There are many ways to foster creativity in children. In my opinion, it's also important for them to learn to respect the world around them, and to understand that people have different ideas about how to treat their (and others' possessions). One of my son's friends graffiti'd my son's brand-new sneakers with some not very appropriate sayings in fifth grade; another, a girl, wrote her name in giant letters on his backpack. It made me mad that he had let them do it, but he was the one having to suffer the consequence of having his things "tagged" until he outgrew them. I would have been appalled if my child had done that to someone else's stuff.

I like the concept fine, and I'm especially enamored of the chair.

That said, I hate it when parents epically fail to teach their children that the real world does, indeed, have barriers. What happens when they're on their own and they start hearing "no" for the first time?

Also, I'd like to see this mother's face when they take their magic markers to the rugs and walls and chandeliers and....