I'd skip the magic sponges and go straight to classic scotch green scouring pads - they'll take off the old paint haze and spots that seem too be your biggest issue. Wet down the area first (just w...

To me, there are first the prereqs, outside of which I'd never even consider a place: location, price range, basic rooms/layout/ammenties you require. Until you can define this, you're silly to eve...

Katherine - I too have a corner loft with a similar brick situation (though my ceiling is concrete beams not wood). I really love the house tours referenced above, and it did make me think of paint...

I think Ikea's hand's on format actually allows you to get a pretty good idea of what has the durability needed to survive at home and what's going to fall apart. If you just shop the catalog, you ...

Cable lights are my favorite lighting solution - easier to install than track and more flexible in some ways. I've installed in many apartments and have several stings in my current condo. They're ...

Yeah, get it to the classifieds. I'm happy to see FSBOs that are house tour worthy, but this place is just OK, not inspirational.

The one Ikea pice you might consider would be building a sideboad out of kitchen cabinets (see the credenza posts that were here awhile back). I'd use narrower wall cabinets (maybe 15" or 18") to m...

The physics of speakers aren't really all that complicated, and the reality of tiny speakers is that they're never going to sound that great. I'd look at systems with a minimum of a 5" woofer, espe...

Nice green move in the walls, but I bet you lost a lot more R value in the ceiling. Looks great in any case.

You can do this in your oven too!

Ikea butcherblock is cheap, an easy DIY, and renewable. Can do most kitchen's for a couple hundred. I'm not convinced that the recycled glass tops have any gread environmental impact (...

peaceyall - I think you're on the right track first focusing on the neutral color, and I'd get this up (and the brick exposed) before making any accent choices. Also, I'd definitely ge...

glurf - I have this one (and a matching ceiling fixture w/ 4 lights) and am relatively happy with it. Light can be a little harsh, but I think that's what your getting with any fixture...

CB2 had a bedroom set up with a blue/teal wall and a lot of orange and green accents I thought worked really well. You can see it in the room views here...

I wouldn't put an incandescent in - they produce a lot of heat which a flourescent fixture wouldn't necessarily be designed to handle. Could cause a fire hazzard or discolor any plastic in the fixt...

If you really like those pendants, I'm sure an electrician could wire them up for you without a track. Don't know your overall aesthetic, but these pendants could be fun. With carbon f...

Expedit shelving on wheels is another option I've commonly seen.

I'm currently experimenting with this in my loft - installing 6" base throughout, painted a dark charcoal grey. Planning to also paint the cement beams/pillars throughout the same color to accent t...

Then if you have an Apple TV, once you've ripped, use handbrake (available free) to convert into Apple TV compatible format (handbrake has an Apple TV preset so you don't even need to play with set...

Ikea Bjursta is a similar look. Largest size has same seating capacity (6-10). They carry 3 colors (natural, brown, black-brown). Price is $349