shelfed...er shelved

it's really wet and dreary outside which is not very conducive to taking photos of anything. it's grey outside and dark inside. it's a chore just to take the dogs out for a walk without getting wet and muddy. so to occupy my time, i'm moving some things around inside the apartment.

for quite some time, i've been working on rearranging my closet which has taken me a lot longer than i had originally anticipated. it turned into cleaning out every closet in the house in order to get things out of my clothes closet that really belonged in the pantry. then the pantry needed cleaned because it was too full, and so on...

part of the closet project includes getting my bedroom set up to be more functional. it's a very large space with not a lot of furniture. i would like to make it much more warm and cozy, including new bedding at some point. i love books and bookshelves so i thought it could be nice to move my bookshelves out of the living room and into my bedroom and create a sleeping library.

so here's some inspiration on arranging bookshelves.


i've kicked around the idea of painting my dark wood shelves white to lighten up the room.
maire claire maison


but then again, i really love this look with the darker shelves.
dwell


look at these amazing stairs. i could only dream to have my bookshelves arranged this neat and tidy!
molly luetkemeyer


and i really love this look-the contrast between the dark shelves, the colorful books and the white furniture.
colour lovers


ooh, or red shelves...
marie claire maison


this look is really more my style, an organized mess.
marie claire maison


and not for now but one day i would love a dining room done like this.
desire to inspire

which look is your favorite? i need help staying focused.

bathing beauty

so i'm bored to death with my apartment's decor and i needed some inspiration so i hopped on over to a few of my favorite decorating blogs to see if there was anything that could get me thinking about what to do.

my apartment is very eclectic with a lot of color and texture and leans toward a southwestern/french vibe (if you can imagine that blend). i grew up in the southwest and work for a company that specializes in southwestern designs but i really love the french style of decorating and my apartment itself looks very parisian--hardwood floors, great windows, high ceilings and pretty trim.

for quite a while now, i have wanted to decorate it in all red white and black (i know, go figure) but that requires starting over entirely which doesn't sound too appealing. i also have all of these critters, so a lot of white is not going to work, especially with furniture.

what i have decided to do is to tackle the task of changing my apartment over to what i really like but also keeping it animal friendly. i think the best way to go about this is to start with the bathroom. it's all white with hints of blue and green so i can just substitute some red and black in as an accent color. shouldn't be too hard. here's a few great ideas to get me started.


a red runner and bold artwork is so easy but brings in a whole new look.
desire to inspire


a great mirror painted white and diy artwork could quickly change the look of a basic white bathroom and make it more personal.
desire to inspire


graphic handpainted walls and a japanese lantern really funk up this bathroom. while my landlord probably would not go for painting the bathroom like this, a big piece of black and white artwork could do the trick and i already have a japanese lantern that could bring in the red.
desire to inspire


both of these bathrooms would be easy to do with temporary wallpaper, either black toile or red toile and then a bouquet of fresh flowers.


both looks apartment therapy

so here are a few ideas. i'll let you know which look i choose and post pictures. i hope to get this project started tonight!