drea is my homegirl!

Playa Hataz

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 17:46:00 +0000

The two internet phrases I love to loathe:

1. "Only viewers within the United States
can watch full-length episodes."

and

2. (the infinitely more hurtful) "Open to U.S. residents only."

A Flower Grows in Berlin

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 16:47:00 +0000

Last month a miracle occurred in my very own living room. After two (possibly already three) years of innumerable near-death experiences and a subsequently flowerless existence, one of my plants surprised me with this...

...and then this...

Voulez-Vous Regarder Cribs Avec-Mois?

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 11:32:00 +0000

This has been making it's way around the blogosphere and I just discovered it via Miss Modular. THE best cribs episode EVer. I just had to share...

Hung Up

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 17:39:00 +0000

This month I've been all about hanging things up. After the two lamps, I also finally hung up my most recent Small Stakes purchase, a lovely screenprinted Jens Lekman poster.

My first thought was to incorporate it into my dandelion wall with my other two screenprinted posters:

But I was afraid it would make that side too busy, while the area above my corner bench has been so horribly neglected and bare for ages. So I thought this corner might be a better home for it. And since the poster is white with a little bit of black, it contrasts nicely against the turquoise wall. (Anything I place against that wall can't be too colorful itself or it just looks bad; in fact, the way I've decorated my living room in general, there's either white against color or color against white.)

Next dilemna: how to hang it! There's a small bit of wall to the right of the corner that sticks out from the rest, which you would think would lend itself nicely to emphasizing a piece of art. But as with other things I've considered hanging there (like shadow boxes or shelves), the space would feel a bit flat and uncomfortably asymmetrical if I just stuck the poster there (since the bench is such a symmetrical focal point).

The only way to create a nice feeling of balance above the bench, I decided, was to hang the poster right on top of the corner. And tilted! So voila!

Before:

After:

Here's what I used and how I did it:

Tools: nylon string, 2 hooks, 2 wall plugs
plus picture hook and superglue (not pictured here)

I superglued an extra picture hook to the bottom of the poster frame's backing (word: this picture wasn't taken chronologically to step-by-step instructions; hence the nylon string in this photo):

While waiting for that to dry, I drilled two holes for the hooks into the corner of the wall; one slightly higher than where I wanted the bottom of the poster to sit and one higher than where I wanted the top of the poster to float. Basically the distance between the two holes has to be greater than the height of the frame.

Word to your mother: You should always use wall plugs when hanging something heavy. And another very good tip I learned the other day is to drill the hole at a 45-degree angle. Then your hook/nail is almost guaranteed not to slip out of the wall.

The actual hanging part was a bit tricky since I did it on my own (four hands are always better than two!). But I basically just tied the nylon string to the bottom picture hook first and started threading it through the hooks in the wall and the top picture hook in sort of a z-formation. I tightened the string until I had the frame hovering the way I wanted (with the bottom corners resting against the walls), and then tied a few knots at the top hook to keep it in place.

Out with a Bang!

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 07:55:00 +0000

A few months ago, my gorgeous new living room lamp went out with a bang. Literally! I flipped the switch, there was an explosive sound that made me jump about a foot in the air, and a small curl of smoke came out from the gray light. AND it put out all the electricity in my flat. Which freaked me out a bit, since that's never happened to me in this flat before.

Luckily, it was only a fuse that was broken, which was easily fixed with a short trip to the hardware store. But now it looks like I'll have to get that lovely lamp rewired (preferably by an über-professional) before I dare rehang it. And for about 3 months after said incident I had a bare replacement light bulb dangling from my ceiling. Not cute! :o(

Fortunately, my friend and business partner Meg wanted to get rid of some stuff after closing her bricks-and-mortar vintage store (the one we've now taken online here), and these two gorgeous lamps were up for grabs:

Since I needed more than just one light (or else it's just way too dim at night) and I recently replaced the drab burgundy with bright, energetic red in my living room color scheme, they've turned out to be the perfect successors. One's hanging above my dining table and the other above my coffee table.

And when I finally get my other lamp rewired, I'll hang that one up in my hallway, which is where I originally intended to hang it anyway.

Absence Makes the Heart Go Wander

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 11:40:00 +0000

Sorry to anyone who's been checking this blog in the past months only to be disappointed by the discontinuation of posts. Summer just passed me right by, and I've been so busy I didn't even have a chance to leave a proper "away" message. So now I will try to make it up with a "be right back" message.

Over the last few months, I was busy planning and launching an online vintage shop called Immaculate Heart Vintage with my friend Meg. You can check out my selection of vintage home goods for sale on Dawanda here.

Until the shop is completely up and running smoothly, I won't have much time to post stuff here. But I will do my best to do at least a few posts a month. And in the meantime...

There's two sites to keep you occupied:

1. Domino Mag's My Deco File (where you can compile and share a virtual decorating scrapbook with your own photos and images from Domino magazine as well!)

2. My Deco (where you can plan your room in 3D!)

So Happy Decorating and Bis Bald!

Balcony Beautiful (Part 2)

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 20:47:00 +0000

After diy-ing my outdoor seating gluecklich...

...I felt like I could finally use my balcony for more r&r type of activities and swore to never spraypaint another thing on it ever again. (Luckily, I found a studio, so now I have an separate space for all my diy projects and might actually be able to keep this promise!) My only dilemma? Where to set down my cocktail drink inbetween sippin on bacardi rum?! And even with a small table, what good would being able to brunch outside on my balcony be without an extra chair in order for someone to join me?!

My first thought was to kick myself in the butt for chucking the matching bench back into the dumpster. But then I thought, the only place it would've fit is right in front of my balcony door, which wouldn't have been very feng shui-friendly at all, so I gave myself a pat on the back instead. Plus if worse came to worse, I could always just use one of my foldable Ikea chairs for guests. So I focused my attention on finding a table first instead.

My needs/wants (aka words to your mother for furnishing a small rectangular balcony):
- something foldable/collapsable (easily put aside in case of extra space needs for laundry, etc.)
- something preferably round instead of square (makes sitting on a boxy chair in a rectangular space feel less boxed-in, plus a round table is be easier to move around on a cramped balcony without the danger of puncturing any internal organs)
- metal or plain wood (easy to paint a matching color)

With not much summer left to go and my intense need for immediate gratification heightening my impatience (possibly a Veruca Saltish side-effect of being an only child), I scoured the internet for way too long on Saturday and Mauerpark (also for way too long) on Sunday, ending up with only a handful of half-hearted leads. For example, there was the white foldable wooden table at Butlers. But it was square and about the same width as the bench (aka WIDE!). Then the gorgeous antique iron sewing machine base for 20EUR, which I would've dared myself to paint white. But it was heavy to transport and came with a glass tabletop (not the most optimal for outdoors).

Disheartened and my head hung low, I headed home with only a new plant and plastic flower pot for my balcony. I almost relinquished my desire for a complete outdoor set in 2008 when at the spur of the moment, I decided to swing by Arkonaplatz fleamarket. You know. Just in case. And what did I spy?!?! Why, the perfect red metal table and chair combination EVer, of course!

Luckily I caught the sellers right before they were about to load it into their van for close of the day. AND after a long day of fleamarketing, I had seriously JUST enough money to take my new babies home (with literally a few cents left over). Now all I need is some wireless!

Word to your mother: Trust in synchronicity and keep hope alive!

Balcony Beautiful (Part 1)

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 18:55:00 +0000

Two weeks ago I went to visit my grandparents for the first time since Christmas. It's always nice and refreshing to get away from "hectic" Berlin and spend some time with them small, quiet Ober-Seemen. Plus I love how Oma and Opa are so self-reliant (for example, they have a small garden and in the summer they harvest their berry crop and make their own jams and jellies) and know how to do just about anything. In fact, I usually bring a project or two along for them to help me with. This time, I did some sewing with Oma and finally got around to refurnishing my balcony seat with Opa's help. Here's what it used to look like:

I rescued this bench from the dumpster about a year ago. Since then it's been sitting on my balcony unused and lonely, with only a clothes drying rack or the odd spraypainting project to keep it company. With summer flying by, I decided this trip was my chance to finally start giving it its well-deserved makeover so as to turn my balcony into a hang-out haven before winter actually hits. So I took it apart and brought the wood parts along for sanding and painting.

Word to your mother: Before taking anything apart (no matter HOW simple the assembly seems), take pictures so you don't make any mistakes putting it back together. Trust me on this!

Luckily, Opa's workshop is amaaazing! He has every imaginable tool, including a power sander, which totally saved my ass. Otherwise, I would STILL be sanding down the wood by hand in preparation for painting!

Sanding was fun, but painting was funner (mostly because of the color...see below!). Word to your mother: It's easiest to use 2-in-1 primer/paint. It makes life sooo much easier. Also don't forget to keep you brushes clean with terpentine inbetween coats!

So then last week I finally got around to painting the metal frames (I KNOW you didn't think I was going to schlepp those the 5-hour train trip to Ober-Seemen and back!). By the way, for this I also got paint that also lets you to paint directly over rust (you just have to get rid of big chunks and clean it first).

And voila! The final product:

Very much inspired by the delightful outdoor seating at Kauf Dich Glücklich (which I've been coveting for years now but have never spotted for sale at ANYwhere).

Home Is Where the (He)art Is (Part 2)

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 21:02:00 +0000

Last fall I talked about sprucing up bare walls with inexpensive diy art and showed off some of the objets d’(he)art in my bedroom. (If you missed Part 1, check it out here!). Once again, the basic formula:

ephemera + frame + paper or fabric background = objet d’(he)art

Now here's what I have hanging in my kitchen (I hope it sparks some more inspiration!):

East German soft drink labels
(bought at Boxhagener fleamarket in Friedrichshain)

a paper bag that says "Eat fruits and veg; it's healthy!
(from a fruit and vegetable stand at a farmer's market)

wrappers from old school German after-dinner chewy candies
(saved from meals at the local Thai restaurant)

a vintage paper plate
(bought at Arkonaplatz fleamarket and placed inside an IKEA RUSCH clock)

previously taken photos of my grandparents preparing food the Alt-Deutsch way
and objects in their kitchen that I associate with each of them
(colored, textured paper from Modulor)

Word to your mother: If you're not sure how you want to arrange your objets d’(he)art on your wall, then try out different layouts on your floor first!

Electrocute-y!

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 05:20:00 +0000

So after three trips to the hardware store, my living room is finally tripping the light fantastic!

My first trip to OBI I only had a description of the wiring, and the guy said he couldn't help me without seeing it. The second time I took photos to Bauhaus, and the guy (confused by the the way the wiring was fused together) refused to help me for fear of being liable if I were to electrocute myself in the process of hanging it up. And yesterday I went back to OBI (this time WITH the lamp!), and I finally got the information and parts I needed to install it. It ended up being super simple and I didn't even get electrocuted!

Word to your mother: If it's not too heavy or bulky, just take the dang thing with you to the hardware store the first time around.

And now, my old Ikea Knappa lamp is up for grabs on ebay if anybody wants it!

Let's Paint the Town(houses) Red!

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 17:57:00 +0000

This weekend I was in Hamburg for work. Our hotel was located practically right on the Alster and only a short U-Bahn trip from Hamburg's main Habitat store. Walking to the U-Bahn stop on my way to do some shopping, I was amazed at all the amazing townhouses I saw on this one little street. I was like, "We're not in Hamburg anymore, Todo!" Granted I only lived in Hamburg for about 2.5 months about 4 years ago, but I don't at all recall ever seeing such lovely homes, especially not so close to Hamburg's downtown. I seriously felt like I had been transported to some London neighborhood (and I wouldn't be surprised if I did some research and found out a London architect was behind all this architectural magnificence).

Oh, if only Berlin had some townhouses like these. *sigh* I guess when I finally do get around to buying my own place, I'll just have to settle for that penthouse with a roof-top terrace. ;o)

Hot Spots!

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 17:57:00 +0000

I think there's a toadstool bug going around. And luckily it's infected Yasmine of "A Print a Day" fame as well. Yesterday she posted downloadable labels and notepads featuring her lovely rendition of my currently favorite motif. Have a looksey here!

Tripping the Light Fantastic

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Sat, 31 May 2008 14:20:00 +0000

Last weekend my friend Esther had a stand at a fleamarket at Zickenplatz in Kreuzberg. It only takes place once or twice a year, so Liz and I used the opportunity to break out of our usual Mauerpark routine and it was SO worth it! We found lots of great stuff, but my all-star purchase was without a doubt this vintage ceiling lamp!

As soon as I saw it, it was love at first sight. The lady wanted 25€ for it, but I was able to negotiate her down to 20€. Seeing as I had to run to the ATM to pillage my already meager end-of-the-month funds, it did hurt just a little. Plus it seemed a bit overpriced to begin with. Well. Not really. But like most Berliners I'm just spoiled and in the end always have to remind myself of the same-price, un-unique H&M equivalent* to snap out of my stinginess.

At any rate, after I bought my new lamp, I had countless people staring it and/or coming up to me, asking me for how much I got it and nodding in approval. When Liz and I stopped at a cafe on the way home, some guy even walked by and I could hear him say to his girlfriend, "Wow, check out that fancy lamp." Talk about post-purchase reinforcement!

Unfortunately the wiring is a bit tricky, so despite two trips to the hardware store, I haven't been able to hang it up yet. In the meantime, it definitely makes for a nice coffeetable centerpiece!

* The H&M equivalent couldn't hold a light bulb to my lamp!

See Spot Tidy. See Spot Shine.

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Wed, 28 May 2008 05:46:00 +0000

I can't get enough of red with white polka dots! It started with the Steve Madden ballet-slipper-style wellies I scored while I was in Austin this March (and which are sure to make their debut at some music festival this summer), and really exploded with my trip to Butlers when I bought my new summer doormat (plus four mini tinpails, a tray and one of those heavy-duty square plastic bags). And I see no end in sight! Even my coworkers (who had no clue about this current addiction) bought me a toadstool salad bowl with matching serving utensils for my birthday. ESP?! But I think my proudest spotted possessions are the little pails I got from Butlers. Mostly because of what I ended up using them for.

You see, I'm absolutely horrible at taking care of my shoes, despite the copious amounts of shoe care products I've invested in (while all the while telling myself I'll be good to my shoes this time). All my polishes and creams and sprays were filled past the brim of this little container I was intent on keeping stashed (errr, squished) underneath my shoe rack. Not only did I have the reoccurring "out of sight, out of mind" problem, but it was completely disorganized and I never felt like rummaging through it to find what I needed for a particular pair of shoes (or putting it back when I was done).

So I used the mini buckets in my hallway to organize and display all my shoe stuff. I have brushes and cloths, polishes and creams, deodorizing and protective sprays and liquid protectants all in their own little pail. Now when I'm in a rush, everything's right there and there's no disorganized mess to clean up. It seriously makes taking care of my high-maintenance shoes a low-maintenance job. And who knew shoe deodorizer could look so cute!

Amango Tango

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Mon, 26 May 2008 19:14:00 +0000

I keep picking up toast divider things at the fleamarket to organize my incoming mail/bills and display my greeting cards. There's only so many I can use at a time, so I had to put a halt to this fleamarket obsession. But then recently I couldn't resist this lovely napkin holder that called out to me from one of the Turkish men's cluttered bins like a diamond in the rough. Given that I already have so many mail sorters, I didn't know what to do with it at first. But then genius struck!

I placed it on the sideboard where I have my TV to hold onto my current Amango (in the States it's Netflix) DVD. You see, it took me like 6 months to finally watch my last one (and 6 x about 7€ = like 42€ for one movie rental--egad!!!) Outta sight, outta mind, basically. But with my new display-tactic, it only took me 2 days to watch "Overboard". So if I still know how to do algebra, then that's a 9000% increase in DVD-watching efficiency!!!

Now after I've finally watched the darn movie and put it in my bag, my only problem is remembering to take it back OUT of the bag and THEN to actually drop it in the mailbox (I did actually once take it out of my bag upon exiting the U-Bahn station, walk straight past the mailbox and get to my desk at work with the DVD STILL in my hand. Oh deary, deary me). Wonder what I'll find at Mauerpark next to solve THAT problem.

Baby steps, baby steps.

Final Curtain Call

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Sun, 04 May 2008 19:37:00 +0000

As part of my spring cleaning, I've made it my mission to get over my procrastination-streak and finally tackle all my slumbering decorating todo's. It must've been half a year ago that I found some super cool valences at Mauerpark. Unfortunately, they were super icky (there was foam on the inside and it was disintegrating REAL bad) so it took me ages before I got around to taking the extra time out of my schedule to make a trip to the laundromat (cause hell no was I going to risk contaminating my own washing machine with the valences' ickiness!). Lucky for me, they came out spotless. And last week I finally took it upon myself to actually hang them up in my bedroom (one above my bed and the other above my "mood lighting").

Pre-Laundromat:

Post-Laundromat:

From Dress Rehearsal to Opening Night:

No Holds Barred

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Sun, 04 May 2008 18:44:00 +0000

Like I mentioned before, I've been in the process of spring cleaning my flat since last month (one baby step at a time). While I've been at it, I've been using the opportunity to check off a few of the decorating todo's I've put off way too long for whatever reason.

Probably about six months ago I bought three Bygel bars from Ikea. I immediately hung one up in my kitchen for all my hangable utensils. The other two I sprainted (errr, did I just invent a new word?! I mean spraypainted, of course--derrr!) white and gold respectively. The white one didn't have to wait much longer to be hung up in my bathroom as a towel rack (as I was getting sick and tired of my cheapy suction cup hooks constantly falling off and my towels landing on the floor). It wasn't until just last week though that I was (re)hanging stuff in my bedroom and decided to finally hang up the gold bar as well. I had been using the top portion of a clothing rack propped between the wall and my dressing table (really a dining room table covered in a pretty table cloth) as a scarf holder, and it was high time that this was banished to my basement!

Moral of the story? Bygel bars: not just for kitchen utensils anymore!

Another Bath Creation

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Sun, 04 May 2008 17:56:00 +0000

Last month I started the tremendous task of spring cleaning my entire apartment. I began by cleaning every centimeter of my bathroom. And afterwards I spiffed things up a bit with a little help from my Swedish friend. I browsed the Ikea site, jotted down a few notes and I was off.

It wasn't even on my list, but this Motorp magazine holder immediately caught my attention in the store and I decided it would make a perfect toilet paper holder for my Caribbean-themed bathroom! Word to your mother: anytime anything is handmade, you might want to bring a sample of whatever it is you want to use it to store. In this case, it was an impulse buy and even if it had been planned, I dunno if I would have brought tp into an Ikea to test out the size of the holes in a magazine holder! BUT it would have saved me the annoyance of later at home realizing that a typical roll of tp doesn't fit into each slot. My solution? I bought two rolls of 2-ply tp "for decorative purposes only". And my former toilet paper holder (self-sewn from a vintage towel I got from Oma) returned to its previous occupation as a washcloth holder and found a new home hanging from my towel bar.

First on my official shopping list was the Agen cabinet. I was so happy to finally find something nice, small-size and fairly affordable to replace my cheapo Viren as bathroom cleaner storage. And right in the knick of time because I heard they're going to stop selling them soon!

I also replaced the Viren I was actually using as a trash can with a Rebus paper wastebasket. But not before spraypainting it with a primer and then white paint to water-proof it and give it a look to match Agen (the Agen series actually has a nice wastebasket but it was way bigger than I wanted or needed). I also added some felt furniture pads to the bottom, so it's not so close to the ground (in case I have to much fun splashing around in the bathtub and the floor gets wet).

Last but not least, I reorganized my rolling caddy while injecting a little more tropical flair using Bräm and Bavring (which I just found out is actually meant to be a bread basket!).

Et voila! Another Bath Creation!

Christmas in April???

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 15:40:00 +0000

I got back to Berlin from my three-week SXSW/U.S. hiatus last Tuesday, and with a few exceptions, I was happy to be back. One of the things that made me almost want to hop on the next flight back to Austin, Texas was the weather. I left Berlin (as I did my last two March trips to the States) just as we got a last snowy bout of winter. But unlike before, this time I did not return to a blossoming Berlin filled with the joyful sounds of birds chirping.

So many things changed in the short time I was gone (the mom and pop grocer next to work closed down, a few new galleries opened up on Brunnenstrasse), but the weather remained the same. And to make matters worse, when I walked through Alexanderplatz on Saturday it made me feel as if I had just done the time warp in the U-bahn.

Yes, it's April. And yes, that's the Christmas market (with all the same stands as a few months ago). No clue why on Earth it's back. I mean, yes, it's still cold. But regardless. Staying stuck in the wintery past is certainly no way to entice spring to finally come out, come out wherever it is. And I wasn't about to give winter one more reason to hang around. So I immediately replaced my winter doormat with a cute summery one I found at Butler's on the way home.

Winter, you've outworn your welcome. Spring, come on down! The season is right!

Bench Warming

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 23:00:00 +0000

To celebrate me finally repainting and reupholstering the Eckbank I got for free at Mauerpark last September, I invited a few friends over for coffee and cake last Sunday. I baked a yummy Himbeerboden (raspberry cake) for the occassion using a super easy recipe from my Oma:

Ingredients
6 tablespoons flour (I use wheat)
6 tablespoons sugar (I prefer brown)
6 tablespoons oil (I like rapseed)
3 eggs
1 pack vanilla sugar
2 levelled teaspoons baking powder
1-2 packs Sahnesteif (cream stiffener)
500 g raspberries (strawberries are also nice!)
1 1/2 packs red Zuckerguss (glaze)
250 ml water
2 tablespoons sugar

Directions
1. Combine all ingredients in a medium-size bowl.
2. Mix until it starts to get foam.
3. Immediately pour into the baking form.
4. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for approximately 20 minutes.
5. Remove from the baking form.
6. Let the cake base cool down completely.
7. Sprinkle with Sahnesteif (this is a trick that keeps the fruit from soaking through!).
8. Top with fruit the fruit.
9. Mix the zuckerguss powder with the sugar in a small pan.
10. Add the water and mix.
11. Bring to a boil while stirring.
12. Let cool 1 minute.
13. Pour over the raspberries and let cool at least 20-30 minutes before cutting the cake.

Nobody Puts Drea in the Corner!

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 22:55:00 +0000

This summer I'd been on the lookout for an Eckbank for my dining area (my grandparents have one and I think they're the coolest and most practical furniture inventions ever!). And in September I found this hideous Eckbank for FREE at Mauerpark. Score! I wasn't surprised they were trying to get rid of it; the hideously upholstered thing was an eye sore in my living room for about a few months.

I finally got my shit together tried to repaint and reupholster it all in December the weekend before my surgery. But as always, my eyes were bigger than my stomach and I didn't finish it in time (at 3 a.m. the morning of my surgery I decide it would be best to get some rest and continue post-screw-removal!). Then came the holidays and I didn't get around to completely finishing it until January.

Along the way, I had a few surprises (only one of which was nice) and many mishaps: disintegrating seat cushions, 50s fabric remnants from the original upholstery underneath the ugly fabric (I left a patch as a sort of souvenir), mold (eeewww!), misglueing the wooden pieces that attach the backrests to the seats (oops), which resulted in me having to redrill holes in the backrests to reattach the pieces, which further resulted in me accidentally drilling a hole all the way through the already-covered wood and into the new cushion and fabric (about two seconds after thinking, "I've got the drill under control but wouldn't it be funny if I accidentally drilled a whole through the upholstery?" Well, f'in ha ha.). But now it's finally done and sparkling white in all its glory!

See below for some basic upholstering tips! And check out the Apartment Therapy/Bluelines January Jumpstart Project Contest winners for some more diy inspiration!

My guide during this ordeal--errr, project--was the book Singer Upholstery Basics. Here are the basic upholstery steps I followed for my eckbank (they can be applied to almost any simple upholstery project--like a stool, for example).

1. Cut the fabric 15cm larger than the length and width of the piece to be upholstered.

2. Cut the foam 2.5 cm larger than the length and width of the piece to be upholstered.

3. Place the fabric face down on your work space. Center the foam and the piece to be upholstered on the fabric.

4. Staple the fabric at the center of each side. Then staple each side, working from the center outward. Leave about 3.8 cm between each staple and about 7.5 cm at each corner.

5. Fold the fabric over at each corner and staple.

6. Cut away the excess fabric.

7. Miter the corners and staple put.

I've Got a New Sunday Groove!

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 23:58:00 +0000

The past three Sundays have been absolutely amaaaazing. Yesterday was chillier than the last two mild Sundays, but they've all been filled with glorious sunshine and brilliantly blue skies. This of course, has lended itself nicely to fleamarketing, and I've developed quite a lovely little new Sunday loop:

1) Leave my flat and cross Bernauer Strasse into former East Berlin.
2) Take a left down Brunnenstrasse towards Alexanderplatz and pick up some fresh cut flowers at the local florist (I figure they're already dead, so I can't kill them!)
3) Loop around to Arkonaplatz to check out the fleamarket there.
4) Head back to Bernauer Strasse and cross back into the former East to check out the goods at Mauerpark.
5) Drop off my purchases at home.
6) Meet up with friends for coffee (and cake) around Oderberger Strasse or chez moi.
7) Perfect!

Kaffee K(l)itsch(ko)

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 14:13:00 +0000

The other week I finally saw my friend Richie (aka Michael Knight) perform for the first time. The gig was at Kaffee Burger, which I hadn't been to in aaages. When I first moved to Berlin, my friend Gemma would always drag me there practically kicking and screaming (or at least moaning and groaning) after the other bars and clubs had already closed. So I came to know Kaffee Burger between the hours of about 6 and 9 a.m. Legendary for its Russian disco nights (which I have so far been able to avoid), it's usually a pretty pervy place, and the earliest I would normally think to go there at all is about 4 a.m. (and even then I'd have to be pretty wasted). But luckily it was an early gig, so we missed out on all the "fun." On a normal night during peak traffic times, the old-fashioned decor seems extremely out of place and kitschy. But minus the drunks, the pervs and the sweaty slutty dancing, I actually find Kaffee Burger quite lovely.

For more on the actual gig, check out my new blog "ear worms and eye candy"!

The Itsy Bitsy Spider That Climbed Up My Water Spout

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 22:57:00 +0000

Last night there was a big spider in my bathroom. I don't mind daddy long legs, but anything with a (proportionately) bigger butt than mine gives me the heebie jeebies. I wondered if this guy was the same one I had found in my bedroom a few weeks ago and wasted no time sucking up into the depths of my vacuum cleaner (maybe somehow he had managed to make an escape and was back out on the loose??). Back then I had also wondered if THAT guy was the tiny little feller camping out in my bathroom about a month or two earlier and which I had chosen to let live (cause I figured he wouldn't be able to find food and would die eventually anyway, but maybe somehow he was vegetarian and had managed to survive by feeding off my bathroom plant??).

Anyway. I really don't know what's worse: a visit from three different spiders in the middle of "winter" (thanks global warming!) or three visits from one single indestructible spider (arachnostalker!). At any rate, I wasn't messing around this time. So instead of just sucking him up and leaving the vacuum cleaner on for a few minutes (I don't like getting too close and this is less messy than the old shoe routine), I even sprayed some bug spray into the vacuum tube. Just to be sure.

I know, I know. "Animal" cruelty, right? Well, if he hadn't had so much junk in the trunk I would've tried to be more eco-friendly by catching him with paper and a jar and chucking him 4 stories out the window. But given that the spiders in Berlin surprisingly pack more back than any I've ever seen in Texas, Drea don't play dat!

Strawberry Letter 23

noreply@blogger.com (drea is my homegirl!) — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 20:42:00 +0000

It's stuff like this that makes me wish I still lived stateside. Ah well. Somebody please go to one of these and represent so I may live vicariously through you!

P.S.