Hi Gvstevens.

One of my favorite cartoons from the New Yorker shows a trendy designer speaking to his dismayed client. "Of course we can do spare and minimal, but not on your budget." It's kind do of like that.

I'm also the kind of person who refuses to buy expensive matching living room furniture and I, too, would rather buy a few pieces from the local thrift store. My place is also small. Last year, I measured it for the first time. It was 547 square feet, less than a third of the size of my former place. Of course, this place, small as it is, is only 2 blocks from Lake Shore Drive in a Landmark Historic District in Chicago, and my old, bigger place was in Peoria. You can draw your own inferences.

At any rate, my place is small. Unlike you, however, I find that a lot of furniture distracts the eye from noticing the small size of my place, and I find that being in a small room with only a few pieces makes me feel like somebody hasn't yet finished moving in.

Besides, the less furniture there is in a room--any room-- the more attention each piece individual piece gets. Which is great if everything one owns is a masterpiece of workmanship & design. But that's not the case with most people. It's certainly not the case with me. I've got some perfectly ordinary pieces. But the good news is that in a room filled with other, cooler stuff, a mediocre table can fade into the background. Not everything in a room needs to call attention to itself or make a grand statement. But if you eliminate all the patterned cushions & carved chairs & the clutter of lamps & books & art, all of a sudden that plain-jane table takes on a visual importance, and invitesthe kind of scrutiny that it may not be able to stand. If it's a cheap table, there's no hiding the fact. Anyway, just as in the cartoon, that's why I don't do minimalism. I can't afford to.

But if I were going mininmal--and I have done so in the past, both for myself & for others--I might do just what you're doing: use a different color on each wall. In fact, I did exactly that in a dining room for a woman who had bought a set of Harlequin Ware--the low-rent version of Fiestaware--and who wanted to use it as the centerpiece of her small apartment. So each wall was one of the four colors of the dishes: jade green, sky blue, rose pink & egg yolk yellow. I used a 1930s bamboo dining set that I painted glossy black, and against that background, her dishes were beautiful. So I can assure you that that part, that far--if you're intent on minimalism--will work.

But ditch that idea about using contrasting trim--especially if you're talking about using more than one color on it, as well as on the walls. Minimalism isn't only about things, it's about an approach to things, and using busy multi-color trim in an underfurnished room that already has a bunch of colors in there will create every bit as much visual clutter as a shelf jam-packed with Precious Moments and fake flowers. Not to mention that that treatement will do just the opposite of what you want to do: make the room look bigger. By drawing attention to the corners of your small spaces, they'll visually shrink the size of your place even more, giving it the busy, hyperactive look of a pastel hamster cage.

Regards,
MAGNAVERDE.

Lurk around the apartment therapy website for a while and you'll get some great ideas on how to treat a small space.

Choosing one color throughout (or different shades of the same color) will probably be a better choice in my opinion.

You can get a lot of hominess from accessories - rugs, things on the walls, books.

Deb

That New Yorker cartoon is so true it hurts.

Although following Magnaverde courts redundancy, I'd say that if you want to have only a few pieces, they each have to be great. Great doesn't mean expensive, but if you're having only a sofa, a rug, and a table in your living room, each piece has to be very strong design-wise, very distinctive and yet, has to harmonize with the others. The more pieces, the more places the eye has to gaze upon, and the less need for each piece to be a star.

I hate matching suites of things, unless it's toile in a bedroom, and then I like lots and lots and lots.

Minimalism...here? On this forum, minimalism means one less tassel on the table skirt.

Apartmenttherapy is indeed a good site for those who like the sleek look. dtinba is not being very fair IMO, and I hope s/he is just being funny, since there are several people on the forum who have distinct leanings toward the minimalist/modern. I'm sort of in the middle of the spectrum but I hate matching suites too. :-)

Magnaverde, that's very cool about where you live. When I was in culinary school in Chicago in '92 I lived in the Mid-North Historic District in Lincoln Park. I paid through the nose for a microscopic studio apartment opening onto an airshaft in a wonderful Art Deco building (at the time it had an original bathroom, ca. 1950 kitchenette, architectural detail out the wazoo... sadly the building has been condo-ized, heavily renovated, and stripped of a great deal of its interior detail) but it was well worth it for a safe, quiet neighborhood dripping with ambiance. I'd love to go back knowing what I know now about historic homes; back then all I knew was that they were pretty and the old buildings and tree-lined streets were much more comfortable than the high-rises.

Minimalist can be done on a budget. This is a picture of my former living room (not uber small, but decorated with a minimalist vibe and a fairly strict budget):

The sofa was a messy ebay purchase of a 1950s McCobb knock-off. I also purchased one of the red chairs (with original plastic orange upholstery and springs sticking out) from ebay. Fabric for chairs and sofa was purchased at bargain price from a fabric store in Tucson, Arizona, that I finagled free shipping on. Orange contrast piping was actually a fabric that I got for $10 for about 25 yards because there was a huge flaw running through the center. I had a the upholsterer make a "matching" red chair (didn't rock and swivel like the original), which was surprisingly inexpensive. My mom and I made the large chalkboard out of that pressed board stuff, a couple of 2X4s for the frame, some rope, a glue gun, silver paint and chalkboard paint. Mom copied the sketch from an art book. Found the coffee table languishing in the back of a consignment/thrift store. Candlesticks, holders and matching box were from Pier 1 on a 25% off already marked down 50% off sale. Window treatments looked and felt like a striped silk, but were actually a washable and inexpensive polyester with a simple pleat. The paper floor lamp was a $15 lamp from Target. Have seen many similar lamps at ikea for similar price, but they always look fresh and nice. Two furniture items in that room were bought outside of the original budget: demilune cabinet purchased new (I know, I know, but it was so pretty), and the lamp, which remains my favorite lamp in the house so it was worth it.

Oh, even the parquet floor (pretty, right?) was CHEAP: $0.87/sq. ft. parquet flooring from Lowes -- self installation.

On the issue of paint: we used a taupe on the walls, with a chocolate brown on the ceiling and the woodwork -- we wanted the ceiling dark to make a 2-story volume ceiling space feel more intimate, and it worked to close the space in.

I guess what I'm trying to say is you don't need to pick a ton of harlequin clownish paint colors, you don't need a ton of $$$, and you don't need a bunch of matched set furnishings from expensive stores like DWR to create a warm, vibrant but minimalist space, regardless of the size. Some leg work and thoughtful planning are all that is necessary.

Sarschlos, I loved that room the first time you posted it. I love it more now that I know the story behind it. Greetings to Magnaverde from an exiled Chicagoan: I always enjoy and learn from your posts.

Ditto on the no-borders comment, btw, to the OP.

I think dtinbna was just being sarcastic : ) We seem to have or had quite a few people who prefer a minimalistic style, and many who like the current simple clean look. I think those who like a more cluttered and lush style would be able to edit, too, so plenty of help around in pulling something together, in your own style : )

I agree, painting each wall and borders in a different color sounds rather busy, which isn't your goal.

Sarchlos, I always love seeing that room! I didn't realize it was your former lr.

I aspire to a very minimal zen decor, but unfortunately the reality is we live in our house and have stuff. I love the concept with minimal zen of having very little on display so you actually focus on the object and can study and enjoy it's beauty and/or wabi sabi. Inherent is that your "stuff" has to be worthy of close inspection - doesn't necessarily have to be expensive, but it's tricky to find something sculptural and useful. Same with furniture and walls - with less, each aspect of decor has to work overtime.

I would use color to add some oomph to the room - but I wouldn't use a mix of different colors on each wall and definitely not more mix and match with colored woodwork. Part of the appeal of minimalism is the serene quality - you want your walls to enhance that feeling. So choose a color that makes your heart sing and use that to paint all the walls in one room. You can then use another color to paint the adjacent hallway something that co-ordinates etc. Woodwork can either be a neutral, for example, white through out; or recently I've seen people painting their woodwork the same color and finish of the walls to minimize boring trim and make the room feel larger.

Don't forget about art, window treatments and flooring to add that warmth and finishing touch.

Apartmenttherapy.com had a contest a few months ago about the best use of color in small spaces - you'll find plenty of inspiration there. Magneverde's apartment was in that contest. In addition, his apartment was featured a few weeks ago because his apartment is to be published in a shelter magazine - congrats shout out to Magneverde (sorry for the minor hijack). Their current contest about small cool spaces is winding down but there are some fantastic ideas in those submissions as well to check out.

I am addicted to apartmenttherapy, but unfortunately they don't have wonderful forums like we enjoy here at ThisHomeSite/Gardenweb/iVillage which is a shame. You can post pictures and request suggestions, but it's just not as helpful as this forum.

I enjoyed dtinbna's sarchasm - there is a bit of truth to his/her statement, but there are some of us here who appreciate and understand how difficult it is to pull off minimalism in style.

Sky

This is off-topic, but Magnaverde . . .when is your book going to be published? Your posts truly help guide me, only I need more of your wisdom in one, always-handy place!

Thanks for all of the compliments. That is, sadly, my former living room and I'm still struggling to find my minimalist but colorful style in the new house.

Sorry...I was being sarcastic. I guess I dont see anything wrong with laughing at ourselves. My favorite posts have been the one where people were actually fretting over the decor on their (a) coffee table (b) top of the toilet tank. Resist the urge to decorate every possible surface in your house....it just isnt necessary! Its expensive and it pins your decor to a certain time period instead of just being timeless. Sarscchlos remodler...your room is BEAUTIFUL.

Sarchlos, your room doesn't work anymore in the new place??

dtinbna -- your remark made me chuckle : )

There will be NO undecorated toilet tanks in this forum!
{{gwi:1538222}}

I would paint each wall throughout the house a different color. I would then paint all the boarders with nice pastels that make the space look a little bigger.

Oh, the very idea makes my head hurt. I don't mean that in a rude way, honestly, I don't.

Sarchlos, I love those chairs. They are so retro and cool. I love finding furniture to tweak.

Sarschlos, that's not what I'd call a minimal room but it's a very handsome one. If only we could take whole rooms with us when we move.

And Anele, thanks for your kind words. I guess the first step towards a book would be writing one, and right now, all I have is pile of 2000 posts. Actually, the reason I haven't written a book is that it wouldn't sell. No one except the members of a few online forums has ever heard of me. Besides, what I want is a newspaper column, not a book. Or--heaven forbod--a TV show.

What I will be getting, however, is a magazine article sometime this fall--details to follow--so I guess first things first. In the meantime, like they say, Watch This Space.

Magnaverde.

I've really enjoyed following this post.

Sarschlos - That room of yours is beautiful, and thank you for sharing the steps you took to make it come together - very inspiring.

Maganverde - I'll take this opportunity to say "thank you" for all I've learned from reading your posts in the past year I've been hooked on this forum. I'd buy your book....

My taste runs to simple, uncluttered spaces. I got a lot of great advice and ideas from this forum when I was trying to put together rooms for my lake cottage. Sometimes in the whir of enthusiasm people would try to convince me to fill all the wall space or repaint my rooms (I like the serenity of creamy white)but I took all the advice to heart and just edited it to fit my vision. The people here are wonderful, talented and generous with their time and thoughts.

Magnaverde -- you are correct in that it is not a traditional "minimalist" white on white type room. I guess I was thinking of it more as uncluttered and simple -- few accessories (except for the pillows on the sofa), bare floors, open area to walk around the furniture. Unfortunately, that room did not fit in the rooms in our current abode, which are shaped very differently.

magnaverde, if you were to put those posts into a blog, the blog itself would generate so much buzz that the ensuing book would definitely sell. Bloggers are doing that all the time, even apartmenttherapy, and they crib from their posters' submissions (as, I fear, g'web will eventually do--so watch out for what you post here because it's brilliant and *will* be taken; I'm sure there's more where it came from :) but content here becomes g'web's content). Stake your own internet property claim and you will easily be able to move from there to capitalizing on it in any way you want. IMO. Think the *best* blogs you've seen, not the cheesiest. You could even set new standards for the medium. It may feel too "public, like a frog", but there are higher-end design blogs out there, as I'm sure you know, and it's one practical possibility to bridge the gap.

daisyadair, LOL!

to gvstevens: apartmenttherapy's just winding up a "small cool" contest, btw. Worth checking out even though there is much more than what would be called "minimalism" over there--why, magnaverde put up his own place once and a few folks had the good sense to know what they were seeing :). That website is a must-check for folks who love modern and/or minimalist (although at this point when I see a pic with a grasses/branch/bird silhouette pattern fabric I click off it *immediately* -- OVERLOAD!) The *general* aesthetic over there is much more "me" than the aesthetic mostly posted here (there is truth behind dtinbna's joke, IMO--just compare the pics), but people here are 1) probably closer to my age and 2) just so much kinder (in general) and helpful that they keep me coming back :) There's some serious attitude over there; some responses to photo-posters' questions I think should be taken off for flat-out nastiness. The owners have even had to admonish people to "be nice" ahead of time, in a general line included with many submitted photos.

Anyway, check the "house tours". Check out Ron Radziner's (of Marmol Radziner) own house. Makes me feel faint.

Here is a link that might be useful: the first look's free :)

OT again, but Magnaverde . . .just compile those posts and presto, there is your book (which I'd gladly buy!). In the meantime . . .I love flyleft's idea of a blog. I'd read daily! Can't wait to hear more about your magazine article, too!

Magnaverde...how many copies do you need to sell in order to write a book? I'll personally chip in and buy five. Anybody else care to preorder?

Also, if you write the book, THEN the newspaper column might follow. I absolutely agree about the blog. And there are some uber creative web peeps on here who I have no doubt would design your blog page if that is not your thing.

Joanna

So, my thought is . . . to dress up my home and make it actually look like a home, I would paint each wall throughout the house a different color. I would then paint all the boarders with nice pastels that make the space look a little bigger.

Taking into consideration the statement above, and seeing no response from the OP since he/she started the thread, can I assume we're being punk'd? ;)

Susan

Susan, I was wondering if that was a joke but wasn't going to say anything...I got a clown image in my head immediately...

And look at the date of membership...

But if magnaverde finds a way to get his thoughts out in a book because of this thread, I'd say it's all been worth it :)

I thought the use of the word "boarders" was odd.

Taking into consideration the statement above, and seeing no response from the OP since he/she started the thread, can I assume we're being punk'd?

I thought so when I read the original message shortly after it was first posted - every wall a different color with pastel trim?!?! But then Magna gave such an interesting answer and I was very intrigued by his FiestaWare project that I thought maybe I was just being closed minded about the whole idea...

Nicole

We had these friends who bought a two bedroom townhouse years ago. One bedroom was painted pink with red trim, and the other was painted light blue with navy trim. Yuck.

I pictured the set from "Friends" when I read this...And I thought, OK, I can see that. Not the pastel borders but the different colors on every wall in an open room. It could work for the right person:-)

Nicole, I had the same thought process!

flyleft-- I agree about the book!

Joanna, I'd be in for several copies. I'd give them as gifts!

Well, dummy that I am, I didn't realize the hoax, probably because I have painted trim in contrasting colors -- and I thought it looked really nice. In the house I posted above, the main ceiling and baseboards were chocolate brown, with a blue-toned taupe on the walls and a navy accent wall, and a grey-blue on the nearby stairwell, with the navy on the railings. The blue and orange-red colors were picked up in an oversized print that hung in the staircase and in the chairs and sofa. We used navy window treatments with orange-red piping to mimic the sofa and chairs. We also carried the colors through in a tile "rug" pattern that we created with slate tiles in the front entry. I don't know if people were just blowing smoke, but I never received anything but glowing compliments on that house.

Oh, sarschlos, that's different. Sorry, but you couldn't make me imagine a clown if you tried :) Read the original post and really try to visualize it...

It turns out that gvstevens has been very active at the Kitchen Forum posting links to a countertop website. I don't suspect we were being played as much as gvstevens was trying to ingratiate him/herself with us, and establish a presence here on the board.

Sarchlos, your colors sound terminally fabulous. Did you notice that you didn't paint every wall a different color and then use pastels on the the trim?

Nicole

nigelbigel, I think you're right, he posted a bogus thread here,
he's a big time spammer on the kitchens forum, with an ugly countertop magazine and website.

Hey flyleft I hadn't even looked at the join date yet, but the use of boarders was a clue as well as pastels.

And yes, put me on the wait-list for magnaverde's book too! :)

Susan

Oh, right...the book. I'll get right on that.

Actually, I'll probably get on that long before I'd ever have a blog, and for a really simple reason. I don't have time to come up with original blog material on a regular basis, and by 'original material' I mean quotes or relevant pictures that I hunted up in the Magnaverde Archives to illustrate a particular decorative concept or point that I want to make, not just a bunch of photos that I scanned out of this month's magazines or books. There are already hundreds of bloggers doing that & rehashing the same few articles over & over. That's not writing, that's pointing at writing. I mean, Charlotte Moss is a wonderful decorator, her shop looks beautiful (although I haven't yet made it on one of my NY trips) and her books are full of good-looking rooms, but I've seen her brand-new book featured & scanned-within-an-inch-of-its-life on a dozen blogs already. What's the point?

Anyway, most blogs--even those I look at on a regular basis--skew one way or another: either they're too tea-partyish, with lots of oooooh-don't-you-just-love-Charlotte's-beautiful home?-I'd-love-to-curl-up-in-her-living-room-with-a-good-book-&-a-cup-of-cocoa coziness, or they turn into shrill catfights, with Poster B making a snide comment about the what Poster A just said, then a dozen of Poster A's pals attacking the intruder for rudeness, & Poster C griping about cliques & oppression & asking whatever happened to free speech, and Poster D scolding the whole class for bad manners and Poster B asking who put Poster D in charge. I'm too old for junior high cattiness, even when it starts over comments about someone's tacky decor, instead of someone's tacky lunchbox. Who needs that nonsense? Especially if it happens on your own blog, and you aren't getting paid to act as referree. At any rate, when you add the repetitive subject matter to the silly slapfests, having a blog of my own wouldn't be worth the effort it would take to keep it going.

But there's another, more practical reason that I have no interest in having my own blog: money. Or, rather, lack of it. Somebody's gotta pay the bills. Even forums like this, which I like--forums where there are actual discussions of real-life decorating problems*, not just a lot of cozy in-group chit-chat--don't bring in big bucks. And if I were to spend my time trying to keep a blog from either dying on the vine or blowing up in my face, then I wouldn't have any time left to do this. Besides, the whole blog universe--good blogs as well as bad ones--is pretty well summed up by the clever name of one I've never even looked into: More Ways to Waste Time. M.
---------------------------------
*By the way, it never occurred to me that the original question wasn't a sincere question by a sincere--if misguided--poster. But I learned a long time ago that even if it's fake, or even if the original poster never comes back, oddball questions can provide a handy peg on which to hang a discussion, and sometimes such peripheral discussions end up more interesting than the answer to the ostensible question, lame as it may be. I remember a line from my high school chemistry teacher: "There are no stupid questions, only stupid people."

I'm sorry, what you were saying about not having time for cattiness?

The blog with the catfights...it's Apartment Therapy, right? If user comments were a sofa, the upholstery would barely be hanging on in shreds and reeking of ammonia.

Joanna

mpwdmom, I'm with M on this one. It never occurred to be the question was insincere. There have been a number of recent threads asking about wallpaper (and boarders) so that didn't even phase me, LOL! As for the pastels, that also did not strike me as obviously spam. While I generally prefer rich colors to a pastel palette, pastels have their place and can be quite lovely in the right room with the right light.

I posted that picture of my old living room to demonstrate that even a room with multiple dominant colors can be harmonious instead of discordant as long as the colors are carried through the space and the adjoining spaces. When I first tried to describe what I was planning for that room to friends and decorators alike (brown ceiling, brown baseboards, navy on this wall, grey on that wall, blue handrails, blue sofa, orange piping, red chairs, Asian and modern accents, black and white art, etc.), they all would get this slightly horrified look on their faces, like someone had silently passed gas, and they were trying to pretend they did not notice. Since I put the room together one piece at a time, very few people could visualize my ultimate plan no matter how hard I tried to describe it. You should have seen the decorator's face when I showed her the sofa and the chair and the fabric! Priceless. But once I had everything in place, suddenly the reactions were the complete opposite. I was giving the OP the benefit of the doubt -- maybe I just couldn't really visualize what they were trying to describe.

I also have seen many good folks here who love soft colors and wallpaper, wild, vibrant florals, deer heads, and other things that personally would never be allowed in my own house, but they like them, so who am I to naysay? Case in point (and hopefully I won't get flamed for this again): I backed down from questioning someone's prominent placement of stuffed bears in their master bedroom after numerous other posters extolled the virtues of stuffed animals in a grown-up's bedroom. Now, I absolutely will not display toys in my bedroom. It is a grown-up space for grown-up time: reading, sleeping, getting ready in the morning, and, well, ahem... You get the picture. It is our grown-up space away from toyland. There is no gray area to that. If a stuffed animal finds its way to my bed, it's because it was carried there in the middle of the night by a 3 yr old visitor wookin' pa nub, as Eddie Murphy once sang. But this other poster and many others loved her wedding bears. As I recall, the bears found a comfy home in a rocking chair and were declared by many to look perfectly lovely there. So c'est la vie. Pastels, bears, florals, oh my.

Even in my own family, my decorating sense is very different from others in my family. My SIL and brother have decorated their bedroom with so much Star Wars stuff that they have to tell my DD and niece not to play with daddy's toys. LOL. I see that room and think, gadzooks, it would be like sleeping with a six-year-old! My MIL has a cream-on-cream scheme in her house that would drive me batty, but she agonizes over every cream-colored choice, comparing this nubby cream colored fabric to that nubby cream colored fabric and recovering with new cream-colored fabric the old cream-colored sofas that no one ever sat on for fear of staining the cream colored sofas. I'm fairly certain my use of color, color, color is a bit dizzying for her cool, off-white-loving eye, but she and I nevertheless have many decorating discussions that are both fun and instructive to both parties.

The content at AT is good, but I can't believe the insults that some posters seem to hurl at each other over there. But it's ten times worse at blogs where they allow completely anonymous postings. People drop in to deliver nasty one-liners and leave, just to stir up trouble--and it works. It's like the Wild West at some of those places.

Speaking of Apartment Therapy, though, last night they held a party at the Room & Board store here in Chicago to announce the winners of the 2008 Small Cool Contest and release their newest book. There was a huge crowd and everyone I talked to was really nice. Out of a few hundred people, I didn't see a single person throw a drink in another guest's face or punch anybody out. It was all very low-key & genteel. I guess there's something to be said in favor of face-to-face contact.

"Wookin' pa nub in all da wong paces..."

Argh, now it's in my head - over and over and over again!

Nicole

mpwdmom, I'm with M on this one. It never occurred to be the question was insincere.

Sarchos, it sounds fishy to me. And usually OPs are checking to see if someone replies to their questions or comments. Also, I haven't heard the term "pastel colors" often.

I may be a bit dubious about this, but believe me when I tell you that a healthy dose of skepticism has always served me well. And my husband and grown children would agree...especially the one in law enforcement! :)

Susan

I have to laugh at Mag's comment about so many bloggers writing about last month's decor magazines. Don't get me wrong, I love pretty pictures, but I think I'm going to scream if anyone else blogs about Drew Barrymore's office.

Oh, mpwdmom, I got it after I posted the picture, just not at first (probably because Mag gave such a nice response).

Everyone racing off to google Drew Barrymore's office raise your hand!

Nat - typing w/ 1 hand

Magnaverde, if you're still reading . . . I still think you could have a blog. It would be yours, so it would all be on your "terms." You would write when you wanted, refrain when you had nothing new to share.

I think there is a way to differentiate between yours and the others out there with the pretty pictures. I think your posts take decorating to the next level-- hinting at your personal philosophy on life in general. I mean, decorating SEEMS so trivial and superficial in many regards. And, on many levels it is so far from important in comparison to what so many human beings deal with on a daily basis. But, for those of us with the luck to have a steady source of food and shelter, how we decorate is an extension of ourselves: our choices, our passions, our philosophies . . .and that isn't something to take lightly.

I'd just like to see Maganverde's apartment pics that were featured in apartmenttherapy. It sounds very interesting. I've seen the pictures of his living room before and I'd love to see other examples of his decor. Can anyone provide a link?