50 Photographs

The New York Times Store had a brilliant idea to promote its incredible collection of photographs available for purchase:  they asked five notable interior designs to "curate" their ten favorite selections.

And here are my favorites from each artist...

All of the images Jonathan Adler chose incorporate masks.  Funky and fun - just what you'd expect from this hip designer.

How incredible is this image chosen by Thom Filicia?  I love the title - "Me and My Human" - the 'me' representing the elongated shadows of the 'humans' ice skating in Central Park.

Laura Kirar's selection, an image of a ride at Coney Island, plays with geometry, lines, and weightlessness.

Vicente Wolfe also chose a historic image featuring shadows.  I love the repeat of the circles of the hoops, their shadows, and the formation of the girls.  Plus, what could seem more innocent and wholesome than little girls hula-hooping in the 1950s?

Kelly Wearstler of course chose a color photograph.  With her name attached, this image looks so Hollywood glam, despite (or because of!) the fact that we're looking at brass shavings.

And my favorite:

This image from the 1968 Democratic Convention sums up so much of what was going on at that time in the wake of the assassinations of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert Kennedy.  I love that one of the only details we can clearly make out among the bodies facing the light, is the peace sign formed by a participant's two fingers.

If you're looking to add some interesting photography to your walls, check out The New York Times Store for a diverse selection of stunning images.

Have a great weekend!

Deb

Catskills Retreat

I was thrilled to come across the renovated cottage of John Loecke and Jason Oliver Nixon of John Loecke Inc as featured in Country Living.  Incredibly, they picked up this (then decrepit) former schoolhouse for $30,000!  The transformation is incredible, and I love how they preserved the historical integrity of the property, while simultaneously adding unique details like the green Chinese-inspired stair railings.  Nobody uses color and pattern like these guys - check it out!

And speaking of color and pattern, take a look at the custom wallpaper John and Jason created for their Weeds-inspired Showtime House 2010 in New York City.  You can do it too, with HP Wall Art.

Literary Decor

I had some reader inquiries this weekend to the "This Is London", "This Is Greece", "This Is New York" prints hanging over the mantle in my children's playroom, and where they could be purchased.

This was another Staples color copier project - each of these prints is the cover of a book.  I loved the colors and graphics of the illustrated covers, so I color copied the fronts, picked up some super cheap frames at Michaels, and had the whole vignette for less than $60.

You can check out the entire Miroslav Sasek series and covers here.

Kate Spade also uses framed book covers as part of her stunning gallery walls in her pop-up stores.  And check out the books stacked in the fireplace!

You can even dowload this montage of illustrated covers on the Kate Spade site by clicking here:

via High-Heeled Foot in the Door

Have you ever thought of using a bar cart to display your book collection?  Love this idea...

via Better Homes and Gardens

If you're looking to use your favorite book or newspaper pages in a super unusual way, you could always try Mollie's newspaper taxidermy project:

via Design*Sponge

Or, have you ever considered using your book pages as a wreath, vase, or wallpaper?

via Apartment Therapy

And finally, check out Spineless Publishing to find your favorite classics printed in their entirety on one poster:

via Decorator Tag Sale

Have a great day!

Deb

Christmas Prep, and Holiday Photo Cards on Iomoi

It's that time.  Though I haven't even completed my annual Halloween Reeces Peanut Butter Cup binge, I'm already looking ahead to Christmas.   This year my home, along with three others in my neighborhood, will be appearing on a Holiday house tour to benefit the Ginn Playground Restoration Project.  To start our preparations, I took the other home owners to Jacobson's in Boston, a to-the-trade floral supplier that has been bleeding Christmas for several weeks already:

The good 'ole upside down Christmas tree.  Has anyone actually seen one of these in someone's home?!

Ribbon anyone?

One homeowner is doing a life-sized gingerbread house theme, and we found some perfect props:

I'm decorating a tree in all silver in the dining room, and all gold in the living room:

And of course, along with Christmas decorating prep comes my love-hate relationship with holiday photo cards, when my three children conspire annually to make sure they don't all appear smiling in the same photograph.  For the first year, one of my favorite companies, Iomoi, is offering stunning (if not very "Christmasy") photo cards.  Check them out!

Our Playroom on Good Design, Kids in Mind

A big thank you to Kirsten at 6th Street Design School for featuring my family's playroom as part of her "Good Design, Kids in Mind" Series.  Click here to see the playroom in our present home as part of Kirsten's fantastic series!

And below find a (poor quality!) photo of the playroom in our last home:

And here is the "before" shot - beautiful, but more appropriate for the retired couple who owned the home before us, than for a young family with three kids age three and under!

Hope you had a great weekend!

Deb