bottoms up

friday night design showroom cite threw an opening party for dutch designer lucas maassen.  maassen's work challenges the concept of a chair by using technology and materials not typically used in furniture design. the collection can be seen in soho through october.

back to the future

i'm back!  and so is the interiors trend book from imm cologne's panel of trend forecasting experts including designer patricia urquiola.  above is a taste of the 4 trend categories they are seeing;  re-balancing, emotional austerity, surprising empathy and transforming perspectives. the full book will be launching soon!

if you do nothing else

for the love of design, check out tom dixon's website.  he has the cooooolest new product videos on his homepage!  hit refresh to see them all....there's at least 4 different ones and my favorite features his peg chairs.  above are 2 products dixon is set to launch at the london design festival in september, the peg coat stand and scoop chair.

the realness

please tell me you've seen the realest home magazine around.  apartamento magazine is "an everyday life interiors magazine" with contributors from around the globe.  the magazine, with roots in spain, is smaller in size than your average publication (reader's digest size) which makes it endearing from the start.  the photography and stories are done in a very "selby" way, unstyled interiors with charming stories about the people that live within them.

flight school

so i have been doing a bit of shopping for some new luggage.  i ran across the salsa air cabin trolley in violet at the travel store flight 001.  the carry on bag is super innovative in its use of materials;  it has a polycarbonate shell which offers the protection of a hard shell combined with the flexibility of a soft bag.  if only i had $450 to drop on a carry on.  you can find flight 001 online and in cities worldwide.  check out their very cool blog here.

stop and smell the roses

british fashion designer paul smith brings his talents to mahram's digital project.  "hand tinted rose" is a large scale digital wall print inspired by vintage postcards.  so very pretty.  the advertisement was spotted on the back of august's interior design magazine.

this is the way i live

i love the spread "theory of evolution" in september's elle decoration.  this is the way i and so many others that i know live:  by the idea of something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.  over the years people tend to acquire things that they love, whether it be a brand new trendy product or a vintage piece from an antique store.

nobody does it better

bernhardt design advertises the bardot sofa by jamie hayon in the september issue of wallpaper magazine.  loving the rough abandoned spot its shot in.

up all night

check out the brand new aka chair by jean marie massaud for skitsch.  the chair has solid oak legs connected to a plexiglass seat and is available in a variety of colors.  skitsch works with both emerging and established designers to bring you considered contemporary design for your home via catalogue, web and 2 stores located in milan and london.  they believe "we are where we live."  true dat.

do or die

best quote ever.  inspiration at its finest.  film maker jim jarmusch says it best.

somewhere over the rainbow

american furniture company dune features a rainbow palette of products in their advertising for surface magazine.  the very cool company does not mass produce their products and works closely with emerging and established designers.

fancy huh

moooi, you are sooo coool.  loving your paper doll style advertising featuring some of your coolest pieces including work by marcel wanders, jamie hayon and studio job.

better late than never

maison martin margiela has designed the interior of a wine country hotel in bordeaux, france.  les sources de caudalie features 49 rooms and 9 suites.  margiela does an amazing job of mixing pieces from a variety of decades including the heller marilyn bocca lip sofa by studio 65 along with vintage mirrors and claw foot tubs.  and to top it all off, margiela's own signature trompe l'oeil surfaces.

the light

miyake lamp by arihiro miyake for moooi has a base made of concrete.  the angle of the lamp can be adjusted by positioning the base on its multiple faceted edges.  genius.  available in floor or table style at moooi.
image via stylepark

you got spark

design textile company kvadrat's current advertising features upholstered forms in a variety of bold colors and shapes.  it has a 1980s memphis feel to it which is very trendy right now.  the company has worked with a variety of big name designers including patricia urquiola, tord boontje and olafur eliasson.

next movement

patricia urquiola's work for the w hotel on vieques island in the caribbean is beautiful.  the hotel features many of urquiola's designer pieces including the chasen modern pendant lamp for flos and the tropicalia cocoon for moroso. via contemporist

something you've been waiting for

love the elegant simplicity of the f/k/a table lamp by jonah takagi for mattermade.   the shade is inspired by a simple saucepan.  via new york shopping

theme music

kanye has done it again.  his latest and greatest is the video for the new jam "power" which debuted last evening on mtv.  he has collaborated with video collage artist marco brambilla.  kanye saw his work in the standard hotel's elevator in new york where a video collage depicts heavenly images as you go up and hell inspired video as you go down.  via fast company design

so into you

another month, another mixtape.  check out new jams from the mixtape club.  my favorite this time around is the after school getdown by siik.  rock on.

grape drink

loving the colors of the vogue italia fall forecast issue.  absolutely gorgeous natural green accented with a rich grape.  great color inspiration for an upcoming project!

light it up

the 001 led lamp by naama hofman is made of acrylic tube and bent metal rod.  check out photos of the design process on designboom.

monochromatic madness

oooo i love unexpected things in monochrome.  i spotted this bike on the south side of milwaukee and was schooled by friends on facebook that it is a hauntingly beautiful ghost bike.  the blue boat by the very cool french artist xavier veilhan was auctioned off in monte carlo.  and last, nike's macaroon line of shoes in ripe raspberry.  delicious.

bend it

the pli chair by maurice marty for roche bobois comes in a lovely shade of pink glass.

heart of the city

gary hustwit has announced he will be creating a third film, urbanized, to add to his design documentary collection.  the film will focus on cities, architects and people who have made a difference in their urban community.  the film will launch in 2011.  in the meantime, if you haven't seen hustwit's first two films, helvetica and objectified, add them to your netflix list.  via fast company

how sick is this?

minneapolis based furniture company blu dot doesn't beat around the bush.  they feature the felt upholstered dodu bed along with the statement "getting the flu sucks.  make it suck less." in their current print advertising.  just telling it like it is.  i dig it.  

bright ideas

sam grawe, dwell magazine's editor-in-chief, speaks with blog designboom on everything from the publication's history to how they have kept the magazine in print while maintaining a great online presence.  grawe states that a quote from eliel saarinen influences the way in which the magazine creates content:  "always design a thing by considering it in its next larger context, a chair in a room, a room in a house, a house in an environment, an environment in a city plan."  the magazine celebrates its tenth anniversary this fall and plans for the future include broadening their scope to incorporate more about the neighborhoods the modern homes they feature are located in.  love it.

flos

lighting company flos features the chasen s pendant lamp designed by the notorious patricia urquiola in their current advertising.  the amount of light the lamp gives off can be altered by mechanically moving the slats which also changes its shape.  available in black or white.

sonic boom

partners & spade has the one of the coolest inspiration photo blogs around.  the marketing and branding company who also produces films, books, apparel and conceptual products has done work with some of the brightest and best including target and lighting company roll & hill.  based in manhattan, the front of their studio serves as an art gallery.  sounds like the best job ever.

home grown

milwaukee based furniture design duo misewell showed pieces from their collection at design within reach last night.  the brothers, who won the best new designers award at the international contemporary furniture fair in 2009, showed some new additions to their collection including a bar stool and lamp.  also featured were some early cardboard prototypes to show the design process.  a job well done!

born free

here is a little color and pattern inspiration from this month's fader magazine.  artist mia looks amazing in a pink lace top against a natural green background.  check out the website featuring her new cd, maya.  i also love this marc by marc jacobs color loop sweater.  i would kill for one but can't find it in this color anywhere.  

diamonds are forever

and crystals are for couches.  furniture company edra's diamond collection features some of their best pieces encrusted with swarovski crystals.  above are the flap sofa (a personal favorite), damier chaise lounge and on the rocks by francesco binfare.  last, but certainly not least, is the sushi chair by fernando and humberto campana.  so glamorous!