Courtesy of Tweet Tweet Home
Just by chance, I happened to walk by Greg Sargent’s office this weekend and discovered his project, Tweet Tweet Home. The birdhouses, made of 100% recyclable plastic, are meant to hang outside and serve as an actual shelter for birds. These fun. colorful abodes retail at Patina, The Walker Shop, Bibelot and Rosackers Florists. Check out the full assortment of colors and shapes at Tweet Tweet Home’s website.
Minnesota native, Bruno Bornsztein, is the creator behind Curbly, a blog dedicated to teaching homeowners how to love the home they are in. The blog teaches readers how to create a beautiful space using do-it yourself tactics. Through the Curbly community, one can learn home-improvement advice, find design ideas and get answers to DIY questions. Star Tribune reporter, Kim Palmer, interviewed Bornsztein last month to learn the history behind his popular blog. Click here to read the story.
Courtesy of Room and Board
One of the best parts about working at Room and Board is getting to meet the manufacturer partners behind some of the products that the store offers. It is during this time that we get to hear the stories about how these companies were created and listen to their journey of how they got to where they are today. A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Bob & Bridget Meyer, who own and operate Toka, an African imports company.
Bob Meyer, a Minnesota native, met his wife Bridget when he was a rafting guide in Zambia. Upon moving back to Minnesota, the couple decided to start an import business to help the women of Bridget’s native tribe, Toka, become financially self-sufficient. The women earn their living by making beautiful Makenge baskets. These baskets are used as an everyday tool in the tribe. Not only do they look beautiful, but each basket has a different meaning behind the woven patterns. Please read on after the jump to read more about Toka’s story and see my interview with Bridget and Bob Meyer.
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Last week I stumbled across this great video of local designer Cy Winship from Cy Winship Design, sharing his design process. His philosophies on design will ring true for many designers. One important point he brings up is wanting the homeowner to feel better in his or her own home, while still being open to taking risks to make the room more exciting.
After watching this video, I want you to chime in: What sort of philosophies do you think are important in the design process? What practices does a good designer use to transform a client’s room?
Image from uptownartfair.com
If you have been on the hunt to find the perfect piece of art to put in your home, this is the weekend for you! It’s time for the annual Art Fair weekend featuring the Uptown, Loring Park and Powderhorn Park art fairs! Instead of looking for generic artwork that you find everywhere else, this is the time to support independent artists. You can talk with the artist and learn about the process and story behind the pieces.
In addition to the art, this is also a great time to take the Nice Ride bikes for a spin. With the Loring Park and Uptown art fair so close together, the Nice Ride bikes are the perfect way to get around and see the city. You can also easily travel between the three art fairs at no charge using the Metro Transit Art Hop bus line.
Hours:
Uptown Art Fair
Friday – noon to 8 p.m.
Saturday – 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Sunday – 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Powderhorn Art Fair
Saturday – 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Sunday – 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Loring Park Art Festival
Saturday – 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Sunday – 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Take a peek at the pictures below to see a small sampling of the artists. I hope to see you there!
Since 1995, St. Paul Retro Loop store, Succotash, has brought Minnesotans the grooviest, funkiest furnishings, art, clothing, LP’s, pottery and accessories from the 1950′s to the 1970′s. Please come out to the store this weekend, August 6-8 and help store owners Paul and Noreen Allbright celebrate their 15 years of business! To help thank all their loyal customers, Succotash is discounting their inventory 15-50% store-wide. As an extra special thanks, Succotash is hosting a drawing for two Minnesota Twins Target Field Legend’s club tickets. Succotash specializes in design classics, as well as kitschy, fun merchandise. Check out selections of current and past merchandise in the gallery below! (Note: please know that some items featured in photos may not currently be in the store. Call ahead for availability).
Their extended hours for the event are:
Friday, 11-8pm, Saturday, 11-6 and Sunday 11-4pm.
781 Raymond Ave, St. Paul, MN.
651-603-8787
Image from Hirshfield’s
So you have a large, open space and you have no idea how to add some pizazz to your safe, neutral walls. You find inspiration in shelter magazines or in blog posts, such as Annie’s Colorful Abode or Casey’s Loft. You walk into the paint store, pictures of your room in hand, intent on picking out a color that does not have the words “tan” or “gray” in the paint color name. Then you arrive at the wall of paint chips…you then go into that glazed deer-in-the-headlights look. Where to start? Luckily local paint store Hirshfield’s has the know-hows in their recent blog post on adding colored accent walls. Head on over to Hirshfield’s Color Club blog to find out how to add some hue to your walls!
Image from The Soap Factory
Starting Friday August 5th, The Soap Factory is putting on Common Room-a public gathering space exploring live events, community and public interaction. Set in a small living room-like space, Common Room blurs the lines between the curator, performer and audience member. Set in the former administrative offices of the National Purity Soap Company, Common Room hosts a range of artistic events twice a week for the month of August including a gift swap, a surplus space bike tour and a DJ duel. In addition to seeing great events, I am excited to head out just to see the 1940′s style furniture in the room! Check out the pictures below to see the fantastic space! Click here to see the full calender of events. All events run from 7-10pm.
