SHELTER Sets: "You're gonna make it after all..."

When I think young independent career woman on her own I think - Mary Richards on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. When I think of a "career-gal" apartment, I think of Mary's attic apartment in the 1892 Victorian at 119 N Weatherly Ave. in Minneapolis.*

What did I like about her place?

The open space, the big windows, and the pass-through kitchen. I have always wanted one of those. I imagined that when I had a party, I could keep in on the action by listening through the opening and yelling cute contributions to the conversations in the other room. However, I never really had one of those apartments, in fact, I have never even been shown one of those for rent.

My current apartment is the closest; I have an extended breakfast bar separating the living room from the kitchen. However, sometimes too much of my kitchen is visible, so I will be installing a curtain drape to pull over when the mess threatens to take over the rest of the apartment. But I did have something in common with Mary. Even though I never had her pass-through, I sure had plenty of Mary's "bad" parties.

Layout of apt D, 119 North Weatherly Avenue (click to see larger)

I found an incredible article at The Mary & Rhoda Magazine that details the design and contents of Mary's apartment and even helps you source the items that were used in its decor. Now I don't know that many people today who would want to live in the apartment as it looked then. However, if you are interested in set design and how you can show aspects of a character's personality through their living environment, it's a fascinating read. Think about it, would Monica Geller have been the same without her lavender painted apartment and mis-matched kitchen chairs?

Interesting facts about Mary's first apartment:

• The apartment had to look like the rent was only $130 per month in 1970.
• A real attic apartment would NOT have a sunken living room. However, it gave them two levels to the set, which would make it possible for all the actors to be seen during group scenes like Mary's infamous parties.
• When Mary did move to a better apartment, a lot of her furniture and things moved with her. Some were re-upholstered or refinished, just like someone would do in real life.
• The kitchenette that I loved so much had a stained glass panel that could be raised up and down to hide the kitchen if needed.

Some of the items used to give Mary the impression of being a young, educated, career woman with traditional values:

• French Provincial furniture as investments: dining chairs, armoire, lingerie chest, etc.
• Brown velvet sleeper sofa
• Fine art posters:

Ben Shahn's January 18th to February 12th

Toulouse-Lautrec's Jane Avril, 1893

• Franklin stove
• Chemex hourglass-shaped coffee maker
• White Samsonite luggage with gold detailing
• Blue rotary dial phone

And her one modern touch, a futuristic Laurel lamp.



*The real location of the house was 2104 Kenwood Parkway, where the house is currently worth over three million dollars.

Apartment blueprint from here uncredited, though I think it's the work of artist Mark Bennett.

The Mary & Rhoda Magazine
The Mary Tyler Moore Show Online!

SHELTER Retail Makeunder

I just saw these clever and graphic notice boards on Design*Sponge from Swedish interior designer, Caroline Löwgren. Large discs with wrapped thread, the boards are 50 inches in diameter and available in different color combinations. They strongly remind me of my childhood and making yarn pompoms when I was a kid. However, they are selling for 69 pounds in England which equals $140 here!

I don't think so!

Closeup

This is just screaming out for the SHELTER DIY treatment.

1. Create doughnut from a sturdy material such as plywood or MDF.
2. Obtain yarn, ribbon, or twine for the wrapping.
3. Wrap as if making yarn pompoms. (See below.)

Trace out two circles, one inside of the other, on your material. Make the smaller one about half the diameter of the other. Cut out the larger circle, then cut out the inner circle. The idea now is to wind the yarn, twine, or ribbon around the ring. Hold one end on the outside of the ring and feed the other end through the hole, round the back and through the front again. Repeat this, working all the way around, spacing as you go, and end up in the back. Wrap the end of your "yarn" around a few strands in the back and knot it.

Not SHELTER related but a great cause...

Here is a way to test the intelligence of your mind while helping people around the world. It's called FreeRice and I found it via How About Orange.

It lets you test your vocabulary and every one of your correct answers will supply 10 grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program.*

The great thing is that it is truly addictive. On my first try I achieved this..."You have now donated 2,830 grains of rice" and reached a vocabulary level of 42.

So that's what I get for reading Agatha Christie murder mysteries when I was in elementary school, moving on to Austen, García-Márquez, Wharton, Scott, and Adams as I grew older.

Go HERE and have fun.

*This is the sister site of Poverty.com.

Pick a color, any color!

For the last week, I've had a few green swatches on Flickr.



From left to right:
Pepper Green (Behr), Meadow Twilight (Valspar), Chopped Chive (Valspar), New Green (Behr)

I've been polling to see which green I should pick for the armoire. This is the last piece of furniture I need to paint in the living room. YAY!!!!

I tried three different photos and originally put up these two up without the paint color names to see if people still chose the original favorite shade, Chopped Chive by Valspar. Even though they were only going off of numbers, it was still a near unanimous vote.



From left to right:
Row 1 Meadow Twilight (Valspar), Pepper Green (Behr), Chopped Chive (Valspar)
Row 2 Putting Green (Valspar), New Green (Behr), Leprechaun (Valspar)

So, let me know what you think, ok?

Thanks.

Another Refrigerator Makeover!

As I have become the girl that highlights all DIY refrigerator and kitchen makeovers (here, here, here, and here), I can't believe I waited until now to post this one.

This one was featured on Design*Sponge as part of her new DIY Wednesday segments.

My SHELTER suggestion: As an alternative to felt you can also use those colorful foam sheets found at Jo-Anns and Michaels.

Project created by the team at The Curiosity Shoppe

The Inkling for the Table

I am so happy that I finally finished painting that blue dining/sewing table. That project had been on my list for over a year. I kept putting it off because it would put a delay in my sewing. You know, like I didn't have my own procrastination-fueled delays. Well, it's done.

Here is the inspiration for this project.

1) This color scheme has been on my mind ever since I saw this picture on Yvestown's website:

2) Until I saw this picture on Apartment Therapy:SF as part of Emily and Damon's House Tour, I didn't know exactly where I was going to use that color scheme.

A nice simple utilitarian table in baby blue. Yum!

Then today I noticed all the other blue painted table inspiration that was in my archives. I guess I REALLY like the idea of a blue table.

• 
  

Voila!

SHELTER: Before and After Color

Front door AFTER

When Stephanie (aka Stefshep7 on Flickr) and Dave, her husband, decided to move to San Diego to take care of her ailing grandfather, I'm sure they didn't expect their living space to look like this.


This is the before front door
Does that say "Welcome!" to you?

Once there, they had to contend with what condition the former tenants had left the place in when they left. There was peeling paint and a stale smell in the air because few windows could be opened. To top it all off, they had left loads of stuff behind, bed frames, mattresses, bookcases, and books, lots of books. ALL of the items in the before pictures are the previous tenants.

However, Stephanie and Dave were able to not only bring this place to a point of cleanliness but they went above and beyond and made their apartment an incredibly cozy looking beach house, full of color and light. Please enjoy the pictures and what they have to say about their beautiful home.

Would you consider yourself an artistic person? Do you use it in your daily life?

No, not artistic in any way! I did used to work in a "design" related field. I was a Lighting Designer and Consultant in Nor Cal for 14 years. I couldn't design it, but I sure could light it!

Kitchen BEFORE

Kitchen AFTER

What motivated you to go with the "all out" decor?

I think it was the fact that moving here was a necessity...to care for my grandpa. If it weren't for that, I wouldn't have left Nor Cal. I loved our home there. So, I felt I should make it as "fun" as possible to live in.

What specific difficulties did you have when decorating your space?

Oh boy! Well...my hubby Dave and I have very limited "hands-on construction" experience. So that was a big one. I think the biggest thing for us though...was dealing with the junk left behind (Over 3 tons of stuff had to be removed, and that was prior to any demo!) as well as the filth! I was not sure how anyone could have lived that way. The carpet was so bad; we would not walk on it without shoes!

Living room BEFORE

AFTER

How comfortable are you in your living space?

Very! We are still working on things, but have been able to make it a very nice place to be

What drew you to the vibrant colors?

It just came to me while still living in Northern Cal...months before the move. I wanted a festival of color! Being so close to the Mexican border (only 15 minutes); I was inspired by a color scheme you might find there. I actually wanted to go with a lot more busy patterns and colors...kind of like a colorful pinata, but since my artistic ability and capacity to create patterns and colors together, I figured it best quit with the color while I was ahead.

Do the colors of your home show up in your closet?

LOL...actually not really. I am a bit more understated with my wardrobe!

What was the inspiration for the blue on blue bathroom?

That was ALL my hubby Dave! He said the beach was the inspiration, we are only a couple of blocks from the beach here...so that was his biggest influence.

Do you think your decor style matches your personal style?

Well...our last home up north was quite rustic, we used a lot of golds, and even dark chocolate brown on the walls, I loved it. I am not sure if you noticed, but all of the furniture you see in the "redo" is exactly the same as what was in our "rustic" place. Which did present its adaptive challenges as well. I was so happy when I found the pillowcases you see on the couch, not only did it have the pinks and oranges I wanted, but it actually had the burnt red-maroon color of my sofa in it too! That is what pulled it all together! I saw the couch as a big hindrance when we started. Getting back to the question of my style...I really have no idea! I LOVE conservative funky I suppose. If there is such a thing! LOL

Does your decor match your personal style? I suppose it does!

Would someone who knows you say the style represents who you are?

I would have to say, not what they would expect necessarily, but after taking it all in... yes, I think they would say it does.

What was your biggest influence in choosing this decor? Mexico!

What has been the most expensive change you made?

It was the new windows, about 3.8k, then the cabinets in the kitchen about 1.6k

What has been the least expensive, yet most influential change? Definitely the paint!

Master bedroom

AFTER

Have you done any of the decor yourselves?

Absolutely all of it! Dave is the one who deserves most of the credit! All I did was choose color rugs and accessories, paint and scrub wood floors!

What changes are you most proud of?

That’s so hard; really, the cabinets and windows would have to be our proudest moments.

Guest room BEFORE

AFTER

What do you plan on doing next?

Hmmmm...repairing the bathroom floor, near the toilet and tub. Lots of rotten boards that we can only disguise for so long! LOL

What decorating style are you most attracted to?

Country rustic, and definitely Craftsman! My hubby loves contemporary design.

What kind of homes do you most admire or lust after?

My ideal [home] would be a classic Craftsman; my hubby Dave just loves the "pueblo Santa Fe" style best.

Have you seen any homes in movies that you would want to live in?

Only one comes to mind, that's the funky place Barbara and Dustin lived in "Meet the Fockers" I just loved everything about that place inside and out! I guess you could say that would be my dream home!

 

How different is your grown-up style from the places in which you grew up?

Not very, my mother loved Native American art, and her style was very rustic. Since she passed away in 1998, a lot of her things have ended up in our home. Rustic feels like home to me. As for Dave, his grown-up style is very different from the classic formal home he grew up in.

Thank you Dave and Stephanie!

2007: The Year-long Cure

I pulled up a post I wrote this spring during the Apartment Therapy Cure about what I wanted to accomplish then. Well, that list was barely touched in that 8 week span. However, if I turn it into a 2007 year plan, then I'm doing pretty good. So, I'm going with that option. Duh.
Goals:

• Test Himalayan Mist pale blue sample from Behr and paint bedroom
  Completed April 2007
  
• Assemble white IKEA Vika Amon/Vika Artur desk
  Completed May 2007
  
• Mount empty brightly colored picture frames from to emulate this image from Wary Meyers
  Completed July 2007
  
• Hang Inside a Black Apples' Mysterious Genevieve print
  Completed July 2007
  
• Paint and patinate (yes, I looked it up) my gold mirror using pale yellow and blue paint
  Completed March 2007
  
• Paint dining/craft table a very pale blue to contrast with the red chairs (probably use the leftover samples from Behr or extra Benjamin Moore sample pots)
  Completed October 2007

• Special order a quart of the American Accents Leafy Green paint from Lowe's or Home Depot for the armoire (**Could only find in oil base spray paint, have to find a new color.) in Benjamin Moore Clover Green in satin.
  Completed June 2021!

• Take another try at tailoring the loveseat slip cover
  Completed June 2007
  
• Make the bolster pillows for the loveseat
  Completed May 2007
  
• Mount artwork on the walls, including my heavy Swingers poster and my Leia Bell prints
  Completed May 2007 and October 2007
  
• Hang curtain dividing the kitchen from the living/dining area.
  Awaiting completion

I also want to mount a series of shelves next to the French doors in my living room. However, because I did not add them to this list they do not need to be finished this year. So hurray for that!