Apartment Therapy | How About Orange

April 03, 2008

Apartment Therapy

Okay, I'm back and feeling much more caught up. And I've regained some perspective, too. Last Friday I had announced to Alex, "I have decided I'm never going to design anything again." Um, a little melodramatic in hindsight, but I was feeling very low after a string of projects hit some setbacks. I thought by now I was beyond taking it personally, since I recognize that art is so completely subjective, but I still felt like a sub-standard human being. You know how it goes. Guys, your kind comments were so great. Thanks for your graciousness! So I'm feeling better now. Just in time for our home tour to go up on Apartment Therapy! Let the snarky commenting over there begin! :)

59 comments:

Unknown said...

The photos of your place are beautiful. I am utterly jealous! You have totally inspired me to get of my rear and declutter for spring. :) And your computer/work area - to die for. Love it all!

Anonymous said...

lovely space!

would you mind sharing the name and brand of the paint color in the first photo? i love it!

Jessica Jones said...

Sure, Jill, I think it's listed in the "Resources" over on the AT home tour post.

Anonymous said...

love it!! the green paint in the bedroom is a fab color.

glad you're back :-)

Sizzle said...

You have the exact couch I am currently saving up for from Dania!

:)

Grandma G said...

I can't wait to BE in that beautiful place! ;-)

Mum

janet l moran said...

looks awesome!!!

rebecca said...

You're place is GORGEOUS! Love it, love it. It looks so warm and inviting :)

Lisa said...

Am I the only one who thinks the "ouchie foot/ankle" should be the new "circle w/ a line through it" that warns you what NOT to do.

I love everything about your place. Glad you've got your "mojo" back!

Anonymous said...

Gorgeous house tour!

Unknown said...

Wow - you're place is beautiful!! You make me want to redecorate.

Libby said...

um...without being too weird, I love the jeans you are wearing in that picture. mind sharing the brand?

I love the warmth of your home!

Anonymous said...

your place is so lovely. i just adore the blonde wood and the light airy curtains. but most of all i LOVE the lack of clutter! is there a secret to how NOT to have clutter, and is so, can you share?!

Anonymous said...

No snark! Your place is really lovely. Great colors, great furniture and my, oh my, so very neat and tidy! I need to so some serious cleaning...

Melissa said...

This is so inspirational! I'm moving into a brand new home in a few weeks, which means it's a completely blank canvas. You're color choices are making me rethink my more neutral ideas. :-)

Anonymous said...

I love love your designs. You are an inspiration. Clean lines yet such hominess.

Ani
foodiechickie.com

Darci said...

Boo to snarkiness, I'll never understand it! Your place is beautiful, I love those couches.

Nevis said...

I saw it on "Apartment Therapy" and I thought your house was beautiful.

What do you mean you have no knicknacks?!! Would you like some of mine?

Abby and Stephanie said...

I just took the tour of your condo. A very modern but cozy space. Love it...especially the stencils on the bedroom wall. And green is my favorite color.

elizabeth engelhardt cards and creations said...

Your apartment is beautiful. I really like the wood floors and your fun orange office!! Thanks for sharing.

ames said...

Oh, I know that feeling all too well! But design is like an old friend, you can have a massive fight but always end up getting back together, and then everything is forgiven. Hope all the ickyness is out of the way for now!

Jessica Jones said...

Libby, those are my favorite jeans! I just looked, and the tag says the brand is l.e.i, and the model appears to be Sophia Hiphugger. I got them off a clearance rack at Kohls for $8. That never happens to me. I was so excited.

Jessica Jones said...

And about the clutter... we have a couple tall white cabinets from Lowes (you can barely see one behind the pillar in the shot with the big couch). One is in the dining room and one is in the office with some white Ikea boxes on top. The office also has a white filing cabinet. Paper stuff we either put in our massive binder collection (plastic sleeves work well when you don't have time to hole-punch or the scraps are too little) or put in file folders. There are some stacked clear tubs of office stuff in the cabinet, too. The rest of the clutter we just stuff in there and organize it 2 or 3 times a year. And you DO NOT want to look in our bedroom closet. We also have a basement storage locker for the Christmas stuff and coolers and whatnot.

I guess the main thing is I like to throw stuff away. I mean, I REALLY, REALLY like to. It makes me very happy. Many fights in our marriage are a result of this tendency.

And Amy and Phil, that's a set of Calvin's commentaries that we never read. :)

Pintoo said...

you got a great house.. you should be proud of yourself

Anonymous said...

Wow. Your home has such an inviting and classy feel. I love how it's so chic, but preserved. I love your style of simplicity, with a twist of sass thrown in. You are a humble and happy and pious homemaker. I will model my future dream home after your style. KUDOS! -Emily

Larissa Holland said...

wow...how cool was that???
so love your home. and YOU are quite the hottie! I don't mean that in a creepy way. I remember having a waist, at some point. I love how neat and warm and uncluttered it all is, yet still quirky and lots of personality. Were you obsessively cleaning before the shoot?

Mundane Jane said...

I can't tell you how cool this is, after having watched you (via your blog) paint the tree wall, redo the spare bedroom and all the other projects you've written about.

Seeing it in tour form was neat, too. Almost like being there.

Beth said...

calvin's commentaries? my husband would be jealous! he's in seminary and has coveted the set for a while. :)

don't be discouraged -- if you haven't figured it out yet from all the comments, you're amazing! we're all totally inspired. your home is beautiful... congrats on the tour!

christa Baca said...

Yay! Love it!

Anonymous said...

LOVE your house!
I wish mine looked like that! In my dreams I guess... Right now my house has been taken over by 2 little kiddies. It looks like Toys R Us hit by a hurricane...

Maybe someday...


: )

studiosmith said...

Sorry but the setbacks. When I was pro solo, I too experienced the occassional "why am I in the busniess" client.

I enjoyed the AT tour. Your place is nice, especially due to all the personal touches. Cool.

Torey said...

Your apartment is great and you guys are just adorable (and younger than I thought you were).

Jessica Jones said...

Thanks, Barry.

Larissa, you bet we were. Well, not cleaning, because I was pretty sure the dust bunnies wouldn't show up in the photos. Mostly stuffing things into cupboards. The kitchen was the most work, and then there weren't even any photos of it because it's totally boring.

Anonymous said...

Your home looks GREAT, I especially liked seeing your orange computer room! You could print up the OUCHIE sign and make a bundle on etsy!

Anonymous said...

oh, and I feel bad for tell you to "buck up" before. Sorry you were feeling down and I'm glad things are looking up! Tracey

Anonymous said...

I've never left a comment before but felt the need to tell you that your home looks AMAZING!!! I absolutely love it... fantastic job! I'm inspired :)

Celeste said...

gorgeous! i love your paint choices and i love that the colors are listed. i was looking for a pale green like your bedroom for my bedroom and your living room color would be perfect for mine.

Leslie said...

oh your house looks SO good! i love every bit of it. well done!

sarah jerger said...

Your home is so amazingly gorgeous! I want to have a big spring cleaning session and chuck all kinds of crap and redecorate. This is motivation if I ever saw any. Here's a question for you, we're renting in an older house that has wood paneling (blegh!) throughout... any ideas on how to brighten it up without spending a chunk of change?

Anonymous said...

Beautiful! I don't know how you do all you do and still maintain such a neat and organized and pretty home.

June said...

I feel your pain in the "feeling substandard" department. As the graphics person for a bow tie (yes, you heard me right) I can't tell you the number of times I've heard "If the cover picture just had a little more light, was a little more to the left, was more colorful, blah, blah blah. I have a pretty tough shell, but there are those Friday's I go home and hope Monday never comes...but the truth is, I love what I do. And by the way, I love the elegant simplicity of your place.

June said...

OOps...for got the word "company" after bow tie!

Sarah said...

Fantastic place, really.

I think what I love most about it, is that you made your budget work for you, and it truly truly does! Lots of unique touches, I like the modern but not coldness of it. Something we're slowly working toward here at our house. Anyhoo, refreshing to see and totally love it....

. said...

I am so thankful for your blog. I look here first everyday, because I know you always have beautiful/functional/fun things to look at and do. Thanks for letting us peek into your lovely home

Lemonsweet said...

I love your style Jessica! Your house is serene and makes me feel calm. I adore the fabric your designed and your colors in your house. Fantastic!
You rule!

patricia zapata said...

Lovely tour! Congratulations!

Jessica Jones said...

Yeah, Sarah, paint that stuff! I think it's a pretty common, cheap way to deal with it. Unless you can't because you're renting?

Tracey, stop feeling bad right now. It didn't bother me a bit.

Anonymous said...

Loved the house tour! You are awesome! Who would say or think otherwise.

47cats said...

Your apartment if gorgeous. I would be very happy living there. I didn't realize you lived in Illinois...I live in Springfield, just don't the road aways. :)

Anonymous said...

Love it! I've followed your housey projects for awhile, so it's fun to see them in tour form.

Jenny said...

Great apartment. I love the lack of clutter. And the art work and colours.

Anonymous said...

Your place is GORGEOUS!! Wish i could be that organized and un-cluttered. Not so easy with 3 kids 5 and under, lol!

Anonymous said...

OOOOH! I just found a new blog to bookmark! I loved the house tour too and actually I was thinking the opposite of some of the Mommy's that this style works really well with having littlies around. In fact the main reason I got lots of IKEA stuff is because i wont be devastated with the damage they do! I'll be reading your blog from now on.

Anonymous said...

I love the stenciling on the curtains in the office -- what kind/color paint did you use? such a great idea..

Jessica Jones said...

Pebeo Setacolor Opaque, Orange 12. Got it at a Blick art store and painted it on freehand. After you set it with an iron, the paint is permanent and won't wash out.

Anonymous said...

I love your blog and I loooove your house! Its so beautiful and simple, but completely cozy!

You are such an inspiration!

Stacey..

Teresa @ good-grace said...

BeeeaUtiful home! goodness... you never let us down.

And congrats on the feature on Apartment Therapy!!

kelly said...

i just clicked on the link to your house tour to discover that we have more in common than i thought...
i am a (self-proclaimed) graphic designer and my boyfriend is a packaging engineer down on the southside. perhaps they know each other?

your apt is beautiful!!!

Jessica Jones said...

Hi, Kelly Purkey. Thanks. Hey, you're an awesome photographer. I peek at your blog from time to time. My hubby works in Glenview, so their paths haven't crossed, I'm sure. Here's to the packaging boys!