Bookcase Drapery

Here's a project I did months ago but haven't yet posted. For several years, I'd fantasized about this inspiration photo :

And when I found these drapes at Ikea (mariam green $20), I was thrilled.  Though the ceilings aren't nearly so high and my book collection isn't as extensive, I think that my little room captures the spirit of my inspiration pretty well.

Here is a gratuitous photo of Toulouse guarding Carybdis.

And my new arrangement of greenery/mirror. (I redistributed the white mirror collage around the apartment and hung matching green drapes on the opposite wall but that's a post for the future.)
I'm awaiting a little fountain that I'll snuggle into the plants in this corner; it'll make a pretty place for my meditation and yoga.  Ignore the power strip under the window. It leads to the stringed lights and I haven't yet attached it to the bottom of the little table. When I post photos of my fountain oasis, it will be fixed.

Cheers!  Leave me a comment if you like it! 

The traditional pre-final furniture rearrangement

As you may have gathered from previous posts, when I am under duress, I rearrange my furniture and/or work on a home project

Here are the pre-clerkship shelf endeavors:

I switched the couch to the west wall.

This adorable little ceramic table is my new yard sale find.

 

 I painted the legs of the chairs white.  A huge improvement, no?

My rock collection and wooden toy snake:

The carpet mosaic and a photobombing cat.

The gold mirror mosaic:

The white mirror mosaic:

The Wandering Lion

I treasure the old lithograph that I inherited from my great grandma but it's a bit unwieldy because of its size and the dark dark frame. It definitely dominates the wall and doesn't reflect ANY light.

So I decided to move it from the main wall.... 

 

to a corner spot near the shelves.  Eventually, if I spot one in a thrift shop, I may hang a mirror here to maximize the light from the window.  I feel like I live in a little cave.

I know that it's hung way too high but there was absolutely no other place to put it. I'm thinking of getting a little art light to hang over it.

Here are the befores:

Here are some gratuitous photos of my breathing little lion, Toulouse. She's practicing her world-class laziness.

The Big Switcheroo

I'm studying for the USMLE step 1- which means a solid 12-14hrs/day at my desk.  I've been increasingly frustrated by
a) my cat usurping my books for a perch to spy on the wildlife
b) the brilliant sun that shines directly into my eyes for 5 hours/day & obscures the computer screen.

So I decided to switch the table & the desk. It was originally intended to be temporary solution but I actually really like the change. The white table reflects more light into the room & it better fits my little dream of a pretty solarium. Maybe I'll keep my eye out for a white cast iron bistro table.

I also really like the functionality of the desk in the main room. I've put my work-shelves & the occasionally-used printer in the closet & looking out onto the library shelves actually inspires me to focus on work.  All in all, I'm pleased with this offering to the gods of procrastination.

I'm still juggling the plants around which is why there's some variation in the photos.

I'm also very happy to better show off the lovely lyre legs of the desk. It screams English manor library to me.  Because the sari wainscoting visually competed with the desk and the combo darkened that corner of the room, I took it down. Because I'm a magpie & like to look at my shiny things, I was compelled to display it somewhere else:

So dear reader, tell me if you like the new changes or if you think I should revert to the original layout.