I don't know about you, but my desk could definitely use some sprucing up. These wonderfully designed goods from Mateo Ilasco would certainly do the trick! I've got my eye on the desk calendar and thenumbers desk set - simply great design. For more organizational goodies (and some spiffy greeting cards) check out the Mateo Ilasco shop on Big Cartel.

About Mateo:
Hello. I'm Meg Mateo Ilasco. I'm the designer and writer behind Mateo Ilasco, a studio producing a line of stationery, home, and gift products as well as offering editorial, design and illustration services.

My design and illustration work often expresses a penchant for old-fashioned methods, humble materials, manual design, and physical craft. Sometimes I'm cerebral and concept-based in approach, and other times I just want to create something that looks pleasing. My design work has received awards from The Pasadena Museum of California Art 2007 Design Biennial and Print Magazine 2006 Regional Design Annual.

Mateo Ilasco paper and home goods: $3 - $40

I love it when you find something that is not labeled as "modern" but would look great in any design lovers home. That way you manage to escape the typical huge price mark up on the item just because it's modern. Point in case, the Cramer Scooter stool. Personally I think it is a fantastic looking stool, and the fact that it's designed to be used in garages and shops, and it includes a 10 year warranty means that the build quality is probably pretty good. The everyday price for this beauty is a reasonable $60 from your local Sears. It's available in red or silver.

Available from Sears for $60.

This salad bowl set from Domestic Aesthetic is absolutely stunning! Handmade from poplar with a walnut veneer, it also includes four porcelain serving plates which nest inside for easy storage. All Domestic Aesthetic products are locally sourced and locally manufactured in the Brooklyn area.

For purchasing information, contact Domestic Aesthetic directly.

The debate over knock offs of classic furniture is an eternal one with people usually strongly divided on the subject. Personally I find myself vacillating especially when I see a great deal like this one from Overstock. The Eames rocker er, I mean "Vinnie Cradle Chair", is going for $159, and a set of two of the Eames shell side chairs, um I mean "Ronnie Wire Base chairs", are going for $157. Yep, $157 for two. Sure it's a knock off, but for some it may make a lot of sense. Anyways, the original shell chairs were designed for the "International Competition for Low-Cost Furniture Design" so the low cost of these knock offs may be more true to the original spirit of the furniture than the official ones...

Available from Overstock.com

I have to admit the dishtowels I have are pretty ugly and not at all my style. (Hey, they were gifted to me by nice little ladies when I got married. I'm certainly not complaining about the 'free' factor!) But, I really, really think it's time to get some modern kitchen towels that fit my taste and personality. If I had it my way, I'd get every single one from Tikoli. Their kitchen towels are bright, colorful, and downright awesome. My two favorite would have to be the Blok and Flax patterns, which, conveniently, match my color scheme. Sweet!

Kitchen towels from Tikoli: $10

This weeks way back when is a mix of the old with the new...

This house is just down the street from mine, and I have been slowly watching it transform as Tyler works on it. He has done an amazing job making a fairly typical 50's home look good. I didn't know just how good until Tyler sent me some pictures of the interior and then I was literally speechless. I'm usually a fan of preserving mid century architecture in it's original form, but this is one update that is both respectful of the original structure, and so much better than it ever was. The house has been completely gutted and redone on the inside, and the pool area in the back yard makes me feel like I am in Palm Springs again. This is a wonderful example of breathing new life into an old house. Ohh and did I mention it's for sale? Anyone have $749,000 they want to give to me?

3602 Apollo

All photo's by Tyler, cast concrete by Future Form Designs.

No, not THAT economy. Sheesh.  Modern Economy is an online shopping "event" where indie designers can unload overstocked goods and people like you and me can score said goods for up to 80% off. Not bad, eh? The next event starts at 9am on Wednesday, September 9th and goes for 48 hours. And just who are these participating "indie designers" you ask? Oh, people like Ferm Living, Offi, and Perch to name a few. So mark your calendars and get ready to score some amazing deals. You really won't want to miss this event - it only happens once a year!!

For a complete list of participating designers, click here.

More about Modern Economy:
It's truly a win-win situation for indie businesses and consumers alike; designers get to earn back their investment and budget-minded design enthusiasts are able to furnish their lifestyle with the wares they crave while maintaining the sanity of their pocketbooks. And lately, Modern Economy sales have been described as a sustainable business practice (we like that!) as we often sell products that designers may otherwise discard: items with minor faults like ceramics with an uneven glaze, or a pillow with a misplaced label.

Modern Economy is produced by the Mateo Ilasco company, based in the San Francisco Bay Area. We typically hold two sales a year in places like San Francisco, Los Angeles, or Portland, Oregon. We also started hosting virtual sample sales in 2008 and will continue to do that at least once a year. To stay in the loop, we recommend getting on our mailing list to be notified of the details of every sample sale.

Over the years I have featured quite a few pieces of cardboard furniture on Grassrootsmodern. It's because the base material is free, and with a little creativity and some DIY motivation you can actually make some pretty good looking stuff. If you've ever thought it would be cool to make something out of cardboard, but you've never really known where to start, you're in luck! I was browsing through Instructables and I saw this nice little tutorial on how to make a cardboard bench. The same ideas will apply to basically any cardboard furniture, all you need is 1) A Saw 2) Lots of cardboard 3) Glue... lots of glue.

Full DIY cardboard furniture instructions at Instructables.

Holy smokes! Have you checked out Chiasso lately? Their collection of clocks is nuts! From obvious "inspirations" to unique, exclusive time pieces, they've got a clock to match just about everyone's style. From modern to minimal, contemporary to eclectic, your options are pretty much endless (well... you've got almost 40 clocks to choose from, anyway). What are some of your favorite? (I actually own the orange "Atomic Clock" - I love it!)

Clocks from Chiasso: $24 - $122

I'm always amazed when I come across cheap sofa's. While I admit that you get what you pay for, sometimes you are just looking for the cheapest decent looking sofa that you can find. Target seems to have a pretty decent collection of them right now. The "Sofa Bed - Khaki" shown on the left is an amazing $159! To illustrate just how inexpensive that is, just read the reviews. One person actually bought the sofa for their dog to sleep on. If you are looking for something a little nicer the "Sofa Bed - Brown" on the right gets you faux leather for $499. That's getting into Ikea territory and might not be as good of a deal. Both do however fold down to become a queen sized bed which is a nice advantage. Unfortunately both are only available online (you'll be buying them blind) but if you or your dog need a inexpensive place to sit, it may be worth a try.

Available from Target.

Fairly Painless is an ad agency in Holland, Michigan. I love this spot they did for Herman Miller - they somehow managed to make HM seem even COOLER than before. A job well done, indeed.

About Fairly Painless (in their own entertaining words):
Just off the shore of Lake Michigan, in the charming community of Holland, Michigan, stands an agency encompassing qualities key to award-winning advertising and design: ambition, insecurity, talent, ego, humor and (a wee bit of) depravity. Qualities commonly found only in big city advertising agencies and design firms. How did it all find its way into such a pristine, tranquil environment, you ask? Well, the same way OJ got acquitted. No one knows.

Founded by a vegetarian art director and a Texas copywriter, and led by a former director of Greenpeace, Fairly Painless had no real chance of being "normal" from the gitgo. We recognized that most of our clients saw advertising as a necessary evil. So, like a smiling pediatric nurse, we prepared a solution, said it would only sting a little, and got our clients healthy returns on their money. We do it without titles. We do it without layers. You work directly with the creatives and strategists doing your work. It might not be the kind of thing that would work for everyone. But, hey, we still have the first client we ever got fifteen years ago, and a bunch of other cool ones since. Well, enough about us. Let's talk about you. What's on your mind?

via

I'm always on the lookout for a good looking humidifier. I don't know why really, last year when we bought our air-o-swiss humidifier it was the first humidifier I've ever had in my whole life. I think part of my obsession is based on the fact that there are so few good looking ones out there. That makes me want to find a good looking one even more. Well today on the MoMA store I stumbled across Oskar. Made by Swiss Style (what is it with the Swiss and good looking humidifiers?) Oskar will pump out 1.9 gallons a day and even includes an oil container for aromatherapy. Size 11.4" W x 9.7" H x 9.7" D

Available from MoMA Store for $150.

As one prone to succumb to the advances of a nicely shaped vessel, it's no surprise that I fell hard for these vases. Whether you like them textured with an MCM flair, or smooth and minimal, these white vases from West Elm are sure to please.

Textured: $24 - $59
Smooth: $12 - $39

The idea of throwing some vinyl on your bedroom wall used to be a novel idea but nowadays there are a bunch of different companies offering oversized stickers for your walls. Blik was one of the first ones in the game, and they have been keeping the quality of their designs high by working with amazing designers like Mina Javid. Mina's bio goes a little something like this;

Mina Javid holds a BA in Architecture from the University of California at Berkeley and a Masters in Architecture from the University of California at Los Angeles. After working for several years in a prominent Los Angeles architecture firm, she launched her design office, Mina Javid Design, in 1999 with the intent of affording strong, contemporary design to all scales and aspects of the built environment. This multi-disciplinary approach includes architectural, interior, furniture, and product design. Her sensibility and design palette is continually inspired and refined through her travels throughout Asia, Africa, South America, Europe, and the

Middle East. For more information please visit www.minajavid.com.

Available from Blik. Prices start around $20.

For whatever reason, I am fascinated with bird houses. And for an equally obscure reason, I am fascinated with the Hepper Roost Bird House designed by Jed Crystal. Blame it on the seductive angles or the rust-proof aluminum construction, but this particular bird house has my number. Available in four colors, the Hepper Roost Bird House seems a wonderful gift for your favorite avian friends. Luckily for you (and your wallet) it's currently on sale for $99. Nice!

Hepper Roost Bird House available from Design Public: regularly $125 on sale for $99

This weeks "way back when" spotlight goes to a photographer not a architect or designer. Julius Shulman is perhaps one of the most well know mid century modern photographers of all time. His client list reads like a who's who of mid century design. The iconic photographs that he took were instrumental in both capturing the innovative architecture of the time as well as influencing main stream society's idea of a "modern life". In this great video Julius narrates some of his most well known photographs.

Loads of eye candy to start your weekend out with a bang!  ONG & ONG is a design firm which started as a small practice in Singapore in 1972. Since that time, the practice has expanded to include 4 other offices in the region, including Vietnam, Malaysia, India, and China. With over 500 built projects, their portfolio is vast and impressive. I suggest you check it out for yourself - perhaps when you've got a good block of time to devote to the task!

  

A while ago I was looking for suggestions for door handles for our son's room. I mentioned that I had some friends that have some crazy flush door handles that are original to their MCM home. While we ended up going with some fairly simple door knobs from Home Depot, I have still been trying to find something similar to what they have in their home. These renderings from Smart Design Studio are about the closest I have found yet. If anyone knows of a production version, let me know.

Surface Flik brings unique designs to the run-away trend of wall decals. Offering over 37 different color options as well as custom Pantone color matching, they're all about creating something you'll love. Run by a team of graphic designers, Surface Flik is up to the challenge of any custom job and will create a unique design specifically for you. Now's the time to get that giant Godzilla v. Bambi decal you've always wanted, but thought you'd never find. Hey, it's worth a shot.

Wall decals by Surface Flik: $18 - $150

[Decal shown: Modern Tree Design - $55]

I don't usually get excited about the offerings of Crate and Barrel as much of their furniture tends to be a little too traditional for my taste, but when I first saw a picture of this Strut table I was seriously impressed. I love the simplicity of the design and the emphasis on the making the structural components beautiful. The only down side is the $700 price tag for a table that only seats four.

If you like the looks of the strut table, you should check out the Strut Credenza as well. It's equally appealing to the eyes and has an even more pronounced mid century look to it. Between these two pieces of furniture, my opinions of Crate and Barrel may be changing. Do you have any other favorites from Crate and Barrel that I should know about?

Strut table and credenza available from Crate and Barrel