dining or office chair

I came across this chair when posting about the Pratt LED lamp from West Elm and thought it was excellent.  Also designed in collaboration with students from the Pratt Institute, this chair would be a great dining chair.  It's made from eco-friendly materials (FSC-certified eucalyptus wood/ powder-coated steel), and stackable.  

Pratt Office Chair  $119

111 Archer Avenue

This print is fantastic.  It is a depiction of the house from the film The Royal Tenenbaums.  The illustrator is named Max Dalton, and this is his website.  The print is 11" x 16", and is $35.  There are only 250 prints made, so it is a limited edition piece.  I love the muted color scheme, and the fact that it's a rendered section drawing.  To buy the print, click here.

task lights

Affordable task lights (for your desk or workspace) are pretty tough to find.  I've noticed that West Elm has recently come out with a few that are attractive and priced affordably.  

1. Collector Task Lamp $79.99

Note: this lamp only works if you can clip it onto you desk as shown in the image. 

2. Industrial Task Table Lamp $59.00

3. Pratt LED Table Lamp $129

This lamp was designed in collaboration with students from The Pratt Institude, a design school in Brooklyn, NY.  LED is an excellent option for lighting because it uses significantly less energy than incandescent bulbs.  The LED bulbs also last practically forever. 

California coffee table

I love this coffee table from San Francisco-based designer, Jared Rusten.  It's like having a piece of art in the room that is functional.  That's my favorite kind of furniture.

From his website:

This coffee table, carefully cut into the iconic shape of California is crafted from native, salvaged Claro Walnut for the top, and native, salvaged, White Oak for the base.  Dimensions: 56″ long (tip to tip), 15.5″ tall, approx. 18″ wide.  $2500

PB Teen Throw Pillows

I recently checked out Pottery Barn Teen for the first time and was pleasantly surprised!  I'd never thought to look through their products before because I do not have any teens and am not a teen myself, but found a few items that appealed to my adult self.  The stuff is youthful, fun, and cheery.  While I'd recommend going more neutral with larger pieces, such as sofas, etc. (because you'll get more years out of them), it's totally OK to play around with bright accents like pillows.

 De-Vine Pillow Cover

 Zig-Zag Pillow Cover

 Tulips Toss Pillow

Love Organic Pillow Cover

Christmas 2010

Not long after having Thanksgiving at my house, I had a Christmas party.  It wasn't any ordinary party though, it was an ornament-making/tree-decorating party.  I had plenty of crafts set out including papers, felt, fabric, glue, markers, pencils, scissors, needle + thread, etc.  Since many of my friends are designers and creative-types, we had a great time making ornaments for the tree.  I also re-purposed the centerpieces and decorations that I had just used for Thanksgiving into more Christmas-looking decorations.  Here are some photos.

Thanksgiving 2010

This year was the second year that I had Thanksgiving at my house in California.  I had never decorated for the holidays before, and had a blast doing it.  Here are some of the decorations I made.  As you can see, they were very easy to do and inexpensive.  Most of the things were purchased at craft supply stores, such as Joann's and Michael's.  I cut the leaves myself from an outline I found on MarthaStewart.com.