Okay, lets talk about how wonderful this coral color is. Coral is great on it's own as a solid wall color, and it's equally as beautiful as an accent color combined with sea green, light pink and cream. Both of these images have me thinking about adding some coral into my own home!

Well friends, this is my last guest post on Design Sponge! A big thanks to Grace, it has been so much fun! If you have been following along, and want to see more color palettes and inspiration, be sure to stop by my blog Color Collective. Have a splendid weekend everyone!

Images 1, 2 & 3: Scanned from Romantic Irish Homes (Author, Robert O’Byrne. Publisher, Cico Books), photos by Simon Brown

Ever since I began interning at Frolic!, I have been going crazy for all things garden inspired. Chelsea is an amazing floral + prop stylist, and has been teaching me a little bit about floral design! Flowers and plants are a great way to add color to any room. I find that my mood is always better when I have fresh flowers around the house! Why not bring a little bit of the garden inside?

Flowers look good just about anywhere you put them. I love the versatility of colors with flowers—you can choose a different color every week! If you run out of vases (or even if you don't!) remember that old tins and jars can make for a lovely alternative.

Images 1 & 2: Scanned from Gardenhouse, photo by Shaun Sullivan

Image 3: Emma Mitchell via Define1Lady

Again, the gold accents are gorgeous. Fresh flowers can add the perfect pop of color to a room, and in this case, I adore the color of the three roses. The rustic brown mirror frame is just right against the light yellow wall. This bathroom, to me, is shabby chic at it's best!

Image 1: Scanned from The Color Design File, photo by Christopher Drake

Image 2: Scanned from Apartment Living, photo by Fernando Bengoechea

I think this idea of organizing books is so cool! Sure, it might be a little time consuming when you are looking for a particular book, but hey, for an outcome like this, it sure seems worth it! The tan and grey hues are a striking combo.

The patterns in these images give me such joy. I love how there are stripes, florals, and solids, yet because the colors are neutral, it creates a calm and simplistic aesthetic. I am a sucker for fabric and patterns, so these two images have me drooling!

Image 1: Emma Mitchell via Define1Lady

Image 2: Found on Fondly Seen via Remodelista

If you already follow Color Collective, then you know that I collect images from designers, photographers, and artists that inspire me, and create color palettes from those images. This week I will be focusing on interiors, and I have a little theme prepared for each day. As an added bonus for you lovely Design Sponge readers, I have matched the colors with Pantone numbers. I hope you enjoy!

I thought it would be appropriate to start off with pops of color…

Isn't this yellow kitchen amazing? I just love the shade of yellow with the white tiles. The details in the photograph are perfect: that mint green tin, the red tea kettle, the metallic storage tins. Yes, this kitchen would be a joy to cook in.

Room color doesn't always have to be about the walls. White walls with pops of color in the furniture and décor can be quite delightful! The turquoise couch and light green shelf make a great color combo. The Dining area in the right image is just my style with the simple and modern furniture, and brilliant color in the artwork.

Image 1: Scanned from The Color Design File, photo by James Merrell

Images 2 & 3: James Merrell

There are SO MANY more TAA tips and tricks to talk about (*cough*Visitmysite!*cough, cough*), but today I’ll leave you with some storage n’ sourcin’. First up, here are some ways to cram even more storage into your teensy home.

If you’re short on floorspace, you’re usually left with no choice but to climb the walls. This can be tricky for a renter of a TAA — you can’t put a bunch of holes in the wall without putting a hole in your security deposit. Still, a screw here or there never hurt anyone. (That’s what she said.) Just fill the holes with toothpaste later, no one will know.

If you’re a bad little boy or girl, you have to go stand in the corner. If you’re a good TAA-dweller, you use your corner for even more storage. These glass shelves are from The Container Store.

A few months ago I posted about using hanging wire fruit baskets in your bathroom to make up for a lack of sink countertop space; this basket is from Target.

IKEA Hacker reader Angela came up with a clever solution to not having any room for a nightstand: mount a basket and a cup holder on the wall.

Back at floor level, there are a ton of options for furniture that can pull double duty.

Ottomans are one of the most popular pieces to provide storage space. I’ve chosen the ones above because they look damn good while they’re at it. From left: The P’Kolino Ottoman from Clever Tomato, the Round Water Hyacinth Stool from Supermarket, the Dwell Storage Bench from Target, and the Canary Nail Button Storage Ottoman from Target.

Even your dining table can hold a few odds n’ ends for you. This one from Velocity not only has a square drawer that’ll hold your fast food ketchup packet cache, but the leaves drop down and out of the way.

Don’t be afraid to completely disregard the original purpose of a piece of furniture. Try a piano bench instead of a traditional bench or stool anywhere in your home, even if your musical talents are limited only to Rock Band on Easy Mode. The bench is the perfect size. It’s not too long like a bench, and it has a bit more room than a barstool. They traditionally have storage under the seat, and I’ve found that they’re usually pretty affordable. The one above is from Wal-Mart (I know!).

Now on to a few specific storage scenarios, whether you’re a budding cat lady or Cat Stevens…

If your home is owned by a cat kind enough to let you live there, check out the Out of Sight litter box. It’s not the smallest litter box I’ve ever seen, but consider this: it completely hides the box and supplies, and it keeps kitty from tracking little rocks (or worse) all over your floor. If you have to share all 300 square feet of your home with a litter box, it’s worth the extra space to keep everything tidy and out of sight.

If your garage band is more of a tiny-apartment band (sure hope the neighbors don’t complain!), try the Guitar Hanger to store your axes in the closet.

Before I go, I’d like to leave you with a few resources for small-space inspiration, tips, and products.

I’d have to be cuckoo-bananas not to mention Apartment Therapy’s annual “Smallest, Coolest” contest. Every year they take submissions from people with fabulous and teeny-weeny apartments and pit them against each other in a battle royale for the best in each division and for the overall grand prize. Hm, maybe 2010 can be my year?

Also be sure to check out targeted sites like Small Furnish, the Microliving community on LiveJournal, The Compact House, and Unclutterer. Flickr is also a great place for inspiration, with groups like Small Apartment Living and Small Spaces – Innovative Solutions.

But honestly, most of my inspiration comes from reading sites like Design*Sponge. There are too many others to list, but my Google Reader is packed full of interior design sites that are for a general audience. But even if you’re living in an apartment smaller than a dorm room, still check them out. You never know when they’ll have a feature on small spaces, or when you’ll see something you love so much you’ll find a way to make it fit your needs.

I hope you’ll come and visit me at Tiny-Ass Apartment as I continue to explore every nook and cranny of the space-challenged.

Thanks!

Simone

Tiny-Ass Apartment

Twitter: TinyAssApt