I love things made out of felt. It's such a simple material that has a great feel to it and can come in a ton of fun colors. I have to admit though that whenever I see cool felt coasters or place mats I always think to myself, man that would be so easy to make myself if I just had a roll of felt. FilzFelt is a felt lovers paradise. Not only do they have all sorts of goodies like felt pillows, coasters, trivets, etc, but more importantly they sell all their felt direct by the yard. All their felt is imported from Germany, and they offer all sorts of tips on how to work with it yourself.

FilzFelt

These Traverse Plate Covers are just the thing to enhance and update your abode. For those who want to flaunt it, not hide it. I think these would definitely look cool in the right setting - love the detail! Made of zinc with a satin finish.

Traverse Plate Covers from Chiasso - $14 to $22

I don't know what it is lately but I am absolutely in love with anything that is simple and made of white porcelain, especially unglazed. Portland Oregon based Pigeon Toe Ceramics has a wonderful selection of porcelain and porcelain-like stoneware. The pieces all have a simple Scandinavian aesthetic. Prices are very reasonable with most pieces in the $20 range.

Available at Pigeontoeceramics.com and Etsy

You may remember those sweet neighborhood screen prints from Ork Posters we wrote about a while ago. Looks like they're branching out from the city-theme and trying something a little more scientific.  The Heart print features the same bold use of typography but instead of well-known neighborhoods, identifies all the parts of the heart. I hope they take this new anatomy theme and run with it - could be a very cool series!

Gotta Have Heart Print from Ork Posters - $18

NORMAN BEL GEDDES Style streamline one-piece child's school desk and chair.

Factory 20

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I ran across these great shots of some Eichler homes in the San Mateo Highlands area on Flickr. I'd love to live in any of these, wouldn't you? I just really love all the colors and different materials - truly stunning.  

  
Images via thomasfj

For more inspiration, check out Flickr group Modern Living Interiors

This one if for the locals only....

Modern Materials Design has been having a blowout warehouse sale for the last couple of weeks. They are forced to move out of their current location so absolutely everything must go. Today is the last day of the sale, and prices are guaranteed to be crazy low. Here are some details.

HURRY IN AS THIS IS OUR LAST DAY BEFORE WE START MOVING OUR WAREHOUSE.

some of our very stylish PILLOWS are $7-8 on markdown
pendant LIGHTS for $19
table LAMPS at $12
VASES as low as $3.95
fun, colorful artwork as low as $15-20 (80% off)
metal trough outdoor PLANTERS
BEDDING all at 50% off

PLUS SEVERAL TV STANDS,COFFEE TABLES, END TABLES, KITCHEN DINING TABLES, ....PLUS MUCH MORE.

HOURS: 10-6

LOCATION: 350 WEST 800 NORTH, rear side of building. Hard to find but definately worth the search.
the sale you should not miss!!!

We have dining tables, coffee tables, end tables, pillows, artwork, mirrors, lamps, light fixtures, vases, doormats, outdoor planters......

If you do happen to miss the sale today don't kick yourself too hard. Rumor on the block is that Modern Materials Design will be opening a brick and mortar in a few months. Stay tuned for an early look at what it will have to offer.

Really incredible work from illustrator Sven Palmowski. I must get my hands on one of these prints!

Check out the rest of his portfolio at www.palmowski.eu

More about Sven:
Sven Palmowski (aka a.mar.illo) was born and raised in Stuttgart, Germany. He has worked as a freelance illustrator for more than a decade, which allows him to make a living from his passion for drawing. In 2004, he made a new home in Barcelona, Spain, where he currently resides. He considers this group of work among his free illustrations, and describes them as creatures of his mind, born of their own aesthetics.

Prints by Sven Palmowski available from inPRINT: $25 - $80.

I'm loving all of these Photo Lightboxs by Munstre. Each box is handmade and lit by a 40W energy saving bulb. The boxes are available in a variety of sizes, and feature everything from abstract photo's to lithographs and even x-rays. You can specify if you prefer a white or black enclosure. All the boxes are wall mountable and have a on/off switch on the cord. Typical prices range from $55 - $120 depending on the size.

Available from Munstre for $55 - $120.

Here's another DIY project to add to your list!  Arash and Kelly are offering FREE plans for making your very own Illuminati lamp shade! Just download the pdf plans and get crackin! All you need is a pencil, a ruler, scissors, a stapler, and your material of choice. Want it a little larger? Just scale it up!  

Illuminati Post Light plans by Arash and Kelly - FREE!

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If you remember a few weeks ago, I was looking for some good advice on how to get the clean modern flush door look. As far as hinges go, it looked like either a SOSS or a pivot hinge was going to work the best. In the end we went with a SOSS hinge and a custom jam that has the doorstop continue all the way to the edge. Because we have some serious time constraints (read my wife is 8+ months pregnant and wants the room done) we opted to have the door made locally instead of ordering online or attempting to build it ourselves. As far as I could tell ordering it online would have put us out around $750 and had a 4-6 week lead time. We were able to have it made locally for $400 a door with a lead time of just over a week. We did have to settle for a paint grade solid core instead of the solid fir that we wanted. The fir would have increased both the cost and lead time substantially.

We will have to wait for the drywall to be hung to see if the detail turned out the way we wanted, but first impressions are as follows. #1 I absolutely love the feel of the solid door compared to a normal hollow core. Besides feeling more substantial the doors also do a much better job of blocking sound. Definitely worth the extra money. #2 The SOSS hinges are very nice. Obviously the look of them is great, or rather the fact that you can't see them. The feel of the hinge is also nice, although they do feel a little stiff so far.

I know the pictures are pretty lousy, I'll snap some better ones as soon as the drywall gets hung, which hopefully should be by this weekend.

Have you guys been keeping up with AT's Small Cool Contest? They're down to the semi-finalists and the competition is fierce! Homes 1200 sq. feet and under have been split up into four categories (teeny-tiny, tiny, little, and small), each competing for their share of $10,000 worth of Room&Board gift certificates. It is incredibly inspiring to see what people can do with their spaces! My favorite in the "small" category would have to be Joel and Maria's "Miami Modern". You'll have to check out their DIY wall-sconce from "Y"s and LEDs. It's brilliant. Be sure to check out all the entries and vote for your favorite!

Click here to vote!

Images: Joel & Maria - Small Jordan & Larissa - Little

Soleil9 - Small

The idea of flat pack furniture can leave a bad taste in some peoples mouths. While I personally don't mind grabbing my allen wrench and following some Swedish illustrations to get my furniture assembled there are some who like to keep it even more simple. Way Basics has taken flat pack furniture about as basic as possible. At the heart of their system is Z Board a super strength cardboard that forms the building block of all their furniture. Assembly is managed simply by peeling the backing of the sticky tape. Doesn't get much easier than that. You can either purchase a preconfigured unit, or buy building blocks to design your own. The cubes are available in a bunch of different colors and prices start at a measly $20. Video of assembly and more pictures after the jump.

Way Basics Cardboard DIY shelving - prices start at $20

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Cool, new, one-of-a-kind wall graphics from jefdesigns! I quite like the "Bubble" series - a bit of a reto-twist in an awesome colorway. As always, Joe Futschiknever fails to delight! Which is your favorite piece?

About:
Organically modern compositions of color and wood, the jefdesigns wall graphics are hand painted original works of art. With an internal frame, each panel floats off the wall an extra .75." The painted image extends over the sides and exposed wood banding on the edges adding a third design element. A UV gloss finish protects and deepens both the color and wood grain. A one-of-a-kind piece.

Hand painted wall graphics from jefdesigns - $550 - $800.

Love these handmade/hand-printed coasters from Etsy seller Merit Market! A slightly more casual alternative to the stainless steel variety. Each set comes with four 4 1/4" square coasters hand-sewn from a nice, nubby unbleached cotton fabric. Screen printed using non-toxic inks.

Set of Four Handmade Coasters from Merit Market - $10.

I'm loving this vintage Mr. Clean commercial from the 1950's.

Thinglink.com announced yesterday what they are calling "a new social media for design lovers". As far as I can tell it's a design catalogue with all the usual big hitters like Martela, Eero Aarnio, Artek, Iittala, and Marimekko. What sets it apart from all the other design catalogues out there is the "social" part. According to the thinglink blog;

Designers and brands who upload their catalogs to thinglink.com can build a community of fans around their products. Design enthusiasts who join the conversation on thinglink.com can post messages about their latest discoveries, ask and answer questions about new and vintage products, and share photos of their favorite design objects in real life settings.

Unfortunately everything is currently in private beta, so unless you have an invite there's not a whole lot social about it. If anyone wants to send an invite with me, hit me up on twitter @creede.

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I saw this little DIY project recently on one of my favorite blogs, Plastolux. Get a couple of old Bose speaker stands, some fiber board, and paint and you've got yourself a Saarinen side table! Very, very cool. Great job, Tyler! See more and read about the process here.

Made your own version of a classic? Share your projects (and any relevant links)!

Love this eco-friendly bedding from Unison. Curl up in one of their organic blankets and celebrate Earth Day all year long! Be sure to check out their pillows and table linens as well.

Happy Earth Day!

More about Unison:
Unison was formed by Robert Segal + Alicia Rosauer with the vision that modern design can be a livable, breathable, everyday part of life. After four years of designingliving in Finland, they decided to bring their design sensibilities back to America. Robert and Alicia combine their extensive background of textile design and photography to creaand te products that offer a minimalist style with emphasis on color and innovative print design.

Bedding and Linens from Unison available from Design Public: $24 - $220

I've been scouring the web for a wall-mount sink for a certain tiny little bathroom that resides in my home. I've seen some cool ones from Kohler, but I don't really want to spend a thousand dollars. There were a couple that caught my eye on Overstock as well, but I'm still not quite satisfied. Has anyone seen any modern-looking, wall-mount sinks that won't break the bank? Share your finds, and links, please!

Images:
Escale Wall-Mount Lavatory by Kohler: $500 - $650
Tableau Wall-Mount Lavatroy by Kohler: $1000 - $1500