apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

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.

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.

Having just returned from 5 glorious days on the southwest coast of Oregon, we've definitely got travel on the brain. We met up with cousins that just returned from China and are on their way to Europe, other cousins that are backpacking through the mountains in Northern California and are planning trips around the world. Sitting on the airplane and looking at the map in the back of the airline magazine had us dreaming of far off destinations, road trips and leisurely time off. It also reminded us of a decor statement a friend of ours made in their guest room/office:

Last week when we posted our garden tour we got a lot of comments asking what the fence was made of. Because it's made with fiberglass sheets it affords privacy without blocking out the light. We're happy to share where we traced it back to and wonder who else has some resources for outdoor supplies that extend past Home Depot and Osh:

A lot of people get weird around whether or not they're capable of keeping plants alive. They think they have black thumbs or no luck with plants. And to those people, we say try succulents. You can literally break off pieces of them and stick them in water (or dirt) and they are almost guaranteed to sprout roots.

After posting about Intelligentsia's vertical garden we felt compelled to dig a bit deeper and find some other way cool gardens that make good use of vertical space. Not only are they a great option for small spaces, but there are even some that work well in small indoor spaces. Jump below for some of the most inspiring vertical gardens we've seen:

Even though we have no plans for marriage, we keep finding ourselves on wedding related blogs for the party decor ideas and all the great flower arrangements. This one we especially liked because you can use succulents in an arrangement and plant them afterwards:

The long awaited Intelligentsia in Venice opened last week so we stopped by to take a look for ourselves. The west side location is very different from the look of the Silver Lake shop starting with an entry courtyard for hanging out that's decked out with a vertical garden that will only get more grand with time.

You know how they say that if you give something long enough it will come back into style? Well on a recent trip to phoenix where we toured through Sun City (a planned neighborhood for retired folks) and we were sort of torn on whether we loved the landscaping in a kitschy, retro way, if we loved it in a it kind of looks modern and sparse and it's got rocks kind of a way or if it just isn't cool at all.

Name: Tracy (My Mom) Location: Montrose Type of space: Front Yard How did you do it?: Welcome to my mom's front yard. I wish I had a before shot of it but about ten years ago it was half dead lawn with sad hedges hugging the house. My mom, a landscape designer, decided to forgo the lawn and make a garden rich in texture, color and low on water consumption and maintenance.

We normally bring up the Huntington Cactus Garden as inspiration but lately there's been something else attracting attention at the expansive garden. It's the largest bloom in the world and it's set to open any day now:

Name: Laure
Location: Venice, CA.
Type of space: Small backyard
How did you do it?: Let me start by saying that I have grown up gardening. My grandmother was an avid gardener, my mom is a garden designer and I am what I like to call a plant enthusiast. So when I moved into a guest house that had a small yard with lots of room for improvement I was pretty excited. Also, I had a really small budget but had the time to do the work myself.

With My Great Outdoors in full swing we wanted to highlight some architecture that made good use of the outdoors. Tezuka Architects in Japan created this modern wonder--a house that is all but missing its four walls. This house brings the outdoors in by eliminating the distinction between indoors and out. Like a previous housetour, the house is surrounded by lush foliage and relies on the garden for privacy.

Not only is our own closet floor littered with extra lamps, shoes we've been meaning to go through and framed art we haven't hung yet, but the shelf above the hanging clothes is overflowing with piles of tee shirts that need to be edited, scarves that need to be wrangled and pants that don't fit anymore. Yeah, we need to clean house and Jet's closet is just the inspiration we need: