Apartment Tour

So I entered Apartment Therapy's small cool contest this year.  I'm both excited and nervous; they didn't choose to accept my entry last year & I have fingers crossed that they'll change their minds this time around.

Looking over previous years' winners, I know that I have no chance. Some people have such amazing places.  But I'd love to get critical feedback on my home. (hint hint- if any of you brilliant readers have ideas, gimmee!) Though there is huge room for improvement, I think I've run out of ideas of my own (that fit my budget & time constraints).

Anyway, I'll post the link here if I do get chosen. In the meantime, here's a more complete (than the 5 photos they allow) tour of my little sanctuary.

vote for me please!
vote for me please!
vote for me please!

thanks :)
Here's the contest link: Katherine's Tropical Sanctuary

 

 

 

 

bathroom ferns

Every few months, I get a little $6 orchid from Trader Joe's instead of cut flowers. They never live past the bloom (my thumb is more gray than green) so I have a bunch of the little pots cluttering up the cupboard under my sink.  I've read that ferns do well in the bathroom so I picked up some from HD ($1.99/ea), potted them in those leftover pots & suspended them with twine from little cup hooks.  The project cost less than $10 and took all of 15 minutes.  

My little art collection

I recently posted about my salon wall of travel memories.  In reflection though, I've realized that, though those memories are rich, more treasured ones grace all the walls of my apartment.  So much of the artwork that hangs was crafted by people I've loved.  Brace yourselves for a slideshow of indulgence:

These watercolors were painted by my very talented grandma. (the gilded frame was a thrift shop find)

 

My grandpa was also a gifted artist. His paintings are treasured in my family & I'm fortunate to have inherited two! 

 I remember being a little girl & fantasizing that the cave was the home of Pete's dragon.  My inspired adventures would occupy me for hours.

I did relief work for Haiti and in Viet Nam.  These paintings were given to me by people that I had worked with. 

Sammy, the lion, graced my great-grandma's house for 50+ years.  He's such an imposing presence,  he lounges in the background of all of my memories there.

A former love gave me this piece for my birthday. It was created by his incredibly talented sister.  When I see it, I'm reminded of some very happy days.

These were paintings that had belonged to my great-aunt. 

And the following paintings, I did myself when I dabbled with the idea of becoming an artist. As you can see, I had more enthusiasm than talent.

The beads are Greek prayer beads.

And finally, the following are batiks from Ghana and India.

So much of the art in my home was crafted with love by people who loved me.  That makes for the very best memories.

My Salon Wall

Like many people, I have lots of little treasures that I've collected on my adventures. This salon wall allowed me to show some of them off.  I like that the wall is not the 'main wall'; it puts the display to the periphery of the room and so it isn't a focus in the social area.  These are my memories and I like to share them but only if people are really interested.

Growing up, I hated when relatives pulled out the projector to show off their endless photos of the RV trip to the neighboring state.  I could only see so many pictures of rocks & leaves & itty bitty birds way off in the distance before I got bored.  I figure the salon wall is my version of the slideshow.  And so, off to the side!

For those who are interested, here's a list of where everything came from:
1. rice paper painting: Viet Nam
2. gourd ornaments: Peru
3. 2 papyri: Egypt
4. big mask: Puerto Rico
5. leather mask: Italy
6. gourd mask: Dominican Republic
7. orange plate(s): Viet Nam
8. elephant mask: India
9. face mask: Thailand
10. the spoons: Russia
11. butterfly: Peru
12. painting was done by me 
13.  Rorschach blot is part of a set that had belonged to my psychologist father
14. mirror: local thrift shop, lanterns: world market, gold mask: Pier 1

The black chest & briefcase had belonged to my father. The tan suitcase had been my great-grandma's (a traveler who put my adventures to shame- she was going on camping safaris in her mid 70s). That suitcase is much better traveled than I am.

The book is our family bible: 9 generations of births, weddings & deaths written in the pages & an antique photograph of Teddy Roosevelt for some strange random reason that was lost with time.

The rattan box is Mackenzie Childs (awesome store- but way expensive. I have family in the Fingerlakes, Barn Sale baby!) and the wooden box is thrift. As is the chair.

Wainscoting

My landlord prohibits painting. I don't know why.. but he does.  Most of my decor decisions are geared around adding color in a cohesive way.  I do like me some color.  One of my favorite results is the 'wainscoting'.  I had used the rich scarlet and gold in the sari for inspiration but didn't have a way to display Indian souvenir directly. I had seen people hang fabrics on walls as art but a) I didn't have the wall space and b) my room was already really eclectic and I needed a little more 'tailored' in it.

At the time, I was putting up bamboo fencing as wainscoting in the bedroom (epic fail- it was so dark!) and I thought, hey!, let's try it with the sari! So 10 minutes & about 20 staples (just the regular old paper staples- no damage to wall or fabric) later, I had my pretty little improvised 'dining room' wainscoting.  It had the benefit of defining the dining area from the rest of the room.  And it's pretty :)

 

Stained glass

Over the years, I've gathered a little glass collection.  It's my favorite way of adding a little uniqueness to the architecture of a cookie-cutter apartment.  I only have 2 largish panels so they take center stage in the banks of windows. The other, smaller, pieces I've tried to combine in groups. I didn't want a cluttered randomness. Here y'all go.


The multifunction room:

In the bedroom:

 The kitchen windows: