Storage Meets Style

Hi Christine,

I just recently moved into an apartment, from a home. I have an open living/dining area that is not large to begin with, and I want to add a computer desk that can fit two monitors as well as dining and living room furniture. What do you think? I like a more modern look. Can you make it look less like an cookie cutter apartment and more like a cool NYC apartment? BTW- my husband likes black leather...

Thanks,

Shelly

Hi Shelly,

I made some plans for you.

1. Window treatments. Add drapes. They will do tons to make your place look finished. The panels above are on clearance from West Elm for only $15 each.
2. Area Rug. Don't think that just because you have carpet- you don't need a rug. A rug adds texture, style, pattern, and helps to separate areas in an open floorplan.
3. Use a bookcase for a sofa table. You can use it for books, or put baskets on it with any type of storage. It's like adding another wall to your room. Also add some wall shelves in the dining area. Lowe's sells some great ones- 36 inches wide- only $27.
4. In small spaces- nothing works so nicely as mirrors to open up space, reflect light and honestly make a room feel larger. The mirror above (uttermost) is 30 x 60- I would use two- and hang them horizontally on top of one another.
5. The console table above would make a great computer desk. It is 87 inches in width- giving you some good elbow room- but only 20 inches deep. Not to mention that it is the latest washed finish.
6. Use stools at the computer desk. They tuck away nicely- but can also double as extra dining seating.
7. Watch your scale on your furniture- don't go too deep- 4 inches really does make a difference in your room.
8. I would get a dining table that starts pretty small- but will open up larger. Then use a chair out of a clear translucent material. I found this cool one that comes in translucent black or clear. I think I'd use black.
9. No- I have not forgotten about your husband- let's make your chair in the corner a nice black leather one. ;)

I can see the place in my mind and it looks fabulous! I am sure it will be the best looking apartment in the complex! Don't forget lighting. Add some wall mounted swing arm lights at the desk- an uplight on a timer behind the plant- and a pharmacy floor lamp by the chair, and a cabinet light on the top wall shelf. If you have a hanging light in the dining area- consider replacing it with a cooler one than came with the apartment.

As a side note- my sister Jackie is a fabulous cook- and has started a blog sharing her amazing recipes- check it out! She also has sprinkled in some fun stories from when we were kids.

Exotic Southern Greece

Hi Christine,

We’re building a small apartment in Southern Greece (aprox 85 square meters) I’m having trouble deciding what colors/kitchen cabinets to put in our open concept Kitchen-Living Room area.The room is one long rectangle; the dimensions are 9.15 meters by 4.35 meters. The kitchen is west facing, with one window above the kitchen sink. At the far other end is the living room with a door, fireplace in the corner and a window. In the middle is an empty space (I was thinking of placing the dining table here).We are in the process of plastering the walls, so we have a blank canvas before us. We’ve selected our ceramic floor tiles; it’s a very neutral dark beige tile that will be laid throughout the house. I’m all over the place with what I want. Part of the issue is that I feel that everything has to match (I have a matchy-matchy idea of things; what I mean is that I think the kitchen cabinets need to match the dining table and the coffee/end tables in the living room cause it’s all open. I know I'm definitely in the wrong on this, but due to a lack of creativity, I can’t imagine how to get everything to pull together. I like a white kitchen because I feel the kitchen area is a little dark, but I also like the colors of walnut cabinetry. I was thinking of selecting a sand/taupe/tan coloured couch in the living room to coordinate with some dark brown wenge end/coffee tables I’ve seen on the market and selecting similar dark brown (espresso) wenge dining table but how will I get it to coordinate with a white kitchen? What colors would you suggest on the walls? What should I do? What should I pick? How can I get all this to mesh nicely together?

Help!

Chrisanthi

Dear Chrisanthi,

I have a few words of advice for you:

1. Carefully and deliberately define your spaces.
2. Keep your walls light and neutral.
3. Decorate with consistency throughout the space.

First- define your areas. Separate your area into three areas: living, dining and kitchen, while at the same time, keeping the space open. Look at the photo at the top of the post. This is the home of actress Helen Mirren. Look how there is an architectural break in the wall between the kitchen and dining areas. The crown molding is in both areas, but rather than one long rectangle- it is broken up. Carefully placed chandeliers, sconces and area rugs can also act as "area definers."

Second- keep your walls light and neutral. Your walls also include your kitchen cabinets. Check out Helen's again from the top of the post. The white is perfect. I love the red doors thrown in there. A crisp white wall will help to keep an open large feel. But- beware that you don't get boring. When using white walls- I like to use white paneling, bead board, or coffered ceiling- something- white dry wall is not pretty. Check out this beautiful home in the Hamptons photographed above. Your unfinished wall- with the lighter color at the top- I thought looked pretty cool. With such a nice high ceiling- you could do something really cool on the ceiling- like the black paneling and cool crown shown above.

Third- Decorate with consistency. When you have such a small space- don't try to have more than one color pallet. Also- keep your window treatments consistent throughout the space. Helen Mirren's place is a good example of this as well. There is one level of formality, one style, one color pallet, one window treatment fabric.

See how I told you to break the place up- then keep it all the same? Confusing? I hope not. :)

I wanted to throw in this one last picture for you- I liked the use of the floor skirt- another way to treat your walls with a nice high ceiling like you have.

So- there you go- define your areas, keep your walls light and neutral (but interesting) and decorate with consistency. I am sure it will be fabulous. Just the phrase "Southern Greece" sounds so exotic to me! Are you sure you don't need to fly me there to do the job in person? My advice is always better when I actually see the space...

Just a word about your matching issues. Use white cabinets, go ahead and do your dark wood on the dining table- go metal on the end tables and add a patterned upholsterd ottoman instead of a coffee table. No matching allowed. ;)

Pics from Elle Decor Jan/ Feb 2010