Toast UK - Hello Autumn

One joy about living in rented apartments is receiving the tail end of the prior tenants magazine subscriptions. Anthropologie, Brides, and Fitness Magazine were common, but my favorite surprise I recieved in the mail was a Toast catalog. Bringing in this rainy, autumn weather with their latest catalog, I find myself once again pouring over each page of old-fashioned homes filled with raw wood, perfectly worn-in linens, cozy crocheted blankets, and subdued light seeping in through wavy glass windows.

Greetings, autumn. I've been waiting for you.

What are your favorite things about autumn?

Serena Eller Photography

Serena Eller has a really cool job. For one, she gets to be a photographer every day. My jealousy is already raging. But beyond that title, she gets to be a photographer of interiors, which means she gets to spend her time in rooms like these:

Very cool, Serena Eller, very cool.

Not Too Big, Not Too Small

I've been thinking a lot lately about the beauty in having less, specifically in the thought of having a smaller home.  This thought came to me when I moved into my new house in Salt Lake.  My current room is miniscule. In fact, I can lie on my floor and touch two walls at one time, and I am a human of smaller height proportions.  I enjoyed the process of making this box my home and using every inch to my advantage, especially while "building" my own closet.

We focus a lot on smaller spaces in my schooling and one book specifically has been mentioned in many of my classes - Not So Big House. The simplicity in having only that which you need/really, really want and making use of every corner is appealing, not to mention the peace of mind in getting a mortgage paid off quickly.

I came across a tiny, Victorian cottage that does just that. It is small, lovely, and practical for the shorter amounts of time that it is being used.  The owners, Todd & Sandra Foster, maintained their smaller budget by doing the carpentry themselves (obviously they have the skills in order to do that), salvaging preowned items and refinishing them to fit the shabby chic style, and scouring flea markets for many gems under $20.

{thanks, New York Times}

Why does this work?

• White-on-white-on-white can get dull and tiresome, but The Foster's used texture to avoid the feeling of a sterile hospital. 
• Texture creates more life, so when you want to create contrast with a monochromatic color scheme, mix it up with some lace, velvet, matelasse and moire fabrics, and sanded, striped, or glossy and patterned paints. Even the antique floors and windows have texture.
• They were lucky to have a space with high ceilings and a lot of windows. Light, either natural or artificial, will help open up a space because everything is made visible.
• Using a monochromatic color scheme with pops of color ties each piece into the next for a more uniform space. Imagine if a space this small had varying colors. It would seem a bit too messy for my tastes.