STEAMED ARTICHOKE STUDIO (main blog)

A Mother’s Prayer for Her Child - By Tina Fey

2011-06-05T11:29:00.000-07:00

“First, Lord: No tattoos. May neither Chinese symbol for truth nor Winnie-the-Pooh holding the FSU logo stain her tender haunches.

May she be Beautiful but not Damaged, for it’s the Damage that draws the creepy soccer coach’s eye, not the Beauty.

When the Crystal Meth is offered, may she remember the parents who cut her grapes in half And stick with Beer.

Guide her, protect her when crossing the street, stepping onto boats, swimming in the ocean, swimming in pools, walking near pools, standing on the subway platform, crossing 86th Street, stepping off of boats, using mall restrooms, getting on and off escalators, driving on country roads while arguing, leaning on large windows, walking in parking lots, riding Ferris wheels, roller-coasters, log flumes, or anything called “Hell Drop,” “Tower of Torture,” or “The Death Spiral Rock ‘N Zero G Roll featuring Aerosmith,” and standing on any kind of balcony ever, anywhere, at any age.

Lead her away from Acting but not all the way to Finance. Something where she can make her own hours but still feel intellectually fulfilled and get outside sometimes And not have to wear high heels. What would that be, Lord? Architecture? Midwifery? Golf course design? I’m asking You, because if I knew, I’d be doing it, Youdammit.

May she play the Drums to the fiery rhythm of her Own Heart with the sinewy strength of her Own Arms, so she need Not Lie With Drummers.

Grant her a Rough Patch from twelve to seventeen.Let her draw horses and be interested in Barbies for much too long, For childhood is short – a Tiger Flower blooming Magenta for one day – And adulthood is long and dry-humping in cars will wait.

O Lord, break the Internet forever, that she may be spared the misspelled invective of her peers And the online marketing campaign for Rape Hostel V: Girls Just Wanna Get Stabbed.

And when she one day turns on me and calls me a Bitch in front of Hollister, Give me the strength, Lord, to yank her directly into a cab in front of her friends, For I will not have that Shit. I will not have it.

And should she choose to be a Mother one day, be my eyes, Lord, that I may see her, lying on a blanket on the floor at 4:50 A.M., all-at-once exhausted, bored, and in love with the little creature whose poop is leaking up its back. “My mother did this for me once,” she will realize as she cleans feces off her baby’s neck. “My mother did this for me.” And the delayed gratitude will wash over her as it does each generation and she will make a Mental Note to call me. And she will forget. But I’ll know, because I peeped it with Your God eyes.

Amen.”

-Tina Fey

Birthday party inspiration for Z's first year

2011-05-19T13:34:00.000-07:00

Dresser Inspiration

2011-05-10T12:52:00.000-07:00

This is what I wanted - but just couldn't bring myself to spend so much on a dresser.

This is what I could afford.

This was my way of getting what I wanted without breaking the bank.

...And, the outcome.

One of my favorite before-and-after features from Sunset Magazine

2011-04-13T14:51:00.000-07:00

Before:

After:

Before:

After:

See all images at Sunset.com

World's smallest living room project. More Ideas.

2011-04-12T15:03:00.000-07:00

The lake house dream (or a river- whatever works)

2011-03-06T09:00:00.001-08:00

One step closer to making this happen - picturing it. :) Someday this will be a reality for our family. We will spend long weekends and holidays here with friends & family. It will be our tradition. (just need to find this perfect place).

Adding to the inspiration.

Gathering ideas for new place

2011-02-28T21:45:00.001-08:00

The house (read: cottage shown above) is half the size of our current place. I'm trying to get crafty with some small space solutions. The living room/dining area will be the hardest part. (17x11ft). Not a lot to work with! Any ideas are welcome.

My Dream House

2010-12-17T14:19:00.001-08:00

See more @ The Selby

Sneak Peek

2010-03-27T18:19:00.001-07:00

Just a little teaser. I purchased this graphic from Blik Graphics and installed it last weekend. Still have a bunch of final touches before the big reveal. The armchair re-upholstery project is almost complete! Just need to find an ottoman on craig's list (will re-upholster that too!). I have about 4-6 weeks to complete everything before our world changes.

Saw this on Ohdeedoh

2010-03-06T09:34:00.000-08:00

Turn Thumb Print Leaves Into Family Heirloom. Click here to read the full post.

Weekend laziness

2010-02-21T17:33:00.001-08:00

Dan and Badu lounging on the couch (testing out the new camera).

Planning on growing tomatoes in San Francisco?

2010-01-31T13:03:00.000-08:00

SunCalc figures it out!
Luster Leaf is best known for digital monitors that check the pH and moisture levels of your soil, but the company's SunCalc targets a different variable: light. The "sunlight calculator" measures the amount of sunshine that actually reaches a specific spot during a 12-hour period -- key to determining which plants should go where. A University of Maine global warming monitoring station put the SunCalc through its paces, and it ultimately performed on a par with the school's radiometer. The device costs about $30. To find retailers, click here Source: LA Times.

The perfect mobile

2010-01-30T11:02:00.001-08:00

Wallter Palm Mobile. Saw this in a window display on Valencia St. last week.

Still brainstorming on nursery ideas

2010-01-30T10:54:00.000-08:00

I like the white flowers in the vase and sheepskin rugs. This would contrast nicely with charcoal walls.

Room inspiration for baby room

2010-01-22T16:53:00.000-08:00

I might cut and paint old cardboard boxes in the shape of cherry blossom trees to create more depth for the baby room. Ideas Ideas Ideas

Houston, we have a baby blog

2010-01-17T10:51:00.001-08:00

www.kowtababy.blogspot.com ETA: May 22nd 2010

Tile Research

2010-01-15T10:09:00.000-08:00

The tile project for Liz and Steve's new bathroom.

I think it might be best to go with large tiles on the floor and stark white subway tiles (half way up the wall around the tub) and full wall for the shower (subway tile). See additional links+samples below for Lowes and Heath Ceramics.

Here are Few links:

Heath Ceramics (Bay Area)
http://heathceramics.com/go/heath/tile/tile-colors/
Style: M46
This looks good for the floor.

These subway tiles seem like a pretty good price:
lowe's subway tile. For backsplash or bathroom walls, a glossy old standby that never goes stale.
American Olean 3" x 6" #64396
$.22 each
lowes.com

Mid Century Rocker - what a great idea

2009-11-15T13:42:00.000-08:00

Saw this on Apartment Therapy the other day (via Urban Outfitters). Love this concept. Not to mention,...it's under 300.00. Not too shabby.

My big Idea....someone else made it happen.

2009-11-14T09:41:00.001-08:00

I AM SUPER HAPPY to see this come to life! Especially since it's from the folks who were laid off when Domino magazine shut down. I envisioned a different interface - but this is a great start. Print publications need to embrace the online space. They need to figure out how to bring the "magazine on your coffee table, in your hands, flip through it several times" experience to the online world. Which is NOT totally impossible in this headline-scanning online world. I'll be checking out Lonny Mag from here on out. (and maybe I'll redraft my business plan,..just for kicks. Who knows what the the future might bring). ;) Check it out, lonnymag.com

Nesting Dolls - cups

2009-10-11T14:19:00.000-07:00

How cute are these nesting dolls from from Fred & Friends? They measure 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 2/3, 3/4 and 1 full cup. Great holiday gift idea.

New Chair Project. Fabric Search is on!

2009-10-04T20:17:00.001-07:00

Well, I'm fortunate enough to know folks with furniture to spare. Sort of. Shannon (i work with her) knew about my love for reupholstering chairs and asked if I'd be interested in a chair her parents were about to toss. Yes! ..oh, I should see it first. Saw it, it was perfect (photo to be posted soon). High back, library chair. Really looking forward a hearty Fall project. Must find fabric soon. (thanks Shannon! and Shannon's parents!)

MIssion Kitchen

2009-10-04T20:10:00.001-07:00

Baked about 3-dozen gluten free choc chip cookies today. It's not that I don't like our new kitchen, but I kinda miss our old Mission kitchen (gypsy style). The sugar holder is one of my favorite pieces - thank you Esther. It's so happy and so original. I can't remember where she got it - some secret shopping spot that we cannot reveal on the information super highway!!

Goodbye Purple. Hello Slate.

2009-09-26T16:27:00.000-07:00

Click below image for a bigger view of purple-ness

Couldn't take the purple walls any longer. Finally painted over them last weekend. It took me 15 minutes to pick the colors: Dark slate wall is Anchor Gray 2126-30 (much darker than I expected) and the light gray color is Pigeon Gray 2133-50. Both are Benjamin Moore interior flat. The white walls are swiss coffee.

Gluten Free. I heart Baby Cakes AND Erin McKenna

2009-09-24T12:56:00.000-07:00

BabyCakes, the Book of Recipes: It's Here! from BabyCakes NYC on Vimeo.

This new cookbook is on my holiday wish list. (I'll probably buy it this weekend)

www.babycakesnyc.com

Brainstorming this fine Tuesday

2009-09-15T07:49:00.000-07:00

Too little time these days for 'real' brainstorming sessions. Need to figure out a way to slow down time so I can sit in peace and really think through some ideas. This mug will have to do for now.

Poker night at the homestead

2009-09-12T16:29:00.000-07:00

Ok, so it's not a creative project, but these are my closest friends and they inspire me to create. That should count for something, right? Right.

Dining Room - Before and After

2009-09-12T16:13:00.001-07:00

Finally posting these photos. The entire front portion of our house was originally canary yellow. It was just too much. we painted the living room white with one accent wall and one wall with a giant robot panting. I wanted the dining room to stand out on its own w/o competing with the living room. And for some weird reason, I wanted it to feel beach-like. There's an amazing skylight in the dining room with an old-school (anthropologie-like) chandelier). I repainted the dining room chairs from red to lime green and bought that giant lamp at thrift store and spray painted it a high-gloss white. Got the sea-grass rug at a remnant shop in the East Bay (total steal!). This room makes me happy every time I walk into it. (the dining table is also used for ping pong - after work stress relief).

THE BUTCHER SHOP 2009

2009-09-08T21:36:00.000-07:00

Very inspiring weekend with the Chicoans. Still thinking about all of the wonderful performances! Photo: Suzanne Karp More photos HERE.

Kitchen Re-Do

2009-02-14T16:36:00.001-08:00

We recently moved out of the worst living situation we have ever encountered (long story) and moved to a wonderful new home and are thrilled with our new living environment! We decided to give the kitchen a nice update. It went from royal blue to off-white with a chalkboard wall. We also added some drapes (Amy Butler fabric) for the front window. Of course, the kitchen wouldn't be complete without Dan's Japanese doorway drapes. Happy Kitchen.

New Robot Painting

2009-02-14T16:00:00.000-08:00

If Badu could talk, she would have been asking me...."are you REALLY going to paint over your old canvases?!" I thought about it for a while and it was time to put some new art in our house. Our new place is probably the most grown-up space we've ever lived in. I wanted to balance our urban-pirate-gypsy style with the conservative structure of the house. I've always wanted to paint a giant robot and this was the perfect excuse.

Domino, Shopping and Decorating Magazine, Closes

2009-01-29T12:43:00.000-08:00

Total Bummer.

By STEPHANIE CLIFFORD
Published: January 28, 2009
Domino, a three-year-old shopping and home décor magazine, will stop publishing with its March issue, Condé Nast Publications announced Wednesday.

Street art that brings a tear to my eye. Happy Inauguration Day!

2009-01-20T12:19:00.000-08:00

unurth.com

CES - Booth Design in Da house!

2009-01-07T10:49:00.000-08:00

I'm here in Las Vegas with Shaun Charity - our lead designer for the overall booth design. Mad props to Mr. CHarity for a job well done. We're admiring all of our hard work and wanted to share it with the team - and didn't want to clog the work-email pipe. Overall, great work by the entire team - some shout-outs to our key players: Vibol, Alex, Keith, Andy, Shaun, Khoa and Gina for all of their hard work. Great Great Job!

Glorious Day! Rockin' Obama!

2008-11-05T07:24:00.000-08:00

I am so thankful the election has come to a close. I have been so stressed out about the outcome.

Now I am simply, ...over the moon.

I feel proud to be an American for the first time in a LONG time. I feel hopeful. I feel like the United States just gave itself a giant hug. I am inspired by this wonderful man and I'm inspired knowing that millions of people in this country want to make this a better world and that they too believe in change.

Yes we can.

*artwork by David Choe

I also wanted to add in an email that my aunt sent me this morning from Pennsylvania. It was very moving and I believe that most people feel this way too:

"Well-----history has been made and we are all alive to experience this amazing outcome. I truly feel as tho we have better times ahead for us -- we can only hope and pray.
I have to admit that I had tears running down my face last evening, listening to Barack give his speech. Watching the crowd crying, looking at his wife and children, seeing the combining of Joe Biden's family and Barack's family---and knowing that people all over the world were feeling a lift and a pride in our nation, just reduced me to tears.
The lack of sleep doesn't matter at this point---even a jubilant Max jumped out of bed this morning and I KNOW he didn't fall asleep until after 1:00 am. Seeing my neighbor, Delaney this morning shaking my hand, and thanking us for being involved in an election that made a man president who has his same skin color, made me very proud of the voting process.
I wouldn't want the job of president for all the money in the world----but thank God there is someone who feels as tho he can make a change to make this country , once again, a respected place for ALL the world to see.
Now we wait and see if ALL the people in this country can drop their prejudices and join together to help get us back to a greatness of which we are so capable.
Have a wonderful day everyone---YES WE CAN.
Love
Roe"

Getting Back on Track + Inspiration

2008-10-28T12:07:00.000-07:00

Well, I've been MIA for the last 4 months. We moved, I started a new job (redesigned and launched a new brand+website) and I'm about to do it all over again. All of it, moving included.

Needless to say, my personal-creative-life has suffered. Dan and I are anxious to move to a welcoming space with great energy, good vibes, and most importantly, no construction. Keeping the positive thoughts alive, I was inspired today to add a new posting. My pal Grace (who I've never met in person, but have shared many-an-email with & has featured some of my work on her site) was featured in Domino this month! Hot diggity dog! I am so happy for her and so pleased that Domino gave her a huge shout-out. Congrats! For more info on the article and Design Sponge, click here

2008-06-29T15:16:00.000-07:00

Bedroom Before and After

We moved & it's time to purge....

2008-06-29T14:37:00.000-07:00

I'm finally selling some of my older paintings. i simply don't have room for them anymore. I'm holding on to some of my favorites, of course, but these ones are on the selling block. If you're interested, drop me a line.

Odd
4 x 3 ft
$100.00

Lemons
3 x 4.5 ft
$150.00

Passion
2.5 x 3.5 ft
$50.00

Red Fish "listen to what's inside"
4 x 2 ft
$100.00

Featured on "Project Nursery"

2008-04-28T22:18:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Melisa for blogging about my nursery project for Sara & Joe!!!! It was featured as the "project of the week"! How exciting!! Check out their post at www.projectnursery.com Sara and Joe are now the proud parents of a beautiful baby girl.

Before & After. Sofia Chair (SOLD)

2008-04-13T17:00:00.000-07:00

I meant to post this earlier, but I've been m.i.a. for the last week. Long story, for a different blog. Anyway....I bought this chair down on valencia and reupholstered it with this GREAT fabric from PeaPod fabrics. The name of the fabric is Alexander Henry Fabrics (SOFIA). I love it. I've been wanting to create a chair similar to an anthropologie chair. Well, this took 3 days total. I don't know if I'll do a "wing back" chair again. They're a little more tricky than the last chair.Oh, and by the way, this little lady is for sale. I've taken on too many projects and need to keep our place clutter-free. It's priced to sell. $200.00. Feel free to email me if you're interested. (fyi: the anthro chair sells for $1,298 or $974.00 on sale) Yikes! This chair has been SOLD.

Featured on my favorite blog...

2008-04-03T13:12:00.000-07:00

My lamp project was featured on Design Sponge today. So exciting! Thank you Grace for the posting!

DIY Lamp & Shade (Amy Butler meets Jonathan Adler)

2008-03-29T13:11:00.000-07:00

I found this lamp base at a thrift store on Valencia along with the lampshade. I spray painted the base and the wire with high-gloss white and covered the lampshade with fabric and ribbon from Peapod Fabrics. The fabric design is by Amy Butler. I love her patterns! Sadly, I don't get to keep the lamp. It was a commissioned piece - a perfect birthday giftie from one sister to another. I'm sure I will be making more very soon!

Retro Folding Chairs - for sale. (SOLD)

2008-03-29T12:50:00.000-07:00

These chairs are perfect for a small patio or back yard. They fold up quite easily and are easy to store. If you're interested, please post a comment with your info and I'll get in touch with you. $100 for both chairs. THESE HAVE BEEN SOLD.

Tuesday Morning Brainstorming

2008-03-25T10:38:00.000-07:00

I started my day at 7am this morning. I'm brainstorming for several clients and couldn't help but take a picture of this vignette. I always think about New Orleans and Habitat for Humanity when I drink from my Cafe DuMond mug. And I can't help but dunk my peanut butter toast (gluten free, of course) into my coffee!!!!! Perfect brain food. Happy Tuesday!

Closet ReOrg

2008-03-21T13:29:00.000-07:00

This was a fun marathon project. I've never constructed so many wardrobe units in such a short period of time (one day. one long day). This was truly a joint effort and if it weren't for the two bottles of champaign we consumed, I don't think we could have finished. We started at 11am: We shopped, bought all the pieces (4 wardrobe units+accessories), drove them back to the house, built the entire closet and filled it by 10pm. Mission accomplished! Click here for more technology drive updates.

DIY - Lamp Shade

2008-02-27T20:09:00.000-08:00

Making the drum was easy. Hanging it was an entirely different story. I added fishing wire, but it kept hanging off kilter. Keep in mind that I'm trying to cover up an ugly chandelier. I finally hot-glued the thing together out of frustration. I need to figure out out to hang these properly (and it has to be easy). I'll update my findings in a day or so. If you have any suggestions, please let me know. :) Materials used:
-150lb. paper, acid-free/recycled printed paper - both purchased at Flax.
-Hot glue
-Spray mount
-Fishing wire

Technology Drive Phase 1.5 complete

2008-02-21T17:09:00.001-08:00

Click Here to see more images along with before and after photos.

Lombard Nursery & Home Office Project

2008-02-21T14:04:00.000-08:00

There are more photos on the Lombard blog! To view the before and after picks, CLICK HERE

Technology Drive Interior Project. PHASE I complete.

2008-01-30T15:14:00.000-08:00

This was a great project and my client Molly is a gem to work with! This project consisted of 5 different paint colors and a couple of store bought items. Colors:
Light blue: Coastal Mist. Semi gloss. Brand:Behr
Darker blue: Topical Brreeze. Flat. Brand:Behr
Red: Hunting Coat Red TH43. Brand:Ralph Lauren
Trim: Swiss Coffee - Semi gloss. Brand:Behr
Brown: This is a custom color that I created (Ralph Lauren base)
Most importantly, we salvaged some extra goodies that were hidden away in the house (the round mirror, the hanging rack, etc.) We stayed on budget and completed the project in 4 days. CLICK HERE for more BEFORE & AFTER pictures.

Environmental Design Projects

2008-01-22T18:15:00.000-08:00

I have 2 "in my free-time" projects that I'm really excited about. My goal is to use as many sustainable and Earth-friendly products as possible. I'm due to complete Phase I of "Technology Dive" this weekend and I'll be implementing (yeah, that means painting, installing, etc.) the "Lombard" project towards the end of February. I created two separate blogs to host the concept images. I'll post the "before and after" images when I'm finished. Check out Technology Drive and Lombard Nursery for more details. If you have any cool nursery sites that you'd like to share, I'd love to hear about them!

Winter workshop - handmade gifts

2008-01-04T18:30:00.000-08:00

This was my big DIY project for the holidays. I was so inspired by some rings I bought on mission street (at a random craft fair) I made these fabric covered buttons for my family and friends. If you're interested in purchasing some for yourself, please let me know! Rings = $7 ea. Hair clips = $5 each. I have yards and yards of beautiful fabric left over.

Snow in Paradise

2008-01-04T18:29:00.002-08:00

We stayed in paradise on the 27th and it snowed!! My Christmas wish came true! All of the relatives (parents, aunts, cousins, and dogs) ran around the night it started to snow and we had a good 'ol fashioned snowball fight. This last shot is a picture of the world's smallest feet - my mum's boots and my wimpy hiking shoes. The photo before that is Dano - enjoying the winter snow. Here are some more photos of the family in Salt Lake city (my cousins, my aunt with her students, Jean and John visiting from Scotland and at mom's house)

Our handed-down fake tree

2008-01-04T18:29:00.001-08:00

My parents had this tree for many years and finally decided to get a new-fake-tree. This old timer looked beautiful in our font window and hopefully we'll use it for years to come.

Winter workshop - handmade holiday cards

2008-01-04T18:28:00.001-08:00

I decided at the last minute that I was going to made our holiday cards. I created an original piece of art (this was was the longest part - 2 days (it's nothing like any of my paintings) and took a photo of it. I then printed it out on photo paper and mounted it on nice card stock. I stamped all of the envelopes with my favorite birdie stamp (this has appeared in several paintings over the years) and I also added some snowflake stamps. I still can't believe the cards made it to their destinations before christmas! Click on the image for more details.

Reduce Reuse Recycle - my ongoing theme

2007-12-06T15:56:00.000-08:00

These dining room chairs were so old (10yrs), chipped and mismatched. Instead of throwing them out, I tightened the screws, sanded and repainted them bright red. I've been meaning to do this for a couple of years now,...I can't believe I waited so long to update these old chairs. Paint: $6. Outcome: Priceless (BTW: the dining room table is made out of recycled wood - taken from an old barn in Northern California. The vase is a wedding gift: Jonathan Adler)

NYE 2008: ZADIN announcement

2007-12-05T16:41:00.000-08:00

Designed this for Truc and Bao yesterday. If you want to grab a bite before your big NYE party, Zadin will be seating people until 10pm. Click on the image for details.

Apartment Clean-up for the Holidays

2007-11-21T10:43:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine (who will remain anonymous) needed to make her studio apartment “parent-friendly” for Thanksgiving and asked me to help out in the daunting task of tossing newspapers and purging her huge collection of grocery bags from her lovely home. I had one afternoon to get her place in tip-top order. I trimmed some branches from my backyard, grabbed the Makita drill and printed out some funky images for her wall frames and headed off to the other side of the city. It didn’t take long and I think her folks will be proud when they visit her tomorrow! The next step: color, fabric, art and maybe swapping out some furniture. What fun!!

House & Garden will stop publishing with its December issue.

2007-11-15T14:02:00.000-08:00

By Dominique Browning, Editor.
It is hard to know what to say, with so little time to say it. House and Garden will close its doors this week; the December issue is the last to be published. I wish I could show you all our gorgeous January issue, produced with guest editor Murray Moss. Our copies of it will become collector's items…

Zadin Gets a New Street Sign!

2007-11-01T11:16:00.000-07:00

I was tasked with making a street sign for Zadin a couple of weeks ago. I've never made an outdoor sign before, so I hit the streets of San Francisco and asked local merchants what they used to make their own. Sign-making is like an ancient art. It's the complete opposite of my information-super-highway life! I used all recycled materials, with the exception of the sewing rings (this created a 3D effect) and the industrial size chop sticks. Everything else was "green." (3D is the key to making a really cool sign!). The project went on 3 days longer than I had anticipated - the paint took much longer to dry than I thought it would. I'm hoping it will last through San Francisco's rainy winter season! I really enjoy working on side projects like this – it’s nice to get away from the ‘ol computer from time to time.

Living Room - reduce, reuse, recycle

2007-10-03T20:36:00.000-07:00

I'm thinking about submitting my living room to Domino for one of their contests. Not too sure if this is worthy. The good thing is - most of the furniture has been bought as a used item and restored. Yep, that's my theme: reduce, reuse. recycle.

Feng Shui About it

2007-10-03T18:29:00.000-07:00

I read an article in Domino this month about Feng Shui. Apparently “Red” generates energy and is perfect near a front door. So,…I took some liberties and painted a tree on the inside of our front door. (ok, .so I got tired of looking down at our junkie entrance at the bottom of the stairs) It’s a win-win for everyone!

Working in the Studio

2007-10-03T18:20:00.000-07:00

I’ve been spending a lot of time in the studio lately. I finally got tired of looking at all of my books, magazines and spray mount cans. I also wanted to use the rest of the ava green (also known as ava-get-over-it these days). I’ll probably replace the fabric in the next few weeks. I think Badu is officially sick of green. I think I’m officially sick of green too,… but I’m loving the new studio set-up.

Ava Green keeps on giving...

2007-09-20T17:49:00.000-07:00

I'm still crazy for the Ava Green fabric! I also wanted to share my second-hand purchases. Click on the image for more details. My goal is to buy as much sustainable furniture from here on out. (yes, that means updating old pieces from Salvation Army, etc.) If you have a piece that you would like to update, let me know and I'll be happy to help out. I'm trying to encourage my friends to be sustainable too. :)

Chair Re-Do - Featured on Design Sponge & Modern Gear TV

2007-09-05T14:29:00.000-07:00

This was by far, one of the best projects I've taken on. I've never worked on furniture before. It was much easier than I thought it would be. All told, it took about 2 full days of work. I'm in love with this new look! UPDATE: A few tips for DIYers. I took photos as I went along so I could retrace my steps. I also numbered each piece of fabric as I removed it. (it's a lot like putting a puzzle together). I bought 5 yards of material from reprodepot and 4 yards of batting. I then made patterns from each existing piece. Be sure to use a strong staple gun and you can always use a hot glue gun for the small/detail areas. Good luck!! Thanks to Grace @ Design Sponge for posting my project!

Building Zadin's Menu

2007-09-05T14:24:00.001-07:00

After lots of cutting, sanding, trimming and spray mounting, the menus are complete. The idea was to create an easy-to-update menu for Truc and Bao. I changed the design to a legal size paper (no trimming required) and found great colored paper in Berkeley (xpedex). The header paper for the menu and the wine list came from Paper Source. I learned a lot about wear & tear duing this process. Menus really get beaten up over a short period of time! The clip-board-wood on the back really helps protect the look of the menu. Now we have to make dessert menus. WooHoo!

Slowing the Camera Down

2007-09-05T14:06:00.001-07:00

We wanted to see if we could make images with light (an hour later, we finally stopped). Pretty cool!

DIY Vanilla Sugar - Favorite Gift to Make

2007-09-05T13:54:00.000-07:00

I made two jars of this. One went to my mom and Suzanne got the other one as a house warming giftie. I love vanilla sugar in my coffee. Mmmm. (Note: I'm saving all of my salsa, pickle, and jam jars so I can make a bunch of these for the holidays). My pal from London wanted the DIy details on this, so here they are:

Use tall and narrow salsa jars with a screw top. (that way you can keep the vanilla sticks long and they look more elegant).

What you'll need:
-One jar with lid
-One vanilla stick (cut a 1/4 off the end so you have a long and short stick in the jar) Keep the "cut" end in the sugar (leaving the nice end slightly sticking out).
-Cute paper to write on & spray mount (or rubber cement - be sure to put some on the jar & the paper for super-secure hold)

You can buy vanilla sticks at most whole-food-organic-like stores

I've been re-filling my own jar with sugar using the SAME vanilla sticks for the last 2 months. (still has a strong vanilla taste)

Chair Music

2007-08-19T17:07:00.000-07:00

Here's one of my largest paintings - Chair Music. It's 6ft x 3ft! I'll probably need to sell this one soon. We're running out of room in our flat!

"She Forgot" painting

2007-08-06T19:24:00.000-07:00

Click on the photo to see a super hi-res image with lots of details.

Missing the old Loft in Downtown LA

2007-08-06T19:12:00.000-07:00

I came across this old photo taken in the loft parking lot. So many creative people lived in the Santa Fe Building back then. Clothing designers, furniture builders, music editors, sculptors, architects, painters, photographers, etc I need a little bit more of that in my hood. This photo is from a sculpting project that I worked on with Christoff Koon. We worked day and night for 3 weeks straight. Lots of fun! Those are his girls in the photo, Navasha and Chantal. Too cute.

Escape

2007-08-06T19:06:00.000-07:00

I converted one of my paintings into a black and white print. I made a few t-shirts with this image. I'm thinking about converting some of my other paintings to make other original t-shirts.

Belated Kitchen update

2007-07-20T10:57:00.001-07:00

We made a few changes to the kitchen when we moved in. Esther really motivated us - we were ready to give up after the second layer of primer. Fast forward a year and a half: 2 weeks ago, our building was put on the market. I'm sure we'll have to move out when the new owners take over. Ah the joys of being a renter. No regrets about the work we put into this place. It was totally worth it! I'm looking forward to the next project when we move.

Zadin - Interior Design & Branding Project

2007-07-19T16:00:00.001-07:00

My close friends, Bao & Truc, asked me to help them redecorate their new Vietnamese restaurant, Zadin. The existing interior resembled a spa like feel (almost to the point of a doctor's office). It wasn’t terribly inviting. I picked warm accent colors (brick red) that changed the environment overnight. The color brought out the bamboo strands in the hanging panels – making the wall much more interesting to look at. I also created their entire identity system (logo, business cards and handmade wood menus). Dan created their website and I’m happy to say that the restaurant is doing great! Not to mention that almost all of the dishes are Gluten Free.

Updated Bathroom

2007-07-19T15:40:00.001-07:00

It's pretty amazing what a little bit of paint can do. The pulley system is something I threw together via Ikea. Oh,.. it's so much better than green and purple.

Bathroom: before

2007-07-19T12:17:00.000-07:00

This bathroom resembled a scene from the movie "Seven" when we first saw it. army green & dark purple. Yeesch. This was the first interior design project Dan and I worked on together.

New Orleans - with One Brick

2007-06-18T14:35:00.000-07:00

I got an email from One Brick about a trip to New Orleans in May.
Something about just grabbed be. (I think I needed a break from the 'ol rat-race)
I announced to Dan that we were going to NOLA and that I was booking our flight in the next 10 minutes.
I don't think it really hit him that we were really going until we got in the cab and headed to SFO.

It's one of the best 'Last Minute' things we've ever done. We worked our tails off, helped a bunch of folks out and met a bunch of great people from all over the country. We worked on three homes in one week, ...all in St. Bernard Parish. Here's a blog where other folks wrote about their week + pictures: One Brick Blog