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#60 - Munkey’s Zombie-proof Sleeping Quarters

Name: Munkey
Location: San Francisco
Type: 2 bdrm (Vintage-Modern) Victorian Flat, Owned

Why I use color:

I use color instead of caffeine. Without color my environment tends to make me feel lethargic and lazy. I think there was a study done in the 50's that showed a direct correlation between too much beige and catatonia. Before I painted my walls orange all I wanted to do was sleep the entire day. This can become problematic, especially since I’m self employed and work out my home office. Great splashes of color keep me energized and motivated without the jitters. . .

 
 
10-31-munkey2.jpg

. . .I'm a pretty hyper munkey boy by nature so I tend to pick colors with pizzazz. I like deep saturated colors that give the sense that you could almost chew on them. I want to people to walk in the room and immediately feel the effect of the color without wanting to run away screaming.

2 good color tips:

1. A great tip is to bounce your color palette off someone who you trust shares your sense of color. It’s fun to have a second pair of eyes. I like contrast and colors that POP - too “matchy matchy” always feels a little pedestrian to me.

2. I’m lucky enough to live in a very colorful city. I enjoy walking through the different neighborhoods and being inspired by the eclectic color combinations people have used to paint the exteriors of their homes. Oftentimes these palettes translate into ideas for interior vignettes or spark an unexpected color pairing in my own home. So, keep your eyes peeled for new and interesting uses of color in everyday life. Sometimes even unintentional combinations – a discarded orange chair placed against the bold blue wall of a local Taqueria – can provide an intriguing surprise.

2 good color resources:

1. Collect paint color chips - lots and lots of paint chips. I can never find the exact color I want. So I start with the chips and a base color and then mix my own colors. I’m usually quite pleased with the results (but it sucks for touch up).

2. Vintage fabrics, especially vintage modern prints. I keep an eye out for unique vintage printed curtains on eBay. And old printed shirts and dresses at local thrift stores can provide a treasure trove of interesting color combination ideas - ones you probably won’t see in the Pottery Barn catalogue!

Tags

Fall Colors 2006 - Northwest

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Comments (28)

I like this Munkey! What a very interesting room - do your walls just curve right on up to the ceiling? It kind of looks that way in the picture. If so, I think you did a fantastic job of stopping the orange where you did so it isn't overwhelming. I think the accent wall adds a bit of order to an oddly shaped space. I also think the plants are a nice green touch. I wish we could see more of your space - I love seeing modern pieces used in Victorian spaces.

posted by Erin T on 2006-10-31 14:07:47

Yes Erin, there is a coved ceiling and I stopped the orange at the picture molding. So it really wasn't much of a decision, but thanks for the props anyway.

I do live in a Victorian flat. God bless their fetish with lots and lots of moldings. It can be a real challenge to furnish and style a Victorian to Modern. But its fun and can end up looking pretty good.

posted by Munkey on 2006-10-31 14:20:03

What's a "munkey"? I don't get the artwork. You bought a two-bedroom flat all on your own? That's what, $500,000? Let me guess: Ellis Act eviction, tenancy-in-common. You're really living on the cutting edge. You've thrown convention to the wind.

posted by JefferyK on 2006-10-31 14:21:19

I actually wish you had continued the color throughout the room. The white next to the orange just looks so cold.

Otherwise, love the orange color, especially with that great print above the bed.

posted by Genesis on 2006-10-31 14:28:11

Whoa....big guy

Munkey: Hyper active, high energy, barrel of laughs, straight Midwestern white boy under going serious cultural and behavioral modification.

It's actually a 3 bedroom flat. I bought in 1991 as one of the 1st TIC's in the city. And it was considerably less than 500K. And no one was evicted.

The art work well, the good news is that you recognize it as such. As far as "getting it" what can I say?

posted by munkey on 2006-10-31 14:32:48

Big, big yawn, Little Guy.

posted by JefferyK on 2006-10-31 15:16:55

Very rad, very modern-masculine space.

Way to go off-topic and very offensive, Jeffrey. Who tinkled in your mid-afternoon cheetos?

posted by Shannon on 2006-10-31 16:01:52

I think someone just needs a little color in their life to cheer them up and keep them awake.

posted by munkey on 2006-10-31 16:04:48

Totally cool...........I love the bedspread!

posted by Melissa G. on 2006-10-31 16:27:40

What's a "JefferyK"? I don't get your comments. You hate property ownership? That's what, like an easy way to feel superior instead of jealous? Let me guess- you "question reality", cling desperately to your ironic but false sense of lower-classness, complain that everything's expensive but still choose to live in one of the most expensive cities in the US, and can't afford to buy property yourself because you spent it all on your single-speed? You're really living on the cutting edge. You've thrown convention to the wind.

(I have no idea if any of that is true, of course, just like you have no idea if what you said is true.)

Seriously, though, wierd choice of website for you to peruse since you're so into railing on someone for choosing to buy their own home. Did you leave similar comments for all the other non-rental entries, and for all the ones with non-conventional screen names? What's with the strange, strange personal attack?

posted by huh? on 2006-10-31 16:45:12

Yikes! Maybe I should have painted my room a pale blue or something. The base color did say "testosterone pumpkin"....... Hmmmmmmmm?

And Munkey has a single speed but not a hipster uniform.

posted by munkey on 2006-10-31 16:52:23

easy, munkey, that vitriol was directed at JefferyK's strange & irrelevant comments. Saying harsh things about someone's design aesthetic is fair game in a design contest (maybe a little mean, though), but criticizing stuff like their choice of screenname, or decision to purchase a home? retarded.

posted by huh? huh? on 2006-10-31 16:59:20

Munky,

Now I have caffeeeeeennneeeeee jitters, but I still think the color combo is great: fresh, off the standard palette and with the right amount of tension between the two primary colors. The window shade in the wall color is a great accent and I imagine it is a good ‘lens’ for the sunlight. The light fixture keeps things lively. Hey, for a white boy, it ain't bad.

Signed,

Marky D

posted by Marky D on 2006-10-31 19:54:04

I like it, but I've seen a lot of orange and green this contest and I need to save some of my votes for more unusual pairings.

posted by Anna in Santa Cruz on 2006-10-31 23:42:25

well...i dunno about the rest of you...but this is a fun and refreshingly masculine bedroom. i'd be willing to bet the owner is just as tongue-in-cheek as the artwork, bravo!

love the retro feel without feeling like it was shopped right out of a catalog. just like his sense of humor. kind of cultivated as he went along... and it mutated into something more interesting than where he came from.

i dig that. (i'm in here, too-entry # 13-Los Angeles)

posted by Lizz on 2006-11-01 06:59:55

I am very happy to read your advise on using vintage textiles as inspiration, and really appreciate the uniqueness of this space. To me, it is far more interesting than many of the "Dwell"-styled "moderist" entries (don't get me wrong, I love Dwell but just sense a slight overload on the bright-geometric-patterns-minimalist-furniture-combo). Congratulations on creating a fresh, authentic space, free of cookie-cutter feel. But what I love more than the space is how you rose above the undeserved and ridiculous comments on home ownership, showing you truly are the Bigger Guy! I'd like to be your friend.

posted by Lisa K on 2006-11-01 07:30:04

i love munkeys!

posted by muffin on 2006-11-01 09:23:26

Love the colors

posted by Dick Burns on 2006-11-01 10:34:12

I would like to jump up and down on the bed with my munkey
tee-hee!

posted by VIRG on 2006-11-01 11:54:22

I'm not quite sure the pumpkin and fatigue green quite go together. I like each on it's own but not otgether.

posted by JC on 2006-11-01 12:57:44

I'm design challenged, not a creative design bone even in one of my very small fingers, but I love someone one that has it, and you got it goin' on.

posted by Eva on 2006-11-01 13:48:55

i like it soooooo much!!! its sooo cool! i wish you could decorate my room....oh wait you already did!
love ya!

posted by sarah! on 2006-11-01 13:54:37

Well,
feels a bit dull to me (not enough value contrast) but I think the photos have much to do with that. There are some nice things - the space itself, the solid color wall, the ceiling light fixture and the art over the bed. But some missed opportunities to make it feel more welcoming - definitely need some kind of off-white/white (perhaps shag/flokati) style rug with your chair near the window. And the window-covering needs to be a variation on the green and with some pattern - perhaps vertical stripes. The comment about the room being "masculine" was a good observation, and not a negative one at that..

posted by DK on 2006-11-02 10:56:30

ooooh monkey baby. I want to sleep with you. Oops. Sorry, wrote that before I read the post from Sarah. Don't worry Sarah, I live 2000 miles away.

But seriously, this room is soooo totally hot for me. Is the color really called "Testostrone pumpkin" or were you being your incredibly witty clever self?

It would be hilarious if that were really the name, because it is seriously arousing my libido. If I had a date with a man who had a bedroom like that, well... he'd be hard to resist.

I love it. Great color, great paint job and I love the funky graphic sign over the bed. Did you make that? I also love the bed and the lamp. Really nice placement.

I don't agree with the comment about the white wall next to the orange one. I think it is beautifully offset by that large plant. I have a pet peeve with the placement of a lot of little plants all over the place and prefer one big one (oops sorry, no innuendo meant). The black chair is great.

The only thing I would change is the little table with the little plant under the mirror. The mirror competes too much with the ultra cool graphic art. You need something much edgier in that spot, but that's just my opinion. I'm not sure what I'd like to see there instead, though. Have to think about that a little.

Great work, thanks for sharing. Wish I could see the rest of your place.

posted by peggy on 2006-11-02 11:24:45

Hmm, really agree with DK's rug comment, great observation. A cream shag would soften the space an make it more inviting, without compromising the "manliness". I am learning alot here.

posted by Lisa K on 2006-11-03 06:19:28

Purrrrrrfect!!! Very creative and retro!

posted by Amy Koeppen on 2006-11-04 17:37:28

This place is so great.

And yes, sorry Sarah, but Munkey will you marry me?

;-)

posted by ridge. on 2006-11-10 10:01:34

Cool apartment, where did you get the light fixture?

posted by Trish on 2006-11-17 09:04:10

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