Who knew that Julianne Moore was a closet budget decorator? In the new issue of Domino, the actress explains how she transformed a friend’s apartment for $15,000. What I love about this story is that it’s so accessible — most of the pieces are from stores we can all shop from like Crate and Barrel, Urban Outfitters and Ikea. Yes, there are some pricey collectibles sprinkled in, but the before and afters offer some genuine tips we can all learn from. Click here to see to see the slideshow at dominomag.com. — Angela M.

I’ve been a quiet fan of Amanda Blake Soule aka “Soulemama” for awhile now — her photography, art and projects with her family are always a delight. So I was excited to learn that her new book, The Creative Family: How to Encourage Imagination and Nurture Family Connections, is now available. So far, the Amazon reader reviews are all positive — one reads, “This book is pure, unadulterated creative dynamite!” Having spent some time on Soule’s site, I’m not surprised. Purchase the book at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or your local bookstore, and be sure to visit Soulemama online at her blog, her shop, and her new Creative Family Flickr Group for regular doses of warmth and color. –Mary T.

Do you ever get stuck in a dinner rut? I definitely do. Even though I do my damnedest to make something new every weekend, during the week I rotate through a handful of simple dishes that are easy to make, or resort to ready-made meals from the nearby deli. In the latest issue of Cookie mag, writer Jenny Rosenstrach embarks to make recipes 30 Recipes in 30 days. The results run the gamut of cuisines — from Asian (Vietnamese pork wraps) to dishes from co-workers (sweet potato lasagna). Even if you’re not trying to cook for a family with kids like Rosenstrach, her endeavor is inspiring. I personally am going to try the Swedish meatballs very soon. See all 30 recipes here. — Angela M.

You know we have a thing about chair makeovers here (see this post or this one for recent d.i.y. adventures), but here’s a site that takes it to a whole new level. Chaircouture.com takes French antiques circa 1900 and reupholsters them with digitally printed green fabrics. We spotted the above grass chair in the latest issue of Met Home, and were tickled to find a slew of others at the site, include the above pool chaise, Constance. Heavenly.

There haven’t been many movies out recently that had enviable decor (can’t imagine any of you are rushing to steal ideas from There Will Be Blood or No Country For Old Men), but a film opened this past weekend that has wallpaper lovers swooning: Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day. It stars Frances McDormand as misplaced nanny who lands a job as personal secretary for a glamorous actress, played by Amy Adams — but design junkies would argue that film’s true star is the decadent 1930’s apartment created by production designer Sarah Greenwood (who also did Atonement’s lavish mansions). With tufted slipper chairs, silk wallpaper, and mirrored side tables, it’s enough to make any girl swoon. To read more about it, check out this little piece in The New York Times. And, be sure to weigh in on our mega-post, What’s Your Favorite Big Screen Home Decor?

A post at Jezebel on Scott O’Dell’s award-winning young adult book Island of the Blue Dolphins brought back a childhood memory of my own: the book’s loving description of how Karana cooks abalone made me insatiable for a dish I’d never even heard of. (At least one commenter at Jezebel has the same memory.) I love when a book is so well written that it can elicit that response. So what non-cookbook caught your fancy in a similar way? An Anne Rice book? Stephen King? (Just kidding.) Do tell! — Mary T.

P.S. If your interest in abalone is now piqued, check out this abalone recipe at eatstuff.net.

We always hear about the wonders of Sears Kit Houses, affordable single family homes that were ordered from a catalog and delivered in thousands of pieces for assembly in the early 1900s. This month’s Cottage Living magazine has a great feature on the renovation of one in Pennsylvania. There are great before and after shots on the mag’s web site — be sure to check out the chalkboard wall and the lovely photo mural in the bedroom. If only we could place an order of one now! We’re sold!

UPDATE: THE SURVEY IS CLOSED! We hit our number goal so quicky in just one day. Thanks to all who participated, and if you didn’t get a chance to parttake, we’ll do another one soon.

One of our New Year’s resolutions? To get to know you a little better. We’d like to start growing Shelterrific into an even more dynamic, useful site. But before we do that we need to know a few basic things about you, dear readers. Do you own your home? Have kids? Pets? If you could take just a minute of your time to answer ten easy questions, we’d be sooo grateful. How grateful? Three luckily survey-takers will win one of our favorite books Click Here to take survey. Thank you!

(Prizes include: Humble Masterpieces by Paola Antonelli. Help! It’s Broken: A Fix-It Bible for the Repair-Impaired by Arianne Cohen, and Jamie’s Dinners by Jamie Oliver. Winners will be chosen at random by Shelterrific editors and notified via email.).

This week’s House & Home section in the New York Times was dedicated to the concept of home offices. This article — Home Office Life and Its Discontents — covers the pitfalls such as loneliness (colleagues can help the day go by quicker), lack of motivation (your tv/dirty bathroom/fridge is so close!) and distractions (kids, spouses). But we know that many of you work from home and love it. How do you do it? What are the key ingredients to make it work? Do you miss “the office?” or do you think working from home is the only way to go?

Last Thursday there was a really great story in the New York Times that I almost missed (it being Thanksgiving and me being in Ohio): With the Grace of Liberace Go I by Jancee Dunn, who normally writes about rock-n-roll but here is touching on something that pulls at my kitschy, seventies-child heartstrings. Dunn collects “gracious living” books from decades gone by, like Liberace Cooks! and My Way of Life by Joan Crawford and muses romantically about a time when hosts entertained with gusto, injecting their personalities into every aspect of a party, rather than creating a manufactured Martha-Stewart-esque perfection. Click here to read the story, and browse eBay it start your own classic living book collection.

Photo above, of Jancee’s collection, by Lars Klove for The New York Times.