Small? No! Clean and Efficient Powder Rooms

ASK KB!

Someone asked me just the other day if her tiny powder room could look bigger, cleaner, brighter and more modern- all on a tight budget. I shocked her when I said she could replace and reppaint for under $800! Luckily her sweetheart is handy with a wrench!

All modern Lighting has some amazing sales! This little gem is around 100 smackers!

Several space saving sinks like this waterfall number below can be spotted for under $500 This one is under $300! Overstock, naturally!

"I call this the Of Course You Can" Can! $346.59!! Unbelievable!! This type of bargain makes my heart palpitate!!
Love the multifunction with the "imperfection spotter" built into the mirror! Overstock for under $50! I also suggested "Seacliff Green" by Benjamin Moore!

Drape and shade solutions and texture... naturally

I'm a big fan of the way grommeted drapes look. The only challenge is that they are best when stationary. They don't give that satisfying "zing" when you open and close them. They need a little fussing. Even larger grommets, which are easier to slide, need to be organized into pleasing rounded pleats. If they are behind a sofa, picture yourself crawling over the furniture to properly manipulate them. You may or may not want to do this in front of your guests. This photo highlights a solar shade behind the drape which makes good sense for daytime sun but not for night time privacy.

In back of these unlined drapes this window has what looks to be a black out shade at the ready...the client could have skipped this step and simply lined the drapes with a commercial grade black out liner commonly found in hotels...the kind that make the Las Vegas 9:00 am sun impenetrable..and without an alarm, make you late.

One other point, some clients would inquire about dressing both the windows...this pic illustrates beautifully how one large window treatment can adequately address them both.

Dull photo...but stay with me...Notice the slight buckle that happens when these floor length drapes touch the hardwood? I enjoy that. You really don't need giant pool of fabric collecting dust bunnies and detritis on your floors. You also want to stay away from the 2 inches above the floor look as well, the effect says "I scrimped on fabric" or "waitin' on the flood" unless it won't really be seen due to furniture. Every rule has exceptions!

Notice how far above the actual window these drapes are hung? I enjoy this as well. It elongates the appearance of your windows and makes your room a little more luxe.

Panels are oh so modern aren't they? They come in so many textures and fabrics. I like the natural wood shown here. They can be used to divide a studio space, define an area, and of course filter the light on in a window.

all these photos are from Robert Allen Design.

He has some great eco friendly fabrics as well:

An now for something completely different....

It's too bad his website weren't a little more professional but his artistry is undeniable. Bernard Collin is a residential and commercial metal artist. IORNY is the name of his business, love that.

I'd love to have him to a custom window piece that could slide over a window and then rest on the wall when not in use.

Ask KB Fridays A little yarn about cosies...

KB:

How Can I make my home cozy for the Winter without breaking the bank?

Darling,

Wild spending is as passe' as summer 07!

It's as gauche as saying "gauche."

I love the very affordable Pottery Barn throws in the first 2 photos, but rest assured, you have plenty of things right in your own home that you can re-purpose and spend hardly any dough at all!
Top 10 inexpensive ways to make your home cozy and warm for the winter season:
1. Candles
Nordstrom has candles and scents on sale right now! If your home smells like gingerbread or fig or spice-ahhhh isn't it nice? Candles in the fireplace, on the mantle- even tea lights on window sills are so very lovely this time of year. My dining room window sills are free of curtains so I don't worry about fire hazard-

Also, don't forget to round up random candlesticks and unite them using paint-metallic spray paint is really good. Alternatively, unite them by wrapping yarn around them . This will show off the contours without highlighting their age or any flaws.

I've seen knitted candlestick cosies that are really fun as well.

2. BOWL ME OVER WITH CONTENT!
Fill all your beautiful large bowls and vessels with pine cones or balls of yarn, twigs, white rocks, photographs or postcards with winter themes.

3. Fill lidded glass containers with yarn too, or vinegar colored water in hues of red, green or blue! I say vinegar because water evaporates so quickly.
Glass cylinders look great as frames. Put a similar size photo in a wide mouth jar and voila!

4. Vignettes! Seasonal vignettes are fun, easy, and set a tone for your home. A collection of old fashioned mittens atop a branch in a vase or set up on wooden dowels would look great on top of a table.

5. The books on your table should reflect the cool season as well. Hide the tropical local tomes, toss dated summer catalogues. Bring out antique books, black and white photography books, classic novels, and all white or red covered books.

6. Change your cushions!Mintbasil shows you how to make a sweater pillow- short of that wrap one around a summer pillow. Simply tuck in the sleeves and use an envelope wrap. Secure with a pin, knot or simple ribbon if you must.

If you must buy one-West Elm has some rather affordable finds.

7. Let your throws be woolly, faux furry, or heavy!

8. Leave a basket of warm slippers by the door.

9. These recycled sweater pillows can be found on Etsy. Consider raiding your local thrift store for cashmere and wool that may not be perfect but can be refreshed, renewed, and reused.




10. Curtains. If you don't usually change your curtains seasonally- from linen to velvet or light cotton to heavy silk- Use weightier tie backs- wide velvet ribbon works well for instance.

So...

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

ask Kb Fridays Crafty Solutions

Dear KB,
I have a very large rec room in the upstairs of my house...it's so random!
My husband want to eventually have a screening room there but for the time being
I just need a playroom for my girls who are 3 and 7. I want some of my craft
supplies available to them and myself. I want to keep my large entertainment
unit with TV. I want the girls to have access to their dolls, dress -up clothes,
dollhouse, games, and toys. I also want to keep some of the furniture but it's a
little mismatched. The walls are a neutral gray green color with white trim. The
carpet has to stay.
Oh, I also don't want to invest a ton of money.

Signed,

Room for Advice in Ridgway

Hey RFA,

Sounds like you need some zones. You need an environment that is harmonious, fun to be in , easy to keep organized, and high functioning. No problem.

These are portable and cute. you may also want to consider hanging units with long rods or multiple rails like the ones found in kitchens to store crayons, glue guns, kid jewelry, scissors, etc.

I really think Flat Files are essential for storing colored paper. This one is reasonably priced and, most importantly, it keep s colors separated, visible and organized.

If you havemore than one you could designate a finished artwork storage center for one and another could be for drying art work.

You say there is carpet on your floors. If you allow painting projects consider a roll-up floor mat for messy art days. The Land of Nod

has some really great playroom furniture and ideas.

And now...

Shazamo! I LOVE

this whimsical family room by Candice Olsen of the TV show Divine Design. She nailed the "two separate spaces in one large space" thing- perfectly. Behind the curtain the kids have free reign.

Speaking of curtains...

Consider two large curtains that can either be closed when the entertainment area is being used or open when the girls are "performing" a play in their dress-up clothes. Kids love the drama of a "stage."
What I like about this look is that it is so inviting. Kids and grown-ups alike would love to get their creativity flowing in this space.

Painting your existing storage pieces white would create a cohesive look.

Another big oraganization hint when creating a craft space:

Rather than having one giant opaque bin for multiple craft items like pom-poms, buttons, markers, crayons, googly eyes, stickers, etc. use small see through jars and containers help keep them separate and accessible.

There's a cute blog called The Yellow Fence with a great little Kid's art space.

This is creative, fun and user friendly.

There is an art store quality to this shelving unit, which isreally practical and appealing. It could easily be curtained off, you could have two tables in the room-on wheels- one pint sized and one grown-up sized. It could easily butt up against this shelf unit to create a craft station or kids pretend office space.

I wanted to show you these...so clever and so easy to execute.

Black? It's grownup and sophisticated but imagine adding a small kids table and kid sized shelves it could work for all of you.

-or just imagine it in white.

Scrapbookers gone wild!

Know anyone who would swoon over this?

ASK KB FRIDAYS: Home Economics

Foxy Ladies would frame this in a giant frame with a large white mat! So sexy!

KB:

HELP ME PLEASE! I saw some pics of your office. I want to dedicate part of my house to an office but I don't want to spend a fortune, can it be done? I like the clean , modern look you did. I love orange by the way.

Desperate in Denver

Desperate,

I hear you my uptown friend. Thank you for the great pics by the way. You absolutely don't have to spend to fortune. Here are a few basics. Do you like this lovely painting by this Etsy Parisian artist? It's called...

Autumn

Also the above desk lamp pic is from West elm. It's affordable, unexpected, and really pretty. Ya?

If you want a lok of cohesion. Use all one metal finish like the polished nickel of the lamp. Target is having a ridiculous- free shipping sale right now. This desk is a steal!

They call this little number

Paris

-gotta love that! The bookcase, also from Target, can be used on it's side or standing vertical. Perfect to separate your space or use in a small narrow corner such as yours.

You like orange, huh? How 'bout this little beauty? It's called the London Orange office chair from my favorite bargain central Overstock.

Biombo, ridiculously transitional!

Via Design Milk:

Daniel Milchtein is a 24-year old Industrial Designer living in Guadalajara. His
furniture design, the Biombo Chair, is a perfect expression of functional art.
The wood veneer chair, built over a hinged wood structure, when is not in use is
a folding screen (Biombo). The surface of the seat can be engraved with a
graphic image that transforms it into a decorative object when folded flat.
Awesome.

Biombo

Posted using ShareThis

I thought since I answered (hopefully) Michelle's questions on Friday that this would be a nice addition to the screen idea.

Please send in your design dilema's for this Friday.

Simply comment on this post or write me kierstin@kbdesignstage.com

Ask KB Fridays Renter's plight: stay and fight!

Hey Haibun-bunny!
Okay, so here's my question for your Friday feature. My burning question:
The top level of my house (master bedroom and office) is carpeted in the most
awful "forest" green stuff. (It's a rental, otherwise it would've been ripped
out by now.) Given the oceans of green I'm surrounded with, it's difficult to do
much of anything with color. So, how do I "redo" a room with a color constraint
such as this? Also, since I'm not inclined to re-paint the beige walls, how can
I add color and sass to the walls without clashing with the green? Thanks for
any advice you can give to those of us who live the life of the
design-frustrated renter!

Love your blog!

Sincerely,

Michelle Kodis, aka:

"It's not
easy being green."

Oh sweet cakes,

Wallslicks ( above) has some pretty "sassy" wall decals which, of course, are transferable and easy, breezy to apply. No commitment needed! You can keep your beige.






Oh I really do love this question!! I found the coolest website called Design Your Wall


They have temporary vinyl floor tiles and wallpaper that is amazing. The great thing about wallpaper is that you don't neccesarily have to apply it to your rented walls. ( although there are some peel and stick and restick wall papers.) You can apply any wallpaper to masonite panels that can move with you! How handy!

I thought this seemed like you- maybe. A really great idea would be to put one wallpaper pattern on one side and another on the flip side. Versatility, baby.

Speaking of Masonite, You could have it cut to your office dimensions and then line your floor with it, paint it, faux finish even-think fauxbois!! (Woodgrain is so hip these days.) We usually use masonite to protect hardwood floors during construction - but I find it to be perfect for myriad applications!

I really like this wallpaper pattern and it comes in grey scale as well as blue...

Coordinated panels- not too shabby.

This great poppy wonder is either a Floor cloth or a wall piece. Love that about canvas.

Now, to address the most concerning part of your email. "It's not easy being green" you croaked. Say it isn't so my frog lovin' friend. It's all a matter of perspective. Turn that lime into limeaide. Perhaps, I'm taking the metaphor too far now.

Green = ecofriendly. FLOR has wool product, corn based product, and recycled products. I've only used them a few times because of the amount of hardwood, bamboo, tile and stone we typically use, but if you need to slap some lipstick on a frog, well the module floor tiles are your prince. I sound like I'm paid to rep this stuff - I assure you, dear reader, I am not. As with the three pictures I have illustrated, FLOR can be used as a large or small rug or carpeting for your entire space. You can apply it directly over your carpet and then throw it in the moving van when you blow your current popsicle stand.

Other solutions to your beige wall issue might be:

1. Folding screens

2. Bulletin boards in assorted sizes (they can be spray painted or left in their corky glory.)

3. A hybrid idea is a folding cork board screen . (I didn't include a pic because it was a poor image.)

Wallpaper panels that can be taken with you later to your dream home.

Other alternatives- embrace the green and make it Michelle's jungle room with lots of plants and piped-in bird calls- or go crazy with a spray bottle of bleach on the carpets. Think Jackson Pollock. You could do patterns, or use a stencil...ewww hope your landlord isn't reading right now.

Later decorator!