Ackerman exhibit in San Diego

Had a great weekend in good ol' San Diego. One of the highlights was being able to check out the amazing Ackerman exhibit at the Mingei in Balboa Park. Seriously folks, if you get a chance- you MUST go to this show. It's up for awhile, so you have plenty of time to stop down and check it out! I have to say, what impressed me most was just how diverse Evelyn Ackerman's talents were. She did everything- tapestry, mosaics, pottery, wood carving, furniture, toys- it's awe-inspiring. The colors are fantastic and bright and the exhibition does a great job of showing the timeline and progression of the work. The LA times recently had a wonderful story about them, and definitely check out the slideshow that shows a peek at their house. One little tip, if you do go- go early on a saturday (it opens at 10am)- it's half price ($6!) between 10-12. Also- photography is allowed as long as there's no flash. I seriously documented just about the entire exhibit!! more info here.

blue Munday: Carlo Van De Roer

I am so drawn to these gorgeous photos by Carlo Van De Roer , especially love the juxtaposition of the graphic circles! (via Picdit)

origami shells

from West Elm

Andrew Holder at Subtext

Andrew Holder at Subtext. The show opened last week but I'm hoping to catch it over the weekend! More info here. If you want to see more, Grain Edit also did a few posts on him here and here. And more at his website.

notefolio from Poketo

How genius are these Notefolios from Poketo?! All you need in one handy item. See more here.

Domino: The Book of Decorating giveaway

Today is your last day to get your name in for the Domino book giveaway! I'm giving away two copies of Domino: The Book of Decorating, (compliments of Simon&Schuster). All you have to do is send in your name and email address to: hmgiveaway at gmail dot com (remove the "at" and add a "@" and remove the "dot" and add a ".")

Read the original post here. I'm randomly picking two names from the emails received tomorrow (4/2/2009) and will notify you by email if you're a winner. Good Luck!

"One" tea kettle by Vessel Ideation

This needs to go into production pronto! Winner of the 2009 World Kitchen Tea-Off- this concept vessel combines boiling and serving. The designs apprear when the water boils (instead of a traditional whistle.) Check out how it works here. (via Coolhunting)

tuesday video break: Lolly lolly lolly

it's positively very very necessary

ceramic lego by Vinicius Zarpelon

Ceramics inspired by Legos! By Vinicius Zarpelon (via Notcot, via Coroflot)

mundane aesthetic: parking garage

egg carton flowers

Em made these fun egg carton flowers! (inspired by this post)- love the grey/kelly green combo. check out more here.

Domino: The Book of Decorating

So, I'm sure many of you HM readers were also Domino magazine fans. Although the magazine is no longer, I'm very happy they were lucky enough to publish a book before it folded. The book really provides a great documentation of the spirit and philosophy of the magazine (plus all the amazing photography!). I got a copy last fall when it came out, and what I loved most about it was how easy they broke down "decorating." Many of these tips I'm sure we all already know, but it's nice to have it presented in a straightforward way, and also act as a reminder and guide to follow. The book is also a great gift idea to those just starting out with their first place, and for anyone that might feel the task of decorating a space daunting. You can purchase it here-

Or... if you're feeling lucky, publishers Simon and Schuster, contacted me the other day and offered to give two Happy Mundane readers a FREE COPY! whoo hoo! All you have to do is send in your name and email address to: hmgiveaway at gmail dot com (remove the "at" and add a "@" and remove the "dot" and add a ".") I will pick two winners next week (April 2nd) and notify you by email to get your mailing address. If you already got the book- what did you think of it? would love to hear your feedback!

where the wild things are trailer

omg. this looks pretty amazing... (also viewable here.)

mio for target 2009: composter

I spotted in a recent issue of Rachel Ray Magazine that Target is collaborating with MIO and coming out with a eco-friendly outdoor living collection. The collection ranges from garden tools, a cultivator, mini herb garden, solar lights, but the thing I am most curious about is the composter.The composter will retail for $99.99. I've been thinking about getting a small composter for awhile, and this one looks like it could be a contender. Will definitely be looking out for it when the line debuts April 12, 2009. Do any of you have a small composter you like? Check out more images of the collection here.

kate spade spring 09 campaign

Really inspired by the new campaign from Kate Spade. Love how they integrated the bold whimsical graphics!

Christine Schmidt @ Reform School

Great works by Christine Schmidt who is Reform School's Student of the Month. I love the title of the series- "Honorable Ordinaries"- check out more pieces here.

Picture Book by Suck UK

I have a few paperback books that I've collected that have the most amazing cover artwork. Now I have a proper way to display them! Designed by Stephen Bretland, these "Picture Book" frames by Suck UK allow you to display your favorite books either on the wall or free standing on a table or shelf. Available here. These were also featured in the April 2009 Living Etc. (photo by Rachel Whiting/styling by Harriet Paterson for Living Etc.)

Oh! and speaking of book cover artwork, OhJoy! recently posted this link to this amazing site, The Book Cover Archive.

TGIF video break: The Seed By Johnny Kelly

The Seed from Johnny Kelly on Vimeo.
(via DesignSpotter)

good grips mag tacks

I'm loving this concept- These "mag tacks" combine both a push pin and a magnet into one! the multi color is currently on sale at The Container Store. and you can get the stainless steel version here.

School Tools

Over the weekend, I sorted through some old boxes of stuff that I brought home from my parents garage. All kinds of old skool stuff that dated back to my elementary school days up through early college. Going through it all was sometimes scary, but often fun and nostalgic. One of the things I came across was this "School Tools" booklet of stencils that I had when I was in 4th grade or so. It's funny to see what stencils I used the most- but also just love the simple graphics and bright bold colors. It's also funny to see what they considered important tools for kids (how many of you actually used a "french curve"?)