Name: Peter, Margaret and Hurley, too!
Location: Japantown — San Jose, California
Size: 1,350 square feet
Years lived in: 6 months
Peter and Margaret are newlyweds — they settled into this home just before getting married. Only six months after moving in, there is a definite design direction to the space; it's simple (but not spare), clean and crisp (but not cold) and the couple's love of the good things in life — art and music — clearly shines through.
Peter shared some of the thinking behind their design decisions: Our house utilizes a lot of natural light and includes a broad mix of colors. The style is modern and fun, drawing inspiration from Apartment Therapy house tours. We are fans of many of the classics such as Nelson and Eames, but are always on the look out for new styles and anything we see that catches our eye.
We are huge fans of art and very proud that most of the artwork in the house was done by myself and my wife, or by our close friends. We base a lot of our color choices on the artwork that we have created, and vice versa. Being newlyweds, this was our first home together and pretty much furnished the entire place from scratch. Our challenge was to efficiently fill the space with not too much, while making it feel cozy and fun.
Apartment Therapy Survey:
Our Style: Modern, minimal, fun, colorful, and art inspired. Just a place that makes us happy!
Inspiration: Artwork is a major component to the house. If the walls were empty, the house would feel completely different. We had owned some of the artwork prior to moving in to the house and loved them so much that we wanted to make sure that the art fit right into the rooms we were going to put them in. So a lot of our furniture and color choices were based on some of the art we owned.
Favorite Element: The high ceilings and all the natural lighting this place gets. The high ceilings of the house make it feel airy and larger than it actually is. We also have a lot of windows throughout the entire house, which provide natural light to all the rooms. It definitely helps in the bedroom, since the sunlight sneaking in through the blinds every morning is the perfect way to start the day.
Biggest Challenge: We started moving into this house right before we got married and were furnishing it from scratch. Our goal was to give the house the modern, fun, and clean feel that we envisioned but make sure that it was cozy and comfortable at the same time. It took some patience to keep shopping around until we found individual pieces that we were satisfied with for each nook of the home.
What Friends Say: Some words we've heard are "clean", "sleek", "modern", "homey" and "fun". We also get asked a lot about our artwork (who and where to get them).
Biggest Embarrassment: The dog hair! Hurley (our rough-coat Jack Russell Terrier) sheds everywhere he goes, so we have to constantly vacuum, sweep, and lint roll everything, especially when we have guests over.
Proudest DIY: The artwork that was done by us. It's always cool when people ask us "where did you get that piece?" and we get to say "we painted it ourselves." Some other pieces are from our close friends too, which we're also proud of.
Biggest Indulgence: The bed. Neither of us had truly spent the time or money to purchase a bed that we really were in love with. We had been sleeping in our beds from college or what we could afford after graduating from college, so we felt it was time to really get that perfect bed since we just got married. This one from Room & Board has an upholstered headboard that we've always wanted, and was custom designed with the fabric and color.
Best Advice: Don't be afraid to mix the cheap with the expensive. Just because you own a few designer pieces doesn't mean you can't throw in some Ikea items that catch your eye. It's about the colors and lines, not the price. Finally, always furnish your house for yourself and what you love. It's where you and your friends and family will share some of the most intimate and memorable moments. Make sure that it feels right. You won't regret it.
Dream Sources: Dwell, Room & Board, Brooklyn Flea Market
Resources of Note:
PAINT & COLORS
- • Behr: Belgian Sweet (bedroom)
• Behr: Toffee Crunch (dining room)
LIVING ROOM
- • Sofa: Room & Board
• Side Table: CB2
• Nelson Platform Bench
• White Wire Shelf: Container Store
• Rocking Chair: CB2
• Sapien Bookcase: Design Within Reach
• Green Pouf: CB2
• Eames Armchair
• Coat Rack: Container Store
• Pillows: Crate & Barrel and CB2
DINING ROOM
- • Eames Sidechairs with Wire Base
• Red Arc Floor Lamp: CB2
• White Credenzas: Craigslist
• Metal Sidechair: Crate & Barrel
• White Cubes: Ikea
• Plant Pot and Stand: Vintage (wedding gift from groomsman)
BEDROOM
- • Bed: Room & Board
• Dressers and Nightstands: Ikea
• Mirror: West Elm
• Lantern Floor Lamp: Target
OFFICE/MUSIC ROOM
- • Desk: Ikea
• Office Chair: Zuo Modern
• Guitars and Amps: Fender, Yamaha, and Vox
• DJ Equipment: Pioneer
OTHER
- • Guitar Man - Mike Pullano (friend)
• Willow - Margaret
• Sneakers - Nate Duval
• Sky Valley - Parvez Taj
• Blue Mountain - Peter
• Big Ear Man - Mike Pullano
• Death Cab for Cutie - Todd Slater
• Raindrops - Margaret
• Red Girl - Peter and Mike Pullano
• Basketball Player - Mike Pullano
• Make Art Not War - Shepard Fairey
• Newspaper and Cloth - CB2
• Camera - Ryan Snow
• Technics Turntable - Ryan Snow
• Alphabet Art - Anna Larsson
• Blossom - Margaret
Thanks, Peter & Margaret!
RELATED LINK:
• Peter & Margaret's House Call
• HOUSE TOUR ARCHIVE Check out past house tours here
• Interested in sharing your home with Apartment Therapy? Contact the editors through our House Tour Submission Form.
• Are you a designer/architect/decorator interested in sharing a residential project with Apartment Therapy readers? Contact the editors through our Professional Submission Form.
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where's the kitchen? I feel like more and more house tours aren't featuring the kitchen and i love me some kitchen porn!!
overall beautiful place!!
huh. I feel like all I see is Peter's stuff. If you didn't tell me there was a woman living here too, I would have never thought it. It looks like a bachelor pad to me.
I always appreciate it when you show homes with carpeting. As a renter, I am stuck with drab wall to wall carpet, so I love seeing how others make the best of it. I like how they use bold color elements to balance out the beige.
Alyschoebs,
How do you know what's his, hers or theirs?
Very cute. Where's the white stacking bookshelf from in the living room? I can use a few of those!
Fantastic little space! Congrats on getting featured, Peter!
I love all the wonderful artwork!
The home is nice, your style definitely shines through. It looks like a CB2 catalog, but more "real" :)
I don't think most men would have a bookshelf decorated like in photo #1...
Cool place!
this does NOT look like a bachelor pad.
Adorable!
@alyschoebs
I applaud the broadness of your thinking that assumes the corkboard of necklaces belong to Peter! Why do you assume Margaret doesn't play any instruments? And we know some of the art is her work....
Very nice place, overall. Great light.
Great job! This is exactly what we're going for at my house. We're getting there... :)
Meh. Looks like an Ikea showroom to me.
Lovely; would also like to see the kitchen.
where's the low blonde wooden stool in the living room from? serious case of design lust on this coast here!!
@jacks_mama, you can buy a similar bookcase from Ikea around $50.
Where is the bathroom or did I miss that as well as the kitchen but overall it's a nice place
Also, they are the cutest couple ever!!
I think you guys have done a great job! Especially for your first home together. You obviously have a great eye for design, your little house is so bright & fun, and so is your future!
+1 on the question from firespitter on the origins of the low blonde wood stool.
To answer my own question: Omg, it's Ikea. And it's discontinued.
Love your paint choices. Well done! And having the patience to shop to find that perfect item that fits is well worth it. Great job.
Did you get the duvet cover from Area Home? You would think a heather grey duvet cover would be a fairly common thing, but the only one I've ever been able to find is from Area Home, which are super pricey. Love the space.
Hi everyone. Thanks for all the comments!
Just to answer some of you:
The short stool next to the white shelf is indeed from Ikea and it is discontinued. The one we own was actually the very last one they had in store and was the floor sample.
The white stacking bookshelf in the living room is the Sapien bookshelf and we got it from Design Within Reach.
The duvet cover is actually from Macy's. They have a good selection of grey duvet covers so go check it out.
Thanks!
Great Space! SJ Japantown represent! Congrats on the space and your new marriage. Your neighbor in SJ Northside.
truly you can feel the happiness vibe in this space- lovely.
Alyschoebs,
I agree with modernguy - I think this stuff is fantastic, and I'm not a guy!
Peter and Margaret,
Your place is just wonderful! I feel like I could just come over and be comfortable in every room! Too bad you're clear across the country!
Live? Love? I'm not sure about this.
somebody loves IKEA! haha... it is a beautiful place though. gave me some inspirations for me own house!
I especially love the bedroom and dining room~both are exactly the looks I'm going for. Clutter free....ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh, feels so goood.
If anyone is interested in the red lamp in this post, I'm located in Chicago and selling mine! email me if you are interested lex1290 (at) gmail dot com
Although better than the average place, this is not up to par with other stylish homes on apartment therapy. There's something missing. The place looks sterile and lacks flair. Apartment Therapy, you need to be more discerning. It just looks big box and ikea-ish.