Nothing to do with color:
Any suggestions for what to do with a cat litter box? I want something that looks decent AND that my curious one-year old kid won't get into.

michele,

july was pet month at AT. there was quite a bit of coverage of catboxes -- if you take a look at the archives on all of the sites, you should be able to find a few ideas. hope one works for you, your curious kid --and, of course, your cat!

I will admit i am afraid of color and the reason being I can't make up my mind what color so I have visions of painting and not liking the end results.

Michele -- Try a top-entry box. PetSmart carries them in tasteful gray for about $30.

Not afraid of color; I just find a neutral background soothing.

lucy, don't worry about not liking the results.. I used to be the same way until I tried painting one wall to see if I liked the new color.

I learned 3 things:
1. I DID like the new color, so that was lucky
2. Even if I didn't, it would only take a day or 2 to cover it up with another coat of primer and paint. Relatively painless as home improvement projects go. :) Sure, it's an annoyance getting out the brushes, laying down a tarp, and doing cleanup, but once you've made up your mind to do it, you'd be surprised how quickly it goes.
3. If I was really unsure of the color I should have just painted a block on the wall to see how it looked.

So in summary, I'd recommend #3, because who knows, you might #1.

Off topic, I'm looking to add storage in my office. Does anyone know where to find those upright magazine file boxes other than the overpriced ones at places like crate & barrel? I had high hopes for Target but their website has failed me.

i don't think these were covered on AT in July:
"Boda domes". igloo shaped. available @ the pet shop off Polk, nr Jackson, i think, whose name i unfortunately can't recall.

i opted for the white slightly pearlescent (insead of taupe) large kind with a little rippled ramp, supposed to catch litter from kitty's feet.

in any case, looks great, a joy to clean (aftr i finally threw away the cracked beige + blue mess which i'd sentimentally stuck with from my Oakland SPCA job (where the metal pans we used in the cat hutches were also easiest to clean).

oops, it's the "Booda dome, clean step litter box"

http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&rh=n%3A12923371%2Cn%3A12924061%2Cn%3A12925051%2Cp_4%3ABooda&page=1

(used w/out the liners, it's still an easy clean.)
may not be good for larger cats, as space inside is kidney shaped, the white "easy step version" pictured in the link is to my smaller 9p lbs) cat's liking.
actually, my flatmate's large romper stomper uses it too, especially aftr a good washout/fresh litter refill.

Anne, I get them at IKEA. They have wooden ones and Martha has a little tutorial on how to make them pretty:
http://www.marthastewart.com/page.jhtml?type=content&id=tvs2928&contentGroup=TV&site=living

Thanks Jennie(2), I'll have to add that to my list for my next IKEA jaunt (too bad there isn't one within a two hour drive, on second thought that's probably a good thing).

I'm sure this has been asked a thousand times... but does anyone have a good shop for custom framing? My friend got a great print at open studios this weekend and we're looking for a good but inexpensive place to get it framed. Someone who knows what their doing w/r/t archival framing of "fine" art, not just some schmuck at Aaron Brothers framing posters of puppies in baskets. Any good references?

I use that Booda Dome step as well. It's brilliant. My cat is about 7 pounds, and was getting to the point where she didn't always know her bum wasn't actually *in* the box....the booda solved this problem. I got the pearlescent purple one. It's great, and looks like a space ship. Since out laundry and litter are in the hall, people walking by are no longer subjected to an accidental view of the inside, which is nice. Much nicer than those big square boxes with the huge front opening, and much more private!!