i want a papercut

My memory is pretty sh*te. In computer geek talk, I would say all I seem to have is volatile, random access memory. I don't think I have a terrabyte drive up there as a vast repository of info. If there's any non-volatile memory storage there, it's most likely a tiny little flash drive full of Dave Matthews songs and Barney Stinson catchphrases.

There is a point to this post, I swear.

The great thing about having this blog is that it helps me remember things. If I like something enough to write a post about it, then it was probably sorta memorable. This blog has served as offsite back-up storage for me, if you will. Can't remember where I had those amazing polenta sticks in Charlottesville? The blog can. Need to be reminded why Hemingway's favorite combo of absinthe and champagne is just not a good idea? The blog can slap some sense into me (or at least say "I told you so") if needed. 

Today, it reminded me of something I wanted quite badly a year and a half ago. But it didn't exist then, and I prayed fervently to my guardian angel to please tell this particular artist to make the wall art of my dreams. Well, my guardian angel came through. The lovely Julie of Famille Summerbelle made a cutout map of my beloved New York.

It took me awhile to realize it now exists, but now that I've discovered it, I MUST HAVE IT. I guess my nesting phase is not winding down just yet ...

my mini parsons desk is home

After bouncing from one apartment to another four times in the span of two years, I had a severe case of commitment-phobia. Furniture commitment-phobia to be exact.

So it was a big step when I finally bought my first piece of real furniture a few weeks ago. I decided that I was tired of cranking out blogs and articles from my bed, and that I needed a proper workspace if I wanted to get serious about my writing. So I took the plunge and finally ordered the mini Parson's desk from West Elm that I've been in love with for years.

On Wednesday night after a draining 13-hour workday, I got home to find my beautiful desk waiting for me. Except, it wasn't quite so beautiful yet. It came in this massive rectangular box that I couldn't even lift. Our doorman had to hoist it on a trolley so that I could get it up to my apartment, and once there, I had to gingerly push it on to the floor, praying I wouldn't break anything. Getting the damn thing into the apartment was about all I could muster energy up for that day. I would leave the rest for another day.

See the thing is, my fabulous apartment has a not-always-fabulous feature that makes things like lugging furniture up to my room or getting to bed whilst drunk off my ass a bit ... challenging.

There's a wider service stairwell far more convenient for getting furniture to my room but it's a longer route so I decided to stick with the shorter (albeit more potentially disastrous) of the two. I realized I might be able to pull this off if I took the table pieces out of the packaging and carried them up one by one. Thank god this table doesn't have too many pieces! It was a little difficult carrying the table top up but I made it without breaking it in half or scratching the surface. I did lose a slipper on those treacherous stairs though.

Once all the pieces were in my room, it wasn't so bad. It's really easy to assemble and everything you need comes in the box. Instructions say you need two people to assemble but if a 100-pound miniature Asian can do it, so can you. 

Hoorah I've got a desk!

I was going to just grab an office chair in Ikea but got smitten by this chair that's a doppelganger of the Saarinen tulip chair. I love the Saarinen chair but it's way out of my league; even its miniature is more expensive than the doppelganger! So I ordered the aforementioned doppelganger and I'm waiting for it to arrive. I'm also waiting on this lovely little print that I intend to hang over my desk. Pretty soon I'll have a proper space to work in, and hopefully all the wonderful things in it will keep me inspired. Can't wait!

today i'm loving: bus rolls

It may be because I've had to spend more time at home than I'd like due to the snow and ice pummeling New York every other day. Or it could be because I have my name on a lease again after several months of being a nomad. Whatever the reason, I've been obsessed with decorating this week. It started when I finally ordered the Parsons mini desk that I've been wanting forever. And then I finally got a "Keep Calm and Carry On" print to hang in my room. I'm going to need an intervention soon if I keep obsessing over Eames and Ghost chairs.

The upside of this recent obsession is that I've re-discovered Etsy and found some cool things (for you to enjoy and hopefully not for me to whip the credit card out for). My favorite find of the day: Bus Rolls. I love this set from Going Underground, which is perfect for citizens of the world:

I also quite like Transit Design's cute take on this style by tailoring it to a happy couple's significant spots. Isn't that just adorable?

Now to pry my fingers off the keyboard before I go mad ordering chevron-print throw pillows ...

snowed in

Tomorrow is going to be the very first Snow Day I've had since moving to New York in 2006, and I'm kinda excited. We're talking work cancelled, groceries bought in a panic, a foot of the white stuff Snow Day here! (Watch me get all riled up and get nothing but 10 little snowflakes tomorrow) The prospect of one whole day of being legitimately stuck at home boggles my mind ... what to do, what to do? In a panic over being left with nothing but a can of tuna to eat in the snowstorm, I finally did groceries today so one thing I'm definitely doing tomorrow is cooking. I made mushroom risotto tonight, and tomorrow I'm planning on making my crackhead bolognese sauce. I might even get around to writing the recipe down so that Linda and Caroline can stop bugging me about it ... maybe.

Most likely, I'll browse through a lot of shopping sites ... ok who am I kidding, I'm already doing it. Some stuff I'd like to be snowed in with:

Sandwashed silk pants at Victoria's Secret ($49.50); Dolce shawl collar popover at J.Crew ($39.99); Hydrangea Bouquet duvet cover at Urban Outfitters ($68); shearling moccassins by J.Crew ($29.99);

What I'll most likely end up whipping the credit card out for though is probably a single-serve coffee machine. I've been thinking about getting one for awhile now. I've been buying so much Starbucks coffee lately that I might as well just direct deposit a chunk of my paycheck to them. I was so concerned about getting snowed in without any coffee to tide me over that I almost rushed to Bed, Bath & Beyond to buy a coffee maker. I've been lusting after this one since Christmas and actually had the time to read reviews on it tonight so I gotta feeling I'm gonna break down and get it very soon.

The Bosch Tassimo Single Serve Coffee Brewer can make a variety of drinks including cappuccinos, lattes, chai lattes and hot chocolate. Single-serve machines that use little premixed packets of coffee or tea have been around for awhile. But this model takes it a step further with its barcode technology that scans the little T-Disks you put in and custom-makes the drink with the proper brewing time and temperature. Starbucks, Seattle's Best, Tazo and Gevalia are just some of the brands that make T-Disks.

I know that when I wake up tomorrow and see the pile of snow that's been dumped on Manhattan, I'm going to wish I could have a capuccino without having to step out of the house. Must have this coffee machine. I'll be damned if I'm caught unprepared for the next snowstorm!

Ok, it's time for bed. Keep warm and cozy! Good night!

today i'm loving: trippy bedding by bless

Aren't these sheets by Bless just a trip?

They don't come cheap ($695 for the queen set at CITE!) but they're so cool I had to post. I think it would be totally weird to sleep in the "couple" sheets. I'd feel like I was invading their privacy!

today i'm loving: surreal tableware by marianne van ooij

I'm so getting a kick out of these plates, cups and saucers designed by Marianne van Ooij. The dinner plates are dubbed "Dressed for Dinner" and feature extremely realistic looking sleeves draped over the china. Also loving the coffee cups with sugar cubes attached to the outside and inside. Fun touches that make meal- and coffeetime a tad more fun.

noncommittal in bed

I've been grappling with how to do my new bed. At first I wanted über feminine pink sheets, these Rubie Green ones in particular, but they're holding off on production right now because of quality issues. BOO. So then I thought I wanted to do an all white bed ... until I remembered this feature that ran in Bluprint back in the day and revisited the story on the Martha Stewart website. Meet the noncommittal bed:

I'm particularly in love with the bright, modern look of the bed on the left. But I also definitely see myself having an obsessive compulsive moment and wanting one color theme all of a sudden. A noncommittal bed ... just what a single gal needs need for a bright, fresh start ...

PS: Holy mother-frickety-f*ck! That orange throw, just that throw, is $295 at Jonathan Adler! It's gonna be a bright and broke start if I get one ...

on my new home wishlist: roberts revival radio

Moving—particularly moving because of the end of a relationship—is not a lot of fun. But it has to be done. I think I'm getting by pretty well considering my life got flipped upside down. What's brought me a measure of comfort is thinking about how much fun it'll be to decorate my new digs—this time not taking into account what baggage someone else is literally dragging in. I want my new place to be fresh, airy and incredibly feminine, and I've been searching for a sound system that'll fit the bill. I think I've finally found one, though it may entail scrounging together pennies and subsisting on bread for a few months with its $328 pricetag.

Is this baby blue Roberts Revival Radio from Anthropologie just absolute perfection or what? I love the vintage 1950s look, beautiful leather case and gold plated metal fittings. It looks like a blast from the past but it's actually MP3 compatible. It can run on batteries for 1120 hours, but also has a DC input socket. Of course it's also a working radio with auto tune. It also comes in black and red but I'm quite in love with the baby blue.

Thank god for beautiful things. It's tough to feel down when life keeps bringing so much loveliness your way!

today i'm loving: cool tableware at horne

If I were one of those chicks who was so loaded that she can give the most exquisite hostess gifts, I would do all my shopping at Horne. I mean, wouldn't these bone china spoons by Caroline Swift just delight a happy little homemaker?

Except two of them (yes, just two!!) will set you back $75. Do I look like I'm married to Tiger Woods??

Another really cute would-be-hostess-gift are these winged cups by Estudio Manus. Those with 18K gold tips cost a pretty little penny at $215.

If I had 80 mil, I could totally buy a lot of very cute porcelain spoons and gold-tipped cups. Ok sleepiness talking. Night all!

today i'm loving: ice cream cones

How cute are these porcelain ice cream cones from Sin by Virginia Sin? She makes a set of paper plate inspired dinnerware, as well. So clever! I'm fixated on home decor these days and constantly daydreaming about how to decorate my next place. Porcelain ice cream cones may just have a place in my new cupboard ...

i would love to move into this room right now ...

All freshness and innocence. I would love to be that carefree child lying there lost in a novel.

I'd also love to have that many plants by my bedside that are actually alive. My black thumb has struck again and I am yet again plantless. Sigh.

Well someday I'll definitely be whole, happy and wide-eyed again, I'm sure of it. And perhaps someday I'll manage to keep some plants thriving and happy too.

Sorry for the randomness. It's the Monday after a long weekend and my brain has turned to mush from cramming for Spanish finals. Hasta luego chicas.

my *frivolous* wish for the day

*with eyes shut and hands clasped tightly*

Dear Guardian Angel,

Would you whisper in the ear of Famille Summerbelle's Julie what a splendid idea it would be to make a paper cut map of New York? It would be the most perfect thing to hang on my living room wall. Her London and Paris maps are beautiful, but New York is my beloved city. Would you? Thanks.

Love,

staying alive

So my sweetie's pleas for me to stop subjecting innocent plants to, um certain death, has fallen on deaf ears once again. I went to Home Depot, fell in love with a couple of jade plants, and brought them home. I even had the audacity to repot them into my cute little white Ikea pots, which I hope wasn't too hard on them since I'm not exactly a master gardener. I just hope that the hardiness of these plants will keep them alive through the stress of my terrible repotting. But I'm trying to turn a new leaf (pun unintended) and hopefully keep these pretty things alive. I've been Google-ing "how to care for a jade plant" for the last hour so hopefully the information helps. This plant, after all, is known as the "money plant" and god knows I don't want to jinx the cash flow by any means ... if anyone has sound plant care advice out there, please do enlighten me—and no, Mika, taking the plants out of my hands and finding them another home does not count as sound advice.

contain yourself

Monkey and Buddha helped me build a wardrobe for my closet-less bedroom last Sunday so I've just been happily unpacking my clothes since then. The problem with my Ikea Aspelund closet, however, is that it doesn't come with drawers—which I didn't realize I needed until I didn't have them. Where do you put undies when you don't have drawers? My salvation turned out to be these open bins sold at Container Store (see those woven bins on the top shelf above? By the way, that is NOT my closet, it's an unatainable closet from the Container Store website). Already affordable at $11.99, I was able to get them at $8.99 because of Container Store's ongoing sale where the entire store is at 25% off! You have to print the coupon from the website to be able to avail of the discount, and the promo goes on until this Sunday, July 12. I foresee more trips to the Container Store in my near future ...

tord boontje

I posted about this last year but I'm still madly in love with this Tord Boontje garland shade light from the Moma Store. Now that I have a new apartment with high, high ceilings, I'm seriously thinking of getting the silver garland for the bedroom. It would be so gorgeous ... it would set me back $95 but that's a small price to pay for a piece of art, don't you think?

nice drawers

I saved these images of lovely drawer liners at Burke Decor last week, and am now thisclose to tearing my hair out because I can't find them on the site! Aren't they so lovely? I'd love to open up my new closet and see that every single day ...

alexander girard love

I really want this pillow with the iconic Alexander Girard love print from Urban Outfitters. Click on over to see what other merch they've gussied up with the late great's popular prints.

wallpaper

I remember when wallpaper was a dreary, schoolmarmy affair. Not anymore. I'm totally loving Marcel Wanders' modern wallpaper. I love the concept for these images, as well, that I stumbled upon on Burke Decor.


And while we're on the topic of Marcel Wanders, I'd like to profess my love for this crochet chair. That's all.

lanterns

When the rain let up a little yesterday, I decided to take advantage and run down to Soho to look at stuff for the apartment. My main goal was to buy a collapsible colander/steamer, magnetic measuring spoons and magnetic measuring cups from Crate & Barrel, which I accomplished (love them all, by the way). But I thought I'd explore some of my other favorite stores in the area like Muji, CB2 and Pearl River. At Pearl River, I found these awesome lanterns:

Aren't they just gorgeous? Unfortunately, they're not as wallet-friendly as, say, those ubiquitous paper lanterns which sell for less than $20. That beauty on top was $350, and the cute spherical one at the bottom is about $150, if I remember right. I tried, in vain, to Google wood lanterns but found nothing remotely close to these. If anyone has any tips on cheaper alternatives, please drop me a line before I buckle down and buy one!

Where: Pearl River is located at 477 Broadway between Grand and Broom, NYC.