sometimes simple design finds make me the happiest. i love a great pattern or a decorative piece of furniture, but sometimes a beautiful glass vase is what makes me smile. i’m loving these super simple vases from kajsa at HAPPYsthlm. the shape is so small and pleasing- it’s just right for a carefree last minute arrangement. click here for more information and to contact kajsa about ordering.
calendars are another affordable art buy for me- this year i decided to pick up calendars as casual “just because” gifts for family and friends and caitlin keegan’s new soy-ink calendar is such a cute option. i love the little spaces for notes and wheel shape. click here to buy online ($20).
in other calendar news, i’m also enjoying dutch door press’ 2010 letterpress calendar, $30 at little paper planes.
October 27th, 2009 - 09:00am 
this weekend i tested out a new productivity technique in hopes that it would help me manage my book and website work without losing my entire mind. and thankfully, it’s been working and last night i actually found myself with a few extra minutes to flip through catalogs. i was leafing through restoration hardware’s catalog and my jaw dropped when i hit these beautiful fishing weights. i remember seeing these in a friend’s house overseas years ago and couldn’t for the life of me figure out what they were. now that i know, i’m on the hunt for more affordable versions online. until then, you can check these out online right here. they would make for such fun door stops…
over at the d*s guest blog, lucy is giving us an insider’s guide to a great melbourne neighborhood (yarraville) via artist jane reiseger. click here to check out the full post!
October 27th, 2009 - 08:00am 
this is one super-stylish power team! tec and chelsea petaja live in nashville, tennessee where when chelsea’s not teaching visual arts to montessori school students, she frequently styles photography shoots for tec who does both commerical and wedding photography. (she recently put together a beautiful yellow and gray tablescape for oncewed.) oh and somehow she finds time to run an etsy shop! {thanks tec and chelsea!}
[We bought this house, our first home, in April of this year. It was built in 1905 and is tucked in a historic neighborhood in the city. We've spent the past half-year making it us.] 
[The majority of our home is comprised of hand-me-downs, thrift finds, or items we owned separately before we were married. However, the dining room table and matching bench were one of our first purchase as a married couple (from World Market). The orange chairs are garage sale finds, and the yellow chairs are repurposed hand-me-downs from my sister. The large painting in our dining room is by Dr. Tommy Mew, a former professor of mine.]
The caned chair was saved from a “Goodwill pile” and the frames, all from Ikea, display some of our favorite pictures and mementos. The “We’re better together” wording was done by just painting it on top of a thrift store painting we already owned.
CLICK HERE for the rest of chelsea’s peek (and all the photos on one page!) read more … October 26th, 2009 - 01:00pm 
south american born rosy levy is a self-proclaimed aspiring designer and wanna-be architect “when she grows up.” there is a standing joke in the household that her husband cannot leave town for more than three days because he’ll come back to something that has changed. still, her husband of 20 years and two teenage kids keep up with rosy and are willing (so far) to move every few years so rosy can have a new clean palette to work with. she describes her home as contemporary eclectic where every room has a function. enjoy reading below and learning about all the creative solutions she’s come up with for her home! {thanks, rosy!} -anne
[above: My children's Work Area was a 4th bedroom we opened up to incorporate it with the loft area. 4 Eames Molded Plastic Side Chairs from DWR, Eames Round Table from Corporate Design Choice, 3 round mirrors from Urban Outfitters, Zettle'Z Pendant light by Ingo Maurer lamp from Ylighting, 2 Magazine Racks from PB Teens, Curtain fabrics from Donghia] 
They don’t have desks in their bedrooms, which are meant only for sleeping. The corkboard is covered with a raffia material. Millwork was done locally, leather drawer pulls from York Studio, Eames soft management desk chair from Corporate Design Choice.
Kid’s Loft – The French movie poster from “Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down” I got from my brother who worked with Pedro Almodovar for over 10 years. The TV swings out so they can watch TV from their desks. Boi Sconces are from Pucci International, king size futon upholstered in espadrille fabric from Donghia. We set up a king upholstered mattress to lounge, play X-box and have kids sleep over.
My daughter wanted a comfortable area to read and talk on her cell phone, so she chose the bubble chair [from InMod]. I fell in love with the penny tile [Bloom 4 from Viva Ceramic] wall after I saw it installed in Casa Cielo, a tile and mosaic showroom in the Miami Design District. I copied the headboard from one pictured in House Beautiful, pillows on bed are from Jonathan Adler, pillows on bubble chair are from Missoni Home & Maison de Vacances from Calypso, Kartell Bourgie Lamp from Hive Modern, nightstands are channing end tables from Johnathan Adler, Warhol’s Campbell’s Soup poster is from allposters.com, Linens are Ralph Lauren & Bloomingdale’s Hudson Hotel line, the area rug is a white Barbie shag from Lilypad Creations Miami and the cashmere throw is from Bloomingdale’s.
CLICK HERE for the rest of Rosy’s peek after the jump! read more … October 26th, 2009 - 12:00pm 
when dave allen saw this little 900 square foot house in the woods above napa, it had been abandoned and left open and was basically uninhabitable, but there was something magical about it and david decided to take the plunge. the house had been built in the 1940s as a summer cabin. since the home’s paper-thin walls and questionable foundation make a remodel impractical, david intends to eventually build a new structure on the site. in the meantime, he looked for inexpensive ways to make this summer cabin comfortable and liveable – and when he does build his new space, you can bet he’ll salvage everything possible from this one! {thanks dave! and thanks to adrian gregorutti for the photos!}
[I'm completely happy in my unheated hideout, drawing water from an above ground spring and sharing with the space with bats and raccoons. Bonus features that bring me daily pleasure include a creek and a mountain (which, as it seems to be unclaimed, I’ve informally annexed). My nearest neighbors are the vineyards of the famous Hess Winery. Down the hill in my Sonoma showroom, Artefact Design & Salvage. I tend toward overscale and unusual objects displayed rather dramatically. At home I simply want to surround myself with meaningful objects. So in my wee cabin my only ongoing conscious design consideration is trying to keep the ambience calm and uncluttered despite layers of favorite objects competing for attention everywhere in the tiny space.] 
The kitchen had been stripped of everything and was just an empty alcove. I brought in Ikea cabinets and had a friend pour the raw concrete countertop. Ceiling is corrugated aluminum, flooring is simply painted subfloor.The painting is by Roger Groth. I have a little frog living in the staghorn fern (Platycerium Superbum) just under the gold corncob trophy. Last summer when I discovered him I put him outside, thinking he’d been trapped by accident. But a few days later he was back. We’re now old friends and on warm evenings he croaks happily.
Painting by Mark Hobley. Corrugated aluminum siding from Home Depot. Buddha collection, gilt angel wings are Italian antiques.
Skylight is original, though I did have to re-sheetrock the ceiling to get rid of the mold. The oversize armoire is salvaged from a textile mill in India, and the bookshelves I out of scaffolding frames I found in Belgium.
CLICK HERE for the rest of Dave’s peek after the jump! read more … October 26th, 2009 - 11:00am 
question: i am writing because i desperately need help with something in my living room. yesterday we had our beautiful fireplace covered by our landlady (that’s london for you). where once we had different colored candles in our black fireplace (as it wasn’t a working one) we now have a huge wooden piece of block (image here) covering an incredibly large amount of it almost to the mantel. i want to cover it, but i don’t want something too overwhelming in the space because our living room is quite small. what should i do? – sarah b
answer: hi sarah! so sorry to hear your landlord covered up your fireplace. no fun at all. especially with such a flimsy looking piece of wood. grrr. but not to fear, there are a few great options for this. since your carpet is blue, you don’t want to go too crazy with anything that might clash but here are a few ideas. hope they come in handy!: - wallpaper: d*s diy editor kate pruitt covered her fireplace with a sheet of wallpaper placed over foam board. you could cover your entire fireplace, or just apply paper (or gift wrap- cheaper!) with decorative patterns that match your carpet.
- fabric: i’m of the belief that a piece of fabric almost always makes everything better. instead of paper, you could cover your wood piece with a piece of staple gunned fabric, or create a thin upholstered panel to cover the entire non-working fireplace- and add some extra insulation. you could even add a ribbon trim to mimic the shape of the fireplace.
- mirrors: mirror tiles are always an option, but since you already have a mirror on top, i would avoid overkill with the reflective surfaces. but it could look cool to move the mirror from above and instead apply mirrored tiles to the wood piece and antique them with a technique like this. an aged mirror would look lovely under a mantle decorated with florals.
- chalkboard paint: this might seem a little out there. but i once saw a non-working fireplace painted with chalkboard paint over a wood front at a friend’s home in georgia. she drew a rotating series of playful log or stacked book images on the wood to create a faux-fireplace scene. not for everyone, but still fun.
- decals: i’m not a fan of decals, but if you pained this wood piece to get rid of the neutral brown tone, you could apply any number of decals. but rather than a pre-made set- try this fun tutorial to make your own.
- decorative screen: a screen would be a fun and easy fix to cover the entire section of wood. you can buy a pre-made version, or build your own, covering it with a fabric or paper of your choice
CLICK HERE for a great list of vintage-style bike resources after the jump! read more …  October 26th, 2009 - 10:00am | 
