a little new year Feng Shui-ing

As 2011 was ending, I had this feeling of urgency to really start 2012 with a bang.
I have never really paid much attention to starting new or fresh on January 1st, but somehow, this year felt different, it felt necessary.
I pulled out my old notes from Katie Rogers (my Feng Shui mentor turned friend) and looked at the objectives I had a year ago and her suggestions and recommendations from our long distance consultation.
It was pretty amazing how much of what we had discussed had taken form in my life. From my company shifting and transitioning to designing for other companies to my finances. A year can make a big big difference.
I also realized how I can easily tell myself that I haven't achieved something or haven't done as well as I should have, yet I rarely take the time to look at what I actually do get done. This year, yesterday as a matter of fact, I decided to create a little list for myself of what I have achieved in the past year, and mostly, what I am grateful for. I know, you have probably all been doing this forever, but it's new to me, and it felt really good. If you haven't done it and are late joining the party, as I am, try it, you will be in for a pleasant surprise.
Well, my urgency for starting 2012 just right manifested itself in my living space (yeah, I know, there's a shocker!). I have to say, I love this place so much and have the best time playing in it, it brings me endless hours of joy (now, how to get the landlord to sell it to me!)...Anyhow, I checked my Feng Shui list and immediately saw that I could improve quickly and inexpensively.
I started with a little more charcoal grey paint. I had it leftover from here. So that certainly made the project take shape quickly, but I'm telling you, I love the grey! Having been a "white" wall girl for so long and loving that California white washed fabulous soft, comfortable look, I just never would have imagined how warm and cocooning and wonderfully elegant I find the grey. I started with the last white wall in the loft (remember, there aren't too many walls in here and the 2 largest ones are brick)

here's the before

 and here's the after

 alright, here's the total wall...

this photo sucks and apparently my fabulous design sense
told me that I didn't need to worry about Tess' table and lunch
in the photo...ugh.

 I also started to re-arrange some of my art and my big gold mirror. At one point I thought I should run to IKEA and buy all new frames and really do it, until my better sense (*cough* bank account) kicked in and I said, meh, I can make do...which, I actually think worked out in the end. I moved the big gold mirror to the entrance hall, just to the left of the kitchen ( I was tired of standing on my coffee table to see if my shoes looked good with what I was wearing) and decided to worry about a new mirror later...Since the mirror was there now, I took my fabulous Christian Chaize photographs from 20x200 and put them on the grey wall, with Tess' blackboard (an early bluedogz design piece that I still had kicking around)...To top it off, my amazing Marc Tetro print, which pops even more than it usually does (which is hard to believe) on this wall! 

I also put my little print of the vintage NYC map on the inside kitchen wall, normally, I had my Andy Davis surf print there, but I decided to move it...mixing things up in Feng Shui is key and I felt that things were becoming a little too predictable and stagnant...not good at all. Moving stuff keeps things alive and Chi flowing (just ask Katie!), plus, it gives you the feeling that you have a new house (kind of)...and that's exciting (to me). You like so far?
Then I had to address the living room, where it looked like I had lost a tooth, without the gold mirror.
(or maybe more like a lost my "grill")

from this:

 to this (think lisp)

 to this!

So much better, right?...I remembered that this rounded corner mirror was just collecting dust in my dad's basement, so I grabbed it, and the Paris map above it had been leaning precariously on a wall for months (NOT good Feng Shui at all!) and my Andy Davis surf couple print had spent a day or so, after I had taken it out of the kitchen leaning too...This leaning thing is a slippery slope, just saying, so I figured, get it on the wall and then deal later...I did, and I am loving it. I have a few more pieces that I absolutely love and have a lot of meaning to me that I will be framing soon and that are quite a bit smaller than these, I think I might end up with a pretty cool art wall above the couch. Added bonus? My living room is in my prosperity corner, let's face it, I MUST feel good there if I want to prosper. This whole little revamp is feeling good.
I also folded up the second cow hide rug that was under my dining room table for a change, just because it was feeling tired...I am sure I will put it back at some point, but for now, it feels right without it.
Next up...a chandelier make over...stay tuned!
and hey, move your stuff around if you need a change or a quick re-charge, and if you don't absolutely love it, dump it! Happy New Year everyone!

Bathroom (Part 2) kind of done.

So, it's done!
The bathroom is charcoal gray, (very very very matte) and very cavish and fabulous and en-suite-ish, like the Cave de Snooze.
I would show you a photo...but, I want to make some art to go on the wall, since it is my career area, according to Feng Shui and the fabulous Katie. So I feel like I should be a good blogger, documentor of my life and projects and get them totally done before I really present them to you...then again, fuck it...you want to see? here you go! (kind of done)

i had bought this little chrome fixture years ago at a flea market and never used it

...using it now!

Surprisingly, I had another little moment at Home Depot when I needed more paint...nope, wasn't La Cage (as it was his day off), it was Stuart this time. My mother asked me the other day how it is that I know all their names...their aprons have that little spot where they have to write it in...(She actually thought I was really close with all of them?)
So I grab my dark gray paint chip and tell Stuart that I need it in a matte finish...he starts in on me...
"what are you painting?"
me: "my bathroom"
stuart: "oh, well then, I will give you semi gloss..."
me: "I asked you for matte, I am not buying semi gloss"
stuart: "you can't paint your bathroom in matte"
me: "watch me"
stuart: "you won't be able to clean it" (in a more aggressive voice and with some added eye rolling and pacing)..."I will give you eggshell finish"
me: "MATTE"
Helene, his boss shows up... "Stuart, give her what she wants! all the paints are treated for anti mold and she wants what she wants, GIVE IT TO HER".
stuart: big shrug, big eye roll, big sigh...very perturbed.
At this point, for informational purposes only, as I am NOT a diagnostition, Stuart is what I would describe as definitely falling somewhere on the Autism spectrum...a teeny bit Rainman-ish but possibly without the savant part...I think you understand.
I got my paint, he was pissed, to say the least.
me: "well, thank you, and for what it's worth, thanks for your advice..."
stuart: under his breath walking away "yeah, sure, anytime".
phew, made it out of the Depot again...

Feng Shui-ing my bathroom (Part 1)

So as you likely know, if you have been reading about this whole feng shui-ing process...seems my bathroom is where my career area is located...career down the toilet? well, a little...silver lining? Water is the element for this area and let's face it, there is no shortage of water in my bathroom!
My idea, after creating and totally loving our Cave de Snooze was to continue with the cave-ish, cozy, den-like feel of that area, since the bathroom is right there!
You know, just as an aside here, it's funny, I have never, in all my years of apartments, houses, places I have lived, North America, Europe, city, burbs (UGH YES, don't get me started) have I  EVER painted walls in a dark color...I have always gone for the airy, white, clean look of white! (NOT BEIGE, I did say WHITE! or close to it) but I am loving loving LOVING the charcoal gray of the bedroom alcove...you might want to give it a try...I am not trying to push you or influence you, but it's only paint right?...you might be pleasantly surprised!...which leads me right on back to the bathroom...

I had this high drama idea of very very high gloss navy blue...wouldn't it look great? the dark wood doors, the charcoal gray walls the navy blue curtains leading into the...TA DUH....high gloss drama bathroom...
Well, unfortunately the only drama was my kid, insisting on hanging out in the small bathroom with me, while I painted and basically placed herself in between my legs the whole time! (that includes when I was standing on the toilet seat to reach high places or on the edge of the bathtub)...yes, therein lay the drama!...the navy paint? not so much.
Let me also take you back one step...Home Depot.
My local Home Depot has this "fabulous" and I mean "FABULOUS" paint department guy...I call him "Cage aux Folles"(and up until this moment, only to myself) (need I say more? oh really?, ok, if you insist).
He's hilarious and flamboyant, skinny and fierce, black and wonderfully gay and a breath of fresh air in the very orange and big box Home Depot...I love that he's there, that he is oh so comfortable about being himself in a very power toolish kind of place...I love it!
Plus, no matter what I need there, I know that I will get a little wink/comment or maybe a finger snap as I give him my "hey you fierce guy, I get and appreciate you look".
So there I was with my deep dark navy paint color swatch and as I handed it to him he gave me one of those "oh jesUS, what is she up to NOW" looks...I grinned and simply and confidently announced
HIGH GLOSS!
He raised an eyebrow, gave me a little grin and then said, (a little under his breath)..."oh LOOK, I can see myself in my walls!!!!" then he snickered, ok...Cage Aux Folles, 1 point for you...damn, I hadn't thought about seeing my reflection in my walls, in the bathroom, OY...I was deeply ensconced in the whole drama thing, not the reflection thing.
Whatever.
I explained in my sarcastic and smart ass-ish way (which he APPRECIATES!) that this was pure and utter glamour, it was high drama, something HE should understand, and it is going to look fabulous...I told him that I was going to take some photos and that I could guarantee he would be running home to do the same thing in his bathroom. OK..."well, here's your can of drama darling" he muttered as he handed me the can of paint in his fabulous way...
I got home, cleared out the bathroom and got to work.
Hey, have you ever painted with high gloss?, Woah, kind of a drag (so to speak)...very liquidy!
That combined with putting navy over white?...Meh, not so enjoyable.
One and a half coats later, Tess knocking over the paint TWICE...Tess wanting desperately to be IN BETWEEN my legs the entire time (what's that about?)...I wasn't loving it...I REALLY wasn't loving it..the color I mean!

 (you should know that these photos make the navy look MUCH better than it actually looked!)

And you know what? All I could think of was La Cage! He would ridicule me! Sheeee-it!!!
I slept on it, I looked at it in the evening, in the morning, mid morning...I decided it wasn't horrible, but basically, the state of the walls was not smooth enough or good enough to really pull off high gloss...of course it was after the fact that my very BFF (who also happens to be an interior designer extraordinaire) messaged me that high gloss can look cheap if the walls are not absolutely perfect...great, a little late Kir!
Back to the ridicule of La Cage Aux Folles...
Then I had this genius idea...I still had leftover charcoal gray paint, how about if I went right over the navy with it? I flip flopped a little about painting the bathroom the same color as the bedroom, even though they ARE connected, but I wondered to myself whether it might look like I was just too lazy to pick another color or make another trip to the Depot, you know?
Screw it, I went for it...I kept thinking, "En suite" yeah, which really means nothing in the grand scheme of things, but whatever, "En suite" was my twisted rationale for painting it the same color.
I started, and yes, it looked lovely! (thank god!)
Unfortunately, I quickly ran out of paint...FUCK!
I mustered up my courage and went back to the paint department of my local Depot, after all, I could deal with Cage right? I am a grown woman, his ribbing is fine, he's hilarious actually...I can do this...
IT WAS HIS DAY OFF!!!!! 1 point for ME!

(and let me just say, he will NEVER know about this whole high gloss flop!)

stay tuned for the charcoal En Suite!

before and after...the sleep cave...aka "La Cave de Snooze"

Coincidentally, before my whole Feng Shui overhaul began...I was really spending an unhealthy amount of time thinking about wall painting...Jenna Lyon's home (yes, her fabulousness, of J Crew-ness) , featured in every fabulous magazine imagineable was etched in my brain and frankly, driving me a little curazy! (specifically her bedroom, since mine was driving me nuts)
Here's a peek at my inspiration: (via http://habituallychic.blogspot.com/ )

Interestingly, I learned on http://habituallychic.blogspot.com/ that in fact her bedroom is NOT this gorgeous deep charcoal gray, but rather, this:

Black chalkboard paint...now, I happen to LOVE black chalkboard paint, but I prefer the charcoal gray version! (plus, if you use matte finish paint, guess what?  you can chalk it up all you want!)
Now, getting back to my place...as you likely know by now, it's a loft (just about 1000 sq feet), it has brick walls on both the east and west walls, windows on the north wall and the only actual wall walls are in the alcove/(slash)bedroom and leads to the small wall that is the front side of the open kitchen.
The alcove, is not anything other than a bedroom...it is the bedroom, and up until now, other than brick walls, the few walls we have were white...I kept feeling like I needed more color here, more warmth, honestly? (and this hopefully won't come back to bite me in the ass but), a little more interior drama!
Here is the before:

let's face it, do we EVER really make an effort in our BEFORE photos...nope!
(laundry basket, baby on bed, stool as bedside table...oy!)

and now...(drum roll please...) here is the AFTER!

...but you didn't think I was going to stop there did you?

heck no...

(notice that my lovely friends chalked a "happy birthday"

message onto my newly painted charcoal walls above the pillows...)

now it's becoming a true Cave de Snooze!

ok, so I didn't just paint...because once I had painted, I thought, hmmm how to go even further????

I had been thinking about separating La Cave de Snooze from the rest of the loft somehow and it all came to me, at once, in a moment of dramatic navy blue Ikea curtained brilliance (if I must say so myself)...

Ta Da! the curtains of LIFE! (as I lovingly refer to them) I am loving them!

(and you can imagine that napping is great for Tess in this plush, dark and cozy Cave de Snooze!)

I also switched out the old circa. 1993 big puffy pillow/santa fe-ish style covers for some simple gray velvet ones (yep, it's all about the velvet this week!) (perhaps my many years in the theatre?...hmmm will delve deeper when I have a minute...)

Anyhoo, gotta say, Snoozing in La Cave has been bliss...(and yes, maybe one day the crib won't be part of La Cave's decor, but for now, sorry Elle Decor, it's my reality!

So, what do you think?

Je L O V E it!