Thrifty Thursday: Get to Work!!

Orange Glow
Location: Winnetka, CA
Price: $40

This lamp will cast the perfect glow over your work space. Now you have no excuse not to have those reports in on time!
Also see: Yellow Desk Lamp ($10)



Movie Style Office
Location: South Omaha
Price: $125

This classic 50's desk is just like what you see in old movies. Grab a typewriter and you're good to go. Don't forget the buzzer for the secretary.



Swivel
Location: SW Portland
Price: $119

If you're going to grab the "movie desk" don't forget to grab a matching chair. You'll love swiveling around your work area in this chair.
Also see: Orange Steelcase Chair ($75)






Fun with Fiberglass
Location: Golden Valley, MN
Price: $75

There's something inspiring about a fiberglass shell chair and wire-framed desk. The light appears to be built in to the desk...SCORE! Also the perfect size for a small apartment or working with a laptop.
Also see: 70's Desk and Chair Set ($20); Folding Multi-level Desk ($35)


Mid-Century Awesome Desk
Location: Hampden, MD
Price: $75

This desk exudes mid-century charm. I don't even know if I could consentrate on my work if I had this, I'd be so busy admiring the desk! There's a deep drawer that looks good for files and three shallower drawers that would be great for holding color coordinated paperclips, pencils, and staples.
Also see: Dovetailed desk ($175)


Laminate Glory
Location: Post Falls, WA
Price: $30

I love this desk. It looks like the white top is made of laminate and once again there are tons of drawers for accessories.
Also see: Paul McCobb Desk ($300); Retro silver desk ($325); "Manly" vintage desk ($650)

Q+A: Thomas Paul

One of the perks of writing for Domestic Modern is that I got to interview Thomas Paul, one of my favorite designers. Aside from his rugs which are sold at Domestic Modern, Thomas Paul also has pillows, stationary, lighting, and melamine plates, all of which are adorned with his ingenious prints. Check out the Thomas Paul interview below.

Many designers are going the mass market route and creating designs for stores such as Kohls and Target. How do you feel about the concept of "Design for All?"
I think that it is great, my only concern is that sometimes the actual products don't always live up to the great marketing that goes into these programs. I mean this in terms of quality.

Right now, your pieces are sold online and at various boutiques...are there any plans for a Thomas Paul Boutique in the future and if so, where? Boston perhaps!?
There is definitely talk of opening our own retail store, we have a full range of products at the moment, so it would be great to have a physical space to showcase everything together. We are also launching a fabric line with Duralee fabrics, so now there is even the possibility of showing upholstered furniture in a boutique. But the first store would have to be in New York, as it is my hometown.

Your bold pillows and vintage modern melamine collection are great accents for the home. Will you go bigger and take a stab at a furniture line?
Well, finally having a fabrics collection that can be used for furniture is a first step. All of our pillow fabrics are hand screened exactly to the size of the pillow, and the fabrics tend to be a bit delicate, so none of my textiles were ever really appropriate to upholster furniture in. It would be great to think about other pieces beyond upholstered items, or to find a way to apply patterns and color to case goods and tables.

What's your favorite thing in your house?
Probably my stereo-I can not live without music on constantly.

What can we expect from your upcoming collections?
The aforementioned insects in pillows [mentioned on the Domestic Modern blog], more birds, and sea creatures-I am still obsessed with animalas and nature, but it is all taking a turn to a little different style, more hand drawn and antique looking and less bright, clean, and poppy as the designs have been for the past few years.

You can read the rest of the Thomas Paul interview at the Domestic Modern Blog. Stay tuned to Domestic for his future designs as well.

IKEA goes Hollywood

Ever wondered what it would be like if celebrities took over our jobs for a day? Well, you're about to find out! IKEA and SXM are debuting a new webseries titled Easy to Assemble, created by actress Illeana Douglas.

(all images via SXM)

In the show, Illeana and other celebrity guest stars will don the yellow and blue as employees at IKEA's Burbank, CA location. According to a release by SXM, the production company behind the web-series, you'll see things such as "Jeff Goldblum doing a 10 minute improv monologue to a growing crowd of shoppers or Robert Patrick doing a scene with a real-time family chosen from within the store..."

For many celebrities, pulling hard to pronounce Swedish furniture from isles and bins might not be a walk in the park (welcome to normal life!) but Illeana's no stranger to retail work. In 2004 she played herself as an actress who quits acting to work at a supermarket. The appropriatly titled show, Supermaket, became an internet hit. Now she's back to repeat the success with IKEA.

The 10-episode, scripted series will air late September on several video sites including YouTube and Daily Motion. Aside from Illeana, look for guest-stars Jeff Goldblum, Justine Bateman, Tom Arnold, Robert Patrick, Ed Begley Jr. And Greg Proops.

Store Review: Streamline and the Darkhorse

I've been super busy lately apartment hunting, planning my mom's visit to Boston in a couple weeks, and trying to keep up with all our summer activities. It's been crazy! But, I always have time to go thrifting.

This time we checked out a couple of stores in Lower Mills which is on the Dorchester/Milton line about 20 minutes from Boston. The first place was Streamline Antiques, which specializes in art deco and mid-century items. Don't let it's small size fool you - there are enough tchotchkes inside to keep you busy for at least an hour! The first thing that caught my eye was an amazing orange vinyl chair with a teak base. It would be perfect for my apartment! We also found several great silverware sets, vintage cracker tins, dishes and glasses galore, and tons of jewelry. They had a great selection of books too...I purchased one on collecting mid-century furniture. There were two sisters shopping in the store with us who were amazed at the selection. They came in to browse and ended up buying new silverware, serving dishes, and plates for their upcoming dinner party. Who knew a second-hand store could be the new Crate and Barrel!?!

Our second stop was Darkhorse Antiques. Darkhorse is FULL of furniture and oddities. My recommendation: don't bring large bags or purses with you, otherwise you'll end up knocking something over! If you walk carefully through the cramped isles, you'll find majestic looking desks fit for a palace and massive mahogany armoires. They also have random things like chess sets made of bone china, a barrel from the old Baker Chocolate Factory, and neat cigar boxes. I'm going back for a set of chrome bar stools. They're cute and not like the typical 50's chrome stools. I plan on using them at the dining table once we get moved.

Streamline Antiques

1168 Washington St.

Dorchester, MA 02124
617-298-DECO (3326)

Darkhorse Antiques

2297 Dorchester Ave

Dorchester, MA 02124
(617) 298-1031

Apartment Wanted: Phoenix

As I said in the last Apartment Wanted, Jerome and I are planning to move in a year or two. The two places at the top of the list, Chicago and Arizona.

I chose Chicago for it's thriving cultural scene and historic lofts. It's also closer to my family (I'm a midwest girl!) I chose Arizona because of it's mid-century heritage. The west coast is where the atomic boom started back in the 50's, with acres and acres of atomic ranches waiting for eager homebuyers. More than 60 years later, people are still searching for these retro homes. People like me. Here are a few of my picks:


Scottsdale Retro
3 bed, 2 bath
Rent: $1490

This house is FULL of wood panelling. My advice, keep a few walls of panelling up and paint the rest. The kitchen is nice and large with a backyard perfect for parties.

Phoenix Townhouse
2 bed, 2.5 bath
Rent: $995

I love townhouses so this condo quickly caught my fancy. If you hate sharing a bathroom, both bedrooms come with their own bathroom and there's an extra half bath downstairs. There's also a wetbar and working fireplace. My favorite feature is the door (shown in the picture).


Phoenix Campus Living
3 bed, 2 bath
Rent: $1425

Even college students get to live the retro life in Arizona. I knew I should have gone to school there! I like the wall of windows.

West Elm Goes Retro

I got my daily email from West Elm today, this time announcing their new retro-style dining set. I don't usually shop West Elm but this table and chairs combo is a good find. The table comes in two colors (acorn and chocolate wood) and retails for $399 while the chairs go for $579/set of 4 and can match the table or come in white.

Apt528 Reads: Retro Style

Retro Style: The 50's Look for Today's Home

By: Marion Haslam

Amazon Price: $16.50

Apt528 Rating: 6 out of 10

Overall, a good book. The brightly colored pictures capture the spirit of the 50's and Haslam gives vivid desciptions of how things were "back in the day." As you flip through, you'll see mini-bios of famous mid-century designers nestled between the pages, giving you a glimpse into how notables such as Arne Jacobsen got their start. That was my favorite part - learning the history behind the furniture I've come to admire.

Another great feature are the DIY projects. Every dozen pages or so you'll find step-by-step instructions on easy, affordable projects to turn your place into a 50's throwback. My favorite DIY is the boomerang coffee table - the instructions are clear and easy to follow.

While I liked most of the book, I wasn't so keen on the parts where Haslam tried to relate 50's design to the trends of today. For me, the comparisons just didn't work. I felt like the book was written in the 90's. I guessed right...it's copyrighted 2000. Even though the trends may not be up to date with 2008, there are still great examples of ways to incorporate retro style. You're bound to find something you like!

Going Green

I tend to be a little weary when it comes to "green" products. A lot of the time they cost more, aren't that attractive, and require a lot of research. In the time it takes to find info for eco-friendly products, I could have purchased a shopping cart full of conventional items.

But there's a new blog in town helping to simplify all that is green. Jennae Petersen is the blogger behind Green Your Decor (found via No Accounting for Taste). Green Your Decor does all the work for you. Not only does Jennae show you eco-friendly products, she also tells you WHY the prodcuts are considered green. And don't worry about style, even the cat trees (pictured below) are hip and modern! That translates into less time researching and more time shopping!

To the Market!

No I haven't been slacking, the internet's been down. I guess that's what I get for stealing wireless from the neighbors!

I've been pretty productive though. I read some new design books for upcoming reviews and made it out to the Sowa Open Market in Boston's South End. The Market is full of local artists and vendors showcasing their merchandise. We found some great things: popcorn bowls made out of reshaped records; turned wood serving platters; funky purses and wallets; organic clothing; handmade breads; and amazing jewelry. You could do all of your Christmas shopping here if you wanted to!

The vendors change from week to week so there's always something new. Not all of the artists have business cards or websites but many offer mailing lists to keep you up to date on the latest happenings. I mangaged to grab a few cards...here are just a few of my favorites this week:

Vonica

purses, wallets, accessories

http://www.vonicadesigns.com/

I love the Chic Chick bag...it's SO cute :)

Bella Bags by Marcia

purses, totes, messenger bags, accessories

http://www.bellabagsbymarcia.com/

There's no such thing as too many purses!

Jolly Bike

hand-painted bikes

http://www.jollybike.com/

You've never seen a bike until you've seen one of these!!

More Murphy

It's been five months since I wrote about the Moddi Murphy Bed and yet it still continues to be my most popular and most searched blog post. It's easy to see why. The Moddi is affordable (made from Ikea parts) and looks great.

But, there are other options. I did a little digging and came up with a few other choices. Many of the murphy kits come with the option of hiding the bed in a cabinet or behind bookcases which adds to the functionality and gives you even more useable space.

Murphy Beds Direct - as seen on HGTV's Fix It Up!

Murphy Wall-Beds Hardware

Bayne's Quality Custom Furniture

Old Creek Wallbed Factory - says you can DIY in under 2 hours!