Linda Solovic

Over the weekend, I got a nice email from artist Linda Solovic. How adorable are her pieces?I love the playful happy embroidery work that has a slight vintage feel to them. Love these magnets too! Check out more at her website, and her etsy shop.

travel rituals

Naked Eye- Luscious Jackson

Happy munday! Today finds me yet again on another bizness trip back up to Seattle. I have so much traveling to do in the next couple of weeks, its kinda crazy. I'm usually pretty good about packing, but this time I was so rushed that I totally forgot a few things.  Ugh. hate that. Luckily it's not like I'm going someplace unfamiliar or out of the country, so I can still just jump over to a trustworthy Target and get what I need. One thing about traveling is that I have found I have this ritual. I do the same thing every time. It breaks down to these 8 steps:

1. Get to Airport.

2. As soon as I get into the security line, remove belt, keys, wallet and shove into carry on bag. (I hate all the shuffling right before I have to pass through the security and thing and prefer to speed through that as fast as I can. 

3. Leave security area and find a nearby seat.

4. Put myself back together (put back shoes, belt, wallet, etc...)

5. Go to Newstand.

6. Buy water, some sort of small snacky thing, like M&Ms, Raisinets (I totally used to think these were gross when I was a kid, but a few years ago I re-visited the idea and now totally love them!)

7. Pick up 2-4 magazines. It usually breaks down to: 2 bad trashy mags, like People or In-touch (its the only time I read them... honest... hehe), whatever issue of In-Style (i like that they're usually really thick)  and then a home design mag (if there's one I haven't read yet)

8. Depending on the time of the flight, I may get something to eat too. Oh the joys of airport food... actually some airports do have some decent offerings...

anyways- I've found that this has become my routine whenever I'm at the airport. Doesn't matter where I'm going. Is that weird? Do you have a travel routine?

Apartment Therapy Presents

Woo hoo! My copy of the AT book was waiting for me when I got home Friday afternoon! It's soooo neato. Ok, not that I'm in any way biased (er... not that my place just happens to be in it, or that I happen to blog for them too, hehe) but it's such a fun book! Ok, yeah, I'm totally plugging it, but really, I definitely recommend checking it out if you love house-tours. There's such an array of styles, colors, and tastes in this book, and they're all of homes from people like you and me. So much great inspiration and it's a substantial size too! The images of my place were shot last year, so its funny to see how it has changed since then. (if you've been following this blog, you'll probably notice a few things, but my place is still pretty similar to when it was shot.) I took some updated shots on Saturday, and should be having an official house-tour on AT in the coming weeks. (hopefully I won't get blasted with too many snarky comments, hehe) Anyway- I think my favorites inside are: "hakarl and jili's bold bright moves", "jane and darko's cozy thicket", "tyke and jon's topanga casa", "victoria's bomo pad" and "marilyn and peter's home studio." oh! and "gregory and emily's silverlake sanctuary" and "marlon's blue pad." See- there's just tooo many to choose!

A Very Merry Un-Birthday to Happy Mundane and to you!

Wow. I just realized that this mundane blog is already 2+ years old. I totally missed the first birthday, and I've already missed the 2nd one (it was in March!)- It's crazy to think that I've actually been doing this blog for so long. I want to thank each and every one of you that take a few minutes each day (or whenever) to click on my little blog.  Have a very merry un-birthday (or if it is your birthday- Happy Birthday!)  

Now, in honor of Happy Mundane's un-birthday, it's been a year since I did this last. Each time it's been amazing to see the number of people grow and the locations spread- So... I'm in Irvine, CA- where are you??

By the way, here's an awesome fan-made video of Alice set to Gwen Stefani by Filmrocker

have a great weekend- and tell me where you are!

Published?

Lookee here! Victoria at SFgirlbybay got a copy of the new ApartmentTherapy book! Um...

recognize anything?... 

I haven't received my copy yet- but cant wait to see it. super neato! Order your copy here:

(image via SFGirlbybay)

Lucky You Lucky Me

So the past few days I had a little house guest. His name is Lucky. I was only supposed to be baby sitting for two days. You may not see me for a awhile because I may or may not be involved in a kidnapping...

Help I need Help!

I really do... Most medical packaging is so crazy or clinical, and I love this more calmer approach. Also love the fact that the outside is made of molded pulp! Read more here. (be sure to click on the "Bored?" tab, it's genius. (via mocoloco)

Kraak & Smaak - Squeeze Me

Flip books are so cool.

Artwork inspiration from Pillow Talk

Recently I added a new piece of artwork to my stairway wall. It's a pretty substantial piece (its the one on the left above- It's really long horizontally, and I love the 70's modern city scene with the brown/rust sun. Consequently, when I took a step back, I found that it didn't work so well with one of my existing pieces. (see below- the existing painting is the blue gradation one) The piece that was now affected was one that I actually made myself. There's no real deep emotional attatchment to it. At the time, I just wanted to put something up to bring in some color to the wall. So, my thought was to actually modify the existing art, to make it work a little better with the new piece (uh oh- watch out- Jon's gettin' "artsy", hehe). I mean, the canvas is the perfect size, and it's still in great condition. No need to waste good canvas right? Looking for inspiration, I always find myself paying attention to artwork and details in the background sets of some of my favorite style movies. One example is in the beloved film, Pillow Talk. I took some screen caps of some artwork in the film that caught my eye. It's interesting how well these pieces hold up nearly 50 years later...
So I'm definitely loving the more abstract splotchy concept, but also LOVE the clean graphic one at the end. Love the grey color, and thinking maybe I need some gold... hm... we'll see what happens... stay tuned...

blue tuesday: INSIDE OUT

Isn't this cover of the latest Inside Out magazine just so perfect for spring? I love the fresh green and turquoise accents. Another thing I loved inside this issue was this image of this amazing sculpture. It's by the son of Sharyn Storrier Lyneham, Luke Storrier. I love how it's a whole bunch of toothpicks forming a sort of web, with the red ceramics trapped inside. So poetic...

hammer time! Flat pack and Vert Design

Check out this cool flat pack hammer by Vert Design from Australia. They also have a super cute flat pack whale mobile! check out more at their site.

Kim Myles "branching out" too?

Well lookee here! Remember last fall, I posted about my "dipped" branches? Well HM reader Tessa was kind enough to point this out: "Kim Myles just did this on her HGTV show! Maybe she saw it here first... " OMG! really?! As luck would have it, I actually had the episode Tivo'd and sure enough, check it out!It could just be a case of "Great minds think alike..." but I would be so thrilled to think that something I did on this mundane blog could actually inspire an idea for a television segment! How cool would that be?!

By the way, if you are a fan of Kim Myles, CasaSugar recently posted a fun interview with her. Check it out here.

WYWO: season 3- the finale

So here are the final results of the guest bedroom make-over! I think the most dramatic difference was simply painting the walls. I chose to paint only the main back wall and the adjacent wall that the door is connected to. The other two walls (there's actually a closet opposite the bed, and then the other wall has a small window) I left white. The second thing that had big impact was to put some floor-to-ceiling curtains along on the entire wall with the window. It helped camouflage the window size (which is a little small), and it added some subtle drama.As I mentioned before, the initial inspiration was this room that I saw on AT:Chicago, but color-wise, I went in a different direction. I found this incredible bedding from Calvin Klein. Ye-ah. It was pretty much the most expensive thing in the room! But I just loved it and it was so perfect for the parentals. The room was so small, that really, it was pretty much the focal point of the room, so I figure, why not splurge a little, (it was for the parentals right?) It was on sale when I got it (although apparently not anymore), so that helped (got it at Macys).
I liked the print because the colors were so muted and it was also a little traditional. It was very borderline "Grandma" with the way the floral print was, but at the same time, it was very modern (well, it was Calvin Klein, hehe). I decided to not touch the headboard. I didn't have the budget to get a new one, and frankly, it was in good condition, and with the walls so dark, it kind of blended in. I decided to play up the different wood tones, so I looked for a light wood but clean lined dresser. I found one from IKEA. For the lamp, I had this idea for one with a clear glass base, but finding one within budget was a little hard. I finally found one at Sears. It was originally $89.99 but was 25% off- and the coolest thing was it's touch-sensitive! So basically, you just touch any part of the metal, and it turns on or off! Like magic!Here's the info on the rest of the pieces if anyone is interested:
Comforter: Calvin Klein- Macys
Bedding/Sheets: Home Goods (i got a really nice lavender-esque sheet set for $34.99)
Bedskirt: Meryvns (seriously the best deal- a clean modern bedskirt on clearance for $4.99)
Brown pillow: Home Goods ($12.99!)
Curtains: VIVAN from IKEA
Dresser: MALM from IKEA
Lamp: Sears, Grace Designs
Vase: Z Gallerie
Mirror: Target ($39.99)
Artwork and frames: IKEA
Paint: "Mystic Taupe" from Valspar at Lowes

Here's the link to the rest of the redo of my parents place so far. Next up will probably be the downstairs bathroom... stay tuned...

Neopolitan Cupcakes!

OMG. Where has this been hiding all my life?! salivating. drooling...
step by step link is here. (via Craftzine)

Parisian Yellow Fever

So much hotness in the April 2008 British Elle Decoration. I am in love with this Parisian apartment. I don't think I could actually live like that, because I am just not fabulous enough to pull that off- but, if I could- I am so there. I love all the white, the mix of modern and old. I especially LOVE how they painted the fireplace grey- and then took that paint and graphically extended it up and over, across the ceiling, and then all the way to the other side. Genius. And then in the dining room, the neon plexi box over the chandelier?! That's just too much hotness right there. I also love how it looks like there's a spray painted gradation in the hallway, but I think it's just the photo and the lighting (but how cool would that be if it really was gradated like that?!) I have to go sit down now...

Plastic Bag Animals

Check out these plastic bag animals that are tied to subway grates. They totally would freak the bejeebus out of me, but I'm still totally fascinated with them at the same time. More info from here. (via Craftzine via Drawn)

mundane tuesday: mraz

It's tuesday folks, one day closer to friday. Having just come back from a trip to the lovely state of Washington, I was able to experience a little bit of "winter"- (although shouldn't it be spring now?) As a So Cal boy, it was kind of fun to drive around in the snowy/then rainy/then chilly crisp air. I'm sure for those of you that have to live in it all the time, the novelty wears thin quickly. Needless to say, I'm glad to be home (although I have to go right back in about a week or so...) anyway- here's a quick pick you don't see here in So Cal very often.Snow covered tulips! It was fun to see the vibrant burst of color lightly covered in fresh fallen snow. anyway... it was sunny when I got back but now this morning its all grey and cold. So... its tuesday. and I'm wishing I was here:

mundane aesthetic: drive-thru

In line at the drive-thru

Trippin' on collections and deflated balloons

So I have to travel off again today- work has me going up to the lovely state of Washington, (which I visited just a few weeks ago- hello again Seattle!) In the meantime, the lovely Jan over at Poppytalk was so kind to do a little post on some of my collections as part of her "Collecting" series. Click on over here to see them (thanks Jan!)I'm a little tired, as my flight is suuuper early, so I'm feeling a little deflated- which brings to mind the amazing work of Susie MacMurray who I found via Designers Block. Susie makes these incredible pieces out of deflated balloons! Amazing. Check out more of Susie's work here
I'll probably post a few things over the weekend as I'm sure there will be tons of fun things for me to see in Seattle! Have a good one!

WYWO:season 3- the guest bedroom

So, as mentioned at the end of tuesday's post, here is the guest bedroom of the parentals. It's super tiny. I tried to get a good shot, but it's so tiny, I couldn't even do that. All sorts of random going on there. It's like this is the room where all unwanted or unused things go to die. As you can see, the bed pretty much dominates everything. I tried to move it around, but it pretty much has to be where it is. So, unfortunately, I can't get rid of it. My parents said they want to have a queen size bed in there for guests, and also another consideration- it has to be somewhat the same height because many of my parent's friends are older and don't want to crouch all the way down (ie. cool modern platform bed.) So... basically that means, I can't touch the bed. So what to do?... Well, one thing to point out is that this room is visible if you're sitting in the living room. So, if the door is open, you will see inside. Therefore, the color scheme should sort of transition or match what's going on outside of it. The way the house is set up, if you pass the guest bedroom, you then enter the kitchen and family room area. My first inspiration was from this post over at AT:Chicago. The colors are so spot on with what I did for the rest of the house! But what I really loved was the dark chocolate brown wall, which I think will do well in the guest bedroom. I think it actually makes the room feel bigger. It "visually makes the wall recede." (I just had scary flashbacks of a certain someone who "pops up" on a show from time to time.) Luckily, this room is so small, it shouldn't take too long to give it a little facelift... stay tuned...