Maira Kalman: Time Wastes Too Fast

You must read the brilliant Kalman's monthly blog for the NYTimes. Today, she discusses the beauty, optimism, and complexity of our young country in the person of Thomas Jefferson. How I look forward to her post every month!

Partners & Spade

In the spirit of Kiosk, there is now Partners & Spade, a new store I want to visit in NYC. This is really a curated thrift shop-- a gallery of the cool everyday-- a pop art flea market. The brainchild of Andy Spade and Anthony Sperduti, you can find the odd and interesting here. And you can even hire the stylemakers themselves-- they offer services from making you a finch aviary to creating a "post confidence trophy" for anything you wish you'd been recognized for in the past. Put it on your shelf. No one will know.

And like Kate Bingaman-Burt, they've illustrated their inventory with this intriguing line drawing. Don't you love line drawings? So, there's really no choice but to pay them a visit and see what a "Framed Yellow Book" or a "Flood Scene Book"or a "Pink Paper Hat" really looks like. Go to 40 Great Jones St, (between Lafayette and Bowery) 646-861-2827.

Chris Silas Neal

I love the art and illustration of Chris Silas Neal, a regular contributor to the NYTimes. I found him a couple of years ago via thumbtack press, where you can still buy some of his prints. I love the printmaking look of his work, the limited color palette, the spotty ink coverage, and the vintage drawing style. Beautiful.

Frou-Frou & Claude

Shelley McDonald just launched Frou-Frou & Claude, a handmade screen company in the UK. The solid wooden frames are hand-crafted and covered in a luxurious padded upholstery of your choice. I think screens are a great solution to all kinds of storage and decorating dilemmas-- we use one to hide all the cleaning products in our utility room. See more here.

Meg Mateo Ilasco Textiles

The uber-talented Meg Mateo Ilasc, whose work I've admired ever since I first saw her journals, now has a few textile items. "Dish" (a set of two dishtowels) and "sleep" pillowcases can be found on her site.

Karen Walker Paints

The inspiration for this new paint line came from the Bauhaus school, whose concept was to "create and combine colours from an emotional point of view rather than a technical one, to group colours in a way that tells a story rather than simply matching them tonally." The combinations are perfert-- makes me want to repaint our whole house-- and I love the way they've presented them. Stylist Katie Lockhart – who has also designed the interiors of Karen Walker’s stores – collaborated with sculptor and artist Gidon Bing to produce a range of mini-modernist, Bauhaus-style homes complete with miniature furniture and artworks. (PHOTOGRAPHY MATTHEW WILLIAMS)

Unison Sale

Need some weekend plans in Chicago (if it will ever stop raining)? Unison is having a warehouse sale featuring their fantastic Scandinavian textiles largely influenced by their years living in Finland. Bedding, pillows, totes, and some awesome journals are available. Read more here.

Just looking

A vintage child's desk on eBay today.

AIGA Design Archives

The AIGA Design Archives are a rich resource of past typography, book design, illustration and graphic innovation. This is an extensive collection of contemporary design and it is remarkable for its breadth and beauty. Remind yourself what great design looks like. From the top: Edward Sorel (1959), Chermayeff & Geismar Associates (1959), Paprika (2008), Vignelli Associates (1964)

Sammy Rose

Ever since the demise of my favorite kid's t-shirt company FOOEY, I've been looking for some tongue-in-cheek funny shirts that make me laugh. These are by Sammy Rose, a company in Sweden run by the husband and wife team of Jenny Brandt (a photographer) and Jens Grönberg, an illustrator. Every year, they come to the US to visit family in Nebraska, so many of their shirts are inspired by US trash culture (yes, that's JR above). Good stuff.

Ikea PS Collection ICFF 2009

Coming to US IKEA stores in August, this year's line extension of the PS collection is made up of 71 pieces, some quite bold, but all emphasizing the basic innovation and simple Swedish design that has defined IKEA from the beginning. (Chair $69, cabinet $249, storage crates $49-$69). Great to see them show at ICFF this year, although I didn't make it to the show. You can see more here. (Photos via Eric at MocoLoco)

elsa

And suddenly my daughter, who was only born a week or two ago, is turning 8. As she told me yesterday, "Daddy, I'm halfway to 16!" After I recovered, I hugged her and made her promise to never say that again. Isn't she lovely. Happy Birthday Elsa.

Area Rug Bug

I think rugs are very difficult. You can rarely find one that isn't the same old same old and when you do, it's usually trying too hard. This rug, from Area Rug Bug is a nice subtle change from the overcolored and overdone. The non-symmetrical design would make any room more interesting.

Pigeon Toe Ceramcis

Pigeon Toe Ceramics grew out of a deep love for handmade dishware and a Scandinavian aesthetic. All of their vessels are thrown on the wheel in a porcelain, then embellished by hand to form their unique, organic shapes and designs. "Each piece is made with love and concentration in our studio in Portland, Oregon." I love the shapes-- and the white exteriors. That there-footed bowl is really great. Get them at their site or at Portland's own Ink and Peat.

be still

I love linen napkins, impractical and trouble that they are. So if I'm going to have them, they'd better be outstanding, as these are from be still. These designs are really beautiful-- the napkins are 100% linen and the last photo is a pattern on silk for a pillow. She has a sophisticated design sense and incredible execution. Wouldn't you like a sofa covered in the blue leaf pattern?

ReadyMade.com is ReMade

I love ReadyMade magazine and always find it to be a great mix of the doable and the inspirational. Kari and I were thrilled to be in the January issue this year. But their online presence was always a bit drab. Enter Katherine Sharpe, the new online editor who has updated the website and added a blog, which I have to say is the only place I've found a decent discussion of the ICFF show this year. Katherine vows to bring back ReadyMade to its cool, funny old self, and I couldn't be happier to pass this news on to you. Check out projects, resources, and more. (Photo by Winni Wintermeyer of a chair project from super smart Thomas Wold.)

The Pursuit of Happiness

It's the last Friday of the month, so time once again for Maira Kalman's monthly installment of her blog for the NY Times. Kalman's year-long illustrated study of democracy is one of the highlights of my month. As always, her work is about humor and the love of life.

Hello Muddah . . .

This camp stationery from PH Design's shop is enough to send us all to camp for a week or two. I remember that I actually did have some camp stationery with a big Boy Scout emblem at the top (I think camp was two weeks!) and I did write my parents. Well, if you have someone bound for camp or just need a good set of summer writing paper, you'll like these personalized sets. Choose any icon above and customize with fonts and colors. These are just great.

Design on the Cheap

In today's NYTimes, there is a great profile of this young British couple who transformed their house on a budget of only $10,000. The results are sleek and sophisticated, and highly creative. An awesome space made even more impressive by their resourcefulness. You really can do a lot with a little.

Lab Partners

These new prints from Lab Partners are just the right mix of nostalgia and cool. They have a great color sense and I like their drawing style. These remind me of one of my favorites: pre-pop Warhol drawings. I like the "olde tyme" subjects matter that references the Victorian remix of the 60s. Well done, available here and read their blog here.