Harmony's Nook

I thought I should explain why I have the sudden urge to paint all the rooms in my apartment! LOL! I am participating in the Spring cure from Apartment therapy. Basically the cure is based on Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan’s book Apartment Therapy: the eight step home cure. The book “…will lead you through the eight weeks and the basic cure requires minimal expense as it takes you from room to room and helps you declutter, organize and clean your home.” I figured since I already got a good head start with my Spring cleaning that I should bring this to the next level!

The great part about the cure is that there is an online community support group (for lack of a better word). It’s based on the Apartment therapy website. You join the group from the city you are closest to. The cities are Chicago , San Francisco, L.A., and New York. There is also a Green Home option. People upload their pictures to flickr.com and get feedback, suggestions, and general support from other cure members. It helps when there are others going through the same thing as you!

I’ll be posting from time to time pictures of my own cure process…and maybe some inspirational pictures from other cures. Wish me luck!

It’s 71 degrees! I have sandals on! Could this be it? Is it SPRING?!?!?! I hope so. I can’t take any more snow. I’m really into Spring colors right now. I’ve been looking for the perfect color to paint my kitchen when I get back. I know exactly what I want but I haven’t found the perfect shade yet! I want the color of that gorgeous juicy green apple. Yum!

My kitchen is also where I display my vintage Marilyn Monroe pictures!

I’m so excited about the results of our Spring Cleaning. It’s not done yet. There is a lot more to be done, but honestly are we ever REALLY done? Don’t answer that! Well now that I’m not hating my apartment, I’ve been in the mood to redo some things.

Right now my dining room is stone brown on all four walls. There are Stainless Steel furniture pieces that I dumpster dived for in there! I also collect vintage vogue covers that are displayed. I think that I want to paint one of the walls aqua and feature the vogue prints on that wall. I’m so excited!

*My prints are aged and worn and are a lot less vibrant and I have two more of them.

**The cabinet on the right is the same finish as the one on the left.

Another day, another online source of inspiration. I just discovered House to Home Network today. It’s the home of uk publications such as: Ideal Home, Homes & Gardens, Living etc, Country Homes & Interiors, 25 Beautiful Homes, Beautiful Kitchens, and Allthingshome.

Both my roommate and I DREAM about having large bedrooms to ourselves. Here are some bedrooms that I am drooling over right now. I found them all on the House to Home Network! The fourth one is pretty close to what I would design for my roommate, so we will call it Eric’s room.

Whew! It just took me over two hours to upload these photos. I’m on my mom’s laptop and it’s giving me some issues. I miss my Macbook! The adapter broke and let me tell you, trying to find Mac accessories in St. Louis is like trying to find the golden fleece!

Anyway, this is my mother’s magnificent collage wall. These pictures do not do justice to this wall at all. I wish you could see it in person; it’s so beautiful. This is something that I would never think to do. Basically she decoupaged the entire wall tiny piece, by tiny peace. She cut up fine arts books, a couple books on quilts, greeting cards, catalogues…you name it! It took her a couple of months to complete this. She covered a small 3 foot across wall and followed it around the corner onto one full wall in the kitchen. Everything else is in neutral shades, so believe it or not it doesn’t look too busy. This is something that I would probably not do in my own home, but I think it’s beatiful and I’m always amazed at how creative my mother can be! She never fails to inspire me.

March is Women’s History Month! I am so proud to be a woman right now. We have come so far. Despite the outcome of the democratic race, we have our first viable woman running for President. This is progress! We can all agree on that no matter where our loyalty lies. I don’t think that we will understand how huge this historic event is until after the dust has settled.

Well I was feeling pretty proud in general of women and where the country has come so I decided to go read about it on the National Women’s History Project website. I’m kind of a history junkie! Anyway, I found this beautiful poster AND I found out that the theme of this year’s month is Women’s Art! I couldn’t be happier!

“To honor the originality, beauty, imagination, and multiple dimensions of women’s lives, we have chosen Women’s Art: Women’s Vision as the 2008 theme for National Women’s History Month.”

“The history of women and art is quintessential women’s history.  It is the story of amazing women’s accomplishments acclaimed at the time but written out of history. Join us in ensuring that their accomplishments are never forgotten.”

“This year’s theme provides a special opportunity to discover and celebrate women’s visual arts in a variety of forms and mediums that help expand our perceptions of ourselves and each other.”

I stopped buying magazines a long time ago. It’s amazing how quickly a couple of magazine subscriptions can clutter up your space. BUT now that I have this blog, and I did so well on my spring cleaning, and I’m trying to treat myself with things other than food and drink, and I’ve been a good girl overall…(seriously could I come up with MORE ways to rationalize this…lol) ANYWAY I want to subscribe to a new magazine. Since my favorite home magazine of all time is now defunct (Living Room Magazine ), I’ve been looking at new ones. I want something young and hip and not too designer-esque. I came across Domino Magazine…and look at their manifesto!

Our Manifesto:

• Home Should Make You Happy!
• We swear by the 3 R’s: repaint, repaper, reupholster
• Steal ideas from other people’s houses
• Even the insides of the closets & cabinets can be beautiful
• It’s ok to NOT BE finished
• TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS—ALWAYS!
• A chandelier is as timeless as a black dress
• Renters need not be second class citizens
• Sometimes your mistakes become your greatest inspirations
• DON’T BE AFRAID TO MIX STYLES (Louis XIV and Eero Saarinen should hang out more often)
• When traveling, skip the snapshot and buy something unique for the coffee table
• HAVE FUN!

WOW! This sounds pretty spot on with my design philosophy! I think I just found my new guilty pleasure!

*This was the cover photo on their first issue.

It’s a wintry day here in St. Louis. It’s hard to believe that 2 days ago it was 80 degrees. I’m helping my dad out at his office today and the view is breathtaking. His office is overlooking Lake St. Louis. There is a blanket of snow on the ground and the snow is falling in huge sugary flakes softly into the lake. It’s pretty spectacular.

I’m looking forward to going home and lying by the fire, drinking apple cider with a cinnamon stick, and watching the most exciting campaign race of my lifetime…while my mother tries to tempt me with baked goods. Ah…the comforts of home.

Spring Cleaning 08 is going so well! Freecycle is my new best friend. I have a hard time getting rid of things, but knowing that it’s going to someone who is going to love and appreciate it makes it so much easier to give it up and it helps with our landfills. I chose my vanity family very carefully; I hope that they love it. I’ve gotten rid of so much stuff! The apartment is starting to look really great. A lot of the clutter is gone and it feels so much more peaceful. I feel bad because I am going home to visit my family and I have to leave my roommate with the job not QUITE finished. We are so close!

I’m also doing a Spring Cleaning of my mind and body. This trip that I’m taking home is the first break that I’ve had from theater in almost 5 years. I don’t have anything lined up for my next project and surprisingly I feel great about it. I’m going to go home and work for my dad, read books, cook with my mom, hang out with my brother, get a new haircut, go to the doctor, go to the dentist, do some shopping, maybe some light sightseeing, and just RELAX. I really need this. I’m hoping to come back to Chicago refreshed and maybe even a little inspired.

While I’m in St. Louis I will make sure to take pictures of my mom’s amazing artwork and her boutique, (which just happens to be the cutest boutique in the whole world in case anyone was wondering) and anything else that inspires me. Maybe when I return it will be Spring.