apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

amazing job - a clear winner by far...what is the black bathroom table? where did you find it?
so great!!

Hey, cool! I've been wanting to see that very wallpaper in situ. Would never have thought about using in the kitchen.

I love the bear too.

Wow! Books, tv, beautiful stove, big table, bears: I would be happy to live here.

looks great. lovely designer wall paper and wall murals. i suppose people might carp at it using expensive stuff but if you have the money, why not.
lots of lovely touches

i think i might go and reproduce the wall mural on my bedroom wardrobe doors. i have been considering it for a while but seeing how good it looks here,has given me the confidence.

I love your apartment!!!
where did you get the shower curtain and the cute pillows in the bedroom?
And the kitchen wallpaper!!
Love your space!
v

Bravo for the sense of humor!

Amazing! Where did you get the wallpaper?

I really really like this one. I think it's done with a sense of humor, I really get a sense of personal style here, without it feeling forced. I love the wall of bookshelves.

I have closet envy, and I want to know a couple things:
1. Shower curtain is made by?
2. Can I borrow your mom to help me with my space planning?

Anyway, good job - this is the one I'm most inspired by, it speaks to *me*. Thanks for entering!!

How does everyone feel about cooking right next to your bed?

This apartment is so great. Whimsical and modern at the same time. Bravo.

I believe the "shower curtain" is Boontje's Until Dawn panel and a simple white liner curtain? Great application for that panel.

I'm really inspired to do some type of nature motif mural w/ my hideous closet bi-fold doors now. Thanks!

wow, thanks for all the nice comments, they're making my day!

to answer questions:

the kitchen wallpaper is by Cole & Son and comes in various color combinations. they are based in London I think, but you can order samples from their website (www.cole-and-son.com) and buy it here through Lee Jofa, but it's a pain unless you have a friend who's a designer or has a tax ID number and can order it for you.

the shower curtain is Tord Boontje's Until Dawn curtain, and they sell it at the MoMA design store online, amongst other places. It also comes in different colors.

the closets are Ikea Pax closets, and we had the mural wallpaper made from a photo we took upstate. we used this one: www.gallerystreet.com but there are many places that do it.

and my mom would probably be thrilled to help with your space planning ;)

correct me if i am wrong -- the shower curtain looks to me to be the curtain made by Tord Boontje (sp?). it is in fact not a shower curtain specifically but a curtain to be used any way. my friend has it in her home over her windows. this was a great idea to use it in the shower -- i love it! you can buy it a Moss.

P.S. love the entire apt!

"How does everyone feel about cooking right next to your bed?"

bad. i don't even like hanging clothes anywhere near the kitchen, because they inevitably absorb food odors (if you cook a lot, that is)

sorry about the double postings -- this new security feature is making it difficult for me to post

There's a wall between the kitchen and the bedroom, right? My old studio was all open and I remember many nights laying in bed and hating that my sheets smelled like dinner.

I love this space. Comfy, grown-up and fun. And it really does look like people live here! Bravo.

Fun and fantastic!

Love it! Fun and stylish. Want the red table. The bear made me laugh. Think it's the placement over the bed.

i wouldn't say cooking next to the bedroom is ideal, but we couldn't afford to move all the plumbing and gas lines, etc. to change it, and wanted the bedroom facing the quiter and less bright northern side. with the recirculating hood we haven't had any smell issues at all, but we don't cook a lot of meat, etc., so maybe that helps....

I think this place rocks! And, it represents real living- you can tell people actually live here. It's still modern, still high-end, but it doesn't feel like a hotel room.

Granted, a bit of it might be more off the wall for some us, but it's beautiful, has personality, and you can tell that someone actually lives here.

This entry also represents what a higher square footage limit has done for the contest... as it looks like this is studio apartments that were combine to form one unit.

Rather large compared to most other entries- but still within requirements and Absolutely beautiful!!!

Love it. What is the paint color in the bedroom?

My fav. so far. Really looks like a place that has been created over time and not an instant make-over which tend to look like furniture show room.
Great Job!

I am in love with the log pillows!!!

Great space with a lot of creative and whimsical touches and interesting combinations. Great use of space in the LR. Love the bear and the pillows. Where's the bear from?

I really like the use of the Boontje curtain in the bathroom. It really is a nice effect next to the austere sink.

by far - incredible -
But one question: where is your sofa from? My husband and I are trying t ofind a small - but not too small sofa.

The way you extracted a dining room out of the space through color is delightful. Brava!

Love it!

The bear, the wood, having books in the living room. My favorite. Has real personality.

I definitely gave this place a wow.

I don't understand the living room windows though (not a criticism). They're at different heights? And, oh my god, those bookshelves!

LOVE the living room.
LOVE the kitchen!

Though there's so much about this place that I'd never do, I love seeing that someone else did. It's a feast for the eyes.

Thanks Jane and Darko. I enjoyed looking at your place

bedroom paint color is benjamin moore's silver fox. don't remember what the number is, sorry....

the log pillows are from Urban Outfitters a few years back, i think....

the sofa is from Room & Board, called Porter.

and i painted the bear portrait last year, then realized it would work perfectly here. glad to hear you like it!

Jane, I'm crazy about the bear. Did you paint the wood grain or is the bear painted on something that already had wood grain?

Or is it a moire fabric or effect?

yep it's real woodgrain. it's actually a hollowcore door with a birch veneer; this allows it to be light enough to hang from the ceiling....

Jane, if you are willing to hire yourself out for bear portraits--I want one! Love this space. So fun and quirky.

bear portrait--me too, me too

great whimsy,
especially great bedroom and bathroom
and absolute best use of that laser cut panel !

Love a wall of bookshelf built-in

And it would be great if you got the prize, since you'd clearly spend it wisely (and I want you to have an extra wad of cash to put into the living room furniture)

Is the woodland cat preserve part of the bedroom?

Jane, I echo all the kudos. That bear portrait is awesome. You should sell them, truly.

But my real question is: how do you keep your cat's claws out of the Boontje curtain?????

i'm so flattered! you can email me about the bear at jane@janemount.com so i don't feel bad for posting off topic on here.... thanks!

GREAT space. My favorite so far. Can you please tell me where you got the wallpaper in the kitchen? I emailed the manufacturer and a distributor here in the states last week, but they were no help. Thanks!

Nice job! I really love it when someone uses things and themes I would never use in a way I can really appreciate and admire.

I'd like to know how you keep kitty from using the Boontje curtain as a plaything as well. My two little hellions are the very reason I've avoided stuff like that, they already do enough damage running across wood furniture or wrestling in the curtains.

regards,
trillium

this is my fave so far... plus they've got a similar sense of humor to me! i LOVE the bear painting... i'm a bit obsessed with them-- great job jane!

Ultra fantastic apartment!
Thanks for letting us see it!
The bedroom and bathroom are especially wonderful.
I'm crazy for the bear, the logs, and the forest-y rug.
Where did you find the wonderful red table?
and
What is the tiny framed piece on the wall by the bed? So intriguing...

This is a wonderful space. I love the woodsey and slightly whimsical feel throughout without it being repetitious. Tree stump bed tables and stool!

Well, I've been forced to de-lurk for this one. It's fun and beautiful. The bear made me laugh. I don't think anyone's asked about the table yet, so where's it from? I've got four kids and I'm trying to find a fun, large table with no leaves needed. Thanks for posting your apartment.

i wish i had a better answer about Grits (the cat) and the Boontje curtain, but here's the truth: he did try to chew on it at first, until one day he ran out of the bathroom with a good chunk of the bottom of it around his neck like a victorian collar. the laughter that ensued has apparently humiliated him into never going near it again. we cut it off evenly and all is well.

the red table is Blu Dot's Strut table in watermelon.

the little painting next to the bed is a tiny oil landscape of a strangely shaped tree in a very ornate frame that i got at the flea market here in NYC. it makes me happy to wake up to it every morning.

and yep, the cat preserve/mural-covered closet is the other end of the bedroom, across from the bed.

as for the wallpaper, i ordered samples directly from the manufacturer, but then when we decided to buy it we had to get a friend of a friend who is a designer and registered with Lee Jofa to buy it for us. i think it is so silly that the system still works only this way for some design products....

Is that the Agave lamp from Moma? My bf loves that light but it is way out of our price range.

You're place is adorable. as is your kitty - love the shot with the forest background. and the bear portrait is so cool - such a striking visual for the bedroom. great job

I'm loving the woodsy bedroom alcove. Such a fun space.

Are the candle things to the side of the television from IKEA? I really like those and seem to remember seeing something similar last time my ankles and I were brave enough to walk into IKEA.
LOVE the black Bourgie lamp!

it's okay, but if i woke up across from that wooded area I'd have to check all my hairy spots for ticks before i started my day, which is kind of a problem, but in the morning i need all the extra time i can get!

That chair in the living room looks like the one that someone was looking for the other day that was in the FLOR catalog. . .I think. Maker?

Love your cat story, by the way.

Love the "northwoods" feel. Nice and cozy. Great job!

my fave, my fave, my fave. beautiful but not cold and totally unique. and i echo the love of built-in bookshelves, i have sooooo many books and could never part with them just to have "beautiful design."

ohmigod, and i LOVE the bathroom sink pedestal area. so gorgeous.

I think some art above the TV is definetely needed. Otherwise, I love the creativity and vision here.

This is absolutely fabulous! My kitties are very jealous of the woods!

This apartment shows that you can have books and hobbies/interests/pursuits and their equipage without being cluttered OR visually noisy (two different things).

We can see that people live here, rather than just reside, and we can see their personalities. The whimsy is not overdone, the place is not too styled, and it is certainly not cold or sterile feeling.

Real people live here--real people with wit and extremely good taste. Love it!

jane
wonderful place. may i ask about the kitchen floor. it's exactly what i'd like to do. natural slate? or faux? if slate was it easy/difficult to install. are you pleased with it? what was the source? are you exhausted from all these questions? don't be. it's apartment therapy's highest form of praise!!

I like the apartment generally. I too possess a huge number of books and thus am sympathetic to the need for finding them a good home. My problem here is that the view of such a large library makes the apartment seem cluttered, although it isn't.

Were this place mine, I would install doors over the bookcases so that they look like expanses of wall.

The thickets are interesting and well used, I think.

I love the built in book shelves. It is a great way to have all the books on display without overpowering the apartment and in turn, making the space look smaller than it is. I think that books are a great way to display a person's individuality without overpowering a room with nicknacks and pictures. The entire apartment screams the tenant's life, which makes it one in a million and exploding with a personality all of it's own.

gorgeous fantastic functional apt!

Rob, yes, the living room windows are, oddly, at different heights. this is not so surprising in an old NYC apartment building, especially on the top floor, but i'm impressed you noticed!

obi, the kitchen floor is one of the few things we didn't change about the apartment after buying it (the others are the toilet, tub, and refrigerator). it is real slate, and i know the previous owner bought and installed it himself without too much trouble. we really love it; the only (small) downside about it is that if you drop something oily on it, it can leave a grease stain that takes a day or so to "dissipate" and disappear, even after 409-ing it.

and me (the first one), that chair is really similar to the one posted the other day from the Flor catalog. i bought it at Anthropologie, of all places. they say it is a re-upholstered 1920s French chair, and originally were asking a ridiculous price for it, but since using it in a display had slightly sun-bleached it, it was on sale for a quarter of the price. it was part of a pair but the other one was already sold. i just looked over it for a maker but cannot find any clues.

jane, thanks for the slate floor info. i found lovely resilient tile faux slate that is trying hard to look like your beautiful real slate. easy and inexpensive but it'll never have that authentic texture. now i'll have to rethink how i will be able to live without natural slate in my kitchen. obi.

Jane--
Love the space even more to hear you are a poacher of the floor sample!!! :)

ha! but of course ;)

It is the loveliest apartment ever! I didn't want to leave it after a week of cat sitting. : )

What is the piece of furniture that is holding your television and so forth in the living room? GREAT apartment by the way - I am inspired by your creativity and humor!

It's a very lovely apartment.

Too bad they couldn't flip the kitchen and the bathroom (understand about the cost). So - why not flip the living/dining room with the bedroom/office?

amazing job. love how this looks expensive, and maybe some things are, but others are just diy and awesome.

Love the wall paper in the kitchen! What a great feeling it has mixed in with the stainless steel! Interesting juxtaposition!

The shower curtain makes me smile, as does any story involving cat humiliation! I have 2, and the only way they learn is exactly how you described! They have to make asses out of themselves!

My favorite, favorite detail by far is the library wall around the windows. Love books, and this has always been something I wanted to do! If only my ceilings where a little higher!

Good luck! I think this one will be a finalist for sure!

WOW!!! I am very critical of nearly anything, and yet... i can't seem to find anything wrong with this place! i love that it shows personality and whimsy without going overboard. it's fun, but livable. this is the only apartment thus far in this contest that i could see myself living in, and in fact, would give my right arm to live in.

well done!!

It really is gorgeous...I've been wanting to purchase that Tord Boontje curtain but I do have a strange question for you--does your cat ever claw at it and rip it? It seems so delicate and I have two cats...I worry that I'll have a not-so-beautiful shredded Tord Boontje curtain in about a week.

OK -- so the logs are from Urban, but what's the story with the OTHER pillows on the bed? Looks like another woodsy scene -- wool? needlepoint? crewel? Did you do those yourself? Love the whole thing!

I'm split with this apartment - your living room looks great with the beautiful shelves along the window wall and the placement of the dining room table behind the couch giving you the choice to chill on the couch watching tv or eating at the table watching tv. On the other hand, the forest theme popping up through out your apartment is quite tasteless. It may be funny at first, but there is no way that I could come home everyday staring at that bear painting, forest pillows, and forest wallpaper. The only positive aspect that I can say about the forest theme is that it's a nice retreat for an indoor cat.

Love the personality! Too many entries in this contest resemble [insert chic store here] displays. the books and the attitude make it ownable--a true reflection of the owners--not a "hottest styles of 2006" look book. Bravo for your courage and creativity!

Wow! How did I miss this the first time? Glad I checked the contest page because this one is definitely getting my vote. I love the thicket theme (perfect for a small space) and the way it is carried out throughout the apartment but with each area still looking unique. Great use of that wallpaper and photo mural, plus the bear is just incredible. You could sell those in a southwestern art gallery for big bucks, my friend. In fact, I think I saw something similar when I was in Santa Fe, but it wasn't nearly as nice as yours :)

I love everything about this apartment, except perhaps the TV area -- which could look more thicketed I think. Thanks so much for posting this, it is a really inspirational design. By the way, since you have a cat and a tree/thicket themed house I think you might be interested in this piece of cat furniture:

http://www.sittingprettykitty.com/trees/Hollow_cat_tree.html

I have one, and my cats LOVE it. The company that makes them often has ebay specials where you can buy the furniture for discounted prices as well.

Good luck in the contest!

Very nice, and I love the bathroom sink. Way cool! I take it it's not a rental so you could "sink" some money into the bathroom?
The bear would give me nightmares though. I'm too much of a city slicker.

Another look at your space today and it is so refreshing!
I am starting my own business and have not had the time nor the budget to get out of the city. I love the way this brings the outdoors in and feels very retreat like. There are many beautiful and calming vistas. It must be hard for you to get guests to leave on time!
lovely
plus, in a super serious city like NYC-its great to have a little humour!

You guys are so hip and witty, I just want to die.
Elle Decoration UK but with your own personality and life.

I like that you left the living room un-wallpapered. Always like the use of that space between the windows with bookshelves. It's a good way to display/store books without overwhelming the space, because of the intervals of window view.

Maybe using the crystal Bourgie lamp (instead of the opaque black) might've been lighter and more fun. Also don't like the Agave flower lamp usually, but it's great in the small kitchen space. It seems to fit the dimensions and colors.

Moreover: it's wonderful that the bed just fits so tightly in the bedroom space. Each room has something fabulous except the living room (I agree with wavybrains). Isn't there some way to give a hint (... leave a trail of breadcrumbs) for what's to come, deeper in the woods?

Brad, the piece under the tv is a Case Study credenza unit from Modernica. it's been with me through 3 apartments over 6 years or so now, and it always works well in each space.

susan- the current bedroom, facing north, is quieter (facing an empty lot on the inside of a block, instead of a street) and gets less light. plus, we made the kitchen larger by moving the north wall of it towards the bedroom, and the living/dining area would not have fit in the leftover space. also, in this layout we were able to fit a "walk-in" closet (well, if you walk in sideways) in the bedroom (it's visible in the floorplan that i really should have labeled: around behind where the refrigerator is in the kitchen). at first i thought it would bother me that the kitchen was closer to the bedroom than to the dining room, but, well, it's actually only a few steps farther in this size apartment, and this way i can get to the coffee faster in the morning ;)

only, as for the living room, i do see what y'all are saying, but to me the pattern of the books (made of paper, from trees) on the wall echoes all the trees, etc. in other parts of the apartment, and is also enough pattern in the room (especially considering the wall behind the dining room table is old brick, and also somewhat "busy"). also, some of our art and things that are not visible in these photos do give a hint of the "thickets" elsewhere in the apartment....

i can't see anything wrong with your apartment... even the name of your entry is great. i love the look of books and didn't realize so many people who considered it a design-flaw. you guys rock.

Very very nice! You guys did an outstanding job!!!! The best of luck!

This is among my faves. Luv it!

Looks stylish and great! Where did u buy the butterfly showercurtains? So pretty!

pasha- we couldn't find any bathroom vanities we liked and could afford, so we just bought a cheap unfinished wood table, cut off the back legs so it would be shallow enough for the tiny bathroom, and sprayed it glossy black. i think this was the one we used:

http://store.abigwarehouse.com/22160.html

Yumi, the shower curtain is Tord Boontje's Until Dawn curtain in white, in front of just a normal (but extra long) white fabric shower curtain liner.

thanks so much, appreciate it, and love your taste!

love how you've broken down the open living/dining area, i also appreciate the character you've created in each room.

i think there's so much more creativity and talent here than those who rely upon a pre-stylized space in order to make it look impressive...

What a great apartment! I love the various art throughout your place. The bathroom table was a great idea, and I love the basin, though I'm not wild about the faucet (pretty much the only thing I don't like!) Do you run into any problems with the wall paper behind the stove? (Curling, staining, bubbling, etc?) The magnetic strip is a great space saver in the kitchen; i've wanted to get one, but I have too many knives I'd want to put on it! -t

Jane -- What are those pillows on the bed -- NOT the logs. Maybe you answered it in the plethora comments already -- AWESOME space.

Thank you for sharing your space. However, I wonder if anyone else feels that some of these spaces (this included) aren't terribly small?
I don't really see the challenge of a space of this size. But again, thank you for sharing and it is lovely.

Love the camp motif in the bedroom. A+ for log pillows.

Hi Jane & Darko,

We're interested in your space & would love to talk to you about our HGTV show, "Small Space, Big Style". Would you be able to email us at smallspaces@brainbox.tv so we can get in touch with you?

thanks!
Sage.

This is a really fun home...I love the bedroom :) Looks like the cat does too!

hi Crafto, sorry not to respond to your question sooner... the other pillows are made by the same company that made the wall mural across the bedroom from them; they will print your photo on wallpaper, fabric, etc. we used this place: http://www.gallerystreet.com/ but there are several others online who do it.

also, Tim, we put a piece of glass in front of the wallpaper thats behind the stove. it actually just slides up right behind the outlet strips running under the kitchen cabinets, and then rests on the granite backsplash on either side of the stove. that way if we ever need to clean it or want to replace the wallpaper it's easy to remove, but it also protects the paper from grease and water, etc.

Fun apartment, and good design. I love the wallpaper in the kitchen..have never seen a backsplash done like that.
I've wondered how I could use the curtain you used in the bath. Great idea! It looks as if it's torn on the bottom, though. And maybe stretched in parts. How has it held up in the wet environment?

woo hoo! Love the bookcases. The books look fabulous; a real design element. Actually, everything in your apt. is great.

Great place, but couldn't you get rid of the bear?

maybe if it was another animal? A caribou, an antelope...and not a head shot, pls. -- leave that to the animals west of the MS!
but, something woodsy and camp-thickety reminiscent w/out the grizzle. That's it: more camp, less grizzle. And hey, all it takes is some chutzpah and a set of oil paints!

the judges be the judge tomorrow...

still. better than, that-that-that slobbering saliva-pit of rabied, nefarious loser and well-known conspiring attendant of Tom Delay...aka: the wolf.

glad I went checking through all these. This is spectacular. Thankfully you had the brain to bring in the woods to the city, so you never feel totally in the concrete jungle and unable to escape. I am so stealing the shower curtain idea. it makes so much sense I can't believe I didn't think of that. I have been searching for the right shower curtain forever...I never thought of doing that with his piece... jeez!

I love what you did with wallpaper. Can you please email me outside this site? I'm interested in possibly putting your apartment in my publication.

Elaine

hi elaine, i'd be happy to email you. what's your address? thanks!

Jane,
I'm in love with your style. Glad to see you're still posting because I have another question--in regards to your bathroom sink, where did you find the actual basin?
Thanks so much for your generous decorating help. Crossing my fingers that you win...

Hi Jane,

In response to your email on 4/11 - Please contact me at elaine_w@mac.com.

Elaine

Really nice mix and feel to your home! I think you have a real style and that the spaces do connect in color, textures, and attitude - not one thing jumps out as bothersome. I can always appreciate trees and a feeling of nature so I just love the tree wallpaper and bear painting and the log pillows !

where did you get your shower curtain? I love it. thanks.