Little old me and my apartment are featured on the Glitter Guide today and I couldn’t be more excited! The images were shot by the talented Emily Anderson who captured my apartment so beautifully. I would love for you all to check out the feature so please visit the Glitter Guide to read the interview and see all the pretty pictures! xoxo

Photos of me & my apartment by Emily Johnston Anderson for the Glitter Guide

It’s been a while since I’ve shared one of my home decorating projects so I thought I’d give you a before and after look at my dining room chair makeover.  I’ve been holding on to these photos for ages! I picked up these Duncan Phyfe style mahogany harp back chairs on from a friendly Craigslist seller in New Jersey about a year and a half ago. I paid $80 for all 4 chairs…an awesome deal! They were nicked, dinged, and the upholstery…let’s not even talk about it. Beyond awful. These definitely needed some TLC.

I knew I wanted to paint them because I felt the mahogany was a bit too dark and heavy. Painting them would not only lighten them up but also allow me to camouflage the imperfections in the wood.

Now, I love a good DIY project but sometimes I just don’t have the time or patience so I’d rather just pay a professional to do the work that I don’t have the time for or don’t want to risk screwing up…so for this project, I did a partial DIY and re-finished the chair frames myself while I had new cushions professionally fabricated by my upholsterer. Above are the supplies I used to tackle the chair frame: A Ryobi hand sander with various sanding pads, fine grit sand paper for smoothing, Zinsser’s 123 primer, Benjamin Moore eggshell finish paint and various paint brushes.

The first step I took was to sand off the finish and smooth out the most noticeable imperfections. It took a lot of elbow grease and energy but after about an hour and a half I had all 4 chairs all prepped and ready to go. (Note: You’ll want to do this outdoors where it’s well ventilated and you wont have to worry about dust flying everywhere.)

Next I gave each chair a good coat of primer followed by two coats of paint. The color is called Boothbay Gray which has a slight blue tone.

After the paint dried my chair frames patiently awaited their new cushions…

And finally…the finished product! I chose a striped Suzanne Rheinstein for Lee Jofa fabric called Piedmont Stripe. The leaf green color looks great against the chairs’ blue gray frame. Below are a few more shots of the

I’m excited to be guest blogging for Stefanie over at Brooklyn Limestone today where I share my dramatic before-and-after living room transformation. Check out my post here and be sure to pop back over and tell me what you think!

Since the full house tour of my apartment was recently revealed on Apartment Therapy I thought you might like to see some before and afters of my space. I’ll start with the bedroom and show you how I transformed it from a boxy, soul-less space into an inviting and elegant retreat.

This is what the bedroom looked like when I moved in three years ago. It had zero character and was also quite small at approximately 11 1/2′ x 12′ with just one modestly sized closet. Aside from creating an elegant sleeping room, I also needed to design a layout with plenty of functional storage…a must in any small space.

Here’s the floor plan I came up with. My bed is the focal point and is centered against a wall opposite two windows. I incorporated a pair of chests on either side plus an armoire for additional clothes storage.

This was my inspiration board that illustrates my initial creative direction for the space. My goal was to create a beautiful bedroom that exudes comfort and sophistication. The key elements are the Chonioiserie floral pattern (inspired by the walls in the Miles Redd designed bedroom shown on the top left) a soothing blue color scheme, bright pops of turquoise, an upholstered headboard in a graceful shape and just a touch of ikat.

Here’s the result of my bedroom transformation. My headboard is custom, upholstered in a pattern called Sestina from Kravet. My Baker campaign chests which I found on eBay are vintage from the 1950s and have deep drawers for storing clothes. The turquoise egg shaped lamps are by Haeger Potteries from Lamps Plus and provide a much needed pop of color that adds a touch of whimsy and makes the space feel youthful. To me one of the things that makes a bedroom feel polished and pulled together is beautiful bedding and I’m particularly a fan of crisp white bed linens. My duvet set is from Pottery Barn and the monogrammed shams elevate the level of sophistication. The ikat pillow was fabricated with a pattern from Kravet that I had my upholsterer use on the reverse. The white bedding combined with loads of down filled pillows really makes the bed look inviting!

My rug is Madeline Weinrib’s Mimm print wool rug which I scored at the ABC Carpet & Home outlet in the Bronx. I have several favorite pieces in my bedroom but by far the most special and most personal are the reverse glass Chinese emperor and empress paintings shown on either side of my bed which I inherited from my grandmother. I believe strongly in surrounding yourself with things you love that have deep, personal meaning like family photos, souvenirs from your travels or items inherited from loved ones. Those are the things that will give your space a sense of your own personality and history…and will make your house feel like home.

My Chinese antique armoire seen here was another eBay find and provides plenty of extra space to store clothing & accessories. I keep my collection of blue & white porcelain as well as all of my clear glass vases on top. The Japanese  scenic painting to the left of the armoire was an auction score that I got for just $25! My chandelier is from eBay and the soft bronze color and delicate vine and leaf motif really compliments the space.  It was fun pulling this room together but, of course, a decorator’s work is never done! I plan to re-paint my walls at some point, most likely a soothing blue-gray, and I’m constantly on the lookout for new bedding. Stay tuned!

Back in June Apartment Therapy came to photograph my place for a house tour and I’m happy to report that the post is now up! Thank you Apartment Therapy!!! And a special thanks to Annie from AT who captured my space so beautifully! Below are a few of my favorite photos from the shoot and you can see the full house tour on Apartment Therapy here. The post also includes plenty of inspiration for decorating on a budget plus some of my best decorating advice so head over to AT to check it out!

Photos by Annie Werbler for Apartment Therapy