Holiday Products from Jonathan Adler

Check out the upcoming goodies coming up from Jonathan Adler. What's on my wish list is the banana ornament and the pill keychain. The Daschund bookends are no slouches either.

Can't wait!

Handmade Friday

It's no big surprise that the people whose homes are featured here on the House Tours are creative people. Paola is no exception, Her home was featured here in February of this year and she now has an Etsy shop showcasing her handiwork with felt.

Above is her super awesome Central Park pillow. Pretty cool huh?


Check out Paola's House Tour and her Etsy shop and have a great weekend!

Sound the alarm!

My alarm clock is at death's door. The snooze is malfunctioned, while I'm trying life support with a new battery I'm not sure it's going to make it.

This led me to searching out a replacement, while I know it's a cruel thing to do since the old one is still alive, I just like to shop. My requirements for an alarm clock are as follows; I need a snooze button, I need the clock to stay dark, preferably blue lights as opposed to red and preferably a pleasant beeping alarm not the jarring electric sounding one.

Normally my go to search would be for 'vintage alarm clock' on Etsy or Ebay but sadly most vintage clocks don't have snooze functions or are plug in only and with a 1920's apartment with only six outlets total plug in only is not an option.

Here's the best of what I found:

The Hi-Tech

IHome Cube $66.25,  Satechi Curve $59.99

The Futuristic

Lexon Jet Alarm Clock $44.00,  Flip Clock $39.99

The Simple

Muji Rubber Clock $34.95,  Ikea Susa $4.99

The Orange

Anything Clock $69, Pick Me Up Clock $28.95

Honorable Mention

Kate Spade Perry Street Clock $40, Round LED Clock $35

Giveaway!

This giveaway comes from my very own shop!

To enter the giveaway comment with your design guilty pleasure, do you karate chop your pillows? Are you a sucker for 'Keep Calm and Carry On'? or has a Mid-Century time capsule exploded all over your home?

Deadline for entries is midnight this Sunday, August 2nd. The winner will be announced Tuesday, August 4th. Good luck!

Anything

I've been searching for a new tape dispenser to go with my new stapler and I've think I've got it.

It's the "Anything" tape dispenser by Michael Sodeau and it's gorgeous. It's also pricey, $39 from Rare Device.

House Tour July Recap

Wow, short recap this month due to the week I took off. Check out next week for a brand new House Tour.

Rhiannon and Victor 7/6/09

Iro and Jan 7/29/09

Handmade Friday

If anyone knows me, you know that I love sharks and Hunter Thompson, so you would also know that I had a slight epileptic fit when I discovered these:

Melanie of Mullish Muse, dug into my skull and scooped these out. Melanie creates these and many more fantastic puppets. I love them all.

5 Things One Year Anniversary

Can you believe it? It's been one year since I started this and in that time I've gotten rid of over 260 things. Over 260 things that I do not need, miss or want. 260!


In the span of a year others have done this along with me, on the Flickr group and someone has started a Facebook page in honor of it.


Check out last year's first post and all the others...

This week's 5 things is actually 10 to make up for not posting one last week. I think I'm going to keep on with it, who knows how much I still have tucked away that I no longer need.


I'd love to hear from you if you do a version 5 Things !

Field Trip!

This past weekend my husband and I set out on an adventure, we mapped out some furniture stores we'd driven by but never stopped into.

We started with Urban Ore in Berkeley, I don't know why this was our first time in, it was fantastic!

It's a huge warehouse packed with everything and anything you can think of, it's purpose is to reduce waste and reuse as much as possible.

Everything from sports, electronics, bathtubs to doors. It was so much fun.

We came home with a tennis racket from the late 50's in pristine condition, with the cover and an incredible orange task lamp which has been on my wishlist for a while.

Both for, get this...$3.29!

Amazing right? Why has no one told me about this place?

From there we went to Klassik by Lynne and Retro@Home in Emeryville. Both had gorgeous Mid-Century furniture but waaaay out of our price range, especially having just spending less than four dollars on two items.

Peacock Obsession

Jonathan Adler has said that he knows he's about to fall in love with something when he hates it at first. I think I operate in the opposite way. It starts as a trickle, I notice it a few times, then start to seek it out, the it explodes like fireworks in my head and I must own everything associated with it, such as what's currently happening with me and Peacocks.

Not sure when it happened, if it started with the paint color peacock blue by Sherwin Williams or this sweet tile cuff bracelet I got that was shaped like the feather or if it was the feathers I found at the craft store and immediately made earrings and headbands out of.

Whatever it was it came on fast and here I am embracing it, join me won't you?

Scarf: Ancient Future/Print: Art and Philanthropy

Clutch: Red Ruby Rose/Cuff: Dirty Story

Necklace: Skylark Studio/Brooch: Ordinary Mommy

Earrings: Plum Flower Creations/ Necklace: Trace My Face

I think I'm lightheaded! 

Renegade Craft Fair

Went to the Renegade Craft Fair this weekend, it was a blast. It was a beautiful day and tons of great booths to see.

Lisa Congdon and Diana Fayt were there:

There was so much to see and take in. I loved it and got a ton of great ideas from it!

(Owly Shadow Puppets)

( Enterprising woman from Dorklandia)

(Tugboat Printshop)

If anyone wants to gift me this print of the Apollo splash down I'd be might grateful.

and there was this guy...

They even had a photobooth, which I couldn't pass up...

It was a great afternoon, and very inspiring. It's heading to Chicago next so if you get a chance go check it out.

House Tour-Iro & Jan

Name: Iro & Jan
Location: Frankfurt
Square Footage: 700 square feet
Years Lived in: a year and a half
Rent or own: rent
Describe your style:simple, modern, natural with tones of vintage
Blog/Website: Busy Bee's Blog at: busybeesisblogging.blogspot.com/ ( I am just starting with it!)

What's your favorite free/found item?
difficult to choose one....to name three:


1) Old colourful glassware from my grandmother. I use a set of four green ones with golden lines as candlel holders. They shine so wonderfully in the dark! Other small ones for liquor, in which we drink homemade raki now and then.


2) A German book from the DDR - Das Tiershiff, given to me by my friend's father when he met me, as an encouragement to learn German. I love the colours of the fabric cover and the beautiful illustrations inside!


3) An old wooden headboard, found in the garbage, which I " dressed " with original retro wallpaper ( found in the same shop I am referring to below ), a white design one with large, symmetrical brown dots. It hasn't found its place in this apartment, so it's patiently waiting in the cellar.

What's your favorite purchased item?
Vintage Wallpaper rolls from 1965 found - forgotten - in the attic of of an old shop in Athens. After a lot of small talk, there practically given to be as a gift ( almost! )

What has been your biggest obstacle in decorating/design?
Inadequate space and of course money! Despite that fact, I strongly believe that money doesn't buy style & taste. It does buy though at least a set of two white Eames chairs with elegant, wooden legs for the dining table, that I so much want!

Is your design style organic or planned?
It is mainly organic. Some planning has to be done though sometimes. In this apartment, already existing furniture of my friend and my own ( brought by track from Greece!) had to be combined. So we both chose what we liked from each others previous homes. It wasn't so difficult coz they all mostly have simple lines.

What is your favorite spot in the house?
Sitting by the central, big, window looking at the sky and at the reading corner, from where I can also see the window.


How has your style changed in the past 5 years?
From being totally in love with white spaces combined with natural materials and colours to currently loving more and more white combined with colors and vintage interiors.

What is your favorite resource or store?
They are a few, too. Habitat, Ikea,  flea markets, recently Etsy, searching into family members' and friends' attics/cellars with a " your trash, my treasure " attitude, sometimes Ebay. And HEMA stores when I am in Amsterdam or Brussels.

What is your biggest decorating/design pet peeve?
Having too many things displayed.

What has been your favorite design trend?
Minimal, modern, organic design and spaces.

What is the biggest influence on your design/decorating style?
Decoration magazines & books. And recently all these fabulous design blogs. I love them! There is new material to look at and get inspired from every other second and they are so direct. Besides the fact that they are free! ( I had paid big amounts of money on decoration books & magazines).

What in your home dictates how you design/decorate?
The architectural layout of the apartment itself, light and of course our personal needs. I think that in a small space the use of white pallet is more dictated, so that the space looks & feels bigger and less cluttered.

What is the simplest thing you have done that has made the biggest impact?
Simply rolling this piece of vintage wallpaper on the wall! It's texture brought so much warmth and interest in the living room, in a flash!

photos courtesy of Iro & Jan