MANTLE

Our new apartment has a rather large, wooden mantle over an elaborate fireplace. Since the apartment is so small, I want to keep the decorations as simple as possible, but not have it look bare. In need of some inspiration, I (obvs) went to pinterest. Some looks that I like:

And I love this for Christmas:

If only we could have a fire in the fireplace...

101 DALMATIANS

I'm sporting the look of a dalmatian today, and thought it would be fun to see how these spots and dots can be used in fashion and design (in a non-Cruella DeVil way).

EMMY INSPIRED

While I didn't watch the actual award show last night, I did tune in for part of the red carpet pre-show. There were many gorgeous dresses and gowns from every shade of the rainbow, but some of the most striking were the chartreuse and neon yellow numbers:

BACK AT IT

Still getting settled in the new apartment, but finally starting to get into the swing of things. We are still unpacking and decorating our small space, and I am still looking for a bit of inspiration. I love these spaces and will definitely look to them for some ideas as we continue to make this apartment home!

*images via Pinterest

WE ARE IN!

All of our stuff is officially in the new apartment, but it is a cluttered mess. It will definitely take some creativity to make everything fit functionally, but I have faith. And although our apartment is tiny, it could be smaller. These pictures make me feel a bit more confident in our situation...these people worked with much less space, and came up with creative and stylish solutions.

*images via pinterest

NEW BEGINNINGS

The countdown is on - 6 days until the official move...

Chaos = my current apartment. Looking forward to getting in the new place and starting fresh. Since the space is so tiny, I know we will be driven to be more organized and tidy...don't have much of a choice! Some organizationally inspiring photos that I will try to keep in mind when unpacking next week:

SMALL SPACES: LIVING ROOM

A few months ago, after signing the lease for my new apartment, I started to post about small space solutions (here and here), because I knew I would need some inspiration. Well, the countdown is on: 1 month until the big move, and time to seriously figure out how to make the small apartment as spacious, functional, and inviting as possible.

I like the clever placement of ottomans under the coffee table, which are out of the way but easily accessible for extra seating when guests come over. If there is storage space in the ottomans, even better!

Using an ottoman as the coffee table is another solution. Topped with a tray, it can hold your remotes and beverages, but also serve as extra seating.

The use of shelving can add much needed storage space, but still look nice.