Lizzy C's Profile

The dressing room/office: it's difficult to offer suggestions since the photo is cropped & doesn't show the whole room (what's on the wall opposite the desk & clothing? What's on the wall opposite the closet?). However, here's immediate suggestions: get rid of that bulky mirror behind the clothing racks. Put mirrors on the clost doors instead. Move the desk to one of the opposite walls or floating in the middle of the room. Then, get some white Ikea type Pax wardrobes to place all along that wall (leaving 2 feet or so to get to the closet). If there's room for the desk on one of the walls put an ottoman in the middle of the room for some Hollywood glamor.

I'm both a long term landlord, and once again after 15 years a renter again myself. Here's my list of things to look out for:
1. Loosey Goosey leases. If it's just a standard couple of page template from legal.com or something there's an awful lot of things left off there that clearly outline existing conditions of the space and what the landlords and tenants responsibilities are. I have an actual checklist both parties sign (yes, checked out by my lawyer) during a walk through inspection that notes existing conditions room by room and outside. This protects the tenants and it protects me. Honestly, I'm surprised most landlords don't do this.

2. Beware if a landlord does not provide you with a copy of the federally mandated lead disclosure pamphlet and give you the waiver to sign (if the space was built before 1970) stating the landlord and tenant have no knowledge of existing lead paint hazards in the place and that the tenant understand the risks of living in older buildings. This is federal law. If they don't provide this, What other laws are they skirting?

3. Carpeted bathrooms and kitchens - seriously in my college town (that had really lax property upkeep and laws), landlords would cover over holes, mold and other severe damage with carpet. It could be deadly: some students actually fell through a floor and injured themselves because a landlord simply put some thin plywood and carpet over a rotting floor. tsk-tsk.

3. The toilets. Janky plumbing is the worst. Test 'er out if you can before signing a lease.

4. rotting porches and balconies: not only unsafe, can be deadly

5. slippery, not to code stairs and steps. See above.

6. Thin walls. I'm currently suffering bigtime because of a landlord that decided to divide a unit into two in an old house with a shared air vent and no insulation between walls. I'm just going to buck it up and get it soundproofed myself, but that's going to be about $500 out of pocket.

Now, as a landlord I will also weigh in. I can not tell you the number of times tenants will not let me know of problems such as a small pipe leak, or broken outlet, etc. These things are small, but if I don't know about them I can't fix them, and I can't always magically detect them by osmosis - so they lead, as others have pointed out, to making the problem worse and more expensive.

However, I do have to point out a lease holder is a lease holder, not the title owner. There's a huge difference in rights and in responsibilities. If I have a problem tenant I can always boot their asses out as per breaking terms in the lease or other legal rights (have only had to do this once). However, a tenant is pretty much stuck with that landlord unless they want to move out or sue them for negligence, etc. That's why it's important to pick a good landlord if you can.

Well, the renovator did say "Bling" was their inspiration. They've more than achieved that. And a lot of thought, care and time (as well as money) went into this renovation. Hats off for vision, effort and execution. At the end of the day if they are happy, that's all that matters. It's their friggin' bathroom after all.

That said, from my own design perspective? ACK. It's a trend du jour bathroom with just about every newish bathroom design trend crammed on in there and too much of it at that - like a window display at the Kohler store. The vertical tiles in that specific hue, the elevated glass commode, the modern shower thingy, the wood color and hardware, the squarish toilet, the basin sink. It's all so late 2000s! Reminds me a lot of newish upscale yuppie restaurants' bathrooms. And it will look dated much sooner rather than later. The comments of upscale modern boutique hotel ring true. And not that it matters anymore in today's whack real estate market, but if they choose to sell this house, all that money is going to be for naught. It's going to take a very specific individual to appreciate and want to pay for that bathroom as part of their housing costs (Realtor spin: "recently remodeled bathroom"!) rather than rip half of that shit right out when they buy it. It reminds me of the bathroom of the place I'm currently staying: an 1800s New Orleans shotgun with get this, an early 1980s renovated bathroom featuring lavender wavy wall paper, mirrored ceiling, and silver painted trim. I'm sure it was way Phresh too back in 1981. Bling? Yeah, this bathroom has bling. It's also tacky as hell.

I like the black, white and pops of red and I think that's a good way to go. I'd just up the reds and get into deep oranges a bit, with a bit of blue. It's also very "solid" in there. The patterns you have are very subtle. I'd go a little more overt in that department.

Here's what I'd do.
1. Paint the walls an earthy pale color. Try a clay or warm light gray. I'd then do the wall behind the TV a deep terra cotta or sienna color. I really love the earthy colors found in the Devine Paints selection.

2. If you don't paint an accent wall reddish - I'd ditch the rug for sure- it's just too much black and white in that room. Add a patterned Kilim rug with reds and oranges, or a Bokkhara with reds, oranges and blues.

3. A mirror above the fireplace, slightly angled will make the room seem less low and boxy.

4. Get some stuff from other eras in there, preferably turn of the century if you can. An old antique dresser or sideboard, some Edison lamps (check out Restoration House Parts for old edison bulbs), things that add a bit of history and wood warmth to the mix.

4. Plants! A nice grouping by the fireplace of larger plants in terra cotta pots or vietnamese glazed pots will makes a huge difference in adding some "organic" elements into your modern Bauhaus mix.

5. I'd def. get some artwork on the walls. And not in black or white - because jeez, your living room is slick and nice but cold - it's like living in the interior of a Porche!

6. A couple of baskets filled with books or wool throw blankets will make things a little less stark and a little more wabi sabi and lived in. Maybe some large floor pillows too...

Anyway, have fun and don't be afraid to step outside of your comfort zone with decorating! That's the most important thing.

With the exception of a couple of rooms, all my rooms are painted using Benjamin Moore.

I love Ben Moore's paint because they offer so many options with colors and ideas, offer several different types and grades of paint, and their paint goes on and wears extremely well. Their semi-gloss acrylics (for bathrooms and kitchens) are outstanding. BM is my favorite paint brand (outside of Fine Paints of Europe which I can't afford right now, anyway).

That said, I'd be leery of getting Benjamin Moore at a general hardware store. I've found that over the years the best paint is not necessarily due to the brand, but due to the people behind the scenes mixing the colors and formulas at the paint store. Real pros have a lot of experience and training, and understand the complexities of paint - and paint is a lot more complicated than most people think. A pro can help steer one in the right direction, help prevent mistakes, and custom mix colors to perfection or do color corrections - stuff hardware stores often can't. I've also found a good specialty paint store will provide terrific advice and get you the best paint for your specific project, and budget. This might occur at some hardware stores, but the difference is really notable between a good paint store and a general hardware store.

Of all the costs of home improvement (such as floors, kitchens, appliances or furniture), paint is a relatively cheap investment in comparison (even for the high end paint) but can really be a make or break difference in the way a home looks and feels. In summary and my advice? Don't mess around - get the best paint you can afford at a shop that specializes in it.

More please!

My faves:

All the fixins to make Smores in the fireplace: good dark chocolate, graham crackers, marshmallows, sticks. If you put the chocolate on the graham crackers and put them on a plate by the fire for a few minutes 1st, the chocolate gets extra melty.

Ditto to the hot buttered rum.

Borrow an LCD projector and make your own indy movie theater. My ex and I used to have Film Noir marathon weekends in the brutal "don't want to go out" winter months. Film Noir as a genre is great. Chances are you'll both have never seen at least several of them, and their are neither "chick flicks" nor "dude action adventures". Smart, sexy, and thrilling. Also, great design, decor and fashion, usually.

Lambskin rugs to lay on by the fire and some brandy in snifters. It will remind you of a 70s lite rock album cover, but is indeed very cozy (*Kenny Rogers and Annie Murray not included).

Jigsaw puzzles.

Make comfort food that penetrates the house with delicious smells: lamb roasts, stews, cinnamon infused caramel apple tarts and the like.

Well, let's look on the bright side. At least everything matches and you aren't stuck with pepto-bismal pink, or Avocado green tiles!

I think this is a case of don't fight it, work with it. However, unlike the AT editor's comments, I wouldn't keep everything white. I would keep the wall paint white, but how about adding a patterned shower curtain with a lot of mid-range to deep gray blues in it? If you add similar colored and toned solid blue and gray towels (treat yourself and buy new ones) and a blue bath rug it will really balance out all the yellow, combine a bit with the gray grout, and draw the eye to the blue, not the tiles.

If you have the budget I would also change out the soap and toothbrush holders for something nicer and shiny stainless steel, and maybe add something under the sink and above the toilet for storage. A bright shiny stainless steel box or cubes under the sink that could hold more towels, or a shiny stainless steel medicine cabinet on the wall above the toilet to be used for cosmetics or something.

Keep us posted! I'd love to see what you come u with!

Beautiful look. Totally impractical unless you practice the Eastern "no shoes in the house" rule.

Besides the uneven and tripping hazards, there's also another consideration: Vacuuming. Those things are a royal pain to clean. Crusty dirt, pet hair, food and dust gets under them just like regular rugs, so you end up having to vacuum and move a lot of rugs, layer by layer to keep them clean and then spend the time putting them back in place and smoothing them down again.

I worked for Service Master cleaning company 2 summers during high school. One of our clients was an Oriental rug dealer and had this look throughout his house. There's a reason he hired a cleaning company. Trust me on this one.

Drool. This look is easier to achieve when one's architecture is 200 years old, though. Although I agree - great ideas.