Weekend Homework: Do a Clean Sweep & Pick Up Some Chips
Alright, this is it: your room transformation is about to REALLY begin. The time has come for the weekend cleanup and clearout. (I know, sorry! But, just as I’m sure you knew it was coming up, you also know you’ll feel GREAT when it’s off your list.) Taking some time this weekend to do a really good, thorough decluttering and cleaning of whichever room your are curing can be a big job, but it’s absolutely a key moment in the Cure journey. You can do this!
Oct 31, 2014
Rebecca’s Floor Plan: Nailing the Layout
Drawing up a proper to-scale 3D floor plan was a revelation. My usual method is to drag furniture around the room shouting things like, “Yes, it’ll definitely fit there! It will! It’s going to look amazing! Okay, so it’s bit tight, what about over there…?” Until everything has found a home and I have discovered new arm muscles I didn’t know existed. I used Autodesk Homestyler to make a free floor plan for my daughter’s new bedroom.
Oct 31, 2014
How To Downsize a Kitchen: 8 Tips for Owning Less in the Most Space-Sucking Room in the House
Lately it seems that I’m hearing the word “downsize” everywhere. From friends buying their first bijoux apartments after years in shared and spacious rented accommodation, to my parents’ generation selling multi-bedroom suburban houses and moving into city condos, to articles about living more minimally, owning less is trending. Obviously, downsizing is going to be different for everyone.
Oct 31, 2014
How To Make a Candle Out of a Pumpkin
(Image credit: Faith Durand) From The Kitchn → How To Make a Candle Out of a Pumpkin
Oct 31, 2014
Breakfast (& Lunch, & Dessert!) In Bed: Food-Printed Kids’ Bedding
“No food in bed!” I’m sure we’ve all said it at one point. And yet, here are some bedding options that let the impossible be possible: food on the bed, without the mess! 1. Designed by Joy Cho of Oh Joy, could this Sundae Best Crib Quilt be any cuter? From Land of Nod, who incidentally, also have other ice-cream themed goodies in stock. $129.00. 2.
Oct 31, 2014
A Transformation for a Cramped Kitchen
From Apartment Therapy → Before & After: A Functional Update for a Cramped Kitchen This inspiring renovation turned an oddly-shaped kitchen into a bright and extremely functional space!
Oct 31, 2014
Tamara’s Floor Plan: Two Spaces In One
Here is my floor plan for my sun room/family room/lots of other functions. It primarily will be a family room and an office area though, so here are the main pieces I’m thinking: A. Sectional sofa. B. A couple of tables that can easily be moved around. C. An area rug with some pattern and color. D. A media cabinet/console. E. Side chair. F. End table. G. Ladder shelf that my husband built.
Oct 31, 2014
The Mega List! 50 Spectacular DIY Wall Art Projects & Ideas
50 ways to add texture, color, and interest to your walls! These are all easy to make, won’t cost much, and don’t take a lot of time.
Oct 31, 2014
A Spooky, Kooky Halloween-Ready Home
Name: Jennifer Perkins and husband Chris Boehk along with daughter Tallulah (five years old) and Baxter (three years old). Location: Shady Hollow Neighborhood — Austin, Texas Size: 2,900 square feet Years lived in: Owned 1 year We shared some of the great Halloween decor ideas we spotted in the home of Jennifer Perkins (crafter, business lady and really rad mom) earlier this month.
Oct 31, 2014
10 Stylish DIY Clothing Racks
Tiny closet? No closet? If you’re scratching your head over where to put clothes in your bedroom (or where to hang coats in a foyer), consider one of these DIY clothing racks. TOP ROW: 1. DIY Garment Rack from Smitten Studio 2. Gilded Clothes Rack from Style Me Pretty 3. Pipe Clothing Rack, DIY from Instructables 4. Copper and Concrete Clothes Rack, DIY from Shelterness 5. DIY Clothing Rack form Love Aesthetics BOTTOM ROW: 6. Multiple-Way Clothing Rack from Love Aesthetics 7.
Oct 31, 2014
Before & After: The “Wig Lady” Chairs Get Gorgeously Ghostly
Jean and Ruthie bought these chairs nearly 20 years ago from a mother-daughter duo who were selling the entire contents of their home. The creepy house was filled with an assortment of oddities and at one point they noticed piles scattered throughout the house – only to realize later that they were, in fact, piles of hundreds of wigs! They say, “The whole situation was a bit Grey Gardens.” When they went back the next day, the house was deserted.
Oct 31, 2014
Avoid These 5 Common Mistakes When Making Scrambled Eggs
(Image credit: Martin Turzak) shutterstock From The Kitchn → Avoid These 5 Common Mistakes When Making Scrambled Eggs
Oct 31, 2014
Fall Gardening Tip: Save, Don’t Discard, Your Chrysanthemums!
Well before fall even arrives, garden centers, big-box and grocery stores already have their shelves stocked with an abundance of chrysanthemums. And if you were one of those individuals quick to get a jump on decorating for the harvest season, then you’re probably living with some pretty sad looking mums right about now. So what should you be doing with all those mums that are past their prime?
Oct 31, 2014
Lauren’s Floor Plan: Getting a Visual
There won’t be much moving or rearranging happening in our kitchen this year. We’re updating on a tight budget, so we’re not replacing the cabinets or splurging on new appliances. We’ll be painting the lower cabinets (we painted the uppers white during last year’s Style Cure), switching out the dated laminate countertops for butcher block, adding a wood plank backsplash, and installing an inexpensive apron-front farmhouse style sink from good ol’ IKEA.
Oct 31, 2014
7 Ways to Incorporate Art into Your Kitchen
Oct 31, 2014
Why We Hold Onto So Much Stuff, and How to Let Go
We all know the role that clutter plays in our households. To varying degrees, it’s a nuisance, or it distracts us, and —in the worst cases — totally overtakes our lives. Here are some of the underlying reasons why you’re reluctant to let go of physical objects, and some steps to take towards living a life less burdened by stuff. What if you threw it out and missed it later?
Oct 31, 2014
What You Need To Know About Natural Peanut Butter
(Image credit: Erika Tracy) From The Kitchn → What Is Natural Peanut Butter?
Oct 30, 2014
How To Clean an Iron
We’ve all been there: pressed for time (pun intended), forced to use our iron with a dirty plate, nervous that the precious few minutes we are taking to actually iron out the wrinkles might set us even further behind by the transferring of gunk to the garment, forcing you to choose a completely new outfit altogether. Maybe you haven’t been there, but I’m speaking from experience. Good news: If you’ve got 10 minutes, you’ve got a clean iron!
Oct 30, 2014
Frugally Fab: Framed Wrapping & Decorative Papers
Luckily there are plenty of outlets for affordable art these days and one of them may be in your own closet. That wrapping paper you drag out 10 minutes before your friend’s birthday party—take a second look—perhaps it’s beautiful enough to frame. Wrapping or decorative papers can be a wonderful stand-in for art prints, especially if you’re on a budget.
Oct 30, 2014
Bring the Outdoors In: 15 Inspiring Nature Murals
Have you ever considered bringing your favorite natural scene into your own space to enjoy all year round? Wall murals and huge scale nature art can be a bit tricky, since there’s a wide selection of options of varying quality. If you’re inspired to create a beautiful indoor retreat, check out these examples of the look done right. These examples include art, murals and tapestries — and some are even from hotels (so you can book now and see how you like living with it first).
Oct 30, 2014
Increase Your Color Confidence in 5 Minutes
Today’s assignment is a quick one. Five minutes of reading and you’re done, but the color concepts you’ll learn will start you thinking in the right direction when it comes to color for your room. It’s time to gain some confidence for your upcoming design choices – you can do this AND you’ll do it well – but it’s important to feel prepared.
Oct 30, 2014
Bouncing Back from a Cold: 4 Things To Do Today (and 1 Surprising Thing You Shouldn’t)
If you’ve been sidelined with a cold or the flu and you’re finally (finally!) feeling better, then you just want to get your home back to normal asap. Bookmark this advice to make sure that when your brain is coming out of a cold coma, you’ll remember to do (or not do) these things. • Change the sheets — Sweaty sick-day sheets will NOT help you feel better. A fresh set will feel like a new start and help you get the rest you need to fully recover.
Oct 30, 2014
How Much Does it Cost to Install a Polished Concrete Floor?
We regularly ask readers to share how much they spent on a given item, service, project, or upgrade in the home. We hope this information proves helpful to anyone needing to get a basic sense of how much something costs, and how much you can expect to pay. How Much Did it Cost to Install Your Concrete Floor? If you can, let us know how many square feet you installed, and specify materials vs. hired labor. Since costs vary, your region of the country is always helpful too!
Oct 30, 2014
Jessica & Matt’s Vivacious Home
Today’s tour is the newest in a collaborative series curated by Jeanine Hays and Bryan Mason of Aphrochic for Apartment Therapy. They handpicked homes from around the world to share that capture the culture and style that they celebrate in their book, Remix: Decorating with Culture, Objects, and Soul.
Oct 30, 2014
Help Me Buy The Right Vacuum Cleaner!
My old vacuum just bit the dust so it’s time to make a big decision about a new purchase. C’mon, let’s crowdsource this! Are you in love with your vacuum? I want to know about it. Here’s my deal: I live in a 700 square foot, one-bedroom apartment in New York City. I have hardwood floors with area rugs in the living room (shag), the bedroom (low pile) and the hallway (Flor squares).
Oct 30, 2014
Mix It Up! by Hervé Tullet
My house is full of children’s books, both on the shelves and stacked next to every chair, couch and bed. More and more of the recently acquired ones seem to be of the interactive kind, which usually equals flaps, pockets, pop-ups or compartments. There is one interactive book that has none of these but still manages to find its way to the top of the piles (yes, it somehow moves from one room to the next, I suspect my daughter has a hand in that). Mix It Up!
Oct 30, 2014
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4 Stunning Bathrooms Inspired by Great Eras of Design
When it comes to bathroom design, the focus is more often on function rather than form. But there’s really no reason why your bathroom can’t become one of your most inspiring spaces. We took a look at four beautiful new baths that take inspiration from great eras of design to create a timeless space. Which one best fits your style?
Oct 30, 2014
Before & After: A Crumbling Cone Chair Resurrection
This Verner Panton cone chair surfaced as Andrew’s friend was cleaning his garage. It had been rained on and was in danger of disintegrating beyond repair. Not if Andrew had anything to say about it. In fact, this graphic transformation was also a surprise to Andrew! From Andrew: I rescued the chair, putting it in a dry place until I had the time to restore it.
Oct 30, 2014
How To Make Chicken Breasts More Interesting
(Image credit: Leela Cyd) From The Kitchn → 5 Easy Ways to Make Chicken Breast More Interesting
Oct 30, 2014
Alison’s Before Photos: Too Much Basket
Welcome to my parent’s spare room, soon to be Man Cave for Snoring Father, or Respite for Tired Mother, depending on which way you look at it. Dad’s official take on the room’s “before” status? “Too much basket.” There’s not really that much “basket,” just a woven chair, laundry basket and tiny basket on the bedside. For a mother and daughter team who love all things woven, is that really too much?
Oct 29, 2014
How To Clean Hardwood Floors with Black Tea
It’s warm and soothing for your body, but did you know you can also use black tea to clean your hardwood floors? Tannins in the tea add a light, warm “stain” and help to bring out the wood’s natural warm tones. In addition to it’s beautifying qualities, black tea derived from the Camellia sinensis plant contain polyphenolic compounds that prevent microbial growth.
Oct 29, 2014
Focus on a Floor Plan
Ok, here we go, getting down to business. Today’s assignment will take a little time but it DOES help move you forward in several areas. One, it’s easier to be objective about problems and issues in your room when you go through the process of simply reducing the space and items in it to a 2d plan – it gives you some emotional distance. Two, it will be helpful to have all your measurements recorded in one place.
Oct 29, 2014
Digital Housekeeping: 3 Tidying Tips to Do Today
When people talk about organizing their lives or cleaning up their homes, they don’t often mean their digital lives or their tech spaces. So much of our effort when simplifying our lives gets dedicated to the kitchen, living room, closets and bedroom, but if you think about it, we spend much of our time online and that’s a space that often gets ignored. Here are some things you have probably never done to your digital life that you should totally consider: 1.
Oct 29, 2014
20 Interesting Household Uses for Old Pantyhose & Stockings
If you wear stockings or pantyhose, don’t let runs and snags ruin your day. And definitely don’t throw old nylons away. Because, while they might have fallen short in their promise to keep your legs looking smooth, they have a whole other future existence as versatile household helpers. Turns out nylon is pretty handy, so check out these twenty ways to reuse all your worn out hose: Locate small objects on the floor by covering your vacuum nozzle with some hose.
Oct 29, 2014
Tips for Using Up Leftover Celery
(Image credit: Angela Andrews) shutterstock From The Kitchn → 10 Ways to Use Up Leftover Celery
Oct 29, 2014
Secrets to Home Staging: 8 Mistakes That Turn Off Potential Buyers
Home staging is a tricky thing. It’s not just about making a good impression. It’s about helping people visualize themselves happily living in what is currently your own home. Do it well and you facilitate the sale of your property. Do it poorly, and you alienate potential buyers, and fail to sell when you really need or want to. Here are eight errors and pitfalls to avoid in the process… Forgo Cleaning: Your own dirt and dust is one thing.
Oct 29, 2014
Stress Busters: 5 Home Improvements That Also Make You Feel Better
Tough time at work? In a spat with your partner? The stress we feel in these times is the body’s fight or flight hormones kicking in. Though you may just want to curl up in the fetal position or eat spoonfuls of ice cream from the carton, doing something physical is a better release for those stress hormones.
Oct 29, 2014
15 Last-Minute Halloween Ideas: Crafts, Activities & Printables
I don’t know about you, but Halloween kind of snuck up on me this year. We’ve done some of the requisite Fall activities — apple picking, Fall festivals, and corn mazes, but we haven’t gotten really in the Halloween spirit around our house. But don’t worry, there’s still time! Here are fifteen of my favorite late-minute Halloween crafts, activities, and printables from around the web: 1. Easy Honeycomb Ball Halloween Decorations: A Lovely Lark 2.
Oct 29, 2014
The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid Of Anything by Linda Williams, illustrated by Megan Lloyd
Halloween for the three- to five-year-old set is obviously an exciting time, but not without a few pitfalls. One of them is finding appropriate books to share. The stories need to be savvy enough to respect their intelligence but not so spooky that you will find a trembling child in your bed at two in the morning.
Oct 29, 2014
Esther & Brendan’s Industrial Chic California Home
Name: Esther Hahn, Brendan Cooney, and Timothy Hahn Location: Pacifica, California Size: 1,610 square feet Years lived in: 1 years; Owned The home that Esther and Brendan share (along with her brother Timothy) is colorful, vibrant and full of energy. Esther works as an editor for Racked, is an avid surfer and rides horses, and she and husband Brendan are often out together with their two (adorable) cattle dogs.
Oct 29, 2014
Soundproof Your Rental Bedroom in Under 10 Minutes for $40
If you’re in a rental apartment, the last thing you want to do is pay a lot of money to make it livable. Perhaps the only thing worse is pissing off your roommate(s) while you’re having loud — ahem — relations, or blasting Gregorian chants from your bedroom on Sunday mornings. Which means you need to find an easy, reversible and affordable solution for privacy, while respecting thy neighbors.
Oct 29, 2014
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8 Insane Kitchen Hacks That Are Completely Normal in NYC
Oh, New Yorkers. We tend to only notice our kitchens when we’re starved… for space. I may or may not have once dated a guy whose fridge contained just three items: Coronas, ketchup, and his entire sweater collection. (See #3 to find out what was in his freezer.) And the worst part is… I thought it was brilliant!! If your idea of making dinner is transferring takeout to a real plate, you may want to try some of these best (and worst) kitchen hacks we’ve seen in NYC.
Oct 29, 2014
Lauren’s Before Photos: & After, & After, &… After
I’m fairly certain that I’m going to go ahead with my plan to finish the kitchen for this year’s Style Cure, but I’m still not guaranteeing anything! I have a bunch of “before” photos to share with you all, as if you’ll remember I “Style Cured” my kitchen last year. This year’s Style Cure will hopefully be phase three or four (I’ve lost count) of our kitchen update.
Oct 29, 2014
New Feature! Daily Comment Reply Notifications
We want to make your experience here as part of the Apartment Therapy community as productive and enjoyable as possible. We’ve got a long wishlist of goodies we’re working on to improve reader communication with each other and the editors and we’ll be rolling them out as soon as they are ready. Once a day we’ll check if there are any new replies to comments you wrote, and if there are we’ll send you an email to let you know.
Oct 29, 2014
Why to Preheat Your Baking Sheet
(Image credit: zkruger) From The Kitchn → Here Are 3 Reasons Why You Should Preheat Your Baking Sheet
Oct 29, 2014
Before & After: This DOA Desk Gets Some CPR
Beth says, “I love a good challenge.” She would have to! She bought this mess of a desk from Craigslist for only 15 bucks. It had been sitting out on a balcony and the wood was in shambles. From Beth: There was no way to save it the bottom portion. The top was stained beyond recognition and the drawers were beat to hell and back. Why did I buy this? It’s how we learn, people! So feast your eyes.
Oct 29, 2014
Kelsey Nixon’s Kitchen Confidence
(Image credit: Andrew Forcier) From The Kitchn → October Maker Talk: Kelsey Nixon’s Kitchen Confidence
Oct 29, 2014