The July 2009 issue of House Beautiful is really great, probably the best this year. Thats hard to beat when you're one of the top decor magazines left and each issue seems to get progressively better. However, I have a small problem with this month's 'Theme', Small Spaces, and decided to air my concerns in this open letter.
You do realize, House Beautiful, that the apartments and houses pictured in this issue ARE NOT SMALL. Neither are the rooms pictured in these houses particularly small. The only exception would be the kitchen of the month on page 108; I've seen smaller and it wasn't the first adjective that came to mind, but it's small, I'll give you that.
While the apartments pictured aren't huge and may seem somewhat small to the suburbanite in a mcmansion -they are large apartments to us city dwellers. The house featured on page 96, cute and cottagey as it is, is not a small house. What WERE your qualifications for a 'small space', because I'm not seeing it. PS - a 'guesthouse' doesn't count....as it's basically a guest room -BUT A WHOLE BUILDING bigger than most people's houses as a whole!
This gigantic sized notion of what a home (and a car or even a meal) should be is one of the problems I think this country is facing right now. Remember the houses built after WWII that no one wants anymore? Whole families, larger then the average family of today, lived in these houses: college graduation till death. Do 2 people really need 4,000 SF? Is this environmentally or fiscally responsible? Not to mention the fact that to decorate a whole house beautifully requires a lot of time, energy and money which not everyone has at their disposal. One of the biggest problems being "what do I use this space for?". 
I would love to see pictures of a thoughtfully decorated ACTUAL small space. Remember Cottage Living? They featured some small spaces (before closing shop earlier this year). How about a 1920's 2 bedroom bungalow that measures in at under 1,000 sf? How about more studio apartments creatively and beautiful decorated? Nick Olsen's studio apartment was featured in Domino and was a huge success (remember those 2 twin beds, the acid green color and the beautiful fireplace?). I currently live in a small space (475 SF studio apartment -which is an AVERAGE sized studio and was featured HERE) and I am always looking for new and creative ways to improve my space: Maybe next month you'll feature something small, or at least not tease me with a theme on the cover? Thank you for listening.
Pictures are of my first apartment out of college: a truly small space at 375 SF that I loved living in for 3 years. I realize it wasn't beautifully done or magazine worthy but it is an example of a truly small space.
PS: the 'One-Day Makeover' on page 72-77 is probably the most brilliant thing I've ever seen in a magazine before!
The hotel lies on Lafayette Square across from the White House and also St. John's Episcopal Church, better known as the President's church.
The lobby isn't grand but is certainly elegant. A cozy space with beautiful antiques, wood paneling and an ornate ceiling.
The building, constructed in 1928, was designed by Mihran Mesrobian in the Italian Renaissance Style. The hotel derives its name from the 2 houses torn down on the site: John Hay and Henry Adams.
The dining room off the lobby
I loved the greek key band on the curtains.
It doesn't have 'A' view -it has 'THE' view, especially from the roof deck where we began the evening with cocktails. 
The White House, Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorial in a line.
The old Executive Office building which I blogged about this past weekend.
St. Johns Episcopal Church
enjoying the view....and cocktails too......
The schloss was designed by the architect Francois de Cuvilliés around the same time as he designed the famous hunting lodge of the Nymphenburg Palace, Amalienburg, pictured below. 
You can see the influence.
matching tea pavilion on the grounds
One of the great things about having guests in town is that you get to do all of the cool stuff you don't ordinarily do. Tonight I spent the rainy evening visiting the Washington Monument.
The interior is made of up beautiful plaques donated from around the world. This one is the largest - from NYC in 1852. One was donated by the pope but was ripped out and trashed by soldiers at one point!
An observation deck is at the top. You can see the interior face of the stone -which is protected by glass panels seen here.
The views are spectacular as one would imagine. Visibility was low due to the rain and fog, but you can see the WWII memorial at the base of the following picture, with the lincoln memorial closer to the top.
Each view is labeled above the window, as you see here.
The cap at the top is made of aluminum -which was the most precious metal at the time the building was completed due to its' rarity. Now we use it to wrap up leftovers!
Quote by George Washington written in glass inside the observation deck: 
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