furniture and fabric

I'm creative. To name a few... I've wanted to be an architect, an interior designer, a personal shopper and an organizationalist. I still think I'm a bit of all of those things put together, which is why I cannot stop rearranging my apartment and shopping for a chair. One might think there are only so many ways to put 7 pieces of furniture in a 10'x12' studio (measurements of main room). But there are, and I keep finding new ways, mainly in search of more space to fit a comfy chair so I'm not laying using my bed as a couch, dining room table, work station, and of course a place to sleep.

A friend of mine is the writer for St. Louis Homes and Lifestyles blog, "Design Du Jour." On November 11 she posted "we're sold on bold." Since I currently have a solid brown duvet, deep brown wood furniture, and solid green curtains, maybe I should listen to Katie and get sold on bold! You might also notice I like the updated club style.

If I asked my parents to take out a second mortgage and an extra 20+ square feet in my apartment then I might ask for this beautiful chair from Neiman Marcus.

Or number 8 on Katie's list. My dad has always jokingly told my sister and I (since we were kids) if you have to ask how much something is... it means you can't afford it.

Since I can't find the price of this Lexington chair, then I guess I can't afford it.

Going to the other end of the spectrum... looks good, quality equals price. This chair from Ikea has good lines and comes in several different fabrics, but even for $400, a chair from Ikea is still from Ikea. Don't get me wrong, I like Ikea and find great things each visit, but few products last longer than their price.

I know. It's brown. But stay with me. It doesn't have the hard modern legs and "squareness" of the others but if I threw it into the mix it could add more character to the apartment. It's more the size I need and I have a couple pillows that I know would look good in it and add more color. And what's even better... it's on sale for $188.88 at Target!

Thoughts? Suggestions? Any good finds?