stand and deliver

so i know some of you, just like me, love the idea of bar carts as functional and aesthetic flair for a living room, dining room...i'll even go out on a limb and say office or bedroom too. well a few months ago, i lamented how there is a real dearth (yeah, i said it, dearth) of affordable options that don't look totally cheesy and like they come out of a flat box.

well, it's as if cb2 heard my complaint and came up with the formosa tray table (to be real, they might have had this before my complaints, but just go with me). for under $50, this is a great, chic solution to this much-needed fabulosity of a bar cart, and its pared down scale makes it a great (and portable) fit, even in the smallest of apartments.




it's also a way more stylish fill-in for a snack table which there is just really no place for in a well-dressed home. some other uses that come to mind...night stand, key table, side table...


this is no one night (table and) stand.

all photos from cb2

stretch it out

how great is this weathered wood floor lamp from west elm? i love its scale, how its like a table lamp style but stretched out extra long. it's so simple in its design, really, but has such a huge impact. it reminds me of the floor lamps below i saw in a local shop.

i love the earthiness of the wood on both styles and could see them easily fitting well in several different kinds of spaces - they would of course be a natural fit in a cozy, woodsy home, but would also have a great softening effect in a home much sleeker and more modern.

it makes me wonder about several styles of table lamps that would probably be really great stretched into floor lamps. like what? funny you should ask...THESE:

top and bottom photos from west elm, white lamp photo from cb2, other photos from crate and barrel

end to end

aren't these cast-metal animal bookends from west elm sweet? only the rabbit is available online anymore, so the west elm store we pass sometimes when we visit friends in new jersey is calling my name - these birds would look so perfect on my future bookshelf, i just might have to nab a few.

i also love the a/z bookends from target - sort of whimsical, but cutely literal, very "it is what it is," since all the books they're "ending" are full of letters....get it? okay, i think i made my point.

and i love the way the owl bookends from pier 1, with their known tendency to be wise, is also a nice nod to bookishness.

the fu dog bookends from cb2 - LOVE their fire-engine color! - are a really fun nod to the sometimes very serious use of fu dogs in chonoiserie-inspired (or eclectic) design.

these are all such cute ways to add personality to a collection of otherwise lifeless objects on a shelf. it also makes me think of using other objects i already have as bookends - think of all the boxes or trinkets you have lying around that could probably be unexpected and welcome on a shelf of your best-loved books.

photos from linked sites

a hop, skip and a rug

i am loving area rugs right now...such a great way to infuse some personality and texture into a room, and cb2 and west elm are really killing it these days. i'm thinking, though, the floor isn't the only place these beauties can lay - how about using them as wall hangings, or even as beautiful (and soft) headboards? you can use a curtain rod and curtain clips (they make heavy duty ones for heavier curtains, or rugs as it were) or you can use nails in each corner to hang the rug.

the hopscotch rug above and these others are from cb2.

and we talked a few weeks ago about west elm's rugs. here are some i think would be perf on a wall as well as a floor.


the zebra runner from walmart's new hometrends line that i mentioned on friday would be a great, cheap option (like, $39 cheap).

even if you're not in the market for a new rug, it's fun to think about different ways of using ones you already have. what are your thoughts?

all photos from linked sites