wanted: buffet lamps

I was out in Annapolis the other day, meeting a friend for lunch. She was running a few minutes late so I popped into a couple of home stores, natch. And I saw some buffet lamps. They were very much like these from Circa Lighting:

Of course, they're also $378 each. At the store (whose name I cannot remember), they were $310. Cheaper, but still not exactly in my price range. But wouldn't they be pretty flanking my TV? I've long wanted sconces, but am moving away from that idea because it would involve hard wiring and considering I keep putting off even switching out the stupid automatic light switches the previous owner installed in the kitchen & bedroom, well, I don't see this happening anytime soon. I have looked for ones that you can just plug in, but they're either ugly or swing-arm. And for my location, neither is a good option.

I had thought about buffet lamps, but in my head they're always these dainty, spindly things. I'm not a dainty person and neither is my decorating style. But these lamps? They are quite substantial while not being overpowering. They'll add plenty of light to that side of the room but not be oppressive.

So what do you think the likelihood is of me finding $600 on the sidewalk? I'd say "when I win the lottery," but as the ads say, you can't win if you don't play.

my lavender bathroom - pictures!

I did it - I painted my bathroom last week. And though I said I would wait on pictures until I was finished, I love the result so much that I just couldn't help myself. It's a little weird to have done my northern-facing bathroom in sunset colors, but I do love the warmth it gives the room at night. Once afternoon rolls around, the whole room & hallway just glow. And then the lavender is really lovely in the icy morning sun - and helps bring out the green in my eyes. This color just makes me happy.

The shower curtain's packaging was made out of the same peach as the top row with ruffles of the the middle pink and lighter purple, which made picking out a paint color so easy. I was able to do it right in the middle of Home Depot - no coming home to check colors, second-guessing myself and putting off the whole project for another two years.

And see? The shade is perfect. If the curtain had another row of purple, it would be Behr's Sweet Petal.

The icy northern light IS beautiful, but it's only so-so for getting detail pictures with my point-and-shoot camera. But you get it, right?

I also painted all of the trim in Ralph Lauren Picket Fence, leftover from painting my living room. One day all of the trim and all of the doors in my house will be this shade of white. It's perfect. Crisp and clean but still with a bit of life to it. And can I just say how much I ADORE Ralph Lauren paint? It was a bit thick after sitting in my shed for two years, but still went on smoothly (after much mixing) and was so much easier to apply than drippy, thin Behr. Really wish Home Depot still carried it, but I'd drive an hour (or order online) to get some more Picket Fence.

I've never really taken pictures of my bathroom before so even though my cabinet set-up isn't new to me, it is new to you. It really makes me happy to use decorative items to hold my everyday supplies - and makes this open shelf a lot more attractive. Plus the stained glass pieces were presents, which makes them extra pretty in my eyes.

Obvs the mini galvanized bucket (found online for 99 cents!) holds my cotton swabs and then the Liberty for Target canister hold cotton balls and the votive holder captures hair elastics, barrettes and tweezers.

And what a fun coincidence that the canister matches my new walls! You know what else matches? Everything in my shower. Yup - my shampoo, conditioner, body wash, body puff, shave gel AND razor are all shades of pink and purple. I swear this was not planned - but I do wonder if I was unconsciously influenced?

I love the way my bathroom turned out. I don't even mind the wrinkles in the shower curtain - and anyway, they are slowly falling out with each shower. Overall, it is just a happy, fun and spirited room. Just what I needed.

rejected

I can't lie - I'm more than a little hurt that my living room didn't make it to Apartment Therapy's Room For Color contest.  I mean, would you reject this?

Of course not.

One of their FAQs is "I received confirmation that you received my entry, why wasn’t my entry posted?"  I never received a confirmation.  So I'm consoling myself with the thought that maybe they just never received my entry.

Though maybe they were confused that my room looks so green in the above shot and so blue in this one:

But that's how my living room rolls.  It changes color based on the amount of light and the type of light.  Sunlight is different from the lightbulbs that came with the house is different from the lightbulbs I've bought is different from dusk is differnent from morning.  And, of course, flash vs. no flash.  My house is a chameleon.

By the way, these pictures look waaaaay different on my monitor in the office than they did on my laptop at home.  So I kind of have no clue what you're seeing.  This next shot is still in the blue family.

But I'll make it through. 

There are things I'd like to fix anyway, like my coffee table.  I want something with a glass top.  And since I'm probably not recovering the orange chair anytime soon, maybe I just need to add some more orange to the room.  Like a pillow for the wicker chair.  I want a new one anyway.

I also need to dress my entryway a little more.

So I'll make the changes and take new pictures and be ready for next year's contest.  I'll enter right away and will make sure I do it correctly and I'm sure I'll be selected.  And win, of course.  I don't even know what the prize is.  I just want the world to love my colorful living room.

That, you know, I want to repaint.  But we'll keep that a secret.

And check out my lamp!  The best thing that came out of this contest - I finally go around to fixing the lamp.  I had to glue the socket a little more and I added some lime green ribbon to the shade, which makes it look SO much better.  The brown trim just yelled out "70's!"  In a bad way.  Now it's all fresh and pretty.  The glue I used shows through the ribbon so I do need to fix it, but I'm not worried.  I have lots of ribbon leftover.

 
Enjoy the pictures and get ready to vote for me - next year. 
 
In the meantime, vote for your favorite rooms here.  But don't vote for this one.  It's too close to my living room.  Yeah, I'm bitter.  Whatevs.  I've accepted it.  I do think my favorite is this bathroom.  That green!  I love it.  I also rather love this purple living room.  I think it best reflects the spirit of this contest.

lamp project

I painted my living room lamp the other weekend.  My mom got this lamp at a yard sale when I was little - little enough that I don't remember not having this lamp in our house.  I was at her house last fall and it was just hanging out in the hallway, on its way to the basement to be stored.  So I asked if I could have it and she said sure.  It felt very 70's to me - an oatmeal colored urn-ish base with a burlap tall drum shade.  I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it - paint it white and swap the burlap shade for one in white so it would brighten up that corner even when not lit.  Originally, she didn't want me to paint it in case she wanted it back, but she eventually relented.  And I finally got around to painting it.  Three coats of glossy white spray paint later and I was done!

It even felt a little Jonathan Adler-esque due to the tone-on-tone design around the middle.

And I had bought a black and white floral drum shade from Target - part of their Liberty's line, natch.  I mean, look at how freaking pretty this is!

I put it all together (forgot to take a picture) - and - hated it.

The white of the shade turns cream when turned on and isn't designed to go with a harp while my lamp base is so it's not very sturdy.  And then the base is just too flat of a white.  It looks awkward.  And as much as I tried to talk myself into the black and white print and how I have lots of other black and white accents in the room, I knew that it just didn't go or fit my vision for this room.

So I went back to the burlap shade, thinking I would recover it in a pretty color.  But...hmmmm...now the white base doesn't seem as stark.  And I could always paint the end table in the same shade.  I've wanted to paint it for a while anyway...

Then I figured it out!  I don't need to fully recover the shade, I just need to add some ribbon trim.  Maybe Greek key in green and white?  A formal detail in a funky color, which is exactly my style.  Off to scour the earth for ribbon that blends these two pictures!

current state of my bedroom

My bedroom has been an organic process. I started with my bed, a chiffonier, one bedside table and the Venus mirror. Bedding was a light blue tone-on-tone duvet, brown sheets, navy dust ruffle and a brown and blue paisley lumbar pillow. Curtains were the short, sheer white ones that came with the house. The overall look was great in my old apartment, but kinda sad in my new house.

Here is my bed now:

I went for a layered look. I started with the pink coverlet from Crate and Barrel.  It was on sale and a great Barbie pink (no longer available). I bought it king-sized for my queen-sized bed so it would hang long and cover the boxspring. Once the coverlet was in my house, I thought I would go with a gray/pink/magenta/brass look – very luxurious and tailored. I painted my end tables to go with this theme and bought the tiny throw pillow, but then I couldn’t find the right gray duvet.

And I saw this orange one at Ikea and decided to go in a more eclectic, layered direction. Even better that it works with the brown sheets I already had.

Sidebar – go back to the picture above and notice how the stuff on my end tables is visually balanced. Balance is incredibly important to me in decorating and I’m really happy with how this turned out.

I already owned both lamps and was unable to find the right replacements for a reasonable price. The white lamp on the right originally had a pale blue lampshade. It was old and a little dirty and perpetually dusty. So I bought a new one at Target for less than $10. Fab.

On the left, I used a stained glass lamp bought at Ross or Marshall’s during college. It’s fallen a few times so the shade is crooked and cracked, but if I turn it the right way it’s not that noticeable. (Of course, I had it turned the wrong way in all of these pictures.) But it’s a lot shorter than the candlestick lamp on the other side.

I had scavenged the small painting from my mom’s cellar. She had it hanging over the work sink. I realized that the black of the frame would be a nice compliment to the black lampshade. And if I hung it low, it would balance the height. So perfect. I also had suggested to my mom that she hang a painting super low in her bedroom and she really doubted my wisdom with that. So this performed a secondary function – showing that I’m not off my rocker for telling others to do this.

But then on the left side of the bed, I have my alarm clock and always-present box of Kleenex. Again, it threw the balance off.

This all happened in mid/late December and my friend Anne gave me a gorgeous perfume bottle for Christmas. And that inspired me to create a little vignette with some old vases and the bottle on the other bedside table. The height of the green bottle balances the height of the alarm clock and Kleenex, the blue vase and perfume bottle balance the bulk. It’s not an exact match – and I didn’t want it to be – but it is comforting to the eye to have these straight lines.

And really, I didn’t measure when hanging the painting. I wish I were anal enough to do so, but I’m not. I eyeballed it and had to lower it once. I really should lower it another ½”, but then the first hole would show so I’m living with it. And it’s fine. It makes me happy and that’s all that matters.

Moving on.

To tie in all of the warm colors, I went with bamboo blinds from Target. Even shut they still let in a lot of light, which is great. I have no problem sleeping with moderate amounts of light coming in and during the day I usually forget to open my blinds but still like the sun.

Storage space is still at a premium in my house and I didn’t want to spent a lot of money on furniture that’s only so-so. I’m still using the chiffonier that was my dad’s from his first marriage. Growing up it served as extra storage in the cellar and was always referred to as the Ugly Chiffonier. When I moved out on my own, this was the first piece I scavenged from my mom’s house. And I really like it! The edging at the top is missing some chunks, but it’s just the veneer so it could be easily repaired. And it needs a good polish. But these things really don’t bother me.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

I have a jewelry box on top that now holds only my earrings. I love necklaces that are big, chunky and/or long and they were just getting all tangled up in the jewelry box. So I bought some small white hooks from Home Depot and jammed them in the wall behind my door, spacing them out to fit specific necklaces.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

My collection grows all the time and I didn’t want to be confined to a peg or bulletin board. If I ever paint this room, I’ll probably do something a little neater and more secure, but this totally works.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Underneath my jewelry wall is my solution for layering tank tops and camisoles. I have dozens. I love wrap dresses and low-cut shirts, but they aren’t appropriate for work or just running around on the weekend. So I have black camis and white camis and pink camis and yellow camis and blue camis. When I had a larger closet I was able to hang them all up (drawer space was always at a premium) and easily grab what worked for each outfit. But now my closet is teeny tiny and I can’t do that anymore. In a perfect world, I’d have money for an antique or antique-looking lingerie chest, but my world isn’t perfect. What I did have was an extra two-shelf bookcase that fit perfectly behind my bedroom door. Done.

I also have an undersized chair tucked between the chiffonier and bookcase. Perfect for throwing clothes on when I’m running late or just too lazy to hang things back up. It’s old and battered and in desperate need of a new coat of paint, but it’s usually hidden by the door so it will probably stay battered for a while yet.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Here’s my bed from the other side of the room. It’s all very lovely. The Venus mirror is angled such that I can see myself when standing at the back of the room, but one doesn’t automatically look into it when getting into that side of the bed.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 But then you look down and can see my storage boxes. They don’t fit through the tiny attic opening and it’s three or four fewer items to clog up my spare room. Not feng shui-friendly, but it’s a necessity in my house.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 Finally, here’s my closet. Small opening but it does extend to the right another two or three feet. If I’m honest with myself, it’s not a bad sized closet for one person. I can’t imagine sharing it with someone, but then my sister did it with her husband for ten years before their remodel so I know it can be done.

One bonus is that there are two shelves. The bottom one holds all of my in-season shoes along with a crate filled with purses and shawls. The upper shelf is out-of-season shoes and my old teddy bear. I can’t stick him up in my attic, but don’t want him in my bed every night so he hangs out here.

The walls are still the same white as when I moved in, but as you can see, in the right light they look pink. I would like to paint them this same pink – pale, delicate, inside-of-a-shell pink, but as I add more and more color to the room through textiles and art, the white walls don’t bother me as much.

If I do paint, I plan on making the walls, trim and ceiling all the same shade. Then once I replace the candlestick lamp and low bookcase I won’t have any white in this room at all. It’s kind of an experiment for me. I ADORE white trim and generally do feel best when there’s a good amount of white in a room. But this room just calls out for something warmer and cozier and a continuous color would give me the right feel. One day.

lightbulbs

I finally bought a lightbulb for the lamp on the other side of my bed last night. The old one died and while I believe I still have some regular lightbulbs somewhere in the house, I really wanted a CFL one with a lowish wattage.

So last night in Target, I actually remembered to pick one up! 40W equivalent, which is perfect. I used to think that my lamp was too high, but I've since realized that I just had too high of wattage. In my old apartment, I had really high ceilings and it was a studio so my bedside lamp helped provide light for the whole apartment. In my house, my bed has its very own room with an overhead light so bedside lamps can be task-specific.

Kind of a revelation.

It didn't bother me that my bedside lamp was too bright in my studio - I just read with my back to the lamp. And until I started moving things around in my bedroom, I didn't realize how freaking awesome it is to be able to have items that don't multi-task.

My house is still pretty darn small so this isn't going to happen often, but when it does, I will luxuriate in it.

light

I really like the light in my house. At night, there's a streetlight in the middle of my court that looks like the moon through my curtains. In my bedroom, another streetlight casts shadows from the trees on the wall. The morning light comes through my bathroom window and lets me see if I've put on too much blush. And downstairs gets such a nice glow, even when the shades are down.

This was one of my biggest concerns about my house. My Adams Morgan apartment had huge windows and let in all of the beautiful afternoon sun. Some of my favorite times in that place were weekend afternoons when I would take a nap with the sun streaming in. It made me feel like I was on vacation. My new little house has standard sized windows, is a middle unit and just never feels all that sunny. But I really think the quality of the light is better, especially in the morning and evening, which is when I'm home the most.