apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Has anyone used blik graphics? I was considering them for a large (white) wall in my apartment but wasn't sure about how easy they would be to remove when I move out.

Where do AT readers live and what do you love about your city/suburb/etc.?

I'm in Boston and I love being in a city on the ocean, the history of Boston, all the neighborhoods from Chinatown to South End to North End... I love Back Bay. All the brownstones and cobblestone streets. The cafes on Newbury Street in the summer. The Charles River (love to inline skate there). Quaint and lovely Beacon Hill with it's boutiques and eateries. In general, I just love Boston, there's so much to love here. I also enjoy the size of the city - it's not so huge I feel like a number and it's not so small that there's nothing to do. Also great museums, universities, and all these fun little towns bordering the city like Somerville, Jamacia Plain, Cambridge, Newton... Boston is close to everything too - mountains, beach, cape cod, providence, outlets, IKEA, portsmouth, and maine. Also, only about 4.5 hours to drive up to Montreal and 4 hours to NYC.

Anyone else want to brag about their spot?

Holly

yes, I've used blik - very easy and they look like paint but peel right off afterwards leaving no mark or stain.

Renter friendly :)

Holly

I've used blik graphics. Definitely easy and stain-free.

Does anyone have direct experience with any of the so-called ventless washer/dryers for my
small apartment? I'm thinking of getting one, and would like a few recommendations.

Thanks.

ventless dryers just take a longer time to dry and typically have small capcity. Miele is good. There are some new LG or other Italian manufacturers that even have combination ventless washer/dryers. it turns the moisture into water and it goes down the drain pipe.

Hi all -

I was just over in Singapore over the last week and happened upon an appliance store, so I decided to pop in. Lo and behold, they had a huge selection of 24" wide refrigerators - top freezer, bottom freezer, and even one where there was a freezer on top and bottom with a refrigerated section in the middle. I see these all the time in Asian and European countries (probably because space is at more of a premium in these countries?).

The one I was particularly interested in was the Panasonic NR-C373M three door bottom freezer model - the freezers are drawer types. (Mitsubishi also makes a similar model). The problem is, I can only find this on the Singapore (or some other asian)websites.

Does anyone know if it's possible to purchase anything like this here in the US? Or would this have to be imported? Is importing even possible? And how about the power conversion?

I'm so disappointed that the options here in NY are so limited.

Have had an LG ventless w/d for a couple of years. A great space saver. Yes, it does take smaller loads and longer to dry, but you can toss in your dirty clothes on your way to bed and get up to clean laundry in the morning. You also have the option for separate wash and dry cycles, if you like. Works well for singles and couples, not so good for families, I would think. My one complaint is that mine is noisy during the drying cycle. Otherwise I love it and would recommend it.

jerry
I have the 24" fridge restriction, and I can tell you the options are limited. I was considering driving one in from Canada a couple years ago.

SO, you've got the low end LG in a couple different (short) heights, available at every PC Richard.

Next step up is the Summit/Conserv tall boy, which you can read quite a bit about on this site. I have it, I like it very much. It's around one thousand bucks. Larger freezer, sleek design, dual compressor (not energy star, but it's still supposed to be energy efficient), and not an autodefroster. We'll see how THAT works out in the dogs days of August...although with this freaky weather, that might come early this year.

Then the much higher end, starting with Leibherr and ascending to SubZero. click my name for one of the many discussions, or search '"fridge" or Conserv.

Everything else is out of the country.

Holly quoth: "Where do AT readers live and what do you love about your city/suburb/etc.?"

I live in the Tenderloin area of San Francisco, and here's what I love about it:

--Cheap and good Indian, Vietnamese, Thai, Mexican, and hamburger joints within one block of my apartment; the best fish-and-chip dive in the city is about four blocks away, around the corner from the best Turkish. This is all important so that I don't get distracted and starve to death.

--Choice of three corner stores on my block ("the one with the real food," "the one with the good snacks," and "the one with the $1.60 tamales"). See "not starving to death," above.

--Walking distance to opera, symphony, all major live theaters, two movie theaters, Union Square shopping (and Pearl Paint!), three farmer's markets (not all of them ultra-pricey), the hot designer clothing discounter, the Container Store!, the Castro, Japantown and Hayes Valley (if one feel energetic), and Fisherman's Wharf (if one feels very energetic). If I didn't work in three suburbs in three different directions, we would not need to own a car.

--Free WiFi coverage through much of the area, so I don't have to stay home to work.

--Weather that allows me to whine and moan about 50-degree temperatures in mid-January.

The downside is bums on the sidewalks, gangs on the street corners, and museums that are nuthin' compared to NYC... but at least I eat and exercise more than I would in the countryside.

I live in San Francisco (between Noe Valley and Glen Park -- yay upper noe!) and I haven't felt so at home since the year I spent in London. I love the independent cafes everywhere, the little local produce market on the corner, the J Chuch Muni only a block away from home... i love the way the fog rolls in and stops a few blocks to the west, keeping my neighborhood nice and sunny most of the time. I love my view of downtown from my deck, my great neighbors and the "smallness" of my home (rent an in-law unit under my landlords home)... I love the temperate weather, but would like to have a little more of a "winter" and "fall." I love the indie art scene here and how much creativity and energy there is here.

Things I don't like about sf: pet unfriendliness of most rentals! public transit to areas south stinks!

just got back from nyc and there is so much to write about! we packed so much in to our 4.5 days. great weather and so much to see and do, even our initial hotel mix-up nightmare didn't stop us from having a great great great time...!

highlights: outsider art fair; winning the "lottery" for cheap tickets for Wicked; seeing so much amazing art... Schiele show at the Neue, the Met, Chelsea galleries; cool shopping on our last day in the east village; Central Park; cute dogs EVERYWHERE; great to meet anne for a drink; and great to see all of these things you guys are always talking about!

sorry for such a long post!

Daviddc:

I have the LG combo ventless washer/dryer.

I only bought it six months ago so I can't say much on wear and tear, but I think it is great.

The dry cycle does take a long time, and your clothes won't come out with the same warm-and-cozy feeling that you might be used to from a traditional dryer.

That said, you can set the machine to move from the wash-to-dry cycle automatically. If the full cycle runs overnight or while you are at work, who cares if the dry cycle takes longer?

I love the huge space now open in my laundry niche (ok, I still haven't painted it or hung shelves/cupboards, but...) and I think my laundry is cleaner.

Plus my menagerie love to sit in front of this front-loader and watch the load go round-and-round. Their fascination never fails to make me laugh.

I live in Montreal.
What I love about my city is really good food at low prices (we're spoiled really!). Great nightlife (not that I indulge much anymore), entertainment throughout the year -right now the Festival des Lumieres is about to start:
montrealhighlights.com
11 days long, includes performing arts, wine/dine--demonstrations/tastings/special restaurant events...+this year, Montreal Underground Walkway Celebration.
Then it's non-stop throughout the year, Int'l Festival of Films on Art, African & Creole Film Festival, Int'l Fireworks Competition, Int'l Jazz Festival (29June-9July), the Just for Laughs Festival, World Film Festival,
Festival International Nuits d'Afrique, the Fringe Festival (I'm leaving out lots others...)etc

...it's non-stop throughout the year, there are the big week-long and weekend-long gay events such as the Black & Blue Festival, Hot & Dry weekend, outdoor arts exhibit in the gay village, etc...not that we sit around waiting for such events to party! I did mention great nightlife!
then there's our art museums, great farmers' markets (Jean Talon Market, Atwater Market, etc.)
I could go on. No, the city of Montreal is not paying me =)
Most of all, as stated above, Great Food..!!
Oh, yeah, and everything is easily accessible -(great public transit system).

Anyone seen good coverage of the gift fair? I was so looking forward to design*sponge's posting, but she couldn't go.

Jon (from the Color Contest) was in NYC for the Gift Fair. Maybe he can be convinced to blog some of it when he returns to California?

Jennifer -
I have neither a washer, dryer nor menagerie but I am LOVING that little image!

On the subject of small appliances, does anyone have any recommendations for 18-inch dishwashers that don't cost $1,000?

I have a Malber washer/dryer combo -- the dryer died after about a year, but quite frankly I don't miss it much -- took two hours to do a load, and as stated above, not the warm, fuzzy extra dry feeling you expect. In fact, I often put things on a drying rack afterwards to be sure they were truly dry.

The washer, however, is still going strong after more than 10 years -- love the way front-loaders work. As for drying, my cake-oven NYC apt is perfect for hang-drying anyways (easier on the clothes), and I occasional use the dryer in the basement for towels or other things I prefer macine dried. The fact of the matter is dryers suck unless they are powered by gas or use 220 volts of electricity.

Jen:
I know that GE makes one, and it's somewhere between $400 and $500 ... I've seen it at Home Depot. I'm probably going to get it for my own kitchen, when I remodel this summer.

Aquarabbit,

I agree with you on the pet unfriendliness of landlords in SF!! The number one reason I moved to Oakland was because I wanted to have animals. I am moving to NY in July or August (Brooklyn or Queens)and I have found a lot of apartments that take dogs - when I do a craigslist search in SF under the same criteria I find almost no apartments in SF allow dogs. Does anybody know why that is? It seems to me that San Francisco is very kid/pet unfriendly.

Jennifer,
Could you please let me know the model of LG combo washer dryer you have and where you bought it(if you are in NY).
I'm trying to see if a dealer will give me a demo, I've heard that the clothes come out really wrinkled - what is your experience?

Thanks,
PeaceLamp

Anyone see this? I'm trying to figure out what the catch is - I hate my glasses and was about to buy these...

http://www.crateandbarrel.com/family.aspx?c=150&f=5304&viewall=1

MC, what catch? There are cheaper glasses in the world and half of C&B's other ones end up at their outlets at discounted prices. I think they're cool...go for it.

You guys are making me want to move...though, in my short-ish life I've lived in some cool places. Basically, I've spoiled myself for other places, which is why I've held out on NYC...at least I can still aspire to another level of coolness! :)I live in DC--near Capitol Hill, near Lincoln Park in a rented walk-up. I like the free museums in DC, the park, the architecture of the houses, and the proximity to my friends. I also find it cool that when I go for a walk, I casually stroll past the Capitol or Supreme Court...It's also an easy drive to work (as compared to other places in the district) i hate the taxes, the crime, and the fact that it isn't as cool as many other places (either my neighborhood in the city or in the country). My apartment is kind of far for any "oh I'm going to pick up a quick bite to eat" kind of retail. But, I do like my relative proximity to Eastern Market for buying West Virginia apples on the weekend (yum, Honey Crisp!) and the Barracks Row restaurants/shops.

Ainate: One of the most pet friendly apartments is the doric at 100 Manhattan Ave. This building is situated on a cliff and overlooks the washington park in union city on one side. It is a dog lovers park. Any time of the day or night you will see the dog owners with their pets. I have even seen notices posted celebrating dog's birthday.

It is a great way to know your neighbours

PeaceLamp: I don't have the model number with me, but it is the smallest of the combo units LG put out last year.

I don't live in NYC, but I was able to comparison shop at several local stores, and many "small appliances" website sell them as well.

I supposed it's fair to say that my clothes come out slightly more wrinkled than from a conventional dryer -- BUT it's usually only pronounced when I overload (which the manual reminds you not to do). I also love that nothing shrinks, and you can put a lot of delicates (including some hand washables and dry clean garments) through the dry cycle which I would NEVER do in a conventional dryer.

I don't know if a vendor would give you a demo (you would have to hang out for over an hour). I will say that I took a risk with this purchase -- the models are so new to the market that there isn't a lot of consumer reports-type research available (and I always do some kind of due diligence). In the end I decided to take the leap for space and energy-efficiency reasons; so far so good. But if you are concerned you might want to wait a year or two until more methodical evaluations start being published.

Sorry everyone for the long post!