apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Dear ATers,

I did a scary thing and bought a one bed apartment in Jackson Heights. It needs some kitchen,bath and other cosmetic renovations. Can anyone recommend a contractor they like (licensed and insured) that has worked on their projects in the area? Thank you very much.

emma

Its not scary at all, Emma. I was hating on Jackson Heights before but have come to see it has a certain charm since my sister moved into a coop there. I will ask my sis when she comes back from vacation though.

As a follow-up to our thread over the weekend regarding the pronunciation of "THONET", i e-mailed the Thonet company and got a response from Anke Thonet herself. Anke says that the correct pronunciation rhymes with LAWN-at, the "h" being silent.

Does anyone know of a source for furntiture that either 'requires assembly' (other than Ikea) *or* can be easily disassembled and reassembled. I have a problem with ceiling height in my stairwell that prevents me from buying a real dresser or armoire for my bedroom. So far the largest thing that we have been able to get up the stairs is a small (36" wide x about 30" high) dresser -- anything larger than that is a no go. The matress only got up there because we squished and bent it (tempurpedic) until it finally popped through on the other end. We're currently living with that one small dresser and an old Ikea armoire (built in place) that is on its last knotty pine legs. So very frustrating that we have the budget set aside for new furniture, but can't find anything that can get up our narrow, low-ceilinged stairway.

robyn: Try Crate and Barrel. http://www.crateandbarrel.com/ready-to-assemble-furniture/furniture/

i want one of those big woven bags that are shaped like a trapezoid with leather (or leather alternative) handles that are big enough to go on my shoulder, with the bag uner my arm - for groceries. anyone know where to find one?

robyn: Perhaps an old armoire that comes apart in sections?

Now that one of the AT ads has stopped flashing, they get a supremely annoying ad for Dove that scrolls and flashes like it's the end of the world. It does stop after a while, but every time I open an AT page it's stressful. And of course, the ad below that for the AT book doesn't have a time-out on its flashing. Is it really worth it? Do these flashing ads generate so much revenue that AT doesn't mind if the site looks cluttered and distracting? Or does everyone find this site an oasis of warm, inviting, and user-friendly beauty... except for me?

Sea,
You should try the Firefox browser and Adblock extension. The only ads left are the text ones without the bells and whistles.

Taw nat - um, never would have guessed!

Robyn, Lowe's seems to have some KD furniture. I live in a vintage house with two very small, almost circular, stairways and a double box spring had to go in through an upstairs window.

http://bbg.org/edu/greenbridge/greenestblock/

brooklyn botanic gardens is holding a contest for the greenest block in brooklyn :)

Has anyone bought or known of anyone who has bought whirlpool appliances at costco?

I'm trying to decide if I should get this refrigerator/range/dishwasher suite http://tinyurl.com/36mxu5 vs. some mid-priced sears kenmore appliances..
The costco stuff is a bit more (sears is having a big sale that ends tomorrow) but it includes delivery and a 2 year in home warranty so it evens out and the appliances are higher end than I would get at Sears.

The one problem is that our fridge cut-out is 2 inches too small for the costco fridge so we'd have to move one small wall but we've been doing alot of that lately anyway :)

The other catch? I have to decide by tomorrow.

I couldn't find any reviews online, so I thought I'd try here!

Thanks in advance,
Ariana

Hi Emma!

Welcome to Jackson Heights! I love it there, and I know we have a lot of other "Jacksonians" on here.

I used Arnie of Michael's Renovations. Arnie's number is 917-407-3545. Our redo took a little longer than he originally estimated (don't they all) but the price didn't change (except for $400 for a leak that was genuine) and I felt like he was honest and affable.

My neighbor, an architect, used Builder's Zone (or BuilderZone), which has done a lot of work in our building. The owner, George, turned us off the company, but my neighbor said he worked with someone else who was fantastic. If I see him, I'll ask for the guy's name again.

Good luck!

Fiona,

Thank you for the welcome and the suggestions...
I am very excited (and terrified at the same time) but am looking forward to getting to know the area more.

emma

We used Arnie on our place as well (this is probably a very late post), but he was indeed great. I hope things went well. We must all be in the same building.

We also used Builder's Zone for some things, and they were not as good as Arnie, though slightly cheaper.