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Happy Friday, and happy 3rd of July!!  I am gearing up for a mellow weekend celebrating the 4th - BBQs, swimming, and fireworks of course - but before we get the long weekend started, I wanted to check in with you all! As you know, my best friend just moved into a new apartment, and as she fills the new space with furniture, I'm here to help out and give advice where needed. I woke up this morning to a text from her saying that she doesn't love the couch she ordered, and everything just looks really blah and monotone (beige sofa, beige rug, beige walls). PERFECT timing, because I'd started this post earlier in the week.  Let's talk about what do do when your room is all one color... beige.  I was going to title this "Decorating a Neutral Space", but let's call a spade a spade... everything in her apartment is beige, so it's now "Decorating a Beige Living Room".  This is a big problem a lot of people run into but it's actually a really eas...

Adding onto yesterday's post, I wanted to pull together some (affordable) coffee table options that fit within the living room aesthetic.   Some are more rustic, some more refined.  Some have storage (hello hidden remote controls) while some offer no clutter concealment.  Some have glass tops, some are solid wood.  Some are more beachy, which some are more elegant.  They really run the gamut - hopefully there are some contenders in there for the Chicago apartment. Which are your favorites? Source Source Source Source Source Source Source Source Source Source

Now that we've got the layout sort of figured out, it's time to start pulling together inspiration.   These images came straight from Kira's Pinterest board, and it's pretty clear to see the common themes in what she likes: Source Source Source Source Source Clean lines. Traditional core pieces. A little preppy. A little nautical. Light colors. Gold accents. Soft upholstered furniture. Warm wood tones. A few rustic pieces. Based on things she has, and things she plans to buy along with her Pinterest pages, I pulled in a few benches, a coffee table, and a few table lamps that go with the look and feel of what she likes. Roll Arm Sofa , Console Table , Navy Bench , Gold Bar Cart , Tufted Bench , Coffee Table , Gold Side Table , Gold Table Lamp , Wooden Table Lamp She already has the white console table, gold bar cart, and gold side table, (numbers 2, 4, and 7) and plans to buy this sofa from Pottery Barn (number 1). What I like (and what I think she will like) about the o...

Hello friends!  It's been a while (does every post start like that now??) I just got back from a weekend in Chicago, visiting my best friend, Kira.  She's about to move from a super modern high-rise apartment on the river, to a really charming spot in Gold Coast. Luckily, the new place has an amazing layout - tons of light (which is essential for those long, dark, Chicago winters), and it is in the most amazing neighborhood.  It's all tree lined streets and darling brownstone walk-ups; a block from the lake, and it's brimming with restaurants, shopping, bars, and coffee shops. It's amazing.   The challenge is taking a completely empty apartment, and turning it into something really fabulous. This is where I have been enlisted to help. This is her first apartment of her own, and while she already has some really good stuff (bedroom furniture, art, occasional furniture and accessories), she's also going to need to invest in some major pieces to complete the main l...

One of my good friends and her husband just bought the most AMAZING dining room table from Restoration Hardware.  It's actually this one (or very very similar to this one), and it's absolutely stunning. Now that it's been delivered, they are in the process of making room for it in their apartment, and have very cleverly decided to split their huge living room, so that half is for the dining area, and half is for the living room. The old floor-plan looked something like this: I only know the general details of how the room is being split up, but I imagine the new floor-plan will look similar to this: Genius, right? By flip-flopping the room, you now walk into the "dining room" from the hallway, and in general have a good flow for entertaining. What else is changing from the old layout?  Well the ottoman is going to be way too big to transfer over to the other side of the room, so that needs to be replaced.  By replacing it with a smaller coffee table, and eventual...

I am pretty sure that if you played one of those psychological word association games, and someone said "statement wall" the first thing you thought of wouldn't be "baby room", however I happen to think these two things... statement walls (and ceilings) and baby rooms kind of go hand in hand. Why am I thinking about baby rooms you might wonder?  No, I am not with child.   My sister and one of my best friends are both pregnant, and due very VERY soon! With babies on the brain, I've been mulling around the idea of my own future baby's nursery.  And by "mulling around" I really mean, giving WAY too much thought to.  So much so that I even have a super secret baby board on Pinterest - it's private, and yes, that is actually it's name.  Don't get me wrong, it's not that I'm hoarding my baby room ideas, but more that I don't want my friends to think I'm accidentally pregnant before Kris and I get married this summer. I di...

Are you guys ready for some holiday house updates????????? Let's dive right in! The fireplace is the center of our living room, and an obvious focal point to decorate for the holidays.  I was so excited to be able to string up garlands, and doll it up this year since our old apartment didn't have a central focal point in the living room.  Everything was centered around our TV which was practical, but not the most attractive option. As stoked as I was to decorate the fireplace, I REALLLLLLYYYYYYY wish that it had a mantle.  If you look closely, you'll notice that it's a flat facade, surrounded by a piece of crown molding, so there's no spot for long beautiful taper candles, leaning art, or cool decorative accents like that on top of it. I've spent many hours scheming about how to create a mantle here, but with the fireplace being completely surrounded on all sides by a slab of mirror, it just won't work... unless I dare risk 7 years bad luck by breaking it......