I need an Antique Iron Bed in my life!

SO I have officially become obsessed with finding an Antique Iron Bed that won't cost me thousands of dollars. Of course I have fallen love with several that will def. break the bank... that I am actually considering, they offer a payment plan! (I am not kidding!) BUT I am still really hoping to score a gem in my craigslist scouring and yard sale shopping.

I stumbled across this company in California called Cathouse that restores antique iron beds, they have tons and sell like 5 beds a day. Of course there was no pricing on the website and the inventory changes all the time so I contacted the owner for more information. And he was super helpful, he sent me over a dozen images of available beds. But of course the prices ranged from $600 - $2000 per bed! The good part was they would ship to NY for $135! But still we would be talking about an investment here. This is the one I really love with a price tag of course of $1345! =(

And then there was this one for $650 - it is nice but not as nice as above - BUT it is half the price, so....

OR this one for $1235

OR going a little lower - $855

SO you all see my dilemma here. What I really love about these beds is the rustic, almost rusted look and the curved lines. I am also considering an antique brass bed, which may be a little easier to find at a lower price point. I have made no commitments yet and I am still pondering my options. As well as keeping a close look out on craigslist. I have an app for my phone that watches new posts and alerts me whenever one is posted so if one pops up I am all over it.

Here are some pictures of rooms with gorgeous beds to drool over.

Fun, Friday Inspiration!

So I hope you all are enjoying my blog - and bearing with me as I figure this out and get my groove! I hope to have more frequent posts and I hope you enjoy the journey through my designs. I want to send a shout out to Design Star Emily Henderson as she is a great inspiration to an aspiring designer (or at least to me!). She started a blog in 2010 before she started the Design Star show and well - it turned out pretty well for her! Here is her New Year's post from 2011 and I absolutely love everything she wrote here - she seems like an amazing and fun person who is on her way to big things and living the life she always wanted!

First look from last week's episode, homeowners did NOT like it!
( I love that wall color!)

If you haven't watched the show yet- you should totally tune in - she is kinda kooky and very real! (HGTV Sat. nights set your DVR's) In fact last week on her show her 'clients' didn't like one of the looks she presented - can you say awkward! But she pushed through and in the end made it something they absolutely loved. Because lets face it - your client or the public is not always going to love everything that you create right? That's how we learn and that's how we grow.

Emily's 2nd look is here, she switched out a few things and it became exactly what
the homeowners wanted and more!

If at first you don't succeed - try, try again!

Happy Weekend to all!
-Kim

Space Planning - Bedroom

So after much ado and by this I mean moving furniture every couple of months. Some people think constant rearranging of furniture is a sickness. (My boyfriend thinks I am crazy!) But I think it is just the ultimate search for the perfect layout! And perhaps I have finally found it!?

Let me take you through the process -

Layout 1 - When you walk into the bedroom I think the focal point should be the star of the room - the bed! I like it when you can see it as you walk into the space. So challenged as I was with this room, I put the bed facing you when you walk in but off to the side since there was a window breaking up the wall. There was still enough space on each side for a small end table and some walking room (tight..but space). HOWEVER the problem with this layout came in the winter. The heating vent is located right under the the two large windows on the south side. And the heat in this building is abundant! So it would blow into my face as I sleep at night and dry and sweat me out all night long! Not good.

Layout 2 - And so came layout 2. Now this is how the previous owners of my apartment had their bedroom situated and this is how my neighbor downstairs with an identical apartment has hers (and yes I have to admit one of my biggest resistants in this layout was for this reason - I wanted to think I had come up with some other great brand new way to do it!) but because of the above issues in the heat of the winter and countless mornings of dry mouth and skin I broke down and went with this one for a while. But of course soon enough I found fault in it. I missed that wow factor of seeing my bed when I walked in and also it left some space on the other side of the bed, near the windows as just dead space.


FINAL LAYOUT (for now at least). Finally it hit me why not put a bed in front of the window!? Originally I thought no you can't do that - but why not? I will get the best breeze at night, I can still have the light coming in, (plus this is the smaller window) - and when I get an open headboard it will make no different at all! So I went for it and I think it might work. See pictures below as  I test out this layout for the time being with the current furniture.

SO now that the layout is set - the furniture search begins. Stay tuned for this process as I seek out the following:

1- Bed Frame/Headboard/Footboard

2- Night Tables

3- Console table/dresser 

4- Chair

And lighting!!