I can honestly say I've never wanted a cuckoo clock before. Until now. This clever modern take on an age old design comes from the mighty brains of Decoylab, and may be one of the best things to come out of the state of Kansas.
Modestwork is a dublin based design agency that is making some beautiful furniture. The Loft chair shown above (top) was featured at designboom stockholm earlier this year, and it's easy to see why. It is minimal, and beautiful. The jury is out as to just how comfortable it would be, but new concept (bottom) seems to address that better. Either way, I'm keeping my eye on Modestwork and expecting good things from them.
More fabulous, handmade wooden toys! I can't seem to get enough of them. Seattle-based Etsy shop Manzanita Kids has a pretty great selection and variety, too, including these stacking animal puzzles (my fave)! Check out all their developmental toys right here.
Colorado just keeping turing out talented companies making good use of the beetle kill pine. Azure Furniture seems to be at the top of the pile. They have partnered with local sawmills to produce furniture grade level pine with the trademark beetle kill blue gray color. That coupled with some solid furniture design and woodworking skills means that they have a really impressive collection of furniture.
Well hello there Dylan table, nice to meet you. I've mentioned my farmhouse table before, and my pinterest board is overflowing with them. The Dylan table by CB2 is a nice clean take on that theme. The chunky top works really well on the more delicate angled legs. I'm actually going to go out on a limb and say that those are some of the better table legs I have seen in a really long time. Bravo Dylan. Bravo.
Nothing like a little mid-century flair and some great color combos to get you in the art buying mood, right? Sydney-based shop Pool Pony has a huge assortment of prints to choose from, in large and small sizes, so head on over and check out the goods. Your walls will thank you.
Bottled water companies keep upping the anti on packaging, which make sense considering the field is about 80% marketing and 20% product. The latest one to catch my eye is a Swedish Danish company cleverly called retap. The packaging design consists of a simple glass bottle, with what appears to be a reusable rubber cork. I appreciate the honest simplicity of it, and would buy it just for the bottle.
retap
retap facebook page (yeah for english!)
Ikea lover rejoice! The maker of Scandinavian flat packed goodness has a new inspirational website called Share Space. Despite the somewhat awkward URL, it looks like a promising site. You can browse photo's sent in by fellow ikeaphiles or even upload your own. Just like the online catalogue you can tag all the products in your space. It's a good way to see what other people are doing, and maybe even get some good inspiration for your next project. The new website also includes a burgeoning blog as well.
I'm a firm believer in the idea that it's the little things that count... even little things like colorful block candles in ceramic trays. Is that so crazy??
Studio Dunn has been a long time favorite here at GRM, and we've talked about some of their great stuff here and here in the past. I'm excited to announce that they have some great new products that are just coming fresh out of the shop. My favorite of them is the Tessie chair shown above. As always, the line are absolutely gorgeous, and I especially love the organic scandinavian inspired lines where one piece of wood meets another. Check out the detail shot after the jump.
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Last week I received an email from UK based designer Kirsty Whyte sharing with me some of her great design work that has recently gone into production. One of my favorites of the bunch is the Drew Collection shown above, which is currently available through Modus.
She also has some really great scandinavian influenced pieces that were recently picked up by Heals (how have I never heard of Heals before?). Both the Twist table and the Walnut Candlestick are fantastic.
Last, but not least, she has a clever little Limpet hook that is on Made.com. Vote for it now and it could also go into production.
A huge congrats to Kirsty on all her recent success and well deserved recognition.
Eloise Renouf is a UK-based stationery and textile designer whose Etsy shop features large limited edition prints of some of her designs. I'm a big fan of her retro / MCM aesthetic, aren't you? If so, be sure to snag a print or two from her shop and check back often - she's always adding new pieces!
Modern vases and objects for the color loving set (like me)! Texas-based pottery studio Owl Creek Ceramics has a large collection of cheery ceramic wares ranging from bowls, plates, vases, mugs, and more. I love these quirky little polka dotted vases, but be sure to check out all their goods here.
We've mentioned the work of Dee Adams before on GRM, but it's been nearly two years. I was checking it today to see if there was anything new, and while the art is basically the same you can now get 18 x 24 prints for a mere $30. That's a lot of sexy mid century goodness for not a lot of coin. These just got bumped up to the top of my wish list.
Bold, colorful, organic and abstract. What's not to love about the "Love me two times" series by Kirra Jamison. Now I just need to decide which one I love the most. More pretty pictures after the jump.
Love Me Two Times by Kirra Jamison
I spotted these colorful travel bowls recently on (my favorite dog-related blog) Dog Milk and had to share! The concept is pretty brilliant: the base is a spill resistant bowl for water, the lid a snug-fitting bowl for food (that keeps everything leak-free). On top of that, there is a lid for the food bowl that can also function as a third bowl in a pinch. Like I said, brilliant.
This Monday I had the opportunity to walk through one of my favorite mid century modern homes in Salt Lake City. Designed and built in 1965 by one of Salt Lake City's more prolific modern architects Ed Drier, the home has heavy Miesian influence. The exterior roof line is defined by a massive steel H beam that is contrasted by a white tile soffit that continues into the home. The continuance of surfaces is actually one of my favorite aspects to the home. Everywhere you look flooring, walls and ceiling materials seamless cross the indoor outdoor plane. This is made possible through a significant amount of glazing and careful attention to detail. Considering the amount of glass in the place I expected it to be a huge energy hog, like some of the other MCM glass and steel houses in the area, but I was pleasantly surprised to find just one furnace in the basement. The fact that it has a pool and close to a half acre sitting on the side of a ravine makes this house ideal for me. Unfortunately the $800,000 price means it's about 4 times out of my price range. I propose 3 other people go in on it with me. First pool party is on me.
I'm a sucker for a pretty picture, and these product shots from Ciaffi look amazing. It's not just a pretty picture though, for $8 you get 12 handmade small envelopes with a small folded card packaged in a mini corrugated box. Is it just me, or does that seem like a really good deal?
I love, love, love this wooden mobile from Snug Studio, an Etsy shop based out of Hanover, Germany. These colorful birds are very Charley Harper-esque, don't you think?
I can honestly say that I'm usually not that impressed by "digital art". Not saying that it can't be good, I just haven't seen anything amazing. Until now.
Romanian pixel pusher Cristian Boian has made some of the most gorgeous art that I want to suck it right out of my computer and into my home. Check out the rest of the series after the jump.
