DESIGNwatcher.com

>> hiatus

2011-08-10T13:10:00.001-07:00

I'm taking a brief vacation from DESIGNwatcher for the time being and directing my blogging focus toward Tomboy Style. Back soon I hope! —LGM

>> scenes from san francisco

2011-07-05T09:06:00.000-07:00

The General Store in The Sunset: me likes.

Mollusk Surf Shop rules.

Post-run grilled cheese at Outerlands and a quick pop into the Heath Ceramics factory in Sausalito.

>> dwell on design 2011

2011-06-24T17:40:00.000-07:00

I just got back from this year's Dwell on Design exhibition in downtown Los Angeles, which was a pretty good showing! The guy up there in the Sleeper get-up is spray painting the rhythm of random people's heart beats and then auctioning off the artwork for charity. Here are few pics of items and designs that caught my eye.

A+R's genius Hot-Pot BBQ by Black + Blum and great wireless portable speakers also at the A+R booth.

Rewired and re-purposed shoe lamps (?) and Heath's house number plates, which are to die for.

Minimalist loose-leaf tea strainer and ceramic speakers by Joey Roth.

Molo Design's lighting booth was pretty dreamy and loved this pendant cage lamp.

Public Bikes out in full-force!

LOVED these cast honey bears by Lesley Anton. So cute!

Nice lookin' hammocks. Nice lamp?

Charley Harper + Todd Oldham, so great.

>> lion pet

2011-06-23T13:19:00.000-07:00

Photos via the LIFE archives.

Seriously, what's the worst that could happen?

More images from the series: here!

>> chippendales on craigslist

2011-06-17T12:06:00.001-07:00

Last Friday I drove down to a neighborhood near San Pedro (where the 405 and 110 meet) and bought two 1950s Chippendale chairs (see above left photo). The cushions were beat and the fabric covering them...was, how do I say, a total nightmare. But I knew these were a great deal and had real potential once the cushions were redone. Today I picked them up from the fabric guy and...tada, new living room chairs at a livable price!

>> the pink swan project

2011-06-15T09:19:00.001-07:00

My friend Larissa over at Suite NY turned me on to their Pink Swan project this morning. 19 designers, architects and fashion icons were given the iconic Fritz Hansen Swan Chair designed by Arne Jacobsen in 1958 to customize. The chairs will be auctioned on charitybuzz.com and proceeds will benefit the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Hot puppies.

>> father's day gift guide

2011-06-11T08:50:00.000-07:00

Check out my Father's Day gift guide over at the L.A. Times, packed with gear, tech, and tools!

>> popular headwear

2011-05-24T17:44:00.000-07:00

This is so cute for a little kid's room (via Mary Caple).

>> mathematics by the yard

2011-05-20T14:40:00.001-07:00

I found this article in a 1954 issue of LIFE while looking for something else. One of the anonymous designers quoted in the article said, "Geometric prints are a reaction against flowers and fruit." Bold stuff.

>> eccleston cushion

2011-05-17T16:22:00.000-07:00

I love this pillow from Aubin & Wills! Get it here ($113).

>> 2011 Venice Garden + Home tour

2011-05-08T14:37:00.000-07:00

A few snaps from another great year of snooping around people's homes and gardens in Venice!

This is where "The Dude" lived in The Big Lebowski!

Bee keeping on the West Siiiide!

Nice Tom Dixon pendant lamp on the left.

Drool.

>> sky lanterns

2011-05-02T11:13:00.001-07:00

Matt and I just got back from The Bahamas for our dear friend Alex's birthday. After dinner one night, paper sky lanterns were set off over the harbor and we all watched as they slowly floated up into the dark sky—one of the most beautiful and poetic things I've ever seen at a dinner party. The airborne paper lanterns (also known as Kongming Lanterns) are a staple in some Asian cultures and are simply constructed from oiled rice paper on a bamboo frame, and contain a small candle or fuel cell composed of a waxy flammable material. When lit, the flame heats the air inside the lantern, lifting the lantern into the air. So cool and so great for weddings and parties! Get a 5 pack right here for $18.

>> color exercizes

2011-04-21T09:29:00.000-07:00

I love how complete and composed a simple color exercise can look. Total eye candy. Images via The Basic Design Collection at The Visual Arts Data Service.

>> playing hooky, I mean golf

2011-04-13T11:13:00.000-07:00

I'm not saying that Matt and I took off work a little early to hit the links yesterday, and I'm not saying we didn't...

Travis Matthew Tee Time t-shirt (which of course would not be recommended for wearing on the actual course) ($39); Matt swears by this book and so does his grandfather who has had at least one hole-in-one post-shoulder replacement surgery (!): Ben Hogan's Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf ($17); vintage trophies (prices vary); Coors Light (the most watered-down beer around!); ribbon belt ($40); Matt has an old beat up pair of FootJoys that he wouldn't get rid of for $1000, there's a lot of ugly golf shoes out there, best to go with the classics, like: FootJoy Icon shoes ($140); I love Scotty Cameron putters, unless I miss the putt and then I hate them!

>> red, white and paddle

2011-04-04T20:38:00.001-07:00

I've become so obsessed with paddle tennis that on Sunday afternoon I made Matt play with me after he got off a six hour flight. Nice wife, right?

L.L. Bean custom tote ($39); Blue Crab Bay Bloody mix ($8); Wilson Slash paddle ($129); Bird-Electron portable speaker ($90); Bobble filtering water bottle ($10); Tennis needlepoint key fob ($25); Rod Lavers ($55); Boast polo ($68).

>> willing warmer weather

2011-03-31T08:49:00.000-07:00

Photos of a man snow surfing in Aspen via the LIFE archive by Bill Eppridge.

>> Schumacher wallpaper

2011-03-28T09:59:00.000-07:00

My friend Anne recently reminded me how much I love Garden & Gun Magazine, and here's the perfect testament: I went to the website and there they were, gorgeous images of Schumacher's "Nest" collection wallpaper! It looks so luxurious and beautiful.

>> plumes

2011-03-27T19:12:00.001-07:00

Hermes Home has some spectacular new items, including two items I'm drooling over (both with feather motifs), the above porcelain ashtray ($630) and this 25" x 25" pillow cover ($680). Just kinda sorta pricey unfortunately.

>> caro's avocado smoothie

2011-03-21T16:28:00.000-07:00

This is officially the best thing I've made in less than 60 seconds. I caught the recipe on Caro's Concoctions on YouTube (via Facebook) a few days ago and haven't been able to get it out of my head! Carolina is an editor at Epicurious and she and I also went to the same high school. Click here for her video and in the mean time will someone please get this woman a TV show!? Here's the recipe:

Put an avocado in a blender.
Fill about half way with milk.
Add honey.
Blend.
Pour.
Sprinkle with granola.
Eat.

>> cool crest

2011-03-18T09:23:00.001-07:00

Spotted in downtown L.A.

>> cecil beaton + david hockney

2011-03-17T14:39:00.001-07:00

I have been so deeply entrenched in women's fashion lately over at Tomboy Style, that I've been sort of thirsty for men's duds...on men. Above are two images I scanned from my book David Hockney Photographs (1982), Cecil Beaton by David Hockney in 1971 and David Hockney by Mark Lancaster (Hockney thinks) in 1976.

>> st. patrick...

2011-03-17T09:43:00.000-07:00

...would have wanted me to have this 1963 911. I'm pretty certain.

Also, check out Steve McQueen's 1970 911S on ACL which is coming up for auction this August.

>> sugar's perspective

2011-03-14T10:27:00.001-07:00

I saw this on A Continuous Lean and have since watched it over half a dozen times. I grew up with Golden Retrievers, so, to me this is one of the best things EVER.

>> son of a gun

2011-03-14T10:11:00.000-07:00

Photos by EaterLA.

Matt and I went to the newly opened (late Feb) Son of a Gun (8370 W. 3rd St, LA) last weekend, and despite the fact that most people had to wait 30 minutes or so to be seated (with a reservation!), we LOVED it. In fact, the shrimp toast sandwich with siracha mayo has been on my brain ever since. If your wildest foodie fantasy is combining carbs with seafood in multiple ways (mine), then definitely check it out. The interior design by Ruth De Jongis is East Coast-y and eclectic with a few hints of California—all their plates are Heath Ceramics—which I loved.

>> japan

2011-03-11T09:35:00.000-08:00

Sending out love to all those effected by the quake in Japan. Matt and I incredulously watched the tsunami footage last night; absolutely gut-wrenching. Go to The Red Cross website or text REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation.