Saval's Profile

I had slate floors that looked like they had been sealed at one point long ago. Landlord was cheap as hell. I spent a whole weekend scrubbing the floors with a brillo pad. Everything looked so much brighter. Once you stop you won't want to stop, because you will be disgusted at the amount of dirt.

Come to think of it, our current house also has slate floors, but never sealed. I smarten up and just used a big stiff brush and water with a mild detergent. I could scrub four 1' x 1' tiles before the water would be black. These floors you couldn't tell were that dirty until you started cleaning.

Good luck. Nothing beats elbow grease.

I made some ham cups for the last bunch. You can cook the mushrooms the night before and it is quick to assemble and cook.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Baked-Eggs-and-Mushrooms-in-Ham-Crisps-106150

Use tension rods on the window frame and hang some containers from ikea. Also, consider either a pegboard or adding shelves in the kitchen. As long as things are nicely installed and if you leave them behind, landlords can be pretty forgiving. Sometimes it is better to ask for forgiveness than permission.

You can definitely store some stuff by the eating space, like plates and less frequently used items like a wok. Glasses are better by the fridge. I had a very small kitchen and the ikea forhoja was a lifesaver. It had drawers for flatware and storage big items and a butcher block top for cutting. That table moved to three different apartments and was always useful. I also had something similar to the Norden table, which has built in drawers.

I bet is that if you wait for a RugUSA.com sale you might even catch it for 75% off.

I have that headboard in grey. You can find it on overstock, way fair, and they frequently come up on joss & main or one king's lane. You do need a thick mattress and boxspring or a high bed frame. It was easy to put together.

Skip!

I actually find some of the patchwork DIY charming, but ultimately not for me.

I go into our workshop just to smile. You literally could not put anything else on the surfaces. We had bought the peg hooks about two months ago, but hadn't used them. It looks so much nicer and we can see what we have. I also organizer the drawers in the kitchen and put the bottles in storage. The functionality has improved ten fold.

I find it really difficult to read in this bed. We've had it for several years and I'm glad to be sending it to the guest bedroom

Best AT thread ever!

Lovely. This is why I follow AT. And I may now have to paint my dining room blue.

However, AT please do a better job of taking pictures, or asking for additional shots. One bedroom shot is out of focus. And order. How about showing all four corners of the room and then the details. I like to get a sense of the layout and the size of the space. There were also detail shots with no bigger view.

You can (and should) do better.