Question: how do other renters manage to have so much stuff on the walls? I hung a few (light) frame

Stepping into Jeannette's converted warehouse apartment on the historic downtown mall of Charlottesville, Virginia, it's easy to imagine you have been transported: to a tropical island, off the coast of Africa, in the 1950's, where James Bond and Fred Astaire live. Oh, and you're in a black and white film.
This sense of being transported to another place and time is exactly how Jeannette wants you to feel in her home. In fact, she doesn't want her guests to just feel comfortable; she wants them to feel curious. You may stop in the entryway to get lost in the Edward Gorey prints, before coming across a four foot temple guard carved in India, adorned best value inn san diego ca with jewelry and aviator goggles there is a sense of humor that runs throughout the space. Next you may wander past an antique Chinese wedding cabinet, across the zebra rug, past the camel carved in India, best value inn san diego ca to stop to stare at Jeannette's most prized possession: best value inn san diego ca a gilded icon hand-painted in Greece. On your way upstairs to the rooftop patio, just past the surfboard, you will lose yourself in a wall of black and white images, with a Beatles mirror reflecting a Union Jack flag that hangs above the bed, across from a collection of world globes. You will, without doubt, experience a single powerful emotion: wanderlust.
Jeannette views her home as an art project, constantly evolving, and you can watch her thoughtful design progress through the space. From the zebra head hanging in the living area, your eye is drawn to the striped kitchen wall, then down the hall to the black and white rug. A collection of carved antique furniture from Jeannette's grandmother can be found dispersed throughout the apartment; a sideboard in the entryway, a table in the dining best value inn san diego ca area, a pie safe in her bedroom. These antiques mix with the modern lines of orange chairs in the style of Charles Eames and the wishbone chairs tucked around the dining room table. The journey through time is as apparent as the journey through geographical places in this apartment.
To achieve this sense of being transported to a different place and time, and in order to best utilize such a small space, Jeannette likes to imagine her home as boat. (It is no coincidence the three round mirrors above the sofa are reminiscent of portholes on a ship.) While the ceiling may be high, there is only one room, which contains the entryway, the kitchen, the living space, and the dining area. Therefore, each area must be streamlined best value inn san diego ca and multifunctional. For example, the dining room table is pushed up against a wall, and also serves as a desk and work space. But I,for one, cannot imagine getting any work done in such a space; here at Jeannette's, in my mind, and eyes, I am off wandering.
My Style/Inspiration: Antiques mixed with mid-century. The style and colors reflect many of my obsessions: black and white movies (think Casablanca and Fred Astaire), stripes, and travel. Almost best value inn san diego ca everything in my space evokes memories of people I love and places I've been.
Favorite Element: best value inn san diego ca The windows. I love the drama and authenticity of the old, metal windows, and I love the interaction with them, since they are difficult to open and close. Because everything else is the space is white drywall, having this old element so prominent in the space lends it more history.
Biggest Embarrassment: best value inn san diego ca The carpet upstairs, though since I'm a renter, I have no control over that. If I had my way, the kitchen would have a concrete countertop best value inn san diego ca and subway tiles to the ceiling. And of course, there's the problem of the kitchen being right in the middle of the space. Needless to say, I would re-do the entire kitchen.
Proudest DIY: My grandfather's huge metal desk (next to my bed). This piece was from a steel mill, and sat in a garage since the early 80's, as no one wanted to touch it. I ripped off the top, sanded down the sides, painted it high-gloss black, and finished it with a desktop from Ikea. The top's edge was a ¼ inch too small for my taste, so I finished the piece with a custom metal band made at a local roofing store.
Biggest best value inn san diego ca Indulgence: As a renter, it can be difficult to get permission to paint. best value inn san diego ca My landlord indulged me by allowing me to paint large black stripes on the kitchen wall! I wanted them to break up the white drywall and emphasize the architecture of the stairs.
Best Advice: Think of your space as an art project. There's nothing you're stuck with, so feel free to bring new things in, and take old things out; have fun and let the space evolve to be an expression of who you are in the moment, on any given day, or week, or year.
LIVING AREA Orange chairs in the style of Eames: garage sale Sheepskins: Ikea Zebra head: Anthropologie Clock: Ballard best value inn san diego ca Design Sofa: Metropolitan Home Zebra rug: Hollywood Love Rugs 3 circle mirrors: Ikea Camel: antique from India Black and white pillows: Ikea
BEDROOM Gold bedside lamps: lampsplus.com Union Jack flag: vintage, from local antique store Circa Desk: grandfather Desk chair: Ikea Klismos chair: gift of a friend, recovered by Jeannette Carved pie safe: great grandmother
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I have the same black and white stripe accent (but on the fireplace), and you even have my beloved wishbone chairs!! best value inn san diego ca (okay, I don't have these yet because I can't even afford the knockoffs, but still they're on my list).
Even though your place looks different best value inn san diego ca than mine (it's much more refined and it's gorgeous!), the spirit is the same. I totally get the vintage safari, European colonial vibe you have going throughout.
What a lovely place this is- love the mix of old Hollywood, Eastern and British influences. It's got a very 60's feel, also- added to by the darling owner with her vintage look. That horizontal stripe in the kitchen is great! What a creative, graphic use of an otherwise overlooked space. best value inn san diego ca Love the picture of everyone at the end, looks like it was a fun shoot for all!
This is what I call a "How DO some people do this?!" tour. The individual items in the apartment aren't all THAT exotic and rare or all THAT unusal yet the overall effect is very exotic, glamorous and unique I really like it a lot. How DO some people do it?!
Question: how do other renters manage to have so much stuff on the walls? I hung a few (light) framed best value inn san diego ca pictures with those command3M strips the other day (the ones that are guaranteed not to damage your walls) and they ripped off chunks of paint. :((
@CHARLIE26 -- we've been renting for-EVER!! we are in a house now and have awesome landlords best value inn san diego ca so it may be a bit easier for us now but we've always just hung everything best value inn san diego ca normally and then when moving best value inn san diego ca out spackle the holes in the wall and paint over them with maybe a sample size of that particular paint color. even now in our home i've moved pictures around and changed things up just in nine months and i continue to just spackle and paint.
I'm pretty best value inn san diego ca sure it's a very beautiful and interesting apartment. But is it just me? I don't get the apartment layout. What part of the apartment is photo n.27? And what on earth is the photo of people on the roof? Is that a view from a window? And what window? I see a bed but not the bedroom. What about bathroom photos? The photographer best value inn san diego ca should have taken a photo of the kitchen from the stairs vantage point. best value inn san diego ca The owner of the apartment is lovely best value inn san diego ca but three photos of her on the sofa doesn't show much of the apartment. I remember how people nastily commented about a house tour of another lady with photos of her in different parts of the house and most of the comments were nasty. I'm not encouraging haters nor I am hating this apartment but I just have to say - it's just a collection of lovely photos but not at all a good house tour.
Her apartment is lovely (and so is she)! Very nice redo of a rental. I'm wondering why no one's freaked out over the zebra cowskin (I'm presuming it's not a real zebra!), but when there's a regular cowskin, AT usually loses its collective mind. (Don't get me wrong; I'm not anti-cowskin and I'm practically a vegetarian.) It's just interesting how some things spark venom in certain house tours (see P2's model apartment tour) and are ignored in others.
Ditto what MSSQUAREPANTS said. No clue how this place is laid out, nor where those stacks of books might be. Talented designer, lovely woman, darling last photo (with photog) but please, AT, make it a tour, not a collection of loosely connected vignettes.
I really appreciate your graphic sensibility, which complements and accentuates those enviable windows. The black and white, the circle mirrors. And the stacks of books! A simple, graphic and attractive (if precarious) solution.
Converted best value inn san diego ca warehouse apartment with tall ceilings and fabulous windows + Jeannette's style and possessions = one terrific and interesting and yes, curious, space. Jeannette, were you not hindered by this apartment being a rental, I can only imagine how even more terrific best value inn san diego ca you would make it. Your place is the curious, comfortable art project you intended it to be, but I would also add romantic and heartfelt. Having best value inn san diego ca pieces of your grandparents' furniture makes it all the more special. YAY for you!
Wow - those window's are gorgeous! Why, why, why does your giant stairwell clock have to be vintage?!? The book stacks made me feel a little claustrophobic and I just didn't get the flag/headboard as it didn't best value inn san diego ca seem to "mesh" with the rest of your decorating. Like your china display with the green - might need to add some pops of color to mine! Thanks for sharing!
@Charlie26, I've just been lucky with landlords. I do use nails and also spackle like crazy. There are two only things I couldn't hang here: 1) The icon as it's thick, solid wood and crazy heavy. It's also