Sunday, October 5, 1975 THE MICHIGAN DAILY Page Five I PERSPECTI YE Moiddm& ChAnndgmft e o in A Arbor: Give By BARBARA CORNELL THERE'S NO need for wall-to- wall, floor-to-ceiling, bed-; room - to - bathroom kaleido- scopic, mind blowing color mezmerization when it comes down to decorating an apart- ment with taste. But changing a typically drab Ann Arbor campus apartment into an in- terior decorator's delight is a formidable challenge as any student knows. 'Avacado' matted shag car- peting replete with cat dander and fuzz balls, stringy second- hand sofas, and arthritic arm- chairs don't easily lend them- selves to optimum coordination.I Local realtors don't exactly have to pass a 'taste test' be-+ fore they purchase new furni- ture. So when you set out to tackle the average University off-cam- pus slum dwelling, remember our home a neutrals. "People have real problems when they try to mix colors and I've seen some real abortions in my day." ! So now you've got these ineu- tral walls and you've vowed on the bible that you're not going to go overboard to create a cosmic - colored catastrophe., Now what do you do? NEXT STOP is the cheapo fabric store. "You can al- ways use wall hangings," says Monteith. Colorful material and a staple gun can go a long way Ahern uses old doors and filing' cabinets for just about every- thing. His filing cabinet / dress-I er neatly classifies everything from his Argyles to his Zunder- wear. And he is quick to point out that legal-sized filing. cabi- nets are a perfect size for stor- ing laundered shirts. Ahern obtains his old doors from lumber companies. He looks for hollow ones that have been damaged on one side and then uses them for everything from table tops to room divid- ers. ?celift old ladder which was missing a few rungs as a step ladder for his loft. "There's countless things you can do," says Mon- teith, "you just have to keep your eyes open for things you can use.' Subtle changes can make dra- matic differences. "My big pitch would be plants and light- ing," suggests Bayne. If you're unsure whether your dungeony, dank apartment can support nature's greenery, Monteith suggests you use an ordinary camera light meter to t t t to add appropriate patches of He says creating different measure the intensity of its color to a room. Monteith main- levels of matresses can create light in "footcandles." A flor- tains that the most successful a modular-style furniture ar- ist can use this information to hangings are ones that focus the rangement. And Monteith sug- prescribe appropriate plants. eye on one point in the room. gests industrious individuals Monteith says she is not above Fabrics and wooden frames can purchase foam rubber blocks buying her plants at a super- also be used as wall dividers. at a fabric store, anchor them market, but says to check that Monteith and Bayne agree that to a home-made wooden frame, the leaves are green and shiny putting nails in walls does not and then cover it with material. to be sure the plant is healthy. crucify a renter when damage Both of these types of furniture "You can really overdo it with says Monteith. Bayne suggests nlants," she cautions. "You "getting q lot of those cheapy have to be careful. Generally, lights that clamp on to things one or two big plants are more and putting them all over the effective than a lot of little place. You can use them for ones." backlighting plants and making And she says that if you are funny shadows on the ceiling." going to invest in a big plant, If you want the lamps to be vis- you should also buy a "grow ible, Bayne recommends pur- light" so that the plant does chasing bulbs tipped in silver I not meet a premature demise. to avoid glare. Monteith buys High Intensity IHERE ARE MANY more >Discharge (HID) lamps which easy, cheap ways to fix' provide light in the proper spec- apartments short of hiring an trum for plants. Although she interior decorator. Monteith gets her HIDs at a florist, she says the best place to seek out says you can probably purchase --- - them more cheaply at a light-i - in stre.Elec.Typewriter Regular lighting in unusuale . E8e/N ye places is also a big part of de- corating. "Lighting is one of k $2. 'tno those things that is very im- ATr unirsity cellar portant but usually ignored," ;I j p f k 4 if I t 1 s i ideas is the public library. And if you're up for a change of at- mosphere but you just can't get into doing-it-yourself, archi- tect Ahern offers one final, sim- ple, and logical suggestion: "You might just do well to make friends with someone in the art school." Daily Photo by PAULINE LUBENS PHOTOGRAPHS by Mark Reesman October 1-31 Y .. I } ti UN ION, GALLERY First Floor Michigan Union TUES.-SUN.-10-6 SAT.-SUN.-12-6 Dr. Paul C. Uslan OPTOMETRIST Full Contact Lens Service Visual Examinations 548 CHURCH ST. 663-2476 r----- - s u B S R C IR 76r05r8 a 764-0558 there are a few basic tenets of design that can help to trans-= form shabbiness into something not far short of godliness. deposit day rolls around. "You can always patch a wall when: you are through." says Baynes. "Actually you ruin the wall more with those stick-on things tfit ever one uses because you Daily Photo By PAULINE LUBENS can be easily disassembled on moving day. "THE BASIC approach is sim- can't cover them up even when plicity," says University inter- you paint over them." And if for designer Sam Bayne. Once vou're at a loss for classy art- you have that, you can add work, Monteith recommends your own touch of personality."brksntegthecpmmnt Bayne suggests facing the facts browsing through the paintings byn fisggts facing rtweal- which are available to checkj by first facing your walls. Real- out on a temporary basis at tors somehow invariably seem the Ann Arbor Public Library. to adore neither-here-nor-there shades of wishy-washy yellows, Local architect and general! bland blues, and ghastly greens. good taste do-it-yourselfer Rich- "I think most designers hate ard Ahern is an encyclopedia of pastels," claims Bayne. "It's al- information when it comes to ways good to get the landlord using odds and ends for spruc- to paint the place white." Bayne ing up an apartment. He re- also says "earth colors" can' commends that poverty - strick- AV/IIEN IT comes to eye-pleas- ing knick-knacks, Ahern claims "Just a few quality ma- terials will go a long way." His lamp shades are all wicker wastebaskets, his carpeting is' swatches once used as samples.' Some of his apprentices built lofts from old packing crates and spare lumber. One used an --COUPON- 2 for GOOD ONLY Buy 1 Super Sa large mushroo famousN I w___ BIG a BIKE SALE WHILE THEY LAST Raleigh men's 74" Grand Prix. ... only $139.00 Famous Mercier men's 100"...... only $139.95 Great selection of Back Packs ...... $3.98 up Visit our fantastic adult game selection -Also HOBBIES & TOYS- We repair a ll makes of bikes SCHWINN RALEIGH PEUGEOT * MERCIER SOLEX MOTOR BIKES where students buy their wheels CAMPUS BIKE & TOY 514 E. WILLIAM-662-0035 open Monday evening 'til 8.0 p.m. S' '1 Special -COUPON- provide a suitable neutral back- drop on which to work. "You can't go wrong with earth col- ors, really," he notes. His co-worker, Ruth Montieth,' suggests painting one wall dark brown to add extra dimension to a room. "When the lighting is low, the wall sort of blends! out," she says. Baynes adds that "dark brown is always a good color for a bathroom" - nothing like a little designer's 'in-joke'. But the real stumbling block, according to Monteith, comes once you've shelved your paint cansand rollers. She cautions would-be decorators against liberally slathering an apart- ment with bright colors urnless they have some natural propen- sity or training for their coor- dination. "People just don't re- alize that there's a whole psy- chology of colors. What you need in a room is not necessar- ily a difference in colors, but a difference in intensity." She says people who "do not have a natural eye" should stick to en students use gift-wrapping paper instead of wall paper for' an inexpensive way to accent lack-luster walls. But as you sink dlown into your already sleazy sofa to ad- mire your stunning walls, ima- gine how much better they would look without Kiwanis Club Snecials you are forced to call furniture. Monteith makes at least one helpful sug- gestion in this regard: get rid1 of as much of it as you can- "even if it means you have to sit on the floor." Monteith, Bayne, and Ahern all point out a number of ways to "create" substitute furnish- ings or at least make the old stuff as invisible as possible. VETERAN MAKE YOUR WEEKEND PAY Michigan Notional Guard 483-3184 YTHRU OCTOBER 12TH. clad-GE portion of fresh green oms, cauliflower, olives yogurt dressing. N( Long 31 Ai I I I fir.; 1 rl 1FREE i s, tomatoes, cheese, and sprouts with our OT AVAILABLE FOR CARRY OUT I pevity Cookery 4 E. Liberty nn Arbor, Mich. 313) 662-2019I - u- - i (I GOURMET NATURAL FOOD RESTAURANT Em -_E - . _____ . 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