The worst advice we’ve received since beginning work on our home? Do the bedroom last. If we had a do-over, making the bedroom livable would be first on our list. Happily, we’ve made some progress and are now enjoying restful nights with just a few changes. Tip #1: Unless you hate blue, it’s really the best color for rest. We picked Ralph Lauren paint in Indian Sky.

Tip #2: Get a bedside table with lots of storage to keep your clutter and top it with interesting objects you love. We found these danish stereo cabinets at a local vintage shop. Books and lots of other things are hidden away. Lamps: Ikea Jonsbo Gryby and vintage linen shades. Vintage African Kuba cloth in Crate & Barrel frame. Vintage wall paper in ikea Ribba frame.

Tip #3: Buy crisp all-cotton bedding in a sturdy low thread count. They hold up to hot washings so you suffer less during allergy season.  Get three sets. One set on the bed, one set in the linen chest, one set in the wash means you’ll never have to wait for clean sheets. We found the Thomas O’Brien sheet set and pillow cases  in white stripe at Target. The duvet cover is Ikea Benzy in blue plaid. The shams are homemade from a soft Japanese indigo cotton fabric I found online.

Tip #4: Windows should filter light softly and be made from the fabric that’s best for your facing exposure. Our windows face northeast and the unlined homemade linen shades let in just enough of the indirect light, mellowing the room .  Tip #5: Arrange a place to sit. I moved this comfy Milo Baughman vintage chair we covered in natural linen canvas upstairs from the living room and threw on an Ikea sheepskin.

Elle Decor featured Commune Design team member Steven Johanknech’s skillfully curated California cottage for the March 2012 issue.  Johanknech gives the firm’s signature modern rustic look a decidedly sophisticated and gentleman-like air here. Glossy black floors and glints of chrome harken back to his Manhattan roots. See more photos and read the story at the Elle Decor site.

If you’re looking for an inspiring neutral space, check out Devin Kirk’s Chicago place in the March 2012 issue of Elle Decor. He’s used only a few colors but kept the place warm by using  layers, texture plus a good mix of high and low items. The ubiquitous Ikea Expedit bookcase is practically hiding next to the linen covered vintage porter chair in the photo below. See more photos at the Elle Decor site and read about how Kirk scouts for furnishings to fill his place and Jayson Home where he serves as VP of Marketing.

After all my peeling, cubing, mincing and searing in preparation for a dish I like to call Apple Dijon Chicken, I realize I am out of Dijon mustard. You really can’t use any other mustard  when your recipe calls for  Dijon. Here’s a quick and easy substitute for Dijon mustard you can make at home if find yourself in a pinch. The mix is also a good option for those who don’t use Dijon enough to warrant buying a whole jar.

Mix these ingredients together in a small bowl to yield two tablespoons of Dijon mustard:

• 1 tablespoon dry mustard
• 1 teaspoon water
• 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
• a pinch of sugar

March brings the first blossoms of bright yellow flowers on the Mimosa tree. I’ve pulled together this table setting using some of my favorite vintage pieces–all in muted orange, green and brown to complement my favorite flower.

Vintage Dansk Fjord Flatware. Lithuanian Natural Linen Napkin at Canvas Home. Vintage Heath Ceramics Pumpkin Charger and Sage Dinner Plate. Timo Sarapaneva Bird Bottle. Fresh Mimosa Branch. Fog Linen Work Tablecloth at Horne.

All five of these practical kitchen tools available from Kaufmann Mercantile are indispensable. You’ll end up wondering how you ever managed without them. Costs range from $8 to $60 and ship free with a $25 order. Clockwise from top:

1. The Die Imaginare Manufacktur Natural Bristle Brush works like a super-strength pipe cleaner. You can use it to thoroughly scour the spout of your teapot and every inch of your electric percolator.  

2. The Hermetus Bottle Opener & Resealer slides over your opened bottle to keep the fizz fresh.

3. The John Gill Company Tube Wringer stands on its own to leave your hands free to twist every bit of goodness out of your anchovy or tomato paste tubes.

4. The Fabosk Heat Diffuser Plate comes in two size and can make any shabby stovetop–electric, gas or induction–deliver even heat. Sophisticated cooks will appreciate its usefulness as a simmer ring or tool to level  your butter melter or espresso maker.

2. The Windmuehlenmesser Carbon Bird’s Beak and Carbon Paring Knife  have blades that  stays sharp longer than steel. The beak-like tip cores apples, strawberries and the like. Both knives are excellent for the peeling and slicing root vegetables.

Bob & Kim Zielinski built this amazing home cantilevered high above Pittsburgh’s city skyline. The 6,900-square-foot, five level structure floats above the South Side, the neighborhood where I grew up. Over the past 20 years it has been slowly gentrified to include a waterfront mall and blocks of night spots. Even though a mere skip away from the new developments, views from the Zielinski’s place harken the old neighborhood’s industrial roots. The  living room window wall looks out over the South Side slopes, home to steel-working families and the Birmingham Bridge, made from salvaged parts of the historic Brady Street Bridge erected in 1896.  For more Tony Cenicola photos of the home head over to the New York Times style section and check out An Industrial Strength House in Pittsburgh.

While searching for fabric to complete my most recent restoration project (see previous post on our Milo Baughman recliner) I looked to one of my favorite elle decor photos for inspiration.  I’m working on bringing the varied wood and leather hues and the warm rust and mustard  in designer Robert Stilin’s sitting room into our own living area.  I think the Knoll “Red Fox” boucle is a good dupe for the deep, weathered patina on Robert Stilin’s leather chair.

I spotted this Milo Baughman Recliner  and knew that even though it had been completely trashed with a little love it could be something special. I found a bolt of Knoll classic wool boucle in the Red Fox color way on Ebay and hooked up with  Modern Chair Restoration and couldn’t be more pleased with the transformation. What an absolutely awesome job.  The photo above is from the Modern Chair Restoration blog. Head over to the site and take a look for more incredible salvages. I highly recommend working with them for your own project.

You should know Carl “Dingbat” Smith.  When Pittsburgh’s Crawford Grill was filled with pieces by local African American artists, his mixed media metal sculptures were among the finest works displayed. Dingbat’s most recognizable works were  forms created with nails. The amazing sculptures took on color naturally. Each nail in each sculpture was chosen by Dingbat for its representation of a precise moment in the oxidation process.  The obvious reference to make when speaking of Dingbat’s work is comparison to NKonde Nail Fetish crafted by the Boma people of African to bring harmony and weaken evil spirits. Discussing the creative process, Dingbat once said, “We are all born creative beings and it’s always a struggle to bring it out once we have to cope with the outside world.”  Perhaps the sculptures offered him and the Hill District’s community of artists, a similar solace.