FigurativeSketches's Profile

Er, jacksonlalonde, "Even monkeys"...???!

Sharinly said it well. Beds and furniture are traditionally lower in India, and much harder. Traditional mattresses used to be made of coconut fiber, among other things. Many folks still sit on rugs and mats on the floor for many activities. How else do you think Indians have Yoga or our body-bending classical dances?!

I like the low profile, if all the other decor/furniture is also coordinated to it. I have rugs on the floor with floor cushions next to a bookshelf...a cosy little reading corner in my bedroom.

The arrangements shown here will work, if the floor is kept very clean or if the bed is placed on a rug or carpet larger than it. I won't put bedclothes that have fallen on the floor back on the bed. Ever.

Personally, if you wanted benefits from sleeping on the floor, I wouldn't use such soft mattresses, only sleeping pads or futon mattresses on platforms or a rug. I get backaches from soft beds. And sit cross-legged on my study chair. Its the Indian in me.:D .

I used to sleep on a camping mattress when I was in grad school. Some (American) friends and my landlord were so horrified they gave me a brand new bed frame and mattress as a gift. I gave it away to a poet/student when I left.

I can't bear to watch either. I'm not condemning anyone, but pictures like these terrify me. I am unable to understand both the extremes of consumption and compulsive upgrading as well as that of hoarding.

Try it with unfussy accessories before painting.

This could be 'springtime' with a little ingenuity--pale leaf green (which has both yellow and green tones), white flowers, grey and bamboo for shadow and wood. If you like that. If you don't like florals, you could make it grown-up graphic and minimalist modern in similar colors.

Colour Palette: Dominant: Cool dove grey/white and the palest of leaf green. Subordinate: the palest of butter yellows and/or soft whites. Bamboo-colored accents/baskets OR all-white. Pick it all out with a framed leaf sketch in charcoal or an early 20thC. art print.

I can't see what kind of lighting you have. Maybe you could make it softer and brighter?

Good luck.

#4 is loveliest, and #5 is practical for those without a yard or garden.

Maybe I'm wrong, but shouldn't bird baths have a few shallow pebbles in them to provide traction and reduce depth?

I'm meticulous, my husband isn't. If I'm traveling alone, I have more freedom to plan and prepare than if I'm preparing for both of us.

Either way,first thing-- I choose a purse and check that it has wallet, cash and coins, keys, cell phone, charger, pen/pencil and an old-fashioned address book. Plus a cereal bar or two.
I make up a first-aid/medicine kit in a ziploc bag.
Make sure my earthquake emergency box is prepared and recoverable (I'm in California:)).
If I'm flying, call a cab the night before and request it 1/2 hour before I need it (I don't have a car).

I try to prepare for the day and after I get back: make a list of things to do, keep clothes/food ready, etc. Do what folks up here have mentioned already: request mail held at Post office, pay bills, etc.

Then I pack. I usually pack for (number of days= number of bottoms) x 2 (tops, lingerie, socks, etc.). Layers. Extras for cold or wet or warm (I have Raynaud's and dread getting an attack unforeseen). Lay it all out in combinations and do battlefield triage.

Meanwhile, I back up my laptop onto 2 different external hard drives (I'm writing my dissertation, do a lot of creative work, and am paranoid about losing the slightest revision) and either leave one HD at my husband's office or carry it with me. The other stays at home.

I check that my valuable documents (e.g.passport) are locked away where I remember them, if I don't need them with me for international travel.

The day I leave, I do pretty much what the others have mentioned around the house: empty trash, run dishwasher, clean sink and bath, put food out for my birds, move plants to shade, turn off power and unplug precious electronics.

Finally, all the time until I fall asleep on bus/train/plane, I pray I haven't forgotten anything major (!).

I'm getting better at this :) , so I can do a short version of the process if I need to leave unexpectedly, or even for a day trip.

Reb, timely reminder about ping-ponging:) Since this space is about home/design/living I'll hold my tongue on how my plaintive cry was misunderstood:).

Will add, though, to MissBalzac: I'm sorry you took offense. Where we come from influences how we see, of course. I agree anger spurs change, but it has to come from the bottom up, I thought. Since those pictures and Bert Teunissen's, to me, inspired humility rather than anything else, I was surprised to find your comment.

Again, apologies to you and everyone for the verbal clutter.

Astur, same here. But I've found it hard to find something I'd like to receive if I lower the price too much, hard, that is, to find within limited time and with limited effort.

I've looked at the National Geographic Store, and Uncommongoods. Both carry those egglings, I believe, in addition to the Gingko tree-to-be gift.

One thing went down well recently--pretty bag of organic lavender sachets from Jardin du Soleil (online). To save costs, I ordered 2 bags of sachets and one 1-pound bag of loose lavender for 2 different people, and informed my hostess of the availability of refills on the web when I gave her her gift. She liked that.

crash:
would front-loading machines help, if raised on a sturdy wood or concrete/brick platform?
I feel your pain, the other way, since I'm petite and find standard kitchen cabinets and counters trying. Also hate most standard size furniture as my feet dangle off the chairs and sofas and most armrests are all wrong.

bepsf:
I second all of your "What I want." Especially the bit about recycling the old when you bring in the new. I really felt it when I moved across the country and found it hard to dipose of my electronics responsibly.

I'll add:

I want food to be packaged more responsibly and in recyclable containers. I want cookware to be made from recyclable materials or at least materials that can be harvested for new items. I want to be able to bring back my old cookware to the store and know that they will recycle responsibly

I want housing societies and tenants to encourage cleaning and septic treatments that are safer for groundwater.

I want new homes built with more light and more windows to let in the sun. Light and sunlight would help to tackle the widespread winter blues in the cold months and Vitamin D deficiency in children.

This is not design specific, but I'd like to add that I would like people not to trash their usable stuff in dumpsters when they move out (especially in college towns) but to try and donate them to a charity. If things were not made to be used and thrown after one use, perhaps they would be kept and reused.; if things were more dear (expensive and truly wanted), that would help, too.

I'm going to look forward to these columns. The individual talent (or case) always springs from some tradition; it will be great to know the rhythms of repression and recovery. Certainly for a 'layman' like me.

I like! This could work, with a careful hand. I hope those cushions aren't too soft?

I see this working well in a space that merges inside and outside (such a room with french windows that open into a yard, wraparound porch, verandah, terrace, or has little raised platforms deriving from Mughal window seats or Rajasthani jharokhas, or indoor multi-level floors) and has lots of light.