Home- tumblr
- twitter
- house
- photography
- writing
- adventures
- life updates
- shop
- pinterest
- more info
- contact
Tess Shebaylo
Is a Richmond, Virginia writer, internet enthusiast,
history lover, crafter, and compulsive organizer.
She works in Community Support at Tumblr.
-
Posts
Bummed I couldn’t make it to this talk, because I would have wanted to invite this gentleman over for tea. Also, I love what he had to say about the commonality of view between our two Richmonds. Neat to hear it confirmed from a legit English Richmonder.
Video of the day, a video of Lord Watson of Richmond, England speaking at our Most Endangered Sites announcement on Monday. He has worked to preserve the view of the Thames in Richmond, England.
Well, I wouldn’t say “everything,” but I have modest versions of both and am very, very happy. :) I think they’re a great starting point. If you scratch out “garden” and “library” and replace them with “work” and “control,” as is sometimes encouraged in our culture, you’re doing it wrong.
“If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.” Cicero’s timeless words in a typographic print, reminiscent of the lovely Live Now project.
GPOY waffles edition.
There’s a waffle in the lower frame of the original photo, but I couldn’t cut off @tessshebalo ‘s head (Taken with Instagram at Lulu’s)
You can waste time with your friends when your chores are done. #uncleowen
May The Fourth Be With You
Saw an article about Hollow on Appalachian History, and lo and behold, the filmmaker has a Tumblr. My dad’s family gave up their lives as lumber and coal workers in the early 60s to find jobs in Virginia, which is the only reason I’m not staring at beautiful mountains right now. But shades of West Virginia can definitely be seen in who I am and how I was raised, and I love that someone is tackling the subject from an inside perspective.
“Despite the rich and unique history, a lot of national media portrayals of Southern West Virginia and Appalachia focus solely on the negative aspects of our culture. This surface-level reporting increases stereotypes and affects the local knowledge and identity of the community. I believe it is time that we let the community take control of their identity and allow them to amplify their own voices and ideas.” — Elaine McMillion
What is the future of rural America?
And now you know what exactly my husband does for a living over at Light Tape.
A state of the art company that has its product in just about every country you can think of (and then some) is based right here in town. What is Light Tape, what do they make, and why don’t more people know how amazing they are?
For the users who missed one of the most infamous phrases from Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest.
Made this for you Tess.
Yes!!! Thank you, JB. I should replace all my avatars everywhere with this gif. Or, maybe with this.
Lovecraft documentary before bed = NIGHTMARES. Woo!
#typicalthursdaynightfortess
#watchALLTHEDOCUMENTARIESbeforeyourhusbandgetshomefromtourOn the 75th anniversary of the iconic science fiction author’s death, remember him with H.P. Lovecraft: Fear of the Unknown, a fantastic 90-minute documentary free to watch in its entirety.
The Morning News has a beautiful companion read.
“What a horrible night to have a curse!”
Also, this is relevant. Though I have a major soft spot for this game.
Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest
Developed by: Konami
Published by: Konami
Released on: August 28, 1987This weekend I (and half of Richmond, it seems) went to New York to see Refused. This is the first time I ever managed to keep up with my New York friends in the categories of Walking Really Fast and Not Having to Ask for Directions and Staying Up Until 4am With No Whining. I deserve a medal. It was a whirlwind, and one of my best trips ever!
Eating, drinking, sleeping and hanging out provided by:
Tumblr HQ. Organique. Papacito’s. Daniel and Karen’s apartment. Huckleberry Bar. Walter Foods. Atlas Cafe. Perry Gargano. The High Line. Chelsea Piers. Jason Groupp Studio. Gastro Market. 16 Handles. Foodswings. The Levee. Teddy’s. The General Greene. Talia’s apartment. Moto. The Drink. The Bagel Store. Chop’t. Terminal 5. The Acheron. The Anchored Inn. Azure Grocery. Ace Hotel lobby.
The cherry on top of an already-amazing trip was managing to see Refused again at a secret show in a tiny space in Brooklyn. So many jaded 30-somethings with huge grins on our faces, screaming ‘til we were hoarse.
Special thanks to Daniel, Karen, and Talia for letting me sleep at their places. No thanks to the rain on Sunday night for fully soaking me. More photos here.
Never not going to reblog this one. “She’s beauty and she’s grace…”
Describe your perfect date.
Finally in New York for an All-Team meeting! Fun to be on the other end of the videoconference this time. (Taken with Instagram at Tumblr)
- Carousel 1.3.2
Now that Instagram is finally available for Android and I’m using it, allow me to recommend Carousel. If you’re like me and you spend way more time in front of your computer than in front of your smartphone, this app is a simple, slick way to view all those photos. Plus it’s made by Mobelux, who in my opinion are gentlemen worthy of your $1.99.
Things have been busy here at Mobelux and we almost forgot to tell you about the newest Carousel update. Carousel has been localized into Japanese, German, Russian and Spanish! We’ve also made it easier to reply to a comment (just option-click a username to reply) and added in a really cool extension for Safari and Chrome users.
Enjoy!
- what I've been reading / watching.
Relevant to my post about my projects at the house being done, here’s a list of audiobooks and movies that I listened to and watched during the last month or so while I was working on the dining room.
- Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain, on Librivox. Mark Twain visits Europe and the Middle East, and hilarity ensues. 4.5 stars.
- Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling, on Audible. Fluffy, enjoyable. I think I would have gotten more of the jokes if I watched more television. 3 stars.
- Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell, on Librivox. A classic, about a fairly naive, very dependable girl who gets overlooked in favor of the louder, flashier types. Obviously I love it. 3 stars.
- Wives & Daughters, the 1999 BBC miniseries, on Netflix. I watched this about 5 years ago, but couldn’t remember much about it, hence reading the book and re-watching the miniseries now. Very agreeable, but I like North & South better. 3 stars.
- My Antonia by Willa Cather, on Librivox. So stark and beautiful, but not all disjointed and laborious like Hemingway. I love a good character study, and this is an excellent one. 4 stars.
- O Pioneers! by Willa Cather, on Librivox. Very similar to My Antonia, but not quite as good, I think. 3 stars.
- The Geography of Bliss: One Grump’s Search for the Happiest Places in the World by Eric Weiner, on Audible. A meandering, self-centered, unfocused thing. Amusing all the same. 3 stars.
- A Good Woman, on Netflix. Based on Lady Windermere’s Fan by Oscar Wilde, which I read in February and adored. I enjoyed this and thought it was visually very nice, but Lord Darlington wasn’t nearly roguish enough and Helen Hunt was not believable as a powerful seductress. 3 stars.
- What Would Jesus Buy?, on Netflix. This documentary follows the performance artists / consumerism protesters Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping around on their monthlong tour. Intriguing, funny, convicting. 4 stars.
- Outsourced, on Netflix. Regular office guy travels to India to train some new recruits, has quarter-life crisis, lets go, enjoys himself. I loved it. 4 stars.
- My Brilliant Career, on Netflix. Bratty poor girl from the Australian bush gets to go stay with rich family where she continues being bratty and inconsistent, which apparently dudes find irresistible. It has been popping up in my Netflix recommendations for years though, so I’m glad I finally put it to rest. Plus, Sam Neill! Seriously, Sam Neill. Trust me. 2 stars.
- Ken Burns’ America: The Shakers. All about the Shakers and their beliefs, their communities, and the stuff they created. Fascinating. 3.5 stars.
- Charles & Ray Eames: The Architect and the Painter, on PBS.org. This documentary really dissects how the famous designer couple worked together. 3 stars.
Phew. I will probably never be able to pack that much into another month, ever.Now go read and watch some things, and recommend them to me.
-
Tweets
- @your_team fine campy fun in my opinion! if you like the 1790s, the 1970s, Burton, Depp, or giant amazing houses. otherwise stay away, duh.
- @liannakristine @kristindownie @Lizt0mania already bought tickets for 6pm, so we can't. :\ but don't let that deter you!
- so excited for our open house tomorrow! http://t.co/kyDGemaM
- I wish I were musically talented so I could start a 90s cover band and call it "Counting Bros"Apr 28, 12 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- @ValerieCatrow @mattmoment @jennymoment @theeshebaylo no parasols indoors! but it said "semi-formal" so I will be dressed accordingly. :)
- painted the ceiling from 9am to 1am...so exhausted, but it's done...and I feel very free and very happy.Apr 17, 12 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- @heyitsphil @your_team @moc1896 AWESOME! couldn't have happened to a more legit, history-knowing couple! so proud! #rva #civilwarlyfe
- Apr 03, 12 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- Jane & Elizabeth & Mary & Kitty & Lydia http://t.co/tnF2hvdy @SusanHowson @liannakristine #thanks #srslythismademylife #prideandprejudiceApr 03, 12 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- the last week or two, in pictures. http://t.co/pAcIsOzzApr 02, 12 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- @kristindownie yeah feel free to invite whoever! so excited! #capitalcouture
- @kristindownie et al I can't this Sat. but love stuff like this! Some other time, certainly.
- one of the best meals of my life last night at @themagpierva.Mar 10, 12 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- Yes! Our City Group rules. #churchhill RT @Lizt0mania Acts 4:32 man... I love my CG community. Tonight was amazing.Feb 21, 12 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- @ebonkovsky performing this at @CityChurchRVA on Sunday? seriously I don't know how I missed this one. so amazing. I'm dying. #babygotbook
-
Posts
- May 07, 12
We finally had our open house this weekend. We had tacos, we gave house tours, and we officially welcomed everyone to The Good Ship.
For those of you who couldn't make it, here's the renovation slideshow we had playing on our TV.We had an amazing time! You forget what a pleasure it is to welcome people into your home when you haven't been able to do that in so long. To everyone who pitched in to help with the renovation in any way, thank you. To anyone who brought flowers or wine this weekend, thank you. To all the friends, family, and neighbors who make us want to have a nice place to entertain you in, thank you.Many more photos are here. - May 02, 12
- Apr 17, 12
It's been a grueling few days, staying up until 1am and 2am some nights, but the wainscoting and ceiling painting in the dining room are done.
Here are some updated photos of the parlor, too. Would have posted these earlier, but there has been a pile of wood in the parlor for two months, so that wasn't helpful.
This couch was a lucky find, and about 1000 times more comfortable than the little blue settee that will probably go upstairs somewhere. If you've ever sat on the blue settee for longer than a few minutes, you know exactly what I'm talking about.
I can barely lift my arms above my head and my feet are killing me from balancing on a ladder so many days in a row, but I am so glad to get this done. Excuse me while I go take a break of indeterminate length. - Apr 12, 12
The coffered ceiling and wainscoting painting is underway.
I made some good progress tonight with some help from Lianna, and I plan to work on it for about another week or so. The wainscoting is pretty easy and can probably be finished tomorrow night, but the coffered ceiling borders the red walls and the slightly-different-shade-of-white ceiling (WHY?!) and involves a lot of taping and awkward angles. So that will probably take the rest of the week. - Apr 10, 12
- Apr 02, 12
Well. I gardened from 9am - 9pm on Saturday and 5pm - 9pm on Sunday (I had to work), and finally all the planting I can do right now is done.
The front garden was quickly freshened up with some new dusty miller plants on either side of the rosemary, some new dianthus, and a new coat of black mulch. That took all of half an hour. But the real work was in the backyard.
Basically I had a blank slate of mostly-bare, rocky ground to work with. On the left-hand side of the yard the soil is very clay-like and hard, and on the right-hand side, it seems to be more of the regular old dirt I'm used to working with. Everywhere there are tons of worms, so that's good.
Herbs, etc.
Along the left-hand side of the yard I planted, from closest to the house to farthest from the house:
-- camellia bush
-- sage x 2
-- basil x 2
-- parsley x 2 (curly-leaf and flat-leaf)
-- dill
-- rosemary
-- cilantro
-- [then there's a giant tree]
-- rosemary again
-- dusty miller
-- dianthus
-- sedum
-- dusty miller
-- dianthus
-- sedum
Berries, etc.
Along the right-hand side of the yard I planted, from closest to the house to farthest from the house:
-- camellia bush
-- dusty miller
-- dianthus
-- blueberry bush x 2
-- raspberry bush x 2
-- blackberry bush x 2
-- [dusty miller and dianthus alternate between all these bushes for a little color]
Also there's this little rocky planter box next to the shed that I filled with the leftover dianthus and dusty miller. Hey, they're pretty and you can get a flat of like 22 of them for $11. I wanted some lambs' ears and maybe a peony bush, but I couldn't find them in the two places I looked.
Roses and boxwoods
In the middle of the yard there will soon be a path, which will Y off at the other end of the yard -- one sub-path going to the shed, and one sub-path exiting the yard via some forthcoming stairs. In the little space formed between these sub-paths there are six english boxwoods in a little semicircle, and within the semicircle is a little white rose tree, a la Alice In Wonderland. It'll be sitting in a pretty, tall pot of some sort, after I find one.
Everything mentioned in the sections above was duly mulched.
Grass
Then I tried to break up the rest of the ground as best I could with the hoe and the rake, and get rid of the little bit of old, dead sod that remained. I then raked it over as evenly as possible, and sowed grass seed with the little push spreader Dan got last year. Then I added fertilizer and topsoil, and watered the heck out of it.
I also have a little makeshift border laid for the future path using spare strips of wood, so I can see where it'll be and where I don't need to have grass growing. I'm going to pick up the gravel later this week probably, and put that down.
So. It's been a productive weekend, and I'm so glad I was able to get everything done. I just wish my whole body wasn't so sore.
Special thanks to that guy at Lowe's who notified me that I could just pull the truck around and they could load mulch and topsoil directly into the bed of the truck, rather than me dragged it all out to the truck and doing it myself. I am...not really an expert in how Lowe's operates, truthfully. Which seems silly, as much gardening as I do, but I've never had to start a yard totally from scratch. - Apr 01, 12
Exterior paint is done! Huzzah.
Seriously, compare that picture to this one from Google Maps, taken probably just before we bought the house. Amazing what a little makeup will do.
And I put the chairs and plants back out on the porch, and all is right with the world.
Going to be working more on painting the stair railing tonight and maybe tomorrow night, then tons of gardening must be done -- my favorite thing of all.
[Edit: The exterior painting was done by J.P. Painting, Inc. You can reach John Plasket at 804.559.4785. They have fantastic prices and therefore there's a bit of a wait, but I assure you it's worth it. They were highly professional, friendly, and went out of their way to fix a few little extra things (at no extra charge) to make the paint job look even better.] - Mar 28, 12
- Mar 26, 12
Dan framed out the dining room wainscoting, and I spent the past couple of weeks painting all the little pieces of trim that will go on it, as well as pre-painting the wainscoting itself. Here's what it currently looks like:
KC is working at the house even as we speak, adding all the other trim to it.
Also working at the house right now are the painters! They're power washing today, and will be painting tomorrow and probably the next day. I'm so excited to see how everything looks at the end of this week. This is a huge week for us. - Mar 14, 12
We got a chandelier for the foyer, which arrived in the most hideous shade of "antique white" (read: plain old yellow), and which Dan painted black and ordered crystals for. He then installed it, and I think it looks great. So all the entryway lighting is done.
He's been working on the dining room bar and wainscoting all week, and here's where we are right now:As you can see there is still cabinetry work to be done at the bottom of the bar, and no mirrors or backlighting have been installed yet. But the main frame is done and it's able to hold liquor and glasses and wine! I particularly love the wine rack piece.A lot of the wainscoting is already done, and he's hoping to finish up today or soon so that I can do my million hours of wood-filling and painting on it. Thank goodness for audiobooks. - Mar 01, 12
Well, all the wallhangings except two are up, finally. We have a huge collection of bizarrely-shaped photography, tour posters, woodcut prints, letterpress cards, and who knows what else, and it was a huge pain to frame it all. But sooner or later it's time to grow up, and Dan maintains that we can't just continue sticking things up on the wall with a piece of tape or a push pin forever. So for about a month we've been working on this in our "free time" (ha), and I'm calling it done.
While I was taking pictures of all of that, I took a bunch of pictures of other tchotchkes and random details as well. So you can find about 100 new pictures on Flickr, as always. - Feb 26, 12
Our kitchen island light finally came in the mail and it looks great. Only three more lights left to hang in the whole house, I think!
And here's a clearer photo, from the Rejuvenation web site:
I love the little gasolier-style details on it. Rejuvenation is really great; they make a ton of lighting based on historical fixtures and you can shop on their web site by whichever historical period is your favorite. - Feb 21, 12
Our parlor has been sadly devoid of much seating since we moved into the house, so we're always having to move chairs in from the dining room any time it's more than just Dan and I sitting in there. We'll still have to do that because I only bought one chair today at the antique store, but it's quite a beauty. I think this chair is my spirit animal.
The chair is from the 1850s, and though I doubt the upholstery is original, the woodwork is. It's got a rose motif -- perfect. I saw it and figured I'd kick myself if it didn't end up in our house.
There were some other chair choices that would go very nicely directly across from the sofa, but I went through some major indecisiveness and couldn't figured out which ones would be best, so I decided to wait on it. Which could be a huge mistake, since we've now gone relatively chair-less in this house since October. But more antiquing is to come, I'm sure. Now if we can only get the dining room finished............ - Feb 20, 12
We got our first snow! It was lovely, though short-lived. What's left of it is already slush. Many more pictures are here.
- Feb 16, 12
Our roommate Lianna has finished unpacking and we took some photos of her bathroom and bedroom this weekend. I think the Princess Suite looks amazing.
For some perspective, click here for some "before" pictures.Dan and I have been working all week on framing our huge wallhangings collection, and there are just a few things left to hang up. Photos soon, once all that's done. - Feb 07, 12
What's going on at the house? Not much. Dan and I are both very busy with work and other stuff right now, so the little bits of work we've managed to fit in on the house haven't amounted to much.
We did get a chance to play around a bit with Light Tape, the lighting that Dan makes at work, and tested it out as a backlighting concept for our bar.
That's it for now, but in the meantime, here are some pictures of what mornings look like at the Good Ship. - Jan 14, 12
We're getting ready to order supplies for finishing the dining room. But in the meantime, we've been on the hunt for some things at antique stores, thrift stores, etc.
We knew we wanted a few large mirrors for the parlor, dining room, and entryway. So we pretty much just bought some cheap ones that needed a little work, and I spent a day cleaning, covering, and painting them last weekend. Here's the one that ended up on the parlor mantel:
I love the floral scroll detail on this thing.
One of the mirrors -- the huge one in the dining room -- came from my mom's cousin David, who apparently used to collect antiques. Now he wants to get rid of some, and mentioned it to me at Christmas. I was like "I will take ALL THE THINGS." And I'm so glad, because this mirror really worked out.
There's another mirror that might work for the entryway, but we have to finish a couple of other things in there before we can hang it up.
In terms of lighting, there has been a bit of a surprise deficiency here -- even by my standards, and you know I love to sit in total darkness most of the time. But at the old house we had pretty much staple-gunned Christmas lights to everything, et voila, flattering and cheap light everywhere. When moving out, the half-working light strings and terminally dusty paper lanterns were balled up and thrown away and forgotten. Then when we unpacked everything at this house, we realized we were in great need of some lamps.
Here's the new parlor lamp:
And here are some very steampunk lamps that go perfectly on our bedside tables, especially on Dan's next to his Arthur Conan Doyle and his pipe tobacco. Hooray, good reading lights. And yes, we still have nothing on the walls. Patience, patience.
In the master closet, Dan installed a mini chandelier that fits right in and looks like it's always been there. Pro tip: buy "childrens" or "babies" lights, because they're a fraction of the cost. And does a larger person really need a way larger light? No.
And here's a gratuitous picture of Lianna's cat, Gracie, just being cute. - Dec 30, 11
- Dec 18, 11
Yesterday we drove to Waynesboro to pick up our new dining room table, and it looks great. Thanks so much to Dan's mom for this excellent Christmas present!
And here's the view of the unpainted heart pine underneath:
And here's the maker, Bryan Black, with his wife Susan in his workshop.
Doing a search for the term "farm table" on Craigslist and Ebay did NOT turn up many bargains, and I couldn't find anything in local antique stores that wasn't tacky or too small. The idea is that we'll be extending hospitality to others as frequently as possible, so we didn't want a little round 3-seater of a table.
Luckily though, Craigslist did turn up an advertisement for Concepts Created, the Waynesboro workshop of Bryan Black. He makes beautiful tables and both he and his wife are delightful to work with. I highly recommend them.
Dan and I picked out wooden legs from another family-owned hand-turning business in Georgia and had them shipped to Bryan. He was able to source the lumber for the top from an old church (built in 1895) in Charlottesville, and he selected the floorboards from the altar to use for our table. After putting it in a dehumidifier for a few days, he got to work putting the whole table together, painting, distressing, and adding a protective coating.
For less than any of the other antique and new farm tables I saw during my search, we were able to have a custom family heirloom made by a local woodworker. Success!
If you're in the market for a table at all, please support Bryan's business. He rocks.
The gorgeous drive out to Waynesboro and lunch in nearby downtown Staunton (adorable!) weren't half bad either. I love this state. - Nov 25, 11
Yesterday before the Thanksgiving hubbub really got started I took a few photos of the house. Here's the entryway in its current state:
I'm really loving this space, and having designated areas to put coats, gloves, umbrellas, shoes, etc. when you walk in the door. It makes it so that it's easy to find things when you're rushing out the door as well, and it makes it way easier to offer guests a place to stash coats and bags without having to clear out special space in a closet or lugging coats upstairs to a bedroom. The large shelf and hook racks are from Ikea (finally making somewhat old-timey looking things, hooray!), the free church pew below was recently painted and distressed by myself, and the little vintage desk next to it (which may or may not stay there) was from a thrift store. There are still some lingering boxes around of course, but things are really starting to shape up in the entryway.
And here's the lovely parlor, which is starting to usurp the master closet as my favorite room in the house right now. Dan built, sanded, stained, and installed these bookshelves in just a few days. The white cabinets below are from Ikea, the countertops are made from reclaimed wood from upstairs, and the shelves themselves are the fruit of Lowe's. To the left you can see our records, and to the right I've got all the nonfiction books set up.The view of the parlor looking west. Fiction and cookbooks are in the black bookcase there.
And here's what it looks like if you're standing in the northwest corner of the room, looking into the dining room and the entryway. Though there are plenty of things still to be done both inside and outside, the dining room is now the only room left that's still under major construction. You can see the beginnings of the coffered ceiling in there, as well as the beginnings of the wainscoting on the doorway trim.
Here are a couple of before pictures of the parlor from last winter:
Phew, glad that's over.
As always, if you want to see more photos of Thanksgiving and what the dining room looks like, just go to Flickr.
We had a great day and were so happy to be able to finally host something in our new house. Here's to more hospitality to come. - Nov 23, 11
Here are some quick shots of the office that I took yesterday. It's hugely important for the office to be comfortable, since I'm working from home a lot now. So far, I love it.
On the north wall are these very useful bookshelves, where we keep general office supplies and books related to our jobs and hobbies. Dan's side is full of books about electrical codes and tube amps. Mine is full of fashion, crafting, and etiquette books. [The vast majority of our books have now been organized downstairs, and photos will come of those soon.]
Here's Dan's side of the room (west wall), optimized for music and for collecting piles of paper:
My side of the room (east wall), optimized for typing and crafting (that white wardrobe contains an explosion of craft stuff that is currently shamefully unorganized):
And next to the door (south wall) is our futon, which is now ready to accept out-of-town guests. OR just people who don't want to drive back to the Fan after hanging out here.
Here are some "before" pics of the office.
Looking west through to the princess suite:
Looking east through to the master bedroom (that brick fireplace was painted white and is now mostly behind the office wardrobe):
Freshly-primed northwest corner: - Nov 09, 11
The front of the house probably can't be considered "done" until at some point the exterior gets painted, but here's what our doorway looks like in the meantime.
I love the blue of our door -- it will look great once the siding is painted light gray. Thanks to our neighbor, Karen, for the pink mums and thanks to our friend, Kelly, for the pumpkin.My mom made this beautiful wreath! Thanks Mom. My favorite part is the okra.I've had this custom doormat from Etsy waiting for its debut for months. I thought it was appropriate for the house we affectionately call The Good Ship.
A spider's web collected quite a lot of dew this morning -- so pretty.
And the fog was rolling in thick here in Church Hill today. - Nov 16, 11
Here are the pictures from the finished master closet. This is the "girliest" room in the house, and pretty much the only one I was allowed to make as girly as I wanted. Which is fine, because though he's greatly outnumbered in terms of gender (by me, Lianna, Sophie-kitty, and Gracie-kitty), Dan is indeed a dude and his interior design concerns need to be heard. Still! This one's my favorite room yet. Though it might not be saying much, since only three rooms are really "done."
The master closet sits between the master bedroom and the master bathroom, which was all we could do with the awkward little space there, but is really kind of the perfect location.
Upon entering, Dan's closet is straight ahead, while mine is to the right. If you walk a few steps forward and take a left, you'll be in the bathroom. The small, gray cabinet in the photo above with the two black candles on top is our little "bathroom closet," because there wasn't room to put it in the bathroom but we need plenty of room to house extra towels and every cold medicine known to man.
It's super bright in the closet most of the day.
Here's my section of the closet (looking into the closet from inside the bathroom). I've got hat boxes sitting above the closet itself for extra storage. Behind the curtain, the top shelf is full of hair accessories, hats, and purses. At the bottom of the closet are shoes and things. The short little white drawer unit to the left holds gloves, fans, tights, and undergarments. On top of it is my jewelry box.
And here's a peek inside at the darkness (literally!) within. Black goes with everything.
Slips and nightgowns live on the back of the closet door for now, as does my laptop bag and current purse.
I love this mirrored jewelry box that I got for Christmas from my mom one year. Though it contains mostly 1" buttons from various bands and all kinds of other cheap plasticky things, it is pwecious to me. Oh deary! Now it's no longer a secret where all my plastic jewelry from Forever 21 lives!
One of the best things about the closet is that we were able to fit a chair in there, so you have somewhere to sit down when you're putting shoes or tights on.
So that's our semi-rococo-style walk-in closet. If you have some random tiny room in your house that's really too small for any other use, I highly recommend converting it. The best part is that it was all dirt cheap to configure:- Walls: Light blue paint by me and friends, and AMAZING stencil work in light gray by Dan. This turned out so beautiful, and really makes the room, I think.
- Closet frameworks: Pax wardrobes (without the fronts, which cost way extra!) from Ikea, that mecca of cheap (but sturdy, if you know what to buy) storage.
- Closet curtains: Free, from Kristin! Thanks Kristin! I think they were her grandmother's.
- Small curtain rods: Simple tension rods for a few dollars each, from Target.
- Window curtain: $9 from Target (Shabby Chic I think).
- Bathroom cabinet: about 4 years old, from Ikea.
- Short, white drawer unit: about 3 years old, from Ikea.
- Rolly chair: Pottery Barn, free (I think it was bequeathed to me by a moving-out roommate at some point).
- Hat boxes: Thrift stores and Ikea.
A little chandelier will be added later, but you know. Not the #1 priority right this instant.
Oh yeah, here's what this room used to look like:
And now it's time for an impromptu lecture on the value of being organized.
My absolute favorite thing about this closet (or probably large storage spaces in general) so far is that it lends a calming effect to the household. That's particularly valuable to me right now, when the rest of the house is in chaos and I desperately need one not-covered-in-boxes-and-wood-and-sawdust corner of the universe to cling to. But generally, when you look into your closet and it's simply and cleanly organized, you don't have that feeling of cluttered-closet panic every morning. Also, instead of having random non-clothes items (like bags, shoes, sportswear, bathroom items, etc.) exploding off of shelves in your bedroom, the hallways, and everywhere else, a big enough closet can keep all of that better contained. Life is messy, but at least when you're able to keep some of the mess corralled, you can spend your time in the rest of the house relaxing, cooking, working, loving, and doing all the things that are truly important. I think that catching 43 glimpses of scattered mess everywhere subconsciously erodes your focus day in and day out, and takes your attention away from the people and the conversations you would rather concentrate on.
I know I'm a bit crazier about this stuff than lots of others are, but I'm not saying you should define yourself by whether or not there's a missing sock or whatever. I just think you do have a responsibility to make your home a comfortable and calming place, where your family and your guests can gather and look forward to being together without distractions. Better hospitality is something we're really seeking with this house, and I think smart storage is a blessing for us with that goal. And so for now, I'm grateful for this one little organized corner.
-
open house at The Good Ship.
