apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

What are roomarks?

Yeah, what are roomarks?

I gather it's something that make the room unique. Like a fingerprint.

It's apparently some word that's been coined, like slink or blog. It means something of which we'll soon be keenly aware!

I took it to mean just a small glimpse -- or a passing remark -- into a lived-in (and loved) home. AT has gotten so big (which is awesome), but sometimes its easy to lose sight of what it's all about -- simple, beautiful spaces. And the rare chance to glance into a complete strangers home.
Maybe I'm reaching, maybe its some big new craze....but either way, I like it.

I don't know what it means either.

But I'm having t-shirts made with "ROOMARK" on the chest over at Cafe Press.

Not really.

Shouldn't the people who submitted their photos know what it means?

What if it's derogatory?

Room-ark. Hmm. None of those rooms float. And they do not have two of every kind of animal in them.

Roo-mark. What Kanga has to scrub off the walls when Roo is done with the crayons? (see also: Winnie the Pooh)

:::wanders off to look for something shiny:::

Maybe it is a way to bookmark rooms you like - room bookmark = roomark?

I have no idea what it is exactly, but Janel - I love your screened in porch/sunroom area. So awesome!

I thought like karinab that it might be your current favorite inspiration image which you've thus bookmarked.

Otherwise, I thought it might be sort of like your signature. If you had to pick one photo that defines who you are, this would be the image.

Curious...

I'm still waiting to find out what this means so I can submit an appropriate pic. Maxwell, could you clue us in?

I think these would be more interesting if they had a little more in depth descriptions. If these are just pictures of peoples homes, I would love to hear about their inspiration/ where they found things/ what sort of DIY projects may have gone into it.

ditto to what Portland Jessica said.

Interesting, I just assumed I'd missed a post explaining the new category. Not sure why it wouldn't have an introductory post of some kind. A little coy for me, but of course I love this site and most of what lands on it.

I'm assuming the roomarks are a kind of "bookmark" to a webpage or blog since all the above examples either provide a link to one or the other.

Well, it should be "Roommark" then.

Because it's not "boomark" so it should not be "roomark".

w8 4 ppl @ at 2 pst bgs lik dis 2 gt thru 2 ppl, lk at-lite

Actually, it's just something I dreamed up this week and thought I'd try. Our kitchn crew loved Jean Aw's Tastespotting and were sorry to see it close, and then it occured to me that we could do the same thing with rooms. We have so much material now, but - for me - it is reallly the single pictures that I remember and which inspire.

As for not leaving much of a description, that was on purpose. I think we talk too much.

This is an experiment; something new - without definition.

This is for all of us to simply figure out.

Best, M

Does it have to be of your own place? 'Cause Janel's screened in porch picture is of AB Chao's house:

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/sf/house-tours/house-tour-ab-chaos-modern-old-mold-023680

Seems like it should be credited, no?

It seems like this doesn't have to be your home, but a picture you found on the internet anywhere. It also looks like some of the newer ones added are credited if you follow the link in their name- you can look at whatever blog they found the picture, or is in fact, their own blog.

I only have one room bookmarked in all my bookmarks and it's for a desk, so I won't submit it. I wouldn't want anyone to think I'm inspired by the rest of the room, or think it's my room.

I read 'roomark' as REMARK. As in - making a remark about a room. A remark being a brief, casual expression of thought or opinion - so, too are these 'roomarks' - a brief, casual snapshot of a room we hold some opinion of.

Taxidermy is disgusting, and so are people who display it as ironic art. What a cruel, lame way to try to be all edgy and cool.

Oh Holland. So serious.

I think it's cool. However, I would never buy new production or kill/stuff it myself, obviously. I would love to know how much taxidermy out there in the decorating world (versus the trophy kind that hunters would collect) is new. I can't imagine much of it.

Yes, roving, I am serious. Death and decorating should not be mixed. Trendy designers are oh-so-ethical about whatever the latest green gewgaw is, but when it comes to mockingly displaying dead animals or tossing their skins on the floor, they are without souls.

I know what you're saying, but if the skin or head or antlers or whathaveyou is old, I'm okay with it. Sort of a throwback to the days when it wasn't seen as SO barbaric.

I, of course, would NEVER suggest someone specifically kill an animal for me to mount on my wall. Does that even happen anymore? Poaching for decorating purposes? Or is it just for sport/export? (Not that those are solid reasons either.)

What if it's not a real bear? Can you tell if it is or not? I can't from a photo.

Anyway, how is this different from hanging antelope skeletons on the wall or throwing an animal skin rug on the carpet?

This may be what Maxwell had in mind when he says sometimes we talk to much. Well, not to speak to Maxwell. But in this case it's how I'm applying the thought.


P.S. - I believe poaching does still happen in pockets around the world. It's just not so mainstream here anymore.

The half-a-bear is -- was -- real. A female. Who knows what became of her cubs when she was killed. The body was formerly owned by a now defunct museum in Oregon.

How long ago an animal's life was taken should be of no consequence. Time does not erase the fact that this bear was cut down in her prime as a trophy. Continuing to display her body whets the appetite for more taxidermy decor, and dulls sensitivity to living things.

I thought it meant the mark you leave on a room. That's what I sent in. A picture of my living room that has my 'mark' as a person. Daresay my personality in the room. But it's all up to interpretation at this point I guess...

-Jeannie

Get over the taxidermy thing already......NEXT!
Maxwell was right....you talk too much and seldom of anything of consequence.

(chuckling here)

Maxwell, thanks for posting the picture of my little white dresser, i love that little part of my room every time i look at it. : )

Jen Ramos
'100% Recycled DESIGNER Cards & More'
www.madebygirl.com
madebygirl.blogspot.com

Is it me, or is the site having issues for the past couple of days?

On the home-page, it says this has 31 comments, but when I click to add a comment, and go into the actual post there are none, and it says 0 comments.

Very strange.

Of course, if this were happening to others, they wouldn't know to respond because they wouldn't be able to read my post.

Ah, the comments appear if I click on the title link instead of the "comment" link.


Oh good grief, march3rd, why have they not banned your account yet?


Anybody happen to notice that march3rd posts on almost every thread, at the end of the day after it's quiet, with a link to their own website?

It's all SEO.

Cut it out, or at the very least post something of relevance to the topic instead of just SPAMMING your link at the end of every thread.

To reply to chris: yes, I did notice.

Literally every single post has a link [that I refuse to click on]:
http://community.apartmenttherapy.com/com/User/march3rd

To Jen Ramos: I really love that picture of the little white dresser; it keeps catching my eye.

In some parts of the US, the deer population is so large that without a deliberate thinning of the herd, the deer will eventually die out due to disease and/or starvation. I'd much rather see them used as trophies and food, as opposed to decomposing and spreading disease to other wildlife. And BTW, I am not a hunter.

Thanks Danny : )

I bought that dresser for like $45 -don't remember where...but i know it was a store that I would never have expected this cute little piece to be in. I did however paint it white, it used to be a light cherry color.

I really hate the taxidermy thing too. I find it disgusting and disturbing. I don't care how, why, or when the animal died. It's still a dead body. Why would you want a stuffed dead body in your home? Plus, it's ugly.

Taxidermy - whether or not you personally approve or would put a piece in your home does not give you the right to proselytize or try to assume you know best about what others should or should not put in their home.

If that person wants a half of a dead animal in their house and they did not break any laws or contribute to the endangerment of a species to get it there, then they are well within their rights to do so.

Thank you, Cassidy06 and Roseslaw. The voices of reason are appreciated.

I love Angela's Dining Room in Medusa NY!

CanadianOlive--

Janel is an editor, and she does indeed credit the source.

Corrie- is that the dwellstudio bedding from target? also i love that side table!

great room!

oh oh - i was eyeing the same bedding from target just last night. your room is very lovely and peaceful and reminds me of my grandmother's powder room and her knack for displaying beautiful things in a whimsical rather than ostentatious manner. i smiled.

a moment on the taxidermy issue -

while the "display of death" is obviously not going to sit well with everyone, i (as a vegetarian who hasn't eaten animal flesh in over 8 years) don't mind it a bit. leather furniture rarely comes into such censure, and i believe that displaying an animal in its entirety rather than merely the treated, processed, and dyed skin of a cow, one avoids the cognitive disjunct caused by leather (which is, of course, sturdy and useful, but by no means a necessity in anyone's home). what i mean is that leather allows us to forget about the animal, while taxidermy memorializes the animal. it's easy to forget when looking at red cubes of meat at the supermarket or at a lovely piece of furniture that these things used to be alive; taxidermy forces us to confront the source of the material.

i think that at least part of the attractiveness, for people who like taxidermy, is related to that confrontation.

I am digging Angela's Bedroom Art. Awesome.

-Eleazar
http://www.blogazar.com

Some of those rooms such as the bedroom and the town house whites are great. Others such as the living room and the town house living room are just horrible.

Mafan Green lasers rulz

The bear probably became delicious bear steaks. At least I hope so. I have never tried it but those who have say it is delicious.

i love the displays of death!! :)

Sookie, just keep repeating:
Black, white, brown, gray, beige (and off-white)
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/chicago/inspiration/the-olde-bell-inn-traditional-meets-modern-055559
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/la/lighting/look-linen-hanging-lamp-055798
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/la/inspiration/inspiration-burlap-covered-sliding-doors-055786
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/la/inspiration/beach-house-inspiration-055842
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/ny/at-europe/look-gray-bricksholland-055302
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/la/look/dark-forest-by-natasha-newton-055066

Instead of trendy, soon-to-be-gone colors and patterns, you stick with textures. Timeless patterns. As in, patterns that you don't necessary associate with a particular time in the decorating time line.

Things will easily mix if they don't scream "LOOK AT ME, I'm new", or "I'm obviously from the 60's"

For instance, that lovely gray blanket thrown on top in the Inn image? For a similar look, check out Army Navy surplus, and no, I'm not kidding:
http://www.vtarmynavy.com/wool_blankets.htm

Skip the Jonathan Adler cross pillow or rug, in favor of the Swiss wool blanket, in gray with red stripe and white cross:
http://www.vtarmynavy.com/swiss-wool-blanket.htm

Since the wool blanket is used as a coverlet, it doesn't matter if it's scratchy. It's there for warmth on top of the sheets and any other blanket or top item.

Silver as a metal, including galvanized steel, works well with the black, white, brown, gray, beige grouping. Gold, brass, copper are not so good.

You can easily adapt the amounts of color to change the appearance of the room. Which is evident from the few links I posted above. Same color palette. But with different effects.

If you were in a hot area, with blinding sun on one side, that deep gray room would be so cooling and refreshing. But it wouldn't be a wise choice in a chilly, foggy, damp area, because it would seem dreary.

So that's when you switch over to the warm tan walls shown in the Dark Forest post, and use gray sparingly, like in the planter.

It's all about texture and some contrast, without resorting to toxic waste green colors.

I'm with Maxwell, we talk too much. BTW- are those army blankets used? ick!

Loving suggestions to Apartment Therapy:

1) You need to spell it out. They're not getting "roomarks" (guhhhhhh).

2) Can we have a monthly colloquium regarding the Buddha as accent piece? This is eternally annoying. Blight of the yippies.

Army blankets - scratchy as hell. Even if you have cotton blankets between you and the wool, it's still scratchy. That's how awfully wiry those things are.

I second little ribbons' suggestion: we already have the "Taxidermy: yay or nay" post, let's have one on buddhas. The "it's calming" rationale is really annoyingly incomplete. Why is it calming? And why does it only manifest itself in colors that matches your room, emphasizing the notion that the statues is really only there as an accent piece?

dear sookie,
this may not be the issue specifically, but i think that often we are awed by the simplicity in the photograph. the feeling of being in a space is much different than seeing a space from the angle of a lens. the layers of the image and the light rendering come into play in 2d.
it sounds funny, but i think people can get a very different sense of their home by making arrangements of the things they own and photographing them. for anyone looking for some inspiration in their own home, it's a refreshing trick.

Angela's house=heaven!

by Julie 7.9.08: Living room designed for one of my clients.

i LOVE that coffee table, i have had a the hardest time finding one I like, but since my last one was nearly destroyed in an unfortunate Wii Bowling incident, this one looks like it may be an excellent replacement.

Any idea on price/availability?!?

Maxwell,

Why is that bad for the wine? I thought the wine was supposed to flow to the cork? Did I miss a post on wineology?

Re: wine storage, bottles laid flat is best, but storing that much wine (have to assume those won't all be consumed quickly) in direct sunlight is wacko. I get that people want to display their collections attractively, but the temperature is going to be all wrong.

hello, how can i start a thread and ask a question??

Winemark?

So is March3rd a real person or a bot?

test

taking down March3rd right now...

Rock Sand - we drink our wine pretty fast :-) so it isn't really an issue for us, but having bottles over or around the stove probably isn't the best for the wine (heat). LIght could also be an issue (little ribbons), but - as i said - we don't hold onto wine for too long, so not a big one for us.

Chu's bedroom looks AWESOME! I love the blinds and the color scheme. Seems like a lot of work was put into this - great job!

Chu--Really enjoyed looking at the process of remaking your bedroom. Very clever use of materials and everything falls into place. Great work!!!

Anyone know anything about the coffee table in Hilary's (7.16.08) picture?

Chu: I really enjoyed the whole process. The headboard/night stand/reading light+fake bamboo combo is just genius! And I enjoyed your sense of humor, too:)

Please keep updating. I'm really inspired:)

Chu--
Your "twig-shelf-lamp" piece is gorgeous! You've got a great eye for shape and color. Thanks for documenting the entire process. I can't always break down a WOW effect into its component parts, but you made it easy to understand.

I wanna know about the coffee table as well

Coffee table in Hillary's 7-16 post, Richard Schultz's Petal Table:
http://www.richardschultz.com/products/petal/index.asp

awesome dinosaur model

Hello Maxwell,
You pick some great things for sure. I'm not sure if I could get in to the body parts in the dining area.

Love most everything else!

Michele

Hilary - Where'd you get the Adler wall hanging? Thanks!

Richard S - love it!

In the first image on the right posted by Ickle 8.8.08: does anyone know where to find the tree walllpaper? I first saw it at Odin and have been dying to find out where to buy it. Thanks!

VisualLingual - what a GORGEOUS gray! Do you mind to tell the name of it?

Masik, the grey in this room is Wolf's Run from True Value -- it's nothing fancy, but we love the color, and it's a funny name!

VisualLingual, beautiful room - and gorgeous snowshoe!

Jason 7.29.08 with the chartreuse chair - what's your paint color? I love it.

Really, Valerie?
It's like the beigest beige that ever beiged! We rent, so it was this colour when we moved in. I have no idea what it is. But it's a standard, creamy, caucasian-flesh tone. I don't hate it, but am just surprised it caught your eye!

Do people really get the greatest inspiration from their own rooms? Looks like someone just wants to show off... ;)

I really like Cara 7.30.08's post of the living room with the tree made with pegs and string. I want to try something like it on a faint yellow wall in my room but I have no idea what kind of pegs to use.