Kitchen During...

Kitchen Before

And here we go!

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Viva La Monoprice.com

I can haz 5.1 distribution wall plate and telescoping TV mount.

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happy anniversary

One year of wedded bliss. We skipped the traditional gift of paper and went straight to wood - a new dining table in walnut. Pretty excited because we can now host dinner parties for more than 2 people.

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bedroom makeover

The walls are now silver fox aka gray and the bedding is a more masculine mix of stripes, tweed and herringbone. Headboard is charcoal wool and rug is pink floral to balance things out. Much more sophisticated (and calm).

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A before and after project.

Decided that the bedroom could use something more... tried browns and yellows...

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new armchairs

Not quite sure if we will keep these
new chairs. Cons: very tall backs and the color is a bit too gold. Pros: recliners are soooo comfy and the price was right. Will continued to "tweak" the room.

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ewwww.

The "crappy" side to home ownership. JJ fixing the wobbly toilet. Glad my contribution to the house is decorating.

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Progress!

The guest bedroom has a bed! And bedding! Now we need some guests...

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ta-da!

After removing 400 staples... goodbye ugly brown carpet, hello nice wood floors!

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Ikea, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways...

60 riktig ogla curtain rings
1 tarnby rug
3 billy bookshelves
1 stenstorp island
and 1 ice cream cone!

slowly but surely

JJ hanging "window treatments" aka curtains. Mostly so the neighbors don't see that we are watching The Bachelorette (see tv screen in window reflection.)

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Big changes - coming soon!

Sorry that I haven't posted in a while. Like, for 7 months. BUT, I do have exciting news...JJ and I bought a house. That's right, a HOUSE. So, expect photos and projects as we DIY the heck out of the new digs. So excited...

Missed Connections

Dear Sophie Blackall,

My wall has a missed connection with your art. I need it.
'kay, thanks!

Love,
Tara :)

(Image by Sophie Blackall.)

Red Book, Blue Book

Monday, September 14, 2009Look: historically, I'm not a morning person. And to top it off, I was grimacing through some lower back pain that flowered over the weekend. So when you noticed me (white guy, brown hair, blue/white striped shirt, earphones, red book) and I noticed you (white girl, brown hair, nosering, headphones, blue book) for however brief a moment this morning, it was bolstering and made me forget the knife in my back. Haven't noticed you before, but if there's a next time, maybe I can slap myself out of the morning slumber and say hey. No promises, though.

(Click as fast as you can: http://missedconnectionsny.blogspot.com/ or http://www.sophieblackall.com

Design Guides by Design*Sponge

JJ is quail hunting in Mexico this weekend and so I have the house (and the City) to myself. I don't have much that I have to do, so I've decided to use the Design*Sponge Design Guide for San Francisco in order to explore the place that I've called home for the last decade, or so. These "guides" are put together by various bloggers/designers and are posted on the Design*Sponge website - one of my daily reads - and are a great way to explore a city and discover new and interesting shops, museums, and landmarks all with a slant toward design and interiors. I think they are a great way to rediscover a city once you've traipsed around and seen the main tourist attractions. You know, like Fisherman's Wharf or the Eiffel Tower.




Looking at the list of cities on the site makes me want to go back to Europe and re-visit a lot of places, especially Amsterdam. And wouldn't it be fun to go "down under" and see Brisbane and Sydney? Oooh, wouldn't that be exciting? I do have some frequent flier miles...



So, I'll start this weekend with San Francisco and make it my goal to go to AT LEAST three other cities in 2010.

Check the guides out:

Design*Sponge City Guides

(All images via Design*Sponge.)

Chairs Galore!

I've posted about my super-duper awesome Hans Wegner knock-off chairs HERE (jealous, much?). But, because the holidays are nigh upon us AND maybe you don't have equally fab dining chairs for your Thanksgiving or Christmas guests (or random Tuesday night dinner party) AND I am feeling so very generous, I present to you:

MY PICK OF COOL DINING CHAIRS THAT WILL BLOW YA MIND!

The classic Eames DCM chair.
Expensive, yet seemingly so simple in a "oh, this old school chair? I think I found it at a garage sale" sort of way.


The Thonet No. 18 Viennese Cafe Chair.
It's French, bitch.


Black Windsor dining chair.
Can be found in almost any Quaker-chic home. A sturdy classic for a reason.


The West Elm Oval back dining chair.
A nice mix of comfort and modern.


The CB2 Bandit chair.
Knock-off of the Emeco Navy chair. A-hoy!


Ikea Olle Chair.
Looks MoMa or SoMa, but it's 100% Affordable Euro Design.


Sundance 1956 Chair.
Rugged and Chic. City and Farm. Basically, a lot of cool. Thanks Robert Redford!


Pottery Barn Nailhead Chair.
Like a little throne for the dining room.


The Hans Wegner Wishbone Chair.
You will want to marry this chair and have 10,000 chair babies. If you are me, that is.

R-E-A-D-A-B-O-O-K!

Some books that I need ASAP to prett-ify our bookshelves:

The New Classics Series by Penguin.

I'll take all 8 of them please. I promise I will read them from cover to beautiful cover.

"Paris Made by Hand" by Pia Jane Bijkirk.

This will reconcile my inner francophile with my inner d-i-y-er.



And last, but not least:

"Restoring a House in the City" by Ingrid Abramovitch.

When JJ and I get our diamond-in-the-rough Victorian, I will use this book as inspiration and will have the most kick. ass. house. ever.

Do you ever _________________?

Watch a movie or thumb through a fashion magazine and think "wow, where do they find these gorgeous houses/sets/locations?" Chances are, if it is in England, they used Light Locations. Light Locations, per the website, is "a photographic location agency providing beautiful, inspiring lifestyle locations to the film/TV and photographic industry." For eye candy, this website cannot be beat. Check it out at: Light Locations.

Some of my favorites:

(All Images from Light Locations.)

Sunny House in the Mission

Local house tour from AT. (I bet this place doesn't have a mold problem. Boo.)

Kelly and Jonathan's Mission District Charmer

(All Images from Apartment Therapy. Click link to see more.)

Just when I think I'm out...

I get pulled back in! Saw the work of Colombe Stevens on the (fabulous) Desire to Inspire, who saw it on the (really fabuluous) Remodelista and now I'm in love. This is window blogging (akin to window shopping, but easier on your feet and wallet) at its finest. Go to either website and see the beautiful photos. So very, very inspiring! (Oh, and note the super awesome Wegner chairs. Holla!)

(All Images from Colombe Stevens.)