apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Does anyone out there know where to find a small (18" wide) bathroom vanity? I'd like something modern, preferably in high-gloss white, and not too expensive. Most manufacturers don't seem to go smaller than 24".

I know people say that small bathrooms should have pedestal sinks - but I could use the storage space you get from a vanity!

Where have you already looked?

i found a clip-on lamp shade at Pottery Barn that attaches to a bare ceiling bulb. the shade itself is like a little covered dome. i'm looking for one similar that doesn't cost $59. i froogled it but didn't find anything. does anyone have any ideas? (see the shade by clicking my name.)

i'm also looking for a tall skinny lingerie chest, preferably in a chocolate brown, silver knobs. i've looked at Target, K-Mart (thought Martha might've had my back on this one. Wrong.), Pottery Barn, Ikea, Hold Everything, West Elm. Where have I forgotten to look? Thanks.

Lola--
I don't know of anything already made, but you can buy an 18" wide base cabinet for a kitchen and put a sink into it. That seems like a fairly simple solution if you don't find something.

Also, I don't know your budget, but if you have $$$ you could go to the big bath/kitchen/fixture place on 3rd Avenue and 29th Street; they have a lot of things and can probably fix you up.

Priya Patel -
I'm dead sure that for a minute there, Martha DID have such a thing, but that might have been on her website, before she discontinued so much of her stuff. It seems like they were pretty, too. But I've seen such things in catalogs, like Solutions or Home Trends. Some are prettier than others, of course.

Re Terry's kitchen cabinet - that sounds good, since something like the white Ikea Abstrakt is what I had in mind. Kitchen cabinets are very deep, though - do you think it would work to just cut it down?

Priya Patel: Martha did INDEED have your back. Tin clip ons, went REALLY well with tin ceilings, and they were sold in pairs, much cheaper than the price you quoted. It was in the catalogue. I got them...but it was a couple years ago and I still need mine...

I'd call the Martha catalogue . . .
does anyone know where their back stock/discontinued stuff goes?
For instance William-Sonoma/Pottery Barn used to have a fantastic outlet store on Tenth Ave at 24th St....until they ruined it by going to that fake outlet mall in Harriman.

i just moved into a great space, but the overhead light fixture in my bedroom is awful. it looks like it should be a porch light, it's wrought(?) iron and glass, very gothic looking, with sharp points. i'm afraid of electricity, so i'm wondering if i should hire a handyman or someone to take it down and put up something different, or if i can just wrap linen around it or something? any ideas? thanks.

Priya--
A Google of "lingerie chest" yielded this, among others:

http://www.directlyhome.com/nevis-lingerie.html

Thomas Pheasant designed a gorgeous variation, but a search of the Baker furniture site did not locate it. THAT would definitely be out of the Target price range, though...

Or try HomeDecorators.com, the Hawthorne Lingerie Chest. Knobs aren't silver but that's easily fixed.

Switching out a ceiling fixture is very easy if you know what you're doing -- and don't come across some viper's nest of old wiring.
I'd hire a professional and switch it out right away. It was $50 for a handyman when I did exactly that a month ago.

Whoops, afte rmy deja vu joke, I reposted as Curtis. Sorry, Curtis!

Priya, another suggestion:
www.studentmarket.com/studentmarket/pablo-lingerie-chest-seven-drawer-espresso-blond-maple.html

Thanks so much guys! I KNEW Martha had my back. Homegirl knows what's up. (i'm kinda upset that her new furniture line for K-mart isn't totally online. i think there are a few pieces missing.)

I don't know if that Pottery Barn/Williams-Sonoma outlet you're thinking about is called Chambers but there is a Chambers on 77th-ish and 2nd. They sell deeply discounted Williams-Sonoma Home, Pottery Barn, and Frette sheets and Williams-Sonoma lotions and soaps plus WS & PB Bath Accessories. On the West Side of the street. I am now obsessed with that place.

Lola--

Kitchen base cabinets are usually 24" deep. You could get a wall cabinet (12" deep) and have the sink hang slightly over, or a storage cabinet (18" deep).

Most kitchen cabinet web sites have PDF files with descriptions of their stock cabinets. I'm fairly certain you can just look on the Internet a bit before venturing out.

Good luck!

MANY QUESTIONS--

Guido-- I need a handyman to align my ceiling fans. Would you recommend yours? If so, would you email me?

To all--

1) Plant lights: I have a ficus and a near-dead palm which need care. Can anyone explain the proper use of plant lights to me?

2) Bars on the windows: Yikes! I have a security gate on my living room window and it's horrid. I'd like to get something great looking in wrought iron, or perhaps go to a salvage yard and get someone to fashion a gate for me from whatever I buy. Does anyone know of a solution for me?

Alternatively, is there any such thing as a transparent security gate?

3) Color for the security gate: OK, once I have the nice-looking security gate, I'd like it to be as unobtrusive as possible. The one I have currently is white -- and they didn't paint it with car paint!
What color would make the gate unobtrusive?

You can most likely have a clip-on shade made at some place that makes lampshades, but doubt that will come in under the PB price. If so inclined, try TransLuxe here in NYC.

Try also shadesoflight.com (but I still think that PB price will be hard to beat, unless you DIY. Just be careful to make sure it's fire-safe.)

Ali, Shades of Light is also a gret resource for replacement overhead lights.

DRIED HYDRANGEAS:

Does anyone know of a good place to buy dried hydrangeas? I'm afraid to use the plant store near my house.

Bars on the windows:

I have bars on both of my back windows and decided to just give up and added an extra layer of curtains to the whole wall. It diffuses the light enough that I don't notice the sharp bar shadows.

I know that my bars were custom made by someone the locksmith knew. I just got the standard boring ones, but the locksmith told me that they had made all sorts of interesting ones in different finishes. I used the guys on Bleecker between Crosby and Broadway. I don't know their names off-hand, but if you go down to visit Pottery Barn or C+B, they're right there...

Thank you, Mary. I'll check them out once the heat wave subsides.

thanks for the lighting advice! i might try to work with it (maybe buy some beads, chandelier style crystals, and see what i can make, or buy a big lamp shade that fits around it, etc), but will probably wind up getting someone to just change it for me. thanks again!

hi.. you all seem to be i the same boat here ... need a vanity unit to fit a small bath room.. i'll build one.. cant find the right cartains for you new room.. i can make them... i am the man about the house uk... wanna free estimate via e-mail. just tell me what you want.. with picthers and measurements

Ms Priya:

Check this out at Pottery Barn... alittle cimpler and less expensive:

$40 scalloped fabric clip shade 13" dia
http://ww1.potterybarn.com/cat/pip.cfm?src=shpclgtshdall%7Crshop%2Fshpclgtshdall%7Crshop%2Fshpclgtshd%7Crshop%2Fshpclgt%7Crshop%2Fschi1%7Cp1%7Cwperforated%5Csmetal&pkey=clgtshdall&gids=p4191

Just spent the last hour looking for the same thing and all I came up with was this cheapie version:

http://www.mileskimball.com/jump.jsp?itemType=PRODUCT&itemID=7165

Lingere Chest:



free shipping...good buy
http://www.brandsplace.com/0300-4157.html

Maybe change knobs on this one? Might be too small though
http://www.shop.com/op/aprod-p18960576-k24-g4-~lingerie+chest-nover?sourceid=3

Maybe in Walnut? They have free shipping too...
http://www.onewayfurniture.com/vhz-4057.html

you might want to take a look at justmyshopping.com... they have great prices with free shipping and exceptional customer service.