… white and clear rooms! oh my have i struggled with this point or what? yes, we’re talking about interior styling again, bear with me please! today is one of those days in which i have so much to say, but i feel so tired as well. yesterday i spent the whole afternoon and early evening cleaning, dusting and decluttering our home (i may have a few tips for you on this!). i was exhausted by the end of the day, but so happy. yet today i feel that i have so much to do in our home, so many unfinished businesses, and my head doesn’t stop wondering where else i can get a little more space. after two huge garbage bags out the door and one even larger with clothes i don’t wear any more and don’t plan on to, the house feels a little more refreshed and airy. however i struggle with so many details! and it’s like my head is not rested until all these points are figured out and solved.
do you ever feel like this with your home? moving on… we desperately need a new couch. we have a really small one that has lost one arm due to mr kobe’s teeth growing issues while he was young. but this particular characteristic on our couch, actually turns out to be quite handy for the little mr (see picture below!)! but this would be my dream couch (that fabric is sooo gorgeous and feels so comfortable) and i can’t figure out a way of having one in our small living-room (or even afford one)!
second issue, the rug! oh man, i’m so tired of this rug (see picture below)! it was cheap but i must say it has handled a lot in these last years, specially after adopting mr kobe. the thing is when you have a dog is pretty much like having kids around, things need to be resistant to daily wear, stains, shoes, dog hair, dog teeth… you name it! and mr kobe did tried this rug on every corner! but as i have a brownish floor (which i romantically names it caramel in the beginning!), the house is small so i need lighter colours whenever i can, to make it feel larger and take advantage of all the light that comes in during the day (one of the best things in this house), but i also have a dog, which means that no white rugs will be a good idea! so i thought about a bege one. what do you think about this one here or even this one?
and then the table. i am a fortunate working-from-home-lady, because i have a huge table! it was first bought to be the main table for our meals in the living-room, but then i stole it for my own office purposes and bought this one for the meal purposes. but i’m also starting to think that if i change tables again, i might have more room to that couch! or perhaps selling the table in which i work on and buying a new table, another white one!
the forth issue might the tele (let’s read this in a very brittish accent, shall we?). one thing, i hate it! my mother in law wasn’t using it anymore so she gave it to us, as ours was pretty small, but then our country was out of the analogic signal and we had to buy a very ugly equipment in order to have tv again, which actually stopped working two weeks after we bought it and we never solved the issue. so we’re out of tv for a couple of months now, it doesn’t bother us at all, so now it’s a huge black thing on top on a very nice white expedit shelving unit.
do any of your guys have given up on having a tv? it’s not about turning it on or off, it’s about not having the thing at all! i much rather prefer a sound system, than a new slim lcd, unless it was white! ok, maybe i’d go with a white lcd! oh well, i’ll probably keep on going with these doubts, but right now i think i’ll just concentrate on what has been done and how bright and organized my living room feels like! and also i might start bothering you with my bedroom plans! yes, i have plans for the bedroom as well! have a nice weekend, folks!
ps. remember both shops are having a free shipping sale thru july 31st!
MissLilly says
ohh dear, I love your house!!!! And I used to have the same rug. but mine didn’t resist the boys paintings and my cat destroyed the rest, so it was gone!
I use the tv to watch movies, but not to watch tv I’m afraid. Also I prefer music and a nice sound system… I have a nice one in Lisbon and my sister doesn’t use it!! Buahhh
But everything in white? I would seriously love that!
twiggs says
thank you so much!!! well my rug is still here and holding to its life, not like the couch though, that one really needs to be gone! and a white lcd, wouldn’t that be just gorgeous?
sara (sushi lover) says
my two cents: i had that TARNBY rug and don’t reccommend it, it got all stained and used where I used to walk more. In 6 months it was garbage (and I was living alone and had no dog).
the TV: we got rid of the TV a long time ago and actually feels great. We were only watching the news and they are so depressing anyway! We were selling it on CustoJusto but ended up donating to an elderly home.
Love the “ideal” sofa!
twiggs says
oh sara your two cents were amazing, believe me! thank you for your opinion and according to silvia of raparigas como nós, that rug is not that good!! so i might go with the other one, which is actually cheaper, so it’s a win win situation!! and that thing about the tv, well you just gave me the idea of donating two small tv’s we have around to elderly homes! that is such a great idea!!! thank you!! oh and the sofa?! what is not to like? it’s so gorgeous! that fabric kills me, but it’s so expensive! the cover itself for that sofa is 250€! it must be a really great fabric!
Andreia says
Enjoyed your post Claudia!
What about not having a rug at all, like the TV? I don’t have any rugs at home and the floor is wood but seriously not so beautiful as yours and we don’t need them. Much easier to clean and in my opinion wooden floors don’t need rugs at all, even in cold portuguese houses in Winter (feet get warm with slippers and not so much with a carpet :)
well about the TV, if I could I wouldn’t have one, but it’s good for children to watch the movies they like (it’s their cinema), despite our is an old one too. I don’t like this kind of equipments either.
Happy weekend!
twiggs says
i’m so glad that you have enjoyed my post andreia!! well that idea about the rug is not bad, but i do really need it under my feet! i agree with you, i do like my wooden floor, but i need something brighter to reflect even more light! i may say that i’m kind of obsessed with keeping things light and bright on my home! it’s the only way of feeling it a little bit bigger. regarding the tv, well i understand! we don’t have kids, but i know what you mean!!!
Sílvia Silva says
Também posso acrescentar aqui uma ‘posta de pescada’ sobre os tapetes:D
Eu já tive o primeiro do IKEA, o de corda. Lindo ao chegar, esteve no escritório e posso te dizer que quando o tirei desfez-se literalmente nas minhas mãos. Se calhar funciona, mas num sítio de pouco uso, mesmo assim, a qualidade é muito pobre. Depois comprei outro do IKEA, que tb é desses que dizem próprios para zonas de refeição e de muito uso. E ele cá está, não é o tapete mais bonito do mundo, mas pelo menos aguenta-se:D Mas por falar em tapetes, tu já viste isto? http://www.anthropologie.eu/en/europe/shop-by-category/rugs/icat/rugs/ aqui sim, é que eu perdia a cabeça (e a carteira!)…
twiggs says
olá sílvia!! ui ainda bem que vieste dar a tua opinião pq sendo o mais caro dos dois tapetes de que tinha falado, é sempre bom saber da experiência de outros! e obrigadinha pelo link, essa loja era tão boa cá… e tão má para as nossas carteiras! que tapetes maravilhosos e não só tapetes como nós sabemos! olha queres abrir uma loja dessas comigo? ;)
Marta says
I understand you so well! I am always thinking about optimizing my space! I have been doing some cleaning myself trying to make my life easier. As fot the TV, you and I should really meet! I havent used mine for over 6 months, I took it out of the living room and put it in my room, but I would be as happy without it!
Get rid of everything you dont need or use :-)
twiggs says
that’s the rule, getting rid of everything that’s not used! it makes the place a lot lighter and spacious! clutter even if hidden will be on the way! and the tv, to be honest, i’ve been looking at it and doing some crazy faces because it’s just there, this black thing that doesn’t work right now and is this huge black thing, ugh! :p