Unless you have been living in a cave for the last 6 months, you have heard about the iPhone. It is the most hyped up phone ever to be released, perhaps even the most hyped apple product ever released too. Surely there is a good reason for all the hype right? Well lets hope so. Despite any potential downfalls, such as a virtual keyboard, you have to admit the iPhone really is a revolutionary product. The question is, at a base price of $499, will they really sell as many as they think they will.
I admittedly am a mac addict and will probably be waiting in line for the 6 PM release today.

How about you, will you be buying a iPhone?

This blanket was the first handmade blanket that we received. We absolutely love the asian inspired print of this blanket and the minky back is super snuggly. I was just thinking this morning, if I was Arri, and I had to choose a favorite blanket, this just might be the one. It was made by one of our good friends Lyndsey, who is now a mother of two beautiful twin girls. She did a great job, and even included washing instructions. Thanks Lynds!

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Once you have a baby, burp cloths are one of those things that you absolutely can’t live without. It seems like half the time I am at home, I am walking around with one of them on my shoulder. Lucky for me we have some great looking burp cloths. Before we had Arrrington, we sent my mother in law home with a big package of cloth diapers, and instructions to find some nice fabric to sew onto them. She came back with some beautiful, functional, and inexpensive designer burp cloths. These really only require very basic sewing skills, so they make a very good DIY project.

Furni, one of my favorite grassroots design firms, has launched a contest called “show us your skills”. It’s your chance to show off your design skills and show the world you have what it takes. The point of the contest is to design the best case for their LED clock kit. The winning entry has a chance at becoming part of next years line up.

You can purchase the guts for $24 here.

More info about the contest, as well as pictures of the entries here.

It’s been a long time since the last update and a lot has happened. I have been working furiously trying to complete the rough electrical for an inspection today. I have also been preparing the cedar siding for installation by dipping it in deck stain. We are using a product that is guaranteed to last five years. We should get a few years on top of that because we are dipping it and therefore covering all four sides. This is all to prevent me having to get on a ladder in a few years and reseal it. Premier Metal Works came and installed some preliminary stair parts in the crawl space.
Dave and his company, Inline Plumbing, have completed the rough plumbing as well. Everything seems to be on target for a September move in!

-Jacob
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With the birth of our child, we had so many generous people give us gifts. This week, I wanted to feature some of the wonderful things that were hand made especially for Arri. Its funny how even though we didn’t know the sex of Arri until he was born, most of our gifts were blue. This chenille blanket was made by my mother. It is actually made by placing 6 layers of fabric together and sewing parallel lines every 1/2″ or so. After it is all sewn together, you go back and cut through 5 of the 6 layers of fabric. When you throw it in the washing machine, the 5 layers curl back on themselves creating a heavy chenille look.

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I have always loved EQ3. Besides Ikea, they are one of the few “modern” companies that consistently make good looking stuff at a good price. This Hexagon Duvet set is a great example. While the 210 thread count is not the greatest, the design is nice, and you can get a queen sized duvet and two shams for $90. The only thing that I never understood is why it seems that there is no one selling EQ3 online. Anyone have any good leads?

In Utah, make sure you check out Modern Material and Design. They carry almost exclusively EQ3 products.

It seems that recently there has been a new trend of more organic design replacing the rigid graphic design of last year. This plate from CB2 features a subtle metallic organic botanical set on a bright white twice dipped porcelain plate. It’s just one of a series of appetizer plates, all featuring similar organic prints on delicate white 5″ plates. They are conveniently priced at $2.50 each.

Available from CB2 for $2.50

I just wanted to take a quick second to publicly thank everyone who has helped us out in the last couple of weeks. We have had countless people that have been willing to bring by dinners, walk our dog, and just about anything else they could think of to help out. We also have received so many generous gifts for Arri, and they just keep coming! Next week I plan on featuring some of the beautiful handmade gifts that we have received that are both modern and priceless.

The Thank You card shown above is from Moderncard’s Etsy shop.

3 Form is a bit of an enigma for Utah. Their factory is just down the road a couple of miles from where I live. While most people around here have never even heard of them, they are known world wide for making some of the most beautiful paneling available. They are also an eco friendly company making it into the AIA top ten green building products. While I adore their stuff, it seems like it has always been too expensive for a tightwad like me. I was looking over their site last night drooling over some of their designs, and playing with the design your own panels when I noticed the Reclaim section. Basically the reclaim panels are 4′ x 4′ panels that are cut out of a bigger panel that had flaws. Instead of throwing it all away, they sell the smaller panels for a discount. Most go for around $200, and considering I paid $95 for a 5′ x 5′ panel of 3/8″ baltic birch, is really not too bad at all.