After living in Maui, right next to the rainforest on the Road to Hana, I became enamored with bromeliads, and specifically, air plants.  After all, what’s not to love about a plant that seems to spring out of thin air, requires no soil, and only needs watering in the sink once a week?  Air plants are the “it” plant for 2012, as they have endless display possibilities.

For my first air plant display, I decided to go all out, and I have a dozen air plants, technically called tillandsia, from the air plant supplier Growing Curiosities.  I found their prices to be very reasonable and cheaper than the suppliers on Etsy. I have displayed all of them in one of my vintage library card catalogs, and I think the end result is a botanical cabinet of curiosities!  What do you think?

Here is a closer view of the air plants.  There are so many different species, each with its own texture, color, and style.  I only put the air plants in the top section of the card catalog, as I didn’t want my little one bumping his head on any of the drawers.

And here is a card catalog of mine from many years ago.  Clearly, I’ve always loved putting plants in card catalog drawers, but air plants have allowed me to take it to another level!

Have you too been bitten by the air plant bug?  I’d love to hear!

Laundry rooms and I have always had an eclectic relationship.  When my husband and I lived in the Hollywood Hills, our laundry room was outside on our deck, which was tucked into a gorgeous hillside with trailing leaves and lush foliage.  I loved doing laundry there – until the raccoons decided to live under our deck and torment our dogs.  When we lived on the slopes of Haleakala on Maui, next to the rainforest, our laundry room was also outside, which was fabulous unless the trade winds were not blowing – meaning the mosquitos were biting me as I was sorting our colors.  Now we have a somewhat “normal” laundry room in Los Angeles, which is jammed in a tiny room that dumps us out into the garage, and I’m scrambling to make it a more bearable place amidst dirty socks!

Did you know that the average American household does 400 loads of laundry every year, according to the California Energy Commission?  That means we spend an inordinate amount of time washing, drying, folding, and ironing!  To help make our time in the laundry room as pleasant as possible, I’ve rounded up four charming, vintage inspired laundry rooms that can easily take the pain out of cleaning stains!

From Southern Living comes an enchanting laundry room in a relaxing soft blue (specifically, Sherwin-Williams Waterscape) that is especially lovely on the wood plant walls and ceilings.  Vintage charm from the porcelain enamel pendants makes laundry time lovely both day and night.  Using open shelving with glass jars makes the room feel airy, while lending aesthetic appeal.  With the washing machines and dryer tucked neatly under the black soapstone counter, I would not mind laundry day so much if it were in this charming room!

White and light grays are the perfect backdrop to clean laundry, as beautifully showcased by Cabbages & Roses.  The vintage accents, ranging from the tin sign and wash board to the metal canisters artfully holding detergent, can infuse personality into any laundry room.  I especially love the curtains below the counter, perfectly accenting the deep farmhouse sink.

The vintage industrial ambiance of this laundry room from Elle Décor tops my list!  I just love how the garden room and laundry room can live together so harmoniously.  The deep trough-like sink, vintage bottle drying racks (perfect for drying intimates – genius!), and the fantastic collection of galvanized watering cans make me swoon.

Home & Harmony  has created such a warm, relaxing, and achievable laundry room, and I especially love the vintage industrial touches throughout the room, like the galvanized locker-style baskets and the hanger, which are such genius organizing ideas.  Even the fruit baskets tie in beautifully with the entire feel of the room.

I’m inspired to transform my laundry room dungeon into a place that can cleanse my soul – and our family’s socks.  How about you?

I’ve been immersed in so many projects, which will be fun projects to share here soon and a site redesign and very exciting announcement – along with a new way for buyers and sellers of library card catalogs to connect through Poetic Home!

For those who are knitters, you may enjoy some of my posts over on KnittingYarn.com, where I am a contributing blogger.  My first post was about repurposed knitting yarn storage ideas that I hope you too may find inspirational, whether for organizing your knitting yarn or other crafty supplies.  How could I not start with a repurposed post?  It’s in my bones!

Some of my favorite repurposed storage ideas that I share on Knitting Yarn include bits+bobbins‘ library card catalog sewing center, as seen above, along with the antique china cabinet that ABC Dragoo used to gorgeously display the rainbow of knitting yarn on spindles, as seen below.

I wish everyone a wonderful start to 2012 and look forward to resuming poetic posts soon!

The chesterfield sofa is an iconic furniture piece that exudes sophistication, wisdom, and comfort all at the same time.  If you have ever wondered just how these pieces are made – and why they last for so many decades – just take a look at the step-by-step, handmade process that goes into each one of these creations by The Original Sofa Co. in the UK. 

Every fine chesterfield starts out as a lovely sketch.

The hardwood frames are handcut, and then the construction officially begins.

Don’t forget the padding for years and years of comfort!

I love how this process is literally sewn by hand!

Here comes the tufts or which chesterfields are famous.

And voila!  A true masterpiece ready to grace any den or study for decades.

Update:  As of 7/31/11, this lovely card catalog has sold!

Card catalog enthusiasts in Florida are in luck today!  Originally from the Winter Park Florida Public Library, this 1940s card catalog for sale is an impressive piece, standing 5 ft wide and 4 ft 9 inches tall.  The library retired this lovely piece in 1997 when it went digital, but now it can enjoy a new repurposed life in a happy home.  I’ve always wanted a large card catalog cabinet like this in my home, one that could really be the focal point of a room, making its presence known.

This card catalog for sale has 107 drawers, rather than the original 108.  However, there is a plaque, noting the history of the piece, that comes with the card catalog that can be placed over any drawer space you desire.  (In the photos, it has been placed on the very bottom right).

The listing price for this piece is $845.  I’ve seen card catalogs of this size go for $1,000 or more, so if you have always wanted a gorgeous card catalog of this scale, then this is a good deal.  Those interested in purchasing the card catalog for sale can contact Elaine. The card catalog has sold! She lives in the Orlando, Florida area, specifically in the city of Oviedo, near the campus of University of Central Florida.

As always, I would LOVE to see and feature photos of the card catalog in your home!

What better way to bring warmth and history to your bedroom than with a reclaimed DIY wood headboard? Whether you use pallets (be sure to first read my post on potential toxicities in pallets, though!), ancient redwood, or the discarded wood siding of your neighbor’s farmhouse, the result of using salvaged wood is always original. Just add a regular mattress or an Ergoflex memory foam mattress, and you’ll be ready for sweet dreams!

A Formal Feeling Comes saw her neighbor discarding their wood siding and thought it would be the perfect material to create a unique headboard – and she was right!   While the original one she created was rectangular, she jigsawed her way into stylish lines and a special headboard for her mattress.

From old fence boards comes a gorgeous, character filled headboard by House Tweaking.  This is certainly the ultimate love bed!

Playing with the size of this headboard creates a dramatic piece made of salvaged wood, by laure at home.  I really like how the headboard frames the mattress generously.

This DIY pallet headboard from Stylizmo has garnered quite a bit of blogging attention, and certainly for good reason.  I love the muted colors and how easy of a DIY this is.  It leaves you with lots of extra money to splurge on a good mattress!

Yes, this is like inviting an entire tree to live in your bedroom, but why not?  As a DIY, this project would be quite a stretch, but I know my modern husband would love this creating by Hudson Furniture to be our bedroom set.

From ancient redwood trees comes this awe-inspiring headboard by Urban Hardwoods that showcases the true, raw beauty of nature.  I’ve seen a few of these headboards here on Maui and love how every nook and cranny of Mother Nature is left intact.  I’ve actually seen pieces of wood like this at a ReStore for $50 – $100…no kidding!  Just mount the headboard, and you’ve got a jaw dropping DIY headboard.

Every fabulous bathroom needs its own clawfoot bathtub!  If you are feeling daring for your bathroom suites and cloakroom suites, then a pop of color on your tub may suit your fancy perfectly.  Enjoy the rainbow of vintage clawfoot bathtubs I have assembled and enjoy bathing in full technicolor!

This home in the Pacific Palisades by Jackson Paige Interiors exudes style with its red clawfoot tub in the master suite.  Oh la la!

Who knew that orange could look so charming on a clawfoot?  This particular hue seen in Marie Claire Maison is cheerful yet sophisticated.

This yellow clawfoot bathtub coupled with the ruffled shower curtain win the award for most charming bathing ensemble, seen via DesignSponge!

I love the apothecary feel of this vintage inspired bathroom from Marie Claire Italy.  Is it just me, or are many of these tubs on hardwood floors?  I wonder if I could ever feel so courageous with my flooring!

Flea market style meets the French countryside in this lovely bathroom photographed by William P. Steele.

This is but a bathroom that would make Prince proud, via Desire to Inspire!

Mantles are such gorgeous pieces of architectural salvage, just begging to be repurposed into headboards.  Enjoy these DIY ideas that may have you sleeping under a mantle soon enough!

For a reupholstered mantle headboard, clear DIY instructions can be found by the OG DIY Queen Martha Stewart., and you can find brief DIY instructions at BlueCreekHome, whose lovely project is featured above.

I really liked the OldPaintedCottage‘s interpretation of the repurposed mantle, as you still feel the essence of the mantle in how she decorated it.

Hortons of Tipton via FrenchLarkspur not only repurposed a beautiful mantle into a headboard, but created the loveliest canopy bed using branches!

It does not get more romantic than this, as seen via Cottage Magpie!

In true Maison Reve style, this mantle was beautiful repurposed and looks fantastic next to the other architectural salvage pieces.

Who knew bunkbeds could be so sophisticated?  The moldings, thoughtful staircase, and muted colors make this built-in bunkbed wall tres chic.  (I lost the photo source on this one…if you know who the designer is, please let me know so I can add the credit!).

 

 

The right piece can be the bunk bed that launched a thousand (make believe) ships!  I like how this pirate-inspired bunk bed has antique aged brass portholes, but still fits in well with a room’s decor without being too themed.  This is also from the collection of wooden bunk beds at BunkBeds.net.

This vintage 1975 bunkbed by Luigi Colani is simply ingenious.  The desk feels intimate yet productive, while the chalkboard hides the closet – perfect for small spaces.

And just to put a smile on your face, here’s another repurposed luggage cat bed from the Etsy shop lovenotsalgicwhimsy, but this time in a bunkbed fashion, complete with baseballs for feet.  Who says our felines can’t enjoy bunkbed fun too?

When you no longer need bunk beds, what can you do with such a large piece of furniture?  Repurpose them into sofas or daybeds, but of course!  Designer Deborah Parks took bunkbeds and repurposed them into sofas for her sleeping porch, as seen in the 2010 Decorators’ Showhouse.

Great furniture design transcends not only time, but its original form.  Let me illustrate with four examples of iconic chair and sofa designs – and how they beautifully translate into beds!   From chesterfields to Eames, it is clear that these antique and vintage designs live happily both in living rooms and bedrooms.

While Pltrona Frau’s white chesterfield sofa is a recent design, the chesterfield itself is as iconic as an antique sofa gets!  Of course, the chesterfield is beautifully interpreted as a bed, which is the Kensington from the collection of faux leather beds by Our World of Interiors.   Remember, not any button-tufted headboard will do, as the gently wrapped lines of the chesterfield are just as important.

The chesterfield button style combines with the classic wingback chair to create a piece that stands the test of time — and different rooms.  This wingback chesterfield chair from Sevens becomes a lovely headboard for a bed, which is the Sandringham, again from the collection of leather beds from Our World of Interiors.  This type of darker leather chesterfield inspired bed is great for a gentleman’s room or even a modern couple’s bedroom.

The Eames Lounger is one of the most iconic and coveted mid-century modern pieces.  If you want your pup to have as exquisite MCM taste as you do, then the Vurv Ellipse dog bed fits the bill!  This is the perfect canine sleeping interpretation of the Eames Lounger.  Wouldn’t it look lovely at the foot of your bed in your mid-century modern inspired bedroom?

Modernica’s Case Study Alpine Bed takes the beautiful, iconic lines of the Eames bentwood chair and turns it into a work of art for your bedroom.  I appreciate how the design thoughtfully translates the feet and curves, but I do think the headboard could have paid a bit more homage to Eames.  Nonetheless, it is a lovely bedroom interpretation of the Eames bentwood chair.

I’d love to hear about any chair-to-bed transformations you’ve seen – or would like to see!