Finding Your Niche

Alcoves. Niches. The use of these little spaces can make or break a design. You can either pretend they don't exist and have continuous walls with wasted space behind them (i.e. what the idiots who designed the house I grew up in did) or create usable, fun, and unique spaces. I love alcoves. I think they are awesome and oooh soooo cozy.

Here is one from a living room. I love how the black and white of the wall paper is continued over into the curtain and into the material on the pillows and bench seat. This helps make the alcove blend in; it looks intentional. The addition of the little chair and table make this corner a great spot for a quiet conversation or for reading a good book on a rainy day. What could have been empty and unused is now used for additional seating.

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Built in bookshelves? Cozy alcove? Floor to ceiling windows? Great architectural floor plan? This room has it all. But, let's concentrate on what matters: the alcove built in to the bookshelves. This is a great way to break up the endless wall of books and to create a focal point for the room. Plus, the little bench is an awesome reading spot! 

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Now I would love to have a bed in a niche like this. It's so private, cozy, warm, unique. It reminds me of brothel houses in ancient Greece.  Love those curtains. What a fabulous area for a nap. Kids would adore this design too. It can become a private little room for them. 

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Now this is a great use of space. I love that they took a square opening and added that trim to make it into an arch. It's light. It's airy. It's a great display space. Now, not all of us have 25 billion foot ceilings, but the ideas from this space can definitely still be used. I love the seating and shelving combo. It's definitely the kind of space I'd want to store my travel souvenirs. 

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This is a more realistic space. I love the wood paneling inside and the width of that bench. It definitely qualifies as a day bed. I would totally stick a few relatives in there when my house is full to the brim. This looks likes its part of a kitchen/dining room so it could also be used for seating during parties. 

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Do you have a useable alcove or niche in your home? Send me pictures! I'd love to see how you've utilized these unique spaces. 

Fireplaces in Every Room

I love fire. I love its heat, its flame, the way it looks, the rustic feel of it, its protection, the way its light reflects on everyone's face. If the names Pyro and Sparky hadn't already been taken at Camp Two Sentinels where I volunteer most summers, I would definitely have picked one or the other. I love fire. I just do. My dream house would have a fireplace in every single room. I would have a fire every single day (yes I know its terrible for the environment, I'd have to find a green way to do it, ok?!) 

Today I decided to write about fireplaces. They give such a lovely feel to every space. They can be elegant, traditional, modern, bohemian, rustic-- whatever you want. Fireplaces are unique and, in my opinion, not used enough in today's design. 

First of all, the internet loves this kitchen. It is pinned all over the place on Pinterest. I love it's bright open feel, the floor to ceiling subway tiles (or is that brick?), the contrasting cabinets, but mostly, I LOVE the fireplace. See right there in the center? It's gorgeous. It's little. It's modern. I want one. I love the wood storage below too. In fact, I love how that wood looks real and isn't all perfectly cut like most styled images. This is a wonderful kitchen with a wonderful fireplace. It seems like a novelty, but, in fact, once all kitchens had fireplaces. Because that's the only way you could cook. duh. You knew this. Now I think we should all run out and hire architects to add a fireplace to our kitchens. Or Bedrooms. OR ANY ROOM IN THE HOUSE!!

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Here is a much more rustic example of a fireplace. This room is gorgeous, like a medieval Italian castle. I love the little corner fireplace. A fireplace in the bathroom would be amazing. Think candles are relaxing? Now think about fire, it's like candles times a million. Plus it would feel so nice on naked skin as you slip into the bath. I'm serious. It would be the most wonderful feeling. Also, check out this tub, guys. Pretty snazzy, eh? Its clean lines are a great contrast with the rough cut stone of this room.

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Now for the bedroom. Here is a nice modern, traditional space. I love the incorporation of different cultural pieces of furniture, I love the large wooden beams, I love the green fainting couch and curtains, I love the four post bed, but mostly, of course, I love that fireplace. Even though it doesn't have a fire in it, the addition of candles allude back to the firey origins. They've added some nice decor to the mantel too. I'm digging the convex mirror (my Oma has one!) and those sweet twigs. This room is lovely and relaxing and slightly sexy. Just what a master bedroom should feel like.

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Here is another fireplace in a bedroom. This room has a completely different feel however. It's very bohemian. The walls appear to be from an old (Victorian, maybe?) home, but the furniture is a mix of modern and traditional with a lot of color. I love that bedding. There is also that awesome mirrored chest in the corner. I like it. Feels like someone just moved and dumped their things here. It feels very much like I'm squatting. I'm feeling the adventure here. That fireplace brings some of that warmth and danger into the space.

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Fireplace in your closet? Why not? Especially when your closet looks like this. Please someone give me this room for my birthday! I love the way this space is used. The clothes, furniture, painting, and rug all go so well, despite their huge differences in style. I would just love to get ready to go out one night with a huge roaring fire. Can you imagine it? Sipping wine with your girlfriends, or husband, or wife; the fire crackling; the music playing just a little bit too loudly, the lights just dim enough for you to see yourself clearly in the mirror? Oh my goodness. It's like a closet orgy in this space. Fireplaces make everything better

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I do have to apologize  to y'all for slacking lately. I had finals and a mess of other things going on. But I'm back! Get ready for happiness and gorgeous design! So follow me! I'm getting ready for a summer of bright happy design fun!

Eclectic, Bohemian Bedrooms

Ok, so maybe my definitions of eclectic and bohemian is different from your's (or anyone's!), but for me I really feel that light, airiness, and a rockin' set of linens define this kind of space. Call me crazy, call me idiotic. Whatever. 

Here we go! I love this little built in bed. It is adorable. Surrounded by windows, you would totally feel like you were out in nature if you slept here. Plus that rug is fun and bright! The layered linens on the bed look so comfortable, I just want to curl up for a nice long nap. This room works really well because it contains layers of neutrals with pops of color in the rug and quilt. Mainly the room is layered whites, but again, the pops of dark in the wooden statue thing-y (technical term, I assure you) and in the quilt give it a more interesting feel. Although the space is mostly white, I don't feel like I'm in a museum. It's lovely. It's peaceful. It's relaxing. It's natural. Exactly what you want in a bedroom!

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Now this room has a bit more of a youthful feel. Definitely more eclectic. I like how the room is partitioned off from the rest of the space, yet it isn't completely out of view. There is definitely a nice flow here. The beaded curtain does a nice job. Though I can tell you from personal experience (I had a beaded curtain on my bedroom door in middle/early high school) that beaded curtains are super annoying. Especially if you ever want to leave your room without alerting everyone else you live with. They also tend to catch on things. Like skirts. 

What I do like about this space, however, is the use of color and pattern. The room looks like a collection of flee market finds. Such lovely layers. 

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This room is definitely more professionally put together, but, how cute is it?! As a former percussionist, I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THE IDEA OF DRUMS AS NIGHT STANDS. However, there is a slight storage issue...Anyways the room is tied together with a similar color scheme spread over a large number of patterns and textures. I especially like all the added storage you can see throughout the room. Also I'm a total sucker for a settee at the end of a bed (even though I don't even know how to pronounce the word properly! I'm a dork, shut up). 

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Now this has to be a dream of mine. I adore this little room. It just looks unbelievably cozy. I want to curl up with a huge hot toddy cup of tea hot chocolate (who am I kidding, chocolate all the way) and a great novel and just read a winter afternoon away. This room again has a bunch of patterns going on, but the red and purple tones tie everything together. I love the surrounding bookshelves. I think it's a fabulous idea. Plus then you don't even have to get out of bed when you finish the first Hunger Games book and need to immediately move on to the next one. The modern lamp is a lovely contrast to the antique feel of the room and the old framed prints. 

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Last, but not least, we have this wonder of light, white, and calm. Again, layered linens! SO much white is a tad intimidating, but it looks so lovely here. The room is calm, peaceful, relaxing. Definitely a great get-away room. I feel like I'm in a spa!!

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Do you like this kind of bohemian, eclectic feel to a bedroom? Or do you prefer a more formal design? Anyone have tips on how to layer bedding like that? 

Colorful Kitchens!!

I collected a bunch of colorful kitchens for y'all! I am a huge fan of color. As much as I want to like Swedish design, it often isn't colorful enough for me. I could never live in an all white world. A) I'm super clumsy. Nothing white lasts more than a few months around me. I spill, I trip, I bleed, I track mud, I like big dirty dogs. B) Color makes me happy. It brightens up the day. :)

Anyways! Here is the first kitchen I have for y'all. This one's a statement, for sure! Bright pink-red. Magenta? Fuchsia? I'm bad with color names. heehee. (Also I totally just looked up fuchsia because I had no idea how to spell it, and turns out, IT'S GERMAN!! Named after some scientist whose last name was Fuchs. Which means its actually pronounced more like Foocks- ia. Funny!) 

Back to design now... I actually really like this kitchen, although it is understandably a bit too much for most people. The wood toned island in the center helps tone down the pink though. The stainless steel compliments  the color of the cabinets and also alludes to the sparkle of glass. I like the glass door cabinets, it helps tone down the color since the back of the cabinets is white and the dishes are glass or white (I think I see some steel bowls too!). The only thing I would replace is the chandelier. It's a bit too Princess-y for me next to all that pink. The green and yellow accents are nice and also removable! Overall, this kitchen rocks. The owner clearly has some balls. I'd totally buy this kitchen. I wonder if they'll ship me a duplicate for $500? heehee

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Ok, this kitchen is a tad more realistic for the majority of y'all. (How many times have I said y'all in this post? My mother's Kentucky accent is totally rubbing off on me. [except she doesn't say y'all, so really it's my extended family/ I am on crack.]) 

Aaannnyyhoo, this teal kitchen is much more subtly colorful. The color is a nice pastel. The wood counters also ground it in nature and compliment it very nicely. As always, stainless steel appliances look modern and slick (seriously does anyone renovate a kitchen and not use stainless steel these days? TELL ME IF YOU DID AND SEND ME PICTURES!). The handles on the cabinets are also stainless steel so everything matches well. I like, I like.

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So you want a sleek, modern, useable kitchen? Add a dash of yellow and this is what ya get! This is another kitchen I luuurve. Thanks to John & Sherry at Young House Love (I want to be them I swear. I just need to save up to actually buy a house of my own... Banks totally give huge mortgage loans to 20 year olds who only have $1700 in the bank and absolutely no credit right?) for house crashing this pad and posting this picture. This kitchen is hella cool. (Yeah I'm from NorCal. My slang is all over the place today.) The yellow is bright and loud and the blue and orange accent colors jump out at you to say "Hi!" It's awesome. Look! There's even a chalkboard cabinet on the left. The white counters and sink and the stainless steel appliances and shelving (on the right) help ground the kitchen. This will also help for re-sale value; buyers could paint if they aren't digging the yellow. 

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Here we go green! I like this kitchen's color scheme, though it borders on Christmas. I do not like the letters etched (or silhouetted in the etchings or... I have no idea how to phrase this. Suggestions?) into the class cabinets. I'm not really sure why one would go through the trouble of glass cabinets and then decide to frost them. Maybe different owners did it. hmmm... 

There are a lot of things I do like a lot about this kitchen however. The high ceiling and tall cabinets are gorgeous and especially useful for a tall girl like myself (I'm 5'10")! The layout also works really well. The cabinetry also included that super convenient wine rack and those cute little drawers which I would  totally use for spices. There are some really nice design aspects to this kitchen. Mad props. Also I want a kitchen faucet like that desperately. 

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Ok, maybe it's just because it's red, but I ABSOLUTELY ADORE this kitchen. I think its amazing. It reminds me of the country. It's rustic, it's modern, it's sleek. Basically, it's great. The color of the cabinets is a fabulous shade of red, not too cherry, not too blood. The kitchen could look a tad too goth with all that black, white, and red, if it weren't for that amazing table. It's wood really brings the whole kitchen together. Also I really like that rustic look. What a fabulous kitchen table. 

That white sink? Yes please. Would you call that a farmhouse style sink? Or is it just '50s? Either way it is AMAZING. Plus all those veggies are making me hungry. As in I want a nice big salad. And I don't even like salad!

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So there are some lovely, bright, vibrant, colorful kitchens for y'all! Hope you liked them. Comments? Do you like a colorful kitchen? Or do you prefer a more neutral palette? Should a kitchen be all neutrals? Or should it be a neutral background with pops of accent colors? 

Also I totally apologize for my ridiculous accents and over usage of exclamation points today. It's sunny and beautiful here in Boston for once and I am SUPER EXCITED AND HAPPY ABOUT THIS!! Also color is my favorite thing ever.