After nine long years of living in a little shoe box, this summer I finally moved into a ... slightly larger shoe box. You might say that if my previous pad was a box for delicate sandals, my new flat is perhaps a box for boots. But not very tall boots, mind you. I love New York!

Anyway, this new box has opened a real can of worms. I've always pined for a new space to decorate, but now that I have the opportunity, I'm a bit frozen. So many options! So much possibility! So little cash! But seriously, I have total fear of commitment with these things, and I am moving slowly. I've been in the new space for almost 7 months, and so far we've:

-cleared out/sold almost all of the furniture we don't want or need
-painted everything but the bathrooms and hallway, and some remaining doors and window trim
-basically removed about 80% of the bachelor build-up, so that we're ALMOST at a blank slate and ready to start making decor choices.

Exciting! Here's what's inspiring me today.



Amy Butler has just released her new season of fabrics. They are gorgeous, of course. In my last home I was a bit of a neutral freak - it was so small and packed-in, that neutrals and solids were the only way to create any semblance of calm. Now, I crave pops of bold prints. I want curtains, I want upholstery, I want throw pillows! And these fabrics are speaking to me. I like that they're a little flamboyant but not too feminine in color. (I do live with a straight man, after all.)



How cool are these fabric silhouettes? So simple, but amazing. A and I just went through our pile of frames to decide what to keep and what to donate, and I definitely want to fill a couple of them using this idea. Lucky for us, Amy's giving away the pattern free on her site. (Lots of other free patterns there too, so check it out!) This idea could be adapted in so many ways - great for using scraps of fabric or even patterned paper, and just about any shape you can trace and enlarge. (I see a deer head in my future! Hmm, or an alpaca, perhaps a cuckoo clock...)

I'm working on posting some "before" pics of the apartment, and looking forward to sharing many "after" shots soon. Stay tuned!