Irresistibly bad puns aside, NOTCOT has a great round-up of bell jars, terrariums, and hanging vases. If you are getting Spring fever and aren't lucky enough to be on the cusp of good weather like we are here in Dallas, get a head-start on your garden with a a little indoor ecosystem. More information on how in an old post here.
I really wanted to run out to my local Salvation Army at lunch. There is one in Dallas with a huge storefront full of furniture, paintings, pottery, books, old records, and vintage clothing. Sure, you can go 99 times and find nothing, but on the 100th visit, you'll find something extraordinary.
Slow cooking is now twice as nice with the Hamilton Beach 6-Quart Double Dish Slow Cooker (say that three times fast). This would be great for keeping things warm at a party or for preparing a holiday feast.
An updated, rather minimalist take on your typical dashboard nodder:
A few cool things I ran across this morning:
The OXO Cover Can, which conveniently hides those "recycled" Target bags we're all using in the bathroom. Via Crib Candy.
The Shakadoo site is up and running. What is it? It's a site about everything to do with your home, apartment, condo, domicile, etc. The site is divided into channels to cater to whatever home-related passion you harbor, each with a handy-dandy RSS feed.
Those of you who find sleeping in a few extra hours on Saturday morning to be among life's greatest luxuries will appreciate The Sleeper, a meditative blog covering all things sleep. In recent posts, the Sleeper has pondered the perfect sleep and reported on the joys of an old fashioned feather bed. I had no idea how much there would be to learn and ponder about sleep and all its accoutrements, but I've been enjoying learning.
Home Depot has been touting their home decor items on the radio for a few months now. I really never gave it a second thought, picturing mini blinds and cheap veneered side tables with attached lamps (sorry Home Depot), but I was so wrong. After seeing a 30% off deal for Home Depot furniture on the Bargainist, I clicked the link to find this set of mirrored parsons tables for $391 (left), and this Bardot cocktail table for $294 (right)! I am very, very impressed.
Domino Magazine and Treehugger.com have compiled a great list of 125 companies who are making a name for themselves as eco-pioneers. Links below:furniture
fabric
walls
rugs
renovating
tile
clothing
transportation
traveling
beauty products
bedding and towels
cleaning products
foods
This month's Domino and Ready Made have both gone green, and I don't mean Emerald or Kelly green, I mean eco-friendly. Is this the year that green practices and products will finally go mainstream? I hope so and publications like Business Week seem to think so. I've heard so much buzz about the topic, I just had to post on it, even if it's slightly outside of my normal domain.
The fact is that organic produce costs more to produce. There's a somewhat limited market for organic cotton yarn and milk paint (i.e. no economies of scale = higher cost per unit). Despite gas prices that have been at historical highs, a hybrid car's additional sticker price costs the average car owner more than the additional gas they would have used with a conventional car (click here if you want to see why). Furniture and building products that use recycled or reclaimed materials often cost a good deal more than conventionally produced products (reclaimed wood vs. new-cut wood flooring). The people who buy these products don't buy them because they are competitively priced or easy to find, they buy them because they care.
Green is becoming a hot topic this year because companies like DuPont and G.E. are pushing the U.S. government to implement green regulations. Sure, they're serving their own objectives to some extent, but the end result may be cleaner air and water. And this is one of those few times when a government should intervene in a free-market economy. With subsidies and tax breaks (some of which do exist now) we can encourage the development and production of eco-friendly technology and products that are affordable for everyone.
Ok, so this isn't interior design, but it is magnificent design. Phoebe at Silk Felt Soil has her post on jewelry by Peter Bauhuis labeled as "Ornate Minimalism." What a wonderful description of this very organic feeling piece. This sort of design illustrates how we can combine the current naturalist trend with a minimalist aesthetic.
A bold room divider design from Modern Convenience based on the designs of neighborhood fences.
A Very cool use for old crates and a great way to get some of that clutter off of your closet floor and out of your nightstand. Now I wish I had some old wooden crates, a big garage full of tools, and some free time.
Via Design Milk, the Componibilli Cabinet would make a great bedside table as well as a great storage piece for the bathroom. The piece costs £60 at Graham and Green.
In their "Blogging New York Magazine" post, Apartment Therapy touches on the new trend towards extreme neon colors in clothing, furniture, and home accessories. I hate to keep beating the Mod drum, but all signs are pointing to "yes."
