an undone calm » Stuff

Sideboarding

Anne — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 02:06:21 +0000

I found this sideboard on eBay a few weeks ago and I’ve decided it’s pretty much the most gorgeous piece of furniture ever. $2550 is a bit steep, but in reality, for the condition and quality of the furniture it’s probably quite appropriate. Cheers to that bidder… I’m filing it in my “remember this” section.

Teawares

Anne — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 03:03:52 +0000

Got this new FORLIFE brew-in-mug teaware last week in Austin and I’ve been using it every night with some herbal tea. Loose tea is sexier than bagged tea. Even when all you do is cut open the bag…

A Finished Product

Anne — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 03:29:01 +0000

While normally I’m pretty good about finishing projects that I start, my knitting projects seem to suffer the most from lack of sustaining enthusiasm. This sweater took me 8 months or so to complete, but I would argue that no one can be expected to knit wool sweaters in the summer so those months don’t really count.

At any rate, Rufus’ mom is a Princeton grad and her birthday was just before Halloween so I finished this up for a well-timed and coordinated gift. Apparently it’s getting rave reviews at the office.

FLORing

Anne — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 20:27:34 +0000

I ordered a bunch of FLOR samples to help me decide about the rug for the living room. The final rug choice turned out pretty well (I think) and today I put those samples to good use… Cat litter mat and a door mat!

Wood Grain Contact Paper

Anne — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 21:42:05 +0000

Remember how I was bored with my light-colored wood veneer shelving units? Well, my family talked me out of my crazy idea to paint them and a few hours of Apartment Therapy browsing gave me the idea to cover the shelves with wood-grain contact paper.

Before:

After:

The contact paper is the “Maron Dark” color and available at DesignYourWall. It’s a bit more user-friendly than regular contact paper because it isn’t super sticky. It sticks well to the furniture once you’ve got it where you want it, but if it accidentally gets positioned wrong or folds back on itself you don’t have to start over again. I chose not to do the inner supports because I was hoping to eventually find either a contrasting color or an interesting pattern to cover those elements. Covering the shelves was relatively tedious and required a modest amount of patience, attention to detail, and x-acto knife skill. At $65 for a 49 foot roll it’s eminently more affordable than buying new shelves.

Scratch that

Anne — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 03:04:42 +0000

New plan for household revitalization that doesn’t involve spending as much $$: DIY. I’m going to paint the laminate shelving unit that I hate. I realized I don’t actually hate the unit itself. I hate moving it (and have vowed to never do so again) and I dislike the light wood.

So, after some Apartment Therapy and Ikea Hacker research it appears I can paint it even though they are maple or birch veneers. Now in an ideal world I’d be able to stain it a deep dark almost black chocolate color, but I’m pretty sure I can’t stain those veneers. So paint, in a high gloss blackish chocolate, will have to do. I think the darkness will contrast nicely with the brushed metal supports. Luckily I can do test spots on the back supports. My cursory research suggests the steps are sand paper, vacuum/clean, numerous coats of paint. It doesn’t need to last forever so that’s my plan for my first attempt at DIY. The living room is now void of table and chairs so there’s plenty of room for my project after I get back from Iceland.

Did I mention I was going to Iceland on Friday? Ten blissful days of cool rainy (read: ideal) weather in a Scandinavian country. V. excited.

Furniture Fun

Anne — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 22:17:19 +0000

I’m itching to buy furniture again. I sold my table and chairs because we never used them, and now I’m contemplating a pair of chairs. While Ikea appeals to my wallet, I’m lusting after this chair from Room & Board…

Naturally, I wouldn’t order it in that color. I’ll give you one guess which color I’d go with…

I’m not quite sure about the ottoman situation. Is one enough? Or maybe a non-matching ottoman that’s large enough to be shared? That’s trickier.

Then, I also need to replace the eating area in a more convenient size and location so that we might actually use it. I like this table idea (also from Room & Board).

It’s narrow enough (30″) that it could just go up against the wall with 3 chairs, but you could pull it out and add a fourth chair if you needed to. Or even do two chairs on the long side. I’d prefer the walnut top, but at $400 less, I think I’d go with the plain glass top.

Then I also have to get chairs. Eeesh. Maybe Ikea chairs will do. At $19.99, this Stefan chair could be hard to beat.

So, 2 chairs, 1 ottoman, table, 4 dining chairs = $2366 + tax + shipping. The chairs are the bulk of that though. More debating required.

Cardamom

Anne — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 04:13:47 +0000

Did you know that this is the best chapstick in the entire world? (Sneaking in just above Burt’s Bees).

Ayurvedic Lip Therapy, Cardamom 0.15oz Stick by Better Botanicals.

Oh Those Bottles

Anne — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 23:31:00 +0000

I’m a sucker for marketing apparently. Show me a uniquely shaped bottle of bottled water and I will buy the water – despite really believing that bottled water is wasteful.

It started with Fiji. The chunky boxy shape lured me in. It seemed so much cooler than your average Poland Spring or Evian.

Then came the Ethos water at Starbucks – absurdly expensive, but with a nice thick plastic and hemisphere top. And hey – you’re saving the world when you buy it.

Around Christmas time I got sucked in by Voss – from Norway! Both glass and plastic cylinders!! Feels sort of like either chemistry lab or your shampoo bottle.

Today I fell victim to Fred. It’s narrow and rectangular – almost flask-ish. I swear it seems easier to drink. And look: Fred’s got MySpace! (I think Fred is the coolest of my waters so far).

Desert Essence

Anne — Tue, 18 Jan 2005 01:22:00 +0000

I am obsessed with this chapstick. I basically have to have it with me at all times. I recently put my only stick through the washing machine and dryer and I had to go to Framingham that day to buy a new one at Whole Foods Market. If you have chapped lips, or are just obsessive like me, you should get this chapstick. Desert Essence, Lip Rescue with Shea Butter.