Posted by Megan Jeyifo | March 10, 2010, 7:43 am | Permalink
I have to admit, I’d never heard of a stock-the-bar-party until last week. A co-worker mentioned that he was having one as a housewarming and my ears perked up. Cocktails, friends and you wake up with a full bar? Yes!
So, you’re going to have one? Me too. Since your friends are bringing the alcohol, you can provide the fixins’.
recipe cards from 1canoe2
1. Have a batched cocktail made beforehand. You can even make recipe cards of your specialty drink for folks to take home. Keep an eye on ReadyMade’s twitter and watch for the Friday afternoon drink recipes for ideas.
2. Beer. Some of your friends may want to stick with hops. May I suggest Goose Island’s Matilda? Or perhaps Lakefront Brewery’s Riverwest Stein? Not much can compete with Midwestern beer. Serve your friends the good stuff.
3. Glassware. Don’t use big red plastic cups. You’re old enough to drink and old enough to know better; they’re bad for the environment and a bad look for you. How about these Ribbon Old Fashioned glasses from NotNeutral?
4. Ice! Don’t forget the ice.
Add music, something for your guests to nibble on and maybe even a game of Taboo. Your bar is now stocked.
Please invite me to the next party. You’re going to need an excuse to get rid of all of that liquor.
Posted by Sonia Zjawinski | March 9, 2010, 7:27 am | Permalink
I was introduced to the cat hammock years ago when doing kitty rescue work in Brooklyn, New York. A fellow rescuer took in one of my rescues while I was on vacation and when I came back I found Gizmo (the big boned dude in my sisal cat scratcher post) sprawled out on a little hammock within a small dog crate—cat condos, as they’re called, are great when socializing street cats. Her DIY cat hammock involved old pillow cases or strips of fabric tied to the sides of the crate, but the cuts in the fabric that allow you to tie the hammock to the crate tend to rip further and further under a cat’s weight.
[Read more →]
Posted by Chris Gardner | March 8, 2010, 1:00 pm | Permalink
It’s amazing how, in any given room, plenty of money is sunk into the little things. Sure, your sofa or dining table may be the most expensive home decor item you own, but that $20.00 can of paint totally sets the space apart. And properly arranging a room doesn’t cost anything. ‘Cause inexpensive items, techniques, textures, etc, can actually make a huge difference. Here are five DIY wall art projects that don’t require much cash or work, and can totally transform your space.
(Okay…that sounded a little too HGTV television host-ish, but still, these projects are pretty cool.)
1. CD Case Wall Art – Photojojo via Country Living. Haven’t taken the plunge and tossed out all your CD jewel cases, even though your catalog is on your iPod? Great! Upcycle them into this geometric mural. Just grab a high resolution photo, size it to the included dimensions, chop it up, print it out, insert, and hang…just be sure to use a level. 
2. Paper Silhouette Art – Time Out New York. This one’s super fun, cause you can customize your silhouettes to 1) show off your friends and 2) to match your space: serious, playful, nostalgic, artsy, lascivious, you name it. Just cut out the figures, trace them onto black paper, and hang them in spraypainted black frames in a clever, dynamic arrangement.
3. Easy Photo Wall on Shoestring…er, Wire Budget – Curbly.com. This project is perfect if have a set of particularly good looking friends (which you do, of course), or are a photographer that actually knows what she’s doing. For a half day of work and around $60, its perpetually adaptable and easy to change…for when you meet even better looking people, or become one of those photographers.
4. Wall Circles – Mid-Century-Modern.net. The inner circle of an embroidery hoop + spray paint = instant mod-ification.
5. Gift-Wrapped Walls – The Nest. Lastly, take advantage of the bold, graphic prints of modern gift wrap. Select a shape, lay it out, and throw it up. It’s like custom wallpaper with no messy paste.
Posted by Megan Jeyifo | March 8, 2010, 7:24 am | Permalink
photo credit: toodeloo!
I have a serious fabric obsession. I frame it, stitch it, stamp it, staple it, stretch it and even jot notes on it with Sharpies for a soft-feeling notecard. I haven’t developed the same passion for oilcloth yet, but the more projects I see, the more I feel the need to cover every surface with the stuff. Originally used as floor covering, modern-day oilcloth has tons of practical applications for your home and it’s not all patterned with flowers and fruits.
photo credit: darlingclementine
To update an old table, simply stretch your oilcloth over the surface area and get to stapling. The patterns in these two table projects pep up each space and are a good pet-friendly alternative to tablecloths for those of us who own beasts with chewing habits. I covet table linens at thrift stores on a weekly basis but they wouldn’t last ten minutes with my pup.
photo credit: wynzia
How great is this chair cover? Wynzia told Apartment Therapy how she did it: “The chair seats are removable by taking out a few screws on the underside of the chair. I ordered this fun oilcloth fabric from Denver Fabrics. Using the removed chair seat as my pattern, I first figured out my pattern placement. Then, I cut around the seat but added approximately 2″ extra; this allowed me to have enough fabric to wrap around and staple to the back of the seat. I used my heavy-duty stapler for the task of attaching the fabric, pulling the oilcloth snugly, but watching to ensure that I kept the pattern centered. Then, I reattached with the screws on the underside of the chair, and stood back to admire my handiwork.”
photo credit: Koneil Kinson
Placemats are a no-brainer use for oilcloth. Wipe up your spills and keep it moving, no washing machine required. Koneil Kinson posted a super easy Flickr tutorial on how to make these picnic roll-ups just in time for Spring.
photo credit: a little busy
Put oilcloth to work as shelf-liner in your kitchen, pantry or bathroom. I’m betting stuff slides around a teensy bit but at least you’ll have more nifty designs to choose from than you would in the contact paper aisle at Office Depot.
For more projects with oilcloth check out this tutorial round-up from Oilcloth Addicts.
To Purchase Oilcloth
Fabric Worm
The Needle Shop
RRMexicoSupply
Posted by claire | March 5, 2010, 7:21 am | Permalink
Garth and I have been on a quest to find and creatively reuse old or discarded objects in our kitchen makeover. We hope that the result of our labor is a unique kitchen that is very functional. Alas, finding the right item to reuse can be tricky when we are problem solving. This was the case when we decided to replace the wall sconces next to the windows. The wall sconces that graced our kitchen walls when we moved in were not offensive, but as we began to pull the room together it became obvious that we should investigate other options.
Not knowing much about wiring a lamp myself, I ran to all the light fixture stores I could think of (this didn’t take too long, as we don’t live in a big town). Nothing felt inspired enough to go on our walls.
Garth and I began to brainstorm what type of object we could re-purpose into wall sconces. Mason jars? Bottles? Cans? Hmmm. I headed to the source for all things handmade: Etsy.com. It didn’t take long for us to discover an Etsy shop that we fell in love with called lightexture. Their self-description reads:
ClayLight Simple from lightexture
lightexture is a collaboration between an architect and a lighting designer, We work together to explore light through the construction of lighting fixtures.
In our light construction we incorporate ready-made objects, lighting components, pottery by ceramic artist Sharan Elran and more. The lamps are fitted and assembled by hand in our studio. One of our goals is to create energy efficient fixtures, while maintaining our focus on their atmospheric and spatial performance.
Not only were all the lamps in this shop interesting, the light each piece casts is artful and exciting. We were sold on the SteamLight Sconces almost at once, which are made from steamer baskets. The re-purposed cooking tools felt like the perfect thing to hang in our kitchen. These lights have the added bonus of opening and closing to allow more or less light into the room while casting amazing shadows on the wall.
Although I am committed to doing things ourselves as much as possible, I also love to support people who make amazing and beautiful things way better than I could. This is definitely the case in this situation. We placed our order and received our sconces in a very timely fashion. If I wasn’t already in love with the object, the packaging certainly helped—each sconce was beautifully packaged in recycled cardboard boxes with a small, silver stamped image of the lamp on top. It felt like Christmas.
Installing them did not seem to difficult (though I admit, you have to ask Garth about that)—they came with very clear instructions to follow. In no time we had new sconces on the wall.
Check out lightexture’s other website, which includes animations of how these amazing lights work.
While you do that, we will be having a SteamLight disco party in our kitchen.
Posted by Megan Jeyifo | March 4, 2010, 7:05 am | Permalink
Well, hi! I’m Megan Jeyifo, a new contributor to Inside, Out! So nice to meet you.
I’m representing both Chicago, where I currently reside, and Milwaukee, where I was born and raised. I’ve lived quite a few places but always end up returning to great cities on Great Lakes. Midwest is absolutely best in my not-so-humble opinion, and you can expect to see me touting it pretty frequently.
I have my own little slice of the interwebs over at Urban Casita. Started last fall, Urban Casita celebrates cities and urban living with a hefty dose of home/apartment decor, some DIY, stories of thrifted treasures and pretty imagery meant to inspire and engage.
Ten-cent vintage restaurant ware from the junk store, anyone?
When I’m not blogging you can find me wandering Chicago thrift and hardware stores looking for objects to repurpose and vintage goodies to decorate with on the cheap.
I’ll be posting neat ideas and projects for your house and apartment, some cool interiors and hopefully, a little bit of everything that makes a home feel like a home. Have decorating tips? Especially for apartments? Clue me in! Maybe you want to share a project you’re working on for Spring? Email me and let’s talk about it.
So looking forward to spending time here; see you soon!
Posted by Chris Gardner | March 1, 2010, 8:34 am | Permalink
The McMansion set have it made—sprawling three- and four-car garages and 2,000-square-foot basements to house all the tools and materials and supplies one could ever need. But the rest of us have the need to create, too, which means we need a place to hang and organize our tools on a much smaller scale.
Instructables user SensoryHouse found this rolling pegboard cart at Overstock.com for an unbelievable, totally NOT overstock-ly price of $980.00. Thinking to himself, as most ReadyMakers would, “that’s a sheet of pegboard on wheels…” he made it happen on his own, instead.
Their design involves welding the frame, but 1/2″ galvanized pipe and connectors would work just as well, or you could try modding a clothes rack or a pre-made garage organizer from the home store.
Everyone deserves to be organized…especially those who are proud of their small square footage, and are pumped to remake 1,000 products on the cheap.
[Build a Pegboard Tool Cart :: Instructables]
Posted by Sonia Zjawinski | February 26, 2010, 6:19 am | Permalink
After my husband and I threw down 600 bucks on a new couch we knew we had to do something about the cats. Since kitten pie was out of the question, we thought to invest in a scratching post that was so enticing, even the couch would no longer appeal. Unfortunately, when I went to the pet store, the sisal cat scratcher I’ve always wanted was priced at $70. Um, no. Sorry. Luckily, a few days later my husband came home with all the ingredients to make the ultimate sisal and carpet cat scratcher. Here’s how we did it.
[Read more →]
Posted by Garth | February 24, 2010, 10:08 am | Permalink
Oh Flaming Lips, how do I love thee? I’ve probably seen them a half dozen times over the years. They never give less than 100% when they play live. The band is actually a cottage industry, employing longtime friends and family to help with lighting, rigging, confetti cannons, costumes and props. They always supply a massive dose of delight for their fans as Wayne Coyne, the singer, rolls through the crowd in a giant inflatable gerbil ball or pulls dozens of furry-costumed fans waving flashlights onto the stage.
It should come as no surprise that his house is just as awesome as his shows.
Courtesy of the New York Times
Wayne and his wife Michelle live in a huge brick compound in Oklahoma City that dates back to 1936. They bought the house, which is located in a down-at-heels neighborhood, in 1992 for $20,000. The Coynes have been spiffing up the joint for the past few years. They hired Oklahoma City’s Fitzsimmons Architects to help them with some interiors, but in typical Flaming Lips style, they hired local craftsmen to do most of the work. The hacked desk lamp chandelier is also a work of pure genius.
[Read more →]
Posted by claire | February 22, 2010, 9:08 am | Permalink
When we finished drywalling and painting in our kitchen, I noticed that there were two awkward, large hooks on the wall near the sink. No thank you, I thought as I grabbed a screwdriver and took them down.
As I dried some dishes a day later, I realized what the hooks were for—dishtowels. Hmmmm. I wanted to find a smaller, more interesting solution for hanging towels on the wall.
Garth and I have been on a creative reuse kick in the kitchen, we are trying to repurpose kitchen-related items in cleaver ways. Several weeks earlier I noticed that one of our favorite antique stores had a basket of old silver forks, spoons, and knives for a dollar a piece. Suddenly this seemed like the perfect (and thrifty) solution to my dishtowel dilemma.
I picked out a couple of spoons and a small spreading knife and got to work. I clamped the bowl of a spoon in our shop vise and cranked it until it was flat. Next, I clamped the arched neck of the spoon in the vise and squeezed it flat as well. Now that the entire spoon was flattened I used the vise to hold it tight while I slowly, carefully, bent the spoon handle backwards (this way when it was hung on the wall the decorative edge of the handle would face out). Finally, I used a wood/metal drill bit to drill three holes in the flattened bowl of the spoon.
Ta-da! I made a dishtowel hook that was ready to hang. I repeated this process for my other spoon and the spreading knife.
Making three hooks took me about fifteen minutes.
I took a look on Etsy (because turning old utensils into something else is no new idea) and found a seller out of Wisconsin making hooks and other exciting objects out of old cutlery for very reasonable prices. If you aren’t into trolling antique stores to find your own vintage utensils take a look at JJEvensenArt and support a crafter who is committed to repurposing!
Image from JJEvensArt
Posted by Sonia Zjawinski | February 19, 2010, 9:19 am | Permalink
A few years ago Victoria Smith started silkscreening reproductions of the British World War II era motivational poster “Keep Calm and Carry On” and selling them on Etsy. The prints became a huge hit and seemed to show up in every home I went to or looked at on interior design sites.
Since there’s nothing worse than a one-hit wonder, Victoria recently released a new poster, this time aimed at dog owners.
Her 11-by-14 inch prints are hand silkscreened in jet black ink with the saying “Please Let me be the Person My Dog Thinks I am.” Boy, how many times have I worried about this very sentiment when our pup was alive!
[via Dog Milk]
Posted by Chris Gardner | February 18, 2010, 8:24 am | Permalink
I haven’t decided what’s coolest about “Sweet Dream” by Nothing Design Group. All I know is…
1) It can be used to cover your face to create a cozy tent that keeps the light out whilst you snooze.
2) While you’re tucked inside, it makes you look as if you’re rocking a fine moustache and some buttkickin’ Buddy Holly glasses.
3) If you get the red one, it’ll look like there’s a big ole smiley dude hanging out on your bed during the day.
4. When the smiley dude starts creeping you out, it can be flipped inside out, and remain fully functional.
Oh, and I know something else. I’m totally getting one.
[Via DsgnWrld]
Posted by Chris Gardner | February 16, 2010, 9:20 am | Permalink
Dateline 1995: Thirteen-year-old me walks out of the local shopping mall novelty gift shop with an inflatable ottoman, in burgundy velour, only to take it home and find out there’s a hole in it. I convince my older sister to take me back a few days later, and the clerk, in super ’90s gold framed glasses, tells me “Sorry, we no longer carry those. They’re outta style.” So, I was pretty sure I’d never see any again…I mean, the lady at the mall said they weren’t cool, right?
Turns out, it’s not true at all. With this crazy thing popping up on Google ads everywhere, I took a look around to see what else was out there.
Polish design firm Malafor showcased the “Blow Sofa” at IMM Cologne a few weeks ago. It’s made from 100% recycled paper bags, then attached with giant rubber bands to a collapsible metal frame. See more at bookofjoe.
From Oliver Gregoire, the Eclosion, below, features an adjustable backrest angle, depending on how inflated it is.
The Recycool series features several designs, all created from recycled inner tubes:
And on the consumer end of the spectrum, the Ozone Lounger takes a cue from the rec room bean bag, and includes built-in speakers, all for £9.99:
What do you think? Is the return of inflatable furniture a welcome trend, or is the stuff better off if it stays in the dorm rooms of the world?
Posted by Sonia Zjawinski | February 12, 2010, 12:09 pm | Permalink
Our cats are indoor only. They have been since I rescued them off the streets of Brooklyn. With things like traffic, feline leukemia, and rat poisons it’s just too scary out there, even for street smart kitties. Every time I host an outdoor BBQ at my apartment I plaster the back door with signs warning partygoers what would happen to them if they let any of the cats out.
Perhaps the sign below would have been much more appropriate.
Sarah Fortman, an animal lover with radical cat tattoos, had this beauty made by the California-based Made for Glory Signs. Derek McDonald and Scott La Rock (how awesome of a last name is that?) will custom build and hand paint any sign you want.
[Image by Sarah Fortman]
Posted by Sonia Zjawinski | February 11, 2010, 2:07 pm | Permalink
Well hello there! I’m Sonia and I’m the newest recruit to ReadyMade’s gang of bloggers. I’m a self professed cat lady, but as you can see from the photo above, I do like me some doggies too. In December of ‘09 my best friend and I launched our own pet blog where we could wax on and on about pets. Through the countless hours of “research” I’ve done for Pawesome, I’ve come across quite a few creative and unique ways people live with and celebrate their pets. I’m hoping to share some of those projects and ideas here. If you have any pet projects you’d like to share you can email them to me and your creative juices just might get the spotlight on Inside, Out.
When I’m not writing I sell t-shirts to help animals in need. You may recognize that sweet mug above, not mine. That’s Lulu, famed tripod of the I Heart Tripods charity shirts.
It’s awesome (or should I say, pawesome!) to meet you. Hope we can all geek out on furry, feathery, and scaly things together.
love + licks,
sonia
