places, everyone.

[i accidentally posted this a few days early, when it was half-done :-/ if it showed up in your feed prematurely... so sorry!]

so i finished painting that plastic collage frame (see the post here) but still needed to give it a good home.

as an aside, it's always funny to me that on many of the design/decor blogs, so many people have the problem of too much space... i.e. large empty walls that need to be warmed up with the right lovely art or photos or accessories.

i wish i had that problem. i'd paint a mural! [ok, maybe i wouldn't really... quick childhood story... when i was a teenager, i drew out a whole vine of leaves along one wall of my room with the intention of painting a mural.... i just know that you'll be surprised to learn that i never finished the sketch, let along got to the painting stage. how did i not see the writing on the wall??? pun intended.]

i do not have the problem of too much space... i have the problem of too little space. i have the problem of boxes that are still unpacked because there's nowhere to put our stuff. have i mentioned that our apartment is a one bedroom with only 450 sq ft? some of you have a master bedroom that's larger my my whole home. oh the things i would do with so much space... i would dance around, and do aerobics... i would paint murals, and listen to my echo... i can't really think of anything else right now that i would do, but there would be things to be done. believe you me.

this is how i feel in my current situation:

just roll the top back and climb in.

ok, enough complaining. the real point of this post is that i've got the (seemingly unique) challenge of making our sardine can of an apartment seem open and airy, instead of cramped and cluttered.

before i repainted the collage frame, it hung on a very well-populated wall, over our desk:


sorry that you can't see the collage because of the angle, and all the stuff piled high in the way. before you call up "hoarders," just realize that a) this is all school books and files [ugh. stuff we need to keep. one of these days, i'll devise a method for making it look prettier] and b) i took this photo when this space was "as is." it's actually a bit more organized now. chalk it up to me "being real" with you.

anyway, that wall just has a *lot* of stuff on it... the two bookshelves with lots of colors intermingled, and then the collage... also with lots of colors... it was just a bit visually overwhelming.

instead of hanging the collage where it was, i thought about layering it behind the shorter bookshelf (on the left in the photo), to create some open space in the center above the desk. here's a shot:


i'm thinking the same way vertical stripes draw your eyes up, stacking the collage behind the bookshelf will make the room seem longer and taller... and maybe bigger?? i never would have layered things behind each other like this before... but now, i'm kinda liking it...

i need to take a shot of this wall straight on so that you can see the way this balances with the larger bookshelf on the other side of the desk, but my sewing machine (and projects) are currently in the way. [i want to be real, but not too real... know what i mean?] i'll have to post it once i finish the slipcover :)

so what do you think??

{edit::: linking to the shabby chic cottage :) , house of hepworths :) and tatertots and jello :)}