First Night In My New Apartment

It seems like years ago already, but the move-out was just last Wednesday. It was brutal. We began at 8:00 am and worked hard until around 6-7pm. The movers left and I swept up, in the dark basically, and closed the door on the apartment I had lived in for nineteen years. It was oddly unceremonious, considering how much had happened there. I then went next door to spend the night with friends. Next day, I took Frankie to her local "dog hotel", drove my car to the dealership and sold it back to them, then boarded a train bound for New York City.

 I got to Brooklyn around 8:30pm on Thursday night (Jan. 24). Here is a photo of the morning after, minutes before the movers and all my belongings arrived. You see a few boxes arranged to function as tables and coat racks. The boxes were the packaging for the West Elm Tilary Sofa I had delivered months ago, thinking I would be moving in sooner rather than later. It works well as a casual sofa and as a single guest bed. Plus I got it on sale! I had to take the "in stock" fabric choice, which would not have been my first choice but I was willing to do that to save $300! Anyway I have all my printed pillows to liven it up! I have to say the sofa was very comfortable for sleeping, which came in very handy for me that first night.

The movers showed up the next morning around 10 am. Move-in was a little easier than move-out but it was still very chaotic. Luckily I had worked out a floor plan so that I could have the furniture placed exactly where I wanted it. I have a few heavy pieces and I didn't want to risk having to move them around myself. 

Frankie was driven down from Boston by my good friends. They enjoyed spending one night with me and, once again, the sofa was put to good use and got rave reviews!

The photo above was taken just a few minutes ago. There have been about 3 days of unpacking already and I obviously have a long way to go. There are, of course, a lot of distractions here plus I have to get Frankie acclimated. 

Here is Frankie at a local dog run, hanging with some of the other Brooklyn dogs. She is fitting right in!

I'll check back in when there are fewer boxes.

Renovation Update

I had just a moment to drop by my Brooklyn apartment on my way between Boston and Austin ( I know, long day!). I needed to speak with the man doing the work plus I wanted to get a photo of the floor so you could see what bad shape it was in. Much to my surprise, the existing floor had already been removed! Things are moving along! This whole thing might actually come true someday. By the way, this is another post from my iPhone, testing , testing......

Renovating a Loft Apartment

It's time to move into what will be, most likely, a fairly long period of home renovation blog posts! And that is because, about 2-3 weeks ago, I finally handed over the big check to the previous owners of this old industrial loft apartment and so now it is mine. I have not-so-suddenly found myself with a really run-down space to spruce up! My guess is that any renovations you see in this apartment were done back in the early 80's when this 1920s building was converted from factory to coop apartments. So, there IS work to be done......

I love the big open space. Well, "big" by New York standards. It's 950 square feet, which is a small size for what one thinks of as a "loft" but that is plenty to be an apartment for one person. OK, one person and a crazy dog. I definitely kept Frankie in mind when I searched for the space I would need (but could still afford). Not to mention the fact that it will be a live/work space, meaning I'll spend almost all my time here. And although I like the space open, for my needs, I would eventually like to create a few more clear divisions in the apartment. In the above photo, you are looking straight from the front door into the living room on the right and into the bedroom through the cut-out in that dividing wall on the left. I'm not so excited about myself or anyone else looking straight into my bedroom when they first walk in the door. A simple, non structural change I can make is to have shutters, blinds, or a semi-sheer shade installed in that cut-out to give the bedroom much more privacy. It will be interesting to see how much light is lost because that is the obvious reason for the cut-out. The windows are only along that one front-facing wall. 

This is the view from the living room towards the front door, which you can see right behind that ladder. The open kitchen is to the right and, to the left, is what I like to refer to as "the weird little room". Isn't it odd looking? It reminds me of a structure in a de Chirico painting. The real estate listing had to call it a "home office" because a room has to have at least one window (to the outside) and a closet to be a real bedroom. However, I do think I will be using it as a guest bedroom/storage space. 

This is inside the weird little room. As you can see, it is a small and somewhat narrow room with a very tall ceiling. It's a bit strange, but I think it will work for me and I'm not in a hurry to tear it down. I love de Chirico! By the way, the ceilings in the whole apartment (except in part of the kitchen and the bathroom) are almost 13 feet high! Isn't that wonderful? A 950 square foot apartment feels much smaller with lower, say 8 foot, ceilings. It was probably the high ceilings that sold me on this place.

For some reason Blogger will not allow me to make that paragraph flush-left. Please excuse.

Now we are walking into the kitchen. It is also a little strange. Perhaps all of these strange things are why I could afford this apartment! All of the appliances, except for the refrigerator, are behind that high wall. I was told a wall like this used to be required as an effort to contain the cooking smells and smoke. I suppose they decided it didn't really work because it's not required anymore. I can, and probably will, eventually take it down. However, it will be a long time before I am ready to do a kitchen renovation!

A more frontal view so you can see the cabinets hidden behind the high wall. The cabinets are in good shape and I actually do like them. May not have picked them myself and I don't like the way it goes up and then down on both sides of the sink. But I can work with this, it will be fine! What I don't like is how the kitchen looks like it is on some sort of ceramic tile "stage". It's not very interesting tile, for one thing and, for another, I don't like standing to cook on such a hard surface. And so, this floor will be one of the first things to go. I think kitchen floors should be a softer surface such as wood, cork, rubber, or some sort of vinyl or linoleum tile. There are a lot of fun options in the market these days. 

Unfortunately a similar and bland color was used in the bathroom. This tile probably looked really cool in the 80s but, to me, it now looks very dated. However, I am going to have to work with this because there is no money or time for a bathroom update anytime soon! Plus, I may want to reconfigure the bathroom at some point, hopefully to allow for an extra half-bath. I need to take my time on that thought process.  Plus, being a coop, I have to pass all the plans and materials by the governing board. Not looking forward to that!

But, luckily, I was able to catch the late November coop board meeting in time to have my preliminary work approved. By preliminary, I mean the work that has to be done when the apartment is empty because it's such a big mess! First project: scraping the slightly cave-like texture off of the ceilings. You can just barely see it in some of the other photos, but take my word for it, it was just heavy enough to look oppressive and dirty. I was further convinced when the building's super told me it tended to flake off and make everything dusty at all times. I have to hang on to that feeling of conviction because this is a major, dirty, tedious, and time-consuming job. I had to be there for a few days testing paint colors with all this going on and I felt pretty bad for the guys doing it. Of course, it's a job and they will get paid! I'm just holding my breath that it will be worth the time and money.

Next I will deal with the floors....stay tuned!

Brooklyn Terrier?

I finally had my coop interview this past Monday. I have to say it was a tad stressful and, when it was over, I had no sense of whether I would be approved or not. I felt like I had been, perhaps, too honest and revealed too many of my own concerns. At the same time, I thought it was important to get a sense of whether these would be major issues or not. The coop board continues to ask for various financial documents, which makes me nervous. I have to say, if you can avoid buying a coop in NYC (which most people can of course!), you should!

And, I am worried about Frankie. Will she like her new home?

Home Alone

I have a buyer for my condo in Brookline now. I hesitate to say the place is sold because the contract has not been signed just yet. And after the contract (purchase and sale agreement) is signed, there is this  holding period while everybody gets their finances in order and I physically move out of here. Last stop is "closing", and that is when my present home is technically SOLD. I suppose anything can go wrong up to that point and that point is predicted to be around the end of December. For the impatient, this is a very long process!

 

This is a box I found way way back in the very depths of my attic storage. It was loosely stuffed with all the pieces from a very dearly loved metal dollhouse my older sister and I played with way back in the 1950s. It has been in storage so long, I forgot I had it. Obviously it was last seen when I moved to Brookline and that was eighteen years ago! 

It looks like I have all the floors, walls, and roof. Such a perfect house for the typical 50s family. Living room, family room, master bedroom and a child's room, separated by a bathroom. But this must be what would have been called a "starter home" because an American family in the 1950s would have, maybe, three more kids. So, they are going to need more bedrooms! I lived in houses like this with my parents and siblings, however, I've never approached anything like it in my own adult life. And now I'm moving further in the opposite direction!

Which brings me to another unbearably long process: buying an apartment in Brooklyn. I'm trapped in a sort of limbo where there is nothing I can do but wait ....and wait. You see, when one buys an apartment in New York City, it is most likely going to be a coop (as opposed to a condo) which is more like buying into a corporation. In fact, that is exactly how it is set up. I had to send in an application, revealing all of my financial information and opinions on my neighborliness from my neighbors, which they will review and either accept or reject. How fun! It's like applying for a job. We all know how anxiety-provoking that is. 

I am in between homes with half of my belongings already packed. I keep needing to find things and find myself slowly unpacking in the process of looking for them. So there is this feeling of discomfort and of wasted time and effort. I would actually like to put this dollhouse back together but it would be harder to move that way. I would have to take it apart again when moving day comes and, as you can see in the photo above, the little metal tabs that hold the pieces together are rusted, bent, and ready to fall off. Lots of them are already missing. In fact, I'm going to have to create a whole new system to get the second floor to hold up. I keep asking myself if it's worth keeping. I figure it's a good reminder of where I came from and how much has changed. And maybe it will make a nice lamp!

Due to of all the above, my creative work has been limited. In spite of that, new things are coming! I should have some new digital fabric prints by next week. They are in the "one fat quarter, four patterns" format. I would also love to have some new stamp designs ready to send off to the manufacturer. If anyone has suggestions or comments about new stamps, I'd love to read them. And I really miss sewing. I just might have to unpack my fabric box! What a mess.

Finding a Way Through the Clutter

This is a painting by one of my "favorites" on etsy, Annamaria Potamiti. I was browsing through her shop, seeing what she was up to, and this one intrigued me. That was even before I read her statement about the painting, titled "No Rush", which says :

"We are selling our home and are about to move. We have cleaned and decluttered, and many things are already in boxes. The house feels much quieter, and I am waiting for our future to unfold. I am happy and tranquil in the new sense of peace in our space, but I am also suspended , not quite ready to give up my past. A home is my own like my own body. I am a mother. The kitchen table feels like my physical extension."

So calm, organized, yet a little sad. I relate to this painting because of my own move. I enjoyed the feeling of moving forward, searching Brooklyn for a new home. But now that I am in the dreaded packing and de-cluttering phase, I'm finding it a bit harder to give up the past. I'm leaving a home that I have lived in for more years than any other in my life, for one thing. I was someone's wife, I had a family here with me. It was hard to make the decision to leave and not stay to hold the memories, as the woman in Annamarie's painting seems (to me) to be doing. Feeling a little like I've been left behind to save all the pieces of what once was. All alone in the house.

This is a painting of a fig tree, called "Small Blessing" that I purchased from Annamaria in 2009. Fig trees make me happy because I think of being a child and filling brown paper bags full of figs in my Grandparent's backyard. Seems so magical now.

Visit Annamaria's shop and her blog, you will be delighted!

On the Road Again

Time to Move

Finally I have found my new home. Hopefully. If the real estate gods cooperate. I am really going to be MIA now! Here comes the reality of packing. My least favorite thing. Much more fun to walk around Brooklyn. 

So many crazy sights, like this wacky cafe nestled beside a subway entrance. It's July and they still have their Christmas wreath up. Why not? It's so festive!

And then you have these charming little gems tucked away on side streets. It looks like a building in a much smaller town. Lovely isn't it?

A very appealing row of restaurants!

Many small independent clothing boutiques.....

...just a few blocks away from where the major discount retailers are moving in. I wonder which side will win. Hopefully there will be peaceful co-existance!

A very dynamic and rapidly changing area. Excited to be part of it, even if I remain only a spectator. I was very taken with these painted sentences on this parking garage but could not find a signature or company name. Believe it or not, all I had to do was google the phrase "Euphoria Is You For Me" to find out it is a love letter to Brooklyn. Just perfect.

Another Brooklyn Weekend

Loving Brooklyn more and more. Feels very much like it could be my new home, if I could just find the specific address meant for me!

I'll tell you a little more about myself. I lived in NYC during the eighties and absolutely loved it. Moved there from Houston, Texas on January 1, 1980 and left late July of 1990. I had an all too brief career as a textile designer, working almost exclusively in the home furnishings side of things (as opposed to fashion). Left because, in the summer of 1989, I gave birth to my beautiful daughter. Both my husband and I worked as freelancers, so we took off looking for employment that offered health insurance. If you know anything about health insurance in the USA, you will understand this. And I will not choose this time or place to go into my views on that!

Not really my best foot! Should have put my right one forward. Anyway, fast-forward to the present, my husband tragically passed away over two years ago and my beautiful daughter is off on her own. In fact, she is hoping to find employment and move to NYC also. Why would I stay here? I am telling you all of this in hopes that you will understand why I am away so much, pounding the pavements of Brooklyn, NY.  I am searching and searching for the next new chapter of my life.

Enjoying the pretty tree-lined streets of Fort Greene, Brooklyn on a hot summer day! There is a really nice flea market here during the summers on Saturday. "Really nice" means it is not just a big yard sale.  It is a great mix of vintage, antique, and hand-made items. 

Loved the curly and swirly iron work on this elegant Brooklyn brownstone. People on the ground floor always have window protectors. They can be very unattractive, looking like prison gates, but these are wonderfully decorative. The flower in the middle reminds me of my "Garden Party" flower. And I find myself using those curly swirls in my fabric designs quite often! In fact, I have to make an effort not to. Here is a close-up.

It is frustrating because, as I search, I keep coming up with more product ideas so that I can stock my etsy shop, but do not have the time to do the work. I really want to make some stenciled curtains. Have lots of ideas and, in between apartment hunting, I have visited some really great fabric and trim shops in Manhattan. Yes, I have to move there.....

Here is a bag idea I was developing months ago. Where has the time gone? Simple leather bag with hand-printed trim. The trim is the shiny side of a beautiful swatch of green hemp/silk which I hand-stamped (that favorite stamp of mine) and then vinylized. You know I love that iron-on vinyl. This way the fabric is protected and the whole bag can be wiped clean with a damp cloth. I attached trim to bag with heavy black thread in a zig-zag stitch. Hopefully someday I will make more of these. Next Christmas? Right now, I am enjoying this one as my handy traveling camera bag.

Things are Crazy!

Do I have an excuse for being away from my blog for so long? You decide! I was working away on my apron pattern and new fabric designs when suddenly I just had to take off for Brooklyn. I've been thinking about moving there for way too long. A very good old friend of mine was going out of town and let me have the keys to her apartment so I could take some time to look around. When something lucky like that happens, I figure what the lucky thing is helping to happen is meant to be! I pounded the pavement for 3 straight days, exploring new neighborhoods and seeing some really really small (and sometimes very ugly) apartments. I lived in NYC for almost 10 years during the 1980s and did not go to Brooklyn all that much. It was just not a favorite  destination then. But it is now and that is reflected in the ridiculously high rents! Not sounding very encouraging is it..... well I'm not giving up yet!

Another project that was keeping me away. I did not think the repainting of my long dark hallway was blog-worthy. However, it is a design challenge! It's long, narrow, and dark so you wouldn't want to paint it a dark color. And yet, the woodwork is so dark that a light color is too much of a contrast. Not at all complimentary. All the units downstairs have their woodwork painted white, but too many people cautioned me not to do that. And, since I am moving to Brooklyn, I wouldn't want to paint what the next person might want to strip off. 

I'm having to paint the walls because I had some old wiring fixed and that destroyed the faux finish I painted years ago. That was the solution then. Not up to faux finishing the hallway, and so begins the endless search for a new color. Trying to go with something to compliment the wood a bit more. I also decided to try to paint both walls along the long stretch different colors and the ends of the hallway another color. Just to make my life more complicated and to try to make it not look like what it is: a long dark hallway. 

This was my inspiration. It is a photograph of a photograph in World of Interiors magazine. Wonderful magazine, by the way.  Now I'm realizing the old faux finish is somewhat like this magazine picture. Oh well, obviously I solved it best the first time around. Tried to come up with a new flat no-faux solution. The problem became how to make the wall color pink but not too pink. Need to bring about this earthy pinkness. So, I went with a pinkish clay color which was probably popular in the 1970s. Hoping it's making a come-back, but I have no idea. 

What goes with clay (since I was determined to use three colors)? Well, a neutral is always a safe bet. So here we have a warmish gray. Are you all still with me? Isn't this exciting? OK, well let's break here and I will try to post the results soon!

And, of course, Fankie is still the main challenge. This is a very grainy picture taken with a cell phone but I just had to show you what I like to call her devil-dog-clown-face. Now THAT is crazy!