The Great Bookcase Experiment

This past fall, my friend Eric arranged his books in order of color. At first it seemed a little OCD, but his bookcase actually looked really good and aesthetically pleasing. (It's also an interesting approach to treat the whole bookcase as an object.) And now suddenly everyone seems to be doing it (including the people in this amazing flickr set).

So I decided to give it a try. I put them in correct rainbow order...and then got that insanely annoying kids' song stuck in my head about how to sing a rainbow.

Anyway, my bookcase looks so much better now! Maybe OCD isn't so bad after all.

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Brighten Up

For bene magazine, we've been working on an article about Italian home design, known for its bold use of color. So recently cute bright things have been catching my eye. Here are some splashes of color to brighten your day...

Coffee pot (via Hoping for Happy Accidents)

Mini radio (via Spray Glue)

Egg bird house (via Oh Joy)

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We Belong Together

Visiting Lucy and Paul in New Haven is like being a little kid. They cook yummy things, bring you blankets, and tell you to "be good" when they leave the house. Before bed, Paul gives you a glass of water, and Lucy wakes you up in the morning by singing. I am secretly so sad that they are moving.

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Chairs: All Grown Up

For the past four years, I've had this blah office chair in my bedroom. Sometimes I'd forget about it, but sometimes it would catch my eye and make me cringe. This weekend I decided I'd had enough. I looked on craigslist and, lo and behold, a guy in the Upper East Side was selling vintage Eames chairs! I bit the bullet and bought one. It's an Eames DCM molded dining chair with a store label dating it to the 1950's production. I am so excited about it!

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Portraits

A couple weeks ago, my portrait was taken in Williamsburg for bene's editor's letter page. It was fun and got me thinking. Taking a portrait seems like a pretty simple assignment -- but there's so much you can do and such a wide range of styles.

A good portrait will capture the subject intimately and authentically; on top of that, it's amazing when the photographic style also helps communicate who the subject is. The New York Times Magazine's recent set of actors' portraits did just this.

Gael Garcia Bernal by Gueorgui Pinkhassov is above. The colors and textures are amazingly vivid. You can almost feel the fabric of the sofa and jacket.

Penelope Cruz by Andres Serrano is below. I love how you can see the pores and bumps on her face. Usually celebrity photos are so retouched they seem plastic, but here, she looks authentic, like she did in Volver.


And here is Cate Blanchett. A different style but very beautiful. The light, almost transluscent colors are gorgeous and communicate so well how pale and delicate she is.


Aside from the New York Times shots, New-York based photographer Tina Tyrell has a fresh and striking avant garde style. I love how her subjects are styled casually in kitchens.

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Affordable Art #7: Coffeetable Books

It occurred to me last fall that a great (and sneaky) way to buy affordable art is to buy a coffeetable book by your favorite artist, then just cut out a page and frame it. I did this with John Currin and Marcel Dzama. Other cool books are by Stefan Ruiz, Mitch Epstein, Stephen Shore and Joel Sternfeld. There are a bunch out there -- browse through the Strand, or check out art publishers' sites, like D.A.P. and Phaidon. Enjoy...

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Happy Birthday, Mr. Bean

It's Bean's birthday today. We love Bean. He is intelligent, argumentative (in a good way), an amazing listener and very very funny; he doesn't mind walking places, knows lots of trivia, likes graphic novels and is generally great company and a fabulous friend. Happy birthday, Bean! May we continue to be friends for our next 28 years.

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Here, little kitty

When you have a cat, it's hard not to start acting a little feline. For example, stretching luxuriously, taking cat naps and craving back rubs. Mmmm. Purrrr.

(Photo by Roger Ballen, via Lux Lotus)

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Mmmmm...oh wait. Argggg....

This hammock made me smile. How much would you love to lie in this crazy thing and watch 30 Rock? But then I realized it was made with real coyote fur, which is such a bummer. They should make a faux one!
(via Not Cot)

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Affordable Art #6: Illustrators

Don't you love illustration? There's something so intimate about it, maybe because you can so clearly feel the hand of the artist. The creative process seems shorter so there is more of a direct line between you and the artist (versus photography or painting which feel more removed). You can buy illustrations the same way that you buy photographs. (See previous posts.)

A few favorite illustrators:
Seb Jarnot
Jess Fogel
Silja Goetz
Hope Gangloff (did the illustration above)
Tim Tomkinson (illustrates for bene!)
James Noel Smith (illustrates for bene!)
Bob London
Craig Atkinson (did the illustration below)
Ellen Van Engelen
Eduardo Recife

Another awesome thing is that you can sometimes commission work so that an illustrator will make something especially relevant and wonderful for you. Like this, if you are a gambler:

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Affordable Art #5: Emerging Painters

Same goes for painters. (See the previous post.) For example, Sophy Naess is an awesome young New York-based painter with a great sense of humor. Some of her paintings of friends and celebrities invoke a young Elizabeth Peyton. Her work would be a great investment and also just so nice to hang around the house.

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Emerging Photographers

Some art is worthwhile because it's beautiful. And some art is worthwhile because it's strange. This photography, by Matthew Porter, is both beautiful and strange.

At first, the photograph seems to show a car speeding over a hill. But then you realize how high the car is: How would it ever get that height? And when it landed, would it just burst into flames?!

I got in touch with Porter last fall, and he explained that he took the landscape shot in Maine, where his parents live. He then hung a small model car (!) from a string in his studio, got the lighting just right and photographed it. Finally he put it together as a photo montage. The photograph now hangs in my living room, and I am enamoured.

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Affordable Art #3: The Library

Remember my affordable art series in January? Well, it's back! Here's a little affordable art secret: The New York Public Library has a huge online gallery of historical maps, vintage posters and rare prints, for very reasonable prices. For example, this moccasin print ranges from $30 to $125, depending on size. It takes quite a bit of searching (there's lots of old, boring stuff) but there are good things to be found. Now you know!

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Ah, well. Here it is.

Happy Valentine's Day. Take it easy.

Keep it sleazy.

(Drawing by Ellen Van Engelen)

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Love Tote

Hmm, maybe it's hard for me to stop posting Valentine's things. I was kind of on a roll there.
(The Love Tote from Anthropologie )

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Racy Valentines

A Valentines ensemble. Perfect for your dancing and hiking needs.

(via Jeannie and Gina)

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Bless You, Valentine

Shabd Simon-Alexander's prints of her embroidered handkerchiefs. For those days when even your loved one's snot seems charming.

(And a couple of long-time lovers)

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Cat Party

Lauren and I had a cat party yesterday evening. Leo charmed the crowd, while Sophie hid under Lauren's bed for four hours. (As a sidenote, we had the MOST delicious brownies -- Chocolate Lover's by Duncan Hines. Who knew??)

Lauren, Scott, Josh and Jay

Andrea and Jay

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Romeo and Juliet

The Zefferelli film Romeo & Juliet is amazing. Olivia Hussey is the most beautiful woman in the world. When I was little, I watched it literally forty times and knew all the lines by heart.

So you can imagine my thrill this weekend when I discovered this Polish poster. It gives me that same lovely, exquisitely sad feeling that I had when I was younger, and I can't wait to have it up in my apartment to break hearts and inspire.

(via Lux Lotus)

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Necklace

Oh, yes, this is very pretty.

(via Juniper Designs)

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Lace Tape

Lace tape makes every present sexier.

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For Like Ever

When I first saw this pink poster on the September cover of Domino, I didn't love it. It seemed over the top. But over the last couple months, it has grown on me. Now I find it sort of sweet and amusing. Will I like it for, like, ever? Maybe not, but I like it for, like, right now.

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Kittens are the New Valentines

If loving my kittens more than anything means that I'm a cat lady, then so be it. They are irresistible.

(Drawing by Bob London)

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Sit with me

Hello there, said the chair. Come sit down and relax.
(via Design Sponge)

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Happy Birthday, Mama!

It's my mom's birthday today! She is beautiful and smart and kind and wonderful. We're going to Paris in September. (It's always been our dream to go there together and now we're finally doing it.) Our plan is to walk all around the city, look at art, eat cheese and baguettes, people watch, drink wine, and take day trips to chateaus and the Champagne region. She's going to show me where she shopped for our baby clothes and where she and my dad went on dates when they lived there. Seven months and counting...I love you, Mama! Happy Birthday!!

(Card by Jezebel; photo by Exponent Inspira)

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An Umbrella Built for Two

New Yorkers would kill you for taking up the whole sidewalk, but how much would you love to walk around under this tandem umbrella?

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Etsy, You've Done It Again

As a little aside from the Valentine's day posts, I'd like to reaffirm my love for etsy. I lost my glasses case, so instead of buying a boring replacement, I went onto etsy and found these. I bought both, since they were only $12.50 each and I am made of money.

(Top by herbst); bottom by absoluut)

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Valentines Gifts: Girls

Yesterday, my brother's best friend Sarah Wilson made us a Southern brunch, complete with eggs, sausage and cheesy grits. Mmmm.... After stuffing ourselves silly, we got on the subject of gifts, and the boys were saying how hard it can be to think of them. I was surprised -- girls love everything! Here are some ideas if you're stuck....

Sexy but sweet ruffled underwear.


The hilarious Optic Nerve comics.


A cheese-of-the-month club.


A pretty ring.


A robe that's cozy and flattering.


A romantic adventure at a design B&B in the Catskills.

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