Throwback Week Part 05: An Untitled Blog Entry.

This entry was written on 17 August 2000, almost a decade ago, soon after I moved to Seattle. This fall I'll basically be reenacting the move -- definitely older and hopefully a little wiser. Thanks for bearing with me during Throwback Week; my tests are over and regular blogging will resume shortly.

A little more than a week ago I moved into my new home, in a suburb south of Seattle. I've spent the last few days finally settling in and taking stock of my surroundings. I think I've chosen a nice place to live for the next couple of years or so -- the weather so far's been great, and as hard as it may be to believe I am anticipating the coming of rain here in the Northwest. I think I'm just looking forward to experiencing autumn, my favorite season, in a new place for the first time in about eleven years.

Throughout college and even a year after, I have lived with roommates, whether they were family members or close friends. During my freshman year I dormed with a guy I knew from high school. After that I lived with my brother and a good friend for three or four years in a condominium. Finally, at 24, I'm living by myself, although it took moving halfway across the continent to do it.

As with most other things in life, there are pros and cons to having an apartment to oneself. The most obvious advantage is that I can do whatever the hell I want when I want to do it without having to worry about disturbing someone else. Many a time before, I have wandered into the living room of my old condo to pop some CDs in the stereo only to discover my brother endlessly immersed in SportsCenter or a roommate throwing darts. The fridge here is completely and unquestionably mine, which is a peculiar pleasure -- I guess the simple idea of having my own refrigerator is new and agreeable to me. None of that "third shelf is mine, second is yours and we'll share the bottom one for beer" stuff (although I never had problems staking or invading fridge territory -- I had the good fortune of living with cool people). The bathroom, as well, is my property. If you've ever lived with roommates you've probably fought for counter space and spots in the medicine cabinet. Here I can spread my stuff all over and no one will care. Joyous! Household chores will never be delegated and ultimately forgotten (I have a thing about watering the houseplants every Sunday). Videos will be viewed at my convenience, and I'll never have to wait in line for the shower or use of the stove. Hey. I can even leave the bathroom door open.

Of course, you can probably figure out the most obvious downside to living alone, and it's that you're alone. There is nothing quite like coming home into a semi-noisy house, where someone's watching syndicated shows on USA or whipping up ghetto ramen noodles. There is nothing like staying up at unholy hours trying to beat a video game with a roommate, or having one of those late night conversations that seem rational at the time; it's only the day after that we look back and remark "What a weird-ass conversation we had last night. Let's go get something to eat." It's something I miss a lot now that I'm by myself, and it will be a long time before that feeling comes back.

I guess this entry is dedicated not only to my former roommates, but to every one who used to drop by the crib, whether at 2 in the afternoon or 2 in the morning, for no other reason than to simply hang out, argue, laugh, eat, party or say goodbye. I hate to sound melodramatic, but I do miss you guys and sometimes I think it would be nice to have any of you here. With that said, someone better come up to visit me soon. That way we can stay up talking, and the next day laugh and say "Let's get something to eat."

The Black Apartment.

Being a avid reader of several modern design and lifestyle websites/blogs, I'd happen across the occasional article on painting your doors, walls or entire room black.  While still quite unconventional, the results are always very striking and attractive -- the absence of color, if used correctly and tastefully, accentuate the remaining hues in the room.

I mean c'mon, I never really thought about painting a bathroom black (the closest I've ever gotten is a deep purple).  But admit it, it looks damn good.

Sophisticated and dramatic, the trend is gaining fast in popularity although you probably won't see too many of these in the pages of Better Homes & Gardens quite yet.  This is a far cry from the typical depressing/macabre/creepy/Goth sensibility that usually comes to mind when you think about painting in this color.  But it's still a pretty bold choice to go with, and most people still shy away from it.

Well then, what would you say to an entire apartment painted a glossy black?  Dwell.com frequently profiles innovative and creative living spaces, and this Chelsea apartment, formerly the "front half of the sixth floor of a YMCA" building and owned by consultant Cindy Gallop, is just about the best example I've seen so far.




I could do without the stuffed armadillo and the Gucci chainsaw, and yeah Gallop defines it as a "bachelorette pad," but yooooooooo this is sick.  Everything -- from the eclectic art pieces, bookshelf items, all the way down to the couch cushions -- just pop.  It's extremely visually appealing, daring and classy.  Plus hip-hop even acknowledged it for a quick second; Biggie's "Nasty Girl" video was filmed here (although obviously it wasn't the focal point of the video, and I'd want to thoroughly bleach the hell out of the tub after Nelly's ass marinated in it for God knows how long).  But man -- if I ever find the right spot, I'd absolutely consider doing this.  The whole crib is primo eye candy and it isn't even using a traditional color.  Just about as unconventional as a paint job gets.

"Give up white, and turn to the dark side.  It's a lot more fun." - Cindy Gallop

I think she may be onto something.

Small Is Cool.

Apartment Therapy has been one of my favorite sites for a few years. It's a great resource for home design inspiration, organization and decorating. Per their name, they concentrate not only on living (well) in smaller spaces, but also on living with less stuff that you don't really need.

One of the things I love about Apartment Therapy is their mantra of small is cool. Every year, AT holds a "Smallest Coolest Home" contest that looks for "beautiful, inspiring and ingenious use of small spaces from coast to coast." Winners get cash money and gift certificates from Room & Board. Not bad.

Although I'd never win one of those contests right now -- the winning entries almost always have cool, modern furniture and brilliant storage, decorative and design concepts -- I try to abide by their 10 Tips For Small Space Living.

1. Double duty. We try to find and highlight furniture that does more than one thing. I am the proud owner of a bad-ass* Crate & Barrel day bench that also provides storage for miscellaneous boxes and electronics, and moonlights as an awesome place to get your nap on.
   
   
2. Regular edits. Make sure you're reviewing your possessions twice a year to keep them to only the things you use and/or love. I probably do this only about once a year, but when I go through my stuff, I go through it quite thoroughly. Decluttering is pretty therapeutic and I love the fact that I can get by just as well with fewer things. Clothes are my hardest problem, though.
   
   
3. Convert a closet. Not really an option for me. Although my current closet is a pretty large walk-in, the shelves are filled with clothes and most of the floorspace along the walls is occupied. However, I was able to snugly fit a chest of drawers and my clothes hamper in there.
   
   
4. Go vertical. If you really want to maximize storage, have those shelves go all the way up. Not too big of an issue for me; I'd rather have things inside drawers than exposed on a shelf (with the exception of my closet). I only have one medium-sized bookshelf in the living room with a few textbooks and picture frames on it, so shelf space is not a concern.
   
   
5. Digitize media. 99% of my music, television, photos and movies is either in my laptop, external hard drive or iPod. No more heavy CaseLogic CD albums for me.
   
   
6. Have a landing strip. This will keep clutter from overwhelming a small space. I don't want to drill any holes in my current apartment, but when I lived in a loft in the north end of Seattle, I installed a small "floating" shelf a few steps from my front door for keys, mail and receipts. It was an easy and convenient way to keep miscellaneous crap from filtering into my house. Plus I never lost my keys.
   
   
7. Have a space for everything. If something doesn't have a home, it's not going to get put away and will likely be sitting around for months. This is a battle I'm slowly winning. My greatest nemesis is old school documents. When I do get around to filing them away, there's a great sense of accomplishment, but they tend to pile up in random places once in a while.
   
   
8. Put your apartment on a diet. Only bring things in if you're taking something out. I'm pretty good at this. I haven't significantly increased the volume of stuff in my place since I moved in three months ago. Hopefully I'll maintain this all year.
   
   
9. Keep things monochromatic and consider sight lines to make a space feel larger. While my apartment isn't monochromatic, I like to think I possess a decent sense of design and arrangement. I consider myself a minimalist to begin with and appreciate the use of white/negative space to make a place bigger. (Plus, I hate clutter so it works out.)
   
   
10. Stop designing for who people expect you to be. Instead, find out who you are and what you need. Then, start to edit. Not much to add here; I already know what I like and don't like in terms of design and flow when it comes to my living space. It's worked out for me so far; I haven't been called a slob yet ...

*Yes, I used the term "bad-ass" to describe a day bench.