http://zacharyrossman.com

i've never done one of their assignments, but have been fantasizing about joining in. if you do one, please let me know ~ maybe it'll be just the inspiration i need to finally take part.

{from the "make an encouraging banner" assignment}

{from the "photograph the sun" assignment}

{from the "recreate an object from someone's past" assignment}

{from the "fix something" assignment}

Some of you may already know about this. But here it is again if you don't. You know that crazy, and sort of wonderful house flipping show on Bravo called "Flipping Out"? Well....Ryan Brown, one of the stars of said show....you know the calm one who partners with the very particular OCD-ish flipper designer guy? The one who whips his staff into shape and turns out some of the quickest and most well designed flips in the LA area?......well, I got a little email from them just to let me know he now has a blog with his brother Joshua. I'm assuming that I am not alone here. But thought I would spread the word along. Find out more about their blog, "Brown Design" here. They have some great posts about their work and .....AND you can visit their website here. These are just a coupla photos of their work I particularly liked. So go "checkitout"!

Welcome Ryan and Joshua! I wish you all the best with your new blog. And I look forward to another season of Flipping Out!

Castleberry Hill in Atlanta is in a warehouse district undergoing a Renaissance. Walt Bilinksi and Steve MacNeil are making it happen. Read more here.

And then there is this Dining Room from another Atlanta Loft project known as the "The Stacks at the Fulton Cotton Mill"

When I saw this space, I wanted to have those light fixtures for myself! Read more about this project here.

And it's not just about Interiors....there is also a bit of style and living to make you come back for more:

I think I could be convinced to be a subscriber.

And the best part? You can sign up to get a FREE ISSUE here. I love free stuff.

Congratulations LoftLife on the launch!

Namba Parks is a really amazing piece of architecture, a place where you’ll spend half your time shopping and the other half admiring the design. It stands where Osaka’s baseball stadium used to be until 2003, and consists of a 30-floor skyscraper, Parks Tower, and 120-tenant shopping mall which includes many restaurants and a cinema. The eight floors of terraced gardens, boutique stores, big brands and trendy dining have been an instant hit in shopping-mad Osaka. In addition to providing a highly visible green component in a city where nature is sparse, the sloping park connects to the street, welcoming passers-by to enjoy its groves of trees, clusters of rocks, cliffs, lawn, streams, waterfalls, ponds and outdoor terraces.

Beneath the park, a canyon carves an experiential path through specialty retail, entertainment and dining venues. Namba Parks creates a new natural experience for Osaka that celebrates the interaction of people, culture and recreation. The project was so successful that Namba Parks construction is already underway for an extension - almost doubling the facility and due for completion in the middle of 2007. Finally this project is so amazing, that personally I would include it as the 8th wonder of the world. - Namba Parks on Wikipedia & Namba Parks website + Images at higher resolution - 1, 2

Post from: Interior Design, Home & House Design, Furniture

Clients include women escaping domestic violence, individuals and families who have been homeless, elderly persons on limited incomes, people with mental and physical disabilities, refugee families from all over the world, youth and adults recovering from substance abuse, and the working poor.

I recieved an email the other day bearing some of the best news I've heard in weeks.

One of my favorite culinary TV series, "Two Fat Ladies," is finally coming to DVD!

For anyone who doesn't remember this fantastic British show (which aired back when Giada's decollete was just a glimmer in some TV executive's eye), there's still reason to check it out.

Don't expect healthy twists or 30-minute meals here. Instead, prepare to ride off with Jennifer Paterson and Clarissa Dickson Wright (by motorcycle and sidecar, naturalement) around Britain (and beyond) to prepare seriously hearty meals.

How about joining a hunting party in Scotland for a menu that includes roast grouse and venison with blackberries (episode 5)? Or perhaps you'd enjoy making lobster for a sisterhood of Benedictine nuns in Ireland (episode 14). Soused herrings, Welsh rarebit souffle, onion soup with Stilton, fruit tartlets...the list goes on.

These aren't all recipes that you'd likely rush out and make, but that's not really the point. The settings are verdant and the ladies are undeniably charming, entertaining, and passionate about food.

Even though the show itself is dated, it's novel and refreshing to see them, polar opposites of the squeaky-clean, book-deal-sniffing personae of today's food TV stars, preparing honest food without pretension.

Welsh Rarebit Souffle
Ingredients:
    2 large slices of good-quality white bread
    1/2 pound of high-quality, aged cheddar cheese
    3 egg yolks
    4 egg whites
    1 level teaspoon dry English mustard
    1 vigorous shake of Worcestershire sauce
    1 vigorous shake of Tabasco sauce
    Salt and Pepper

Grate the cheese and place in a bowl. Beat in the egg yolks, a level teaspoon of mustard, a good shake each of Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco sauce, and salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Toast the bread; whip the egg whites until they stand in stiff peaks. Add a spoonful or so of the beaten egg whites into tothe cheese mixture then gently fold the rest of the egg whites into the bowl. Put the toasts into an ovenproof dish and pour the mixture over them. Bake in a preheated oven at 450 degrees for 10 minutes until browned and risen. Serve at once with a salad or spinach on the side.

Recipe reprinted from the Two Fat Ladies DVD box set, Acorn Media, 2008.

These pieces of furniture which aren’t practical shelving space, are called Dust Furniture and are designed by craft artist Vincent Thomas Leman. Vincent’s work has been described as ‘abstract traditional furniture.’ Each piece is essentially a traditional piece of furniture that is stretched, curved, stacked and stepped to fit his design intentions. While wood is the material employed to make his furniture, Vincent considers his actual medium to be ‘traditional furniture.’ The classical root of each piece helps maintain its identity as furniture and keeps the work familiar and approachable despite the unusual shapes. Environmental integrity is also very important to Dust Furniture.

They take care to use biodegradable packing peanuts during the packaging process, to avoid adding to the landfills. They also use waterborne urethane to coat the furniture, which is a gentle, high quality alternative to some very strong chemicals. One of their mottos is “We like to think that we’re changing the world… one piece of fun, American handcrafted furniture at a time.” Finnaly I don’t think that to many people would buy a piece of furniture like this, but at least you saw an interesting piece of furniture today. If you would like to buy a piece of furniture like this you can visit Dustfurniture or Vincent Etsy Shop - Via

Post from: Interior Design, Home & House Design, Furniture

Rachel from Balahu emailed me about her company, Balahu, which promotes the arts in Philadelphia. Since I lived outside of Philly for 28 years, I feel very strongly about the Philly art community (I wish could have gone to the Art Star Craft Bazaar!). These are some beautiful glass pieces from artist Steve Hagan.

http://www.balahu.com

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I studied ceramics in college and then had to put it on hold for 10 years while I was busy working crazy hours, living in different cities, etc. But the desire to return to it never left.

When I moved to L.A. and met the master ceramicist Otto Heino, I realized it was a passion I could no longer put off. Otto was gracious enough to let me work beside him. He learned from the world-famous Bernard Leach and has an incredible story of his own. (Read about Otto and his famous yellow glaze here.) I learned so much from him.

When I wasn't working with Otto, I would race to a local studio and work as many hours as I could each day. I tend to primarily make bowls; I have always been obsessed with their shape. I think that every culture has a beautiful bowl in its history.

I love making the foot of the bowl as much as the body itself (see below).

The large bowl above is by Joan Platt and the smaller one is Japanese.

My husband is quite amused by my collection of antique bowls, bowls by other ceramicists, and bowls I have picked up in my travels. Though the collection has come in handy as a prop stylist. You can always use a great bowl to complete an inspiring picture, whether it's a still-life, an interiors shot, or a picture of food.

I have been influenced by so many different things when it comes to my own ceramics. It may be the colors and shapes I see in nature, wonderful ceramicists that have been at it a long time, old ironstone wash bowls, Japanese ceramics, Scandinavian forms -- the list goes on.

In addition to the artists above, check out more personal heroes:

Taizo Kuroda

Edmund De Waal

Rupert Spira

Gwyn Pigott Hansen

Joan Platt

Matin Gallery sells some of the best ceramics from around the world

Have a voyeuristic itch to scratch? We do — peeking into homes far more luxe than ours is both a pleasure and tease. Happily, we found a new source on line for some mighty swanky kitchens. Over at epicurious.com, they’ve posted a few video tours of some famous kitchens of people we’d love to have dinner with (especially if they were cooking). Our favorite is Isaac Mizhari, who gushes about all of his kitchen accessories, including bowls from Target, a chic (Alessi?) bread box and his espresso machine. Click here to hang with Isaac and see more.