mom2themonk's Profile

We recently had to downsize into a much smaller, albeit more beautiful apartment. We fell in love with the layout, the large balcony with a beautiful view, and the surrounding neighborhood that has everything you could possibly need, all within walking distance. But the apartment itself is teeny, and we weren't sure how we were going to make it work. We have had one year in which to settle in now, and I can honestly say that it is more fabulous than our previous bigger apartment. The main thing we had to do is to get rid of a ton of our stuff. If we didn't absolutely need it, or absolutely love it, we got rid of it as quickly as possible. We discovered that the fewer items we owned, the larger our space would begin to feel. That was the first thing. The second thing was we embraced a more Scandinavian style of decorating. Bright white walls, or soft light blue or grey walls, depending on the rooms. Lots of white furniture mixed up with natural wooden furniture for a touch of warmth. And plants throughout. All that white and light colors really brightened up the space, making it feel even bigger still. We used pops of fun color within the artwork and throw pillows. So it all still feels very colorful, despite all of the white. Lastly, we became really creative and meticulous with organization. We know exactly where everything is, and it's all hyper organized. That helps a ton, too.

We still have some work to do. It's not all finished, just yet. But we see the light at the end of the tunnel after only one year, and downsizing has become an enormous blessing for our entire family. We have learned to live with significantly less, and to prefer living this way. Best of luck to everybody who is embarking on a similar downsizing endeavor.

No. Just... no.

Thank you for getting back to us so quickly about the paint color! I was dying to know. And once again, best of luck on your upcoming nuptials!

xoxo
Lenore

I absolutely love this. Especially the very first photo with the grey walls and white curtains. This is the same look I am going for in remodeling our bedroom now. I am so truly inspired by this room! Do you mind me asking, what paint color is that? I also love the glossy black window trim. It's absolutely gorgeous! This entire home shouts of creativity and true love. It is sexy, romantic, relaxing, sophisticated, and fantastic all around. Congratulations on your upcoming wedding! So happy for you both! May you have a lifetime of joy and happiness! Much love from Astoria, Queens.

A family friend got into huge trouble for sharing when the teenage son who was living in his neighbor's home began downloading pirated movies and computer programs from the internet. It was our family friend who got in trouble. Luckily, he had a good lawyer, and the father of the teenage son got his son to confess to everything, and they were just given a fine and a stern warning to not do it again. So our friend has never shared the internet again. Be careful out there.

I have a massive phobia about getting bedbugs. (I live in NYC). I sometimes wonder if my phobia of getting them might be just as bad as someday actually having them. One friend of mine got them from going to the movies (she saw one on her purse that was on the floor of the theater, and killed it on the spot. But upon returning home, she noticed an infestation begin soon thereafter. She blames the theater). As a result. I'm now afraid to go to the movies. I am in love with a certain bed from a furniture store in Manhattan, but the headboard is upholstered linen. I'm too scared that bedbugs might get into the padding of the headboard and breed there, so I refuse to buy my dream bed. Whenever I go to a hotel on a trip, I'm so nervous we are going to bring any bedbugs home, that I keep all of our luggage inside the bathtub the entire time. (I heard that can prevent them from getting into your suitcases). I get really anxious when buying furniture, and I no longer will buy anything second hand. Actually, I buy nothing from thrift stores anymore. I only use white sheets so I can spot anything. If I see any lint, I pounce on it to see if it's alive. I own a carpet steamer/shampooer, and I steam my carpets regularly. Especially if we have had friends over, because I don't know what they are bringing in with them. I never allow guests into our bedroom, and I make them hang their things up on hooks far away from the bedroom (but I don't tell them why. I just say that's where guest's things go). I'm anxious about going to other people's apartments, and won't put my purse down on anything. I'm tormented by these things, and don't even haven them. I constantly think about bed bugs, and try to figure out how to guarantee I will never get them. It's not healthy for me. I do have a therapist I see for OCD, so this has just become another thing for us to talk about and work on.

I just wanted to put it out there for people to know that you can be tormented by them and not even have them. It's important to try to not let them run your lives. Easier said than done when you live in a big city. I'm still working on it myself. To those of you battling these tiny blood-sucking demons, best of luck to you all.

I guess everybody has different taste. I think it's absolutely gorgeous. I love the sexy 70's vibe going on in the living room. I think they really pulled it off. I would absolutely love to live there. But to each his or her own. ;)

To the person (somewhat judgmentally in tone) asking why this is on a design blog:
AT isn't just a blog about design. It's a blog about living well. Making your apartment or house your home.

A home isn't made up of merely pretty curtains, or finding the perfect throw pillow. The recipe for a happy home has many valuable ingredients. And researching which apartment to move into, and why (or why not), is truly one of the very first steps.

This is one of the things I absolutely LOVE about this blog. I learn how to nurture myself and the rest of my family, by nurturing our home... in so many ways. Sometimes, yes... it does involve decorating. But other times it involves things like making a delicious meal that makes every room smell heavenly. Or learning about what kinds of natural cleaners work the best. Or reading an article about how important it is to get to know your neighbors, and to develop a strong sense of community. This blog is about how to develop a happy and healthy lifestyle in your home and within your neighborhood. That's the beauty of Apartment Therapy. It goes so far beyond home decorating. I thought everybody here really understood that. I guess you missed the memo. ;)

OMG, I really wish I had read these comments before having purchased our sofa recently. We avoided the IKEA route, because we wanted to put our money toward a solid piece of furniture that would last a very long time, and take a real beating. We looked for something really sturdy, not made of pine, etc. We paid a small fortune, but thought it was a wiser choice. It would hold up to our toddler jumping up and down on it better than something cheap from IKEA. But we never took into consideration the whole staining/slipcover thing. Really good points you are all making. Maybe we should have gone the cheapo route, and then tossed that IKEA sofa once he became old enough to treat the sofa with a bit more maturity and care. :/

I also wish I knew the name and brand of the color in the first photo. It's exactly what we are looking for!