In July 2013 our adventures together took an unexpected and 3,000 mile turn when Gwyneth and I moved to California. Theres nothing we love more than a new design challenge, and our 560 square feet of San Francisco is full of them! Fitting it all in and the popcorn ceiling and learning to garden oh my.
But rearranging furniture and working on new home improvement projects are two of our favorite pasttimes, so our space will always be a work in progress. Thats the fun of it, right?! Well be updating this page frequently as we go area by area, giving our San Francisco home New Yorkie style. And because we believe in keepin it real, well be sharing the pretty parts and the ones that are uglier than sin along the way. So as always, if you have an idea for something you see here, leave us a comment or email us - we cant wait to hear from you!
Our tiny courtyard is our own little oasis in downtown San Francisco. Before the big move, Gwyneth and I stuck to plants of the permanent variety. Our little outdoor space has motivated us to learn a little about gardening, and so far weve had pretty good luck!
One of the first decisions Gwyneth and I were faced with was to recreate our NYC pink door or try something new. As you can see, we decided our San Francisco place wouldnt feel like home without our favorite DIY of all time, so we went for it and painted it pink.
The living room is where we spend most of our time at home and was ironically the last room we worked on. Its not 100% finished (but seriously, when is it ever finished?), but we finally figured out a solution for our window treatment dilemma with these No Sew Roman Shades!
Reupholstering this pink slipper chair was the first of what we hope will be many furniture makeovers in San Francisco. And as you can see, were putting many of our NYC Dumpster Dives to new uses now that were in San Francisco. We love how our Dumpster Dive Bookcase from NYC doubles as a media center in our living room.
Our DIY Terrarium was our first stab at gardening. We thought wed start small and see how things went before we started on our courtyard. Thankfully, its still going strong too!
Gwyneth and I always knew wed have a corner office one day we just didnt expect it to be so small! Heres how we made the most of our home office space and filled it with a few things to keep it a productive and stress-free zone.
While weve got a little more space than we did in NYC, we still have a few challenges fitting everything in. Our DIY Union Jack Trunk is one of our favorite projects, so we found the best place we could for it. Our hallway is a little cluttered with it under the console, so if you have a suggestion for an alternate placement, dont be shy about telling us!
Another small-space challenge? No room for a dining room table! Since we didnt have enough space to set up an area for eating, we did the next best thing carved out a space for drinking. Heres where you can find more details on our bar.
The kitchen is one of the areas wed like to spend a little more time on. As you can see here, we recreated our plate wall, but we think there are a few other things we can do to up the charm factor in this part of the apartment.
If theres a room thats our very favorite, its our bedroom. Its where weve mixed a few of our favorite Dumpster Dive finds along with a recent splurge from Pottery Barn.
Since the apartment with a walk-in closet was out of the budget, Gwyneth and I had to do the next best thing and find a way to organize our closet so everything fit. Heres where we have our top 5 essentials for every clothes horse with a tiny closet.
Lastly, we gave our tiny bathroom a makeover in an effort to customize what was a pretty standard and lackluster apartment bathroom.
Thats our space for now! There are several more projects wed like to tackle, but its already starting to feel like home! (And for a blast from the past, heres where you can take the tour of our 470 square foot apartment in NYC, where our love for decorating, dumpster diving and DIY-ing all started.)
xoxo,
mk & Gwynnie
Meredith, it looks like your green thumb is holding up! I have yet to start the millionaire cross-stitch, but I HAVE selected the fabric & floss
Hi Sharon! Thank you! So far, they are still going strong! Were keeping a close eye on them, though! And we cant wait to see your cross stitch when you make it! Dont feel bad about it taking a while weve got another one were working on that might take another three years at the pace were going!
xoxo,
mk Gwynnie
Hi there! Im visiting from Sumos Sweet Stuff Market Yourself Monday I loved the tour! Your place looks great! My favorite is the pink door and the Love Always Wins sign. Off to check out more of your blog!
Thank you, Kristen! So glad you found us! The pink door is our favorite DIY of all time, so your compliment means so much to us!!
xoxo,
mk Gwynnie
Your home is stunning! I love your pink door!
Blessings,
Rita
Rita, thank you so much! You made our day!
xoxo,
mk G
What an amazing place and wow, the decor is lovely. I would love for you to link up to my ongoing party Inspire Me http://www.astrollthrulife.net/2013/08/179th-inspire-me-tuesday.html Hope to see you there. Hugs, Marty
Thank you! Just linked up to this weeks party!
xoxo,
mk G
You did such a great job in your place! Have fun in SF, I live out in Sacramento and love heading into the city when I can
Thank you, Kelley! Were definitely having fun making SF feel like home!
xoxo,
mk G
You have truly made your space cozy and lovely. ;o)
Thank you, Paula! Weve had a lot of fun working on it!
Thank you so much for stopping by and taking the time to comment! Always makes us smile!
xoxo,
mk G
Wow! Im impressed with how much youve managed to do with a small apartment! Great job, girls!
I love all the pink. I popped over from The Shabby Creek Cottage thanks for sharing!
~Abby =)
Thank you, Abby! So glad you found us! Headed over to check out your blog now!
xoxo,
mk G
This is all soooo pretty! Great job!
Thank you!!
xoxo,
mk G
Beautiful home. I have the opposite of your pink door (pink insides, white door) and I love it!! Dont forget to link up to The DIYers! http://homecomingmn.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-diyers-27.html
Thank you, Kayla! Will definitely link up! Thanks so much for letting us know!
xoxo,
mk G
Im so excited to see another Bay Area blogger! Im in your neck of the woods (over in the East Bay) , so although I have more square feet, I have the same design dilemmas and a tiny budget! Cant wait to see what else you have in store! So far, everything is beautiful!
Hi Kim! Were so excited to see another Bay Area blogger too! Thank you so much for stopping by and taking the time to leave a comment! Headed over to your blog now!
xoxo,
mk G
I LOVE your home tour! This is just absolutely incredible use of space! Thanks so much for sharing at Tickled Pink Times Two. I am completely inspired.
I cant wait to see what else you will share
Meegan! Can you tell were catching up on the inbox tonight? Thank YOU so much for hosting and for featuring our home! You truly made our night! Hope you are having a wonderful week and thank you again!
xoxo,
mk Gwynnie
Im so glad that you recreated the pink door. I remember discovering your blog when you were in NYC, and then you decided to leave. I think I might have shed a tear when you said youd have to cover up the pink door. But I have to say, I love the new one! And everything else about your home. Id love for you to share your home our at Work It Wednesday. Its still going on right now, and I hope to see you there!!
Laura! LOVED this comment! Thank you so much. Boy did we shed a few tears painting that NYC door back! Recreating it in San Francisco meant so much to us! Thank you so much for following our adventures, and were headed your way now to link up!
xoxo,
mk G
Your home is so unique and beautiful, I love it! We would love to have you share this at our Saturday Link Party. Each link will be shown on two blogs, Made From Pinterest and Bakerette! It starts Fridays at 3pm, hope we see you there!
Please remember to put a link back to Made From Pinterest at the bottom of your post(s).
Tracy! Thank you! Will definitely link up on Saturday (and will be sure to add your link back!) Hope you have a wonderful week!
xoxo,
mk Gwynnie
I absolutely love your plates in your kitchen! I hope you are enjoying SF- I just moved from there and miss it so much! I think a SF neighborhood map (have you seen those? You can get it at a shop on Clement St) would fit in perfectly in your apartment.
Hi Caitlin! Thank you! Definitely enjoying getting to know SF, but theres a lot more to discover! A map would be a wonderful (and super useful) addition to the apartment! Well have to check out the shop you mentioned! Thank you!
xoxo,
mk G
Hi Meredith!
What are those rods you used to drape the linen pom pom curtain over your bed called? I love the look of that and would love that for over my bed. Thanks so much!!
I know I asked you this before but I cant find where I wrote it down anywhere