DwellStudio has been on fire lately! Apparently 2011 was their year, because just about every week they seem to be adding new products or, at the very least, announcing new products. They've even expanded to include decorative objects, like these gorgeous ceramic vases. Check out all their new collections here and let us know what catches your eye!
Damn you Portlandia for making me never want to post anything bird related ever again. I defy you, and challenge you to not fall in love with this cheeky bird print by June Craft.
Be still my heart. I posted about the fabulous work by Singapore based Studio Juju earlier in the year, but their new work definitely deserves a follow-up post. I've completely fallen for their Wobble and Mushrooms bowls. Made of lathe formed maples with powder coated aluminum lids, these simple containers are absolute eye candy. I want one of each of them pretty please.
Lots more pretty pictures after the jump.
Ever since they announced that Man Men season 5 would be postponed until early 2012, I've been struggling to fill the void that's been left in my life. So, it is with eagerness (and slight desperation) that I share these suh-weet posters by Cape Town-based design studio Radio.
I love wine, and I love walnut, so it goes without saying that I would love to store my wine in a walnut wine rack. The Drona wine rack made by Jonathan Malphrus of Steric Design add some interesting geometry and nice contemporary craftsmanship to the typical wine rack. This Drona has a series of large hexagons connected by salvaged cherry joinery. It looks fantastic, and holds an impressive 35 bottles. There is a smaller version that only holds 5 bottles if that's more your thing.
I love finding Etsy shops where the artist is based outside of the united states. Eszter Schall is a graphic designer from Budakeszi, Hungary who brings a wonder folk art feeling to her prints. Her pieces are affordable, and full of whimsy and delight. Besides these wonderful prints, Eszter also has a blog devoted to her less folk inspired, but equally wonderful wedding invitations.
Admittedly one of the biggest perks of blogging is getting invited to fantastic press events. A few weeks ago Scion was kind enough to fly myself and several other lifestyle bloggers down to Manhattan Beach to take a peek at their new car. During the whirlwind trip I found myself talking to the singer from Devo, surfing, driving the smallest car I've ever been in, and best of all, checking out some famous SoCal Case Study houses.
Read on for the whole story, and more pictures...
First off the car. Those that know me, know that I am a bit of a car nut. In fact I've been described as having car ADD, rarely keeping one for more than a year. My personal taste leans towards european sports cars, so I admit I wasn't overly enthusiastic about driving a sub 10' Scion IQ. I did get a little more excited when I learned that Aston Martin rebranded the IQ in Europe as a luxury micro compact. Branding aside the IQ was a surprisingly comfortable and solid car for the size. Even 6' 4" Tyler from Plastolux seemed pretty comfortable in it.
Scion is an interesting brand, and puts a surprisingly large amount of effort into supporting the arts, and more grassroots style advertising. For this event they had pulled together a wide swath of lifestyle bloggers, so it was interesting to get to meet other people "in the industry". I even had the chance to make be "real life" friends with some facebook friends I've had for a while, like the lovely Erin Loechner from Design For Mankind. I have a total design crush on her...
During our dinner Mark Mothersbaugh from Devo spoke to us. I'm admittedly not that big of a Devo guy, but I did recognize him as that awkward artist from Yo Gabba Gabba! Turns out her really is an incredibly accomplished musician (outside of Devo) and artist. Go figure.
Between surfing sessions, Tyler and I rented a car to search out some of the iconic Case Study houses. We didn't have appointments for the Stahl house (Case Study #22) but the son was gracious enough to let us peek through the gate. It was AMAZING! From the street, it doesn't look like anything at all, but as soon as you poke your head through the gate you get that amazing view that Shulman captured so well.
Our next stop was the Eames Case Study house #8. It's been on my bucket list for a long long time to go and check that house out, so it was incredible to be there. They are in the process of moving the majority of the interior to LACMA for an upcoming exhibit, but the place still looked amazingly intact and original. In fact if you have ever seen the classic Eames film "Lucia Chase Vignette" it looked like nothing had changed at all in 40+ years since it was filmed.
Don't call it an artichoke, this natural wood veneer pendant light is all pinecone! Consisting of 56 "plates", each light ships flat and is available in four finishes: maple, beech, antiaris, and kaya. Designed by Pavel Eekra, 2011.
I have absolutely no idea what I was looking for when I stumbled across these interior shots, but when I saw them I was awestruck. I especially like the stark white interior mixed in with the warm walnut table and brick accents. Located right next to the London bridge, you can rent this three bedroom apt for £2,250 a week. Who's in?
Lot's more photo's after the jump.
The last couple nights the temperatures have started to cool off finally. Of course with the hint of fall in the air the first thing that my mind turns to is sitting around a fire pit on a cool night. This Cast Iron Fire pit from Design Within Reach caught my eye. It's Danish roots show through immediately. It's shape isn't all looks though, there are some clever things going on in there that make the fire burn even more efficiently. And did I mention there is a grill top option for it? Yep. Perfection.
These gorgeous desktop organizers are handmade by Irish designer Karolin Felix and are available in a variety of finishes. You can buy the complete set or individual pieces (like this simpleblock pencil holder). I love the idea of using the paper clip holders as small planters, like Karolin shows in the product photos! Pretty clever.
Looking for something a little bit different in a wall clock? This Twemco Perpetual wall clock takes some obvious cues from the wrist watch world and incorporates an easy to read date at the top. The combination of white with red and black accents is classic and would fit right in any modern interior.
Whether you're a fan of big, bold color (like me!) or prefer things a little more on the subdued side, these salad bowls offer something for everyone. And their large size is perfectly suited for end-of-season BBQs or mid-winter parties! Nice.
Sometimes it's the small simple things in life that make us happy. This Star stainless steel vegetable peeler from Zena Swiss sure has a lot of people talking. Word on the street is that you will never want to use another peeler again. So what does all this potato peeling bliss cost? Six dollars. Yes, just six. Skip a latte, peel a smile.
For the color inclined, check out the equally fantastic, color endowed Rapid Peeler.
OK people, I'm looking for some opinions. Headboards. Yay or nay?
I honestly have never really been a fan of them, and besides the MANDAL headboard from Ikea ($149) I can't think of a good looking one. I want to hear from you. Do you have one? Do you like them? Do they serve a purpose? I can see the appeal of ones with integrated storage, or clever lighting like this one from moreheadboards.com, but I've got to admit I'm coming up short on finding any sort of inspiring photo's.
Headboarders, hit me with you best shot.
Anyone else find irony in the fact that the braille alphabet looks absolutely stunning? Especially once it gets a little help from Edu Barba. This fantastic signed A3 sized print is available for a mere $18 plus shipping. That is if Edu ever gets off his vacation.
It's crazy how fast time flies. My two little tikes are almost both in big kid beds now. Trying to figure out the best way to make that work has sent me on a little scramble to find some modern bunk bed inspiration. It seems like there is a wide variety of options out there, most of which cost a pretty penny. The (1) Pluunk Bunk bed is the most amazing looking, but costs $4,400. The super sneaky (2) Lollipop murphy beds from resource furniture start at $3,500 and are by far the most space efficient by a long way. Morebunkbeds.com has everything from the (3) $3,400 Nurseryworks Duet bunk bed to a super inexpensive (4) $314 generic metal one. Lastly is the German (5) AMBERintheSKY which is a whole different scale of bunk bed. I don't know that it is available stateside, but it gets my DIY juices flowing.
Any other modern bunk beds that you love?
O'verlays are sort of like decals for your furniture, except that they're paintable and slightly 3-dimensional (they're about 1/8" thick). Created by friends Cheryle Rhuda and Danika Herrick, they're designed to fit a variety of popular IKEA systems, but would be a great way of sprucing up other furniture - or even mirrors and windows! My favorite is the "danika" pattern, a fretwork of broken geometric shapes. Check 'em all out here and let us know what you think!
