A house with a heavy mid-century vibe to it, where spaces interact with each other instead of delimiting areas. I love the play of modern designer furniture combined with the ultra classics. The black Saarinen and white Panton chairs are a plus.

The minimal use of colors for the canvas makes the accent pieces pop even more.

http://www.damilanostudio.com

I haven’t had a chance to do one of these posts in awhile; I’m behind on my blog reading lately! Here’s a journey through my blog catch up:

I say Congratulations! One of my favorite bloggers, Erin of Elements of Style has a new website for her design company, Element Interiors. Check it out here. Also, I meant to link you over to her post Orange You Glad it’s Fall? awhile back, so I will now - it’s a great collection of orange in decor.

I obsess with all of the step-by-step printmaking eye candy over at Heart Fish.

I ogle surreal pieces available from the Tony Duquette Collection spotted over at The Peak of Chic.

I wonder how swissmiss manages to find so many clever things every day. For example, the mobile bench.

I ponder whether the person who designed this treehouse cafe I spied at Inhabitat was high and chowing down on Keebler cookies when he/she came up with this treehouse.

I say “Hooray; I love these guy!” as I read this post from Home Rejuvenation for the tenth time.

I realize I will NEVER have a garage that looks this neat as I read The Inspired Room.

I am reminded by Style Court that I really need to get a library card.

I get pumped up for Halloween reading this post from katiedid.

Well, I’m off to one of my favorite cities, Charlottesville, VA for the weekend. I’m not sure if I’ll have time for my 20,000th visit to Monticello, but I’ll get my TJ fix on the UVA campus. See you on Monday!

• image from elements of style
• image from heartfish
• image via The Peak of Chic
• image via Swiss Miss
• image via Inhabitat
• image via Style Court

As Senior Designer of Benning Design Associates, I had the huge pleasure of heading up the design of a new Sacramento restaurant, Cosmo Cafe. (I mentioned it a little bit ago here.) There are some new photos on the Cosmo Cafe website that may just tempt you to come take a look for yourself. Located in the multi-use Cosmopolitan building, the Cosmo Cafe shares real estate with the Cosmopolitan Cabaret, and the newest Sacramento nightclub, Social.

Come on in. Here's a bit of a virtual tour:

Front Lounge Area

This is a great place to enjoy a cocktail and chat with friends while waiting for your table, or when catching a show at the Cabaret.

Lounge and Bar

Another view of the Lounge showing the graphic floor design

Opening Night Party. The enlarged back lighted photo in the background shows the original building in it's first incarnation as the Woolworth Building.

Main Bar and Restaurant

I had the signature Cosmo on opening night, natch. And I tried a "Faux-Hito" the other night which was so perfectly refreshing, everyone at the table ended up getting one.

Restaurant

I promise you, the food is delicious. There are small and large plates to suit every palate. Like the roasted beet salad, or the polenta fritters I had the other night. Fabulous! Check out the menu here.

Located in Sacramento a block from the State Capital, it seemed fitting to "capitalize" on the political climate with a few caricatures. You may recognize a few!

Some photographs from the Sacramento Archives of historic points of interest near the Cosmopolitan Building were featured in special art niches.

I updated haus maus, weeee!

Benji Lanyado, the darling columnist of The Guardian's fab Travel Blog  has tagged me. My task is to reveal a hidden secret in my very favorite city.........Marrakech. (This blog isn't called My Machu Picchu, after all.)

Now of course Marrakech conjures up images of fortune tellers and snake charmers, but sometimes a bit more subtle Moroccan-ness is called for.....And the way to this girl's heart (besides jewels of course) is........ahem, pottery. (I believe the British call it, crockery.   I swear, they really do speak an entirely different language.)

Now if you are pooh-poohing the thought....that is simply  because you haven't visited Tatchibana.  It's located in Marrakech's very own Kasbah.  A tiny little boutique tucked into a most delicious little restaurant.   (Do come for dinner, so you can conveniently test drive the dishes before purchase.)

All Moroccan workmanship with sleek Asian flair, in the most charming colors and patterns.  Sold only here.........Let me just say, I am saving my pennies (err...pence)......

Tatchibana

38 Bab Ksiba,  Kasbah, Marrakech

Tel : +212 24 38 71 71

And now for more fun, I am tagging fave Manhattan dweller (and former Marrakech denizen) Elizabeth so we can find out her little New York secret, too.  But if you have a city secret that you would like to share, do play along and leave a comment.....

There is something about heading over to the Farmer's Market on a early Sunday morning that lifts up my spirits. It starts off quietly, with my Trader Joe's tote bag in hand heading out the door. I feel the dew still settling and the birds waking. The crisp air touches my face as I get to my car for the five minute drive. I crack the windows and turn on the CD player to Paul Nutini's "Autumn Leaves". Perhaps a but corny, but then again, I am a sentimentalist. I pick up my friend Leanne, and we talk about our daughters and how they are fairing with this thing called "adolescence". Approaching the market, we find the closest spot we can. And then we are there: The bustle of people, (many we know and say an early morning "hello"), the beautiful colors everywhere, and the smells of lavender, basil and onions.

We each have our favorite vendors that we visit. For me it is the ladies who sell the avocados and strawberries. Leanne is looking for blueberries and squash...harder to find now that Fall is here. But the tomatoes....the beautiful heirloom tomatoes, neither of us can resist.

And the mushrooms are plentiful and perfect.

The pears in Fall are one of my passions. We will bake them in an apple pie, or put them in a salad with roasted walnuts and Gorgonzola. The vendor here gives away whole pears to sample. Smart vendor, I bought quite a few: Bartletts, and one I have not tried called the Seckel pear.

Then there were pumpkins...beautiful pumpkins of all sizes and colors. Two very large and perfect pumpkins came home with me to rest on the front porch. And a few of the little one for my table.

The scent of fresh bread wafts deliciously through the air. Coffee and croissants are breakfast for many here.

Gourds are coming in season, and a large Butternut Squash makes it into my bag.

Coming home and unloading all of my bags is always heartwarming. The girls and I decide what we will make for dinner.

Dinner later that night is Potato Leek Soup and a salad of fresh baby greens with avocado, oranges and roasted pine nuts. A day well spent.

For more information about the Sacramento Farmer's Market click here. It is the largest Farmer's Market in the region. As one of the vendors aptly put it, "it is the Grand Daddy of Farmer's Markets". Perhaps, most importantly, it is locally grown....and that is a good thing.

Recipe for Potato Leek Soup

from The Ultimate Soup Bible

by Anne Sheasby

Ingredients:

2 ounces, 1/4 cup butter

2 leeks, washed and thoroughly chopped

1 small onion peeled and finely chopped

12 ounces potatoes, peeled and chopped

3 3/4 cups chicken or vegetable stock

1) Heat 10 oz. (2 tablespoons) butter in large pan over medium heat. Add the leeks and onion, and cook gently for about 7 minutes until softened

2) Add potatoes to the pan and cook for about 2-3 minutes, then add the stock and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 30-35 minutes until potatoes are tender.

3) Season to taste and remove from heat. Chop and stir in the remaining butter.

4) (I add this step) Puree mixture in blender or food processor until smooth, then serve!

From Sarah:

Leave it to Martha Stewart to come up with a tasteful approach to DIY garage organization.

Below: Install bamboo rods in closet and use S hooks and spring clips to hang items.

Below: Bucket Hose Storage: Attach a galvanized bucket to a wall and use as a garden-hose tamer.

Below: Keep tools in their rightful place with the Tool Wall: trace the outline of the appropriate implement right on the wall to keep chaos at bay.