Decorating Chris’ apartment

: Shower curtain, which we are using as a color palatte for the apartment.

My friend Chris has asked me to help him decorate his apartment, a task in which I have wholeheartedly taken on.

I love shopping, I love decorating and I love spending money (especially his money!) Another great piece to this is that he is a fellow graphic designer who has very similar tastes to mine, so we’re on the same page.

Chris just moved to a studio apartment in the happening downtown area of Athens, Ga., so he’s got a small space to work with.

He’s a bachelor and he likes modern, simple, masculine looks. Thank goodness (makes my job easy)!

First we decided to choose a color palette. We selected his existing shower curtain as the palette for the entire apartment.

It’s made up of black, chocolate brown, olive green, a rusty orange and a neutral greenish-gray.

After that, we decided to take inventory of his furniture before he moved from Columbia. The outdated bed, couches, etc., had to go, and he sold them on Craigslist before moving to save on moving costs. Why trek it down there if he didn’t plan to keep it?

: Chris and Alan put together the bed. Susan and I threw the box spring in the trash. And had too much fun doing it.

Of course, we needed to replace the sold furniture. The first place we hit was IKEA in Atlanta. We picked up a platform bed bed and a bookcase, some nightstands and some other small items there. They are all brown-black with nice clean, simple lines. Being from IKEA, they won’t withstand a lot of wear and tear or a lot of moves, but Chris promised not to jump on the bed too much. 😉

We’re using the bookcase as a room divider. It’s open on both sides so we can decorate the shelves in the color scheme (the little things like this will come later.) The entrance to his bedroom is a very wide one (at least 2-3 doorways wide), so having a bookcase block part of it will help when guests come to crash on his couch, yet it won’t keep away the openness of the apartment.

: Shelf for his apartment

Speaking of couch, he purchased my dream couch from Crate and Barrel. It’s so wonderful and versatile. You can put the pillows on the side and float it in a room, or put them on the back and have it look like a “regular” couch. It’s the width of a twin bed so you can throw a sheet on it and it’s a guest bed. Perfect for a small space.

I arranged his kitchen with the idea of keeping the counters as clean and empty as possible. After getting all of his appliances, glassware, food, etc., put away, I decided for optimum space, he really could use another shelf. Sooo, after a few drinks one night … I swiped one from an apartment that hadn’t been occupied yet (it’s a brand-new apartment complex.) I also got some shelf baskets and organizers for cups that go inside the cabinets.

: The bedroom so far

I am planning another trip soon (before his Halloween party!) to help with some other items, namely, a new bedspread (don’t worry, he’s not keeping the one shown!), a TV stand, some end tables and maybe a coffee table? I’m also going to help him with closet organization and down the road he’ll need a new desk.

Here’s a question: What do you think of duvets/covers? I have one I purchased for myself from West Elm and I hated how the cover came apart from the duvet all the time, even after purchasing the clips that supposedly keep it together. I relegated it to one of the guest rooms and my sister-in-law, Katie, mentioned after sleeping here one night that she really liked how mine stayed together so well – hers was always falling apart. If that’s staying together … !

Chris and I saw a fun duvet at CB2, but I’m hesitant to have him buy it because of the problems I’ve had with mine. I’d love your opinion on this and the other items we have left to buy for him …