Simple Style

I recently read - and studied - Simple Style: Creating Relaxed Interiors for the Contemporay Home by Julia Bird. I adore her books. They are so fresh and inspiring. I felt like I needed to absorb this book just to embrace it. Oh, and then I did! I cleared and cleared, had a garage sale, and now have a white canvas to work with. Pictures on that another day ; ) Unlike a lot of home style books I have read lately, there are few pictures of family homes/living. Julia, however, captures a few of these in Simple Style which is so great: illustrating that living with children need not equal homes of colorful chaos, with too many toys (Which children don't need anyway. Simplicity works wonders on children's calmness too!)



This is what inspired me, from photographer of Simple Style Hotze Eisma:


More photos from Simple Style can also be found here

craigslist find - would you buy it?

I found this small dresser on craigslist last night, and have made an appointment to pick it up tonight. Close up, it looks quite scratched and needs hardwear. Its $50. Would you buy this piece? I'm hoping it'll fit on a short wall, where little else will fit, to hold a reading lamp - while reading on the couch. I'm not shy about painting furniture either! Even when its antique, such as this one. Hmm, given it will be in the same living/dining space as the aforementioned painted cabinet, and behind the diningtable and chairs.

You may recognized the table and chairs as Ikea, and you may notice the opened Expedit box, in the place where the craigslist piece would go. Yes, on the weekend, I made yet another trip to Ikea, this time for the new, smaller, Expedit, in white of course.
Well, it looked really bad in this spot, and very boxy. Just imagine inserting this piece into the picture above, adjacent to the couch, and placing a reading lamp on it. Nope! It did not give a modern looked like I hoped. Oh well, here's to my craigslist find. Hopefully it'll still be waiting for me at our 7pm appointment this evening. I'll keep you posted. . .

I wonder what color to paint it. I was thinking grey, but it would not really match the table. Decisions, decisions. What would you paint it?