decorating

(No, not the TV show, though you can still hear my Mom say “More power, Tim!” randomly.) Earlier this week, I installed part one of a two part system that I hope will improve life in my apartment this winter — adding lights and a curtain to the stairway/entryway.

For those who haven’t been here, my apartment is the top floor of a three-floor Baltimore row home (basement & first floor belong to the downstairs neighbor, and I have the second/top floor). I have my own entrance on the side of the house, and when I unlock my door I am at the first-floor level (the house is built into a hill, so there are steps up to get to that point). As soon as I open my door, I have a flight of stairs up to the top floor where all the living space of my apartment is.

Last winter, I discovered that the apartment is very, very drafty. There are (chintzy) double-paned windows (except in the bathroom, which is still an old single-paned), none of which have a complete seal. In fact, there is one in the kitchen were a strip of wood has been nailed on to the sill because the gap between sill and sash is an inch at one end. The door also does not seal completely. The windows were not shrink-wrapped last winter when I moved in, and so while I will certainly do that this winter, I can’t exactly shrink-wrap the door. Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s a look at a very cool little project I finally got around to earlier this week. This is just a length of twine tied to three finishing nails, with some clothespins to hang up the cards. Half of the wall is dedicated to “old(ish) but awesome” and half to “most recently received.” This is in my hallway, so I see it several times every day (although really, I could put it anywhere in my place and I’d see it every day, but let’s not get into the logistics of one-bedroom apartment living). That also means that it will be hard to get good pictures of it, since I can’t back up to take them, and the light situation will never be all that great. But, you get the gist. Click through to Flickr to see a version with notes bearing details on who the current cards & notes are from, and also to look at a much larger version.

Some friends who either have excellent taste in cards or write awesome messages are featured more than once. Please feel free to start a competition among yourselves to see who can get the most cards featured. Read the rest of this entry »