We are big fans of the tea pot in our house, especially during these winter months. The last couple of weeks though we have noticed that our trusty little stainless steel tea pot has lost it’s whistle. It got me thinking that maybe it’s time to start looking for another. That’s when I stumbled across this one from Target. By the looks of it designer Michael Graves knew his tea pots. For example our old one has a spout with whistle and a lid, but we almost never use the lid, filling it instead from the spout. Obviously Michael had this in mind when he designed the Wide-Mouth Tea Kettle because it ships sans lid. All the filling cleaning pouring and general tea loving are made possible by the extra wide pour spout. I really like the contrast of the rust colored whistle with the gun metal grey of the pot. It also is available in white.
Available at Target for $18.

I admit that I am addicted to dinnerware. I love all the different sizes, shapes, colors and patterns. Thats probably why all of our plates and bowls are either flat black or flat white, because I just can’t decide what I want. CB2 has got another hit on their hands with these great Bubbles porcelain dipped plates and bowls. The grey, charcoal and olivine circles have a nice pop on their white background making it interesting without being to over the top. Pricing ranges between $3 for a bowl to $5 for the largest plate, which is pretty spot on, especially when you consider that they are porcelain.

Available from CB2 for $3 – $5.

I think it is generally accepted that Ikea designs and produces some pretty good looking affordable modern furniture. The question is, can that same knack for affordable and modern transfer over to architecture? Ikea would like to think so, and has been working diligently to make pre-fab townhouses and apartments for middle income families. Dubbed BoKlok for “smart living” these prefab units go up as quick as 16 weeks start to finish and cost around $260,000 for a two bedroom townhouse. While those numbers don’t sound too bad, I have to admit I thought that architecturally they would look a little nicer. What do you think?
Via Treehugger
More info here at the BoKlock UK site.

If you live in Salt Lake like I do, you know that there is a select number of modern stores at our finger tips. One of the newer kids on the block is Modern Materials and Design. I have been following them since they opened in Sugarhouse, and then moved up the road to the Brickyard area. It looks like they are getting ready for another big move, this time to the internet. They have decided to go straight internet, and will no longer have a brick and mortar in SLC. With the recent closing of Form and Function followed by By Design moving into their warehouse, and now Modern Materials going straight internet it appears modern is on the run. I wonder if business is suffering now that Ikea has opened? The good news is that for those outside of Utah, you can now check out all the goodies at Modern Materials online. Their store had an overwhelming selection of EQ3 products which I always find to be modern and affordable.
Modern Materials and Design Online.

Katrina Kaye knows vintage. She has been making wonderful handmade bags out of vintage material and army bags for some time now. I am lucky enough to have one of her bags, and I use it every day. Not only is it a truly unique bag, but the quality is great too. With that in mind when I noticed that Katrina has cushion covers too, I knew I had to share. For those of you looking for some true vintage cushions with some great colors and textures, look no further. Katrina has a great rotating selection of colors and patters, each one better than the last. Best of all, you can have your very own, straight from Amsterdam for only $25.

Available at Katrina Kaye’s Etsy shop for $20 – $25.

I know that radio’s are so old school now, but if you are lucky to live in an urban area with some good radio stations they can still be a good deal. While this portable radio doesn’t compare with the iPod when it comes to technology, it’s 3.5″ x 2″ x .75″ footprint comes pretty close. I have to admit I am loving the old school styling of it as well. It comes with headphones as well as a built in speaker, and best of all, it will only put you out $19.
Available from MoMA Store for $19.

While we absolutely love our Nurseryworks Storytime Rocker and Arial Crib, we will be the first ones to admit that some ot their stuff isn’t the most affordable. It has been extremely durable however, and we still think its a good purchase, especially if you can find it on sale. Sparkability is having a big sale with 40% of many of their nurseryworks items. That makes the rocker shown above $480 instead of $800. The 3 wide dresser and 2 wide changing table are for sale, but additional shipping costs almost make it a wash. The best thing about the sale is they actually have a decent selection of colors left, so if you’ve been debating whether to get a quality rocker, now’s your chance.
On Sale at Sparkability for $480.

Kitchen trash cans aren’t cheap. While your best bet for something inexpensive is to get a small one and keep it under the counters, some of us don’t have the luxury of having that extra space. If your trash can has to be out where everyone can see it, it makes sense to invest a little in one that looks good. This new 10 gallon trash can from Oxo looks great in white, and has a soft touch opening lid (no more banging around as you step on the foot pedal). It has a narrow footprint so it can easily fit into a tight spot. My favorite feature of all is it is designed so that you don’t see the bag hanging out.
Available from Oxo for $119.

This sleek and simple stoneware vase from Wrapables reminds me of a really good skipping stone turned vase. Sitting approximately 2.5″ tall and 11″ wide these wonderful vases come in olive or lime. To be used as a flower vase you would either need a cast iron floral arranger shown in the picture to the left, or some floral foam or rocks. No matter what you decided to use it for, the pod stoneware vase is sure to bring a new dimension to your vase collection.
Available from Wrapables for $19.

Open source is a word I like even more than grassroots. In fact, now that I think about it, maybe I should have named my website opensourcemodern.com (anyone want to buy that domain for me?) and not grassrootsmodern.com. Open source means you are sharing your knowledge for the greater good, free of charge. That the exact idea behind this open source storage drawings on x818.com. It has all the information you need to make your own affordable DIY modern storage. The end result is quite impressive. All you need is a power drill and $200 and a little sense of adventure.
Free plans available from x818.com