apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I recently have gone through a pretty bad breakup. The guy did not live with me but did help me decorate my apartment and picked out most of the fabrics. As you can imagine, the bedroom holds a lot of memories (hardy har har). I am debating whether, as part of a cleansing excersize, I should completely redo my bedroom or just alter it to remove all traces of the ex. As this IS Apartment Therapy (with emphasis on the therapy) do you all have any suggestions?

My one issue? I really, really like what I did with it. I love the colors and I love the fabrics. And I especially love the headboard. So I would be sorry to see all of it go. All in all, it is a comfy and cozy room.

Brooke,
Why not make one change for now, such as the wall color or add a rug. Something that you chose. Live with it for a while. And if you really like the way the room is, make new memories. Get laid by someone new in there. There's nothing like a little strange to help you forget...

Oh I am so for getting laid in your decorated room hahahaha it would completely change the personal dynamics, no longer you and him but you and the world and all the men it contains hehehe.

but I agree with Lori, a small change, nothing HUGE just small things, perhaps change the doona cover (bed spread I believe you call them) or perhaps sprawling your clothes all over the room to just make it your bedroom.

But still, Lori's suggestion of a little slap and tickle can never go astray..

Heavens I'm coming across rather starved..

I'm looking for inexpensive contemporary/modern artwork for my apartment. My living room has a deep red accent wall and tan everywhere else. What do you guys think of Ikea PJÄTTERYD (link below)? Other suggestions?

http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?topcategoryId=15573&catalogId=10103&storeId=12&productId=62520&langId=-1&parentCats=15573*15705*15708

Lori and Ben...working on it! I am only two weeks out but I am walking through this city with open eyes (and an open bed).

Rick,
What about making some contemporary artwork of your own? You can go to any art store and buy a bunch of canvases (in the same or many different sizes) and make something up that matches perfectly! I am hesistant to suggest buying artwork from Ikea unless it is for your dormroom. While it is nice and cheap, it is also IN about a hundred thousand homes already. There is also the option of found art. Perhaps go to a salvage yard, pick a few items and hang them all together.

Hey Brooke, So sorry to hear about your break-up. Springtime is close and that will bring lots of open eyes and flirtation around the city. Just try to picture yourself a few months from now in a sassy slip dress sipping a mojito at an outdoor cafe.

I know that space is a luxury in our apartments but do you have the space to rearrange a few pieces? I love the suggestion of adding a few unique pieces of your own. How about a new plant for the window, a bookshelf filled with things that inspire you, some really nice fresh flowers.

Rick,
Art shouldn't been chosen to match the sofa or drapes. Choose something that speaks to you or you just enjoy looking at everyday. If it clashes with the couch, change the couch.

Just my 2 cents.

Lori,

To the great suggestions so far, I would add a deep pre-spring cleaning. Flip the mattress, dust and vaccuum and put away or throw away any reminders of the ex. Moving the bed in particular and also making sure you make the most of your windows to let in light and air could also help. I don't think you should get rid of anything you really love, just make a few changes to clear the old energy out, as it were. Good luck!

Rick,

I have the same color scheme in my livingroom so I'm interested to see what the answers are. Last month was art month on AT so I'm sure you can find some good inspiration in the archives. Framing fabric or wallpaper is a good idea; you can also keep an eye out for shows at local art schools, where you can purchase art inexpensively.

I have a suggestion for a new feature on apartment therapy. The AT photo crew should ambush architects and interior designers in their homes and create online tours *before* the apartment owner has had a chance to prep the interior. (Kind of like that MTV show room raiders--the contestants know they are "on call," but have no idea when MTV will actually show up.) I want to see how people really live, especially people who should be at the top of their game like designers.

Whoops, sorry, where it says Lori I meant Brooke. And now for another cup of coffee. . .

JenniferJA,
My husband of 15 years might be surprised if I brought home someone new. Hmmm, but if he can keep an open mind...

Rick, I agree with Lori. Art should "speak" to you and a connection should be made.

Remember the scene in Hannah and Her Sisters when Daniel Stern (playing a movie star) is taken to the artist's loft to see his work? He was only interested in size since he had a large wall to cover. The artist refused to show him anything because he didn't sell his art by the foot.

Certainly color is important but don't buy art because of color alone or the consensus of a group but because it means something to you. It's going to be something you look at everyday so YOU should like it. Who cares what strangers think!?

Um, Lori, but if you buy the art, then change the couch, arent you still "matching the art to the couch"? ;)

Brooke (rainbow)--
Don't change ANYTHING yet. It's still too fresh and anything you change now may be more in the heat of the moment and something you are likely to regret later. But if that's impossible, I say get fabulous new sheets. Then "break 'em in" as was suggested by our randy assortment here today. Love it!!

I also like the idea of changing your space because of the approach of Spring.. not to exorcise bad boyfriend mojo.

Or, just buy yourself some amazing flowers.

Rick--
I like those pieces from Ikea. A good look for the money. If you like it, can afford it, then go for it. Or, if you "sort of like it" but like it better than a big gap in your wall, then get it as a space-holder.

We are coming into high season for art shows (Armory, -scope) so maybe wait on the Ikea purchase and check out these amazing shows first... (-scope has some very decent prices, relatively speaking, while Armory tends to be much bigger ticket).

Good luck all!

And Ben, um, how starved are you? Maybe we should talk. ;)

Matching the couch to the art is completely different from matching the art to the couch.

How, exactly?

YCH -- I love the idea of a crew dropping in to see how the architects/designers homes look without prior notice (although if they're on call, it's kind of prior notice--maybe if they're on notice for a loooong time, it'll work.) I always want Mission Organization to go back months later and see what's happened to their hyperorganized spaces, because I don't believe most of the pack rats and slobs (I don't exclude myself from that group, but I'm not like the ones on the show) they work with can really keep it up.

Brooke,

Just having gone through a similar situation, I also vote for new sheets IMMEDIATELY. A romp might not be a bad idea, but maybe that's not your style. I would also rearranged what I could, add some new pictures/change the ones you have, add some color somewhere and do a thourough cleaning. Anything pro-active to "reclaim" the space will be therapuetic. Good luck.

I don't get the snobbery associated with picking art. If someone wants to pick a piece of inexpensive art to coordinate with their decor, what's wrong with that? It doesn't have to speak to them any more than their drapes or coffee table speak to them. I understand if art is important to you then you want it to speak to you, but not everyone feels the same way. Some people care about art, some about lighting, some about furniture....

Reef-who doesn't pick art to match her decor but doesn't mind at all if other people do.

P2 -

Reef's comment above notwithstanding (which is very reasonable), I think I'm assuming that choosing artwork (for many people) would involve choosing something meaningful beyond, though not excluding, color. Choosing a couch is usually less of an emotional decision and more purely visual/comfort related. (So how do I say this? I don't know.) So it seems that if you choose your art to match your couch, it's less likely that you're making a meaningful decision. But if you choose your couch to match your art, you're likely making the same kind of couch decision you'd be making anyway. (Whew.)

Reef - I didn't really mean the deep down to the soul "speak to you" kind of thing :) But when we choose something for our space we tend to have some kind of connection to the pieces be it window treatments, furniture, art, rugs, etc.... I don't think of the things in my apt. as "fillers". I chose each piece for a reason. Even if it's just a piece from IKEA I still picked the one that felt right to me. So when I say "pick art speaks to you" I don't mean to comtemplate it in some ashram for a few days, I just mean that it should really appeal to your senses and not that of a group of strangers. Art is too subjective.

rick,

i'm not sure where you are in your life. if you're just finding your art way then ikea is fine. keep in mind if you're still discovering what you like you want to buy quality but at the same time not spend an insane amount because you'll make mistakes or change your mind about your tastes so you don't want to invest too much at the start. don't make it life & death, make it fun, it's just art!

one problem i have with ikea is they sell a lot of art. so it's hard to find something unique. you tend to find your like minded friends have bought the same thing. not a huge issue but it's nice to find something that's "yours."

i like art.com because they have a huge selection, very reasonable shipping for framed art (but not the best prices). your best bet is to buy it unframed or wait for their seasonal sales. without them i would have never found some dutch prints that i really like.

I know maxwell is not a huge fan of prints but i think it's a great way to get started. But since you're in NY (right?) take p(too)'s advice and head out to some of the art shows. there's a lot of nice, affordable anbd unique art being done by unknowns--support starving artists!

Joan--
Thanks for the explanation. Makes sense, although I am a serious sofa/furniture lover so not sure that kind of purchase (for me) is any less "fraught" than an art purchase.

My only point would be that the end result ends up being a matching art & sofa combo. Which, like Reef, I don't mind at all. And, imho, doesn't dilute either.

I don't have a problem with matching art to decor, as long as the result looks great and the person likes it. I would bet that a lot of people match art and decor where the result turns out great.

Now if I could just pick something to put on the wall that I wouldn't get totally bored with, I don't care if it matches or not. I don't like the idea of a single image always. I really need to have art that rotates, or digital, or throwaways, or something not static.

Brooke - sorry about your breakup - that sucks. you love your bedroom - don't change it (although I agree with the idea of new sheets - maybe splurge on something really luxurious). Personally, i think you should get a kitty. they are very therapeutic and they go well in every room.

I think there was a discussion about dust mites and the perfect materials they thrive in. Did I remember the thread correctly in that someone said dust mites like natural materials? I was just reading about dust mites on the link from Haiku Designs that Maxwell just posted. It says:

"Dust mites are microscopic creatures that can live by the millions in your bed. They thrive in stale, dark, moist environments, and are found most often in synthetic and foam material mattresses. The honeycomb structure of synthetic foams as well as the predominate use of synthetic fibers in spring coil mattresses provide a perfect environment in which dust mites thrive."

There's more - just click on the link at Haiku Designs.

Hey, what about those of us for whom furniture speaks much more loudly than objets d'art?

(Of course, if my bedroom woes get posted as a Good Question, the consensus will be that my furniture and I need to learn a new language. And it would be right. I am *so* looking forward to Maxwell's book coming out, as that room has lost focus, and conventional decorating books aren't helping.)

If a blank spot over the sofa looks dreadful and pulls the whole room down, it makes total sense to me to buy something inexpensive "for now" that looks good and amuses the owner. You can always replace it with a Wonderful Find in 10 years -- but why have the room look like crap until that magical day comes?

Rick,

Recently I discovered DeviantArt.com. The quality is variable, but there's lots of interesting stuff on here if you look for it. Mostly, it's just to show off one's work, but some of the stuff is available in photographic prints at various sizes. Click on my name for the site.

sorry to interrupt, but is there a bed size in btw queen and king?

Wren,
Your question, both the nature of it, how it popped up in the middle of this thread, and that need to know, is one of the reasons I love this site so much. And one of the reasons I would hate to see topical threads rather than free-for-all threads on AT (even though I too am frustrated by not being able to go back and find stuff that only appeared in an open thread.)

Hey Wren, figuring that if they have california king beds (longer than king but slightly narrower) I figured someone must have come up with a california queen and they have. I googled "california queen" bed and quite a few hits came up. Looks like it is the same length as a cal king (84") instead of the usual 80" but is the same width as a queen (70").
Hope that helps.

I love Deviant Art. Some people have seen my Living Room before, and the four prints over the couch are from Deviant Art.

Dear RICK:
I love your choice. It truly is lovely. Go for it, but only, as suggested above, the art itself speaks to you—or more simply said, if you like the piece.

Dear BROOKE:
Sorry to hear about your break-up. Though it's challenging now, you'll be happy in the long run and I congratulate you on your courage and great attitude.

My 2 cents: Since you love the room, keep it, but make some minor changes to reflect yourself. If you still have respect for your ex, you will eventually enjoy having reminders of him and his contributions to your life. Perhaps you could change the mattress altogether (or flip it, as suggested above). You might try something in your bedroom that your ex opposed but that you would have preferred.

When I broke up with my ex (more than 20 years ago), I was happy to keep some of his belongings around. Over time, they became cherished reminders of a great person who added a great deal to my life.

As to the suggestion of "breaking in" new sheets: only you can decide if you are ready. The principal thing is to honor yourself and not fall into anything you might regret because you happen to be vulnerable at the moment.

Well, here's one thing I think about color as it relates to art. It's kind of nice to have harmony of various kinds in your home, so if you've taken the leap to have color on your walls, you'd probably at least accidentally have some compatible colors in art that you'd want to have around.

I keep this handy when I need to check out mattress sizes:

http://www.mattress.com/service/sizes.php

Brooke- sorry for the bad news- break-ups are so tough. I disagree wit some others and think you should make some changes in your room- it would be cathartic. There is nothing worse than looking at a drawer wistfully and thinking that's where he kept his stuff or having all your surroundings trigger memories. I don't think you have to do anything drasctic like changing the furniture, but changing out the bedding, maybe repainting and replacing the smaller things in your room. It will keep you busy and when you're done you can look at it proudly and think that this was something you did for yourself to move on.

Yesterday, I posted a question as to where the term troll originated, but didn't get any responses (I haven't checked back lately). Curious about this phenom in general, I just did a search for and the first hit was an interesting academic thesis that says this use of troll actually comes from the verb troll, as in trolling for something. And I guess the noun troll--ugly little creature--just happened to fit in well.

This thesis also defines 4 different types of trolls and I've selected "Malicious" trolls for viewing here, which I've pasted in below. These trolls were found to be in the 12-16 year age group, with an average IQ of 83. See the rest of the description below:

"Malicious" trolls tended towards strong destructive actions such as spamming and excessive profanity. They showed no tendencies towards any of the Meyers-Briggs known types, instead only indicating significant personality defect PTypes such as histrionics and compensatory narcissism. Other issues were raised with such surprising regularity that one must conclude that virtually all Malicious trolls have both erectile dysfunction and suffer frequent enuresis The average IQ of this group was 83.

Another thing unique to this group was a concentration of ages not apparent in the others. The youngest of these was 12, the oldest 16, and the average being 15.27 years of age. As is to be expected of this age group, they continued to show a markedly absent sense of maturity and a significantly diminished grasp of rudimentary social skills.

The author also had the opportunity to interview a former Malicious, who chose to go by the moniker "Vlad" in our ICQ discussions. Vlad had stopped trolling some 10 years ago, yet according to the MMPI-2, all of the previously mentioned personality disorders were still present, and IQ had actually decreased.

Whoops, I guess anything in between (carats I think they're called) gets deleted. My search was for these terms:

"psychology of (internet OR cyber) trolls"

the site of this thesis is:

"http://www.io.com/~zikzak/troll_thesis.html"

Jonathan - spoken like a true horny b*stard.

to change the subject, someone the other day mentioned ilse crawford, which made me again check out her newest book from the library -- love the photos of her loft. (or maybe i just assume it's her loft?) check out this cool couch:

http://www.studioilse.com/interiors/10.html

oh, and brooke:

people will undoubtedly scoff, but the best thing to do is start by burning some white sage. honestly.

There was a story by David Sedaris in last week's issue of The New Yorker on the subject of buying art for your home. I tried to find it on the new Yorker site but they only keep the current week's offerings up.

Interestingly enough, it turns out the work he cherished the most was a troll his parents kept in their backyard.

noname--
Yes, that is her loft. I haven't seen the book, except excerpts online. Do you like the book overall?

I agree with burning sage. If not sage, I think burning something else to symbolically cleanse the space could be useful too.

Or just Dyson the hell out of the place.

hey ptoo, if you're around. Remember I said that using an ipod as a source without a remote was problematic because you would need to see the screen? Well, looks like that problem is solved by making the ipod both the remote and the source:

http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2006/02/16/review_logitech_wms_ipod/

This differs from the sonos way of doing things in that it sends music from your hand held ipod to a stereo unit somewhere else whereas the sonos system's raison d'etre is to stream music from a pc/mac to multiple rooms using a separate hand held screened remote.

Thus, with the logictec thing, you can have your ipod to hand and use the interface and screen to select playlists etc. while enjoying the big sound coming from your stereo system sitting on a shelf which is receiving the music from your ipod wirelessly.

I think this is a better solution to a studio than a sonos system.

Interesting link, Pixie.

I always find myself wondering if trolls display the same social retardation in personal (face to face) interaction or if they can function normally in society. My guess is no, but I haven't found any empirical evidence to support my theory.

I agree with Terry. The hardest thing about breakups is deciding what is reactionary and what is true to what you want. Redecorating, hopping in the sack, all the same. Unfortunately, it seems like most of the time those distinctions are unclear until after action is taken. Good luck, Brooke.

I'm heading to Target tomorrow in a car so that means I have the means to get a toaster oven. Anyone want to recommend a good toaster oven????

Jamie Pup - I just want to say that you constantly amaze me at your depth of knowledge about anything. Not only that but your ability to state things in a kind and logical manner. I'm one of your biggest fans!

Okay, to give you a visual, below is the link for the bedroom as it currently stands:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/91824748@N00/105908768/

And here is my idea for what it should be:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/91824748@N00/105908769/

If you can't tell, there is tropical/plantation style. I want to replace the two pine dressers (that were hand me downs) and the pine desk as they aren't suiting my needs.

One of the things that I hadn't done previously to the room was bring in the dark woods that I love because the ex didn't like them that much. So perhaps that is the answer. Switch the bed to the other side and replace the dressers with a dark wood double dresser for in front of the bed.

Thoughts?

Huh? You can't have read my reply to you in the aerogel thread! Just kidding!

Thank you anne. Pleased to be of assistance.

That reminds me. I owe you an email. Sorry about that. One coming over soon.

Jonathan. While I've found a handful of your past comments worthy of a chuckle and respect that you are a very opinionated person who likes to be heard (and acknowledged), why do you find it necessary to attack the other posters, their character, their taste and their opinions? It isn't an issue of being polite or impolite. It's that your tone is very negative and aggressive. If you're trying elicit some kind of shock value with your shit-stirring from the AT community, congratulations on a job well done! But as a person who's opinion I'll consider in any AT dialogue, you are pretty much dead to me. It's just too easy to scroll down and avoid reading your posts. And for the record, I don't hate you; I just find you incredibly boorish.

Here is the link to the Dave Sedaris article Margaret mentions (I had emailed it to myself because it was too funny):

http://www.newyorker.com/shouts/content/articles/060227sh_shouts

jamie pup--
"If I'm around?!" That made me laugh. Where else would I be?! ;)

Cool new iPod info, and for that (and many other reasons stated by anne) I remain on the jamie pup fanclub mailing list.

And, based on his most recent comment, the Enrique one as well.

Brooke, the room looks much more comfortable to me in the new configuration you are contemplating.

Best wishes with the room and with any new relationships.

Who was it that said "I want to be jamie pup when I grow up?" Enrique?

Wren
Water beds come California queen instead of standard queen. Same for king.

Jonathan, I daresay that the reason women have ever had to worry about vulnerability at all is because there are people like you around. When you become a woman, then let us know what you think about how we should or shouldn't be. I don't think Terry meant anything like what you're suggesting, anyway.

Sorry about the breakup Brooke. I agree with the "no drastic measures" right now approach--especially if you totally love certain elements of the design.

Rick, depending on what you want to spend, I have gotten some fun things on ebay. I have also gone the paint my own canvases approach. I did a large one with some stenciled letters on them as well as some abstract art

On the subject of Ikea art, I have this poster with a loaf of bread on it from there that i cannot part with, despite its cheapness and mass productionness and despite not having a good place to put it. Something about it still speaks to me--honestly. It is so warm and friendly...

Brooke,
I agree--love the new layout more. And, by all means, bring in the dark wood!

AT is getting close to becoming an addiction for me. I like the respect we tend to show each other even when disagreeing. It absolutely does not behoove me to read anything as sour, vindictive and vile as someone who posts here. Some say they get a kick out of them but I just don't get my kicks from reading such nasty diatribes.

JP and Enrique are material for fanzines. I'll stick to reading them and most other posters here.

I have to admit that I find Jonathan entertaining, but the post to Terry was a bit too much. Just confine the comments to general self-loathing and perhaps some biting commentary on sofas, and all will be well again.

So apple announced their own ipod sound system today:

http://www.apple.com/ipodhifi/

None of the other links on that page work at the moment but this thing is basically the same thing that altec lansing, bose et al do to allow you ipod to play through speakers by simply plugging it into the unit. This does has a remote but again, how can you properly select songs from a distance with a remote that does not have the ipod screen replicated on it? I prefer the logitech ipod as remote solution.

pixie,

re: ilse crawford's "home is where the heart is." no, actually, i was so disappointed in her book the first time that i returned my specially ordered copy to the bookstore. thought i'd give it a second chance from the library, months later, but the same things bothered me. there was something about the huge type font used that made it virtually unreadable, and there actually wasn't much meat to it. the only thing i really liked were the photos of her apartment and the way she created zones.

i hate it when i look forward to books and they turn out to be incredibly disappointing. i actually find a lot of interior design books too text-intensive. just give us the photos, please -- or else write something that's really worth reading.

Thanks noname. I've had the same impression from the excerpts I've seen in magazines.

Jonathan, you're one of the reasons I'm reading these threads. [next 2 sentences erased to restrain from ego-inflating]

- visiting the interior designers idea: ya'll welcome to my apartment but I'm afraid you'll be disappointed. I've just moved in in my in-between rental and I only have half of the FF&F and not much green to spare; the rest is left to my ex. I make a kick-ass Saltzburg Pie, though...

-Brooke: your layout and finishes/furn. idea is much more reasonable. A question: how high is the window sill and is the exterior wall clear of obstacles(i.e., radiators and such)?

-what comes first, art objects or the furniture: for some it's the egg/chicken question. For me, without a doubt, well-chosen sofa comes first - unless you own original Sargent.

-Wren: anne beat me to it. Just wanted to add, bed sizes aren't the same as mattress sizes.

Brooke, I wouldn't switch the bed to the other side if I were you. I have noticed that when you have the bed on the entrance side of a room, the room looks much smaller than when the bed is on the other side. The fact that when you walk into a room and see open space directly in front helps greatly to provide an illusion of space that is missing when the bed blocks that path.

I was amazed when I moved a bed from what would be the equivalent of under your window to where your bed is currently how much more spacious the room felt. Similarly, we have our bed in a similar position to where you propose to have yours and when I saw our neighbours' bedroom with their bed on the other side of the room their bedroom seemed substantially bigger than ours even though we have the same floorplan. We cannot change the bed position because we have a wardrobe standing in the shallow alcove where the head of their bed is.

Brooke
you have three walk-in-closets and two regular closets? you b*tch! j/k :)

your place looks adorable from the plan. I beseech you not to turn your bed around. Or do it but be prepared to put it back. the proposed plan is awkward and the way you have it now flows much better. Actually the layout of your bedroom is really similar to mine, except that i have shelves opposite my bed instead of the tall dresser. oh yeah, and I only have ONE walk in closet (grumble grumble)

Brooke,
I think you should turn the bed around as in your pix even if you later turn it back around, just to get a fresh start from the breakup. There's a phrase from somewhere (buddhism?) about how sitting in a place you've never sat before allows you to have thoughts or see things you never saw before. Something like that.

Brooke, I agree with the thorough cleaning. Also consider a relaxed, thoughtful purging of mementos. (I can't remember if you have a fireplace, but if you do, they're great for this.)

Get new sheets, too. Anything that smells like him should go, although that would dissipate with time.

Your relationship is dead. Get something *living* in there. Until you find your man, there are flowers, flowering plants, foliage plants, and, what about a small aquarium? Not a dinky bowl, but a five-to-ten gallon setup. Soothing and decorative.

NO! Don't purge the mementos! Too soon!!

I am sooo with Ptoo on post breakup activity --
keep the good stuff!

a little ceremonial burning of sage could do it
(not if you have asthma)

and for all of us who do not purge or clean . . .
I can't imagine cleaning to get rid of the ex-vibe
(that would mean I was being punished)

whatever happened to talking to your friends endlessly and being a little self-indulgent?
o yeah, alive and well on AT

Cleaning provides, as some writer I can't remember the name of said (prob. Stephanie Winston), an unambiguous sense of accomplishment in our complicated world.

Besides, you have to clean anyway, so you might as well get some cathartic value out of it. Flylady refers to it as "home blessing," and I like that attitude. It's a self-care thing.

Hey I have a question!

I bought a 4" thick foam core cushion to use in my window seat and I had to cut a lengthwise strip (about 5" wide, and 64" long) to make it fit. any ideas about what to do with the long strip of foam - or should I just throw it out. please keep in mind that I am not particularly handy.

Also, I have bedroom design question, but I will post it separately

I am a newbie with what I think might be a simple question. I am hopefully going to be moving into a new apartment, which is 1920s and lovely except that one of the bathrooms contains only a bathtub--no shower.

Is there something available at Home Depot (or similar) in the way of a conversion kit that you can hook up to your bathtub faucet to make a shower out of it? How easy/difficult is this to do? As it is a rental, I'm not authorized to open up the wall to install a "real" one.

Thanks for any advice!

Okay, here is my design question. I am attaching the general plan of my bedroom and a picture of the wall that I need help with.

The wall has a block of white shelves attached with brackets to the wall. I need help figuring out what to do with the rest of the wall space. Right now I have a freestanding wooden shelf that has my shoe boxes on it. I am giving the shelf away, along with all the other stuff against that wall, except the white shelves. I need some streamlined storage for my shoes and for other junk, such as office supplies, that I do not want people to see. Maybe some additional bookshelves to accomodate my expanding book collection. It all needs to somehow fit in with the white shelves. help me.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30117221@N00/sets/72057594072318599/

Thanks for all of the great comments/ideas.

Jamie Pup, As I walk into the room, the first thing I see IS my bed as the flow from the hallway into the room actually points you directly there. That is why I was thinking that the bed on the other side will move the flow of the room into the way it was intended. (see link in my name)

New Tenant, Don't let the realtor's floorplan fool you...all of those closets are "reach-in". The building is sort of old so the closets have weird ceilings and walls not allowing for much walking-in.

Regarding purging: I have given him almost all of his stuff back, haven't thrown anything away but boxed up all leftovers. All pictures are down (we were together for almost a decade) and in a folder hidden in my desk and the sheets changed day one (I found some great frette sheets a couple of months back but hadn't cracked them open...pure bliss). The sage is a great idea! I should do that.

And thanks for all the good wishes. I am doing grand...actually aware that this was the right decision, which is a relief. Thanks!

New Tenant,
I wanted to something similar in terms of finding storage that would conceal the everyday office junk, etc.
Most of the pieces I looked at that had cabinet-style doors were pretty pricey. For example the low Blu Dot unit was around $600.
I ended up with buying two Effektiv cabinets from Ikea this past weekend (grand total $299).
It took some time to put them together, but I'm pretty pleased so far -- the room looks much more calm without all the clutter. Click on my name to see them.

NT - here are a couple of thoughts:

Maybe you could extend a couple of the existing white shelves across the wall at different lengths to break up the tight display of books, put a long, low shelving unit the ht. of the lowest shelf all along the wall. On top of the low unit close to the window you can put a cool lamp and really nice containers that can house some of your office stuff that you need all the time. In the lower unit you could put nice boxes to house your shoes and other office supplies. On the upper shelves you can put books and nice art pieces.

It's just off the top of my head and I'm sure others will have great ideas to contribute.

thanks anne
those are great ideas. when you say extend the shelves, do you mean, remove some of the shelves and move them over, or add more shelves or both. just want to clarify.

Hey Kathryn
Yes I'm definitely considering using some IKEA stuff for this - do you have a link to those cabinets on the Ikea website - I couldn't find them for some reason.

New Tenant,

It's not really well-represented on the web, but here's the link http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?storeId=12&langId=-1&catalogId=10103&categoryId=16136&cattype=sub

There was a great display at the store and the person was actually pretty helpful (shocking, I know!)

I want to second what Pixie said about the Open Threads.

I have been giving this issue a lot of thought since it has been discussed on AT. I do agree that there is room for improving the site in a number of ways. However, I think one of the main reasons why I love this site is because of the nature of the Open Threads - as Pixie described. They really are a beautiful thing.

New Tenant,

What about doing a long, low, white dresser that would span most of the wall? Then there would be space above it on the left side for hanging art.

Dear New Tenant, Avocado and Enrique: Thanks for watching my back.

Dear Jonathan: I'm sorry to read you find my remarks maudlin and judgmental. You are, of course, entitled to your opinion and your own choice of behavior. I cannot judge what you do; I'd appreciate your not judging my views in return.

I recently bought a complete office system of IKEA's Effectiv line of cabinets and desks. As Kathryn wrote, it did take awhile to put them all together, but I love them and they are working quite well. Lots of choice in color combos (cabinets & doors) too. Prices were quite reasonable, although higher than other IKEA office furniture.

Jonathan--

Rave on.

NT - well, what I was thinking is that you could take the 2 and 4th shelves and make them longer but not the same length so there's interest in the shelving. You'd have to figure out just how long you make them and if the 2nd shelf should be longer or shorter than the 4th. Or do the 2nd and 3rd shelves, whatever works best for your needs.

Am I the only one who thinks that the posts that encourage Jonathan are Jonathan using different names?

One more time before I head in the morning:

I'm heading to Target tomorrow in a car so that means I have the means to get a toaster oven. Anyone want to recommend a good toaster oven????

anne-no, you're not the only one.

I mean "before I head out in the morning". Maybe I should leave it though just to see what P2 has to say about the typo.

Cherish your suspicion all you like, but you are wrong.

I can assure you, anne and Pixie, that I, for one, not a Jonathan, not in any sense, outlook or form.

Also, I AM a real, professional, employed NCIDQ-cerified interior designer with 11 yrs of experience and FIDER-accredited college in CV. And I'd love to see your crew in my modest rental.

Brooke, the reasons I asked you about the window wall: if you want to fit long rectangular objects (a bed)into yet bigger rectangular objects (a room), the arrangement that allows you the most free space is placing longer side of the bed parallel to longer side of the room. In your case the only avalable wall for the bed's headboard is window wall.

Pluses of this arrangement: you have half of the room (adjacent to the closets' wall) to dispose of as you wish - for improved traffic pattern and any layout of chair and dressers; the sun is not into your face in the morning; when you're in bed you have full view of the doors (good for feng sui); you can install wall-to-wall full-folded curtain behind the headboard for a focal point.

Minuses: if you have an interesting view behind the window, you can't enjoy it from the bed ; the beams run perpendicular to bed's orientation (but that could be made into advantage).

In any case, I'm impressed with your use of drawing software and sense of proportion.

Wow, a real interior designer in our midst! That's very impressive, Tat.

I think that the crew in designer's apts. is just a concept mentioned by someone here. So if you really want us to see your modest rental you can certainly post it here. I'm sure there are some here that would be very interested in seeing how a real interior designer's apt. looks.

Ah well.
Afraid my current apartment will look bleak in the pictures, especially since it's a work-in-progress; reasones mentioned in my 1st post.
But you can see some of the "after" pictures of the ground apartment in my brownstone that I sold recently:
go to http://besedka.faces.com/Default.aspx, click on Photos ->Albums ->Brownstone refurbished.
They were taken before the closing, so there is no furniture, only finishes and layout are of some interest.

Separated at birth?

http://www.overstock.com/cgi-bin/d2.cgi?PAGE=PROFRAME&PROD_ID=1732379

http://www.porticostore.com/product/sofas%2c-sectionals%2c-and-chairs/1422/gus%2a-modern-delano-lounge-chair.html

YCH,
That's a great comparison! Just like the High and Low feature that Met Home sometimes runs. I think it would be a lot of fun if people started contributing things like this.

anne. This won't be much help if you want to get a toaster oven specifically from Target because they don't carry this line... But, I swear by my Krups convection/toaster oven. About $150. The convection option is convenient. And the look of the Krups is really clean-lined and Germanic, and in flat black, naturally. No cutesy, retro-50s styling here.

Julie,
Since no one answered your question, I think that there are hand-held shower heads that attach to the tub--kind of like (and excuse the comparison) the things they sell to wash dogs with. There are also brackets (not the right word) that you can hook the handheld shower into so you can use it like a conventional shower...not sure how you'd attach it to the tile non-permanently, but I'm sure that's an easy thing to figure out.