The Latest: Feb 10, 2016

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Brandon & Kate’s “Minimal – but Cozy- as Possible” Apartment

Name: Brandon & Kate Location: Humboldt Park — Chicago, Illinois Our home is the top floor of a quaint little two-flat from 1891 in Humboldt Park Chicago. We fell in love with all the beautiful natural light that floods the apartment during the daytime and the simple white walls that were just begging for some artwork. We used to sell vintage furniture so we have a large collection of furniture and home decor to pull from.

Nora Taylor

Feb 10, 2016

Before & After: Overcoming the Quirks of ’70s Fireplace

About six years ago, my boyfriend and I bought a severely neglected 1970s ranch house. It was basically a grimy, character-free tract home with critters living in the garage and AC return duct. We had a lot of issues to deal with after we bought the house, so the limestone fireplace was pretty far from the top of the list, and we ended up ignoring it for years while we worked on other parts of the house. Eventually, it became harder to ignore.

Nora Taylor

Feb 10, 2016

Sarah & Lindsay Share a Simple, Southwestern-Inspired Space in Chicago

Name: Sarah & Lindsay Location: Humboldt Park — Chicago, Illinois Size: 1,000 square feet Years lived in: 5 months; Rented Sarah and Lindsay haven’t even lived together for half a year, but their styles have already merged seamlessly. Sarah brought the cozy Southwestern elements while Lindsay brought the Mid-century modern, and all the colors and patterns work with the nature-inspired elements to create a space that is warm and inviting.

Kristan Lieb

Feb 10, 2016

This Customizable DIY Dresser Drawer Bookshelf Is Just What Your Wall Needs

Reuse old dresser drawers to create a bookshelf installation like Mike and Kate’s! The couple found free dressers on Craigslist and used the drawers to transform an empty wall in their Chicago home. dresser drawers (preferably dovetailed) paint wall mounting hardware measuring tape hammer drill From Kate: I turned to Craigslist and found free dressers, took the drawers, and trashed the dressers themselves (don’t worry—they were really ugly).

Brittany Purlee

Feb 10, 2016

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Know Your Leather: A Detailed Guide To Spotting The Real Stuff

Thinking leather might be better? Keep in mind it’s not all created equal. The difference in quality between genuine, bonded, and flat-out fake leather is huge, and there are some easy tricks to spotting the good stuff. We looked at Value City Furniture’s new line of genuine leather furniture to learn what to look for. OK, duh. But the label is going to say more than just “real” or “fake!