Remember the House 2 project I was going to be following last year? Yeah, I didn't do too good of a job updating on the progress. Luckily the general contractor and subs did a great job of finishing it up. The owners have been in for a couple months now, and a few weeks ago my friend and amazing photographer Kim Guanzon came over to take a few pictures (above). The exterior cedar rain screen turned out fantastic, and is a great warm contrast to the white stucco. Similarly the interior has a fantastic contrast of stark white walls with lot's of fir woodwork to warm the space up. All the cabinetry, bookcases, window benches etc. were done by Salt Lake City based Modern Union, a new local company that is focusing on modern cabinetry and furniture. Modern Union is filling the gap between the low cost Ikea option and the high priced european cabinetry companies like Bulthaup, Poliform, Boffi etc.

Look for a full house tour coming soon.

Kim Guanzon Photography

Modern Union

I have a thing for bent steel, bent plywood, or any other material that can be bent and molded in such a way. So when I spotted this cookbook holder from The Conran Shop I immediately perked up. It's made from one solid sheet of iron and available in a bright, snazzy red. Definitely a worthy addition to any modern kitchen, don't you think?

Origami Cookbook Holder from The Conran Shop: $24

P.S. There is even a bread bin to match!

Textured wall tile aren't anything new, but it is always nice to see some new options. While Inhabits Wall Flats are made of bamboo pulp, the WallArt tiles are made from sugarcane stalks that are left over after raw sugar is extracted. The end result is the same, a durable, sustainable, and biodegradable wall tile. Pricing is not announced yet for WallArt tiles, but I would expect it to be similar to others on the market. Check out WallArt's website to see all 12 patterns.

WallArt tiles

GENIUS. That's all I'm going to say.

About:
The CableCup is an innovative solution to the problem of cleanly attaching hanging ceiling lamps. The rubber cup cleverly attaches to the cable and is then reversed to conceal the excess cable. Designers Jonas Forsman and Lars Wettre have received great praise for the CableCup in the form of the Red Dot Design Award as well as the Swedish Design S award.

Available in black or white.

CableCup available from the Finnish Design Shop: $21

I usually reserve Friday's for my "Way Back When" posts, a look at fantastic design from the golden years of modern. Today I'm introducing a new theme I hope to cover more consistently, modern american studio design. There is so much great furniture design going on here in the states and internationally but I have been hesitant to cover it as it is not "affordable". You can see some of my conflicted musings here and here. While lamenting about another great furniture maker today that I would not be covering I remembered a part of GRM's original mission statement. "We hope to be able to connect passionate designers with the masses and become a catalyst for change in the modern contemporary world." I realized that by not covering boutique furniture makers like Standard Made, I was perhaps denying my readers the chance to connect with some of the most innovative, passionate designers out there. So affordability be dammed. Let's support the little guy trying to make it in this big corporate modern world. With that may I introduce you to Adam Rogers of Standard Made.

About Adam...

Adam Rogers is a furniture designer / maker.

Adam is devoted to the pursuit of harmony between modern design and quality craftsmanship. His work showcases a clean aesthetic inspired by classic modern design, with an emphasis on amplifying subtlety through details, executed by a maker trained in the traditions of furniture making.

Prior to committing himself to the design and production of objects and returning to graduate school for a masters degree in furniture design and woodworking, Adam spent years in corporate architecture following his undergraduate studies in architecture and interior architecture, serving as a designer on projects ranging from residential to university buildings. Seeking a more personal relationship to his work, his focus has shifted scale. With an understanding of the impact an object can have on an environment, the context of a piece is never without consideration.

Adam is exactly the kind of guy I want to see succeed in this world. He has a beautiful line of furniture, all of which has clean lines and subtle but beautiful joinery. All of it is designed and hand made by himself. Photo's and pricing are below.

Table A - Walnut and Marble $1,250.

Cabinet A - Walnut and Copper $3,500.

Cabinet B - Walnut $3,750.

Chair A - Walnut and Leather $1,350.

Chair B - Walnut and Leather $1,350.

Standardmade

When it comes to home decor, I love texture and pattern used in unexpected ways, which is probably why I'm so attracted to these new bedroom pieces from West Elm. The Stria Collection is made from reclaimed Saal wood which was previously used as railway ties in India. While it's definitely rustic, I think this bedroom set would look gorgeous in any modern home. What do you think?

Stria Collection from West Elm: $299 - $899

UK based Cushlab is doing some fantastically creative pillows out of felt. The texture and colors that Becca puts together really take things to the next level. All pillows are made out of wool/felt viscose and 100% wool. Sizing is standard so it should be easy to find a nice down insert. Pricing starts around £70.00 for the smaller sizes. Custom orders are accepted.

Cushlab

Our love of tea towels is nearly insatiable, it seems! Fortunately, the supply of cool designs is never low... just take a look at these "Mealtime Miracle" towels from ModCloth. Fantastic and cheap! Now, if only they were available in every color.

Mealtime Miracle Dish Towels from ModCloth: $7.99 Red Utensil | $7.99 Turquoise Teapot

Tom Dixon is a fairly household name in the design world, but I honestly haven't paid much attention to his work. That is until a couple weeks ago when a local Salt Lake modern lighting store Light Spot had an open house to show off their latest Tom Dixon lighting. I was quite impressed, and pleasantly surprised to find most of it was much more affordable than I thought it was. To sweeten the deal, I just noticed that Light Spot is having a 20% off sale on all Tom Dixon lighting. Locals go check it out.

Light Spot

Tom Dixon

I recently ran across Matthew's collage-styled illustrations on Society6 and I can't get them out of my head. I suppose the only solution is to buy a print or two... Right?

LINK: http://matthewbillington.com

Prints by Matthew Billington: $28 - $48

More pics after the jump!

Hello headphone heaven!

I have a few weaknesses in life, felt, bentwood furniture, and my until now unconfessed obsession with headphones. I currently have a half dozen kicking around the house, and it looks like I'm going to have a couple more. Urbanears get's all the details just right. Available in a rainbow of solid colors, fabric covered cord, microphone with iPhone controls, and even a clever "zound plug" that lets you share with friends. All that for just $60. Swoon.

Urbanears headphones.

Fonts yesterday, vector icons today... It's just that kind of week here at GRM! I'm very excited about this modern icon collection from Lushpad, though. You can grab the complete set for $46 or break it down into Danish Modern, Decor & Accessories, or Modern (lots of Eames pieces). They're quite detailed and accurate, so no worries about funky Bertoia's or misshapen Saarinen's.

Modern Furniture Icons from Lushpad: $16 - $46

P.S. Don't forget to snag Lushpad's free desktop wallpaper if you haven't already!

To kick off the week and the official beginning of Spring*, I thought I'd point you all in the direction of a free font download from designer Andy Mangold. He's offering up a set of numerals in his Pompadour font (which reminds me a bit of the Eames set from House Industries, but sexier). Click here to see Pompadour in use.

FREE Download: Pompadour Numeral Set from Andy Mangold

Happy designing!

*I have no idea what Spring and free fonts have to do with each other, but they both make me very, very happy.

I don't have enough words in my vocabulary to tell you how much I love Neutra's work. Above is a short little video that begins with and excerpt of a video titled "Neutra's VDL Research House" and ends with a short documentation about the Los Altos Neutra House.

About the Los Altos Neutra House project.

In 2005, the City of Los Altos, the Los Altos Community Foundation, and a group of citizens interested in preserving architectural history joined together to save a small Los Altos house designed in 1935 by this renowned California architect and completed in 1939.

Between 1930 and 1940 Neutra did about a dozen projects in the San Francisco Bay Area. In 1935, he began designing three houses for two poets, Jacqueline Johnson and Clayton Stafford. Two small houses with identical floor plans were the residences of Stafford and his wife, and of Jacqueline Johnson. The house that was saved was Johnson's home. A third and smaller house was also built for Johnson. These residences defined a small commune in a prune orchard.

The Johnson house was moved to City-owned land and for the past three years has been carefully renovated for reuse as a community center for meetings, off-sites, and other similar activities. The completed facility has a large conference room, kitchen, bathroom, integrated landscape, and an HDTV audio/video system that on whick visitors can see videos on the history of modern architecture in Los Altos and the greater San Francisco Bay Area. This system will also serve the audio/visual needs of those using the conference room for meetings. Combining preservation and reuse has been at the essence of the Los Altos Neutra House Project.

We love a good clock here at GRM and this solid-wood number from Off Cut Studio has us sitting up in our seats! According to designer and craftsman Cameron MacLean, this minimal time piece is based off a vintage design from Russia. Though we have a soft spot for Walnut, it's also available in Cherry, Maple, and White Oak.

Wood Clock by Off Cut Studio: $55

It's no secret that I love bent plywood. There is just something about the graceful organic lines that gets me every time. Throw some felt in the mix, and I get weak in the knees. The Dansk Stole chair by James Killinger is one of the better looking bentwood chairs I have seen for a while. What is even more fascinating is seeing the entire process that went into designing and building it. Jaime over at Design Milk did absolutely fantastic job of sharing the whole process. Check out her "Deconstruction" post for all the juicy details and pictures

Dansk Stole Deconstruction on Design Milk

More Deconstruction post from Design Milk here

The shade and canopy of this sexy little number are handmade from translucent bone china in the town of Stoke-on-Trent (considered to be the home of the pottery industry in England). With those credentials, you'd expect this elegant light to run upwards of $700, but it's surprisingly affordable for such fine craftsmanship. I'm not sure what I'm attracted to most: the warm glow of the porcelain or the mid-century-esque shape. Regardless, it's beyond classy!

Drop Two Pendant Light available from Gretel: $215

Continuing with my recent warm weather obsession of sitting outside around a nice fire...

AK47 is an Italian based design firm that has turned out a whole slew of great looking fire pits. I mentioned them a while back, but it looks like they have some new tricks up their sleeve. While their fire pits are designed to be shipped, I have a hard time believing you are going to be able to get one stateside. In the meantime, hit up your local metalworker and tell him to get busy. Give me a call when it's done. I'll just sit here with my bag of marshmallows waiting.

Hit up AK47's site for more modern fire pit goodness.

It's no secret that we have a huge crush on Pigeon Toe Ceramics here at GRM, so when we received word about their new Spring/Summer collection let's just say we were INSANELY EXCITED. The new collection consists of solid walnut coasters, ink blot tea towels, faceted drawer pulls, and many, many more rockin' pieces. Check out their shop to see the whole collection and let us know which piece is your favorite!

Spring/Summer 2011 Collection from Pigeon Toe Ceramics: $20 - $116

As I mentioned last week, we have been tempted with affordable modern prefab homes for years now. Most of the options you see are well done on the modern side of things, but come up short when it comes to being affordable. These Marmol Radziner designed prefab homes in Santa Monica seem to err on the other side. That is to say, they aren't the best looking, but at least they are affordable. 20 manufactured homes ranging in size from 384 to 1,200 square feet are being placed in Santa Monica. Individual prices range from $25,000 to $72,000. With a sub $100 a square foot price these really show the potential that prefab could bring to the market. I'm just not quite sure how everyone keeps missing the middle ground. See the slightly underwhelming pictures after the jump.

Jetsongreen has a great write up full of links and details on the project.