tiny

TINY: A Story About Living Small (Teaser Trailer) from TINY on Vimeo.

quote of the day

"I think we emphasize the understated, again, keeping the designs simple and fresh. We have never been ones to add garish or tacky details. Our particular aesthetic does not necessarily want to be the focus of attention, but instead blend into the wearer’s everyday clothing choice."

-- billykirk

hickoree's hard goods

goodship

New Zealand native and Brooklyn based designer Julie Maclean makes locally produced organic cotton canvas bags under her label Goodship. Each features a large interior pocket, key ring, and strap to roll it up and snap to hold. via designmom

dozi

Pocket workbooks from dozi at Etsy. via paper crave

greenhouse

A few weeks ago I was at the Atlantic Antic in Brooklyn with my sister. It was totally packed with people, but somehow I managed to run into my friend from summer camp, Howie, who I hadn't seen in a zillion (okay maybe 18) years. His wife, Toni and her business partner had just opened Greenhouse, this incredibly nice store on Atlantic Ave in a neighborhood with lots of great small shops. Not only are the housewears and furniture super attractive and the color palette really beautiful, but all the products are also eco-friendly. I completely fell in love with the wide-weave linen fabric on the furniture. Greenhouse is definitely worth a trip out to Brooklyn, and if you're already in the neighborhood it's a must-see. Click here for Greenhouse's website and directions to the store.

blogroll:

I read a lot of blogs and sometimes I am reluctant to add another to my feed because – less face it – there are only so many hours in the day and you can't procrastinate for all of them. Design for Less, however, is one new blog that I didn't hesitate to add to my list. Sisters Julka and Kristin Almquist, finding themselves both trying to live on a strict budget, set out last August to write a blog on good design at affordable (and sometimes free!) prices.

The Almquist sisters have an excellent eye for style, posting clothes, shoes, and accessories at reasonable prices. Clutch purse from Payless ($25) and Seychelles shoes ($85) from Zappos.

I also like their taste in low cost housewears, such as this TEKLA towel from IKEA (49 cents), and this tray from CB2 ($34.95).

Best of all, Julka and Kristin have some great ideas about how to repurpose what you've already got. With countless design blogs out there tempting you to empty your wallet, their "working with what you've got" series, including this post about the different ways you can wear a scarf or this post about exchanging paperbacks through the website Paperback Swap, is the most sound design advice I've read in a while.

DfL has some good tips on where to find great artwork. They also recently started a series of interview posts, like this one with novelist Colleen Miloni to glean others' ideas about stylish and affordable ideas for living. I highly recommend! (Tiger from Berkley Illustration and bird from 20x200)

for the bees

Honey in a clay pot that encourages you to plant flowers that help the honey bees. via the dieline. Honey bees are in trouble by the way; helpthehoneybees.com says, "Sadly, honey bees are mysteriously vanishing in staggering numbers - a crisis known as Colony Collapse disorder - which is alarming considering honey bees are responsible for pollinating one-third of our natural food supply."



What could be more awesome than crumping bees?? go to helpthehoneybees.com for more info and check out their lovely site.

rustic

A couple of super fab posts on style files about rustic style led me to these books on Amazon UK by Baileys owners Mark and Sally Bailey on how to get rustic style.

autumn arrivals

Shaz Madani for Sainsbury: campaign to promote the importance and benefits of seasonal food. via creature comforts

toast

I can think of several people who would like the simple wares from TOAST.

power purse

Notcot points out a solar purse that doesn't look like hiking gear - finally!

I know the woodgrain trend is getting pretty old, but I personally can't get enough of it. Madera quilt, pillow, and canvas from inhabit living.

ecologique

Yesterday decor8 posted about this great book, écologique: the style of sustainable design, by Kelly LaPlante. 100% of the proceeds will go to Global Green USA and The Blank Theater Company, and the $10 shipping and handling fee includes eco-friendly packaging and carbon offsets.

shape shifting skyline

Dynamic Tower skyscraper plans are in the works for Dubai, Moscow and New York. Each floor rotates independently and is powered by wind turbines fitted between each floor.

zero pollution

How about a car that runs on air, gets 106 mpg, generates no pollution, and costs $17.8k? It gets 200 miles per tank, and recharges at an air compression station, or plug it in at home and an on-board compresser refills the tank in 4 hours for about $2 of electricity. Too good to be true? Nope. My colleague Marlène gave me a heads up on this zippy looking compressed air vehicle, coming to the US in 2010.

soji lanterns

Last Friday Remodelista pointed out these beautiful solar powered Soji lanterns at Allsop Home and Garden - good for the environment and no wires to deal with!

i am not a paper cup

Porcelain coffee cup with silicone top from A+R.

flea market style

I'm still really impressed by each week's selections and all the different vendors at the Brooklyn "not a bunch of shitty crafts" Flea on Sundays. I found this neat book on amazon that has similarly cool flea finds.

enamelware

We're really into enamel these days. These vintage-looking pans are from Manufactum, a German company with a great philosophy.