Snoozy's Profile

There are probably strict laws in Switzerland that prevent rental buildings from being knocked down to be replaced by condo towers. There are no such safeguards where I live in Canada. Or, a tenant may be renting a condominium (or entire house) only to find that it is about to be sold, or the landlord wants to move in, which is their right. So the only security is to mortgage yourself to the hilt and buy a place of your own.

I've always gravitated towards whitewashed walls, hardwood flooring, Danish furniture, and pops of colour everywhere – it's a formula that really works! I'm wondering what the sound is like without curtains and area rugs to soften the noises of a very active household.

Some of my best meals have been made with high-protein leftovers – Danish modern chairs, credenzas, and coffee tables are perfect ingredients, and often complement whatever else is part of the meal. I buy my mattresses fresh, however. I just toss everything together with whatever else is in the house, et voila, delicious!

So I'm going to carry on about the lack of the railing – you should have done that first! You have a child who could go plunging over the edge. Or she'll have a friend over who will plunge over the edge. What if you yourself are heading down the stairs and just happen to trip (haven't we all done that?) and there's nothing to grab on to. All your other renovations are really lovely, but no one is going to potentially injure themselves if you don't replace the facade over your fireplace.

Maybe you could get to know your neighbours by putting a note through their door explaining your window dilemma, and asking what they have done for their windows. They might invite you in for a friendly cup of tea and a tour of their place (many people just love showing their homes).

I thought the great American dream was to have a detached, 4,000 sq ft house in suburbia, with two vehicles in the driveway. I think it's time to reassess this post-war model of (unsustainable) living. After all, all people do is shop, shop, shop to fill those rooms with furniture (with the overflow going to the garage and the crawl space!).
Living smaller is probably a good idea for society in general. Would any of you trade your bustling, compact urban neighborhoods for a chance of home ownership in...vacuum land? I know I wouldn't. I like being able to walk to my grocery store, and generally enjoy the goings-on of my local community. I do not have to rely on a car to get everywhere, and instead have a bike for going slightly further afield, and for really far afield use a car co-op or taxi. Yes, urban rents/ownership are high, but how much does a car, gas, insurance, and maintenance cost – $1000/month? How much is your time worth waiting in traffic jams getting home to suburbia? Smaller places also mean fewer furniture purchases, and a certain craftiness with making a smaller space work (this is Apartment Therapy, after all). Even families with children can make smaller-space living successful; the idea of what constitutes enough space is a relative concept anyway.

What is the flooring in the kitchen – it complements the space beautifully.

These photos evoke thoughts of how cottages should look and feel – the light is wonderful, and everything is so relaxed. Glad to see you kept the green wallpaper too.

Love the blue marmoleum floor. It anchors the room and is an inviting (and surprisingly warm) choice. In fact, I will soon be replacing my existing wussy-coloured floor with marmoleum "light blue."

I just renovated a 650 sq ft (one-bedroom) condo, and my costs came out about the same as yours, and with the same type of work done. The only thing I bet you didn't have to do that I had to do was scrape off the popcorn ceiling which was permeated with fifteen years of smoke and cooking grease. Now that was pleasant.