If there's one thing you can always count on from West Elm, it's their collection of white ceramics. The shapes change slightly each year or maybe they add a touch of texture, but they're always beautiful, affordable, and available! I love this new collection of mod textured vases especially, but they also have their Pure collection for those who prefer the smooth variety. While you're at it, check out all their vase collections right here.

Textured Vases from West Elm: $29 - $34

A little bit of vintage charm can be found in these enameled steel first aid boxes by Kikkerland. Store actual medical supplies, emergency essentials, or your favorite chocolate! I like the idea of wall mounting several to hold craft and sewing supplies. Can you think of any other clever uses (besides the obvious)?

First Aid Box by Kikkerland available from Velocity Art and Design: $20

[via Making It Lovely]

Ali has a quirky little style that makes me want to kiss puppies and curly-headed babies, jump in puddles, and find animals in the clouds. Of course, it helps that she loves chairs as much as I do, and paints them wonderfully well. Or that she seems nearly as obsessed with tea towels and pillows. Or that she's just plain talented! Check out her portfolio for more then stop by her shop if you'd like to bring home her unique style.

LINK: www.alidouglass.com

Prints, tea towels, and more by Ali Douglass: $12 - $40

OK, let's go ahead and get this out of the way early on. I think "I've got wood" has to be about the worst name ever chosen for a boutique modern furniture and lighting company. That being said, the do make some pretty things. The Beetle Kill lamps shown above are made from Colorado beetle kill pine. The patterns are laser cut into the wood to create a lovely effect when turned on.

Beetle Kill lamps available on Etsy for $175

According to their site, SusyJack is contemporary paper. Those are tall words, but once you start digging through their collection of note cards, calendars, and decorative clips, the statement finds some serious validation. My favorite is the yellow Flag design (pictured above), but check out the SusyJack shop and let us know what strikes your fancy!

Modern stationery by SusyJack: $3 - $34

I mentioned at the beginning of the year that I would like to learn more about Scandinavian design in 2011. Well, I just found Scandinavian heaven, and apparently it's in Canada. Toronto based Mjölk has one of the best curated online stores I have seen in a long long time. I was literally swooning over every single item on their website. They have everything from simple every day inexpensive items to expensive couches. Everything has that scandinavian/japanese look. Think Muji meets Ikea. Take a look at the site, and I promise you will find something to fall in love with.

Mjölk

I'm not sure what I find more fascinating: the design/animation or the concept behind Bounce. Watch the video and tell me what your thoughts are!

About:
Bounce is a new way to learn English "anytime, anywhere" and is geared towards Chileans specifically. The branding, concept, and art direction is by KAIROS, an independent video studio based out of Santiago, Chile and Vevey, Switzerland. Design and animation was completed by Smog, a design, production, and animation studio also located in Santiago.

The cool kids at Lushpad are celebrating Valentine's Day and their love of great design by offering free MCM desktop wallpapers! They're available in red or black and the following formats: desktop, iPad, iPhone, and mobile. To download one for yourself or your design-loving Valentine, head on over to Lushpad.

Valentines Day is here, and love is in the air. Or you are feeling a little extra lonely today and acutely aware of your single status. No worries. Either way we can still be valentines. I even got you a few things. Check out the delightful miniature moveable valentines dolls from Hollands Worth's shop on Etsy. (shown above)

In case you are wondering what to get me, head on over to Curbly for some ideas. They have a huge roundup of goodies in their handmade says I love you section, including several printable cards and other last minute ideas you procrastinators can still pull off.

Don't have anyone to give a gift to? Send yourself some chocolates and coffee from the Full Circle Exchange and enjoy the sweet taste of knowing they matched your purchase dollar for dollar with a donation to CARE.

Most of all, know that GRM loves you!

Next Saturday Modernism Week starts in Palm Springs and with it the 3rd Annual Architecture + Design Film Series. This year they will have an astounding 12 films showing over the 5 day event (many of which we have already featured here). Makes me very jealous I don't live a couple hundred miles closer. Trailers for the films can be seen at Designscreen.org and more information about Modernism Week is available at modernismweek.com.

Now this is something I haven't seen before: an Etsy shop selling PDFs for vintage furniture plans. For $3, they'll email you all the instructions for making your very own MCM side chairor folding lawn chair. Sounds like a good deal to me. The shop is mostly made up of crocheting and knitting plans, but it might be worth it to keep an eye on them for more MCM furniture goodness.

MCM Furniture Plans available from Cemetarian La Dolce Vintage: $3

I'm a big fan of pivot doors, but for some reason it seems like it's really hard to find an affordable pre hung pivot door. At least in the US. If I lived in Australia, I could pick the one shown above for $2,200. It's made by a company called The Door Keeper, and they have all sorts of options in standard and pivot doors. Something tells me the shipping wouldn't be cheap.

Anyone know where to buy a prehung pivot door stateside?

The Door Keeper pivot doors

I think I just found heaven, and it turns out it's in Phuket Thailand. Designed by Hong Kong based Original Vision the home home is a combination of an amazing site and a thoughtful and thoroughly modern home. It's hard not to draw references to Falling Water when looking at the home.

Originally built in 2009 as a vacation home for a Hong Kong couple, the home is now rented out between their stays. $2,000 - $4,500 a night will get you an amazing home with 6 bedrooms (sleeps 12) and your own chef. While that price isn't cheap, for me heaven is just 11 friends and $166 a night away.

Who's in?

Villa Amanzi

LOTS more photo's after the jump.

I'm in the process of creating a guest room right now, which includes a sweet Danish dresser that I'm pretty fond of. Once all the big tasks for the room are complete (painting and wallpapering, mostly), I'm excited to get down to business with more fine-tuned decorating. One source of inspiration for me right now are these Vintage Vignettes from Dabito of the (fabulous) blog Old Brand New. Check 'em out and see if they don't make you feel all warm and fuzzy!

LINK: Old Brand New

I went to a great slow food event last night called SLC Bites. Now today for some reason I'm feeling a little food obsessed. So I figured I'd share some links for my favorite food group. Chocolate. Besides, Valentines day is just around the corner, and what better way to show your affection for that special someone than some chocolate. Of course if that special someone is a designophile, not just any box of chocolates will do. May I suggest a box of chocolates from Valerie Confections in LA. The Commune Chocolates were a collaboration between Valerie Confections and Commune Design the brainchild behind the Ace Hotel in Palm Springs and The Standard in New York. A box of 49 pieces will only set you back $49, and I guarantee it will be much more enjoyable than some cliched roses.

Commune Chocolates from Valerie Confections

More chocolate coated ideas after the jump.

Continuing in the chocolate theme is Richart chocolates which promise to be equally beautiful and delicious. They are almost so beautiful I wouldn't want to eat them. Almost.

Richart Chocolate (photo via)

Speaking of eating good chocolate, I've got to give some much deserved attention to the best chocolate I've ever eaten. Amano. They have won multiple international awards for their chocolate bars, and I was absolutely floored to learn that they are made right here in Utah. Do yourself a favor and pick up a bar or two to taste.

Amano Artisan Chocolate

Last and certainly not least is another plug for a local business. Here in Salt Lake City we have a great market and deli called Tony Caputo's. Rumor on the block is that they will be having a special Valentines Day tasting of Artisan du Chocolat a London based chocolate maker. Umm. Yes please.

Artisan du Chocolat chocolates

"Over-sized" and "minimalist" aren't words that usually go together, but in the case of this floating wall clock from Crate&Barrel, they certainly do. The clear acrylic face helps keep things clean and simple for those not wanting to clutter up their walls. And, at two feet in diameter, you're definitely getting a big bang for your buck.

Floating Wall Clock from Crate&Barrel: $69.95

Wallpaper and metallic gold are two things that generally don't pop into my mind when I think about modern interiors, and yet I love this leaf metallic wallpaper from UK based Jocelyn Warner. I have no idea on pricing, and it looks like it is only imported by a handful of shops in California and New York. Check out Jocelyn Warner's website to see if you are lucky enough to have a stockist near you.

Leaf Metallic wallpaper

This is an excerpt from what looks like a great film on Alvar Aalto. The whole film can be downloaded from Roland Collection for $2.

Alvar Aalto film $2

I've been big fan of H & M for a while. Unfortunately they don't have any stores in Utah, so I make a point of stocking up on clothes every time I visit a real city that does have one. What I didn't know until just this week was that H & M has a home section as well. At least they do if you live in the UK. If only they offered international shipping too.

H & M Home

Matthew's portfolio is chalk full of beautiful interior shots, but what's really capturing my attention is this curious series of still life images he shot for Case da Abitare. I'm hoping noRipple Chairs were harmed in the making of these images! In all seriousness though, Matthew's work is absolutely stellar and worth a deeper look, so be sure to check out his site!

LINK: http://matthewwilliamsphotographer.com

More pics from his still life collection (including some sweet modern diorama action) after the jump!