Be a Friend

Headed to Duluth for the weekend! Should be beautiful!

Play That Record Babe!

Just DANCE! GGRP hit the jackpot with this incredibly unique design for a 45rpm record in a corrugated cardboard sleeve that doubles as a record player!




This sustainable ear bud packaging is really clever!Designed by Corrine Pant from Canada.


via Lovely Package


Kyle Bean always has some interesting finds in his portfolio. I thought sharing these Music manuscript covered instruments and map covered suitcases would be appropriate today! He made them to complete window displays across the UK.


How much do you love these??

Design: Bookshelves

Today a friend sent me a link to these great Baroque bookshelves!

Too bad Graham and Green are a UK based company…the shipping on these is outrageous!





This Jaren Goh Vintage Shelf designed for Munkii a Singapore based company is also completely adorable.
I love the inverted Baroque design.






Try making this inverted bookshelf. Instructions here.




This other DIY bookshelf is from Spoonfullofchocolate on etsy.






I love these falling bookends from Artori Design.

I always buy way too many books and don't have enough space to put them all. Most of the time, I'm buying antique books I wont even read! :)





But I did get some of these penguin classics that I will eventually make my way through.

Invitations: Wedding

It’s wedding season. It seems everyone I know has at least one wedding to go to this summer if not more. Everyone wants to have unique invites, why not give these a try? Designed by Chris Trivizas from Greece.

“Wedding invitation in a tin can which after the ceremony is attached at the back of the newly married couple’s car.

It is accustomed, after the wedding ceremony, for friends and relatives of the couple to bang saucepans and bells in order to make noise and send away jealous spirits.

The wedding invitation is packaged with a string. While reading the text (date, place, etc), there’s an illustration which explains how to tie the string at the back of the can and the whole making at the back of the car.”

Independence Day

I hope everyone gets out to watch some fireworks on Sunday. It should be a beautiful 4th of July!

Happy Friday!

I hope everyone has a happy Friday!

Click here to download some really sweet dance music from Dance Robots Dance!

Design: Fireplace

So I have a minor obsession with mantles and fireplaces in a home. As a design element, I really feel that they should be the focal point of the living area.

Back when fireplaces were a necessity to keep the family warm and happy, it became a central gathering space for games, activities and conversation. The modern version of the fireplace is the TV. The same concept is in place for both perspectives, gathering the family for a shared experience, but I am still extremely partial to making the fireplace a place for gathering instead of the TV.

HGTV had some good examples of fireplace design

Faux fireplace from Ann Wood

William C. Whitney was a man who understood the idea of what a fireplace should be. Built from 1903 – 1906, his home located in New York at 79th Street and Fifth Avenue across from Central Park is the best example of an Italian Palazzo in the U.S. Whitney had an extremely keen eye for design and interior decorating. He wanted everything to be authentic and had buyers purchase authentic Italian fixtures, furniture and textiles to create his lavish home.

William C. Whitney House, New York, NY

His fireplaces were plentiful, and there were said to always
be burning to make sure everyone felt at home.

Whitney was famous for being a part of the Cleveland Administration, helping to build up the Navy. Eventually buying part of the Metropolitan Railway Company to become co-owner, his wealth only projected him further into high society. He was loved by all who knew him and those in his circle gathered regularly at his house for good food and good conversation.

To learn more about the William C. Whitney House, read this article.