MerBot's Profile

some are gorgeous. I'd agree with the 'poor choice of words" for upcycling, but there's many buildings that are too small for their congregations and aren't located in a place another wants to move in, or an older congregation has sold the building to put the money towards international missions. (my "insider perspective" as a minister).

Less positively, I'm wondering what iteration II will look like in twenty years, when all the churches that bought cheap land in the country to (at the time) make responsible use of limited resources realize that their parishioners driving to church on the outskirts of the city is getting less and less sustainable..

It depends on what you value. Do you want to preserve an aesthetic and the original stuff, just the aesthetic (redo with a newer version of the older style) or do something new?

Personally I wouldn't put in something that clashes with the style of the house (Rococo bathroom in a MCM house...) but I see little value in preserving simply for its own sake, other than the environmental factor. If it doesn't work, do something that works better..

Pestle, you cannot be serious. AT makes a habit of giving pictures of the people associated with a space. The fact it's the entire family including the kid (gasp!) doesn't remove it from that position...

Isn't the answer fairly obvious? It's much more helpful to give increasing responsibility, with real consequences, all bookended with loving support and knowledge that kids will fail. But if you never have them work, they don't learn responsibility, to delay gratification, compensation for the work they do or that life involves more than living off the effort of others until much later.

That's incredibly simplified, but it's important to contribute and develop the skills to be a grown-up, not be an 18-year-old engineering student with no idea of how to cook a meal or a 22-year-old nurse who can't budget for anything. those are both "normal' things that should make us pause.

I want to do a lot of my thesis on similar topics - how we perpetuate helplessness and delay adulthood further by going along with extended adolescence in our institutions (schools and workplaces but specifically the church because that's the context i work within). Are we helping people grow into self-sufficient adults or maintaining learned helplessness?

And in the development of the brain, how much can we truly attribute to undeveloped brains and how much behaviour is due to our expectations and norms (what do we see in other cultures at the same age?)

I could go on.. haha.

Although there's many excellent options for furniture and use of that space; the FIRST thing I would do is put a light (either recessed or pendant) in the centre of that space to highlight it as a little feature area and make it special.

That could work with almost any option besides up-to-the-ceiling built-ins; and it sets the space apart (as well as lighting the bench/desk/cabinet or whatever option you put in there)

Personally I would either put in a desk if I needed one; or a great old dresser or credenza and mirror with good lines; either in a gorgeous stain or eye-catching colour. And I would put one large decorative bowl/trifle bowl that is the ONLY thing allowed to catch clutter on it :)

from Hamilton, Ontario here - I really like the layout of the kitchen and how the cabinetry was done. I wouldn't have guessed it was IKEA if you hadn't mentioned it. Bravo on a beautiful space.

The post itself says bedroom, so that's what I'll answer here.

If you like more minimal/modern, perhaps looking for a great wallpaper that incorporates at least two of the colours in the window would tie it into a more updated look. Of course, it could also freshen up a more traditional room.

or use a stencil with nice lines like this one (I just pulled this one off Etsy as an example, I'm not affiliated with the seller) and stencil a bit of the colours in the window over the walls in the style of wallpaper
e.g.
http://www.etsy.com/listing/62763007/wallpaper-stencil-hourglass-reusable?ref=sr_gallery_5&ga_search_submit=&ga_search_query=wallpaper&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade%2Fhousewares

http://www.etsy.com/listing/73305449/wall-stencil-vision-reusable-wallpaper?ref=sr_gallery_13&ga_search_submit=&ga_search_query=wallpaper+stencil&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_ship_to=US&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

I think white bedding, wrought iron furniture, painted or stained wood furniture, and either a pale blue wall or a pale version of any of the colours in the stained glass would work very nicely.

It depends whether you want to parlay this into a kind of shabby-chic, or an updated-Victorian, or a true-craftsman type thing.

I love the amount of stainless and the wood wall.

However, I picture any tween having a fit at the author calling her social interactions a "play date."

you can stew/soup laying hens (and the butcher will do all the dirty work for about $3). i like that people's priorities seem to be less about cost and more about source; but i think that if you care about cost too you'll find ways to do it cheaply. we used to keep chickens in the country; and when i have a yard again i would like to.

another vote for medium/dark grey.