mregan03's Profile

listen, forget the controversy and take heart in a hip city family raising a gaggle of (seemingly) normal kids in a funky and unconventional, if not chaotic, urban environment.

gives us kid-loving city-dwellers hope that me you baby does not = resigning to life in the 'burbs! (not that there's anything wrong with that, of course.)

cheers to the novogratz's. and make no bones about it: if i had the money, i'd be living that life. kids, chaos, and all.

stink: good question--i don't recall! but i know got it online, and it was originally black. (spray-painted it white.) if you google "elevated dog feeder" you can find similar styles.

absolutely gorgeous. well appointed, amazing color palate, and awesome use of space.

this space is an absolute dream. congrats on a fab renovation!

ha--pretty sure, given the proclivities of the flaming lips, there's no need for a comma between "drug-damaged" and "artist"!

i use an indoor electric collar on my great dane to keep her out of range of the more "precious" items in my condo. she learned quickly to avoid the areas the three sensors cover, and if she forgets and does come into range, she gets a few beeps which quickly alert her to back away before she gets zapped.

you can buy them online from most pet supply stores. it has been an absolute savior for me (and my furniture...and my groceries...and my shoes...), so if it's something you're comfortable with, i'd highly recommend it!

there is a such thing as a "curtain nay-sayer"? who are these people, and is there a 12-step program for such an affliction?

i too have oak trim throughout my vintage condo, which i only DIDN'T paint white because i got yelled at by someone (okay, everyone) any time i mentioned the idea.

then...i painted the whole place benjamin moore's madison grey. and now i LOVE the oak trim. the coolness of the paint color offsets the warm wood tones beautifully.

and if this dark blue-grey isn't your cup of tea, i'd say any cool tone with a greyish tint would work spectacularly.

i was too cheap to splurge for tiles during my kitchen reno and ended up using textured wallpaper for my backsplash instead. (i think it was $12/roll from lowes--which felt like a real steal at the time!)

i painted the wallpaper dark brown with a heavy-duty kitchen/bath paint, and i couldn't love it more! kind of has the same feel as vintage tin ceiling tiles, and it's held up fantastically over the course of the past few years.

i hate to spill my little secret, but the st. peter's barn sale at the kane county fair grounds (annually in september) is a scavenger's dream. my friend furnished her one bedroom apartment with flea market gems from the sale for under $100.

bonus? it's a fund-raiser, and it sells like it. everything is priced to go--literally. also, most shoppers are suburbanites with big-box taste, so all the cool retro stuff sticks around way longer than you'd expect. mark your calendars--this year, for september 19/20--and i'll see you in line for the furniture barn!