dear Goodwill: I love you.

Oh my goodness! Mom came home today from a trip up to the country for some relaxation (and inevitable antiquing), and came back with some MAJOR scores, the clear winner of which being this AMAZING, retro office chair tht she found for 16 freaking dollars at the Westport, CT Goodwill. The thing is effing gorgeous, with black leather upholstery, heavy, artfully-aged iron hardware, and a sexy little studded detail around the seat and back. I am IN LOVE with this chair.

The only problem is that it's missing a wheel from one of it's original casters, meaning it is not really sit-in-able yet! Sad face. I assumed it would be a no-brainer to replace, but I've been trying to find a matching caster to replace it (or even just a set of 4 casters of the right size that at least vaguely fit in with the vintage aesthetic), and apparently the exact style and size I have is effing impossible to find!! Grrrr!! Has anyone out there had any luck replacing casters on vintage furniture before? Any and all advice would be much appreciated! I'll keep you posted on the progress, but in the meantime, put those thinking caps on!

INDIA, here I come!

Ok kids, so as some of you know, my favorite yoga teacher on the PLANET, Ashley Albrand (who happens to be based back in Los Angeles - tragedy!), is leading a retreat to Goa, India this October, and ever since she announced the trip at her class back in April, I secretly vowed that I would go if I wasn't tied down to a 9-5 office-y job. And here I am, almost six months later, happily and lucratively working freelance, and I finally decided to take the plunge. I booked my plane ticket yesterday, and that's that. India, here I come!

So who has been to India before?? Is there anything that I must read/see/learn before I go?? I think my plan is to fly directly into Goa, do the week-long retreat at the gorgeous Ashiyana retreat center, and then spend the next week traveling further south with Ashley and some of her buds, and it sounds like our itinerary includes a stop in Mysore, and some exploration through the jungles of Kerala! If anyone has any advice about those regions or about my trip in general, I'd love to hear it! I kind of can't believe I'm actually doing it!! I will keep you posted as my preparations progress, and keep an eye out for some ridiculously amazing photos when I get back!

handywoman Alex

Whee, I feel so handy! I just installed the carpet in my closet and desk area... all by myself! Sounds daunting, but it sort of felt like one of my Design Fundamentals assignments back in college, which involved many hours hunched over a cutting board, hacking away at the material at hand with my utility knife, but in this case, the material at hand was FLOR carpet tiles, and the end result was not a meaningless  color wheel project, but a lovely closet and office floor! Yay.

We liked the idea of using a modular system instead of having permanent carpet custom-installed, since we wanted to use a light-ish color, but wanted to avoid the common habit with light carpets of living in constant fear of that errant mud-smudge or red-wine-spill (if you think I am not going to be drinking red wine in my closet, you clearly have never seen my closet. Just sayin'...). So the FLOR system was perfect, because if you ever get a stain on it, you can just pop out the one offending tile and replace it with a shiny new one! Fabulous. I think it turned out pretty well, if I do say so mahself.

bathroom of glory

Oh goodness. Sorry for being so deeply MIA, things have just been crazy on the (multiple-)home front, what with shuffling back and forth between mom's cozy nest, my soon-to-be-amazing-but-not-quite-there-yet apartment, and my old boss's fabulous SoHo loft where I am intermittently house-sitting her adorable kitties... (my life is really hard, I know).

However, through all the madness, there have been some pretty awesome developments, mainly the completion of my too-amazing-for-words bathroom renovation, which I couldn't be happier with. The tile all looks gorgeous, and the new fixtures really spruced up the shower and sink. But my favorite is my Ikea-hack mirror/medicine cabinet combo - instead of going the usual medicine-cabinet-over-the-sink route, we got a little creative and got the white Ribba picture ledge from Ikea and had it cut to fit the space exactly, and then had a mirror cut at my little local glass shop to fit as well, and mounted both flush to the wall; I can't wait to get a ton of eclectic, vintage-y glass containers to make artful arrangements out of all my products!

Since the mirror/shelf situation affords pretty minimal storage, we also got the tall, skinny Godmorgon medicine cabinet in glossy white to hide away all the rest of my less-than glamorous products and mounted it less obtrusively on the side wall near the toilet. I still need to figure out how to resurface and/or regalze the tub, which is still a little janky, and I need to find a shower curtain (I'm thinking a rustic natural/"greige" linen), but overall it's almost there! Wheee!

almost there..!

Remember this??

Ahh sorry to be so MIA lately! Things have been a little crazy over here, but some serious progress has been made in the past few days so I just wanted to post a little update!

There are still some finishing touches to be made on the bathroom and main living space, but the closet and kitchen are almost done and are so purty!

For the kitchen, we painted the cheesy wood-paneled cabinets, and replaced the cheap-o (and moldy!! ewww) backsplash with white subway tile and dark grey grout, and replaced the old white appliances with new stainless ones (we still haven't received the fridge yet, but it's on the way). We painted the walls with the same superpale grey that I'm using for most of the apartment, and so far it's looking pretty great! Whee!

As for the walk-in closet, I never even posted a before picture because it was basically just a white box with grungy concrete floors, as you can see to the left.

To update it, we installed a floating shelving system and a pretty little chandelier for some atmosphere, and I couldn't resist painting the walls a fun color, since everything else in the whole apartment is going to be so understated and neutral. We're going to put down some neutral cream carpets in all of the closets, so once that gets added, all the place will need is all my CRAP! And I'm thinking of throwing a cute little chair or stool in the back left corner... I'll keep you posted. Very exciting!

I believe all the rest of the structural work is going to be done this week, and then next weekend I am going to paint the main room, and then it'll be move in time! FINALLY!! Woo hoooo!

summertime, and the livin' is easy

Oh goodie, it's my favorite time of year! Although it's been hot as balls for weeks already, today marks the "official" first day of summer, and, more importantly, the arrival of the annual New York Magazine Summer Guide! NYMag always has a way of reminding me of all the reasons why I put up with the broiling heat of summer and bitter cold of winter just to live in this city, and the summer guide is a particularly compelling example.

I feel like nowhere else do people appreciate warm weather more than in New York, as evidenced by the near-unlimited daily offerings of summer-only outdoor events and concerts. So many, in fact, that The Onion spoofed the whole phenomenon itself, with an article entitled "Nation's Boyfriends Dreading 'Free Event In The Park' Season." Sure, they're talking about the country in general, but I'm convinced that New York is the most extreme example by far (so what if I'm biased?). Luckily, I have no boyfriend to drag along with me, so my single girlfriends and I are free to joyously partake in any and all cheesy summer events. Some highlights:

EVENTS at HIGHLINE PARK

• Tuesdays through July, 10-11am: free Pilates Fusion classes
• Tuesdays through August, dusk til 9:30pm: stargazing with the Amateur Astronomers Association
• Thursday, August 12, 6pm: Salsa on the Highline - live music and free salsa lesson

MOVIES WITH A VIEW
Thursday nights at Brooklyn Bridge Park through September 2. Seat-snagging and live DJ at 6pm; films begin at sundown. Highlights:

• July 8: Annie Hall by Woody Allen
• July 29: Rear Window by Alfred Hitchcock

CELEBRATE BROOKLYN!

Prospect Park Bandshell, through August 8. Highlights:

• July 8: Itutu: Armitage Gone! Dance - African dance plus "punk ballet" plus live music equals coolness
• July 29: Mother India 21st Century Remix - 50's Bollywood remixed with live contemporary music 

PS 1: WARM UP

Live outdoor concert series at PS 1; Saturdays through September 4. Highlights:

• July 17: Ratatat DJ-ing live
• July 29: Animal Collective DJ-ing live

3RD WARD'S ANNUAL "PIG OUT"

Annual pig-roast and dance party at the avant-garde Brooklyn space 3rd Ward; July 18, 2-9pm

BRYANT PARK FILM FESTIVAL

Outdoor film screenings in Bryant Park; Monday nights through August 23rd. Park opens at 5pm for seat-snagging and picnicking; films begin at sundown. Highlights:

• July 26: Monty Python and the Holy Grail
• August 2: Rosemary's Baby by Roman Polanski

Also in Bryant Park: free yoga classes, Tuesdays 10-11am, and Thursdays 6-7pm, through September 30th

prepping the kitchen cabinets

disassembling and sanding...

priming...

...and drying! Wheee! Keep you posted on the end result....!