I recently had the fortune of sitting in on a lecture held by a friend of a friend, Australian architect Peter Stutchbury.
Beyond beauty, his structures are designed with a tremendous level of environmental sensitivity. He focuses on utilizing the attributes of his plots in such a way that optimal thermal mass can be reached with minimum energy consumption. See more of his work here.
Next week is my son’s first birthday. To celebrate this event, I’m making him a Dinosaur Train cake and some homemade orange popsicle flavored ice cream, both treats my husband and I plan to consume in significantly larger quantities than what my son will. (He’ll likely wear a good portion of his servings.) We’re not having a traditional party, but we’ll video chat with grandparents and cousins when he opens (rather, when we open) the gifts they generously sent to him. We might go to a park or the zoo if the weather is nice.
My expectation is that his second birthday celebration will be similar to this and he won’t start having parties with friends until he’s at least three, four, or five years old — whenever he requests a more standard party. Until then, we’re keeping things as low key as possible.
Before I became a mom, I never understood the lavish parties parents in my area throw for their kids. I’ve heard of some events that easily cost parents thousands of dollars, and guests to the party end up leaving with bags of goodies more valuable than the toys they brought for the guest of honor. I know I won’t ever throw a party like this for my son (sorry, kiddo!), but I’m at least starting to understand why parents do.
As a parent, you want the world for your kid. You want your child to be liked by his classmates, you want your child to be happy, and you want to celebrate his life. A basic swimming party with hamburgers can easily cost a hundred dollars — spending 10 times more once a year on a birthday party wouldn’t seem like such a big deal, especially if you’ve got the disposable income to do it. Research even shows that experiences make you happier than physical possessions.
My parenting philosophy and budget don’t include renting elephants, night clubs, and cruise ships for my son and 100 of his acquaintances, though. I’m more interested in teaching him to appreciate adventures than extravagance. I want him to respect people more than glamor and glitz. And, I hope he learns that the things that matter most in life don’t usually come wrapped in shiny paper with bows.
I don’t judge the parents who go all out for their child’s birthdays — for all I know, they’re teaching their children the same values I’m hoping to teach mine, just with the addition of a really great party once a year. A simple party is what works for our family, however, and I hope my son won’t be an outcast or disappointed by our decision when he’s old enough to know what a party is. If we stay in this area of the country, his birthday might regularly fall on the last day of school, which he might even see as party enough.
 | Although I always joke about how big bags are getting these days, I secretly love it. Handbag and tote sizes have gotten so big that I swear there’s more room inside some of them than my own humble living arrangements, but that’s the appeal. Us women are often accused of carrying around our entire lives within the contents of our bags, and now, we can do so while still looking totally fashionable. My current favorite in the big-huge-bag trend is the DKNY Pleated Nappa Leather Shopper. It’s simple design of large wavy, horizontal pleats is super stylish and let’s the buttery Nappa leather be used to it’s full potential, plus the gold chain detailing on the handle gives it a touch of glam. Totally versatile and really cute, this DKNY Pleated Nappa Leather Shopper comes in the classic ebony or ivory so whether you’re looking for a bag with a more summer-y vibe (the ivory), or for a look that will transcend seasons (ebony), they’ve got you covered. It’s seriously huge and could probably fit a kid, but comes with different compartments inside so it’s relatively easy to keep things orderly and you don’t have to crawl in to look for something! This leather shopper is completely lust-worthy and selling out fast so check it out if it seems like what you’ve been in the market for, and you won’t be disappointed in this smart investment that can be worn over and over again.What: the DKNY Pleated Nappa Leather Shopper Price: $349.00 Where to Buy: Zappos Who: Idabone was the first to add the DKNY Pleated Nappa Leather Shopper to the Hive. |
3XNs winning proposal for the new structure marking the entrance to Vällingby Parkstad symbolizes the soft values of the ABC-2.0 vision; to creat..
Dans la lignée du très bon concept Tree House, voici La Cabane Perchée qui propose plus de 250 cabanes dans différents pays d’Europe. La priorité de ces installations est avant tout de respecter la nature et les arbres. Plus de visuels de ces projets dans la suite de l’article.
Site officiel La Cabane Perchée.
The jury has spoken, and the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum today announced the winners of the 2010 National Design Awards, bestowed annually in fields ranging from architecture and interiors to fashion and communication design. So who’s taking home swirly asterisk statuettes this year? The lifetime achievement award goes to Jane Thompson, founding editor of dearly departed I.D. magazine, while another I.D. alum, Ralph Caplan, has been named “Design Mind.” After mounting Gregory Crum‘s outstanding “quicktake” exhibition on the wonders of Rodarte, the museum will award the top honor in fashion design to the five-year-old label, which earned a finalist nod last year (along with a major CFDA award win). Another 2009 finalist that has advanced to the winner’s circle is Smart Design, which will take home the National Design Award for product design. The communication design category belongs to the incredible Stephen Doyle, while Maira Kalman and John Jay of Wieden+Kennedy received finalist nods. The winners will receive their awards on October 14 at a gala dinner at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York. Here’s the full list of 2010 National Design Award winners and finalists:
Lifetime Achievement: Jane Thompson
Design Mind: Ralph Caplan
Corporate and Institutional Achievement: U.S. Green Building Council
Architecture Design: KieranTimberlake
Communication Design: Stephen Doyle
Fashion Design: Rodarte
Interaction Design: Lisa Strausfeld
Interior Design: William Sofield
Landscape Design: James Corner Field Operations
Product Design: Smart Design
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
What the Hex, is a fun little game. Guess the color based off of the hex value.
Questo modello di Clae uscirà per la stagione Fall/Winter 2010. Colore Charcoal, tomaia in scamoscio. Già mi gasano.
Industry and imagination merge in “Where We Work: Creative Office Spaces,” a book exploring the world’s most extraordinary workspaces. In the Beijing office of Saatchi & Saatchi, a white heart-shaped conference table sits under an orange half-dome, fit for a space-age bachelor pad. At Nothing Commercial Creativity in Amsterdam, Michel Gondry’s “The Science of Sleep” inspired an office platform made of cardboard—precision fitted with laser-cut slots—eschewing screws and glue.
Compiled and authored by Ian McCallam, he based “Where We Work” on his site, This Ain’t No Disco (It’s Where We Work) , which invites agencies to share their interiors. “The employees within these spaces are artists within their trade and their work environment reflects this,” McCallam writes in the introduction.
The 45 agencies profiled in the book—advertising firms, design studios, media companies—aim to captivate clients and stimulate creative minds. “Our main design goals were to elevate perception, foster collaboration and creativity. These goals were achieved almost immediately,” explains Rebecca Armstrong of Oregon brand agency North, where a raised, wood-paneled cube makes for a floating meeting room.
“Where We Work” sells from Barnes & Noble and Amazon. See photos from the book in the gallery below.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
