CasaSugar

Casa Quickie: Double Your Closet Space

CasaSugar — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 13:00:39 -0800

I just came across a Real Simple tip that is arguably the simplest way to renew your cramped closet, and I felt obliged to share. Hang a second rod below the existing rod to store short clothing items like scarves, pants, tops, and sexy minis. You don't need a handyman for this installation; you can buy an extendable rod with rubber stopper ends to fit your space perfectly. Or, buy a standard rod that easily screws in.

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Casa Quickie: Add a Dash of Color

CasaSugar — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 07:15:42 -0800

One of the simplest ways to renew the look of any room in your maison is to add a dash of color. LivingEtc has a handful of quick tips that they say will "bring a room bang up to date," and give "an all white scheme" attitude:

Line curtain panels with "a hint of luxurious colored silk."
"Wrap chair legs in colored paper."
Offset "a group of monochrome ornaments with a colored one."
"Paint just part of a piece of furniture, leaving the rest white," and carry the color throughout the room by using it for lampshade trim or a cushion.
Paint a simple stripe in one corner to add depth to the room.
Line a cabinet with "brightly patterned fabric or wallpaper," and "use complementary accessories to pull the whole look together."

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Su Casa: Renewing a Table

CasaSugar — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 08:01:35 -0800

Su Casa member Grumpalita recently posted pictures of a Craigslist find that went from forgettable to fabulous with some refinishing know-how and lots of hard work. Grumpalita writes

I found a table on Craigslist that had nice lines but was tragically painted over. After some stripping, sanding, and staining with india ink, it looks much better now!

Here's how the table looked when she found it.

To see her hard-won results, just read more.

I'm pretty floored by this transformation. And what a great project to celebrate the last week of Renewal month!

Do you want to post photos of your home? To join the Su Casa group, just follow this link and click "subscribe" beneath the photo on the lefthand side of the page. Once you're subscribed, click Share in the upper lefthand menu of any TeamSugar page and choose what type of post you want to create. If you have just one photo and some text, create a blog; if you have a gallery you want to share, select photos.

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Win This Vitra Organizer!

CasaSugar — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 12:26:34 -0800

I can't get enough of organizing and renewing my house this month. And while I wish I could enlist this Vitra Uten.Silo organizer ($375) to aid my efforts, instead I'm giving one away to a lucky Casa reader!
Uten.Silo is one of the best-known plastic designs of the late 1960s. Today, this colorful wall tidy is a veritable design icon and a true-to-the-original version of the product has been reissued by Vitra Design Museum. The lucky winner will get one in her choice of red, white or black!

To enter, YOU MUST LOG IN and take the quiz below. Your eligibility is not based on getting the answers correct, just by completing the quiz once you are logged in. You do, however, need to be a TeamSugar member and log in before you take the quiz. If you're not already a member, just register here for an account. One quiz entry per person; all repeat quizzes will be ignored.

Contest ends Tuesday, Jan. 29, at noon PST. Click here for Official Rules.

Take the quiz

How To: Fix Marcel Breuer's Wassily Chair

CasaSugar — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 15:15:43 -0800

I Am Still Alive recently shared his easy fix for a Marcel Breuer Wassily Chair ($1,658), which is fit for Renewal month. Instead of dropping nearly 1700 bucks on a new one, contacting Knoll or the leather worker you know at an additional expense, he proposes to . . . read more

He writes that his fix involved the following:

Take another chair – in this case a steel seat from the same period, but fabricated initially for a decidedly less rarefied setting (a French motorcycle factory) – and place it inside the Wassily.

What do you think? Clever fix or impractical improvisation? Tell me by commenting below!

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Nice and New: Freestanding Organizational Systems

CasaSugar — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 11:15:14 -0800

Since I'm all about getting organized this month, I had to introduce you to the Elfa Freestanding Organizational System. The Container Store in the US has started selling the Elfa Freestanding shelving system (shown at right), which doesn’t need to be attached to the wall to use. This is a great solution for folks who live in loft apartments with masonry walls. You can also add other Elfa accessories, such as wooden hangers and shelves, to class up the system. What do you think? Are you interested in checking out a freestanding organizational system?

Casa Quickie: Give New Life to an Empty Vase

CasaSugar — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 12:00:04 -0800

Your man is in the dog house again for whatever reason, and brings you some beautiful flowers in a standard glass vase. They adorn your kitchen counter for a week, and once they wither, the vase collects dust in your cabinet with all the others — a reminder of all the times you've received "apology" flowers. Learn how to renew those dust-collecting vases when you read more.

Take a cue from Real Simple, and transform that standard glass vase into toilet paper storage. You'll always know when it's time to shop for more t.p. and your guests will know where to find it when a cardboard roll sits empty on the toilet paper holder.

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Etsy Find: Stylish To-Do List

CasaSugar — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 09:30:55 -0800

Whether it’s an event you have to attend for work, a friend's upcoming birthday, or the elusive ingredient you need for dinner, it's often hard to remember exactly what you need when you need it. Enter this lovely purse-size Book of Lists. Not only is it cute, but it'll also help you to remember most anything that needs remembering - so long as you jot it down. The pages are sturdy and the front and back covers are laminated to survive daily wear and tear. This 4-x-8-in. folded notebook is perfect for lovely ladies on the run. There are a variety of lists included in the book, including pages for books to read, birthdays, and anniversaries, passwords, and websites, and much, much more.

DIY: Suitcase Planter

CasaSugar — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 08:15:07 -0800

Sarah from Modern Roost shared this Suitcase Planter that her brother made, and I think it's perfect for Renewal month. It's also fit for that green-thumb dude in your life. What an inventive way to give new purpose to the dusty, old suitcase sitting in your attic!

To get the supply list and learn the steps, read more.

Supplies

One vintage suitcase
Four prefab chair legs with screws
Potted succulents (or other plants)
Landscaping stone
One plastic garbage bag

How to:
According to Modern Roost, "[My brother] lined the inside with plastic, placed potted succulents in the case and covered them with landscaping stone. The stones are heavy, but he reinforced the bottom with support beams and screwed the legs onto the frame underneath." If you don't want to use reinforcement beams, though, try replacing some of the landscaping stone with lighweight perlite.

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Casa Link: Trash to Treasure

CasaSugar — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 10:15:50 -0800

Ikea Hacker reports on a bench that Diane found on the street. While many people would simply ignore this Ikea find, Diane transformed it into something absolutely stunning with an art-nouveau pattern.

To see the results, just read more.

You can read the whole story on Ikea Hacker.

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