I'll drink to that!

I love this chandelier by Propellor Design. Using 120 mismatched glass tumblers, this fixture is unfussy yet exciting in all it's glossy glory. I can only imagine how it looks lit up in a dark space, with light bouncing all around the varying shades of glass. Stunning.

dram chandelier, by Propellor Design

plates with purpose

I am currently working on a booth for the Spring Garden Show at South Coast Plaza. While sourcing the various furniture and accent pieces for our native California garden, I came across Riverside Design Group's new collections of recycled glass tableware. And I'm in love.

Riverside Design Group was the first company I found that had an amazing variety of colors and styles for recycled glassware. As you can well imagine, just a couple of years ago this was not so common. The collections now have branched out to become truly unique pieces of art (functional, sustainable art...)

One such collection is plates with purpose. Each of the designs in the series benefit a different non-profit organization, which means you can feel great about shopping!

the tree collection benefits CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates)


proceeds from the elephant collection go to The National Autism Association.


Another favorite of mine is the new splash and drop bowls. These don't need much of an explanation, but how cool are they?

I'm such a geek for fabric

Recently it's been feeling a lot like Christmas in the office- simply because it seems like every couple of days I'm getting a new delivery of samples (read: presents for designers) and I get overly giddy about each and every one of them. The other day I received swatches of Live Textiles, a company founded by four amazing women who care about the environment as much as they do about making beautiful,
quality materials.

The textiles are made with organic materials in the U.S. and printed using water-based inks. They have a laundry list of eco-cred and, really, they are just so lovely to look at. Oh, and you can pretty much have things anyway you like them. The colors are customizable and they have seemingly endless options to mix and match. As my mother always said, "you gotta have options." Indeed.

I love this! It's called Sunset in the Park.

Daily Obsession

I don't actually obsess daily, but this is something I saw a week ago and still really really want it. I think that means something, don't you?

I just love the idea of carrying my breakfast and my tea upstairs and hopping back in bed (who does THAT?)

rubie green goes to bed

One of my very first posts was about Rubie Green textiles; a line of playful, vibrant prints on organic cotton (I have a bit of an obsession with fabric lately) designed by the oh-so-lovely Michelle Adams
of M.A. Belle.

So I was pretty excited to learn that she's been working on a line of bedding that includes some of her most versatile prints. These are so reasonably priced that I almost bought one of each just so that I would have them by the time she figured out that the prices were wrong (but that would technically be stealing...).




Congrats Michelle. You are going to do really well with these.

happy st. patrick's day

My Father recently informed me that "Everyone is Irish on Saint Patrick's Day!" So in the spirit of being Irish for a day I want to wish everyone a bit-o-fun today and let's all hope that we can find the end of that rainbow soon...

photo by Cat Faery Shari, courtesy of Flickr
*be sure to check out her other awe-inspiring work as well. seriously cool stuff.

'out of this world' color palettes

Check out these awesome color palettes put together by COLOURlovers. Taking their cue from the awe-inspiring images sent back from the Hubble Telescope, these combinations are seriously out of this world.

stump the designer

This month's stump the designer winner is Kim from Minnesota, with a bathroom in need of some design attention. The shadowbox shelves that her very loving husband spent hours measuring and hanging remain unadorned almost a year later. Let's take a look.

Your husband deserves a big thumbs up for placement! The shelves are really well balanced and I know how difficult that had to be, especially since it's hanging above the jacuzzi.

I've been scouring my resources for ideas that are unique and appropriate for a bathroom and I think that I have come up with a pretty good solution. First things first; since we are working with a collection of shadowboxes I needed to have some sort of 'theme' to what is displayed inside. I didn't want to go overboard here so I chose some items that work together without lending themselves to an actual collection of items. A little flora and fauna and some organic shapes and we are off...

The walls are a sage green so I chose an accent color of rusty orange. Adding this in just a couple of places allows the eye to move around the room and creates interest in our individual pieces.

Okay, onto the plan. Here are the elements of the new design.

My first suggestion is to purchase a small amount of wallpaper, like the Casa Mila from Twenty2. This adds texture and color and will become the background for two of the shadowboxes.

Now let's add in the other pieces.
Place the mushroom boxes (1 large, 1 small) in the upper right and lower left boxes. The owl will sit center stage in the upper middle box. In the lower middle box put the iridescent votive holder. You can add an LED tealight or just leave the funky glass as art. The two boxes with the wallpaper stand alone since we want to be able to see the pattern on the wall.



Add in some colorful elements like an orange rug and organic cotton bath towels. A driftwood tissue box on the vanity pulls in the wood elements from the wall display and is a really interesting piece as well (not to mention functional). The candle on the back of the tub fits right in, so I would suggest adding another iridescent votive holder and a soy tealight to offset the balance of the hurricane.

Sources:
1. Owl Paperweight,Burke Decor
2. Casa Mila Wallpaper, Twenty2
3. Cargo Mushroom Boxes, Rian Rae
4. Driftwood Tissue Box, Pheifer Studio
5. Organic Cotton Towels in Amber, Gaiam
6. Wool 'Cloud' Rug in Miele, Tribalia
7. Recycled Glass Votive Holder, Riverside Design Group

desktop garden

More and more people are working out of their homes today, including moi, and finding the pros and cons of literally 'taking your work home.' One potential con would be the cabin fever that comes with being chained to your office chair for the better part of the day. No lunch breaks, no coffee with coworkers; A typical day includes breakfast, lunch and (sometimes) dinner in front of the computer, gossiping only to myself :)

Sometimes you just gotta get outside!

As springtime comes rushing in I have begun craving the outdoors even more. While there is no substitute for the shining sun and chirping birds, I decided to treat myself to a little desktop garden to take me to a happy place when I just can't break away.

The Juicy Leaf is a company in Irvine that specializes in container arrangements exactly like what I've been looking for. But in the spirit of being 'one with nature' (and perhaps a little thrifty) I used their creations as my inspiration and planted my very own collection.

What do you think?

inspiration from The Juicy Leaf


my desktop garden

the veggie van

Anyone who has read my blog lately has probably noticed my obsession with the documentary Fuel; Sundance winner... blah blah blah. I may have mentioned this once or twice before.

Well, we went to see it the night that it opened in Irvine (which, by the way, is showing until this weekend) and got to come face to tailpipe with the star of the show; The Veggie Van.

Luckily, my friend Jason of Living Green Homes was there to capture the moment. Here we are, inhaling the fresh scent of cooking oil


and here is Jason with the director, Josh Tickell.

a little sunshine on a rainy day

It's cloudy and gloomy (still working on the rain) here in Southern California and I'm in need of some springtime inspiration. How about you?

a little sunshine on a rainy day - by linsi_brownson on Polyvore.com