Living Room encore

Friday night - after an exceedingly unpleasant week at work, I decided to take it out on my living room decor.

I have been obsessing about this particular corner for a while now. Obsessing like crazy and focussing...

and focussing...

and zooming in...

STOOOOP - can't take this anymore !

Seriously does my DVD collection of American TV series really merit all that attention ? What am I ? 15 ?

Fast forward to Sunday afternoon - after some major decluttering and downsizing, I am already breathing more freely :

Yes, I took down the superstructure of that shelving unit and just kept the freestanding lower part.

And then I just kept my favourite pieces on display. Ok, not counting the cats' scratcher.


These are all family heirlooms. The brown and orange vase was a present from my Oma to her mother back in the 30's. The white Royal Bavaria vase, my Dad gave to my Oma in the 70's. And the set of 50's plates were also my Oma's.

And I found the perfect spot for my MM photo.

Before - way back in Summer.

And today.

Thrifty Süchteln !

Süchteln - population = 17,000. Home to the only psychiatric facility in Germany treating juvenile sex offenders... and to my dear Oma !

I spent the weekend visiting... and roaming this rad thrift store. Way better than anything we have here in Brussels.

"Trödel - Oase" = thrift oasis. My kind of thrift heaven !


I debated taking this set of good luck charm glasses - 4 EUR for the set. But then I spotted these :


Small red & black lava planter - 1 EUR !

No backstamp, but a tiny sticker marked "Jopeko Keramik gegr. (= founded) 1848". Some googling even showed that the Jopeko ceramic manufacture still extists.


Set of West German vintage planters - 2 EUR for the small one and 4 EUR for the bigger one.

Now this beauty ended up being a freebie ! Sadly it is cracked and will break in two sooner or later. The shopmanager wanted to throw it away, but - seeing my enthousiasm for vintage planters - asked me if I wanted to have it anyway... OH YES !

Besides my planter shopping spree, my weekend was pretty uneventful. Except that at one point it did feel like entering the 5th dimension...

Here's the warning sign in my Oma's nursing home - actually a poster decorating the front hall.

And then we ate in excellent company...

And under this guy's watchful eye...

Delicious.

Holler ! Mouche

Things are shaking up here in sleepy old Brussels, hehe. Mouche owner Clarisse has started a blog where she will be highlighting her fabulous finds on a weekly basis. Go check it out!

Brussels readers (?) or anyone coming over for a visit - I really recommend you seek out this darling gem of a shop. You can find it Brussels' trendy downtown Dansaert area. But it is sooooo much more interesting than any of the overpriced designer boutiques in that area !

Detailed address and opening hours you can be found here or on her blog of course.

Enjoy your shopping !

Houston we have a problem...

Yep, that's the state of the pipe linking my toilet to the building evacuation pipe.

I agree it's not a pretty sight. And the orange walls and beige tiles don't help either.

The pipe is slowly but inexorably breaking. There are already humidity spots all around the discharge duct and now the tiles are starting to loosen.

It is turning into a disaster zone.

This calls for urgent measures, but nothing makes my heart bleed more than spending vast amounts of money on turn-offs like piping and plumbing work. Why does stuff like this always happen when I just spotted a fantastic Danish armchair and two orignal (fiberglass !) Eames chairs on ebay ?

CRAP.

Charley Harper

Uh-Oh ! I am totally obsessed with The Art of Charley Harper. As my obsession grows, my productivity at work declines. I can't stay away from there trying to decide wich prints to order.

Here are just a few of my favourites - and that's only amongst the open editions.

Living Room

Sunday’s post made me look at my living room with a very critical eye. It still needs a lot of love. The painting still isn’t finished. I want a new table – surely round is the way to go. Right ? Right. I also want different chairs, a different sofa, and an armchair to replace that sad little yellow chair. And that’s just the main issues.

But before I get completely depressed, here are some before pics. Hmmm, maybe the current situation is already a major improvement.

These are from way before. Taken during an attempt to install my PH5-style lamp. The result now being that I don't have any overhead light whatsoever in the living room...

Trying to decide which way to go - colourwise.

And going to work.

Rearranging furniture.

And definitely "during" - what a mess !

Struggle

I am battling with my new rug in the living room. Yep, it's the infamous Ikea Koldby cowhide rug - EUR 199. Not exactly their cheapest product, but rugs are probably the only thing I would never buy vintage (just thinking of potential bodily fluid spills gives me the hives).

So I indulged - yet again.

And here it is. I love it ! It's beautiful, warm and totally politically incorrect... Only problem I have with it, is I am not quite sure which way to turn it.

Parallel to the couch ?


Perpendicular ?


Or diagonally ?

Hmm, I think I like the last one best. Less anal ?!

End of year Ebay splurge

Before I start on any projects for 2010, lets do a recap of my December ebay indulgences.

I know I went a little crazy...


Teak candleholder (marked 'Made in Denmark') : EUR 10.75



Meurop - Guariche hanging shelf : EUR 26



Best ebay buy ever - Bertoia side chair + leather cushion : EUR 102.50 (+ EUR 30 delivery - because besides being crazy, I am also lazy :-)



I have put everything to work in the office area. What do you think ? Personally, I like the wire combo of the chair and the shelf.

And going completely crazy : Milton Greene photo of Marilyn Monroe - EUR 158. I am totally under her spell. Or maybe it's the fabulous wicker chair ?