Some of you will probably gag over my new colour scheme but something about my new space has moved me to throw colour caution to the wind. I have no desire to spend money on new stuff so I’m working with what I’ve got, save for a few essential purchases, and it so happens that what I’ve got hits most of the points on the colour wheel.
I recognize that my work should be a calling card for potential clients but in this case, in this space, I’m really decorating solely for myself. The main room — there’s a separate kitchen, bedroom and dressing room/bath — is just 14.6′ x 14.6′ and I have a lot of living to pack into that little box; lounging/TV, dining and home office.
One of my pet peeves is an entryway that comes straight into a living room so I created a little foyer at the door with bookshelves on one side and my shoe cabinet on the other.
I hadn’t intended to leave the back wall cream but I could only manage to paint the other three walls before major shuffling became necessary and I decided I liked having the office wall a different colour. It adds to the feeling of being a different zone.
Upon entering the space you confront my little dining nook, below. The bedroom and kitchen are on the right with the living space on the left and the office on the other side of the bookshelves.
I had to store my large brass and marble table and to tie me over I purchased this compact, 40″ Knoll tulip table from a collector. The vintage Gunlocke chairs ($300 for the pair on Craiglist) are the same colour as the table top and are also exceptionally comfortable. If someone joins me for dinner I slide the sofa out of the way and pull the chairs around.
The living space is similarly malleable. If a coffee table is required I pull the yellow rattan side table out from under the TV stand and presto, a place to set a drink or eat a snack. The sofa can be moved for TV lounging and the little footstool under the TV console frequently comes out to pair with the high-back chair. When I’m not watching TV I lean a framed print in front of it.
The place is undeniably small but I honestly love it. Everything is at hand and because it’s just me I don’t feel at all cramped. As for the brick-y wall colour (Farrow & Ball Red Earth No. 64) was pulled from my artwork and the rug.
It’s warm and enveloping and the space feels a bit like a gentleman’s library, which agrees with me. The apartment faces west so I wasn’t worried about making the room feel dark.
The bamboo blinds are a bit ghetto but the price was definitely right ($45 for 6′ x 6′) and if I decide I’ll be here for awhile then I’ll invest in better window coverings. In the meantime, they keep the summer sun at bay.
So that’s my progress so far. I have big plans for the bedroom but I’m not ready to reveal that yet. And my little, New York-style kitchen will never be anything to write home about but it’s functional and has lots of character thanks to the open built-ins.
It feels sooooo nice to be settled again after the misstep of my last place. Praise be!
July 2nd, 2012 at 5:25 pm
Love it!
July 2nd, 2012 at 5:44 pm
Color therapy. Back to roots. Going with ones gut. Revisiting what actually works and damn the torpedoes! Whatever you call it, only you Chris would so brazenly encourage and suffer judgement by your peers. KUDOS, in spades, hearts, clubs and diamonds.
You know how to deal the decor deck!
Sometimes it is what it is, and it is honest and authentic. YDBomb!
S.
July 2nd, 2012 at 7:49 pm
Good evening CHRIS, it reminds me of your pending India motif. Colorful warm inviting…Lois of lovely
July 2nd, 2012 at 8:33 pm
I love your fearlessness!!
July 2nd, 2012 at 9:27 pm
I think it looks totally fab, Chris. LOVE the deep colours and the flexibility of your pieces and of the space overall. It looks wonderful!
July 2nd, 2012 at 9:45 pm
I totally love the great use of space Chris, the colors blend so well together and make this a nice place to come home to.
Thanks for sharing, may you find joy and peace in your new home.
July 3rd, 2012 at 7:03 am
Your Chinese cabinet is quite phenomenal. From the picture, it looks exquisitely hand painted. And knowing your bargain hunting savvy, I bet you got a good deal on it!
July 3rd, 2012 at 7:27 am
Love the use of the space and I agree with VVires that cabinet is something!
xox
July 3rd, 2012 at 11:17 am
Your new stylish space looks wonderful! You have a great eye for colour. Thanks for the inspiration.
July 3rd, 2012 at 1:10 pm
FABULOUS! I love it, a great eye for colour and textures!!
July 3rd, 2012 at 1:10 pm
Quite honestly, I love it! I think in today’s design world where the use of colour in multiples is being embraced more and more, using that many IS a colour scheme and I think it is vibrant and very cool!
July 3rd, 2012 at 1:16 pm
You new place says HOME. Is that not what a home should be! Love what you have done and looking forward to seeing your bedroom. Give yourself a good pat on the back. Even the way that you describe your home one can feel the happiness and joy in what you have accomplished. Again that is what everyone is striving for is it not! Wishing you the best in your new home.
July 3rd, 2012 at 2:51 pm
Great job Chris! Place looks awesome.
July 3rd, 2012 at 3:26 pm
i ADORE that wall colour!
July 3rd, 2012 at 6:22 pm
I love it! It’s very Upper East Side/Palm Beach.
July 3rd, 2012 at 8:17 pm
Carving an entryway out of an already small space is completely counterintuitive. You had very limited wall space for those bookshelves so by floating them in the room you’ve created good spatial division while also giving you a place for your books. Smooth move.
As for your color choices, they’re not trendy but they really work. Feels kinda Moroccan to me.
July 3rd, 2012 at 8:26 pm
one more thing. I think you need to paint that desk wall ;)
July 3rd, 2012 at 9:26 pm
VegHead, I’ve come to the same conclusion about that back wall. Funny how seeing a space in photographs can alter your perceptions of it. Thanks all for the votes of confidence, it’s reassuring.
VVires, the cabinet was from an indoor garage sale, appraised for $1,200 and purchased for $500. I’m on the fence about keeping it to be completely honest; it went well with my old decor but not so much with my current stuff.
July 5th, 2012 at 6:06 pm
Job well done Chris! Love that you decorated your own space solely for you and not what the potential client(s) would think! I think you have showed them that you are talented and flexible with your design approach. More importantly, your sense of taste and what you truly love by showing us how you creatively divided up the small space into different zones. May have to steal your bookcase divider idea in the future! LOVE IT!
I so wanted that table from Kevin!! if you ever decide to part with that, I’m the first in line to get it from you Chris!
July 5th, 2012 at 6:27 pm
Warm and rich, your place looks lovely. I hope you keep that gorgeous Chinese cabinet– it’s now so beautifully set off against those walls. Eclectic, you do it to perfection. Bless your new house.
July 6th, 2012 at 7:48 pm
Remember Tim, I refinished that top for Kevin so it’s only fitting that it should come back to me in the end. It’s a beauty and come to think of it, a project I never blogged about.
July 7th, 2012 at 6:23 am
This space feels ALIVE which I think is a great compliment.
July 7th, 2012 at 8:22 pm
Chris, it looks elegant, inviting and fun. I agree about needing to paint the desk wall but I actually really love all the colour. I am so glad to see you settled in.
I love the new table and chairs in the space. They’re so lovely, I’d imagine it makes storing your beautiful marble table a little easier…
July 11th, 2012 at 10:11 am
That’s a good New Order album, too!
Love how you used the bookcases.
July 13th, 2012 at 10:45 pm
Wow! Thanks for sharing these photos of your new home.
I know you said the apartment is small but it certainly feels spacious. The bold colours really work.
July 19th, 2012 at 12:52 pm
I think your color scheme is GREAT! You have put forth the right amount of punchy colors, without it being over-the-top.
July 23rd, 2012 at 1:00 am
WE DIG HOW YOU VIBE!!!!!!!!!!!!
July 24th, 2012 at 12:44 am
Wow, I love it all
July 24th, 2012 at 12:48 am
Above comment was mine but accidentally posted before I was finished…
I love it all! The colour, the dual purpose of many of your pieces, the space planning..it’s all wonderful. As a fellow Torontonian currently apartment hunting I know how difficult it is to make these characterless boxy apartments feel interesting and you have done a wonderful job! Even the way you handled the “entry” brilliant. Kudos to you.
And what is the name of that fabulous paint colour? Please share :-)
July 24th, 2012 at 5:44 pm
Oops! I see the paint info!
July 30th, 2012 at 6:25 am
Chris, I love this space! It looks and feels much more like your home than the place near to the park. The colors, the textures, WOW! So you!!!