Hi everyone,
Just a quick update on upcoming move. So much to do and so little time. Our move in date is June 2, and I have been pretty overwhelmed with the years of accumulation that have to be boxed and sorted and of course we will be having the expected garage sale. I have also been doing some furniture shopping and lots of browsing looking for inspiration like the gorgeous lanterns I found on Gumps today. Will try to check in with some of my finds as we count down to the big move. It's going to be sporadic here at Kstyle until we settle in so thank you in advance for your patience. k

Coink piggy bank via Modern Nursery.

The economic stimulus checks have started to arrive, putting anywhere from $600-1200 in your bank account. Politics aside, what are you planning to do with the cash? You could get an Eames rocker, buy yourself some art, or do some eBay shopping. Or maybe you’d prefer to put the money aside in case the economy takes an even more serious downturn. So what are your plans for the extra cash? (Thanks to reader patty bolgiano for suggesting this question!)

Our bees are late. They were supposed to arrive last Saturday, but at the last minute we got a call saying they wouldn’t be available until this Saturday… something about the weather still being a touch too cold for them. We used our extra weekend to get our garden ready for our a buzzing friends. When we bought the place, the front garden was a bit of an overgrown mess. A wild vine was consuming the fireplace, and the little patch of dirt was an uneven cluster of flowers and weeds. Chad’s been clearing out the clutter, and this Saturday it was finally ready for some planting. We heard that bees really respond to purple flowers, so we put in some May Night Salvia, Emerald Blue Moss Phlox and my favorite, Provence Lavender. This will keep things pretty and tasty for a month or so. But what we need to do next is plant some autumn blooming flowers, so the bees will be kept busy for months and months. Something yellow, perhaps. Any suggestions? — Angela M.

I used to love shopping for stationery… But I swear the cash registers at Target and Trader Joe’s are the only places I check out in person anymore, mostly due to my 3-foot shopping companion, whose idea of fun is removing absolutely every product from the shelves. Trust me, this type of behavior is not conducive to picking out a belated birthday card. Then a few months ago, my favorite stationery designer Cheree Berry told me about Redstamp.com, an online boutique that truly mimics the go-to neighborhood stationery shop?where the owners source all the best current designers (Cheree, of course, plus Thomas Paul, Snow & Graham, Egg Press, Russell + Hazel, Night Owl Paper Goods and dozens more), and will actually talk to you in person if you have pressing questions (no 1-800 number here).

As busy moms and business women, the owners Erin and Renee understand that service is as important as style, and that’s where Redstamp soars in my book. You just can’t top their “send for you” service, where an anonymous someone with impeccable penmanship will hand-write, hand-address, and mail your cards for you. Definitely worth an extra $5 if that belated birthday card is at risk of hitting way-beyond-belated status. ? Megan K.

I confess I buy toys made for adults — and no, not what you’re thinking! A collection of Kidrobot Gorillaz and Smorkin’ Labbits have a place in our china cabinet. So I asked Kristen Rask of Schmancy to talk to us about the explosion in collectible toys for adults. Here’s what she had to say. –Mary T.

“I would say since opening Schmancy that the ‘gateway’ toy is Dunny by Kidrobot,” says Rask. “Those who know nothing of the urban vinyl toy movement still are attracted to them. Those are always, without fail, a big seller.” Can’t get enough toys? There’s more.

“Other toys that I really like and have been popular in the last few months here at Schmancy are the Treeson toys, Heidi Kenney Yummy Breakfast key chains, and Toki Doki toys such as the Cactus pups and Moofia. I also specialize in plush toys mainly handmade by various artists around the globe. The popularity of those vary a lot depending on what is in the store.

“Some folks collect things because they are color coordinating a collection, some folks don’t need to get whole series, and some folks spend massive amounts of money to complete a set,” Rask says. “Some get really into certain artists such as Frank Kozik or Joe Ledbetter. Others buy toys simply for the collectible aspect of it all. There really is no rhythm or reason to selling toys.”

See and shop more of what’s new at Schmancy. (A note that Rask is in the process of moving the store to a new site. Get updates on that at her blog.)

We recently visited online art store Petaline and were pleased by their selection of affordable art. Most work hovers in the $100 range (and there are plenty of pieces for far less). Best of all, however, is the quality — these aren’t mass-produced mall-store posters but beautiful and engaging original paintings and limited-edition prints. We especially like the rogues’ gallery of giclee prints from Chris Crites — last-century mugshots that he originally painted on paper sacks. Elizabeth Soule’s “Little Zoo” series of photographs are colorful and fun, while paintings by Irene Wood are soothing and serene. See all of Petaline’s affordable art offerings here.

Update: Check out Leah’s expanded post on more of Chris Crites’ work.

As much as I love the look of wallpaper, I haven’t been able to make the leap from admiring wallpapered rooms in Domino to actually papering a room in my own house. There’s something so adult, so permanent, and, yes, so expensive about the whole process that I haven’t been able to bite the bullet quite yet. Still, if I were to paper, I’d want to do it with a bang — I mean, why go to all that trouble if you’re not going to make a statement? Isn’t drama the whole point of wallpaper? I have a fantasy of papering a dining room with something wacky and fun like this Woodson & Rummerfield green birdcage wallpaper, which is made with recycled paper and vegetable dyes ($55 at Green With Glamour). What do you guys think — is wallpapering worth the trouble and expense? –Meg D.

Read more of Meg’s tips for stylish, green living at her blog, Style Saves the World.

Bright ideas we gathered from your comments.

1) Microfiber is a good choice for people with cats. Pencils let us know that while her Sleepytime Rocker is a big hit with the cat, cleaning it isn’t a big issue: “Can?t wait to rock a baby in it, but so far the cat really is enjoying it — and her abundant Maine Coon fur doesn?t stick to the microfiber upholstery.” See where else we clicked last week.

2) You can find toothbrushes that not only are colorful and recycled, they look like they’ll fit in most holders! Inez weighed in on the toothbrush storage post with a link to these toothbrushes by Alan Stuart. Too cool.

3) We’re not the only ones who can’t leave Target with just one thing. Okay — we pretty much knew that already, but we did recognize ourselves in Becky’s comment: “I?m off to Target with the intention of spending $10, but I know I won?t leave until my cart is full. I?ll wind up with an array of unrelated items, like milk, a Jovavitch-Hawk skirt that makes me look really fat, a ‘fiendish’ platinum soduku book, some slutty looking shoes I?ll never end up wearing, some men?s pajama pants, a funny garden gnome, cat litter, a Victoria Hagan mirror, a Converse shirt I am way too old to get away with, a DVD, toilet paper, and a pink garden hose!” Thank you, readers, for always making us laugh. And check out that $10 hot pink garden hose here.

4) There are a lot of earth-friendly cat litters out there. (That sometimes dogs love a little too much, too). Susan Y says, “I used World?s Best, Swheat Scoop, Feline Pine, and right now I?m testing the litter called ‘Space’ which they sell at Trader Joe?s. World?s Best and Swheat Scoop were good, but I have a dog that LOVED to eat the litter. I?m still unsure about Space because they are made of full silica pellets, so they don?t have dust, but I?m not sure how biodegradable they are. Anyone have info?” See the Feline Fresh post here.

5) Some husbands have really interesting hobbies. Quite a few readers were excited by Angela’s family foray into beekeeping, and some of you have wanted to try it out yourselves. But only mod*mom had this to say: “I would freak out with all those bees. My husband is a falconer + it took a long time for me to like having a bird on my glove. I’m not as relaxed as he is.” Click to learn more about Angela and Chad’s new beekeeping venture.

Here are some fabulous prints that caught my attention today over at Thumbtack Press, who happens to have a very strong collection of prints online featuring the work of some of my favorite artists. I'm hoping that you'll enjoy them along with me. :)

I adore Bride Diving by Penelope Dullaghan and Gossip by Chris Silas Neal. I always seem to go for images of girls jumping, not because I secretly have thoughts of suicide or anything (he he), more because I am constantly jumping into new things and love the thrill of just getting involved in something I'm passionate about. Also shown above is Bluebell by Lilly Piri and Presagio di Primavera by Gianluca Folì. Drool.

Long Beach Shoreline by Shiho Nakaza, I Miss You Already by Jared Drew Moody, Angel by Irana Douer, and This Flooded World by Sarajo Frieden. Isn't Irana amazing?

The Great Flood Series (set of 3) by Oksana Badrak, Spam One-Liners: Happy Life by Linzie Hunter (fun!), HiFi by Chris Silas Neal, and India Dawn by Oksana Badrak.

And finally, Don't You Leave Me Here by Matthew Woodson. Isn't this a melancholy, tender, emotionally charged glimpse into the life of the modern relationship? We all have fears of being abandoned at times and I think artist Matthew Woodson did such a great job capturing this emotion here.

(images from thumbtack press.)

Back in February we discussed using dress forms in the home for both practical purposes (sewing of course) and for displaying favorite items as more of a decorative element. I was pleasantly surprised when an email arrived today from decor8 reader Cathe Holden of Home Grown Logos who wanted to share her newly created dress-form-as-decor with us. Yay! DIY done right!


You can view her entire DIY project from start to finish right here, the finished product is shown above. Lovely job, Cathe!

(images from cathe holden)

It's funny how your own work can inspire you, isn't it? But then again, I constantly refer to decor8 archives for ideas and inspiration. Here is a little garden-themed post for your enjoyment today, inspired by this. If you blog, maybe you'd like to pull together a garden post of your own and share it with us? You can link to it by clicking on Links To This Post below (near comments) and then click on Create A Link.

Flower garden seed, some pretty doormats from Anthropologie along with a pretty pot, and a great book and blog that I go to when I'm in need of some gardening help called You Grow Girl.

The Sun Was Blinding by Wren and Chickadee, A Little Bird Told Me pendant by Little Put Books, Summer Day tea towel from Skinny LaMinx, Swan Lake by Pepperminte, and Lola French Market Summer sac from Dottie Angel. All of these things are totally putting me in the mood to plant my flower bed and hit a flea market!

Felt ipod cover from Suezy Bees, Field Guide print by Dolan Geiman, Creation by Betsy Walton, and Quail print from Stephaine DosReis.

(images linked to their source above)

Hable Construction has teamed up with Bella-Dura to create a line of vibrant, fashionable, and eco-savvy fabrics suitable for in-doors and out-. Bella-Dura is a by-product of post-industrial waste comprised of synthetic fibers with amazing performance qualities that require no additional chemical treatments. Starring qualities of the fabrics include anti-microbial properties, stain-resistance, and provides 1,500+ hours of lightfastness. Bella-Dura fabrics are also recyclable.


This line is available to the TRADE ONLY and several NEW styles are in the mix. Such pretty, pretty patterns!

I'm taking the next few days off because I'm still quite ill but I will meet you here again in a few days once I'm back to my 100% Holly self again and then it's full steam ahead! :)


I've been battling the flu for over 10 days now and the doctor told me that I won't kick it until I stop working and just sleep... So that's what I plan to do. But I should feel better soon and when I do, I'll return with lots of lovely product submissions to share along with another office redux so I'll meet you back here in a few days. Thank you so much for understanding!

(image by holly becker, a woodpecker outside of my bedroom window taken last week.)

Miniature Chairs Set

Dimitra & Bill of Up To You in Toronto sent word of these cute - and tiny - reproductions that they are carrying. There ar four different designer sets (9 chairs in each set,). Designers represented include: Eames, Mackintosh, Mies van der Rohe, Prouve, etc. Each set of nine chairs is $95 and there are a total of 36 chairs available at $12 each.

These are great alternatives to the Vitra chair minis, which I saw at Conrans in Paris a couple of months ago. (I've been waiting for a chance to use these images!)



What is it about tiny things? So cute!

The folks at NBC Uni and Bravo have finally released a little more information on the upcoming season 2 of Top Design. In January, they announced that the show had new producers - Magical Elves - who produce Project Runway and Top Chef. That was a good sign. Season 1 had many, many problems.

One of the first changes they've apparently made is that the show will have a host - model and design enthusiast India Hicks. The rest of the S1 cast will return - Todd Oldham as design mentor, Kelly Wearstler and Margaret Russell as judges and Jonathan Adler as the head just. I'm with Tom & Lorenzo - hopefully JA will have dropped his smarmy "See you later, decorator" line when contestants are sent home.

The show is scheduled to air between July and October 2008.

Kareem Rizk's beautiful, open-edition giclee bird prints have been so popular that Matt over at BlueFlip Art just added two more: Bird No. 3, left, and Bird No. 6, right.

The 9-by-11-inch archival prints are $25 each, or you can get the whole set of six for $125 (a $25 savings) when you enter coupon code "KAREEMSIX" at checkout.

As always, BlueFlip will donate 10 percent of all sales to a charity of the artist's choosing -- in this case, Australia's Starlight Children's Foundation.

Check out the new prints right here.

I don't know what the weather's been like in your neck of the woods, but here in Northern California it was blistering hot this weekend. (Is it global warming? Is the Bay Area the new Palm Springs? I'm busy plotting our move to Vancouver through the sweat over here ... )

Anyway, all this unseasonal heat has me itching to move mealtimes outside, where we can take shelter under the shade of our towering birch tree while praying for a cooling breeze. And what better way to dress the patio table than with these brand-new oilcloths (such as Family Tree, above) from Denmark's Ferm Living, the maker of some of the coolest modern wallpapers around?

Even if it's still chilly in your area or you don't have an outdoor dining space, these are a fun way to dress up your kitchen or dining table -- and are particularly great if you have spill-prone kids.

Take a look:

Branch

Walldots

Bindweed

Berry

Ferm's oilcloth is about $28 per linear meter, which is roughly 39 inches; the oilcloth comes in 55-inch widths, so if you want a tablecloth that's about four and a half feet wide by six and a half feet long, order two meters. It's available through the Scandinavian Design Center -- which also carries beautiful oilcloths from Marimekko, Pappelina, and Susanne Schjerning.

Check them out right here.

it’s been a busy week here at d*s and today ac and i are heading off to savannah for a much needed break and a little wedding-location scouting. i’ll be blogging from savannah on monday and tuesday so stay tuned for some photos of the places we’re checking out while down in georgia. in the meantime, i’ll be posting a link to the good morning america segment i filmed as soon as it’s up, along with the date and time it will air on tv! i better run and finish packing so i’ll see you all on monday from sunny savannah. until then, here’s a summary of this week’s highlights. [image above: graham and brown wallpaper: $60 per roll at design public]

• thank you to TIME magazine for including d*s in their “the design 100″ list for design!
• d*s under $100 roundups at domino: decorating essentials and eco-friendly home products
• this weekend: the first ever brooklyn flea and the d*s collective
• 2008 d*s reader survey and alena hennessy print prizes!
• new york magazine shop-a-matic: design*sponge 100-product roundup
• new sneak peek: skinny laminx
• new before and afters: chair love (6 chair makeovers), natalie’s lamp, joanna and marc-peter’s amsterdam home
• new diy projects: subscription card art, bridget’s wood veneer lamp, kate’s leaning shelf
• new city guide: dublin design guide
• new in the kitchen with: mod green pod beet risotto
• new d*s guest blog: elka from popsugar
• interior inspiration: wonderful white
• interior inspiration: alma and nancy’s joshua tree home
• new: porcelain paper plates by virginia sin
• new: orla kiely stationery
• new: cave dwellers print by rachell sumpter
• new: textiles from anna drastik
• new: karen karlstrom pillows
• packaging by palatal collective
• wedding invites: white lettering on dark brown
• eco-friendly: bedding from plover organic

this sunday, april 6th is the first day of the 2008 brooklyn fleamarket! i’m so thrilled to be a part of this fantastic community project, organized by the gang at brownstoner. every sunday from now till later this fall, a wonderful range of vendors will set up shop in ft. greene from 10am-5pm, rain or shine. in addition to a great collection of vintage sellers, clothing, food and accessories, i’ll be curating a section of the flea called the design*sponge collective. if you’re a reader of the site you’ll probably recognize the names of our vendors (artists like lena corwin (image above), sian keegan, wayne pate and many more) but it will be even more fun to recognize them in person! so if you’re in the nyc area this weekend please stop on by and say hi to these incredible artists. i’ll be out of town for this weekend but i’ll be back, manning the section, every weekend (or as many as humanly possible) for the rest of the summer. hope to see you there! a sampling of the incredible artists and products in the d*s collective are below. want to attend? click here for details.

[image above: bags and pillow by lena corwin]

[image above: bracelet by mollie dash]

[image above: fabric radishes by sian keegan]

[image above: there will be fabrics cut and sold by the yard from repro depot in the d*s collective]

[image above: reupholstered and refinished chairs from chairloom]

[image above: new coasters from sesame letterpress]

[image above: prints and tshirts from wayne pate at good shape design]

[image above: stationery from moontree letterpress]

[image above: tshirt from jezebel design (stationery will be available, too)]

[image above: photographs by john murphy]

[image above: cards and prints from foxy and winston]

today i’m running around like a crazy person trying to meet some print deadlines, finish a few website projects and get everything ready for our trip to savannah this weekend. what i could really use right now is a 20 minute break in one of these chairs with a big cup of tea. sadly, there will be no tea for me this morning. but if you have time to take a break, i highly suggest checking out these gorgeous cameo campaign chairs from anthropologie. they look like a lovely place to take a quick time out.

today’s second before and after is a great example of what a little paint and fabric can do. natalie hansen of steamed artichoke studio sent in this great lamp makeover project that cost her only $12! she found the lamp base and lampshade at a thrift store in san francisco and then spray-painted the base and wire with high-gloss white paint and covered the lampshade with amy butler fabric and ribbon from peapod fabrics. all it was required was paint, a hot glue gun, spray mount and a little elbow grease. thanks to natalie for sharing!

[have a before and after furniture or home makeover you’d like to share? just shoot me an email with your photos right here.]

Later this week I'll be back with a sneak peek at Meg Nolan's gorgeous new book, Italian Hideaways: Discovering Enchanting Rooms and Private Villas. Apart from the stylish boutique getaway J K Capri, another chic spot Nolan includes is the Ferragamo family's Florence property, Hotel Lungarno. Above, groupings of art hung gallery style on the hotel's walls feature fashion sketches that reference the owners.

I leave you with the grand salon of globe-trotting, art-collecting, adventure-seeking Mrs. Tependris. Created by artist Konstantin Kakanias, she's the stylish illustrated character who searches for enlightenment.


This opulent room represents her past. Notice the walls painted -- or papered -- with a chinoiserie motif? The animal prints and the masses of Asian vases? Most of all I love how Kakanias has interpreted the numerous French chairs as almost abstract little blips of color.

All images above from Mrs. Tependris: The Contemporary Years: The Adventures of An Art Collector.

Sister Parish loved handicrafts -- needlework, basketry, quilts, hand-printed textiles. Maybe this was because she enjoyed working with her own hands, doing decoupage and other crafts. Or perhaps she had seen her share of grand formal homes and longed to warm them up with homespun touches.


Working intuitively, and in collaboration with partner Albert Hadley, she often upholstered exquisite 18th century French furniture with "primitive" hand-waxed cotton batiks by Alan Campbell. The fresh and inviting bedroom of Brooke Astor, shown above, is one example.


Colorful patchwork quilts appealed to Sister too. She used them conventionally but also commissioned the Freedom Quilting Bee in Alabama to create a patchwork fabric that, according to her protege Bunny Williams, was used in a chic Georgetown dining room. In fact, Parish-Hadley became known for upholstering wing chairs and sofas with quilts.


During her famous refurbishing of the White House, Jackie Kennedy selected Morgantown glassware produced in West Virginia. A political gesture? Probably. But JBK seems to have had a genuine fondness for American crafts. The way she and Sister Parish mixed the ultra-refined with the rustic greatly influenced residential interior decorating in the U.S. for decades.


I couldn't help noticing that both Natalie "Alabama" Chanin and craft artist Nathalie Lete received coverage in the newest Vogue Living. Are arbiters of high style embracing craft again as they did in the 1980s when simple pine furniture was mixed with lavish florals?

Of course, in their own unique ways Jonathan Adler and Lulu de Kwiatkowski have been doing a 21st century mix of sleek with rustic. But it will be interesting to see if more contemporary designers -- those associated with modern glamour -- inject homespun elements into their interiors.


Above, Alan Campbell fabric currently available through Quadrille.

Reminder: Tradition/Innovation: American Masterpieces of Southern Craft and Traditional Art remains on view through May 18.

Photo of Sister Parish shown top is from Margaret Russell's 2001 book, Designing Women: Interiors By Leading Style-Makers; The Astor bedroom is from Albert Hadley: The Story of America's Preeminent Interior Designer; and Sister Parish's Maine bedroom is from Designers on Designers.

This is a good week for Atlanta-based designer Mallory Mathison. Apart from being named one of the domino 10, her traditional-meets-chic Peachtree Road residence is expected to be featured in the AJC's Sunday home and garden section. I think the coverage will inspire anyone who dwells in a small space.


Mathison's style epitomizes that youthful Southern look I've been talking about this month. In her bedroom she liberally used an oh-so-trad Scalamandre linen floral, "Bantry House" in Aqua (if you've seen the latest Vogue Living you know this also very "now") but balanced the feminine print with rich faux lacquered espresso walls inspired by her heroes Billy Baldwin and Miles Redd.


Baldwin was legendary for using deep dark walls in tiny spaces. And this Redd-designed room above, published in Southern Accents, specifically influenced Mathison.

She says, "The bedroom was actually an experiment. I have always loved lacquer, loved the way Billy Baldwin used lacquer on walls, furniture, lamps, lampshades -- anything! I wanted to try it out in my teeny little condo and so I decided to do it in the bedroom, because it was the space with the most natural light and I could off-set the deep espresso-brown with light linens and porcelains."


"I used Farrow and Ball's "Mahogany" paint in full oil gloss to achieve a sort of "faux lacquer" effect -- of course not the same [as the real thing] but it worked and was a fraction of what it would cost to have the walls professionally lacquered."

By the way, her ceiling is a soft aqua. So all of her painted surfaces reflect light.


Mathison does doubt she would ever do such dark walls for her clients. She adds, "More likely in an entry, dining room or library -- very dramatic and rich!"

On blanc de chine (a French term usually reserved for all-white Chinese porcelain) she says she is especially obsessed with white porcelain Asian figures. "I pick them up wherever I can, estate sales, antique shops, etc. I have also started collecting lamps, vases -- anything in white. They are just so pretty and create amazing contrast against dark surfaces -- delightful!"

Be sure to look for editor Katie Leslie's piece this weekend in the AJC!


Related reading: Blanc De Chine: Divine Images in Porcelain

Alright. Since Lisa's told me that she's "tired of looking at the computer wires" on the previous post (and really, so am I)--I've finally put together a new post. Things have been super busy lately and because of all the work I've been producing over the past month and half, it's given me some carpal tunnel issues. Great. So I've had to limit my computer work, like blog posting.

But anyway, I got this book called Pattern Magic Vol. 2 a few months ago. While I don't plan on making any of these pieces (I don't know how to sew and the wearability of some of the pieces are totally questionable--like the bottom image), I was intrigued by the sculptural and architectural forms of the clothes. Really beautiful pieces.

I posted about Anna Whitford back in January. I decided to visit her website to see of any update or addition on her products. What a delight to find these gorgeous vintage inspired Floral Clip Purses. Aren't they beautiful and classic?

: : This is a new serie of patterns at IKEA, called .fialena. I adore the name, it's what my parents would always call my sister. she was .fialena., I was .pyret. and my brother .skrotten. Maybe not the most flattering name for my brother, but it was very cute when he was young.

Anywho, these patterns are very much in line with the current scandinavian folklore pattern trend that's happening. making me think my own patterns are very current and aligned with this trend?? IKEA why won't you call?


I found this while I was browsing the .style files. blog.

This month?s Domino's issue is for me among their best. It's about great eco-conscious living ideas from start to finish, offering a vast source of incredible products and design inspiration. My favorite is this classic Kitchen with cabinetry crafted from eucalyptus, which grows more quickly than most hardwood. What an awesome idea. Love it.

From Cody Hudson

From You Work for Them

From Tamara Shopsin

: : happy v day : : more kurbits inspiration on my mind. a series of cards called .boda., designed by no one but, .hanna werning. for company lagom. .lagom. is the Swedish word for 'just right', not too much, not too little of anything. I believe it is the only language with a word describing that, and it says a lot about the Swedes themselves. via bowie at .print&pattern.

Master merchandiser, shop owner extraordinaire, new mom and my dear friend and former neighbor Suzannah Fischer (or is it Fisher now? She actually married a guy with the same last name, minus the “c”) has started a blog for her store, O’Suzannah Goods, called o’suz news. It’s a great blog for perusing the coolest gifties and accessories - Suz has an enviable eye for finding the freshest products. I owe most of my grad school credit card debt to Suzannah.

The Cape Cod Modern House Trust as seen on Modern House Notes. I spent hours this week catching up on Tom and Gina’s blog, after seeing a story in The NYTimes about the Alice Ball House I was sure was written by Tom (we linked over to this post back in January). Turns out it was written by someone who clearly had appreciated his research on the subject. Anyway, I recommend catching up with all of Tom and Gina’s posts, as the buildings they find are phenomenal, but in particular I want to help spread the word about The Cape Cod Modern House Trust. Here is a little more information from their website:

In the late 1930s, on the isolated ‘back shore’ of Wellfleet, a group of self-taught, architecture enthusiasts began building experimental structures based on the early Modern buildings they had seen in Europe. Through mutual friends they invited some of the founders of European Modernism to buy land, build summer homes and settle. Like their local hosts, the recently emigrated Europeans admired the traditional Cape Cod ‘salt boxes’. These ancient houses were simple, functional, owner-built and designed for long winters. The Modernist summer houses were inversions of these, oriented to capture views and breezes, perching lightly on the land. In the three decades that followed, these architects built homes for themselves, their friends and the community of internationally influential artists, writers, and thinkers that took root nearby. Though humble in budget, materials and environmental impact, the Outer Cape’s Modern houses manage to be manifestos of their designers’ philosophy and way of living, close to nature, immersed in art and seeking community. The work of these architects and their clients spread around the world. These houses are the physical remnants of this unique convergence.

The Trust is trying to raise money to save and maintain some of these modern treasures…

… and in conjunction with the Truro Castle Hill Center for the Arts, has organized a Modern House Tour on August 24. I’m going to try to attend. Truro is probably the most beautiful spot on the Cape. The picture above is from the Truro Castle Hill Center for the Arts Home Page. As a chair-obsessed freak, I had to share it! The chairs themselves honor this group of artists.

The Tunnel House, as seen on Home Rejuvenation. Check out the post where they found it over at Designverb - the pictures are pretty mind-blowing!

Get your office looking sharp by checking out “Office Eye Candy” from Emma’s Design Blog.

•Jack Phillip’s Bug House photo courtesy of Florence Phillips via modern house notes

• Castle Hill chairs from CastleHill.org

•Tunnel House pictures from flickr member Brother O’Hara via Designverb via Home Rejuvenation.

• Office picture via