LustList
The Regional Assembly of Text
I would love to hang out here. In addition to being a stationery/gift store, the Regional Assembly of Text has a monthly letter writing club. !!! How brilliant. I love hand-written letters (who doesn’t), but other than thank-you notes, it’s rare that I actually take the time to sit down and write a letter. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a monthly time set aside to write a few letters and gather with friends?
And, they have a reading room of rare magazines and self-published books! I love that they not only sell them, but that they call it a reading room– implying that they won’t be annoyed if you want to spend an hour or two just browsing and hanging out.
Considering the Regional Assembly of Text is located in Vancouver, meaning not available to me (or most of the readers of this blog) (although there are some in Vancouver! Hi!), I’m inspired to start my own letter-writing club with friends. Wouldn’t that be fun?
[PS - now seems an appropriate time to publicly thank
my awesome brother-in-law, from whom I received a
mix cd in the mail last night! An old playlist of duets
he and my sister love that he'd burned for me once before
when I was younger and had since lost.]
[Regional Assembly of Text website]
LustList
Andy Warhol-Illustrated Blue Note Covers
Did you know that Andy Warhol did illustrations for a few of the Blue Note covers in the late 1950s when he was still working as a commercial artist and had not yet achieved any acclaim? I am loving the one above.
Are you surprised to see something by Warhol in this expressionistic (and non-pop) style? Doesn’t the drawing of the woman look very much like a Matisse drawing??
I’ve just dived head-long into what might be aptly described as an obsession with Blue Note and especially the 1500 and early 4000 series covers art directed by Reid Miles and commonly featuring photography by Francis Wolff.
Many more to come, they are a rich visual history of graphic design, typography, photography, illustration, and the hard bop era of New York jazz…
[More info on Blue Note here]
[Catalog of covers here]
LustList
100 Legendary Trunks
“This exceptional book showcases the most beautiful creations of the House through more than eight hundred photographs. Many incredible pieces are featured here, along with the equally incredible stories of their creation. Available from October 2010.” Must. Pre-order. Now. The video alone is a dream.
Pre-order Louis Vuitton 100 Legendary Trunks here.
[all images are screen-grabs from the video]
[via selectism]
LustList
Edible Greens
My green thumb project in the spring turned out rather poorly (as in, it turns out I don’t have a green thumb), but this, I think I could handle…
A perfect solution for beginner apartment gardeners who want to grow their own salad greens! This kit from Edible Greens comes with everything you need, and the greens grow right in these re-purposed wine boxes!
Available through Rare Device.
LustList
LustList >> This Jacket
Here.
LustList
LustList >> Music amplification with a little more personality…
Today is going to be a music-themed day, I can just feel it…
I’ve been dying for a record player recently. While one major factor is the quality of sound that vinyls produce, I have to admit that probably the biggest reason I want a record player is for the kind of ambience and atmosphere it creates to have music coming out of one. It’s just so much warmer feeling than those sleek, sterile iPod docks.
If you’re a minimalist, you’re like, “no way, it’s so awesome that I can play music out of this tiny inconspicuous white thing that no one even notices,” but for me, I’d rather have something that’s like, “Hey, check me out! I’m playing some tunes! This is going to be a rockin fun party with great music!”
But, considering I own no vinyl records and building a collection that could rival my iTunes collection would be an extremely costly feat, (and an implausible one considering building my iTunes colletion has been a financial investment rivaled only by my education), maybe the iVictrola is my answer…
It doesn’t plug in! It has no power source! And it’s so cool looking!
For those of you who need a little more sleekness in your lives, maybe the Phonofone?
The Phonofone II is all ceramic and actually just amplifies sound from your headphones. Here’s how the creators, Science & Sons, explain it:
Through passive amplification alone, These unique pieces instantly transform any personal music player + earbuds into a sculptural audio console.
Without the use of external power or batteries, the Phonofone inventively exploits the virtues of horn acoustics to boost the audio output of standard earphones to up to 55 decibles* (or roughly the maximum volume of laptop speakers)
Upon connecting active earphones to the Phonofone their trebly buzzing is instantly and profoundly transformed into a warm, rich and resonant sound.
The Phonofone is constructed entirely from ceramic. Not only environmentally low impact, ceramics are inherently rigid and resonant, lending themselves well to this application.
Given that the max volume is roughly that of a laptop, this particular device isn’t all that tempting, but still a really clever design!
The Hendekagram gramaphone operates the same way as the Phonofone, simply amplifying sound from your headphones. From qed* design.
The iVictrola at top doesn’t have an explanation for how it works, but since it is cordless, I assume it is through similar principles, unless it uses batteries and you just can’t tell from the pics. Regardless, it’s def my fave!
LustList
LustList>>Apolis Activism’s Market Bag
Along with your cycling pullover and Kanvas by Katin trunks, you might want to look into picking up Apolis Activism’s latest product– the Market Bag– which is made in conjunction with Saidpur Enterprises in Bangladesh.
Here’s what they say about it on their website:
Saidpur, Bangladesh. Bangladesh was established after the war for independence in 1971. With independence came famines, natural disasters and widespread poverty. The non–profit Saidpur Enterprises started manufacturing Market Bags to help rebuild the economy and create opportunity for the whole supply chain — farmer to manufacturer.
Mohammad Ghayasuddin, General Manager, Saidpur Enterprises. “The Apolis Market Bag is providing Bangladesh women jobs by connecting social advocacy to industry.”
I’m hoping for a cool video accompanying this product as well! (See past cool videos here and here.)
Also, just found out from Robin Long that the Parton brothers behind Apolis Activism are from Santa Barbara! How did I not know that before?? And does someone want to kindly introduce me??
Market Bag available here.
LustList
LustList >> Deborah Lippmann Nail Polish
I’m sure anyone who is a regular reader of this blog has noticed that I’m a pretty particular person, and those of you who know me outside of the internets probably know that this particularity extends to nail polish colors.
After growing up in a place where a French manicure seems like the only kind of manicure anyone ever gets (other than really bright toe colors for spring break/summer), I was convinced I hated painted finger nails. French manicures are a major pet peeve. I just can’t relate. I could go on about this, but I don’t want to offend anyone, and I do realize this is a personal peeve.
But then, I discovered the bright red, short-nailed look, and fell hard and never looked back. Red on the fingers, light light pink on the toes (occasionally on the fingers), but never anything else. For some reason I think these are the only colors that suit me. Other people can rock the purples and neon pinks, but I just can’t pull it off.
So of course, I am obsessive about the exact shade of red and light pink. Blue-undertoned straight-up red, slightly darker in winter, and pink so pale it’s almost neutral. No opalescense or pearliness. Straight pigment.
I can spend outrageous amounts of time in the store testing and picking the shade, and then I keep them in my purse so I always have them on my when I go to get my nails done. I simply can’t risk the nail place not having the right shade. (Do I sound high maintenance here or what? I prefer to call it “particular.” I swear there’s a difference.)
All this to say, I fell in love when I discovered the Deborah Lippmann line of polishes sold at Barney’s. She has multiple great reds and light pinks (including great orange undertone reds I wouldn’t usually go for), as well as other shades that despite my red-or-light pink-only rule, I am seriously tempted by.
So there’s gauranteed to be a color to suit everyone’s fancy, not just red/light pink people like me. The colors are so great that I found myself wondering if I could branch out to aubergine without having an identity crisis. I’m even tempted by the glittery gold… one time I wrapped gold foil around the tips of my fingers, loved the unabashed glam of it, and decided if I ever found a super gilt-y gold I’d have to try it. Somehow I think it’s a reasonable addition to my narrow repertoire.
Plus, they have great names like “My Old Flame,” “Prelude to a Kiss,” “Call Me Irresponsible,” and “Whatever Lola Wants.”
[Above, Giovanna Battaglia, former house model of Dolce & Gabbana, who I happen to have a major girl crush on, sporting red nails.]
[At top, sketch by Garance.]
Available here. (Expensive, yes, but seriously it takes forever to use up a bottle of nail polish.)
And in case you’re wondering, favorite reds are Sally Hansen Salon Lacquer “Hollywood Scarlet” for winter and Essie “Pepperoni” for summer (although horrible name, I know).
LustList
ChairLust
Ok just saw this chair in a house tour on Apartment Therapy and instantly became a little obsessed, thinking it was like 1960s Italian or Danish or something, and it turns out, as a commentor revealed, it is Restoration Hardware!! I tend to hate of RH, but they do have some really well-designed pieces. If you sort of ignore the overall overload on one trend (currently Belgian), individual pieces do stand out.
If anyone still is wondering what to get me for my birthday, I’ll take one of those chairs please.
Image from this post at Apt Therapy.
LustList
LustList >> “Lists”
I am dying to get a look at manuscript archivist Liza Kirwin’s new book Lists. The book collects various lists of famous artists, from to-dos to address books, with the premise that such lists both augment an artist’s personal history and add insight to bits of history that were happening at the time.
(Can’t make out much of Kline’s tab, but the one at top looks like possibly a Chateauneuf du Pape?)
The book includes ephemera like Picasso’s list of his favorite artists at the first Armory show in 1913, most of whom went on to dominate the art scene in the coming years, proving that he not only had personal talent, but also an eye for quality in others’ work. (Also interesting that he left off Braque, his contemporary in the Cubist movement… I am personally gratified by this because I never liked Braque’s work haha.)
(Pretty awesome cover, no?? I love the retro illustration and the mix of typography!)
Another “list” is Alexander Calder’s address book, which reads like a summary of the “who’s-who” of avant-garde Paris in the early 1900s. Other lists are more personal, like Janice Lowry’s list of “50 people I need to forgive” and Eero Saarinen’s list of reasons he loves his soon-to-be second wife.
Little seemingly insignificant lists, in retrospect, can actually take on major significance as snapshots into the making of a decision, the evidence of priorities, etc. As a compulsive list-maker myself (I literally have lists for everything– running lists of gifts to give people, equipment I want for the kitchen, etc.), I am totally intrigued by the chance to look at other peoples’ lists, espcially hand-written ones!
Available here from Princeton Architectural Press.
Via The Morning News.
PS — Speaking of lists, if you’re looking for something to make, here’s what’s on my list of things to cook this week: Grapefruit, Celery, and Parmesan Salad, Cilantro-Marinated Grilled Tofu and Soba Noodles, Grilled Guacamole, and Double Chocolate Layer Cake.
