apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

No offense, but it looks like a West Elm catalog, though colors tie together nicely

I get the "staged condo" feel from it. Needs some soul. Colors are great though.

Love that accent wall in the living room!

Ohhhh!!! I love these colors, design, open clean space and the overall look of this condo.

This is a clean, peaceful space, though the kitchen in particular could use some color and life, like a crazy floral arrangement or some colorful canisters to replace your metal ones.

From the last pic, though, I get a sense that you suffer from Furniture Against the Wall Syndrome. Go nuts and play around with the arrangement of your furniture in the living room and possibly the bedroom. And what about a cool mirror or piece of artwork for above the bed?

I really like the colors in your bedroom. I keep thinking I should use them but for some reason, when I get to the paint shop I never choose those. I'm glad you did it and I can see them and draw inspiration :)

what color/brand is the green in your bedroom? i love that color!

GREAT colors here. But where are the lamps? Lamps are the jewlery of a home. Get some! :)

I couldn't agree more with moddog - you need lamps! Actually, I'm pretty sure that the pillars on your bedside table are lamps, but they're not very successful - and what do you do, switch all 6 on at once? Those nightstands with the high windows above are screaming out for some great lamps. But that has nothing to do with this contest.

The colors: eh. Well, the bedroom colors aren't bad, though it kind of looks like a teenage boy's room. The shaky painted circles are a little dorm-room for my tastes, although the colors are all right. And I'm wondering why you included the kitchen photo at all.

The whole place kind of feels like you just moved in, it's a little empty and uncertain of itself. But it's got a lot of potential and so far you're off to a decent start.

I like the color green used in the bedroom (i have the same bedding so I must like it) but I think you need a much more soothing tone. it's too bold and shocking, not exactly a color that makes you want to snuggle up on bed at night.

I have mixed feelings about this entry. While I like the furnishings and (most of) the colors...I'm so very tired of the lime green. I mean lime green? Really? Two walls of lime green right next to each other is a bit much. Maybe if the side wall was painted a nice chocolate brown like the one from the bedding it would look better and give contrast. And maybe if there were some personal touches like photos or art on the walls to break up the monotony of the big blocks of color...

I love the wall application in the living room. But I would love to see some color being brought in through some personal affects. It really does look like a catalog.

Side Note: The symmetry is killing me. The vases on the night tables could be less unarranged-looking, especially since there's nothing in them.
Could that tall vase on the coffee table be moved to the floor next to the sofa? It must be bothersome to have to look around it to see the telly.

I meant to say "less arranged-looking" above. Thanks.

Yeah, that sofa could be brought out from both of the walls about a foot or so. And a chair or two would really set it off. The face plate of your electrical socket in the living room should be painted the same brown so it doesn't stand out. If you change colors later, you could always buy a replacement faceplate for about a buck at the home inprovement store.

Of course you should take my other suggestions above as well. LOL.

OK, last thing, I SWEAR.

Your quote "Copy the colors CB2 uses, cause they know what looks good together! ...catalogs are to be used as guidelines. They should not be mimicked precisely. That's just like going into a store and buying the exact outfit draped on the mannequin.

I think the colors in this place work together really nicely but it really doesn't look like you live there. Art, lamps, mirrors, make it look like it's yours and not like you're just a big West Elm fan. Very attractive work so far though, lots of potential here.

Softness! It might be possible to fully win the battle against the condo's innate blandness by using more soft, patterned, and curvy surfaces. But that's not exactly color...

This kind of building is surprisingly difficult to decorate well -- it fights back against "soul." (Having recently lived in a less snazzy version, I'd never do it again and have much more respect for people who can make them look even as good as a West Elm catalog.) The "bubble" wall in the living room and the use of black on the kitchen walls -- those really grab me as successes in the battle against bland condo-burban architecture.

I'm not surprised by the colour tip given the look of the place... it seems to me that a cool (as opposed to warm, in the AT parlance) person lives in this apartment. There's no sense that it's actually lived in because everything matches so perfectly. What I think of as "paint by numbers". I think this is better than a total clash of mis-matched colours, but with regards to this contest, it's also missing the mark for creative use of colour, which is what I'm looking for.

I agree add some softness to this space. Good color but would you consider some art or a wall hanging directly over the bed? Maybe a curtain to divide the bathroom from the bedroom.
Also maybe try painting the entire alcove with the tv the dark brown instead of the back wall as this would make the tv not compete as much with the fireplace. And painting the surface on the kitchen island where the bar stools are would really help add color to the space without having to paint the entire room. Just my suggestions, you can take them or leave them!

I like the light and airy colors in the living room but I think the bright green in the bedroom isn't as "soothing" as I would want it to be.

I agree with Wende in Phoenix about the difficulty of pulling some character out of a framework that essentially has none... I disagree that this house succeeded.

Some personal artwork above the couch would be aeons better than the ovals. Some photographs or pictures would bring a little humanity. Right now everything - the sofa, the cd shelf, the kitchen, the bedroom, the colors - all make it feel like a showroom rather than a place someone lives.

Where did you get the DVD/CD shelves?

Its too West Elmy and not in a good way. It looks like what someone "thinks" is good design as seen in magazines and in catalogues but it has no personality and no soul and well, no design. Its also too matchy matchy.

i agree, the colors are very pretty, but the apartment has a showroom feel - it doesn't seem "lived in".

I really like your house! Right up my alley...neat, clean, organized and the colors are PERFECT! If I could have voted, instafinalist from me!