section: lighting  good morning! today i’m kicking things off with these beautiful handmade paper lights from margarita and ludwig at mn*ls. this one-off collection was created from handfolded antique books and was shown at a small gallery and then used in a japanese restaurant as decoration. i love the under of working in a home office lit by folded book paper lamps. so stunning. click here for more information on mn*ls and their work.
over at the d*s guest blog, lucy is introducing us to artist kat macleod’s and her favorite spots in melbourne’s north carlton area- click here for the full post!   
October 29th, 2009 - 08:00am  before we jump into home tours and reader questions, i wanted to share these beautiful new pieces from naochina and yaling of flowie. first up- naochina’s new set of glowing ceramic lights.
based in shanghai, naochina is a group of product designers who have recently launched a collection of home decor designs. i’m really loving their “snowlights”- a series of ceramic cones that include ambient LED lights for a really beautiful and subtle glow. they remind me equally of little shining snowdrifts and glow-in-the-dark conical mushrooms. click here for more information and to shop online ($138 for a set of 3 lights or $42-$53 each).  yaling from flowie (click here to check out her adorable home), just released a new series of bags, pillows and tea towels with tie-dye patterns. although i shed my hippie ways after college there are a few things i still have a soft spot for: handmade hemp belts (i know, ridiculous) and tie dye. so when i saw yaling’s new tea towels with a tie dye pattern i was hooked. it’s just such a happy look. click here to check out yaling’s new collection and shop online.
October 12th, 2009 - 09:00am  sometimes i fall in love with product photos as much as the product itself. these photos from the new collection of toldbod 120 pendant lamps from louis poulsen lighting are just too lovely to ignore. in addition to wanting a few of those grey and yellow pendants, i’d also like to move into each of these rooms. until then, i’ll just keep checking out their full collection online. thanks, mette!
 
 today is meg mateo ilasco’s last day on the d*s guest blog and she’s wrapping up her series with a post on the rubber band- and all its creative possibilities. click here to check it out. thanks so much to meg for her posts this week!

August 28th, 2009 - 08:00am  good morning! i wanted to start today off with these beautiful wood veneer pendant lamps from designer sarah foote of bonne nuit. based in brooklyn, sarah makes all of her lamps by hand and sells them via email, right here. thanks, sarah!

 from lamps to sweets, meg mateo ilasco is tackling one of my favorite topics, chocolate, over at the d*s guest blog. click here to check it out!
August 27th, 2009 - 08:00am  lately i’ve been drawn to rustic lighting, rather than super sleek designs. so i was happy to hear from designer zeke leonard about his beautiful ‘beam end sconces’. zeke’s sconces are made from the off-cuts of a local timber-framing construction company. zeke explained that “unlit the sconces tell the story of the life of the tree, the growth rings showing a snapshot of eighty years or more in most of them”. but when they’re lit, the natural cracks (called “checks”) speak of another way of telling time, as each crack occurs as the wood loses water over time. in addition to zeke’s sconces, he also designs a beautiful series of tables, seating and other accent furniture. i’m pretty taken with his bed/pendant lamp combo, but his light switch bird house is pretty cute, too. click here to check out more of zeke’s work. [zeke's sconces are available for $100, just shoot him an email right here to order.]
  
August 4th, 2009 - 09:00am  designer reiko kaneko recently released two new pieces of gorgeous furniture: the ovangkol table and dapple light.
the ovangkol table seems to float in mid-air because it’s sturdy wooden top and legs float in crystal clear resin legs. i love the combination of heavy and light- it is such an elegant table, but still so warm and rich because of the wood. 
 the dapple light has a wood veneer shade and, on the inside, thousands of glass mirrors. inspired by a disco ball, the dapple light casts a dramatic shadow and creates an “explosion of light” thanks to all those tiny glass mirrors. click here to check out more of reiko’s work online. thanks, reiko!
June 26th, 2009 - 08:00am  it’s another rainy, overcast day here in brooklyn so my mind is focused on lights- anything that will keep the dreariness of the morning out of my living room.
 i’m really enjoying judith van den boom’s latest collection of lighting, called ‘information reposed lights’. this series of ceramic lights plays with the motion of light beams by shaping ceramic compartments into various positions to direct the ‘light bundle’ in the right direction. you can stack or bundle the lights together to give a base for the lightbulb itself, making it functional for wall, pendant or table use. if you like what you see, you can find more information on judith’s work right here. thanks, judith!
  June 12th, 2009 - 08:00am |