ericahd's Profile

I agree with those saying to float the sofa, but I'd switch the tv to the opposite wall so that traffic from the kitchen/dining area to the patio doesn't pass b/w the sofa and the tv. A sectional with a round coffee table or a standard sofa with an ottoman for a coffee table would both be comfortable yet good-looking choices. If you don't like seeing the back of the sofa, a console or buffet behind it would be nice for extra storage and to use when entertaining on the patio (if you're bringing things out from the kitchen, it's nice to have somewhere to set them down while you open the door). I think you'll have room for both a small tv stand and a comfy armchair (angled in the corner) on the new tv wall. A pair of chairs with an occasional table, a chaise longue, or a small games-type table and chairs could go on the wall where the tv is now, depending on what best suits your lifestyle.

I agree with the idea to rotate the table 90 degrees (putting the long sides to the step and 43" wall). I'd also forget about centering it under the light fixture and center it in the space, cheating it back away from the step to get good clearance for the chair at risk of tumbling over. Typical dining chair clearance equals the depth of the chair plus 6-10" - I'd err on the high side, since tumbling off a step is worse than bumping your chair into a wall. Once the distance from the step feels comfortable (enough room to push out a chair and stand up, with room to spare), decide if there's enough room on the 43" wall side for the existing chairs or if you need to get a bench/banquette instead (much less clearance needed for a bench/banquette, since people expect to slide in, not pull it out, and you can place it all the way against the wall). Ikea has great, basic, inexpensive benches and World Market has some really nice looking banquettes (and some less basic benches).

Once you've positioned the table in the space, figure out how to move the light to the center of the table. There may be some extra cord length tucked inside the box at the ceiling, so that you can simply swag it over to a hook centered above the dining table. If not, you can buy new cord at the hardware store. Or, if you don't like the fixture, replace it entirely. If you own, you can look into moving the actual box that powers the fixture - either DIY if you're comfortable with electrical or a small job for a handyman or electrician.

I'd try rotating the sofa so that its back is to the wall where the tv is now, with the chaise portion jutting out into the room. Then move the tv to the wall where the sofa is now. That way, you'll still have comfortable seating for watching tv, but the chaise portion of the sofa will actually be facing the windows. To further emphasize the windows as a focal point, I'd add more interesting curtains. (It's hard to tell how deep that bump out by the window is, but I'd be tempted to hang the curtains in front of it so that they emphasize the entire width of the wall while leaving as much open window as possible in between.) A pair of chairs under the window (or just one if there isn't room) would round out a conversation area, draw more attention to the windows, and be easy to turn if you're doing something like watching a football game where your guests all want a view of the tv. I'd also look into a new media storage unit - the dark one makes it look like the entire unit is tv. A lighter one might work, but a warm wood tone might play well with the floors and draw your eye there. You might also consider a different rug. The color is so similar to the sofa that it emphasizes the sofa vs. tv dynamic a bit too much. I think something warmer like the natural color of jute might be just as simple and soothing but warmer and less of a strong contrast with the floors. Finally, the suggestions about adding art are spot on.

@kalexander - you might want to check out the Young House Love posts about painting their oak kitchen cabinets. They used filler on holes they wanted to reposition but otherwise "just" sanded, deglossed, primed, and painted and the results look pretty smooth. You can see a little bit of texture, but not enough to bother me. They used a high-quality self-leveling paint, which I think makes a pretty big difference but there's a lot more detail on their site (spread over several posts but I think this one is a good summary): http://www.younghouselove.com/2012/01/how-to-paint-your-cabinets-aka-hallelujah/ (Scroll down for a discussion of how much grain is visible.)

Please for the love of all that is good, make the spam email address one that you *actually* own. Don't just use some variation of your real email address that is registered to someone else. A woman with my name but a different spelling uses my spelling as her spam email address and I GET ALL THE SPAM. In addition to being very annoying, it's not really safe (especially if, like her, you sometimes give the spam address when you really should give your real one) - I've gotten welcome emails with usernames and passwords from things like Match.com, a car dealer's online credit application, and even her online tax return that gave me (partial to full) access to the info she'd stored/submitted. Lucky for her, I'm not even mean enough to use that info to convince her to stop spamming me, but I could easily steal her identity at this point.

TL;DNR - make sure to sign up for the "fake" address you use so that no one else is being spammed or potentially gaining access to any of your info.

I'm pretty sure it's Josef Frank - which is hard to find. But knowing might help with the googling...

I love the look of a double cabinet - a standard 36" or 42" cabinet plus a shorter (half-size?) cabinet on top with glass doors on the upper cabinet. It keeps things light and the uppers are perfect for displaying things you don't use all the time. (I also really like white painted cabinets in a Victorian.) And I just generally prefer cabinets that go all the way to the ceiling (or at least to a soffit). Otherwise, that space on top is so hard to keep clean and just ends up a greasy, dusty mess.

http://www.houzz.com/photos/8569/Anne-Forell-Architecture-traditional-kitchen-san-francisco
http://www.homerenosource.com/gallery/kitchen%20/cc50-antique-glaze-delicatus-white-granite.html
http://www.cococozy.com/2008_11_01_archive.html
http://www.atticmag.com/2008/11/great-white-kitchen/

We live in an apartment (no basement or garage) and store most of our tools in the guest room closet. It's a regular, two-door closet (not walk-in) but is slightly shallower than a normal closet (barely deep enough for hangers). I put a 4-drawer dresser on one side of the closet. (It's from Ikea - I think it's the MALM. I basically just measured the depth and width the closet could handle and went to Ikea to check out the options.) The bottom 3 drawers are full of tools and materials for projects, like glue, screws, masking tape, extension cords, etc. (plus some miscellaneous stuff like candles and lightbulbs). I used simple fabric drawer dividers (also from Ikea) to keep everything organized.

We also have a shoe bag hanging on the inside of the closet door, and I keep the tools we reach for the most (hammer, screwdriver, level, etc.) in there. I also keep a small bin with a handle in the dresser - for any given project, I just load it up with what I need so I don't have to keep going back and forth to the guest room.

The top drawer of the dresser holds the linens and comforter for the guest bed (which is actually a sleeper sofa). When we have guests and put the linens on the bed, the top drawer is then empty for them to use and they can also use the top of the dresser as a luggage rack (it's about waist-high). The half of the closet that doesn't have the dresser is available for hanging clothes.

The large tools for gardening and lawn care are in a small utility closet with our cleaning supplies and water heater. I put one tool-hanging rack on either side of that closet (the cheap kind from the local hardware store) - one side holds the broom, dustpan, etc. while the other holds the rake, shovel, etc. The lawnmower (push variety so no gas), vacuum, and bucket sit on the floor. That closet is very small - the width of a standard door and less than my arm span from front-to-back. Everything fits pretty well with enough open space on the floor to step into the closet to reach whatever I need.

This isn't something I'd expect my friends (or a bar) to have lying around, but you can serve it at home, at least: half iced tea (regular or decaf as you prefer) and half pomegranate juice is surprisingly similar to red wine. I mean, it doesn't really taste the same but it has the same tannic mouth feel, isn't sweet in a winy way, and goes quite well with lots of different meals. (Not to imply that every nonalcoholic drink has to simulate an alcoholic one, but this one's great for when you're in the mood for wine but don't want the alcohol.)

Growing up, we usually had between 30-50 guests for Thanksgiving. So having one person carve slices of turkey for everyone was impractical. My mom would cook one bird the night before and another the day of Thanksgiving. The first bird would be carved and the meat warmed on a platter with some turkey stock. The second (which came out of the oven half an hour or so before dinner to rest) would make its ceremonial way to the table to be carved. The person carving would serve a few people at the dining table, and everyone else (we always had satellite tables in the living room) would help themselves from the platter on the buffet. Then people would just carve slices from the second bird for themselves if/when they wanted seconds.