Just Browsing

I've been having a lot of fun exploring the shops and flea markets in my new neighborhood.  Not really buying, but getting a ton of inspiration.  Here are some interesting things I've seen:

Saw this interesting wall shelf at the Goodwill.  It's about 18" high.  I thought about buying it to display some of my toy collection, but passed.  It's interesting, but it's not exactly what I want.  I have a shelf in mind, now just to find it!  Wish I built furniture!

Was tempted by this cute tea kettle at the flea market.  Love the atomic shape.  Dealer offered it to me for $5.00.   Hmm.  Still thinking about this one.

More temptation at yet another flea market.  This time in Hartville.  No shortage of cute stuff to buy.  I'm being very picky, though.  I like things, but I like my apartment clean, simple and kind of sparse.

On to Big Lots.  Another store I'd never heard of.  They had a ton of cheap vases and just about everything else you'd need for the home.  I can't help but wonder why Cleveland is so devoid of shops.  I used to have to leave the city whenever I wanted to spend money on things for the home.

Saw these lovelies at Marshalls.  The tall one is very tempting to me.  I am falling madly in love with blue, especially baby blue.  I've been seeing it everywhere and I am dying to decorate a place in monotone blue.  Maybe a cool blue color scheme would help me stay cool in the summer.

Also really loving outdoor furniture.  Much of it is so cute you could use it indoors!  Saw this wonderful set up at World Market.  I love the blue coffee table and the blue drum used as an end table.  Would fit in nicely in my all blue decor.  No wonder people have more than one home.  Wouldn't it be fun to say to your friends, "Would you like to have dinner at the pink house or the blue house?"  I prefer to fantasize.  In actuality, I'd hate to clean two houses, and I panic when I feel as if I have too much stuff.  It's all about balance.  Keeping balance in mind helps when facing the temptations of shopping.   So rather than shop for stuff, how about just shopping for inspiration?

What I didn't buy... but am still thinking about

I mentioned below that my sister-in-law and I went to West Elm in Columbus, Ohio last week.  I bought a couple of pretty things that I had been coveting for a while, delighting in the fact that I didn't have to pay shipping and handling.  (Even though gas is $3.59 a gallon and Columbus is 142 miles one way - go figure.)  I thought I had the West Elm catalog memorized, but I didn't remember these lovely, simply designed tea pots and cups.

I hemmed and hawed over that teapot.  It wasn't expensive, but I had already stretched my limited budget.  Now I'm regretting it.  These pieces remind me of Paige Russell's work, which I dearly love.

I'd love to have one of her vessels.  But the West Elm tea pot is more in line with my budget.

My Apartment - the process

As you know, I've been obsessing about gray. I've been itching to experiment with adding it to my apartment. This perfect little Russel Wright pot started it all. I found this in a second hand store for $5.00! I had to have it. Now I wish I hadn't sold my Russel Wright gray bowl. Oh well, c'est la vie. I changed the main color from hot pink to gray in my place. Here's a sneak peak.


The color scheme. Gray, turquoise, pink, white and small pops of black. As you know, any color scheme I work with always includes large amounts of pink and white.

I still really love the look of the hot pink with the turquoise. But since the sofa cover is merely a sheet set, I can switch back easily if in the mood. The new gray sheet set is part of the room essentials, college dorm series at Target. I got it on sale for $3.99! Sheets are a great way to cover your sofa when you can't afford a slip cover. You can change them on a whim, they are very comfy and the best part is they are washable. You don't have to worry about your guests putting their feet up or spilling.

Here's a couple of other things found thrifting. I must admit the coaster set was ridiculously expensive for my taste. $24.99. What kind of a crazy person pays $24.99 for a coaster set? Well, the kind who has been obsessing about the perfect coaster set for two years. I could not find one simple enough, and this one is perfect. It's got that retro vibe going. And speaking of pure form, the salt and pepper shakers were only $1.99 at the Salvation Army. Love the minimal shape.

Here's a luxury I've been needing for a long time. A filing cabinet! I could never find one that I liked and could afford. I thought I'd have to buy a used one and spray paint it. Well thanks to Staples, that project is now moot. They had this fab pink filing cabinet on sale. $22.99! What could be better? I love being organized, I'm thinking of getting a second one before they sell out. After all, I am turning my home into an artist work/live space. There's no separation between life and work when you love your work. Everything must be beautiful.


Here's a couple little vignettes. The Haeger panther in the bathroom is inspired by Haegernerd and Retromod (see previous post here). I adore the color combination of pink and black. The grouping of photos in the bedroom is inspired by Ivy33. (I'm kind of annoyed that it is getting so hard to download from flickr these days - anyone else having problems?) I love a cohesive grouping, where everything is uniform. That is, they are the same size and the frames are the same. This looks much less cluttered than a grouping of various sized art and frames. Credits for art are as follows, clockwise: Love print by Jessie; vintage Hindu print; graffiti from Tokyo, photographed by by sister-in-law; vintage watercolor by Kapur.

The influence for piling pillows on the floor comes from Tricia Guild. This is an easy way to add color and warmth in your place. I adore Tricia's use of color and textiles. I've never been much into pattern, but if there's one person who could change my mind on this, it would be Tricia.

I've been wanting something to display pottery, but I didn't really want to spend money. I saw these two book cases at a thrift store, and they were tempting but I decided against them.

I opted to paint my hot pink bookcase in the sublime gray (see previous color here). The bookcase has been chartreuse, electric blue, white, hot pink and now it's gray. I love being creative, but I hate the mess!

But it was worth it. I love the new color of the bookcase. Now to style it with white pottery.

Now a couple of my pieces of pottery weren't right for the newly-gray bookcase. They were off-white, and I wanted them to be true white. I like white white, in a matte finish, but it's hard to find in an inexpensive vase. I love to spray paint them, they turn out really well but take a lot of patience. A warning about spray paint. It's not as easy as HGTV makes it sound. For tips on spray painting vases, click here.

Everything looks great with a new coat of paint, so I decided to touch up my ottoman. It was looking a little shabby.

I made a little sitting area in the alcove. One of my tulip chairs was surrendered to the curb because it was broken. I was happy that someone picked it up within five minutes.

Here's the alcove. I plan to make this into more of a work studio because I love the light. I will probably add a couple of easels and curtain the area off.

I moved my table into the tiny kitchen. This is a wonderful place to sit and feel gratitude. I drink my morning coffee here, brainstorm in my sketch pad and look lovingly at the squirrels in the tree from here. Wish I could paint all of my floors white!

Here's the funny little alcove in the kitchen. Probably no one but me would ever notice those shelves. I used the divine gray paint on them. It makes me happy every time I look at them.

I have my tea pot collection displayed on them. The lovely black tea set on the top shelf is a gift from my uncle in San Francisco. He bought it in NYC while he was in college in the 70s. I adore it. I will be taking it to Chinatown for a new handle.

My first DIY project in my new place

You know those crappy composite bookcases that you find everywhere (including on the curb)? Well, I must confess, I bought one at Target yesterday. What can I say? It was on sale for $16.00. I had a strange little corner in my kitchen and needed somewhere to display tea pots. The thing was really heavy, big thank you to Tonk for carrying it up the three floors. When I opened the package, I was mightily disappointed. It was not easy to assemble, had a million little pieces and the back support is made of cardboard! Well, as soon as I took it out of the box, that cardboard - which had been folded strangely - broke apart into three pieces. Like I've said many times, I am not a good DIYer. I have great ideas, but, well, execution is a problem.

What to do? I don't want to take it back. It's heavy. I don't want to litter the curb (or my newly-cleaned crawl space). I got the idea to tape the cardboard together and paint it. I painted the inside shelves as well, in my new favorite color - gray. I must be crazy, I was up until 3:00 a.m. working on this project.

It's not perfect, but I'm pretty pleased with it. I've displayed a few of my favorite things. On the top shelf are a teapot I found at the Salvation Army and marvelously simple white cups from CB2. The middle shelf boasts an orange teapot and blue cups I found on sale at Urban Outfitters, only $1.99 each! This proves that beauty can be accomplished on a tiny budget.

Here's my inspiration for the piece. As I mentioned below, I absolutely adore this credenza which has been upcycled by Think Contemporary. I also adore the teapots from Cosas. I need one, or two. Oops. Just when I said I wasn't buying anything new.

More inspiration

Good morning dear readers! Today is my birthday and I am moving! I find that kind of profound. Starting a new beginning on my birthday. It's going to be a couple of busy days, so I'm trying to get some pictures from my inspiration folder up before I am without computer access. I would love to decorate a very edgy, Bohemian apartment with some modern elements thrown in. The following elements may seem disparate, but I could see them all working together.
I think I need these. Gorgeous. Image via Cosas.

Oh how I love this room! Low scale sofa juxtaposed with tall lamp, check. Moroccan influence, check. Lantern and lots of pillows, check. Image via Abigail Ahern.

I think I need that credenza. Cosas' teapots would look great on it. Love the idea of the more frilly teapots displayed with the more rigid geometry of the piece. And the yellow drawer repeats the color of the sofa and lampshade above. Fab. Image via Design Milk.

Feeling Blue

I've been obsessing about blue lately. I love cobalt blue, periwinkle, navy and turquoise! They look great together.

I would love to do a monochromatic room. Blue can be so calming and ethereal. For a gorgeous all blue living room, click here. For more of my studies in blue, click here.

All images by Peggy.

What Would You Grab if Your Home Were on Fire?

I love my home. There's nowhere I'd rather be. I'm not alone, this is a common feeling. Home is a place of refuge, a place of peace where we restore our energy. A haven from the chaos.

I cry when I read about people who have lost their home. I cannot imagine anything worse than not having a home. Recently, I read about a family who lost their home to a fire. Thankfully, no one was injured, but they lost all of their possessions. Objects, in the scheme of things are not important. Reading about this fire prompted me to think, what would I grab if my home were on fire? My answer. My Vietnamese teapot. This is my favorite possession.

Unfortunately, I cannot say that I traveled to Vietnam to acquire this teapot. But, the day I bought it was miraculous. I was at a store called Ten Thousand Villages. This humble little teapot called my name and felt as wonderful as a new puppy in my hands. I marvelled at the simplicity, the delicate glaze, the artistry. I could not identify the origin, and looked at the bottom. Made in Vietnam.

I was stunned. I like to think I am a pottery buff, and I had never seen Vietnamese pottery before. Upon further research I discovered the U.S. trade embargo was not lifted until 1994! (Love you, Bill Clinton wish you could run again.) Wow. That means Vietnamese pottery has only been in our country for 13 years (of my lifetime).

I was at once saddened and grateful. Saddened to think of the artistry that is lost to war. And grateful that I experienced this artistry.

What is your favorite object? Send me an email and I'll be happy to post it here.