Geoff--

You might have mentioned that these are the Captain's Quarters...

Officers must share a stateroom about half the size of this space, and regular seamen sleep on triple-tier bunks in open bays - They have only a curtain over their bunk and a locker for personal space.

A Pottery Barn rug and some West Elm bedding would really spruce up the place.

it bothers me that the lifejacket is hanging crooked...

What this room really needs is some color on the walls. I'm thinking orange to pop against all that gray and olive :)

Thanks bepsf -- I crewed on a tall ship for a couple years and quarters like these are practically palatial by sea faring standards. Boats *do* have some great space saving ideas though.

If anyone has a chance to go to a ship show like the one they hold in Seattle every year should go and take the tours -- especially for those that are converted to be full time live aboards. Amazing amounts of detail and creativity go into the storage and orginazation of those boats, and a lot of the ideas can be brought back on land.

By US Navy ship standards, these quarters are palatial. There is only one man on the ship who gets such a large bedroom. It would have been interesting to see the three-high berths featured. Now THAT is tight living.

mlleErica --

You and I are in agreement - tho if anyone doesn't have a chance to go to a boat show, there's lots of inspiration to be had in places online such as small yacht-builders websites - such as Tiara Yachts or Chris-Craft - Boats that are in the 35-60-foot range are the most interesting to me personally as they're large enough to have separate sleeping quarters but small enough that space is still at a premium.

Cruiseships also have some great inspiration - just look at images/floorplans of staterooms on the cruiseline websites and photos from cruise vacationers on Flickr to get an idea.

That mustard chair looks exactly like the one that came with my dorm at Purdue... weird.

Ha! I just went and visited the Intrepid a month ago, and saw and loved these! And yes, I too was thinking how "palatial" they are, compared to seamen's quarters! I spent five days on a schooner off the coast of Maine three summers ago, and slept in a bunk that was like sliding into an MRI (the cabin was so tiny that I could touch the opposite walls with my ELBOWS)! I got myself through it by telling myself that if my dad could do it (when he was young), then I could do it!

Oh, gosh ... exclamation point overload! My (former) boss was always razzing me about that...

: (

OMG Thats my dad's ship. He was on this ship in the 70s. Those are so officers quarters

What I wonder is why they have to be so ugly--not just utilitarian but hideous (that armchair!!) Although I honestly don't see why that chair is any more utilitarian than any other similiarly shaped armchair would have been. I've visited 19th C warship museums and they have beautiful furniture.

I know these guys work hard many hours a day, but isn't there anything that can be done to make their quarters feel just a little homey? These guys are risking their lives for the country; at least paint the walls!

Hey Jen of the North- That was my dad's ship, too! I have toured it a couple of times. He did a tour of Vietnam on that ship.