Second to our kitchen, at home we spend the most of our waking hours in our living room, which right now is also our office and dining room (ah, small apartment living!). Let’s do an inventory of items we have already procured that are necessary according to my favorite living room photographs below. Beige sofa: check! Snazzy chair: check! Great artwork: check! Throw pillows, recessed lighting, marble fireplace, and books: check! Evidently all that’s missing is a fabulous chandelier, a styling area rug, and, oh, a beautiful living room with giant windows, gorgeous curtains, and hardwood floors…

For our dream dining room, we are way behind in its execution. We do have a fabulous giant wooden table (from my Grandfather), so that is a plus, and we have tons of great serving ware, etc., but we’re still using wooden folding chairs for seating and pretty much lack any sort of ambiance that these pictures project:

Only one more day in our Week of Design… Stay tuned!

Some of my favorite evening childhood memories center on open fire pits, campfires, and fireplaces. I fondly recall the smell, the flickers of light, the warmth (sometimes overwhelming!), the singing and storytelling, and, of course, the food (and treats!) cooked over them. For several years I abhorred open fires when I was dealing with my chemical sensitivities, but now that I am feeling oh-so-much better, I’ve started to think again about fireplaces and their place in our dream home. While there are so many great ones out there, David and I were amazed about how inefficient many of the designs are. When we build our little cob cottage in the country, I want a fully-functional and efficient fireplace to occasionally cook over and heat our house… and I want it to look damn fine too.

Here are some fireplaces I love the look of, though I can’t vouch for their functionality. Which one is your favorite? Can you guess which one belongs to Brad Pitt and which one is from a popular television show?

I love the use of textures, geometry, and natural materials (such as stone) in gardens. I love courtyards and entry ways, paths that don’t just direct you from point a to point b, but lead you through a beautiful garden, and the use of plant foliage—and open space—in creating a place of escape.

For David and me, our bedroom is currently our most important place to escape, containing the ever-essential calming colors, soft materials, and a feeling of home. Our bedroom is also our greatest extravagance at our house, with our organic mattress and organic sheets. We both sleep great pretty much every single night and never wake up allergied or with puffy eyes like we used to (before we went organic). We get a good night sleep and love and look forward to going to bed each night. Rather than post pictures of our current bedroom which fits my tastes perfectly, here are some photos of other dream bedrooms for your more modern (and not-so-modern) sensibilities. I just love ’em.

Swimming pools are the ultimate extravagance… Aren’t they just lovely?! I love the idea of taking a quick dip while waiting for dinner to finish up in the oven or in between emails or late at night when I can’t sleep. I adore the idea of not needing to locate my suit, but instead just swimming in the buff in my own backyard whenever I like. I like the idea of a pool with lights underwater, so that it casts those lovely reflections all over the place in the evenings.

A few times a week I swim at the heated pool in our complex, but it really isn’t the same. I just hate those nasty chemicals they use (and people are always there–strangers seeing me in my bathing suit, gasp!). If I were to ever have my own pool (what a big if!), I hope to use a more eco-groovy cleaning method (such as ozone filtration, etc., there are lots out there!)…

I adore swimming and will take what I can get, but this week is all about reaching for the stars, so here we go. I will always prefer private pools to public ones… but then again who doesn’t?! Enjoy:

Some favorite design websites:
* Apartment Therapy, Decor8, Design*Sponge, Domino Magazine, IKEA Hacker, Inhabitat, Land+Living, MoCo Loco, Terramia, Treehugger *

When I was ten years old I got my first magazine subscriptions to House Beautiful and Vogue. Now those of you who know me well are aware that I am not terribly fashion conscious. I don’t spend any money on clothes, so I’ve been wearing the same gap t-shirts since 1994 (I even have photos to prove it.). I may not wear it, but if you ask me what’s in style, I tend to know the latest trends (even though my Vogue subscription expired years ago; now I just love the internet!).

I like to think the same goes for my knowledge of architecture and interior design.

For years I have been collecting images of design and decorating ideas for when I finally would own a house. Anytime I saw a photo I liked online or a clipping in a magazine, I saved or scanned it and put it in my ‘future house ideas’ image folder. It has always seemed so far fetching and David loves to tease me about how crazy it is that I’ve been planning this for years.

Well, I’m hoping it has paid off. We’re house hunting. Or, rather, we’re townhouse hunting, as the California housing market makes me want to cry. We’re hoping for a real fixer upper so we can make it our own. Right now we’re keeping our fingers crossed and trying to take deep breaths and stay sane…

In celebration of the possibility that we may actually own a place in the near future, I though I would post some of my favorite designs from my ‘future house ideas’ folder. So, keep checking back for a new photo collage posted each day this week.

(Recipe for Caribbean Salad here. Also delicious with rice!)
Happy Spring! The temperatures are supposed to drop down to the 60s next week, so we will be outside as much as possible tomorrow and Sunday!

Have a great weekend!