Small Wonder

Shayne Barsness

bedroom

Go Big / It seems counterintuitive to put big furniture in a small space, but for livability and to avoid a dollhouse look, Barsness did just that. “My philosophy is: Is it comfortable, and how are you going to live in the space?” she says. To cozy up the bedroom, she went for a high, princessy bed backed with a wingback headboard accented with one of her vintage English wool throws. (Bonus: storage space under the bed.) A chair and floor lamp create an additional reading space. The dresser provides plenty of storage and a sunny spot for plants. “You can’t have a space without plants,” Barsness says. “It’s like I live in a greenhouse when all the plants come in from my deck.”

Bedroom

Bathroom

Build in Clever Function / After gutting the bathroom, Barsness (with a big assist from her former husband) put it back together with a mix of old-world, industrial, and glam touches. She skipped a pedestal sink, common in small spaces and period baths, in favor of a scaled-down sink/vanity combo (a Craigslist find) that provides storage. The original built-in medicine chest offers additional closed storage, while a wicker basket casually corrals makeup. An industrial-looking light fixture extends and swivels so Barsness can direct light wherever she needs.

crowed hallway

Max Out Vertical Space / Where others may have seen an unusable closet-like space with holes in the wall and a few missing floor planks, Barsness saw a studio. After patching the wall and floor and then painting the beadboard white, she used wall space to mesh jewelry with salon-style art groupings. The ornate gilded frame displays finished pieces she plans to rework a bit more; the necklaces also help hide the patching done on the wall that had been opened up to access the bathroom plumbing. Equestrian artwork speaks to her love of horses. On other walls, hooks and rods store scavenged jewelry, some of it from local vintage and thrift stores, that Barsness will rework into new pieces. She describes her Shayne and Coco redesigns as “everyday jewelry.” “I see it as something you can throw on with jeans,” she says.

Painting on the floor

…Floor Space, Too! / Floors are fair game as decorating spots for Barsness. She leans “The Mens”—her name for her collection of male portraits she finds funny—as well as other art pieces and mirrors against walls. “Sometimes it’s just because I’m too lazy to put something up,” Barsness says. She also enlists baskets, such as the ones at right, for out-in-the-open storage. Barsness’s workspace spills over a bit into the bedroom; she photographs her jewelry on the dress form in the light-filled space. She also dabbles in remaking clothing, such as the cream jacket, on which she frayed the sleeves and edges and hand-stitched the black detailing.

Lots of pictures

Don’t Overlook Hallways / Barsness found space for her frame collection and small pieces by layering them on IKEA picture ledges that run the length of the narrow hallway to the kitchen. “I call this my leftover studio,” she says. “It’s some of my favorite leftovers from when I closed my shop and tidbits people have given me. I have a thing for frames—and numbers and letters and antlers. It just makes me smile when I walk by.” The picture ledges also allow her to easily change out displays. “It’s organic. I thought I would change it more, but I like it the way it is,” she says.

living room

Unify With a Single Color / European style, which welcomes vintage, rustic, and casual vibes, has always been Barsness’s favorite look, and she finally had the chance to run with that in her apartment. “I like to believe I lived in Europe in my other life,” she says. She started the apartment’s transformation by painting walls and surfaces white to instantly brighten spaces, then layered on more white—a space-stretching strategy. In the living room, she added character with a Heat and Glo fireplace she found on Craigslist for around $100, then flanked it with IKEA bookcases that she had trimmed out to create a built-in look. White slipcovers cover the chair and sofa.

dinning area

Do Double Duty / The under-the-eaves dining area is more than a space to eat. It doubles as Barsness’s office, an occasional spot to watch a movie on her laptop, and a place to entertain. Instead of chairs, a wingback love seat ups the comfort. The dining table is a holdover from when Barsness had her store and remade vintage furniture. She hired a friend to change the oak finish to gray by using steel wool and vinegar—an experiment that Barsness said she liked enough to keep the table to this day. Her candlestick collection easily adds height where needed.

accent table

Make It Personal / “The things that made it into my house all have significance,” Barsness says. “I only buy things I have a connection to, and I don’t do trendy.” She wakes up in her bed to a view of the highboy, which she painted white and finished with gold-leafed hardware. It displays more of her collections—a globe, horse figure, model jet, and vintage silver trophy bowl. “I love horses, I love old silver pieces, I love to travel—it’s like the world is my oyster.” The accent table is one of the few pieces of furniture Barsness left with its stained finish. She uses it as a bar, with a vintage silver-plated tray and urns anchoring the top.

Highboy