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THE NEW ANTHOLOGY

The Perish Trust

image courtesy Anthology Mag

I had a chance to visit The Perish Trust while in SF last week and it was everything that I had anticipated - and more. It was beautifully indescribable... but I will upload some of the shots I took myself as soon as I get a chance to show you exactly what I mean.

Lotta Agaton

Images from Pia Ulin via Lotta Agaton

Here's some great STHLM styling courtesy of LOTTA AGATON

Adulation at its finest.

image courtesy of lonnymag.com

If imitation is truly the sincerest form of flattery - then I intend on flattering the living hell outta this wall within the next couple of weeks.

Be Calm.

images courtesy yatzer.com of the Delfin & Postigo home

I found myself in a somewhat frantic hurry earlier this evening - trying to find some tear sheets for a new client that would show her the right mix of "mid-century modern" meets "smart, laid-back bohemian" meets... well, you get the idea...

and i'm still searching. It seems that it always ends up being more of a cross between "I'll know it when I see it" mixed with a little bit of "I know I saw that similar look in such-and-such publication" blitzkrieg moments of scrambling to find years of (mentally) rolodexed imagery so that I can then try to sell said client on the look.

Thankfully in the interim, I did manage to come across this rather serendipitous image to remind me to take a deep breath and take it down a notch or two, becuase y'know, they usually turn up when and where I least expect them to.

South Beach Day One Update

I'm in South Beach for a couple of days on business. Kicking it at the HOTEL VICTOR located right smack dab in the middle of the OCEAN DRIVE art deco district. Wish you were here...

PS. Got to peep the old VERSACE MANSION (which is now THE VILLA BY BARTON G) located next to the HOTEL VICTOR. It seems that it's now open to the public as a hotel and restuarant (whereas you were able to tour it for $50 before they bought it out), but wouldn't you know it - it seems like I won't be able to check it out, have dinner and peruse it like a giddy school girl after all because I left both my BLACK and TITANIUM MasterCards at home this time around. shucks.

"Mr. Bojangles" Industrial Rolling Table-Cart

There's a little bit of a lengtheir back-story that comes with this occasional table-cart... if you're interested you can catch it here.

Quantity: 1

Size: 36" wide x 24" deep x 52" tall

Condition: Excellent new piece constructed from reclaimed wood/materials

Price: $625

New Item Sneak Peak (Part 3 Final)

So I went ahead and sanded the rest of the table down to the bare wood - I typically prefer to do this rather than using stripping chemicals or solvents (even though there are some natural-based products out there).

Once this was done, I stained the blond bare wood with an eco-friendly dark ebony as the base coat. This was allowed to let dry overnight.

The next step simply involved hand painting over the stained surface in a gloss-finish white. Again, this was allowed to dry overnight.

Finally, I pulled out the ol' standby line up of medium to fine sanding blocks and went to work on haphazardly pulling off some of the white paint to let the black stain foundation show through, creating a more natural layered and weathered paint look. I'm not a big fan of distressed looks for the sake of distressing furniture, but I knew this piece would really benefit more with a look that gave it more age and character, rather than going for a sleeker, contemporary or polished look.

My next-to-final conundrum will be deciding on whether or not to apply a light yellowish glaze before the final coats of matte poly seal the deal.

And there you have it.

My final conundrum is this: do you think I should christen him "The Admiral" or "Mick Jagger"? Both for obvious reasons so I'm really kind of torn.

I'll be giving him a command performance within the next several days, after his glamorous photoshoot, when he'll be going up for sale. Stay tuned.

New Item Sneak Peak (Part 2)

In my last post, I mentioned that I had sanded the top of the table... most people would have probably finished sanding the body, drawers and legs first before doing anything else... but I guess I'm not most people.

In order to proceed with the top, I first researched the correct way to draw/paint the Union Jack. After all, I didn't want to piss off any potential buyers whom might just happen to be British. I visualized the entire thing - I'd be set up at a market or something where I'd be approached by a middle-aged lady with a very British accent, looking ever so interested in purchasing the table - that is until she noticed some little inconsistency in her motherland's flag - whereupon she'd then walk away, but not without first giving me the two-fingered "up yours" sign that Brits are well known to impart on unsuspecting (and sometimes very suspecting) people. I decided I was not going to be "that (vendor) guy". So yeah, I had to get it right, and apparently there are a lot of ways to screw it up. Thank goodness for the internet.

My reasoning to finish the top of the table first was because the top's design was going to be crucial to the finished overall piece. If at first I didn't (technically) succeed, I was most likely going to have to try and try again until I got it right. Luckily for me, I got it right on the first try. I then proceeded to sand down the painted surface one last time, going for a more weathered look.

Now I could comfortably move on to the lower half of the table without compromising my vision of "what would be!"

Next time - the finished piece.

New Item Sneak Peak

So I scored this Bombay & Co. coffee table at a garage sale this summer for $5. Yup, five measly bucks.

The top needed to be refinished and the original 1980's look wasn't very appealing either... but hey, it had good bones, and THAT is all that really matters.

In the pictures above I was right in the middle of sanding the top to a nice smooth finish, but that's when I remembered that I should at least take some pics for posterity's sake, right? Right.

So there you have it. A quick little sneak peak at the transformation that I hope can and will inspire those of you DIY'ers out there. Once I take some of the transformational money shots, I'll be sure to upload to keep you posted.

Do You Rue?

RUE MAGAZINE launches this Thursday and I haven't gotten this excited about a new magazine since, um, well since I used to wait around waiting for the new issues of DOMINO every month... this kind of feels like it's gonna have the same kind of effect on me.

Be sure to head over to see all things stylish in the world of online design. This issue will include features from San Francisco, Los Angeles, Dallas, Chicago and New York.

And, besides interiors, entertaining, recipes, design trends, products and more - we're also being promised some downloadable stationery with the very first issue as a bonus. Bonus!

Back at it.

courtesy emmas blogg

I've been away for a while and it's been kind of a bittersweet departure... I've missed the blogging, but I've been keeping plenty busy working as well as traveling to old familial destinations as well.

I found this picture today while looking around for some design inspiration. What a vignette! It looks so effortless, but if I know better. I would say it took anywhere between 2 and 4 hours to perfect the shot.

More updates, finds and new creations soon (and at better more constant intervals as well).

September already? Where does the time go?

I found these little pieces of inspiration over at avei.tumblr.com

Rue Magazine

It started with these...


Then these came out...


It's no wonder that most of the design-oriented blogging community is on fire about the upcoming RUE MAGAZINE

Not even out yet, this virtual magazine is already causing more commotion than anything kate gosselin could of ever dreamed of producing. The premiere issue will be available September 16th, but in the meantime here's a little interview with co-founder and editor-in-chief Crystal Gentilello of Plush Palate, made available by Casa Sugar.

One other thing that HOME ANTHROPOLOGIE really loves about this soon-to-be mag is that Anne Sage of none other than The City Sage, is another fourth of the gals putting this together.

And if the history of those two blogs alone tell us anything - it's that we're ready to get our subscription on!

Glammin' Up the Loo

Framed photography by Home Anthropologie

Sherwin-William's Harmony Paint in Iron Ore Gloss
really allows the light to sparkle and the shadows to be more dramatic.

Vintage 1973 beaut sourced on Craigslist on the cheap.

The view up.

Here's a little sneak peak at our downstairs bathroom makeover. Once again, we decided to mix up a couple of the styles that we like - this time it was Hollywood Regency meets Upscale Spa. The photos shown here are just of the actual water closet... we'll be sure to show you more as the whole thing comes together.

Coup d'Etat (San Francisco)

Great Plains Saucer Light Fixture

Ozmeka Railroad Lanterns

Counter Industrial Floor Lamp

Workman's Etagere

Early 20th Century Industrial French Perforated Steel Cabinet

Industrial Black Enamel Hanging Lights

Industrial Cage Locker

These guys have got the goods... and then some.

Congratulations Emily!

Congratulations to Emily over at The Brass Petal for winning this years HGTV's Design Star.

We've been following her for most of the year now - before she ever even let anyone in on the fact that she had entered, filmed and (of course) won this year's competition! (I now know that I'd be able to trust her with my life.)

Her show will be a much needed breath of fresh air for HGTV.

Read more of her "most memorable moments from the winner" here as well as watching her sneak peak/premiere show airing on August 29th.

A Table for All Occasions

Pictured as an entryway table

This table was inspired by a "Junk Potluck/Trash to Treasure" post that I read over at JUNKOLOGIE a couple of weeks ago. The contest rules seemed straightforward enough:
(1) Create a Junk Potluck project
(2) Post a photo of said project
(3) Link the project to their page

***UPDATE*** I've also added this post over at FUNKY JUNK INTERIOR'S "OLD" theme link-up. I love Donna's DIY style and projects. I've only been reading her blog for about a month now, but I always keep going back for the new (and catching up on older) posts as well.

FOUND SHIPPING CRATE
To give you a bit more insight, here's what I started out with. A good sized shipping crate that one of my neighbors had schlepped into his dumpster. Lucky for me that it was half full at the time and about a third of the crate was peeking out over the top at me when I drove by.


Overall, I'm a pretty big fan of most wooden objects (crates, boxes, containers), and (obviously) the older the better. So it was very serendipitous that I had just read the aforementioned post the day before. At this point, I just knew I had to have it - and it was on. I decided this would end up being a piece of furniture functional enough to fit into any room of the home.

The first step consisted of some strenuous sanding and staining applications. I didn't sand too much off of the areas where the shipping direction marker scrawlings and icons were, because that's what originally drew me to the piece and I also knew that in the end that's where a lot of the "payoff look" would focus around.

Then I decided to build the top completely from scratch in order to be able customize it a lot better, plus give it more of a high-end look that I was envisioning at that point. I created the top from poplar and I opted for the carriage bolts, old nails and iron handles to give it a rustic-industrial quality that wouldn't disjoint it from the original crate part. I also decided to go with a hint lighter shade of stain on this part, in order to not make the whole thing appear "too coherent" and a bit more "pieced together." (Note: I have never built a table top or anything similar to this in my life, but I did take a lot from my art background - which most of the time consists of 90% mental deliberating and 10% execution.)


The finishing touches, to round out that very rustic-industrial look consisted of adding the iron (towel bar) railings on each side, steel casters, and capping of the drawers at the bottom (which originally was just a small wood pallet that the crate was attached to) with .16 gauge copper plates. I only had a day to give the patina on these a headstart (vinegar and non-iodized salt), but I know that they'll only get better on their own with time. I also pounded them against some concrete to ensure some additional character.



At this point it's looking exactly like I envisioned it and I could call it a day... however, I feel like the one thing still left for me to do is add a door or two in order to be able to utilize all of the space inside for storage (damn those art school days and those Bauhaus guys with their "form ever follows function" philosophies!) - but first I'll need to go read a "how-to" or two on the subject.

For the grand finale, I decided to re-dress the table and offer it up as a rolling-cart bar (hence my apropos title, heck I can even envision this out in the garden or potting shed) to bring over to the JUNKOLOGIE Junk Potluck complete with a quick little recipe for some wine spritzers to beat off the last of those hot summer days.

Wine Spritzers
- Ice
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup of wine (my wife highly recommends Snoqualmie Organic Wines)
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup of sparkling water
- Lemon slices (or white seedless grapes), for garnish

Directions: Pour wine into ice filled glass, top off with sparkling water and garnish with lemon slice. (As an alternative, I like to squeeze 3 or 4 grapes into the glass instead of the lemon).

Enjoy.



Come back around soon, where I should be able to have it up for sale by then if you're interested.

**************AUGUST 30th UPDATE***********************