The Estate of Things

Jesse Carrier designed The Glass House Fit For A Family in the August issue of Elle Decor.

I have fallen hard for this house. This house has a great mix of styles and a sense of youthfulness.  I think it embodies a lot of what the preferred style of most is today which is– a space that has a sense of personality, is liveable, functional and at the same time presents a sense of history or tells a story about the people that dwell there. I read a decent amount of design blogs everyday and I feel like the overall aesthetic represented in this home is what most design pundits are yapping about, including myself.

The Fielden home manages to read modern, casual and liveable for three kids yet houses a French provincial dining table, Chinese porcelain panels and a Chippendale-style breakfront.

Jesse Carrier knocks it out of the park, again. When the couple wants to incorporate family heirlooms that have little relevancy to the architectural style of the house, Carrier edits but manages to incorporate a lot of their family’s inherited treasures.

How much did you love it, a little or a lot? Perhaps you didn’t?

Its snuck up on me. Psychadelic Rock is happening, it can’t be denied. It’s creeping into playlists and venues and radio stations and music blogs everywhere… Especially here in Los Angeles.

This song is getting a LOT of airplay at the radio station where I work. Admittedly when I first listened to Tame Impala to see what all the hype was about I gave it a couple spins and passed right past it, cause I confess that LATELY I like folksy bleeding heart americana bands OR I like danceable electronic pop/anything that has a robot in it (its especially awesome if its both bleeding heart folk and robot… like this discovery I had today…) - but yeah, I just didn’t think that any 4 piece psychrock was gonna be my thing.

HOWEVER… every time this song comes on the radio I really like it… So - yeah. I just got the whole album, and now I’m gonna be paying a lot of attention to psychadelic rock.

Tame Impala - Solitude is Bliss

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Its FINALLY Summer in Santa Monica. Finally.. Check out this collabo track to celebrate.

I don’t know if I’ve told you or not but, I LOVE any and everything that Rostam touches. (He’s the guitarist/producer from Vampire Weekend and 1/2 of Discovery). Kid Cudi has greatly aided my life in ways that I won’t bother to explain, and Best Coast is a fun new LA Band for me to dive into some more.

This lady has been added to my personal “hell yeah” list of designers. Her name is Betsy Burnham and I found her at Decor Demon, also new to me. It leaves me wanting more. 

I felt it was important for us to make mention of these images and they are certainly getting around the blogosphere and understandably so.

Photography by Sarah Dorio

Was also funny to observe how many design bloggers commented on this story at Decor Demon. It was a feeding frenzy to which I obviously joined.

I must find a rug solution. The living room is coming together - the yellow curtains have injected the space with an energy, and its been nice to arrive at the abstract vision that was slowly building in my mind. I don’t know how you guys work when you’re putting a room together, but I’m pretty sllllooooowww to arrive at my final destination. The amazing thing - is that Kate and I are putting together the entire home with super cheap thrifty finds, good sales, and curb side treasures.

Next up, a Rug!. As much as I would love to wait to see if we can get lucky - I’m pretty sure this is one piece that we will need to drop some cash on, as we have done with the curtains. Hopefully we can get matched up with what we want as awesomely as we did with our curtains from Jamie at Furbish.

This dhurrie from Anthropologie is pretty perfect in design and color. I’m mixing heavily patterned accessories with a lot of solid furniture. I have a bent toward what I commonly refer to as Gypsy Decor. I don’t know - I made that up. They travel, and I’m stuck in an apartment going to the same job every day.

The kilims from the Rose Bowl were pretty hard to walk away from that day. But I don’t have the tenacity for Ebay. Perhaps I’ll have to make another Rose Bowl trip with some resolve to walk away with one. ??

There’s also this DIY post from Jenny at LGN that has my wheels spinning a bit. This could turn out to be a disaster, but at least it wouldn’t cost so much. I enjoy a chevron pattern, but I might even tape out something a little more like the Anthro rug pictured above.

There is a fantasy of an Angela Adams rug, (designer rugs that I love and will likely never own)….. but we can just take a look again. I dig her simple geometric patterns as well as the ornate scenery from the Birds & The Bees collection.

Last thought, is a large floral from Anthropologie.

Your Thoughts?

In keeping with the soft and mellow trend of folk inspired tunes, today we are gonna spin two favorite bands, one is Blind Pilot & the other is Bombadil. Each are categorized in my mind as part of the nostalgic roots renegade that I love. I’m constantly marveling at how so many young bands are capturing Americana with a modern flair. I love the instruments of the mountains and old harmonies. Tell me stories!!

Sarah really loves Blind Pilot. Here’s some ditties, bitty. I chose some remastered tracks from an iTunes EP, cause if you have the album - these serve as alternate versions and that’s sweet.

Blind Pilot - 3 Rounds and a Sound

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Blind Pilot - The Story I Heard

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Also, Bombadil.
I found out about this band via email! A fella name Bryan sent me a note, b/c he knew from my music blog (AudioMuffin) that I was a ginormous Avett Brothers fan. They were on the same home team label (Ramseur Records) and he wanted me to give them a listen. He was pretty right about my liking it. It ended up on the short list for my most favorite new albums of the year 2009. The funny thing about that now, is that I had just come home from a weekend at Sarah and Dan’s where Rob and I made up a song, videotaped it, and put it up on YouTube. Somehow I had the nerve to write Bryan from Bombadil back and ask him to watch my video. haha! He was really kind in his response. We still swap emails from time to time, and I’m REALLY looking forward to the day that they have some new songs for me to listen to. (I heard a little bit about the songs that they are in the process of writing.)

oh, so -  about the music. Again, fantastic story tellers. I think what grabs me about these guys is the way in which their songs make one consider the very real aspects of living - friendship, love, the effort to live fully - from simple and simply happy to a broad stroke of discontentedness. Here are some favs

Bombadil - Kate & Kelsey

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Bombadil - Reasons

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Bombadil - So Many Ways to Die

I went into a piano store on sunday. After some back and forth with a middle aged saleswoman, we told her we were a band. She asked me what kind of music we make, to which I replied simply.. “eh, I guess you can call it electro pop.” She replied…. “Ahhh, I just bought the Mark Snow album.”

Um…. I loved her for that.

It’s not Mark Snow, its Miike Snow, thus why she was so cute. Its not the name of a guy in the band, its the name of the band. Sorry to tell you this if you already know it…. I’m just pretending that the piano saleswoman is my target demo here on the blog!!!

So… I’m just gonna throw in some tracks now and shut up! Dance away my frumpy lil piana saleswomen!!

Miike Snow  - Sans Soleil

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Miike Snow - Cult Logic

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

And, a video for the one that has killed me each time I’ve seen them live - they murder it!!! SILVIA!

I’ve given you my fav tracks from lately! Purchase the full album for the full range of songs! They are all beautiful.

Gonna have to do some weeding through the resources. There are tons of apartments on the market. No need to rush into buying a Westside Rentals account though. Seriously. I say don’t do it until you’ve exhausted yourself with the free ones. Even if you do pay for it you’ll likely find your place from Craigslist, or a driveby. Personal Opinion, but I don’t really care for Westside Rentals.

Most of the time I just hit up Craig and do a keyword search for “bungalow” and pick through. Then “cottage” and pick through, emailing myself the ones to think about further. (I’m a recent fan of padmapper which pulls craigslist listings that input the address correctly, and displays them on a map.) But have had my best luck with clicking through various searches on Craigslist. Once you’ve perfected your search terms, hit the RSS icon in your browser bar to subscribe to new listings that match if you wanna.

Let’s pretend you know you wanna live on the Eastside.

I’d immediately suggest living here on this hill somewhere near Montecito/Lincoln Heights. I don’t know anything about the neighborhood, but could you care with that view/balcony/lightfixture(the nelson)/moulding? $1575/month

Or here, for $1850. Not cheap but super interesting. Note fun tile and Hobbitish ambiance. Plus its in Silverlak/Los Feliz area, so you can totally be Modern Bohemian.

Actually, that black tile in the kitchen is the sickest thing I’ve seen in a craigslist kitchen image.

If you are concentrated on a specific neighborhood, it might be less frustrating for you to use a map option like PadMapper. OR search by neighborhood using a service called Rental Girl.  This fantastic genius group of women got together and each pretty lady represents a different area of town. They specialize in finding rental options with character and appear to cover a wide budget (including a little one like mine). I checked out the Pasadena page b/c sometimes that’s where I live when I close my eyes real tight.

Here’s a steal at $1,000/mo. (Um…… MARGARET!!! Margaret wrote in and said she’s scared she’s gonna get stuck renting a room in a box b/c she’s had a hard time finding character). This place is super cozy.

This installment of Know Your Neighborhood took Betsy and I to Pasadena.  We weaved through the streets around the Rose Bowl after a few hours at the flea market.

If I lived in the LA area, had a family and could afford it I would most certainly live in Pasadena.  The landscaping is lush, craftsman homes are a plenty and the downtown area offers bountiful shopping and charm.  I only wish we could’ve spent more time there.

 this place is listed with Sotheby’s, I love the open rafters and the short awning roof

a Queen Anne emerges among the craftsman homes
 

 lush sidewalk plantings

 I am obsessed with this carport and I love how there are rooms and terraces over the garages and carports

 Asian influences…

 no white trim here

incredible trees and vines

This is my parent’s puppy, Hannah. She is a five month old Tibetan Terrier. I call her Fuffa or trophy dog. She’s very sweet and loves to rumble with three big german shepherds.