Lower Shelf of a Console Table: Baskets, Books and Beyond
I currently own eleven baskets whose entire job in life is to sit on the bottom shelf of my console table. Eleven. I counted them last week while my roommate…
The Top Shelf of a Bookcase: Display Space, Not Reach Space
I own eleven objects whose entire job is to sit on top of a bookcase and be looked at. Eleven. I counted them last week while standing on a dining…
The Wall Above a Sideboard: Mirrors, Art and Shelves
My wife walked into the dining room, took one look at the wall above our sideboard, and just said, “Ben. What is happening up there.” Which was fair, because at…
Wall Sconces: Bulbs, Shades and Placement
I count them properly maybe twice a year, usually right before my husband asks why the hall closet won’t shut, and the number currently sits at fourteen. Fourteen wall sconces,…
Accent Wall Colors for a Light Gray Room
Odette stood in my dining room doorway with her coat still on, looked at the strip of blue green paint I’d rolled onto one wall, and said, “Isla, did you…
Glass Coffee Tables: Living With the Fingerprints
I wipe down my coffee table somewhere between six and ten times a day. I know this because I started counting one particularly bad week in February, mostly out of…
TV Stand Shelves: What Goes On Them Besides the TV
I counted it once, out of boredom more than curiosity, and the number stuck with me: I open or reach into my own TV stand shelves about nine times a…
Entertainment Center Shelves Without the Clutter
Okay so my roommate Marcus walked into the living room, looked at the entertainment center for a solid four seconds, and said “why does it look like a TV showroom…
The Wall and Ceiling Space Above a Wardrobe
I bought four wicker baskets and a fake trailing plant for the top of my first proper wardrobe, in my first proper apartment in Somerville, because a magazine told me…
Choosing a Wardrobe for Plain White Walls
I was standing in the middle of my own spare room with a pencil behind my ear and a roll of blue tape in my hand, marking out where things…