winter bed

I want to hibernate for the next three months in this bed. so cozy. (from Metrofarm)

william eggleston

saw the eggleston exhibit at lacma today. very inspiring.

bang! lamp

could anything be more amazing than a lamp that is turned on by pulling the trigger on a plastic gun? The Bang lamp by BitPlay was unveiled at Tokyo Designers Week. so much fun.

the morgan

When I was a child I loved spending time in libraries...the smell of old novels and dim lighting all made for a very cozy setting in which to get lost in a fantasy world of books. Now I rarely seem to go but there is a special place in my heart for gorgeously designed libraries, the older the better. I read that they recently reopened the McKim building at the Morgan library in New York, which the Times strangely describes as Beaux Arts - Zen. There are two interesting articles on the architect here and here..

margaret kilgallen

"i think it's the part that's off that's interesting. even if i spend a lot of time going over the line and trying to make it straight i'll never be able to make it straight. and from a distance it might look straight but when you get close up you can always see the line waver. and i think that's where the beauty is."

upholstery project #2

i was lucky enough to score this chair on craigslist for $30 but the poor thing needs serious help. tomorrow i'm going to head over to my pal dennis's workshop and start refinishing and upholstering this baby...

bicycle chandeliers

carolina fontoura alzaga makes beautiful chandeliers out of bike parts..


check out her website here..

andy vogt

san francisco is filled with amazing artists. andy vogt is one of them.

just because

going rogue

oh yess...I have found my new dream store - rogues gallery in portland, maine. brick and wood beams, old nautical props, plaid, marlin deck boots. I mean, come on.  I don't think i'll be in new england anytime soon but I love that this shop is there. A place like this wouldn't really feel right anywhere else.

barry mcgee

there is something about barry mcgee's work that always evokes some powerful emotion..it is always raw and thoughtful and original.  his latest mural on houston st in nyc kind of blew me away, the simplicity of red tags (all shout outs to graffiti artists) against a white wall, is quite stunning. 

dream room

photo by roland bello

hostem

love the interior of the new hostem store in london, designed by jamesplumb

pencil art

The Hungarian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale

(photos by Patricia Parinejad)

philly

when i see photos like these i wonder why i don't move back to philadelphia...where you can actually live in amazing old buildings for prob. half of what you pay for a shoebox in SF. aah, the high ceilings! massive windows! exposed brick! period details!

the home of adam wallacavage (via selby)

the home of shauna alterio and stephen loidolt

treehouses

someone please take me here...

via all the mountains

gorgeousness

tea strainer by veronika wildgruber

if you're ever in stockholm...

creators inn offers free rooms to visiting creative people (bands, artists, etc)! check out their website here...

matthias heiderich

is a photographer who sees architecture in wonderful ways

stadium architecture

I was watching the World Cup with friends today and guessed that Soccer City stadium in Johannesburg was designed by the firm that did the Beijing Olympic Stadium, Herzog & de Meuron. Well, they seem to design everything else these days, no? Anyway, I stand corrected. It was actually done by Boogertman Urban Edge and Partners who created a new facade in the design of a calabash (African pottery). The mosaic cladding has a ring of lights running around the bottom which simulates the look of fire underneath the pot. Stunning. And such an amazing game, so happy Spain pulled it off in the end!

Soccer City Stadium- Boogertman Urban Edge & Partners (via archtracker)

Beijing Olympic Stadium (Herzog & de Meuron)

wooden lights

When I come across furniture, lighting, and other randomness that I fall in love with, I mentally classify these things into where they will go - my Moroccan/bohemian waterfront villa in southern Spain, my garden apartment in Paris, or my cozy cabin in Big Sur (ok, so I don't currently own any of these dream homes, but maybe in the next 10 years?). Anyway, these crack bowl light fixtures by Kwon Jae Min would be perfect in my Big Sur kitchen...

image via contemporist

spiritual modern

I have this thing for churches, chapels, temples..religious buildings of any kind. They are truly the only places where you can be alone and quiet. There is something so humbling and beautiful about feeling small in such a massive space. Growing up on the east coast coast you see so many old stone and brick churches and cathedrals that i tend to associate classical details with a feeling of spirituality. 

However, I've seen so many architects as of late that have managed to make the most modern and minimal structures feel peaceful. here are some of my favorites 'old' and new...

Church of the Light, Ibaraki, Japan - Tadao Ando
Chiesa di San Giovanni Battista, Mogno Switzerland
St. Nicolas, Heremence Switzerland - Walter Maria Forderer
Notre Dame du Haut Ronchamp, France - Le Corbusier
St. Bartholomew's Church, Eastern Bohemia - Qubus Studio
Cathedral of Christ the Light, Oakland, CA - SOM
La Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain - Antonio Gaudi

visual acoustics

Go rent Visual Acoustics. 

It's a documentary about Julius Schulman, an amazing photographer and key figure during one of my favorite architectural movements, California modernism. He brought to life the works of architects that were just starting to make a name for themselves at this time - Neutra, Schindler, Koenig, Eames.  His photos of these iconic homes were some of the first images i had seen of this type of architecture, and were what turned me on to architecture in general.

Much like an architect, Schulman had a brilliant sense of composition, proportion and light that enhanced the  architecture in his images by creating a mood.  He captures a fantasy of a mythical los angeles and palm springs in the 50s and 60s, where the wild landscapes blend seamlessly with open architecture.

The film is incredibly interesting and Schulman is the cutest little old man who has some great stories about working with Neutra, Wright, etc. so just watch it already.

Kaufmann House, Neutra
Chuey House, NeutraCase Study House 22, Koenig

neil krug

 everything he does is pure light and magic