I just adore these bags! The're handmade by a mother and daughter team based in Estonia. Check out more designs in their Etsy shop
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Etsy shop: EightSeasons
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Nature Planter
Nature Planter
What a beautiful planter! I would have so much fun filling it with different plants. It reminds me of the Knappa pendant light turned upside down.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Plates
Have you ever collected so many plates that you don't know what to do with them all? Well, you just might want to try hanging them up on your walls.
I love, love, love Lisa Congdon's hanging plate display! (pictured above) The idea of hanging plates isn't a new one, but I love her fresh and colorful approach. I've been wanting to do something like this in my home with all the odd plates that I pick up at flea markets. I still need to go and find a bit more but I do have some cute ones that I can play around with for now.
For anyone who is interested I found a helpful page on ehow called how to hang plates and also some info at marthastewart.com. I can't wait to start this project, I love arranging things! Check out more plate arrangements below.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Send me a landscaping angel!
Al and I have been slowly working on the front yard and walkway. I mentioned a few weeks ago that we had started to lay down the forms for the concrete stepping stones, and we have about half of them up already. The wacky wood is working out great, but getting everything in the ground has been tricky, since there's a massive rock the size of a van directly under the walkway! We've had to, um, get a little creative with some of our forms...
We're slowly getting there, though. I can't wait until they're done!
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Blueberries
I've been out hunting for blueberries for the last week or so, and a few days ago I picked a whole bunch.
I've decided to make a pie. I'm not really that great with giving out recipes, since I'm one of those people that just throws stuff together without one... but here goes:
Crust
I use two parts flour to one part fat. For the fat, butter tastes better - and it's better for you - than shortening. But butter also results in a firmer, not-as-flaky crust. So for the best of both worlds, I use half shortening and half butter. Here's the ingredients list:
- 2 cups flour
- 1/2 cup butter (softened)
- 1/2 cup shortening
- 1/4 teaspoon of salt
- 2 tbsp. cold water
And here's how to make the crust:
Use a fork or pastry blender to combine the flour, butter, shortening and salt. Mix everything just to the point where the flour looks all flaky and crumbly and then stop. Now here's the tricky part: add in the 2 tablespoons of water and mix it in with your hands. This should be just enough water to allow you to form the dough into a ball. Don't over work the dough, just kinda slap it together. If your dough starts to get a little warm and sticky, you may need to put it in the refrigerator for a bit to cool it off.
Next use a good sized piece of parchment paper and put your dough on top. Then break off another piece and push it down on top of your dough. This top piece will keep your dough from sticking to your rolling pin. Roll out the dough over the parchment paper with a rolling pin, until it's about a 1/8" to 1/4" thick. Remove the top paper and pick up the dough attached to the bottom paper, flip it over onto an 8" pie pan and remove the paper. Form the dough to the pan with your hands and remove the excess around the rim (I use the extra dough for decoration.)
Filling
OK, the hard part is over! For the filling, I'm using wild blueberries that I picked around my house. These can be a bit more tart than store-bought ones, so I will be using 3/4 cup of sugar. If your blueberries are from the store, you may want to use a little less sugar than me.
So here are the ingredients for the filling:
6 cups fresh (or frozen) blueberries, rinsed, stems removed (if using frozen fruit, defrost and drain first)
1 tbsp. lemon or lime juice
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white granulated sugar (1/2 cup if using store-bought blueberries)
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. butter, cut into small pieces
Optional: I didn't mention it but I did brush on an egg wash over the crust.
And how to make it:
Pre-heat your oven to 425°F. In a bowl, mix everything but the butter. Once all the fruit is evenly coated, pour the mixture into the pie crust and top it with the small pieces of butter. Bake for about 35 minutes or until the crust toasts to a golden color. Let it cool before serving and enjoy!
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Free Shipping
Free shipping on all U.S. orders over $85, offer expires 9-30-09. Your shipping will be refunded back to you after your payment.
Check out what's for sale in my shop on Etsy.
Craigslist Finds (MA)
1960's Chandelier (Arlington, Ma)
I saw this light and I instantly fell in love! It's so beautiful! The owner of this light says it's 24" wide and belonged to his grandparents. Sadly I don't have a space for something like this, I hope it finds a good home.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Interview: Jared Andrew Schorr
Name: Jared Andrew Schorr
Occupation: Illustrator
Location: Montclair, CA.
www.jaredandrewschorr.com
Etsy shop
1. What kind of art do you make?
Most of my illustrations are cut paper.
2. What do you enjoy most about working in this medium?
The fact that I can take paper, any kind of paper, and turn it into something I want is always amazing to me. I also like that I am using a medium that most people use as a surface for their own medium. Taking the pencil, paint, or ink, out of the equation forces me to simplify and plan ahead.
3. What challenges have you found in your work?
It is extremely satisfying having all the loose pieces in front of me and discovering how the puzzle fits together. Illustration is problem solving and the dimensional aspects of my compositions are always a fun hurdle.
4. Where do you find your inspiration?
I find inspiration in discovery. In trying to amaze not only the viewer, but myself. I still think it's incredible that I can make things that I love and that other people appreciate it.... Seeing my sons face when I show him each new piece is pretty inspiring too.
5. What are your favorite artists, designer or blogs?
S. Britt, Roald Dahl, Souther Salazar, Jim Henson, Scott Campbell, Wes Anderson, Douglas Adams, Jean Jullian, Lab Partners, Mike Perry
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Mad Men yourself
Ok ok, so I don't watch Mad Man, and yes I know I probably should be. I did catch a rerun a few days ago and I think I might watch the premiere tonight. I just went over to the Mad Men website and made myself some cute icons. Check it out!
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Friday, August 14, 2009
Cape Cod Modern House Tour (Aug 23rd) SOLD OUT :(
(Photo By Julia Cumes for The Boston Globe)
By Jaci Conry
Globe Correspondent
From the narrow dirt roads of the Outer Cape, you can’t see most of the cottages designed by mid-century Modernist architects. But they are there. Nestled by thick scrub pines, overlooking salt ponds, inlets, and sand dunes are more than 80 homes designed by prominent architects of Modernism including Marcel Breuer, Serge Chermayeff, Paul Krueger, Nathaniel Saltonstall, Paul Weidlinger, and Charles Zehnder.
On Aug. 23, the Cape Cod Modern House Tour will offer the public the rare opportunity to venture inside some of the innovative cottages that were under the radar for decades.
“It’s kind of a lost and found thing,’’ says Peter McMahon, executive director of the Cape Cod Modern House Trust, a nonprofit devoted to documenting and preserving the Modernist architecture on the Outer Cape. “These houses were in the dust bin of history for a very long time. People just didn’t realize they were there.’’
Following World War II, Massachusetts was a hotbed of Modernism. Important European architects of the Modern movement had made their way here, including Walter Gropius and Breuer, both professors at the Harvard School of Design. Modernists designed houses in Boston suburbs with flat roofs, cubic shapes, and open floor plans; in the summer, they experimented with their designs on Outer Cape Cod. They were enticed by the region’s pristine environment and undeveloped land that was available for modest sums. In some cases, says McMahon, lots cost under $1,000 and the architects built houses for as little as $5,000.
“On the Outer Cape, the architects could build very close to nature and have an artistic way of life,’’ says McMahon.
The Modernist cottages were built predominantly in Wellfleet, as well as in Eastham, Provincetown, and Truro, from the late 1940s through the early 1970s. Oriented to capture views and breezes and to integrate with the outdoors, the cottages were humble in size, budget, and materials. They were airy and informal, with few frills. Designed to sit lightly on the land, their environmental impact was minimal.
“The houses were ‘green’ structures well before ‘green’ was the big thing,’’ McMahon said. “They were small, built low to the ground, and designed to sit in the landscape. They didn’t overpower the setting, or stick up into other people’s views, which is what you often see with new construction now.’’
While the houses were intended to be rustic, a lot of thought went into building them.
“The designs were very intentional. There’s a lifestyle implied by these buildings, one that recognizes the importance of nature, creativity, and sustainability, one that says you don’t need a lot to be happy,’’ McMahon said. “This way of life can be particularly appreciated now.’’
At one time there were more than 100 Modernist cottages on the Outer Cape. Among the 80 or so that remain some have been well-maintained by their original owners while others have been severely neglected. And the privately owned cottages are endangered because of what Cape real estate is currently worth -those paying large sums for land tend to want houses that far exceed the scale and character of the Modernist structures.
McMahon, a Wellfleet architect, is largely responsible for raising public awareness about these gems, and for gaining support to preserve some of them. A crusade for the preservation of the Outer Cape’s Modernist architecture took hold in 2006 when McMahon co-curated an exhibit on the subject at the Provincetown Art Association and Museum.
Among the houses on this year’s tour, sponsored by the Cape Cod Modern House Trust and the Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill, is the Kugel-Gips house, designed by Zehnder. The structure is one of five Modernist cottages located within the Cape Cod National Seashore and owned by the National Park Service. Acquired decades ago by eminent domain, the Park Service didn’t have the resources to main tain the structures. As a result, the five houses were abandoned and subject to deterioration. They were slated for demolition until recently when the Massachusetts Historical Commission deemed them significant as unaltered specimens of the Modernist architectural phenomenon that transformed postwar America.
In April, McMahon obtained a 25-year lease for the derelict Kugel-Gips house on behalf of the Cape Cod Modern House Trust from the Park Service, with the intent of restoring it to its original condition and using it as a cultural resource for tours, academic retreats, and a scholar-in-residence program. The town of Wellfleet pledged $100,000 toward the effort, additional funding has been garnered through donations, and numerous volunteers have contributed sweat equity.
Restoration of the structure, which, with its wide overhangs and projecting decks, was inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright’s Usonian houses, began in earnest early this summer, and tour-goers will be able to check out the progress, which includes new framing, sheathing, and a flat, rubber-membrane roof.
Visitors on the tour will also have a chance to explore a Breuer design, the Kepes Cottage. A prototype for a planned settlement of seven houses in the woods that were never built, the structure is one room deep, with a dramatic cantilevered screen porch, unframed sliding glass windows, and a grid of off-the-shelf materials inside and out.
A symposium on Modern architecture will be held Aug. 22 at 7:30 p.m. at the Truro Community Center. Featured speakers are Krueger, who served as project architect for Harvard’s Carpenter Center, which was designed by Le Corbusier - one of the European pioneers of Modern architecture. Krueger went on to design several structures on the Cape.
“He’s one of the last living architects of the Modern movement,’’ says McMahon. “His lecture will focus on his collaboration with Le Corbusier and its effect on his work.’’
Michael Hayes, professor of architectural theory at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design and adjunct curator of architecture at the Whitney Museum of Art, will explore themes in European and American Modernism and its local manifestations.
Advance reservations are required for the tour and symposium. For information, contact the Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill 508-349-7511, www.castlehill.org; or the Cape Cod Modern House Trust, www.ccmht.org.
THE HOPKINS HOUSE, 1976
World War II bunker construction inspired Charles Zehnder to exploit the possibilities of poured concrete with deep punched out windows and cantilevered wood decks in this three-story poured concrete tower on a Truro hillside. “It’s a very radical house, even by today’s standards. It was built during a time when poured concrete was very cheap,’’ says McMahon.
KEPES COTTAGE, 1948
Marcel Breuer designed this Wellfleet cottage for his friend, Gyorgy Kepes, founder of the Center for Advanced Visual Studies at MIT. Built in the shape of an elongated box with tongue and groove cedar siding over plywood, the house was raised above the ground on stilts to keep the landscape pristine. Still owned by the Kepes family, it is identical to the cottage Breuer built for himself nearby.
HIDDEN VILLAGE, 1960
Architect John “Rudd’’ Falconer designed this colony of six cottages in the Eastham woods. The cottages still operate as summer rentals. Constructed of clapboard and glass, the structures, recently repainted in the original colors, feature butterfly roofs and bedrooms that project out.
THE COREY HOUSE, 1968
This long cedar-clad structure in Truro, designed by Charles Zehnder, has multiple private balconies and a low hilltop skimming profile. Bedrooms are located in an elevated wing separate from the main living areas. “While the house has expansive windows in some spots, Zehnder didn’t create glass boxes, he was very concerned with openness and protection,’’ says McMahon.
THE KUGEL-GIPS HOUSE, 1970
Located on a hill in a sparse forest in Wellfleet, this Charles Zehnder design exhibits long horizontal lines and a narrow base. The flat-roof house combines wood with concrete and glass, and exterior materials, such as clapboards, are used indoors. Abandoned for years and subjected to wood rot, mold, and water damage, the house is now undergoing a rigorous restoration.
Hidden Treasure
Last week while trudging through mud so I could pick some blueberries I was amazed to find this really old bench covered in moss and pine needles on my property. I was so thrilled to find this treasure! The bench sits two people and is about 40 to 50 feet away from my home. Who ever lived here years ago let the property get really over grown so it's hard to find now, even when your standing 15 feet away. The bench was facing the back of the house and overlooked a vernal pond which is still filled with water, but now also filled with trees and shrubs. I wonder what the property used to look like...
This is an aerial view of our home, as you can see, we are surrounded by trees!
Thursday, August 13, 2009
New at CB2
Marimekko ® Taikamylly wall hanging $24.95 - $119.00
Parlour chair $699.00
Urchin vase-sculpture $39.95
Abstract mobile $19.95
Vitten
I purchased some Vitten rugs from Ikea a few weeks ago and I love them! They make the space feel so warm and cozy. I sewed them together and you can't even tell they're four carpets put together. I updated the carpet because I always wanted shag and the other carpet was just dirty looking, I have this bad habit of walking barefoot where ever I go (inside and out) and my husband always forgot to take off his shoes so yeah it was dirty. We are really good about being clean now, we really love this carpet so we are willing to make sacrifices. 
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Crosley Table Alarm Clock Speaker
Vintage-inspired tabletop alarm clock doubles as amplification for your iPod - with a capable speaker at the top and plug at the back for attaching your mp3 player. Volume control and station knobs; AM/FM options; analog clock display; radio or buzzer alarm with snooze button. Finished with smooth plastic casing, reminiscent of mid century appliances. For sale at Urban Outfitters.
Interview: Dee Adams
Name: Dee Adams
Occupation: Fine Artist, Graphic Designer, Illustrator, Photographer
Location: San Francisco, CA
1. What kind of art do you make?
I'm a bit manic as I have my hands busy with a lot of creative projects at once. By day I am a Design Specialist for Yahoo! which involves a lot of graphic design and information architecture of user interfaces. In my own studio, I split time between my large painted works on canvas, photography and independent graphic design projects that I create under my company deedee9:14. I sell the paintings via my art dealer, in various galleries as well as on my own site www.deedee914.com. Recently I've started selling smaller pieces and more of my graphic design work on my Etsy shop. It's funny because people either know me as Dee the web designer or Dee the artist but rarely do they associate the two. The art I make for myself is the most important and the most emotional. It all stems from my love of mid-century modernism, my parents influence of style, and my love of simplicity.
2. What do you enjoy most about working in this medium?
When you work for a design agency or a large company, you're always making trade-offs. The work is never fully yours. You cater to whoever is paying you at the end of the day. When I paint, or when I create a unique design in my own studio, I have control over the entire outcome. I don't have to compromise and cater to a specific audience. I create the work I want to see. I'm very lucky in that other people find joy in my work and choose to hang it in their homes or offices all over the world.
3. What challenges have you found in your work?
The most difficult challenge is in trying to explain abstract minimalism to someone unfamiliar with the concept and why I'm so adamant about "less being more". Many people simply see blocks of colour or a line and a dot like Mondrian and think "Anyone can do that!". But what they don't understand is the process it took to reduce a complex image or idea down to something so simple. 
4. Where do you find inspiration?
Old art journals, gallery exhibitions, and any sort of homewares, interior, or antique shops that carry modern or mid-century works. I'm a sucker for home stores and mags. I also collect books that focus on decorating ideas for homes from that era as there are always gems inside. Flickr is also a great source of inspiration as people show off what they're doing in their own homes. With my most recent project of mid-century style illustrated birds, I was definitely inspired by sculptures produced by the Italian company Flavia.
5. What are your favorite artists, designer or blogs.
My favourite artists are Sol Lewitt, Josef Albers, Bridget Riley, Mark Rothko, and Gustav Klimt. I'm addicted to design blogs and there are too many to mention. You can expect that all of the big names are on there as well as the small independent ones that cater to modern design, architecture, and mid-century style.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Walkway
No I didn't keep you out of the loop, I just haven't done a thing with my front yard. We finally decided on cement circles, but how to make the forms was another roadblock. We decided to get quotes from contractors but we weren't to happy with paying $2000 to get it finished. Then finally my husband found something called wacky wood, which is a bending plywood. I will keep you all updated on our progress.
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