Giving the Hallway Some Character

So I was finally sick enough of our rather soulless hallway to start shopping for a new rug and implement our wall hanging idea. Here is a reminder of what our hallway looked like before:

Pretty blah. And fairly dangerous since that runner was actually two rugs, so there was a spot in the middle that could trip someone.

Now, it's not so dramatic as some of our changes, but I like what we did this week to improve things. First, a new rug from Overstock.com for under $100 plus, like, $10 for the rug pad:

Much prettier and much less treacherous than before. Also the cat really seems to like it and spends a lot of his time rolling around on it. Bonus!

Second, we figured out a way to hang pictures without doing much damage to the walls. D tapped little nails into the corners and we strung various bits of yarn along them to hold pictures. This way, D can display his hobby: photography, and I can (sort of) display mine: knitting. Also I get a few photos too. The plan is to change these out whenever we want, including for Christmas cards next month or other holiday themes throughout the year:

Hopefully the nails will stay put!

So we're still missing a little table, but at least the hallway has more personality. We decided that we want a small corner quarter circle or triangle table but I'm having trouble finding the exact words to search for one online. The best I could find are on Amazon, but they seem too expensive for what is probably pretty shoddy quality:

Liso

Home Star

Suggestions, as always, are encouraged. (Please? Pretty please?)

Storage Three Ways

June has been a slow month for decorating and repairs, but we revamped three spaces (bedroom, office, and dining room) that I've wanted to show off. The looks are completely different but in the end, all rely on the same sort of shaping element of a storage unit beneath a large, statement piece on the wall.

I've posted pictures of my dresser before, but now we've finally hung the mirror. My very talented mom did the tile work herself. We've already had a ton of compliments on it! The stars (like all the stars scattered around our house) are made of paper with a CFL bulb inside. I've seen them all over the place at independent home decor stores. Oh, and the lamp is Ikea (you didn't think I could design a whole wall without some Ikea product in it, did you?):

Design two is my super-amazing craft space in our office. You may remember from this post that I was planning to buy a cabinet with lots of cubbies. I stuck to the same Alve line by Ikea (yes, more Ikea) that I was originally considering, but what I ended up with is a lot larger and has a lot more space for my supplies. It was a much better value too, at $200 for a a 59-inch-wide wall's worth of storage compared to a petite 16-inch-wide set of drawers for $169. Drawers will always cost more than just a shelf and a couple of doors, and I really didn't need the drawers since my things are already sorted into Rubbermaid boxes. On the wall is my long-awaited world map--something I'd wanted since we lived in an apartment and didn't have enough wall space to hang one.

Lastly, our new sideboard, which is a Craigslist find by a local furniture dealer who refinishes things in lovely colors with distressed finishes. It was quite a splurge, just like the Ikea cabinets, but I think it works really well with the paint color and painting. A big plus for us was that it is very narrow--only 14 inches deep. We had limited space to work with and most sideboards were closer to 20 inches deep, which would make for a very crowded room. I also like that it is low enough to let me display my precious samovar. It looks a little lonely but I'm sure we will find other things to set out. The art is by this guy.