A really long wooden dining table with a bunch of vintage chairs (and old schoolhouse looking ones to boot) = a HUGE *YES!* in my book.

As much as I love having 25 drawers in my kitchen to keep everything organized, there’s something really appealing about having every kitchen gadget and spice jar at your fingertips (although the dust and grease must be such a pain in the arse). Both photos via Freunde von Freunden.

I received an email the other day from fellow Ottawa resident Sacha that I was pretty excited about – another Ottawa reader’s home tour! Sacha and his wife Melissa are a young newlywed couple who, thanks to cash gifts from their wedding, were able to work some magic on their new home (which they received the keys for the day after their wedding – talk about too much excitement in 2 days!). Having lived in a 1 bedroom apartment beforehand, this must have been a bit of a daunting task on a bit of a tight budget, however, Sacha and Melissa did such an awesome job! I love the neutral colour scheme, the funky wallpapers, the modern furnishings and the wall colours (they painted every wall! and grey is my fav!). I am shocked they did not follow a common Ottawa trend of zipping out to Ikea or Leons and buying every single piece of furniture in one trip (UGH). They have launched a new blog and interior decorating business and I foresee much success for this talented couple.

If you’d like to send us photos to include in next week’s “pets on furniture” post, please ensure your photos follow our basic rules: First, the pet must be on a piece of furniture. And said piece of furniture must be clearly visible in the photo, so it takes center stage rather than your pet. Think of it more of a photo of a great piece of furniture that you want to show off…and your pet happens to be sitting on it. And second, the photo must be of decent quality. If it’s dark or fuzzy (from a camera phone) then it may not make the cut. Thanks! (Photos, your name, location and a brief description can be sent to  desiretoinspirekim[@]hotmail[.]com and PLEASE don’t send closeups of your pet!)

This is Margot, my English Bull Terrier. She loves to sleep and eat. All day. All night. If you look closely under the chair, you can see Elmer, one of the three cats Margot lives with. That’s his favorite spot.
– Janne (Tvedestrand, Norway)

I love your Pets on Furniture posts and would love to see my Siamese Wedgehead boys Tyr and Thor on one of them! Here they are snuggled up together on my Womb chair, as they are every afternoon.
– Liv

Her name is Oakley, and this is HER SPOT. You sit there, and she will find a way to kick you out.
– Alex (Massachusetts)

This is our wing chair and our cat Thumper happens to be sitting on it.
– Bill

Penny is a year-old chihuahua terrier mix…the black part of her fur gets all over the couch and her white fur gets all over my black pants!
– Victoria

Our sheepadoodle, Gertie, lounges on the furniture better than most teenagers.
– Ellie & Amy (Chicago)

Photos from Houston pet photographer Robyn (her last bunch were in this post).

cow cat lounging by cow cat pillow (The cat’s name is Emmy)
– Andrea

A typical Monday morning, or Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday or Friday, not on Saturday or Sunday because my husband is home and takes the couch………………….
– Maureen

This is our 4 year old Boxer, Cali.  She is often a ball of energy, however, at this time, she was participating in an activity quite uncommon for her – relaxing!…. but as you can see, she still has one eye opened, just to make sure she doesn’t miss out on any fun!
– Kathy & Rob (Northport, New York)

Siggy, conked out on the couch! so cute.
– Trisha, NYC

If you’d like to send us photos to include in next week’s “pets on furniture” post, please ensure your photos follow our basic rules: First, the pet must be on a piece of furniture. And said piece of furniture must be clearly visible in the photo, so it takes center stage rather than your pet. Think of it more of a photo of a great piece of furniture that you want to show off…and your pet happens to be sitting on it. And second, the photo must be of decent quality. If it’s dark or fuzzy (from a camera phone) then it may not make the cut. Thanks! (Photos, your name, location and a brief description can be sent to  desiretoinspirekim[@]hotmail[.]com and PLEASE don’t send closeups of your pet!)

This is our 2 basset hounds who couldn’t resist but to get in the way of a picture of our bedroom my wife was taking.
– Morgan (Newport Beach, CA)

My Australian Cattle Dog mix, Bailey, enjoying a relaxing afternoon on the couch in Carrboro, North Carolina.
– Kim

Biggie the pug loves coming to G-ma’s on summer vacation spending the day lounging.
– Cheri (Cumberland Beach, Ontario)

Bodi, 15-week-old Vizsla (littermate of William, from previous week), acquainting himself with the new Mitchell Gold club chair while attempting to will his toys to jump up and join him.
– Corrine (Toronto)

The pictures were taken at my house, the dachshunds on the chair are, from left to right, Hazel, Ernie, and Nooner and the Newfoundland is Foyle. They can’t seem to sit on any of our chairs alone, they all have to dog pile onto one. Foyle commandeers the couch and all the dog beds (including the dachshunds’) but seems to turn his nose up at modern furniture. Not comfortable enough? The hounds on the other hand can’t get enough and prefer the Bertoia chair above all. Better to scratch their backs on!
– Robin

This photo was taken awhile ago but remains one of my favorites. I couldn’t believe I caught not one, but two misbehaving pets on furniture! Enjoy Sammie the dog, and Nicky the cat.
– Pam

I thought I would send this to you for your Monday pet feature. 
– Tiffany

This is our 3 month old kitten “Virgola” sitting with nonchalance in our Billy bookcase trying to look like a candle-holder. We found her at the end of July in an irrigation channel. She was so tiny and cute that we had no choice but to adopt her.
-Teresa (Lodi, Italy)

Our cockapoo Ace on his favorite piece of furniture.
This is our other cockapoo Abbie laying on our couch in North Carolina.
-Alyssa (North Carolina)

This is my dog Mozi sitting on the couch that has been designated as his couch. He is a Great Pyranees and weighs about 120 pounds.
– Ian (Santa Rosa, California)

A great summer was had by all!
– Lisa (Nantucket, MA)

I was sent a couple of cute books recently to review and I thought I’d share them with you today. First up is “Markets of New England” by blogger and photographer Christine Chitnis, a book that makes me want to hop in my car and drive south to check out all the cool markets featured in the book. Farmers’ and craft markets are on the agenda in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut. ‘Markets of New England’ leads you to the local delicacies, the most interesting purveyors, the products of community supported farms and fisheries, the standout crafts and artwork, and provides all the details you need to know, including off-season schedules. The food and crafts are filled with local flavor, the settings pure New England, and the itineraries provide enough delights to fill an endless summer. It’s an adorable little book with an even more adorable cover, and definitively a handy book if you’re interested in doing a tour of the New England market scene. (You can buy the book on Amazon here, and check out Christine’s blog here and book details here and here).

The next book is a creative and really amusing concept. It’s called “Pastry Paris: In Paris, Everything Looks Like Dessert” by Susan Hochbaum. Susan, a graphic designer and photographer, spent a year in Paris and one day during Susan’s trip while eating a cone-shaped chocolate dessert, she noticed in front of her a cone-shaped topiary and came up with the idea to document visual comparisons between desserts and the city. A really cute coffee table book, it is part travel guide, part homage to the visual art and design of French pastry, part food-fantasy. More info can be found here and here, and the book can be purchased here.