Baby Bookmarking

Two things recently have contributed to an acceleration of my maternal desire to spawn, which has already been kicked up a notch by getting married.

1) My cool urban friends are starting to have babies. Not the old high school classmates who married years before me. Not the college buddies who settled in suburbia. Those friends are all cool in their own way, but recently my friends who are on the same career-oriented, urban-living track as me have started to get preggers. They have cool blogs about their babies and post adorable videos of their tots playing guitar and dancing to Of Montreal and they get to dress them in ironic onesies. It's sort of sweet.

2) One of my clients at work is expanding the marketing of their baby products, so I'm getting a daily dose of smiling baby pics and shinny new stuff baby needs from the store.

The result is a slight up-tick in my desire to have my own little bundle of joy, but perhaps more immediate is the way I've started to bookmark ideas for designing a delightfully decorated room for my eventual mini me.

Like how cute are these Skwirrols decals for redecorating a kid's Ikea dresser set?

Ok, so for now I'm still just really into the peripheral fun things that comes with having a kid. But at least as I watch my awesome friends figure out how to work being moms and dads into their busy lives, and see how they deal with the scary stuff and figure out the tough things and embrace the wonderful moments, I feel a little more prepared to tackle that challenge when the time is right.

Pacifist onesie pic from plutokidstwo on Etsy.

Just in Time

The new apartment decorating has come along. Above is the living room with our new Howard Miller wall clock, a gift from the folks at CSN Stores -- an online one-stop-shop for everything from bedroom furniture sets to the kitchen sink. Literally. We love the simple and modern, yet traditional, look of the clock. It also has a special feature which resets the clock for daylight savings so you don't have to, but to be honest it made setting the clock to begin with a real chore. Check out the clock here.



We updated our living room, which featured a plastic folding table and a stereo on milkcrates, with a Formica dining table and funky mid-century lamp from Junk and a vintage cabinet from the Brooklyn Flea. Visitors always ask, "What's with the 14?" The "14" above the couch is a piece of found art, if you will, which Mr. Homewrecker picked up from a TV set he was working on. Not sure what its original purpose was, but it's made of some kind of frosty plexiglass and it looks striking on our wall. Now all we need before my parents come visit next weekend is an arm chair and a new rug. Something to really tie the room together.

Don't Get Caught With Your Plants Down

Almost as if the gods of homemaking were listening (as opposed to the imps of homewrecking who live under my bed with the dust bunnies), I received an offer this week from the good folks over at the CSN network of shopping sites. Magically aware of my need for some new, affordable housewares for the new apartment, they have offered to send me a new clock to adorn the big empty space above our charming-yet-not-functional brick fireplace. Pics of the clock and the living room coming soon as we start to deck out the place.

Meanwhile, the bathroom and bedroom are almost totally put together! Mr. Homewrecker painted the bedroom a pleasing shade of tan and painstakingly restored the beautiful molding to its proper glossy white.

Rather than fight the super yellow bathroom, I embraced it with some coordinating yellow totes from Target mixed with some dark brown baskets. We also took a cue from home & food blogger A Hawk From a Handsaw and disguised the exposed sink pipes with a snake plant. Smart!

Now Mr. Homemaker has been on mission: PLANTS filling every window with green leafy things. He spray painted mismatched pots black to coordinate in the sunny bathroom window.

While I wait for my awesome new wall clock, check out CSN's 200+ specialized shopping sites -- everything from waterbeds to tailgating supplies!

Erotic-Glass by Wilson

Looking for something to adorn your windows or perhaps the top of your buffet? Want something classic, but with a twist? Look no further than Erotic-Glass by Wilson, a crafty Canadian lady who brings a little sexiness to the timeless craft of stained glass.

Nipples? Check. Bondage? She's got it. Menage a trois? You bet. There's nothing classier than a woman having her head held against the nether regions of her lover, or a man cupping a woman's breast while she gives him the ole reach around.

Certain images are crafted in reflective mirrors, stirring one to ask, as Wilson puts it, "In whose hold does she find her 'safe haven'? Is it in the arms of a loving partner? Could it be in the arms of potentially anyone seeing their own reflection in the mirror? Or could it be her stonger inner self?"

Heavy.



How "safe haven" and bondage go hand in hand, I'm not sure. But hey, that just ain't my thing. Somehow the fact that some oddball middle-aged lady in Ontario is crafting this sultry stained glass makes me find it more adorable than creepy.

Much thanks to Thrillist for bringing Erotic-Glass to our attention!

Small Space Decorating

Now that it's been well over a year since I moved into my own apartment, my little abode is well settled and decorated and really only needs the occasional replacement of a dead plant. Ok, frequent replacement.

Therefore I am eager to help others decorate their new homes. Be warned, in the early 90's I convinced my mom to paint our living room mauve, so not all my ideas are spot on. For this reason, I'm turning to the experts at Apartment Therapy for ideas to decorate a lofty studio apartment. I found this article from earlier this year that shows off great use of color to separate spaces, and also color restraint to make small spaces appear big and airy.



If you have suggestions for small studios with high ceilings, let's hear 'em. I also liked this repurposing idea from Readymade. It will work well with his high ceilings.

Decorating with Wrapping Paper

Success with a decorating project! I wanted to frame two Audubon bird prints I found at an antique shop recently. I happened to have two metal Ikea frames with concert posters I was ready to retire, but the frames were way too large for the delicate little prints. Inspiration struck! Off to my favorite card and gift shop I went in search of some nice wrapping paper, and I was happy to find this antique-looking paper with shades of green that play well off the prints. After that, it was a cinch to cut the paper to fit the frame and tape the bird prints down in the center. Ta-da!

Shopping Online 1:45am

At 1:45am Saturday night, after sipping whiskey and fruity concoctions at the neighborhood bar, I got the itch to shop. Next thing I know I was online bidding on this adorable ceramic bird on the Housing Works Thrift Shops auction site. I reasoned that any tipsy, late night shopping -- even shopping that contributes to my eventual fate as the "weird ceramic bird lady" (I have a small, but growing, collection...) -- that raises money for AIDS is totally a good thing. (Ok, not for AIDS, but more accurately: All proceeds from Housing Works Auctions goes toward helping solve the twin crisis of homelessness and HIV/AIDS.)

Thankfully I was sober enough, or too tired (whichever), to not immediately go into a bidding war over little blue bird when I was out sold. I did however bookmark the following items for my new apartment while poking around bleary-eyed at 2am. I move in a week-- a sudden decision I made, quite literally a week ago, to finally try living solo. Then I can fully indulge my homemaking itch in an environment that is mine and mine alone. Expect full HWH blog coverage of my new apartment decorating soon!

Kaiku Shower Curtain


Tuuli Pillow


Retro Tea Towels Set


Flora Prints