RMSU's Profile

Wow, this makes me want to move out to the desert. Also - I would love to have a roommate that will barter rent for carpentry!

I can make you a cute sleeping bag: (1) get a cute blanket, (2) put a leather belt around it. Voila! That will be $500.

I sat in one of these at DWR the other day, it felt so good. It will totally fit in my apartment with all the MCM furniture that I've collected from Craigslist.

Oblivious to the value of this chair, my friend asked the DWR salesperson how much it was before I could whisper to her not to ask because we cannot afford it. The salesperson said, "with or without the ottoman?" I was so embarrassed. She later tried to sell us the cheapest item in the show floor, which was a portable light for $150.

I want this so bad!!!!

Yes! I love craigslist. Thanks for sharing. I'm sure it took a while to put this together.

I really like the back detail! Looks like a great sofa built to last. Must have!

We grew up with a washitu room in Taipei and my brother slept in that room (until 5 or 6) on the tatami. It was also our game room, as well as the winter family room where we were under the heated blankets and ate dinner. I miss it!

I have the same problem in my apartment. I added accent area rugs and went on CL and got a few poppy looking chairs. I changed the color of my floor lamp shade from cream to orange. That took care of most of the problem.

Good luck!

I agree with MNIGHTSHANNANLAN - live on the top floor corner unit if you can. My bedroom is not adjacent to any other ones horizontally. It's very hard to tell how much you will hear when you visit the apartment for the first time, especially NYC. If it sounds like you live with your neighbors, it probably means there are clear gaps on the floor/ceiling that are not patched up. There is only so much you can do with wood frame buildings too, so I would move if you are just renting!

Borage - depending on where you live there are noise ordinances that may apply to the outdoor equipment noise.

Lady J - you need mass to block sound - curtains don't have much mass, so they are not as good as something like a bookshelf.

Sound masking noise is good for some things, and plenty of people use it to fall asleep in urban areas that are too quiet. It works by making the signal (TV, whatever) lower in resolution when it reaches to you. Think of a 'fog' that blocks your sight to something far away. It's best for speech frequencies, but not very good for music with a lot of bass.

If you want to reduce noise build-up within the living space, try a stretch fabric system with 1" to 2" thick semi-rigid glass fiber backing on your ceiling/walls. They are relatively monolithic. Not cheap, but looks better than the average fabric wrapped panels. Also make sure the fabric is relatively acoustically transparent. You can get a general idea by putting a sample fabric under a spotlight and seeing if light goes through the fabric.

Check out:
Novawall - stretch fabric
Clipso model 795A - canvas like that can even have photos printed on
Newmat - if you want to splurge a bit. I think Ralph Lauren used this in his fancy car garage (http://newmatusa.com/newmat/2400/main-projects/ralph-lauren-garage.html)

Remember, the key is the glass fiber backing, which provides the sound absorption. The more surface area it covers, the better.

Doing this will NOT help block noise form the living room to the adjacent spaces. It just provides a more comfortable environment when everyone is hanging out in the living room.