There is a type of kitchen cabinetry that, if you’ve ever rented or owned an apartment, you are likely to be familiar with. I’m not sure where it’s from —I can’t recall seeing its generic beveled edges and mid-tone wood staining in any store I’ve ever visited—but if I had to guess, I would say…
1. Sugar Paper “Happy Holidays Wreath” | 2. Emily McDowell “Let It Snow—Within Reason” | 3. Sugar Paper “Red Happy Holidays” | 4. Egg Press “Merry Christmas & Snappy New Year” | 5. Banquet “Rudolph Bear” | 6. Mr. Bodington’s Studio “101 Ornaments” | 7. 9th Letter Press “Fa La La” Although December 25th and the unwrapping of gifts on Christmas morning tends to be the main event…
Design: Honeywell Round Thermostat (Model “T86 Round”) Designer: Henry Dreyfuss (1904-1972) Date: 1953 Country of Origin: United States Manufacturer: Honeywell Background: Although Henry Dreyfuss is often compared to his contemporary Raymond Loewy, the famed industrial designer who helped to popularize the 1930s “streamlined” look, Dreyfuss’ work stands apart because of his emphasis not on style but on function. Obsessed with ergonomics and the need…
@designsponge @amyazzarito @maxwelltielman Today is Thanksgiving here in America and, as such, many of us will find ourselves sitting around the dining room table in a few hours, surrounded by family. Although the purpose of this annual holiday is to, as its name states, give thanks, this meaning can often get lost on the wayside…
“Less is more” certainly seems to be the dictum guiding many of this year’s Thanksgiving Table features—and our final two tables in the series are no exception. Armed with simple dinnerware donated by West Elm, photographer Matt Armendariz and blogger Jennifer Hagler have designed beautiful, minimalist Thanksgiving tables that fall on opposite sides of the “monochrome”…
Design: Museum Dinner Service Designer: Eva Zeisel (1906-2011) Date: 1942-45 Country of Origin: United States Manufacturer: Castleton China Co. Materials: Glazed Porcelain Background: Zeisel, born in Hungary, fled to the United States in 1938 to avoid the Nazis. In New York, she created a name for herself as a master ceramicist, founding Pratt Institute’s ceramics department and becoming the first woman to…
Last week, we relaunched our Thanksgiving Table series and asked some of our favorite artists, designers, and bloggers to send us their interpretations of the classic Thanksgiving table. To prove that you can get creative even with the most basic items (and to add a little bit of a challenge to the mix), West Elm gifted each…
Ever since I discovered Dabito’s blog, Old Brand New, I’ve been an unwavering, obsessive fan of his work. A graphic designer by day and a photographer/thrifter/decorator/super hero by night, Dabito has a killer eye for composition and light that lends itself to stunning photos and interiors. Both sophisticated and playful, Dabito’s interiors pair modern simplicity with…
Thanksgiving kid’s tables can be a little bit controversial at times. On one hand, you don’t want to alienate the youngsters and make them feel unwelcome amongst the adults, but on the other—sometimes you just want to enjoy the company and conversation of your more grown-up friends! I know that personally, whenever I was placed…
Last year, when tasked with the duty of coming up with a Thanksgiving Table for Design*Sponge, lifestyle expert Eddie Ross didn’t hold back. His lustrous turquoise and gold table was a veritable cornucopia of ornate splendor, spilling over with Ross’s trademark mixture of new and old, classic and modern. This year, however, Eddie has found…
Coffee and spice grinders are pretty great— they allow you to create fresh, awesome tasting coffee and seasoning on the fly without needing to worry about a super short shelf life. On the other hand—they can also be a huge pain in the neck, especially if you use them frequently for different coffees and spices….
Design: Ball Clock Designer: George Nelson Associates Date: 1948 Manufacturer: Vitra Country of Origin: United States Materials & Construction: Wood and metal, acrylic finish. Background: The exact designer of the iconic Ball Clock is unknown, even to this day. As design lore has it, George Nelson attended a dinner party with a few other prominent designers (namely Isamu Noguchi, Irving Harper, and…
Two of my favorite kinds of places are coffee shops and antique stores, so you cannot believe how thrilled I was to discover a place in Upstate New York that combines the best of both. Outdated, a large space located on Wall Street in Kingston’s historic Stockade District, has been dubbed an “antique cafe” by its founders,…
Susan and William Brinson (of the fabulous House of Brinson) share something in common with me. We are all totally out of our minds and just purchased scary old fixer-upper homes in Upstate New York. For anybody who is in the midst of a large-scale home renovation (or just struggling to make their living space—er—livable), having people over or…
Design: PH Lamp Designer: Poul Henningsen Date: 1926 Country of Origin: Denmark Manufacturer: Louis Poulsen Materials & Construction: The lamps, which began production in 1926, were designed using a variety of different shapes and materials—from metal to frosted glass. Some were quite simple in form (above) while others featured incredibly complex constructions (like Henningsen’s iconic “artichoke” light). Henningsen designed PH lamps…
Let’s be real—Thanksgiving, for all of its familial merrymaking, can be pretty darn stressful. Between trying not to scorch the turkey and making sure uncle Ralph doesn’t drink too much bourbon like last year, it can be easy to forget about the little things. Little things like setting the table, perhaps! In an effort to…
One of the more charming (or overly saccharine—you decide) annual traditions of Thanksgiving is going around the dining room table and saying, one by one, what you are thankful for. The responses, likely made hastily in an effort to get on with the food, may not reflect the true sentiments of any one person. Indeed, although the…
Design: Componibili Storage Module Designer: Anna Castelli Ferrieri Year: 1969 Country of Origin: Italy Manufacturer: Kartell Materials & Construction: Constructed fully from ABS Plastic. Fun facts: Designed at the height of the late 1960s craze for all things psychedelic and futuristic, these designs fully embraced the modern material of plastic. Available in a range of colors, the storage units were meant to…
Oh, IKEA, you seductive little temptress, you. This is always how you get me. Right when my wallet is at its emptiest and I’ve reached my absolute spending limit for the week the month eternity. You gotta go and release something AWESOME. As if you weren’t awesome enough already with your cute little duvet covers and Swedish meatballs. Nope—you have…
For today’s installment of 10 Second How Tos, we teamed up again with Common Good to share a simple but amazingly effective household tip—making your own dryer balls from leftover yarn! If you’re absolutely terrified of static cling like I am (yeah, I’ve got a lot of irrational fears—don’t judge), you’ve likely turned to dryer…
