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We make resolutions for things like keeping a clean house, biking to work, and spending less money - why not throw a few cooking resolutions into the mix? Hear a few of our food and cooking resolutions and tell us yours! • Click here to read the whole post: Cooking Resolutions for the New Year! What Are Yours?

(Welcome to Monika, who is trying out for a spot on the AT:SF editorial team. Enjoy her post!) Since we love design, arts and crafts and collecting things from across the ages, we run into a problem of storage on a daily basis. We have looked for a good solution and have improved our situation with a custom built wall shelf in our loft that is 16 ft wide by 11 ft tall, but we have been looking for a system to organize its contents for awhile now. Having gone to many different stores in the Bay Area, we decided that to be most efficient we would have to embark on a journey to create our own boxes. This turned out not only to be the most cost and space efficient solution, but also the most flexible since we could decide on the sizes of our boxes as well as the colors and the details. The Bare Bones It took some time to figure out what size would work the best for the bookshelf. As an example the magazine files that we ended up with are wider than store-bought. They are also taller and deeper so they can hold magazines that are custom sizes (such as vintage Life Magazine and Metropolis). We also wanted them to fit perfectly on the bookshelf. After the measurements were complete we set out on the box making journey. With this we had some help as a friend of ours designs cardboard boxes for living, but nothing that we ended up with couldn't be done at home. Some sturdy cardboard, as smooth as possible (the least amount of ripple like quality the better) and glue (PVA) is all you need. We glued our boxes and let them dry overnight with the help of some heavy objects from around the house (like wine bottles, heavy books etc.) If this is a part that you would rather skip, there are ready made cardboard magazine files that you can buy and still make them custom by choosing your own paper/bookcloth to wrap them with. You can find reasonably priced cardboard magazine files at BagsUnlimited.com. After that was done, we chose a palette of three solid colors. To simplify the look and feel of the bookshelf, we decided against busy patterns for the covers. After much research, and few disappointments when it came to the price on some options out there (vintage wallpaper etc), we decided on book cloth. We ordered book cloth samples from TalasOnline.com to see if the colors matched what we had in mind. Things look very different on screen than in person. After settling on a few choices, we decided to order in bulk to make it cheaper. Pattern The pattern making was next. We looked at magazine files at various stores (Container Store, West Elm, CB2) and how they were put together. We specifically paid attention to the way the corners and folds were done. Enough overlap seems to be the key, especially around the corners and when connecting two separate pieces. Face and sides completed. Bottom Piece Gluing can be a little messy. We used PVA glue that we found at Arch in San Francisco (99 Missouri St. at 17th St.) A rubber brayer helps to make sure that the book-cloth goes on smoothly and the glue is spread evenly. The other thing that might be worth picking up is a bone folder used for bookbinding. Those are usually around $5–10 at any art supply store and will definitely make the job easier. All the sides done. The final touches - label holders. As the final step, we attached label holders that we ordered from PaxtonHardware.com Those turned out to be pretty inexpensive at $0.56 each. The more you make, the easier this process will become and less expensive, as you can order larger quantities of wrapping paper or bookcloth. Good luck! Useful Links:

Cardboard Magazine Files: Bags Unlimited

Bookcloth Resource: Dover Bookcloth from Talas

Label Holders: Paxton Hardware -Monika

The start of 2009 and a new week. Here's to making both your home and the year a beautiful one! Check out the weekend's most popular AT:Los Angeles post: LA Times Home & Garden Roundup 12.03.09

Most Chicagoans squeeze in few escapes from the city each year. We have friends with a getaway cottage in Michigan and have enjoyed spending idyllic days with them at the beach, picking apples and antique hunting. We can totally "get" why folks choose this part of the world for vacation homes - especially when you factor in the very short trip from Chicago. This month, one of these homes is featured... ...on the cover of Azure. While the location (Michigan City) is familiar, it is not your typical south shore cottage - it is a very modern home designed by Brad Lynch. The L-shaped wood and glass structure is set in a wooded preserve close to the shore. According to the owners it has been a pleasure to visit throughout the seasons as well as a perfect backdrop for their vintage furniture collection. Check out the article by Edward Keegan and more photos by Christopher Barrett right here for all the details. Photos: Christopher Barrett/Azure

...Or any brand of bookcase, really, that just seems to be the most popular one over here. Click below for ideas from AT and our sister site Ohdeedo on ways to update an old thrift store find or your trusty Billy bookcase.

• At top, Colorful Ikea Expedite at Ohdeedo

• Ikea Hack: Randy's Girlfriend's Bookshelf

• Before and After: Billy Bookcase at Design Sponge

• Look! Bookshelf as Closet at Ohdeedo

• Billy Bookcase Idea

With the long list of imagined home improvement projects we had dreamt up finishing while on vacation, we only completed one major project: emptying and organizing the closet. Hidden in the back of our walk-in closet were shoe boxes filled with financial documents accumulated over years of working as a freelance graphic designer; every receipt, invoice and a miscellaneous amount of "why the heck did I keep this?!" paperwork stored haphazardly and with the obsessive quality of a squirrel storing away nuts for the winter. Above is the greater portion of what was shredded over the span of two days (an additional 2 1/2 bags were thrown into recycling the first day)... Okay, so you admit you're like us and have a secret cache of papers and documents that is threatening to take over your storage/office but you're unsure what you can shred and what you should keep? Here's some tips from Jenny C. McCune of Bankrate of when to shred and when to store away:

Taxes
• Returns
• Canceled checks/receipts (alimony, charitable contributions, mortgage interest and retirement plan contributions)
• Records for tax deductions taken
• Length of time to keep: Seven years

IRA contribution records
• If you made a nondeductible contribution to an IRA, keep the records indefinitely to prove that you already paid tax on this money when the time comes to withdraw.
• Length of time to keep: Permanently

Retirement/savings plan statements
• Length of time to keep: From one year to permanently

Bank records
• Go through your checks each year and keep those related to your taxes, business expenses, home improvements and mortgage payments.
• Shred those that have no long-term importance.
• Length of time to keep: From one year to permanently

Brokerage statements
• Length of time to keep: Until you sell the securities

Bills
• Go through your bills once a year. In most cases, when the canceled check from a paid bill has been returned, you can shred the bill.
• However, bills for big purchases -- such as jewelry, rugs, appliances, antiques, cars, collectibles, furniture, computers, etc. -- should be kept in an insurance file for proof of their value in the event of loss or damage.
• Length of time to keep: From one year to permanently

Credit card receipts and statements
• Keep your original receipts until you get your monthly statement; shred the receipts if the two match up.
• Keep the statements for seven years if tax-related expenses are documented.
• Length of time to keep: From 45 days to seven years

Paycheck stubs
• When you receive your annual W-2 form from your employer, make sure the information on your stubs matches.
• If it does, shred the stubs. If it doesn't, demand a corrected form, known as a W-2c.
• Length of time to keep: One year

House/condominium records
• Keep all records documenting the purchase price and the cost of all permanent improvements -- such as remodeling, additions and installations.
• Keep records of expenses incurred in selling and buying the property, such as legal fees and your real estate agent's commission, for six years after you sell your home.
Length of time to keep: From six years to permanently

Although we love seeing artwork in other people's bedrooms, we're always a little uncertain about hanging it in our own. If it's going to enter our dreams, it better be something we really like. Browsing through the online catalog of German furniture manufacturer Hülsta, we found a lot of ideas for hanging artwork in the bedroom, from oversized paintings above the bed to asymmetrical arrangements... The chunky frame gives this painting a weighty presence over the bed. The pastel colors of the painting set the tone for this room. Four evenly spaced canvases create a horizontal rhythm above the headboard. The gold that frames the central painting is carried into sculptural accent pieces. The mirror sill above the bed provides space for an artful arrangement. A large pendant anchors the room, while a panoramic painting balances the horizontal bed. A strip of wallpaper the width of the bed acts as artwork. An off-center grid on one side of the bed is balanced by floating shelves on the other. A curtain becomes an airy headboard, with artwork on both sides of the room. A large mirror above the bed reflects a sculptural chandelier. For more information from the Hülsta catalog, click here. Found via Contemporist.

After the close confines and clutter of the holidays, we loved the fresh colors of this light-filled living room corner. For some reason, the lack of a fourth picture to complete the grid of artwork above the chair looks just right, even though it may have bothered us in another space. The artwork is by Mark Monroe of Denver, CO, and the book-covered upholstered ottoman, white walls, vintage orange chair and contrasting grey pillow are out of our very dreams. Image: JoeBehrPalmSprings

We've already made the switch to nontoxic cleansers and laundry soap to keep our home free from weird chemicals and things that are harmful to our sensitive skin and environment. Now we're looking at our sheets and pillows to see if we can make some small changes in the name of health and well being. The good news is that there are a lot more affordable options for organic bedding these days: A lot of high end places have been turning out some incredibly luxurious organic linens for a while. We'd love to invest in some of those, but are glad to know that more and more places like Overstock and Target offer affordable bed linens, pillows and blankets that are free from toxins and dyes that are harmful to us and to the planet. Our top picks: Overstock Organic 300 thread count sheets $39.99 Green and Greener Organic White Sheet Set $40 Amenity Home Organic Shams (Made in LA) $65 Pottery Barn Natural Pillow $69-99 West Elm Organic Matellase duvet and shams in stone white $24-$169 Pottery Barn Grid Print Organic Sheet Set on sale for $59 Gaiam Organic Sateen Bedding $41-$62 Target Nurture Organic Bedding Collection $79-$109 Do you have a great affordable resource for organic mattress pads, sheets or blankets? Related: How TO Make Homemade Laundry Detergent How To Make Fabric Softening Sheets

Post holiday season is a time when our homes are finally able to take a sigh of relief. The holiday decorations have been packed up and stored for another year, the presents have all been given and we are starting back into our "normal" routines. What we really want is to fling the windows open and let the sun shine in, but if you live in the 75% of the country that is still a bit too chilly to do so, click through the jump to see some light and bright ideas to make your place feel like a breath of fresh air.

House Tour: Rachel's Repurposed Mid-Century Place - Often times when we think about bright objects in the home we are referencing smaller accent pieces. Not in this house tour where color takes the main stage in the form of large pieces of furniture. It keeps things playful without being over the top. House Tour: Summer and Josh's Pumped Up Traditional - Most of us are doing good just to keep our closets clean, let alone decorating them. Because a closet is a place that only you (typically) see it's a great place for a little fun. It's sure to make you smile each and every day and a great emphasis in a space that usually doesn't have any. House Tour: Arthur's Long Distance Home - Another trick to keeping things light is to utilize the vertical space in your rooms. Taking artwork or curtains all the way to the ceiling lift the eye up when entering a space and keep even darker or heavier furniture feeling light as a feather. - House Tour: Haldane Martin's White Nest - Less is more, literally, in this home in Cape Town. The photographs in this tour were taken a mere 48 hours after move-in. There is a fantastic sense of light in this home, from feathers near the ceiling, to white, white and more white, to the delicious amount of actual light to be had, it's a great space all around. But what makes each element of the home stand out is it's lack of "stuff." We aren't saying you can't have "stuff" but often times finding a way to keep most of it out of sight will create a fantastic peace of mind. House Tour: Meg and John's Big City Home - Lighting would be the literal way to lighten and brighten things up in your spaces. Sometimes bringing your lighting down in your spaces is a great way to accomplish this. Many times we grew up in homes with lights high above our heads and it can be difficult to make the adjustment to lower lighting, but give it a try, it can make all the difference in the world when it comes to lighting up your life!

Having trouble registering or logging in to vote? We just found the bug. Please click here to register or login. Voting closes tomorrow, Tuesday, at 8pm Eastern. Hey everyone, I've appended a note below the jump, which I hope will calm people's emotions, and added the full list of 125 nominations for you all to see (sorry, if I missed a few. It was hard to cull sites that weren't listed by URL). This is a treasure trove which is not to be missed. All nominations here. All prizes & info here. • decorno.blogspot.com • doorsixteen.com • desiretoinspire.blogspot.com • makingitlovely.com • decor8blog.com • thisyounghouse.com • sfgirlbybay.com • DesignSpongeonline.com Vote in all 5 Homies Categories! Home Design • Home Cooking • Green Design • Home Technology • Children's Design Thanks to all of you who sent in nominations for this year's best Home Design Blog. We received over 400 comments and over 100 amazing nominations which you should all check out. We whittled the field down to eight based on your comments and a few other factors including how often they posted, if they were a standalone blog, how new long they'd been around and/or how closely they spoke to home design as a category (yours didn't make it this year? There's always next year). You can check out all the nominations in the comments in this post and vote on your favorite of the top six here. 2008 Best Home Design Blog Nominations* Finalists: • decorno.blogspot.com • doorsixteen.com • desiretoinspire.blogspot.com • makingitlovely.com • decor8blog.com • thisyounghouse.com • sfgirlbybay.com • DesignSpongeonline.com TO ALL OUR DEAR COMMENTERS ON WHY I TURNED OFF THE COMMENTS & OTHER THINGS: Hi everyone. It seems that there's some end of the year grumpiness all over the web. I'm very sorry if we've been a cause of it, but let me explain. There are a number of blog and web awards and NONE of them have a category for all the home and home decor sites that I love to read. I decided to start this very informal award because I wanted to get something started. Our mission from the beginning has always been to help people in their homes and to connect them to great resources. This is one way of doing it. It also comes out of very genuine interest in seeing what other decor blogs are out there, seeing what people are reading and loving and sharing traffic through our sites. (Private note: When Sara and I were on the Oprah show, they wouldn't allow anyone to say "Apartment Therapy" on the show, nor would they allow a link to it on their website. Corporate websites jealously guard their links and don't like to link "out". I wanted this to be an example of the opposite.) Is this a big traffic play for AT? No. This is not going to affect our traffic in any big way during the slowest days of the year. Is it a way of generating traffic and awareness for this whole group of blogs? I hope so. While I can't prove it, I would bet that all of you have clicked on a few links and gone to a few blogs above that you've never heard of before. Heck, I've been checking out all the blogs on the nominating list and will be adding many of them to my bookmarks for 2009. There's some awesome talent here. I hope that you do too. This awards thing is far from perfect and VERY informal. It's meant to be. Focus on the good that is in this list and allow us the honor of connecting us all together a little closer. As we all know, the web works well when everyone works together and this rising tide will lift all the ships. NOW, in reading Anna from Door Sixteen's email, I realize that while she deserves that people love her blog, she doesn't (nor does anyone else on the list) deserve to have pot shots taken at her, NOR are comments really necessary at this phase as they can only lead to this sort of thing. So, for the voting phase over here at AT, i've turned them off. Please feel free to vote or not. Happy 2009! Maxwell FULL NOMINATIONS LIST (this took a long time to code....) http://absolutelybeautifulthings.blogspot.com http://aestheteslament.blogspot.com http://annporter.wordpress.com/ http://baltimorerowhouse.blogspot.com/ http://blackeiffel.blogspot.com http://blackwhiteyellow.blogspot.com http://bloesem.blogs.com http://blog.designpublic.com http://blog.piajanebijkerk.com http://blog.susanpalmerdesigns.com/ http://brooklynlimestone.blogspot.com/ http://brownturtlenecksweater.typepad.com http://brynalexandra.blogspot.com/ http://bungalowinsanity.com/ http://cathypentondesigns.blogspot.com/ http://chezlarsson.typepad.com http://cottagebluebird.typepad.com http://coveiter.blogspot.com/ http://dearada.typepad.com/dear_ada/ http://decor8blog.com http://decorno.blogspot.com/ http://decorology.blogspot.com http://designage.wordpress.com/ http://design-crisis.com/ http://designformankind.blogspot.com http://designismine.blogspot.com http://design-milk.com/ http://ellmania.blogspot.com/ http://emmas.blogg.se http://furnitude.blogspot.com http://getitgirlstyle.blogspot.com/ http://habituallychic.blogspot.com http://herz-allerliebst.de http://hollisterhovey.blogspot.com http://houseofbeautyandculture.blogspot.com http://ifthelampshadefits.blogspot.com/ http://inredningsbloggen.blogg.se http://isuwannee.blogspot.com http://jgkitchens.blogspot.com/ http://jubella.com http://karina-elbeso.blogspot.com/ http://livingsmall.wordpress.com/ http://lorilangille.blogspot.com/ http://madebygirl.blogspot.com http://makingitlovely.com http://modernhousenotes.blogspot.com/ http://modresdes.blogspot.com/ http://morewaystowastetime.blogspot.com http://moroccanmaryam.typepad.com http://nestingplacenc.blogspot.com/ http://ninainvorm.punt.nl http://node3-www.care2.com/greenliving/blogs/econesting http://ohjoy.blogs.com http://paperandstitch.wordpress.com http://parisapartment.wordpress.com/ http://poppytalk.blogspot.com http://ramblingrenovators.blogspot.com/ http://rearrangeddesign.blogspot.com http://rubblewithoutapause.blogspot.com/ http://scentedglossymagazines.blogspot.com http://sfgirlbybay.blogspot.com/ http://stylecourt.blogspot.com/ http://sunsetgurldesign.typepad.com/ http://theestateofthings.com http://thisyounghouse.com http://www.360winnett.com http://www.allthebestblog.com http://www.anothershadeofgrey.blogspot.com/ http://www.architectdesign.blogspot.com http://www.brooklynrowhouse.com/ http://www.chictip.com http://www.cocokelley.blogspot.com http://www.contemporist.com/ http://www.creaturecomforts.typepad.com http://www.curbly.com/ http://www.designspongeonline.com http://www.designspunk.blogspot.com http://www.desiretoinspire.blogspot.com http://www.DiscoverInteriorDesign.com http://www.dominomag.com/daily/blogs/dailydose/girl_about_town http://www.doorsixteen.com http://www.eddieross.com/ http://www.elementsofstyleblog.com http://www.enderbynest.com http://www.eugenemodernmonkey.blogspot.com http://www.freshome.com http://www.gavelle.com/ http://www.gettogethablog.com http://www.happymundane.com/ http://www.homeconstructionimprovement.com http://www.home-designing.com/ http://www.houseofturquoise.com/ http://www.inhabitat.com http://www.inredningsbloggen.blogg.se http://www.isuwannee.blogspot.com http://www.kellyvanhook.blogspot.com http://www.kitchendesignnotes.com/ http://www.lookiloos.com/ http://www.midcenturymodernist.com/ http://www.mochatini.org http://www.modish.typepad.com http://www.mywhiteshirt.blogspot.com http://www.nestledin.net/ http://www.obsessilicious.blogspot.com/ is fun and streamlined design goodness. http://www.ohjoy.blogs.com/ http://www.oneprojectcloser.com http://www.plastolux.com http://www.pointclickhome.com/blogs/design_daily http://www.poppytalk.blogspot.com/ http://www.rearrangeddesign.blogspot.com http://www.remodelista.com/ http://www.retrorenovation.com http://www.sfgirlbybay.blogspot.com/ http://www.shelterrific.com/ http://www.sixdifferentways.com http://www.style-files.com http://www.stylenorth.ca http://www.thebedlamofbeefy.blogspot.com http://www.theestateofthings.com/wp_teot/ http://www.thekitchendesigner.org/ http://www.theselby.com http://www.thisyounghouse.com http://www.tinyk.com/blog/ http://www.todaysgreenconstruction.com http://www.trendir.com/ http://www.yvestown.com http://mirrormirror.typepad.com One more I forgot! Surroundings Another one I forgot. *Note: this year's winner is ineligible to be one of next year's finalists. All Homies Voting: Home Design • Home Cooking • Green Design • Home Technology • Children's Design

Good stops on the while searching the web today: A roundup of bedroom inspiration pix, beautiful branch centerpiece, a great looking new (ish) book and a vintage modern chess set...jump below for all the links: Today's slinks :

• Bedroom Inspiration : Photo roundup on Alkemie
• We Like the Look: of this book. Domestic Art via Decorno
• Jon's Centerpiece: DIY Glamour at Happy Mundane
• Vintage Modern Chess Set: by Anri via The Mid Century Modernist

Most Recent Slinks: Martha's Trees, Vintage Vacation & Kim's Kitchen

It's been a few years since Carolina Herrera Jr's Spanish home was featured in the pages of Domino, but we still recall her reupholstered sofa and how inspired her choice of fabrics felt at the time (along with those of Ruthie Sommers' home in that same first issue). Since the article, we've seen plenty of pieces using more than one fabric for the covering... A more recent example from Ruthie Sommers' redesign of the offices of Drew Barrymore (from Domino 2008)But we wanted to know if you think this trend has died in the subsequent years since the article. To us, the flow of the natural linen with the more decorative fabric on Herrera Jr's sofa still feels right, but we could see how a less cohesive pairing would feel jarring and/or dated. What are your thoughts? Image at top: Eric Cahan Second image: Stewart Shining

Hi LA Apartment Therapy, I was hoping you would be able to help me. I found this Velvet Tufted Border Queen Headboard in the beautiful chocolate velvet...it was love at first site. I went to purchase the headboard and that week, the company warehouse was flooded, causing all merchandise to be lost. The other websites I found it on soon disappeared only to later reappear not carrying the headboard anymore. Can anyone help in my search for my dream headboard?!?! Thanks, Rachel Got a good question you'd like answered? Send your queries and a photo or two illustrating your question, and we'll see if the ATLA team or our readers can help you out. Rachel, this looks a lot like the Concierge Collection Tufted Headboard form Home Shoppign Network, but we're unable to hunt down the chocolate option. Anyone out there know where to find a brown version or similar style to end Rachel's quest for the perfect headboard? Other tufted headboard questions and posts:

• Do You Think This Headboard Is A Reasonable DIY?
• LA Good Questions: Printed Fabrics On Tufted Sofas?
• "Capitons" Stickers Add Tufting to Just About Anything
• Look! DIY Tufted Closet Doors

Last night at a family dinner party, we heard a lot of praise for a chemical-free drain cleaner that costs around $2.50, is made from a piece of thin plastic, and is said to work better than toxic chemical cleaners... The Zip-It Drain Cleaner by Cobra is fashioned from a thin piece of flexible plastic with jagged edges, a sort of poor man's plumbing snake. It's thin enough to slide underneath a drain stopper, and it works particularly well on hair clogs. It's more eco-friendly and more effective than Drain-O, our only qualm being that the instructions recommend disposing of your Zip-It after one use. The company warns that the jagged edges can hurt your fingers (and the stuff that comes up isn't fun to clean off), but you could probably get a few uses out of a Zip-It if you use rubber gloves to wipe it clean. Zip-Its are available at hardware stores and other retailers including Amazon, Ace Hardware, Sears, and Lowe's. For another non-toxic drain declogger you can whip up at home, see this post. Photo: Morguefile

This Christmas we were inspired to do something useful with our Christmas tree - something we'd never done before as it has always been put on the curbside or, sometimes, brought to the local Christmas tree donation drop-off for chipping (which is pretty good). But we wanted to see if we could do something MORE creative, crafty even, so we embarked on the following odyssey.... After pulling the very beautiful tree out of our families' house on Long Island, we took out our handy machete and started disassembling it. The idea was to break it down into pieces that we could use in some way. The best idea we had was to collect all the needles and make a few small evergreen pillows. Taking the tree apart was satisfying. We got it into three basic parts: the trunk, the branches and the tips of the branches where all the needles are. The trunk we chopped up and decided to use for firewood. The branches we used for kindling and it worked really, really well. But now we have a tub full of all these beautiful needles that won't fall off or come off of the branch tips and we're wondering what to do. Does anyone have a good idea for either a. how you get needles off easily or b. what we could do with all of them after wards (besides pillows)?

It's a new year, which means new styles at many of the stores we typically follow. And while Urban Outfitters had a few tufted pieces of furniture prior to the holiday season, they've added a bunch of new items and colors to their selection... Tufted velvet or silk definitely brings a touch of glamour to any room, and given the price points of most of the styles, it seems a reasonable way to add a bit of boudoir sophistication to your place. Styles available at Urban Outfitters

Time and again, our house tour participants have taught us that big spending isn't the key to a healthy home; it's the small things like regular decluttering, taking care of repairs, and adding personal touches that make a great home. As we enter the new year, we've compiled a list of things anyone can do to make their home better if they take the time. To ensure that a resolution is kept, we recommend starting small and choosing just one or two tasks. If you've got your own ideas, add them to the list in the comments below...

Do one DIY project in the new year. Reconnect with your creative side by making something for your home, whether it involves reupholstering a side chair or painting your kitchen cabinets. See our how-to archives for ideas and inspiration.

Have people over more often. One of the best ways to keep your home clean and comfy is to invite guests over regularly. Small parties are also a cheap alternative to dining out.

Declutter. To avoid overwhelming yourself, start with a small area (like a closet) or a single room (like the bedroom). Set manageable, bite-sized goals for decluttering and use an Outbox as you go. With each of your posessions, ask yourself, Do I use it? Do I love it? Do I need it? If the answer is to any of these questions is no, it can go in the Outbox.

Clean something daily. If you're a messy person and you want your home to be cleaner, try the One Day/One Room Plan. Each day, spend half an hour cleaning one room. By focusing on daily, concentrated tasks your home will gradually become cleaner and you can stop dreading the weekly-to-monthly binge clean.

Go green(er). We've all become more conscious of ways to minimize our impact on the environment, but there's always room to go greener. Use the new year to take a step you've been considering, like going paperless, greening your bedroom, or composting at home.

Cook more at home. Eating in is one of the most effective ways to save money. It can also improve the health of your body and your home. For easy recipes to try in your kitchen, check our site for home cooks: The Kitchn.

Improve your home's air quality. Poor indoor air might not visibly detract from your home, but it has a serious impact on your quality of life. To get started, use these tips from green guru Danny Seo, or check out these ideas from Conscious Choice.

Organize one area. Whether it's your closet, a junk drawer, or the cords on your desk, bringing order to just one chaotic area can set your home on a path towards calm.

Fix something that's been broken. We all have to-do lists for repairs around the apartment. Why not start the new year by checking off at least one? Your home will thank you for it.

Seal your windows and doors. If you haven't already insulated your windows or fitted your doors with draft stops, you've still got a few months of winter left to reap the money-saving benefits of an insulated, energy-efficient home.

Deal with junk mail. Get rid of the unwanted catalogs and junk mail that have been piling up over the past year by canceling your unwanted subscriptions. Less junk coming in your front door equals a healthier home.

Do more [fill in the blank with whatever you love] at home. Choose one thing you love to do at home, and make the time to do it. Want to spend more time reading in your living room? Set up a reading nook, and schedule an hour an evening to sit with a book.

Add your ideas for low-cost, high-impact resolutions in the comments below. Photo: Jacob and Laurie's House Tour

A pair of classic Warren Platner sides tables in Polished Nickel and Glass for $1000 obo. Designed in 1966, the Platner Side Table is truly a unique piece. Considered by many to be a design icon of the modern era, the Platner Table's harmonious forms are created by welding curved vertical steel wire rods to circular frames, producing a moiré effect. Jump below for links to this and other good finds. Apartment Therapy Furniture Classifieds are open for your business in our Shopping Guide. Items shown above are in bold:

Pair of Platner Side Tables by Knoll for $1000

Eames Dining Table and 6 Breuer Chairs for $800

Herman Miller/Eames Blue Fiberglass Chairs in Slate Blue for $120 each

Mod Bent Wood Display Shelf for $350

4 Knoll Handkerchief Chairs in Black for $400/$100 each

Pair of DWR Compasso d'Oro Side Chairs for $150/$75 each

5 DWR Bellini Chairs for $400

Retro Small Coffee Table for $125

Pair of Knoll Vostra Chairs in Blue for $325 each

DWR Gin Table by Terence Woodgate for $450

Name: France Garnier Location: Paris, France When I first visited my apartment, it was all white — no floor in the bathroom and an ugly kitchen — but I immediately fell in love with it because I could see in my head what it would look like when I would be done with it. I had to make a big hole in a wall to have more light, to put some parquet floor in my bathroom, paint some tiling and stick it on my walls — and I all did it myself. So I'm pretty proud of my apartment now, and I would like to show it to you. I hope you'll like it the way I do. Enjoy the tour! Thanks, France! We've had amazing response to our Apartment Therapy House Tour Submission Form that we launched last month. While we will work with homeowners of our favorite homes to feature full tours, we will also share the best as House Calls — short, quick tours of readers' homes. Submit your home here. PREVIOUS HOUSE CALLS House Call: pettybaum's Holiday Sparkle