apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

A friend from college found me on facebook recently so I decided to go over to his photo page to see what he's been up to. I was pleasantly surprised to find photos from our group trip to Europe. Even though the photos had been scanned in and were grainy in quality, I was flooded with memories from my first trip out of the country. The event that I recall most fondly from the entire month-long trip is when the group decided to explore Venice without the use of a map...

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One of last weekend's Dwell On Design events featured a 400 square foot Reclaimed Space home designed by the ebay Green Team and ecofabulous. The fab little house was auctioned off with proceeds benefiting Habitat For Humanity in Los Angeles. We love this idea and also learning how...

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We've got big plans this summer. Too bad we haven't actually finalized any of them. Yes, the sky is the limit for dreaming of the trip to yellowstone, the drive cross country and the European adventure, but the reality is that we'll probably have time for a couple of quick weekend getaways, maybe a week if we really play our cards right. So small vacations are better than nothing. Here are 7 destinations that are totally driveable from LA.

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THIS WEEK
• Visionary Boutique 50% Housewares Sale
• Feeding Birds 4th of July Print Party
• Plastica Indoor/Outdoor Rug Sale
• Z Gallerie Outdoor Furniture Sale
• Renoma Lighting Warehouse Sale
• Denizen Gallery Floor Sample Sale
• Richard Neutra, Architect: Sketches and Drawings
• "Era" at the Oviatt Building
• Arkitip + Shepard Fairey

Jump below for more information...

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As we noted yesterday, Sunday we were again up bright and early, this time checking out Dwell's home tours on the Westside of Los Angeles. The last two homes we saw on the tour (we only got to see 5 out of 6 due to our clutch issues) were located on opposite sides of Coldwater Canyon in the hills of Beverly Hills and they were definitely not for the shy...

Check out the slideshow here!

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The Three Gardrobes by Tamizo Architects Group is an interesting idea: instead of cramming the utilities of the typical bathroom into a small space, the Three Gardrobes compartmentalizes the bath, toilet and wash basin into three separate closets. As described, "...instead of designing a furniture for a bathroom we placed bathroom in a furniture." Obviously you'd have to have a large room to accommodate the conceptual inversion, but then we thought this might be a fascinating idea to apply to a vacation home with an outdoor bathroom with similar functional "gardrobes"...

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There are more than just a few things we love about packing light for a trip. Whether it's for two weeks or a weekend getaway up the coast--we love erring on the side of less is more...

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Anyone remember that short film, The Red Balloon (Le Ballon rouge)? It came out in the late 50s, about a little boy who finds a red balloon that follows him around (we won't spoil the ending). Anyway, long story short, we recently watched the film and was enamored by the visual impact of red against the blues and greys of Parisian streets...which then inspired us to dig around for some brilliant red rooms! Take a look at some of photos after the jump--oh, and don't forget to turn on your speakers: we've also included a bonus track to set the tone...

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We’ve had lighting on the brain for the past week. While searching for the perfect lamp this week, we stumbled across the work of Volker Haug. We had seen his work briefly at a design show last year but his current range has made us do a double-take...

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Name: Atago House; Small House Design Lab
Location: Hiroshima, Japan
Size: 1195 sq. ft.

Even people not all too fond of modern minimalism should find something to like in this modest sized home from Small House Design Lab which squeezes 1195 sq. ft. out of a 506 sq. ft. plot of land. The feat is achieved by its verticality and the intelligent use of built-in storage and interior architectural features (small space living is all about storage), giving the interior space a great sense of possibility and potential (these photos have been obviously staged without any occupants, so the minimalist effect is a bit exaggerated). And how we love that expansive table that stretches out from the kitchen out to a raised platform, giving the occupants a place to dine in both Japanese and Westernized fashion...

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There's always something pleasantly rewarding about carefully cutting something out, folding and slotting tab "A" into tab "B" and converting a 2 dimensional piece of paper into a 3 dimensional object. So for those of you looking for a bit of novelty without a real concern about sound quality, these Princeton PSP-NXT retro themed stereo system paper models are likely to be something right up your alley...

• Read the rest over at Unplggd

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For my other job, I've been spending a lot of time at thrift stores and flea markets (I'm lucky) armed with petty cash and a list to check off. Amidst the credenzas, lamps, chairs, dining room tables and vintage linens I'm shopping for, I've come across some pretty spectacular kitsch. With my partner in crime (who shall remain nameless) we've zeroed in on incredible cat decor that is awesomely bad.

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We love peeping into other folk's home's and gaining inspiration. We'll usually come away with great ideas that would translate well in our own home. Take for instance Liz's red shutters in her dining room...

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When design inspiration strikes, it's hard not to act on it! During this tough economic time, priorities can definitely change and we've been thinking of ways to still satisfy your design craving with little or no budget at all. Enter an Apartment Therapy fave, Benita of Chez Laarson. Check out her fabulous inspiration after the jump.

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