Customizing Wall-Mount Cabinets

I found this photo on an Apartment Therapy SLinks post referencing the custom-painted blinds. That's a great idea, but I was much more interested in what the designer of this room has done with those wall-mounted cabinets.

It looks as though you could mimic this by taking two cabinet units, mounting them to the wall, adding three custom legs, painting it out, and abracadbra - you have a custom hutch.

With the steep prices of large-scale furniture, this sounds like a very practical solution for any room. I also love the idea of putting feet or short legs on kitchen cabinetry. I think giving built in cabinets a furniture feel really warms up an otherwise very utilitarian space. Unfortunately, it also makes for a lot of extra sweeping

A Little Spring Spruce-Up: My Sun Room

Meet my old sun room. It spent the winter as more of a mud room. It's my doggie base-camp. My dogs go in and out of the yard from this room. I wipe mud off of their feet of here. I dust grass and leaves out of their fur here. This is where their toys are kept. This is where my exercise gear is.

Not surprisingly, I've put off decorating it.

One little problem. It's also our guest room. And my Mother and Father-in-Law will be staying with us next month.

So, I started a little spring cleaning. I opened the curtains, cleaned every slat of glass in those louvered windows, swept the rug, dusted, but it still wasn't anything special. Inspired by HGTV's Freestyle, I made a trip to the attic to see what I could use for the room. Luckily, when I down-sized my stuff a few months back , I kept everything.

I was able to put together a cute, quirky room with just what I found in my own home. I only added the two gold end tables, a few vases, the parrot clock, the two zebra stools, and a watercolor. Can you believe that everything but the painting once lived in my tiny living room? Hooray clutter!

I hadn't spent more than a few minutes in this room for the last 12 months, but now that the room is spiffy, I spent my whole Sunday there reading magazines on my lounge chair and listening to my dogs play in the yard.

More Photography Online

We've lived in our home for 2 years with almost bare walls because all the art I could find in our price range locally was sterile and mass produced. Then it occurred to me that I could look for photography online (duh Sarah).

So my quest begins...

I found this photograph and the montage below on a site called Art Rouge. These are my favorites of what I saw there.

The unframed prints range from $40 to $80.

Quest for Original Photography

Inspired by the large-scale photographs used in the rooms I found on Kara Mann's design Web site (top left), I am on a quest to find unusual original photography online.

I got a link from a friend to the site of Julie Blackmon, which contains amazing photographs of childhood. I like the haunting stillness that these photographs give off, despite the energetic nature of their subject matter.

The prints range in price from $1600-$3800.

DIY: Deconstructed Deer Head Coat Rack

From Design Spotter, a very cool deconstructed version of deer head coat rack.

Looks like you could put this together from local hardware store finds. Personally, I'd like to see it all one color: either black or white.

I may give it a try this weekend.

Table-less Dining Done Right

The picnic season is fast approaching and dining outdoors is getting a little bit easier thanks to designer Wolf Udo Wagner. Urbana, his light-weight dining set for urban eating al-fresco, is a wonderful alternative to wasteful paper plates or toting around your good china.

Each plate comes with a multi-use utensil which functions not only as fork, knife, and spoon, but also as an integrated handle which turns the plate into a tray. The plates can be turned facing one another and locked with a screw, holding the accompanying cups and utensils inside.

Urbana products are for sale at Simplicitas.com, a Swedish design site; however, when I clicked the “buy” button, I got an “under construction” error. It sounds as though the product will be officially available starting this May.

Via the David Report.

Stark Warehouse Sale

From the Dallas Shops Blog:

Tomorrow at 10 a.m. for the first time ever, Stark Carpet opens its 900,000 square foot warehouse to the public. Shoppers will save up to 75 percent on the style-savvy carpets, rugs, fabric, home furnishings and more inside.

Don't wait; the sale shuts down April 1st. Visit at 4240 Alpha Road. For more info including times, visit www.starksale.com or call 214-742-8252.

--Brittany Edwards

More Creative Recycling

These are repurposed barrels from the Stanker Collection by Motxo Design. They were designed by Francois Royer as a reaction to the culture of relentless consumption. All pieces are handcrafted and range in price from $400-$650.

I love the table second from the left. Those traditional legs look great in blue.

Via Alternative Consumer.

Boontje Oval Table

A tempered glass table by Tord Boontje for MoreSo.

The black top is etched with his intricate designs, the base is made of powder-coated steel.

$5557 at Highbrow Furniture.

Via Apropos Pig.

From Weapons and Airplanes to Furniture

Two interesting design finds:

Furniture and sculpture made from weapons by the Peace Art Project Cambodia.

Via Freshome.

Furniture, accessories, and sculpture made from retired aircraft by Moto Art.

Pre-Made Concrete Sinks

I like the idea of casting my own concrete sink, except for the part where I have to do it myself. Luckily, Crib Candy found two sites that will create and install a concrete sink for you.

Mark Concrete

Absolute Concrete

Nice Patio Set at Wal-Mart

Something I like at Wal-Mart? I was a little confused too. Not that there's anything wrong with it, but the mega-chain and I don't usually agree on the finer points of furniture design. That said, I'm very impressed with the patio furniture on the Wal-Mart site this season. It's nothing ground-breaking, but they've got simple, classic designs at a great price.

I'd have to see them in person to be sure about quality, but at a fraction of the cost of typical outdoor wood furnishings, I might be tempted to take a chance.

I've been online searching for inexpensive patio furniture because here in Dallas, Spring has officially sprung. I posted a few pieces I found yesterday over at Shak in Style.

If you're still shielding yourself from a single-digit wind-chill, don't be jealous. It'll be hot enough in DFW to fry an egg on the sidewalk in about 2 months. (Picture left, Delahey 6-piece wood dining set, $268)

Delahey 4-piece wood chat set, $298

Delahey 6-piece sectional, $498

Davinci 4-piece cushioned wicker chat set, $798

Art of Darkness: Jimmie Martin Furniture

Jimmie Martin has been creating one-of-a-kind furniture with a decadent, urban appeal for Londoners since 2004. The line of punky and playful hand-finished furnishings is finally making its way to the U.S. at the design showroom of Kara Mann, set to open this week in Chicago.

While the company's work is very pricey (thousands of dollars per piece), their site is worth a look just for the sake of inspiration. Most of their furniture features traditional lines paired with very non-traditional finishes. It's something to think about if you have heirloom furniture that you love but that doesn't fit with your style. If you are brave and not a little cavalier, a black painted finished or a screen-printed upholstery fabric can take the formality out of a stodgy, antique silhouette.

Of course, if there's any question about value, you might want to have piece appraised first. I'm fairly sure that this is the sort of thing The Antiques Roadshow's nightmares are made of.

How do I Save this Desk?

I got an e-mail from a reader asking how to rescue this inexpensive desk found on Craig's List. Over all, it looks very shabby and not at all chic. The finish is worn and it appears to have unattractive cylindrical feet which are centered under each end. Not a pretty picture, but not hopeless.

The lines of the desk are simple and modern and I think with a few small changes, and a weekend's worth of elbow-grease, it could be quite attractive.

First, I would ditch the legs. A great solution would be a set of inexpensive pine bun feet. I would use 8 total - 2 on each side, both front and back. This will give the piece a more balanced look. Right now, it is very top heavy on those narrow, centered legs. A great resource for inexpensive bun feet is Vandykes.

Secondly, I would paint the desk with a oil-based or milk paint. It looks like it will need a thorough sanding and a coat of a primer like Kilz to ensure that the old finish doesn't bleed through the paint. A simple dove gray would be very fetching, but the color would depend totally on the room. I know painting with oil is a smelly, hazardous pain, but latex really can't stand up to the wear-and-tear of daily use (goodness knows I've tried), especially if you live in a humid area like Dallas. I haven't tried milk paint yet, but I hear that it provides a less porous finish than latex.

Thirdly, I would get some fun drawer pulls. For a simple piece like this, the contrast of a little frill or whimsy wouldn't hurt. Something like this acanthus bin pull from Charleston Hardware Co. would be great, though, in this case, it would require filling existing drawer-pull holes and drilling new ones.

Happy re-doing!

Free Coffee Tomorrow!

Get a free 12 oz. cup of coffee at Starbucks tomorrow (Thursday) from 10 AM - noon.

This has little to anything to do with home and garden, but free coffee is a very good thing.

Via the Bargainist.

New Features on Modern-Roost

Just wanted to call out a few new features I’ve added to Modern-Roost. First, I am now pulling the RSS feed from Shak in Style into a module on this site. Since I will be writing about decorating there daily I wanted to make it easy to get to new posts. Post titles will appear in the upper right corner of M-R and link directly to the articles on Shak in Style. Hooray for new Blogger!

I have also added the RSS feed for my Bloglines Clip-Blog just under the Archive section on the right. I see so many things in the blogosphere that inspire me each day that I couldn’t possibly do them all justice. The Clip-Blog allows me to post direct links to the items that have inspired me, but I don’t have time to address directly.

Cast Your Own Concrete Sink

My brother is about to renovate the kitchen in his Austin home. The style of the homes there is a casual mix of modern and rustic. As a result, he is leaning towards materials like slate and concrete.

He just sent me a link to the Buddy Rhodes Web site, which features concrete mix and concrete molds for creating your own decorative counter tops and floors.

The company sells 4 different sink molds (this is the work of the oval mold) from $640 - $800. I love the results, but this is work I will have leave to the more adventurous among you.

In the Pink

The Women's Museum in Dallas is hosting an exhibit about the life and work of Dorothy Draper through March 31st. Not only did I miss this fact, I also had no idea that she designed the penthouse of our Stoneleigh Hotel.

In the Pink: The Legendary Life of Dorothy Draper
tickets $5
The Women's Museum: An Institute for the Future
3800 Parry Ave. in Fair Park
214-915-0860
www.thewomensmuseum.org

Impromptu White-Bean Humus

Over the weekend, we hosted an impromptu BBQ - thanks in no small part to the beautiful weather that seems to have arrived to North Texas several weeks early. I need to put together an appetizer quickly with what we had on hand. I ended up making a white-bean humus inspired by a recipe I saw somewhere recently (forgive me, I have forgotten where).

I was pretty nervous about the results, but the dip was a huge success. Here is the recipe:

1 can Canelli beans, drained
1/4 cup low-fat yogurt
1 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 tsp dried crushed red pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
salt and pepper to taste

Food process until smooth and chill for one hour. Serve with crackers, bread, or pita.

Big News: I'm Joining the Shak!

Last week I had a wonderful time guest-blogging for Shak in Style, the decor blog over at Shakadoo. Happily, they liked working with me too and Kristen has asked me to join Shak in Style as a full-fledged blogger. :) I will be posting my decor-related thoughts and ramblings there from now on.

I am so excited to be a part of the Shakadoo team!

But what about Modern Roost? I will still be posting here, though my focus will shift a little. I will be talking more about home-making, gardening and local sales and events for Dallas and Texas.

I very much appreciate everyone who takes the time to stop by Modern-Roost. You guys are the reason I keep writing. So please keep reading here and join me over at Shak in Style too.

Many Thanks,
Sarah