# Decorating Ideas - help



## creeper (Mar 11, 2011)

Any and everything goes with white. Except white. Its too stark. 
Personally, I like earth tones regardless of what fashion dictates. Then its easy to add and change little things for punches of colour.


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## carenthomas (Aug 9, 2012)

I also thought of that. Thank you for your suggestion. I think I should change the interior design to make it more lively.


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## creeper (Mar 11, 2011)

You should do what you like. Your the one that lives there. Please yourself. Nothing is etched in stone


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## user1007 (Sep 23, 2009)

Make sure you color inventory other than the walls! You must have flooring of some type and color for example. Lighting has both a color temperature and a color rendering index that effects color in a room.


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## carenthomas (Aug 9, 2012)

*thanks a lot for the help!*

Do you think a pale or light hued furniture will look good with white? I don't want for my place to look like a poor copy of hospital rooms.thanks a lot! What color hues will make my place look homey?


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## user1007 (Sep 23, 2009)

I assume you are renting the apartment? If so and you cannot change wall color than buy furnishings that can move with you until you get a place of your own. 

While neutrals and earth tones may seem boring you can spice them up with accent colors of your choice in terms of cushions, draperies, candles etc. And even if rather mundane they will be comfortable. 

Also, even if you cannot paint and change entire walls, you can begin investing in either faux mass produced art like posters or hopefully real art for your walls. It can travel with you too.


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## carenthomas (Aug 9, 2012)

thanks a lot sdsester! I've been thinking the same thing. Mt decorating ideas and limited since my apartment doesn't have enough space for many furniture. Any ideas to make my apartment look less cramped?


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## user1007 (Sep 23, 2009)

Get furniture scaled to the apartment. For example, unless you really have lots of people over, get a love seat or a lounge seat to spread out and read on or watch tv instead of a full sofa. Choose a smaller round dining table that seats 3-4 instead of one that seats 6 and maybe even find one with a leaf that folds down so you can put it up against the wall when it is just you and another person. Look into clever storage units so you do not have clutter all around. Clutter makes spaces look smaller instantly. Under bed drawers are nice for seasonal clothes if you stick them in Space Bags or something. Invest in closet organizers to take advantage of what closet space you have and maybe eliminate the need for a bulky chest of drawers. 

Decide whether being a clothes horse and shoe person is really worth it. If you are entering a career with extensive travel a requirement more careful wardrobe planning will but you ahead of others when it comes to packing for trips. I realize it is harder for women but you can get buy without one or more outfits per day. Accessorize! One girlfriend of mine was short lived because she somehow got the idea I was going to carry her excess luggage. I am into chivalry and all but the novelty and fun in this wore off me very quickly. With clothes out of the way you have closet storage for other things. 

Try to live without furnishings that are not what you really want until you find the right thing and you will be much happier in the long run. Look for people moving out (although here the bed bugs make any sort of cushioned pieces iffy) of apartments of similar size. 

I would go to the library and check out all the books they have on living in small spaces. Look for NYC and London authors and apartment examples. We certainly have our share of small spaces in Chicago but not so universally as in NYC. 

Moving from a massive condo in the Midwest to my first Manhattan space was less traumatic than it might have been because I got rid of tons of stuff and lived with the size of the place. NYers are great at putting every inch of square footage to work and with the possibility of the space still looking nice.


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## carenthomas (Aug 9, 2012)

Hey sdsester, I just followed your suggestion. Thanks for the idea! Our apartment looks great now. It took us weeks to arrange and out things into order. Yeah, I agree with you on the furnishings part. Thanks for the help! I'll just drop by if I still have questions.


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## mommywoman (May 20, 2012)

I know you are done, but check out Ikea if you need other things. They have lots of smaller scale or dual purpose items. Like a round coffee table that raises up to dining room height to eat on.


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