In my defense, I've only got a couple shelves of nonfiction. The rest is fiction/poetry/drama organized by author.

dancingspring: I'm actually really impressed with your sorting method! (So I didn't mean the "seriously" in a bad way.)

I finished the kitchen! Hooray. However, now I feel that it looks a little sparse. Perhaps it just takes some time to get used to it. I'll post my after photo this weekend for thoughts.

I managed to get rid of 4 full boxes of stuff! Not including the old food I threw out. Woah.

Power to ya, dancingspring! After shelving books in a library for 2 years, I couldn't help but arrange my books by the Dewey decimal system. It was so deeply ingrained by then.

I've gathered and moved a large box of books to another room and have begun ordering and shelving them.

Help, please? I have been searching for a floor lamp for the corner pictured here.

Does anyone have any thoughts on whether this lamp would work? Is it too modern?

It's an interesting design, anh-minh! I'm wondering if the height is adjustable. At approx. 57", it might be too tall to provide nice reading light for your chaise. I might opt for something with a bit brighter or lighter finish too.

anh-minh -

I really, really love your chair there. Besides a floor lamp, you could also consider a pendant lamp. I don't have any specific recommendations, though.

I think the lasso lamp would look fine, but might look a little insubstantial next to the chair, which demands so much attention to itself. I just discovered this lamp - maybe that would work? http://www.designpublic.com/shop/lights-up/6244

I am an absolute ninny about lamps so can't offer any advice to anh-minh, I'm afraid! I'll certainly be needing much lighting advice myself soon.

I know it's the end of kitchen week, but I have some big issues that need help & finally got the chance to upload some photos (am trying not to spend so much time on the computer!).
I've got a repair issue (need a backsplash) and a flow issue (really need to move my table into the dining room & replace with a smaller one).
I uploaded one photo to the AT:SF flickr group as an overview shot, but the rest of them are all here. As always, any and all feedback is much appreciated!

Hard at work on the blik makeover still...found some ikea curtains at 1/2 price that I think will work (at least for now) once cut up. Also got two test quarts of different blues for the wall outside the window. More soon...

anh-minh - i think the soiree lamp heps suggested with the white base and wood shade would look fab in your corner.

anh-minh, I think this ebay item would look nice with your gnome and your chaise and fit in with the somewhat organic feel of your corner:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Danish-Modern-teak-floor-lamp-Laurel-eames-era_W0QQitemZ260160869520QQihZ016QQcategoryZ35878QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I was also trying to find something online with a bit of a woodland theme so that your gnome would feel at home. A faux bois lamp shade would be really fun.

anh-minh, I'm taking a quick break from cleaning my pantry (I took the day off of work to clean, can you believe it?), and I did a quick search, and found these three, which I think would be lovely:
http://www.lampsplus.com/Products/Floor-Lamps/Type_Task-@-Reading-Lighting/10783/ (a little too shiny, but I like the shape)
http://www.lampsplus.com/Products/Floor-Lamps/Type_Task-@-Reading-Lighting/99634/
(maybe not the yellow, but the shape is cool)
http://www.lampsplus.com/Products/Floor-Lamps/Type_Task-@-Reading-Lighting/page_2/05651/
(a little out there, but could look really neat)

In other news, I found out that the ONLY thing in my darn pantry that's actually level is that wire shelf! Including the pantry door itself!!! So I'm taking that off the list, I guess, and I'm just going to shut the door when I'm not cooking, so I don't think about it.

Ooh, I like wig's find!
I also posted some comments on the photo itself.
I'm still really in favor of a hanging lamp, just to keep your floorscape nice & clean!

Speaking of books, I seem to recall someone on another comment thread on the site talking about putting paperbacks in boxes. I've been toying with the idea--because in addition to reducing actual clutter, I've been trying to reduce visual clutter. And sadly, even though I've reduced the number of paperbacks I have, I still have a fair number.

That said, while I'm apparently willing to hide CDs and DVDs away, hiding my books somehow seems over the top! Yet, putting them in similar boxes seems to be the only option to organizing them by color (which makes my library-loving self cry inside).

How do you minimize the "visual clutter" of a book collection?

I am so excited to have redicovered this floor plan tool again. We used it a lot on the Fall 2006 cure.
http://www.bhg.com/bhg/category.jsp?categoryid=/templatedata/bhg/category/data/arrangearoomtest.xml
enjoy!

I have a tough time with the visual clutter of books as well. I realized I tend to have a heirarchy of books. Small form paperbacks ($7.99 size) in a box or donated. Larger form paperbacks ($14.00 size) grouped by color - though they do fit in an Ikea DVD box which I may go to. Hardcovers, book jacket/sleeve removed and grouped for various reasons - subject, size, color. I tend to mix it up a lot, but removing the jacket really seems to reduce visual clutter for me.

anh-minh - I love the idea of a hanging light for that corner.

What about the Nut Pendant from DWR - http://dwr.com/productdetail.cfm?id=5969?

I have been eying it at the store and trying to figure out how I could recreate it myself. A little veneer, a few bolts and a couple of prayers. How hard could it be. ;)

About books: I too have a fair number. I have the shelves organized by topic, then by author. (One entire bookshelf is fiction which means I can keep the spaces between the books fairly small. Because it is organized this way, I can group all the "larger" books on one shelf). I did this to save space, but it also helps reduce the wavy look you get when books are different sizes on the same shelf.

Another thing that helps is actually reduce the number and kind of other things on the shelf. Boxes might be OK: not too visually intrusive. But, picture frames and vases...well, then you are treating the bookcase as a display place, and that's fine. It just visually demanding to have a lot of books too. So, my feeling is: if it's a bookcase, treat it like one.

Um, I don't follow this "rule" very well, but I should!

As well, and this may seem to contradict the above, but when you have bookcases side by side (or flanking a window or fireplace) try to create continuous horizontal lines. That is, make sure all the shelves are at the same height so your eye doesn't do that dizzy up and down thing. (That's why it's also important to try and watch the height of the stuff against your walls.)

A correlate to this, and perhaps more important, is when you do have a lot of books and they're visually overwhelming: reduce everything else in the room. Try and keep all wood finishes the same (with the exception of the floor, though something "quiet" would help). Keep window treatments as simple as possible. Keep furnishings to the minimum. Try and ensure they have clean lines, too.

I'm not sure if lots of colour would distract or reenforce the visual clutter--my gut says lots of colour would make it worse--so I'd try to keep that to the bare minimum as well.

I've thought a lot about this because my dining room has a lot of books: and it is overwhelming as can be. And that's in part why I'm re-painting it. Deep red walls just fight with the books. I had three wood finishes: argh. My shelving itself was all different: green painted melamine, pine, and white melamine. In the revamped room, all the shelving will be white. No pine. The computer desk has been stained dark to match the china cabinet. Though the room will be stuffed to the gills, it should "read" a whole lot better. (I hope!) (Pu intended).
hth.

caliloud, i love the nut too - was going to suggest it!

as for visual book clutter, one thing that has worked for me in the past is to hang fabric on the inside of my glass-doored bookshelf. of course, if you don't have one like this, there are many other possible modifications to that general idea.

Here's a photo I've learned a lot from: http://www.bhg.com/bhg/category.jsp?categoryid=/templatedata/bhg/category/data/arrangearoomtest.xml

ooops.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/46773919@N00/1420442770/

there we go.

Wow. Thanks to everyone who responded with feedback/lighting research!

wigs and heps - You've convinced me that the Chiasso floor lamp is definitely not the right proportion for that corner. The chaise is situated on one side of our fireplace. On the other side is a big TV and a big floor lamp. I hadn't considered how imbalanced the room would be, until you both brought up its size.

With that extra bit of info said, I am leaning towards a pendant lamp. It will bring the eye up over there -- things in that corner seem a bit low right now. Concidentally, there is a remnant of an old ceiling hook directly above the chaise. I think I might just swag the pendant lamp at first to make sure I like it before committing to hardwiring it in place. I can hide most of the cord behind the curtains.

caliloud and jessicat - I agree, the Nut is fantastic. I have a LeKlint pendant lamp in my dining room (which isn't far from the corner where the chaise lives), but I think those two in the same general area will still work?

ooh, a LeKlint, nice! Which shape?
I'm having lighting envy!
We are (possibly temporarily) moving out of the country in a year (& will be subletting our house) so I just can't justify spending much on lighting/furniture on this end. Y'all are making me wish I could just spendspendspend!

Living vicariously...

jessicat: It's this one. And I adore it. I bought it years ago from a shop in Savannah and it took them over six months to get it to me (this was back before DWR carried the collection). But it was so worth the wait!

BTW, we will all have to live vicariously through you if/when you're out of the country! Where might you end up?

Wow! That is fabulous!!!!!

I literally gasped when I opened the link.

ooh, BEAUTIFUL. I tried opening it in an adjacent window to the nut and they really complimented each other, but would probably really need space around each so as not to crowd one another out. Do you have a photo that has both the chaise corner and the dining room in one shot, or could you post one? That would really help, although I'm sure you can probably guess for yourself how well they would or wouldn't work.

We are definitely heading to dublin, ireland late next summer so we can spend more time with my husband's family--we'll likely stay 2 years if we end up returning, 1 year if we hate it, and longer-term if it turns out to be wonderful. Major, major change!

jessicat - I can't seem to take a decent picture right now, but will try during daylight tomorrow.

Dublin! I'm jealous.

jessicat, that's so cool! I have the same problem with not buying stuff, but I'm only moving to Ontario, not nearly as exciting.

Thanks to all this discussion about lamps, I realized that with my bed in its new location, I could stand on a chair and re-attach the shade (somehow I got it off, but couldn't get it back on). In doing so, I realized that in addition to not actually being a big aesthetic improvement over the bare bulb, it blocks half the light. Looks like I might have to make a trip to Ikea...

Reattach the shade to my ceiling light, that is. Somehow I left that out of my comment.

No work for me this weekend! I'm getting a TEMPORARY KITTEN!

(short term fostering, that is)

jessicat, how exciting that you may be heading to Ireland! Now that we're in the middle of some big home refurbishment, we probably won't be doing the same anytime soon.

I just posted some pictures to the AT Group. I'd love some comments regarding my kitchen knob dilemma! It's a decision between something like this:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/98704941@N00/1421769808/in/set-72157601955717111/
Or this:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/98704941@N00/1421887212/in/pool-448946@N25/
And must go with this:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/98704941@N00/1421769824/in/pool-448946@N25/
And these drawer pulls:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/98704941@N00/1421769826/in/pool-448946@N25/

I wish I knew of a good resource for knobs. I drove past a store called 'cabinet hardware' about 6 months ago and wrote down the name, but never followed up! I think it was around the Church/18th kind of zone...?
Also, Japantown *might* be a good resource...maybe the hardware store, and if not, perhaps one of the shmancier shops? Do keep us posted; I need some knobs too. Who doesn't? ;)

Yes, Dublin will be a big adventure! We are indeed definitely going, we'll be well settled in there by this time next year. We'll be restoring (while living in) a grand old period house that my husband will inherit, so perhaps I can stay an honorary member of AT:SF and get design advice from afar?!

dancingspring - Ontario sounds marvelous to me! Where are you now?

anh-minh - looking forward to the photo!

Random other kitchen question...there is a gap between both sides of our stove & our (wood) countertop. Food inevitably falls in there when we're cooking. ICK. Any ideas on how to prevent this in an aesthetically pleasing manner? Lemme know if you need a photo for clarification....

wig3000:
The first expensive knob goes with your drawer pulls.
The second knob goes with your sink faucet. The first does NOT go with the sink faucet. I'm also concerned that your hand will cramp up using them. They're beautiful, but not terribly user friendly.

I don't know what to suggest right now, and I've only a minute left on my break.
Not very helpful, was I?
Sorry.

Thanks for your advice, Alana. Do other folks feel the same way? Here's another pull that I think I like:
http://www.bellacor.com/productDetail/132615.htm

Jessicat's knob store may be Bauerware at 17th & Noe.
http://www.bauerware.com/

They're legendary.

shhhh! I'm not really here!

don't worry, Wende, I'm not either.

Ok, I went knob shopping at that site you linked to.
That was fun. I like knobs.

How about this?
http://www.bellacor.com/productDetail/192214.htm

It would depend upon its diameter whether it would work with the pulls you already have. But it would match their finish and the shape of the sink knob.

I love this one, but I'm not sure if it'll work with the pulls.
http://www.bellacor.com/productDetail/133641.htm

These mimic the style of your faucet, but has the finish of your pulls.
http://www.bellacor.com/productDetail/80119.htm

http://www.bellacor.com/productDetail/95065.htm

http://www.bellacor.com/productDetail/133624.htm
same as above, but cheaper (smaller?)
http://www.bellacor.com/productDetail/133753.htm

I really like this, one, but I'd be very careful introcing yet another finish to the mix. But it is traditional and sleek (to me anyway).
http://www.bellacor.com/productDetail/89914.htm

PS: This is one of the reasons I love the cure. Anyone else want me to go shopping for them?

jessicat--can you move the stove over? Can you create a gap on one side big enough to put a 2x4 or some piece of wood (mounted to the walls with brackets) and painted to match your countertop?

I think we'll need a picture.

I have a small gap between my stove and a wall and there's nothing I can do about it. It's the width of the baseboard. Just big enough to be a pain, not big enough to have any solution, so far.

Hey Alana - sadly, there is not a fraction of an inch to spare; everything is tight against everything else (here's a photo of that wall so you can see how packed in it all is, and here's a shot where you can kind of see more (although not a shot of the gap itself). The gap itself is literally only 1/8"! Catches food but there's no way to stick even a corner of a dish towel down there to swab stuff out. I can use a knife for hard things, but for drips & goops? Forget it!

Jessicat -- Every freestanding stove has that gap. You wait until you're doing major seasonal cleaning, then you slide the stove out and swab about as best you can.

A damp paper towel wrapped around a slim-jim (the car-breaking-into kind, not the preserved meat kind) might let you reach particularly urgent spills.

Thanks wende! And hey, you are really here!

Thanks for your kitchen knob advice! The kitchen faucet and drawer pulls are both polished chrome so my search is limited to that finish. I also want to buy something that is uniformly symmetrical as knobs tend to slip in my kitchen.

I'm in a music studio at the beginning of next week, but later, I shall be shopping at Bauerware, Cliff Variety, and Floorcraft in SF. Bring on the comments! I hope you all are enjoying the weekend.

Well, I was thinking polished chrome plus white porcelien--an a style that compliments your pulls, which are quite modern.

That would help marry the two together--or perhaps create confusion. I don't know. Have fun in the music studio.

Aak! blik issue! blik issue!

So the paint's hardly dry on our walls and I go to open my blik decals so that I can cut them out & try out some practice placement. I read the instructions and see that---EEGADS--they recommend TWO WEEKS CURE TIME for painted walls before applying decals! <B>TWO WEEKS!!! I've got maybe two hours. Photos of the finished makeover are due tomorrow (well actually they've given an extension until Tuesday, but today's the only chance we'll get to finish the project).

I figure, oh well, maybe they'll pull the paint up when I remove them but that's a problem for another day. Only thing is that when I try to stick them up using painter's tape...even LOTS of painter's tape...they fall right off, which is a) annoying, since how can I figure out where to position them if I can't lay them out in advance? and a) worrysome, since if painter's tape isn't sticking I'm not so sure the decals will. And that, my friends, would be a problem for TODAY, not the far-off-distant-future.

Anyone out there with blik experience that can offer some counsel? (Oh, they do have a help line, but as one might guess nobody's there on a Sunday....)
Thanks in advance!
Signed, Stressed Out in San Francisco

anh-minh:
The DWR site is broken right now so I can't pull up your lamp photo to tell if this would work, but have you seen the rope-light chandelier in the current ReadyMade (page 34)? Again, I can't look at your lamp to see if it would be just too much visual competition or a lovely compliment.

if you don't have the mag I can scan it for you....

blik update:

You can ignore my previous plea; we've started sticking 'em to the walls, and they are GORGEOUS!

jessicat: Pictures! We want pictures! (Whenever you get a chance, of course.)

Oh, and here's a poor-quality photo of my dining/living room so you can see the LeKlint lamp and the corner (in the slight distance) where I think I might get a pendant lamp. Or a floor lamp. It's hard to capture each spots relation to the other, so I don't know if this helps.

Of all the remaining finishing touches, I'm most nervous about buying a rug. I purchased a Pottery Barn run off ebay that didn't work out well in my living room; the style wasn't quite right. It was a very nice rug and I got a good deal but it wasn't cheap. I ended up giving it to the kids so it wasn't a wasted purchase. However, I'm nervous about buying the next rug. I'm considering a dark brown rug to ground the room, as the rest of the room will be mostly light. My inspiration was Ron Marvin's room, as seen in the Smallest Coolest contest and in the October Metropolitan Home:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60733342@N00/1430702538/

Here's a few options:

http://flickr.com/photos/60733342@N00/1429406465/in/photostream/

http://flickr.com/photos/60733342@N00/1429406471/in/photostream/

http://flickr.com/photos/60733342@N00/1415221421/

The other thing that is perplexing me is the carpet over carpet look. I've seen it done successfully in magazines and in other's homes but this adds to my rug anxiety.

Other progress:

I made an appointment this coming week for in an in-home consultation for a quote on window film. If that turns out to be too expensive, I've measured my window for solar shades.

I've decided to use curtain rods rather than build a cornice for my curtains. If I get window film, I'll have fixed curtain panels to frame the windows and matchstick blinds. If I go with the solar shades, they'll replace the matchstick blinds. I'm on the hunt for curtain panels and figuring out how to get a 14 ft. curtain rod to span the west wall.

I washed the windows. I'm disappointed with Meyer's window cleaner as it left my windows streaked. I had to go back and wash the windows a second time with vinegar & water.

I've also made an appointment to have my living room carpet and upholstery cleaned.

wig3000 - I agree with Alana. I think the traditional knobs, in polished chrome, will be a good bridge between your faucet and pulls. I like your first and alternative choice but I think those are heading in a new direction and won't help pull the existing hardware together. I like your collection of Bauer & Fiestaware. Have you ever considered replacing the top row of cabinet doors with glass front doors? That might be a nice way to display and contain your collection.

Jessicat: Can't wait to see your blik pics.

Anh-minh: your LeKlint lamp is gorgeous! I really like your dining room decor. Regarding the other corner of your home, I vote floor lamp, as it will be easier to adjust for reading/relaxing. Can I vote even though I don't have a specific floor light suggestion?

Congrats, jessicat! Can't wait to see.

anh-minh, this new photo is extremely helpful. Based on the new view, I'd be inclined to go with a standing lamp. I am ga ga over David Weeks' work. I'm not sure about his prices though. I don't think I can directly link to what I have in mind because of his Flash site, but I'm thinking of the Torroja standing lamp #309 in 'orange'...looks red to me... or maybe the white model. I so, so want something of his for our own home!:
http://www.davidweeksstudio.com/lighting.html
If you decide on a pendant for the chaise, I'd go with something quite petite so as to not compete with the Le Klint.

Hi there!

I completely agree with wig re: floor rather than hanging lamp now that I see the height of the ceiling & proximity of the other one.

I've uploaded some photos of my blik'd room! I sure hope everyone likes them. They are in my photostream within the blik makeover set, and I sent two to the group. Here's one that shows the biggest cluster of birdies.

The curtains, as you see, are still missing - I will make them tonight & hang them tomorrow. I found some 1/2 off Ikea curtains that I'm cutting down; they are here but kind of look like poo in that photo. You can see a little more if you enlarge the photo, but the catalog picture is better still. Hopefully these will keep the room feeling open & airy, and I can always switch to a different fabric when not under such a tight deadline!

The room is impossible to photograph cohesively so am a bit concerned about submitting the end results to blik, but will play around with it tomorrow in the daytime and see what I can do. Maybe photostitching...who knows.

Carina -- yippee! Another soul doing the Cure with kids!
I feel like kids add such a different set of challenges to the Cure (well, to life in general of course!) and have been wishing there was someone else here to talk to about that stuff. How old are yours? Mine is 2.5. Perhaps we should start a 'Curing with kids' discussion thread on Flickr?
Anh-minh, would that be cool?
(I peeked briefly at the 'unofficial' Flickr cure group and saw a thread about Curing with pets, which gave me the idea.)

Any other parents out there?

jessicat: Yes! Of course we can start a thread in our Flickr group about curing with kids. (Let me know if you'd like me to kick it off.) Great suggestion.

oh jessicat, I remember the challenges and joys of trying to get things done with little kids. My kids would be my 27 year old son and his girlfriend. Not quite what you were referring to but they'll likely help move furniture, hang curtains and paint.

Wow, everyone has sure been busy!
I just wanted to add that I have kids, too. Boy, who will be ten in three weeks and a girl who is seven. In fact, I have to go fix my son's after bath snack right now, but I'll come back and comment on specific stuff when I'm done. (If I can).

wig3000: i'm a little late to the knob/pull conversation. but after checking out all of the links, i'm with alana and carina. i think something like the chrome/white knobs (#133624 and #133753) are somewhere in-between your faucets and pulls and might be the best middle ground.

carina: of the three rugs you selected, i'm especially fond of #2 and #3. where are they from? (i'm currently having trouble finding runners for both of my hallways.)

jessicat: the bliks look great!!!

alana: a belated thank-you for sharing that link to the arrange-a-room site. i'm looking forward to trying it out (soon, i hope!).