apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

We've just moved into a new condo - yay - and are starting to decorate. First up is the living room, specifically a new sectional couch.

We have light grayish-taupe walls with darker greyish-taupe trim (in some light it kind of looks olive). We have dark wood accent furniture and cherry hardwood floors. We are thinking about a Room and Board "York" sectional (http://www.roomandboard.com/rnb/collection.do?method=get&id=377602&cat=27) in a light taupe microfiber ("Arctic Desmond"). Another thought was a west elm walton sectional in either the natural or brown color (http://www.westelm.com/online/store/ProductDisplay?partNumber=WE-PRODf467&storeId=17001&catalogId=17002&viewSetCode=E&langId=-1&cmsrc=IMC1220). Before we take the plunge and order I wanted to get some input from AT on fabric color.

Is the natural/taupe or brown a good choice for this room, or are there other colors we should think about instead? We are a little concerned about the natural blending into the walls, but we also want to stay away from anything too dark that will make the room seem smaller (it's already pretty small).

Thanks, everyone, for your help!

Just trash TV gossip, but has anyone watched the new BRAVO show "Flipping Out"? Any thoughts on that main guy? Also, why aren't HGTV shows using more green products in their programs? I keep seeing them still using CCA treated lumber in backyard projects (like kid's play areas) and that arsenic sticks around for quite a while. I mean that shift away from CCA and also trying not to use so much redwood, are kind of old news. Why aren't they catching up on those topics?

Anyone have a recommendation on sewing shears/scissors? I need to buy some for a present.

Attention DC:
I just walked by a place in Penn Quarter that is being reno'd and they're putting up the West Elm signs! It's at 10th & G NW (near Metro Center.) The website says it's opening in August.

Also, for anyone who hasn't been around Penn Quarter - I guess this would be called the old downtown, where all the big department stores like Woodies and Hecht's (now Macy's) used to be, it changes second by second and seems like it's about to explode with even more new businesses. I don't know the history, but urban renewal luckily seems to have passed a lot of it by and now the buildings that are being renovated are all historic and gorgeous. A lot of renos that have going on for sometime look like they're moving towards completion, with plenty of other new holes in the ground everywhere.

Before anyone adds to my comments, I know that urban renewal probably passed this area by as the urban core became a ghost town over the last few decades, so there no doubt wasn't any incentive to do anything about it and it just rotted. Thank god! But, if you live in the 'burbs or otherwise haven't been down there in a while, there's a lot going on. Makes me proud to live in this weird little town that used to be known for its "southern efficiency and New York hospitality".

More DC Talk:
On last Thursday, I was walking up 18th towards M (south of Dupont Circle) and ran across a Knoll store! Maybe this has been discussed before, but where did this come from? I wasn't aware that a Knoll was opening, or already there. It appeared that people were inside having some type of party. Lots of folks had drinks in their hands. I would have stopped in, but I was already late for a friends get together.

Is this a new store, or am I just late?

Ka-ton,
I believe I have seen this in passing (from a car) and was surprised to see this too. My quick impression was that it was primarily focused on office stuff, if that's possible.

Oh wait, it looks like Knoll is all about workspaces only. Whoops.

Cindy Crawford has a furniture line. Good Lord.

http://www.raymourflanigan.com/promotions/cindy_crawford_here.asp?promo=Cindy Crawford Here

More DC -
I just went to Exquisite Fabrics on K St. (1775 K St. NW) that had been suggested in an earlier thread as the only fabric store in downtown. Not a lot of quilting stuff, like people had said, but there did seem to be a good selection of dress-making type fabrics (rayon, linen, silky stuff, sparkly stuff), and a largeish collection of woolen fabrics. It also had a good selection of notions - buttons, zippers, thread, etc., and a bunch of clothing patterns. Nothing was particularly cheap, since it doesn’t appear to be a chain store, and keeping a storefront on K street cannot be inexpensive, but they were having some summer sales- 60 percent off of some nice summer dress materials. Anyway, just thought I'd throw that out there for anyone who is interested...

Pixie-
Fiskars makes good sewing shears - I used to sew quite a bit, not so much anymore, but have always been happy with mine.

Maureen - thanks so much. That's one of the brands I'm thinking about. The other one is this on Amazon:

http://tinyurl.com/3agsyc

Pixie,

I couldn't get that tinyurl to open, so not sure if this is the other brand you're considering, but I have had Ginghers shears for about 20 years. The best brand, imo (Fiskars is quite good, too). I can also recommend their pinking shears.

greer-this is the link on amazon (it's long, and I'm not sure it will wrap)--it's the Mundial BP1860-3:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0009VEM90/ref=ord_cart_shr/102-9594717-3891321?%5Fencoding=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&v=glance

I will check out the Ginghers sheers - thatnks for the rec!

greer--is it the dressmaking shears?
http://www.amazon.com/Gingher-Julia-Knife-Dressmakers-Shears/dp/B000K9DJ9U/ref=sr_1_1/102-9594717-3891321?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1185934122&sr=1-1

or these:
http://www.amazon.com/Gingher-Knife-Edge-Dressmakers-Shears/dp/B000IHT9IO/ref=pd_sbs_hg_2/102-9594717-3891321?ie=UTF8&qid=1185934122&sr=1-1

oh, and look at all of these:
http://www.joann.com/joann/catalog.jsp?CATID=cat2803&rId=GOOGSSCSGNG&gclid=CO30ovad040CFRyOFQodQQTlmA

(sorry gang to be running on so long about this, but it's an important present and the advice here is gold!)

I just looked back at this whole thread - this seems to be Pixie day!

Hi Pixie,

I have a pair from Mundial, and my mother has Gingher. Somehow I always felt like hers looked better than mine. I bought mine more than 10 years ago and had them sharpened for the first time this year (they were still sharp but there was a little ding in part of the blade). I don't know if my mother has had hers sharpened or not, and she has had that pair for 25-30 years. I like the idea of buying a pair that comes in a nice box and also has a protective sheath. My mother has always kept hers in its original box, and I think storing in the box helps prevent others in the house from accidentally using the scissors to cut paper or a non-fabric item. Although the soft handle from Mundial seems like a nice feature too.

I think I might go for the one in the rosewood box for your gift.

http://tinyurl.com/39hshs

Thanks Lori 2. I'm leaning toward the Gingher at the moment. Maximum thanks to everyone!

If it's not too late, I have Fiskar shears and Gingher embroidery scissors (I use them for snipping threads but had to have them because of the swan), and am perfectly fine with both. I generally use a rotary cutter even when it's not for quilting because it's so easy but I know lots of people have to have their shears. A friend of mine has rheumatoid arthritis in her hands, which started when she was very young, and I've been thinking of getting her some electric scissors (Black & Decker make them, for instance) -- if anyone's used them let us know how you like them. I would think that, if they work, it would make doing large projects much easier.
By the way -- in case anyone is thinking of buying the walking iron -- it's great fun but doesn't stand up to heavy use. My quilt store bought it & it died. I don't know if that would happen with normal household use but I suspect it has too many little fiddly parts. http://www.oliso.com/

Thanks Deborah - I'm still checking this thread, until I buy the scissors.