home decoration: phase 1, concept design

so my place is really bare right now. i've been trying to save up money since i used up most of it for the down payment. plus the economy isn't so hot right now, so i don't want to start spending on things i don't need. but, i'd like to put some money into my home to decorate it.

right now it just doesn't feel like "home" yet, so my goal is to liven up the kitchen and living room for phase 1. i'd like to lay out the space, design the concept, and then budget it out for the next year. perhaps then i can throw a belated housewarming party... heheh. here are some photos i took recently with overlays of possible pieces of furniture that could help. i want to focus on: a) things i currently don't have, b) things i want the most, and c) prioritize based of what i need vs what i want.

From jeffwongdesign

this is the kitchen/dining area. my dad gave me a nice coke mural to add to the wall. i'll be mounting it sometime within the next month. i need to figure out the best way to get it up on the wall. let me know if you have any thoughts. you'll also notice a blue box below—i'd like to add a nice wood bench to make it a nicer lounge area. so when someone's cooking, there's a place to sit and chat if there's company.

From jeffwongdesign

this is another angle of the kitchen, facing the opposite direction (towards the living room). youll notice the empty wall above the sink and the room divider on the ceiling. i'd like to find some nice paintings or photographs that could go above the sink. some sort of food theme could be really cool. i'd like to be more personal though—no generic shots of tomatoes or cutting boards. it'd be cool to have photos of my family... like thanksgiving shots of us when we're dining. or maybe a close up of some fish or crabs my dad and i caught at the riverhouse. the seafood/nautical theme could play nicely in the kitchen.

From jeffwongdesign

and this is the living room. starting from the left, i'd like to replace the existing cathode ray tube television with a nice large LCD, wall mounted, with a media table beneath. in the far left hand corner, i'd like a cool plant... something tall, thin, with very little foliage volume. in the center of the room, i need to get a nice rug to help divide the space. probably something with very little pattern would be best. if anything, i'd like something with a little texture, and light colored. i know light textured rugs are not the most practical, but it'd look incredible on the dark wood floors and black furniture. in the right corner, between the door and bay window, i'd like to either have a mirror or vertical photo/painting series. probably a mirror would be most practical... but i like photos as well. on the far right wall, above the couch, i'd like to have either a realliy cool mirror, or a large painting/photo print. something monochromatic with more whites would be ideal to help bring the space together (especially if the rug is whitish).

From jeffwongdesign

this is another angle of the living room, facing the kitchen. in the left corner, i'd like to find some kind of sculpture/lamp/table. in the right center, i'm toying with the idea of putting a circular bar table with two additional bar stools. something really modern. it would be nice to hang out, eat food and watch tv in the living room. it'd also break up the space nicely. in the right wall, i'd like to have either a series of photos or paintings. i could put a nice shelving unit against the wall as well... but then again, that would be taking away floor space. and in the right corner, i'd like to have another plant. something very thin and tall.

so, there you have it, that's a rough concept of the space for now. i'll probably post up some photos of piece of furniture i like in individual blog posts. please help me out by voting or leaving comments. any links/suggestions would be greatly appreciated!