Some Color In The Pocket Office
Over the weekend I made a few tiny but fun changes to the pocket office. First, I added some bright red paper to the blah sides of the drawer set under the desk. It looked as if it had just been stashed under there, but now it looks as if it was intended to be there. I also tried to eliminate some clutter. I took down the picture mobile, arranged some of the hanging photos on the inspiration wire, and changed the art a bit.
I had seen online where framing simple art in a blank CD case can be easy to swap and add a fun punch to your walls for little money. So, I hung three of these CD case frames with some strange art in them above the desk. The art was small, cluttered, and mismatched. I changed the art out to something more simple and in the color scheme. I then hung them vertically to contrast with the inspiration wire. I think this is starting to look much better than my original office a few months ago!
The colored paper on the drawers.
The CD case art I made.
Doesn't it look so much better!?
And, the other side of the office, so you can see the pretty matching boxes.
What do you think?
Mini Bar Update
We have had the old TV armoire we found on Craigslist home for a couple of weeks now. I haven’t posted about it because we are having a change of heart. We had wanted to strip the wood and stain it black. But, when we got the cabinet home we thought it was so gorgeous we couldn’t bear to do that! I thought that going black and adding some shiny handles and mirrors would add some Hollywood Regency to the cabinet, more suiting it to become a mini bar. I just don’t know if we can bring ourselves to touch the beautiful wood. We did add a stemware rack to the top and filled it with our lovely bar glasses and goods. It is really gorgeous in our dining room, and it has already served it’s purpose. We do still plan on adding another shelf in glass and also a pull out shelf for more mixing and pouring space.
What do you think? Should we restain the cabinet black or leave it as it is?
You can't see it here because there is no stemware in it, but there is a clear stemware rack on the right side.
We really do need your advice, opinions and ideas!!
Another Chair Love
This week’s chair love is a bit unusual. And very overpriced. Yves Saint Laurent’s art collect was auctioned off this week. This chair from the personal collection sold for $28 million!
The chair is called the ‘Dragons’ armchair and is from 1917-1919. For more information about the history of this amazing chair/piece of art check out the Christie’s website link above.
Gorgeous is all I can say. What do you think?
Wabi Sabi
Wikipedia defines wabi sabi as the Japanese world view centered on the acceptance of transience. Sometimes it is also described as beauty that is imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete. I think a good description of this is finding the prefect ion in imperfection. I love the concept of wabi sabi and try to incorporate it into my home all the time. I truly do believe that things can grow more beautiful over time. Maybe its the fact that a well worn item looks well loved. I love how these items have a past, a history. New furnishings from some big box store are often not very well made and are also mass-produced. Meaning that too many of these items in your home and things might look exactly like some one else’s home. This to me is boring. Age and imperfections add interest. So, although we do mix modern items in with our antiques and used finds, we do have some wabi sabi pieces in our home. I thought I would show you a few of our currently well-loved pieces.
This is our little dining table. It is very old and imperfect, but, it has so much character and personality. Even the chairs are worn-in, and mismatched!
A close-up of our perfectly imperfect table.
This is an old table with an antique frame used for the top. We use it as our living room coffee table. It has its dings and scratches, but I think that's what makes it so unique.
The mirror top of our coffee table.
Here are a few more imperfect yet gorgeous items currently in our house:
A vanity bench in our guest room.
One of two old plant stands used as bedside tables in our guest room.
A worn coke crate is hung up in our bedroom.
The Start Of A New Project
The other day I wrote about how we wanted to make a mini bar area in our home. I showed pictures of other people’s re-purposed bar areas that we loved. But, after much discussion we decided we liked the look of a closed cabinet for this kind of thing a little better. With all of my inspiration in hand, I set out to plan my own mini bar project. Yes, we found the perfect (we hope!) cabinet for the job! A Craigslist post led us to the Maple TV Cabinet.
I see much potential in the armoire! (We don’t actually pick it up until Thursday.) I plan on first painting it a high gloss black. The back inside of the cabinet with be lined with mirror and wine and stemware racks will be hung from the inside. The inside has one shelf, but we are guessing we will make a few new shelves from glass. I am going for a bit of Hollywood regency here. Overall, we think this beauty should have plenty of space for our entertainment needs!
We do have one small question, however. I think there needs to be a flat space large enough to mix the actual drinks incorporated into the cabinet somehow. I was wondering if the drawer could be used for that. It might be a bit too low to be comfortable, though. I was also wondering about making a sort of pull-out shelf inside the cabinet. Is this even possible? When I see the cabinet in person I will know if more space is necessary. Until then, does anyone have any ideas or suggestions?
We are very excited to get the project rolling, so stay tuned for updates!
Protect The Camera
Yesterday was my first Thursday off now that I have started working four ten hour days and taking Thursdays off. It was a busy day and I think I may have worked harder at home that I do during a work day in my office! But, this means my house is sparkling and I even finished a few projects. Once simple one that I finally tackled was making a camera pouch! My camera travels with me almost all the time. You never know when you are going to see something blog-worthy! 🙂 This means that my camera has acquired a few scratches and dings along the way, though. To prevent this I could have bought a fancy (and probably expensive) camera bag, yes. But, other than not wanting to fork over that much cash, I think they tend to be a bit too big to lug around in my purse all the time. So, enter my simple DIY camera bag! (I’m not a very good seamstress, so believe me, this is a very simple DIY!)
I used a rectangular strip of some soft leftover leopard fabric that I had lying around the house. I folded it in half with one end a few inches longer than the other, with the leopard print facing each other (inside out). I sewed the sides together next. Then sewed a seam on the extra top flap of material. Once the sewing was done I flipped it inside out and added a bit of Velcro to keep the top flap closed. That simple!
The material and my little sewing kit (I did this little project by hand).
Finished camera pouch:
No more scratches!
New Chair Love
This week I have been a little sick, making me a little absent, but I am pining for a new chair. I had to share it with you. Its the Marais AC chair from DWR. Industrial. Colorful. Perfection!
This photo was on Apartment Therapy. http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/la/flickr-finds/flickr-finds-bright-yellow-076197
Here is it in red:
I think these are just gorgeous! I would love either color. Or silver metal…
Oh, the possibilities!
Making A Mini Bar
Currently we hold all of our drink glasses, servers, shakers and wine and liqueurs in one of our kitchen cupboards. But, I have always wanted to do something different with these items. I would like to have some sort of mini bar in the kitchen or dining room. This would be such easy access for entertaining. Also, it would free up more cupboard space in the kitchen, which for us is at a premium!
I have recently seen a few photos of DIY bars and am in planning process for making one of our own.
This redone shelf unit was posted on Apartment Therapy. I think this is great inspiration for our project. A simple shelf unit like this would be easy to find and probably affordable. I really love the wine racks and glass holders. I also like the idea of lining the backs of cabinets with colorful ,fun paper. Here is another picture of a mini bar with beautiful paper:
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/chicago/inspiration/inspiration-lined-cabinets-075583 . Originally from Homes and Gardens.
I also like the idea of using a bar cart or serving tray with a few bottles and glasses, but options like the cabinets in the pictures would give us much more space and probably be safer with pets, especially if there are doors.
I am very excited to get started on this project, and will keep you posted!
A Few Layouts
Last night was a quiet, restful night at our busy house. Having the puppy has meant little sleep and rowdy evenings at home. So, no projects for us last night. But, I did do a few scrapbook layouts. I thought I would share these with you. Hope they are inspiring. Let me know what you think and if you have any ideas!
I did the black swirl as well as the spider web lettering for Halloween by hand.
I love torn edges, especially when using vellum. And, its so easy!
Something I Love
Through my many recent projects I have found a product that I love. Undo Adhesive Remover! This stuff is amazing. I started using it while scrap-booking. You stick a sticker to a page and realize that you want to move it. No problem for Undo. It not only removes the sticker with no harm to the paper or the sticker, but it also brings the sticker back to it’s original stickiness when it dries! I have also used this to un-peal photos and other papers that I have stuck down with glue.
After using and loving this product on my scrap-book, I decided that it was worth a shot on other projects as well. Yes, it can safely un-stick stamps, labels, and even gunk. The possibilities are endless! My next project involves a very pretty bottle of liqueur that I would like to remove the label from. I want to leave the label in good condition to use for something, and also have the bottle sticky-free for use for something. No problem for Undo, I’m sure.
I highly recommend for every do-it-yourself-er!
Make Mine Eclectic 