happy holidays and cheers to all small space lovers :: here's to 2011 ::

Don't you love this home? Small and sweet and the gray fence and poppy red mailbox are amazing! Certainly makes me smile :) While I can't see the front door, I imagine it being red with a modern and stylin wreath on the front.

I hope you all have an awesome and sweet holiday and new years! I am sure I'll be tweeting here and there and posting pics {like this amazing double rainbow from yesterday's break in the rain}. As for posting, I'll be back in January with a little news to share about a new career journey I am taking - I hope you guys come with me (virtually anyway).

xo, rebecca

:: Image via Poppytalk ::

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my best tip for making your small bedroom work for you create your own wall

It's the common small space dilemma in the bedroom - where to put the bed? Too often, the balance of windows, available walls and space seems overwhelming. There definitely are tips you can follow for making your bedroom layout work and my fave - creating your own wall. Yes! By using curtains in the right places, you can actually reinvent the look and feel of this room and find a space for your bed. The curtains add balance to the space and allows you to place your bed, say, partially in front of a window. In other words - fake it! I love this pretty bedroom via Lonny. I imagine that viewing this room bare, you wouldn't imagine that the bed would work right here. By adding the symmetrical curtains (the height works too), the bed and headboard completely work and feels good. Check out another example about using curtains in one of my Apartment Therapy posts right here.

:: Image via Lonny :: 

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one small kitchen | two different design styleschanging your small space decor

If you are like me, then you often enjoy changing up your small space. Whether it's adding an extra side table to flipping your entire layout, changing the look makes you feel good.  I love seeing other people make this work and designer, David Jimenez, definitely has it down. His portfolio shows a Kansas City Carriage House - 2 ways - modern and classic. 

 

Aside from the great design ideas - I love the way he showcases how changing up chairs can change the entire vibe of the space. The small kitchen in this home went from modern to classic by switching seating. While not as affordable as throw pillows, consider changing your chairs when you want to change your design style.

:: images via David Jimenez ::

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design inspiration "The Wizard of Oz" inspires small space style

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Lately I've been catching up on some old favorites - from Sixteen Candles to The Wizard of Oz.  I am definitely all smiley (I still get the chills when the cars leave to reveal Jake Ryan waiting for her at the church) and nostalgic, to say the least.

I was inspired to turn one of the classics - 1939's The Wizard of Oz -  into small space decor. I have seen the film tons of times but I haven't watched it in full in a long time and so enjoyed it on a rainy Saturday night. The colors and texture of the film imagery sure got me in the small space mood. 

I've turned a fab meal into decor right here, a great cocktail into storage ideas right here and shoes into interiors here and here but this is my first film. I hope you enjoy my {small space} modern interpretation pulled straight from this amazing classic. Notice the underlined words as you go...

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1. The Tin Man inspires these stylin products that add texture to a small space. Also, reflective accents {no matter how big or small} allow a space to feel bigger. 

2. This Jonathan Adler pitcher may be a baboon but it was inspired by the flying monkeys in the film. To this day - they still freak me out. But this sweet pitcher - I could live with forever. I would turn this into a vase for my office space. 

3. Loving these stenciled burlap napkins - a la the Scarecrow's scattered style.

4. This blanket {ok, it is a baby blanket *but* I think it could double as any style blanket} is a cool modern look at Dorothy's sweet outfit. By the way, I had read that the outfit was really pink and white but the Technicolor technician ran the film through incorrectly. 

5. This may not be small space decor *but* everyone lovely lady loves this fab gold sequin Vinace top inspired by The Good Witch of the North's insane dress. I would actually drape this over a chair in my small space as an accent too. 

6. Inspired by "a horse of another color", I absolutely love this collection of colored glass bottles - perfect for a display in your small space. Collections of items can pull a small space together .

7. Don't you love these city embroidered pillows? This Kansas one is fab! Throw pillows are one of the most affordable ways to make over your small space while adding color, style and texture. 

8. I always wanted Dorothy's basket. I mean, what was in there??? Instead of a hand held these days, I'd happily take this very modern and cool West Elm magazine basket - perfect to house my warm and cozy throw blankets. 

9. The Wicked Witch's looking glass inspired this cool item - artwork! Add this to your art gallery - very cool!

10. Jonathan Adler's lion pottery. 

11. Tiger's Eye bowl.

12. These abstract silver bear salt and pepper shakers would look very cool on display in your small space. 

13. I love the poppy field the cast runs through as they make their way to emerald city and this sweet ceramic platter is all about that! 

14. Emerald City is the inspiration for this very modern and cool faux malachite credenza. Tons of small space storage right here.

:: Top 3 images snapped on my iphone of MGM's classic, The Wizard of Oz, and lo-mobbed | all others are hyperlinked :: 

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interiors inspired by pretty kate spade shoes

 

With the holiday season in full swing, I can't help but eye the super pretty shoe selection over at kate spade. Who doesn't love a little sparkle in their lives? I was inspired to pull a few of my fave shoes and turn them into an interior and a color story that any small space dweller could pull inspiration from. A few small space tips - 

1) Color works in small spaces! Don't be afraid to add color style to your small space - it will add balance and dimension. Cool tones recede - making a space feel bigger. 

2) Small details add style and dimension.

3) Reflective or mirrored pieces and accents really evolve a small space and make it feel bigger.

4) Symmetry adds balance and makes a small space feel comfortable.

5) Consider your lighting accents - a textured chandelier definitely adds a lot of style and vertical depth.

What are your holiday party plans? And are you all set with your holiday gifts? Click here for loving. living. small.'s ULTIMATE HOLIDAY 2010 GIFT GUIDE ROUND-UP for over 1000 gift ideas - love this!


:: Images 1,2,4,5 via Inspire to Desire and image 3 via Lonny ::



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an easy small space trick leaning accents

 

There really are no *rules* for how you design and set up your space - it's how you *feel* inside your home, right?! :) And I am loving this very easy design style - leaning accents. Just because it's a framed photo or piece of artwork, doesn't mean it has to hang on your wall. Consider stepping outside the design box and lean your accents to create design flow and balance too.

:: sweet image via one of my new fave blogs, Solid Frog ::


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using your walls headboard spotting at the Crosby Street Hotel

Oh la la - do I love these pretty rooms full of small space style at the very cool and stylin' Crosby Street Hotel in New York City! Aside from the pretty pattern and color palettes, I am loving the headboards that adorn each of the rooms. The height is perfect and the square style is simple yet completely impactful. I think the best part about a headboard in a small space is that it provides a true *focal point* and balance. A small space may lack square footage but that doesn't mean you can use bigger or large scale pieces. In my own bedroom, I am thrilled with my own headboard (my big small space DIY from this summer) It adds a design element AND it pulls the space together for a total cohesive vibe - yes! Also, click here to see a time-lapse of the hotel being built through the seasons in New York - very cool!

:: All photos via the Crosby Street Hotel site :: 

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custom tile style at House Industries & Heath Ceramics

After a week long work trip to New York and SF, I finally landed back in sunny and warm Los Angeles on Saturday. My longtime friend invited me to one of her events - this one at Heath Ceramics. Heath collaborated with cool design company, House Industries, for a line of tiles and style and I absolutely loved the work. Featuring Neutra or Eames inspired tiles, the collection looked fantastic and would be a great addition to any space. Aside from the tiles, guests had the opportunity to snap up "exclusive House objects including Heath number tiles, flour sack towels, hand-printed plywood screens and a fresh transcontinental migratory spawn of our one-of-a-kind wooden koi" And I sure did - buying 4 tea towels that were printed right in front of my very eyes by the cool cats at Fresh Pressed. Custom style is such a great way to share your design love and I am really happy with mine. Currently leaning on my new Rose Bowl flea market find {a Parisian-inspired wooden ladder}, my new tea towels tell a story and share some fresh custom style. Click here to enjoy more photos from the event and learn more about type gurus, House Industries. 

:: All photos snapped by me and digitally run through the Lo-Mob app ::

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small space style inspiration from a tiny christmas tree

As a long time ad gal {I've been a commercial & digital producer for thirteen years}, I often see commercials in a different light. Since I work in the biz, I often view commercials beyond the concept. But there's one current TV spot that has definitely caught my small space eye and I really love it! Target's Tiny Christmas tree ad couldn't be cuter (and also shot and edited really well) and I wanted to share it with you guys. 

The :30 story - A cute New Yorker spots a tiny tree in SoHo (my old neighborhood) that is perfect for her small space. She snaps it up and creates a holiday focal point in her small space for her holiday party. Small space style - I love that she uses her ironing board as a bar and her TV as a  faux fireplace. Plus she layers extra seating in front of the credenza for guests. This spot not only has tons of small space ideas but I personally relate to her - that was *me* when I live in NYC a few years ago. Small space dwelling at it's finest in my 325 square foot studio (the inspiration for this blog, in fact). Check out the full spot right here, enjoy the music and small space style - love it!

:: All images via Target's Tiny Xmas Tree :30 ::


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