I really like these photos of animals against the kitschy wallpaper backdrops. It would make a fun series of prints to hang in Julianna’s room.

Catherine’s Animals by Catherine Ledner.

Via Angie McKaig.

We have two “family” rooms in our house - one we refer to as the “TV room” and the other, the “piano room.” I prefer to keep the TV room strictly for TV watching (pretty much just Netflix movies, Frasier reruns, The Office, 30 Rock, and Masterpiece Theatre - “Cranford” is SOOOOO good!) and the piano room for entertaining and, of course, piano playing. The piano room has really been neglected lately and now that the weather is so much nicer, we’re thinking about finally tackling the walls. I’m thinking of going with a light blue - possibly “Jamaican Aqua” or “Barely Teal” from Benjamin Moore. They’re the 2 lighter shades of our kitchen, which is “Tropicana Cabana.”

I’d post a picture of the piano room as it currently looks, but my camera battery is charging at the moment and I’m just really excited to share my Google Sketchup 3D mockup:

The details:

1. The pear print above the sofa is a canvas Marimekko print from CB2.com - a gift from my parents for my birthday a couple weeks ago.
2. The sofa is the Arild sofa from IKEA.
3. The side tables are IKEA Lack.
4. The plywood chair is an Eames knockoff I ordered from American Modern Furniture last year.
5. The bookcases in the back are Billy bookcases from IKEA. We don’t have these yet.
6. The rug is also nonexistant … I’m thinking of going with some moss green Interface Flor tiles.
7. The lamps are from Crate & Barrel - purchased a few years ago.

Our kitchen is still unfinished … no backsplash, no central light fixture, no window treatment. I’ve been having fun with Mosaic Tile Supplies‘ “Mosaic Maximizer” and have come up with some tile blends that might work for our kitchen backsplash. I’m also trying to decide what to do about the walls in the adjacent mud room. For the past year, I’ve been planning on painting the walls either the same blue as in the kitchen or some sort of orange. But then I saw this wallpaper, “Stem,” from Orla Kiely at Anthropologie and am reconsidering. I’ve mocked it up in Google Sketchup, as you can see in 2 of the 3 pictures below. I like it, and I don’t think the pattern is too much when paired with the checkerboard floor. But I worry that it competes too much with the pattern in the backsplash - especially if I go with a rainbow of colors for the backsplash. Sometimes I think I should just stick to Google Sketchup, because I’m just too afraid of commitment!

I’ve had thinking about a new furniture arrangement for our living room. Ever since we bought our house, I’ve been struggling to come up with a layout that works. The biggest issue is the piano - I really feel like it needs to remain in the back of the room since it’s so honking big. Also, with a grand piano, it needs to face a certain direction so that the lid opens towards the audience and not towards a wall. The fireplace, which we don’t use, just seems to be an impediment. The IKEA Lack bookcase isn’t really cutting it - it’s difficult to arrange books in it and is probably better used as a display case or an artfully designed bookcase/display case hybrid.

Here’s the current layout (designed in Google Sketchup - all pieces are to scale). The arrow represents the entry way:

In Sketchup, I recently came up with a layout that works much better, I think. I’ve placed IKEA Billy book cases (which we don’t have yet) against the far wall flanking the oddly-sized windows we have back there. I’ve moved the piano to a less than ideal position, but I think in the grand scheme of things, the room is a lot more comfortable this way. Unfortunately, it does block the fireplace a bit and I’m not sure how I’m going to like that. I kind of wish we could get rid of the fireplace altogether.

Here’s the improved layout:

If anyone has any suggestions, I’d welcome the advice!

Take a look at this new chair from IKEA, the “Tobias,” which sells for $89.99. I’ve always wanted the Phillipe Starck Louis Ghost chair, but I’m sure this would do just fine until I win the lottery!

Take a look at this fantastic kitchen (from Flickr user zuess) using IKEA’s red and white Abstrakt fronts. Reminds me of my own kitchen with the VCT floor and formica countertops.

We need ceiling fixtures for our new kitchen, bathroom, mud room, den, and 2 hallways. I am totally bored by the options at Home Depot, Lowes, and a local lighting store, so I’ve decided to search online. I really have no clue how to choose … I’ve never really paid much attention to ceiling fixtures, and the ones we inherited with the house may very well have been the original 1950s fixtures. I’ve found great modern fixtures which come with steep price tags, so I have to pass on those. However, Lamps Plus actually has a few interesting options in their “contemporary” category:

Possible fixtures for the kitchen and the mud room:
Orion Square, $129.99

For the mud room:
Pollux Collection Crackle Glass Orbs, 30″ wide, $249.99 or Robert Abbey Anemone, 13″ wide, $149.91

For the bathroom and hallways:
Square Collection, 5 1/3″ Wide, $64.91

Are the den choices too wild? I worry that they’d be incongruous with the choices for the kitchen and other rooms. But since the den lighting isn’t really for function (I normally hate overhead lights, but the den is supposed to be our dining room and came with it), I figured I might as well make it more attractive.

I came across this walnut-veneered side table and console at Overstock.com - they’re from La-Z-Boy and only $55.99 and $129.99, respectively. I love the hairpin legs and the storage possibilities in the side table. Apparently, Overstock has a shipping deal going on right now - only $1 for everything. I’m tempted to get these side tables to replace the IKEA Lack tables in my TV room.

I love these genius paintings by Flickr user thequietsmirk. They’re such a nice antidote to those insipid motivational posters you see in offices. These look great against the boldly colored walls and great furniture in her home.

I’m not sure if thequietsmirk sells her paintings, but I’ll try and find out.

Earlier today I was perusing one of my favorite blogs, More Ways to Waste Time and came across some great stuff Leah found on UK’s IKEA site. I too am wondering if they’ll be making their way across the Atlantic. I can’t wait for the new IKEA catalog to come … it seems like they’re usually sent out around this time of year.

Karlstad Swivel Armchair:

Tirup Swivel Armchair: