Two weeks ago, I had the pleasure of being Maxwell’s guest at Apartment Therapy’s October Design Evening at ABC Home. It’s not often that I get to do interviews in front of a live (and participating) audience, so I relished the chance to have a great discussion and interact with such a thoughtful group of…
One of my favorite things to do is watch a skilled craftsperson at work. Whether it’s weaving, woodcarving or pottery, watching someone do something that requires skill and patience makes me appreciate great design even more. This video from Trip Print Press shows the making of a series of business cards and has an almost…
Speaking of plaid, there is a fantastic documentary about Kathleen Hanna being funded over at Kickstarter. I will never forget the first time I heard Bikini Kill. I was at an all-girls summer camp in West Virginia, and a friend made me a mix tape full of great Riot Grrrl music. After repeat listens, my…
Thanks to the crafty people in my life (namely Kate and Matt), I’ve become sort of obsessed with materials lately. I used to be more of a finished-product type of person, but now the raw materials (wood, leather, brass rivets, etc.) seem more appealing than the things they can become. So I was fascinated by…
This weekend my parents were in town and we ended up talking about music. My dad was lamenting that no one bought albums or non-digital music anymore, which got me thinking about how much I miss record and CD packaging. My first job out of college was with a small record label in NYC and…
One of the words I’ve been saying a lot since I got out to Portland is earnest. So many of the artists, musicians and store owners here have an earnestness that is both admirable and, at times, surprising. I’ve gotten pretty jaded living in New York, and it’s always good to be reminded that someone’s…
It’s no secret that I’ve been crushing on Wye Oak lately. Their new album, Civilian, is on heavy rotation around my apartment, so I was excited to hear from Merge about their newest music video. The video for their song “Fish” is a collaboration between Wye Oak and local Baltimore artist Katherine Fahey and photographer Michael…
Nothing makes my heart go pitter-patter quite like an adorable handmade valentine . . . that moves! Matt and Julie are the husband-and-wife team behind the creative studio Tiger in a Jar. This “Valentine’s Day Cakes” DIY video is just one of several amazing film projects they’ve completed recently, and if you’re looking for some…
I’ve never been so amused by and embarrassed about an aspect of the design industry as I was while watching this video. If you haven’t watched Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein’s hilarious new sketch comedy/TV show on IFC called Portlandia, please check it out here, here or here. The show primarily mocks the stereotypes found…
I’ve always been intrigued by the idea of window displays so I was excited to see this project from Marcus Wallander at Hyper Island in Stockholm. They created this interactive window display for a street-wear clothing brand called WeSC. The idea was to have the brand and clothing interact with people as they walk past….
She & Him – Don’t Look Back from Merge Records on Vimeo. One area of my life that I don’t often get to discuss here is my love of music. In college, I was a radio DJ and my first job out of school was working for an independent record label in Brooklyn. I couldn’t…
When I was going through the D*S book edits last week, I realized how many globes are in the homes we feature. I knew they were popular again, but it didn’t really hit me until I saw them all together just how pervasive the trend has become. So when I saw these pretty globes from…
One of the things I miss most about being in college is watching artwork come together from concept to finished product. I loved seeing some of the more gifted artists in class come up with really ambitious ideas and watching as they went through dozens of revisions and sketches to finally get the perfect plan….
With the wealth of beautiful weddings shared online, one can easily forget how private, personal and special that moment is. We’re allowed to poke through the couple’s pictures, comment on the most intimate details of the day and feel as if we were actually guests at the ceremony. Despite all of this apparent access to…
Some mornings, it’s great to leap out of bed with energy, pep and excitement. Other mornings, I like to stay relaxed and quiet, letting the day wash over me as I slowly wake up. Today was one of those quiet days, and as I watched the documentary trailer above, I felt myself falling into a…
I couldn’t think of a better way to start today than with this amazing video of artist Luca Barcellona hand-writing for the “Legacy of Letters” Italian tour, organized by Paul Shaw NYC. I was hypnotized by the fluid nature of his movements and the insanely gorgeous final product. Moments like this make me twinge with…
I’m a HUGE fan of the talented ladies at Spruce Upholstery, so when I heard that they launched a TV pilot, I was thrilled! They were kind enough to pass along the first episode (if any TV networks are reading, give them a call!) and I thought I’d share it this morning, for any of…
I couldn’t resist starting today with a bit of a non sequitur: a short video of me freeing a lobster in Menemsha Harbor. Yesterday my family and I drove up to Menemsha to check out the boats and noticed a sign at the old Poole’s Fish shop saying you could buy and free female lobsters….
Last month Amy and I hopped in a car and drove out to Montauk to film a DIY video with one of our favorite crafty ladies, Erica Domesek of PS I Made This. Erica’s first book, also called PS I Made This, just launched this month and we wanted to celebrate by trying a project…
To kick off today’s bike theme, I decided to interview the woman whose shop inspired my current bike obsession: Julie Hirschfeld of Adeline Adeline! When my 29th birthday came this past June, I took the day off and immediately headed over to Julie’s beautiful bike boutique in New York City’s TriBeCa neighborhood. After testing a…
