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April 24, 2015

Happy Weekend

01/ If you guess Clip Bag is a purse that looks like an office clip you’re spot on.
02/ Loving this geometric pouf that’s partially made out of concrete.
03/ James Nizam wraps reflective tape around architectural details.
04/ Freedom Cove is a 12 platform floating home in Canada!
05/ Sylvain Viau delivers on the hover cars we’ve been waiting for.
06/ Street artist JR‘s latest in NYC has made the cover of The New York Times Magazine.
07/ A Japanese smartphone game where the goal is to collect as many cats as possible!
08/ Stunning pieces from Raw Edges Design Studio made from dyed end cuts of timber.
09/ A-Holes: A Type Book is such a fun idea.
10/ Freeline skates are basically a small skateboard for each foot – would you dare?

This week on Design Crush:
It’s cooled down quite a bit the second half of this week, Sang the Swallow‘s cozy paintings are a perfect fit.
I’ve been trying to look up more often and See for Yourself: A Visual Guide to Everyday Beauty drives that idea home.
Feather Studies are especially timely as well.
Happy National Card + Letter Writing Month! Celebrate my sending out some snail mail.
Whimsical animal sculptures from Hella Jongerius.
All Streets catalogues every street in every state (and some countries)!
Beautiful melted ice cream treats photographed by Michael Massaia.
Prep yourself for Cinco de Mayo with margaritas 12 ways.
Check out Owen Gents‘ work that’s both dreamy and tragic.

Posted In bags, create, furniture, grand design, graphic design, happy weekend, house and home, installation, living, mixed media, read up, series, street, style, technology, wear it

April 20, 2015

See for Yourself: A Visual Guide to Everyday Beauty

You know those sometimes rare moments in life that remind you there’s beauty everywhere? Rob Forbes has brought us a book that celebrates just that – See for Yourself: A Visual Guide to Everyday Beauty. Through composition, pattern, and materials the sights that we take for granted reveal themselves. Hanging laundry, food carts, even sewer tiles take on a new kind of beauty.

Posted In create, photography, read up

March 16, 2015

Super-Modified: The Behance Book of Creative Work

Behance came onto the scene back in 2006 and created a space that gave artists and creative-types a place to store their work online, as well as gave others a chance to discover them. (We’ve shared countless artists here on Design Crush that were first seen on Bechance.) The site grew and grew and in 2012 was acquired by Adobe, and was able to remain true to its mission and expand even more. Now their creative team has chosen hundreds of pieces of future-forward work to share in their book – Super-Modified: The Behance Book of Creative Work – along with insights and process notes. If you’re looking for inspiration or a great coffee table book you should order your own copy now.

Posted In create, read up

March 13, 2015

Happy Weekend

01/ Bandages that will make your wound look worse than it actually is.
02/ This bar in Louisiana has a built-in chilled strip to keep beverages cold.
03/ Cloud iridescence is a real thing.
04/ Weapons of Mass Instruction is a 1979 Ford converted into a book-toting tank!
05/ I love the idea of creating a grazing table instead of appetizers.
06/ The Lotus Building in China depicts the three states of a blooming flower.
07/ A hair freezing contest!
08/ These approved catcalls are hilarious.
09/ It turns out activated charcoal is really good for our skin – have you tried it?
10/ Danny Quirk‘s realistic anatomical paintings expose our inner workings.

This week on Design Crush:
Pat Perry‘s illustrations will transport you to another world.
Temperatures are slowly climbing and I have my spring wish list ready!
Beautiful modern female portraits by Annie Kevans.
How things are going after being back in Pittsburgh for six months.
The storytelling embroidery pieces of Michelle Kingdom.
These 8 great apps are some of my recent favorites.
Energetic abstracts from Kerri Rosenthal.
Ten March DIYs to keep you busy this month.
Take a peek at Gus Hughes‘ right-out-of-the-tube paintings.

Posted In beauty bag, create, food, grand design, happy weekend, illustration, outdoors, painting, read up, travel

February 23, 2015

Art Before Breakfast

For years Design Crush was my creative outlet, but recently I’ve realized how much I miss using my hands on something other than a keyboard. My mediums of choice are acrylic paints on canvas and a number 2 pencil with paper. I’m mediocre at best with both, but that’s not what art is always about. Flexing your creativity in one area of life can flow over into others in which you excel.

Artist Danny Gregory’s Art Before Breakfast encourages the reader to incorporate art making into their everyday life. Its pages are filled with strategy and inspiration, quick exercises, and practical instruction on carving time out for creativity for as little as ten minutes a day. Filled with incredible illustrations, it’s tough not to close the cover without feeling more inspired than when you opened it.

Posted In create, read up

December 15, 2014

Cabins

This time of year it’s difficult not to daydream of running off to some distant locale where holiday stresses cease to exist. Cabins is full of modern architectural illustrations by Marie-Laure Cruschi and is making it all the more difficult to be present these last few weeks of the year. Wouldn’t you love to escape to one of these beauties for the holidays?

Posted In create, illustration, read up

December 1, 2014

Drake General Store x Design Crush Giveaway

Drake General Store is a traditional hotel gift shop, a classic general store, a flea market stand, and a museum shop all rolled into one. They have the biggest and best Canadian pride and love supporting homegrown artists and designers, making them a perfect match for Design Crush and our sensibilities.

Please tell me you took 1.5 seconds to read that graphic, because we’re giving away a $1,000 prize pack! Drake General Store is my favorite shop north of the U.S. border and I’m pumped to be partnering with them for the second December in a row to give you all a HUGE something awesome. I’ve cherry picked my favorite pieces from their classic, modern goods that are a mix of sensible (socks, throws, kitchen pieces) and not so sensible (tarot cards, incense, wind chime) and everything in between.

Metsa Birch Box Set ($40) // Gold Screw Studs ($24) // Cross Enamelware Stockholm Measuring Cup ($29) // Cross Enamelware Copenhagen Side Dish ($29) // Oval Marble + Wood Cheeseboard ($68) // Ladies & Gentlemen Aura Bell Chime ($135) // Held In Common Snowflake Socks ($14) // Cozy Ceramic Camp Mug, set of 4 ($48) // 3 Mast Brothers Chocolate Bars ($33) // Shared History Macho Man + Elizabeth Robes ($128) // Arborist Long Janes, trees ($29) // Blackbird Incense ($34) // Public Supply Notebooks ($15) // Arborist Getaway Blanket ($29) // Arborist Getaway Pack ($29) // Wild Unknown Tarot Card Deck ($45) // Wild Unknown Tarot Guide Book ($24) // Engraved Keychain ($15) // Hockey Thermos ($38) // Earth Coasters ($42) // Pinch Pot with Spoon ($28) // East Coast Throw Blanket ($99) // Oslo Bowls ($39)

I KNOW! So many well designed pieces and so many little luxuries to help get you through winter. You could either go the Happy Holidays to Me! route and keep it all for yourself or the My Shopping is Done! route and dive up your winnings as gifts for everyone on your list. Either way it’s a win. (But if you do spy something you’d like to gift know that Drake General Store has worldwide flat rate shipping!)

Enter here to win!

Posted In accessories, accessories, food, house and home, jewelry, kitchen, notebooks + journals, paper goods, read up, wear it, win it

November 28, 2014

Happy Weekend

01/ The Real Apple Store celebrates a 1,000 year old borough market.
02/ Lady Gaga’s lead keyboardist developed a circular piano!
03/ And enormous raised-earth horse sculpture in Wales.
04/ London is shaming irresponsible dog owners by spray painting their poop pink.
05/ The feral cat population of Disneyland.
06/ One mom documents 63 things she found in her baby’s mouth over seven months.
07/ Genius design – this pregnancy book grows in size with the expectant mother.
08/ This frozen pond is creating beautiful concentric circles!
09/ Looking forward to next spring’s Kurt Cobain documentary – Montage of Heck.
10/ New life goal: to be one of these wrestling grandmas one day.

This week on Design Crush:
Win $300 from Minted to spend on holiday cards or some new art!
Baby, it’s cold outside! Stay warm with ramen 10 ways.
The bittersweet paintings of Akiko Kobayakawa.
The incredible Nespresso Vertuoline and seasonal coffee recipes for entertaining.
Repaired + reimagined: my Dad’s coat rack gets a much needed modern update.
Twelve more calendars for your 2015.
I hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving!
Revealing how my dining room is take shape.

Design Crush elsewhere:
Five ways to add color to your space for winter.
Some designer insights from me over on Terry’s Blinds.

Posted In collaboration/project, create, grand design, happy weekend, outdoors, photography, read up, sculpture, street

October 9, 2014

Worn Stories

I have a box full of clothing from different periods of my life – a Grateful Dead shirt from high school, my favorite baby doll tee from freshman year of college, an interview skirt from my first job search – that I just can’t seem to part with. Are you the same way? If you are, well, we’re not alone. Emily Spivack’s Worn Stories shares 60+ clothing-inspired first-person narratives that spill about the stories of our lives. (You can submit your own memory for a chance to win a copy of the book.)

Posted In read up, wear it

October 7, 2014

A Reading Nook Reimagined

This post is sponsored by Target. Shop Home Decor for modern luxury made easy.

In no particular order, three of my favorite things in life are reading, being cozy, and autumn. Luckily they go together perfectly, so this month I’ve teamed up once again with Target to create a reading nook that’s both chic and inviting. My recipe for a comfy little space like this one is one part knit, one part organic, and one part metallic.

In this case, the knit comes in the form of an afghan my 90-year-old grandmother made for me as a housewarming gift; it’s gorgeous and the perfect weight for chilly fall evenings. A colorful bouquet of flowers adds the organic touch, brightening up the neutrals that are popular this season and adding color to autumn days that tend to be slightly overcast. The metallic comes into play by way of this gold wire and wood accent table that manages to warm up the entire space, even with its slim silhouette. (And what reading nook could possibly be complete without a steaming cup of tea?)

Right now I’m in the process of finishing up The Vacationers, which has me and a few friends planning a trip to Greece and Turkey come spring 2016. I love how books have the ability to inspire real life adventures! What’s on your reading list at the moment?

This post sponsored by Target.

Posted In house and home, read up, sponsored post