looking for a fun way to add some interest to your stair case? this fun interior idea comes from d*s readers david and danielle mongin. david and danielle have been rehabbing a 1960s split level home in atlanta and decided to make a quick change to their stairs before a party. they drilled holes into books and threaded them down long metal pipes. then, they felt the risers were a little naked so they added some left over house numbers. they loved the look so much (and the books have become a true conversation piece) that they decided not to put up a “proper” staircase. if you don’t have a safety need for railing on your stairs (ie: small children, elderly guests) this is such a fun way to add a little detail to an unexpected space. thanks to danielle and david for sharing!

ps: and yep, i’ve already asked david and danielle if they’d like to join us for a full peek. those books on the wall definitely piqued my interest. ;)

sue daly of timber! (and founder of renegade craft fair) is a city dweller but most of her inspiration for her work comes from the great outdoors, so it’s only appropriate that she and her husband mat (also an artist) find themselves living in a home that feels like living in a treehouse. their third floor apartment in a vintage building in chicago’s hyde park is surrounded by trees on all sides. so as they’re nestled in the treetops, they’ve managed to incorporate much of the outdoors in, from the wood trim to artwork on the walls. don’t miss the complete post and check out additional images here (and the full sized images described in the captions). (thanks to sue and mat for the great peek, and to tate gunnerson for the shots!) -anne

[above: we probably spend the most time in our living room when we're at home.  our furniture is a mix of vintage and modern.  the artwork is made up of prints + paintings we've picked up along the way, featuring works by leia bell, matte stephens, sugarloop, jaime zollars, amazing talking paintings, diana sudyka, chris natali and others.  the pillow covers are designed and printed by three sheets 2 the wind.]

the kitchen is the room we put the most work into.  it used to look straight out of the great depression.  again, we stuck with the vintage/modern vibe, mixing the old with the new.  the breakfast table and chairs are vintage, as well as the cow hanging above.  the plates are from marshall field’s, and were given to my mom from my dad every year for christmas during the 60’s & 70’s.  in here we also have a nice teacup print by golden hen press.

our bedroom is super cozy.  the quilt was a gift from my sister.  in here we have paintings by our friends nick + nadine from sonnenzimmer, and a giant sleeping kitty print from another friend, jay ryan of the bird machine.

other favorite things in the apartment:  pet paintings by leia bell that mat got me for my birthday.  little house collection.  little print collection.  wooden bird + branch mobile.  owl bank, to save up for dates.

mat made a ton of stuff hanging in our apartment, including some paintings in the hallway and a collage in our bedroom.  the most infamous though, is the very first renegade craft fair poster, feauring a patchwork owl at night.  this is the print that brought us together!

in keeping with last week’s national stationery show coverage, our latest sneak peek comes to us from letter press designer olivia san mateo of olive-route. her 1950s bungalow is located in walnut creek, about 20 minutes east of berkeley, ca. besides being a charming place they love that the house is surrounded by lots of trees and close to
trails on the open space at the foothills of mt. diablo. don’t miss additional images at the end of the post. [thanks, olivia!] -anne

[above: my mom used to work for an oriental furniture store when i was growing up. so i was surrounded by lots of rosewood furniture and antiques mostly imported from china. attending architecture school also started my love for anything mid-century. so i feel that now, my aesthetic is a combination of these two strong influences. since most of my furniture tends to be darker and heavier, i lighten it up with the details such as airy chars, white vases, light walls...]

i like how masculine the dark chair and the rosewood side table look against the light walls and painting by jane kim. the base of the lamp is this pink cherry blossom jar that my mother had made into a lamp. my husband trusts my design choices, his only request is that the house not look too “girlie”, so this area is a great example of how we compromise.

i like collecting pieces from artists i know personally or have encountered at one point in the past–i feel more of a connection to the work that way and gives it a story :) my mentor, david, gave me the original linoleum block he carved for the nurse poster above my fireplace.

we spend most of our time in the backyard during the summer months. this outdoor living space is great for
warm nights. succulents and orange plastic chairs from ikea lighten things up. [right] this armoire is great for hiding things such as throw pillows, magazines, junk, etc.–i tend to put my things in compartments and can’t stand too much clutter so this works great. the plant sits on one of 2 porcelain antique drums (one of my favorite pieces). again, i feel it lightens up the space and is a great contrast to the heaviness of the armoire.

i’m loving these sweet little gift tags from breck and matt at sesame letterpress. i still can’t get enough silhouettes these days- especially if they’re done in a simple, clean way.

one of the things i love most about working on the sneak peeks is showcasing so many different styles and how they each fit with their keepers. today we’re transported to the “partridge house” in vermont - an old farm house built in 1778. it’s one of the oldest homes in their town, and it’s home to ceramicist laura zindel, her husband, thor, and their son, wulff. it’s quite a change from san francisco where they were just 5 years ago.  but believe it or not they found this “dream home” (as they describe it) on the internet! now they have cows at their fence and an apple orchard in their back yard. the home is still a work in progress so we’re hoping to see more as before + afters down the line. in the meantime, don’t miss more great images at the end of the post. and stay tuned for two more great sneak peeks coming up at 11 and noon! let the sneak peek-a-ton continue!  [thanks, laura!] -anne

[above: This is the other side of the porch.  The porch floor was made out of ceiling boards from the Hay Barn.   We renovated the Hay Barn into our studio, this is the view from the studio door.  I really miss the porch in the winter, we live our life out here until it is bitter cold.  All of the furniture on the far end is Amish.  ]

The hutch holds our new line of China.  The bowl on the table is Diana Fayt.  The two paper cutouts are by Rick Jones, the one on the right says “Cuando Menos se Piensa, Salta La Liebre. A Spanish Saying meaning..Things happen when you least expect them.  On the left is a Shaker Blessing, “Beneath this branch of purity do come and sit and sup with me”.

Our bedroom.  The bedding and curtains are from Anthropologie.  The large pillow on the bed is a new twist on Toile by Domestic Element.  A friend found the big ceramic pot on the armoir on the street in San Francisco.  She thought is was awful and hauled it to my house as a joke.  I think that is is brilliant and I hope no one ever claims it.  The two photographs on either side of the bed are of people that used to live in our house in the 1800’s.  The previous owner gave them to us.  When he bought the house in the 70’s, the owners moved out and left everything inside.  Larry slowly catalogued anything that had historical value, somethings he gave to the historical society in Guilford, the rest he kept.  He is slowly returning pieces that once belonged here, back to the house.  It took him a while to trust us with the treasures.

the office.  The wall paper is called “Lady of the Manor”  by Anthropologie.  I thought that it was the perfect compliment to our “Country Estate”.

I do a lot of drawing on the porch when the weather is nice, and I store my reference books and drawing supplies in here.

These are bones and shells that I have collected over the years.  My friend in Aspen lived on a ranch that had a caged mountain lion and I would raid it after he had a good meal.  Some where found on the beach in Florida with my son.  The small tile with the turtle was made by my childhood friend Janet Tobler.

This is the wall leading up to the second floor.  These paintings are made by Russian artist NIna Friday.  We have collected her work slowly over the years and think of them as our ancestors.  They have a gloomy quality that goes with the starkness of our house.  I have made up histories for all of them.  The large one is called “The Twins”  they have a pet monkey.   The one at the top is titled “Dr Katz”, he treats the twins for various disorders.