sweet tat, dude.

this chick has some serious skills. i love that most of them look like real paintings, nothing traditionally tatty about them.

i love the bird, so nicely done

http://www.amandawachobtattoo.com/

oh yes.

this house rocks. it has just the right balance of contemporary/smart design, calming color choices, and a great relation to the outdoors… the green leaves are just as present as the artwork on the walls. it’s grown up house with an easy feel while remaining comfortable and sophisticated…

designed by Jessica Helgerson Interior Design

what they said about it:

Brush Prairie House

We were called in to furnish the front rooms of this lovely house in southern Washington.   The clients had recently moved in, had given away all of their old furniture, and wanted to start from scratch.A white sectional leather sofa defines the living room area and is architectural in feeling, echoing the white walls that surround it.  A buffalo-hide rug and a vintage chair give texture and warmth to the otherwise cool palette.

The dining table is a thirteen-foot-long, five-inch-thick slab of reclaimed acacia wood, with a natural woven chandelier that is similar in color and feeling to the Hans Wegner wishbone chairs that surround the table.  The abstract paintings, a

series entitled ‘Momentum,’ are vermillion ink on pale grey vellum by Portland artist Heather Watkins.

The den offers a counterpart to the open and airy great room.  It is dark, cozy and comfortable with a plush silk-velvet sofa and curtains all in the same shade of deep grey as the walls.  The art piece in the den was designed by JHID designer Emily Knudsen and screen-printed here in Portland. It includes dates, initials, and places of significance  to the clients.

The lead designer  for Bush Prairie House was JHID designer Jesse Moyer.

refreshing. stunning. breathtaking.

take it all in.

these places are real. they exist. but not here! so save your monies and your sanity up so that you can partake in some of these places in your lifetime. it would be a shame not to experience some real-live magic!

chile chico, chile

ooooooooooooh fantasical!

pamukkale, turkey

there’s no reference of scale, but i’m betting those are huge pools… like, the lucky people that would get to bathe in those waters would be ttttiiiinnnnyyy in this pic… and you wouldn’t have to share if some creepy, over-hairy turkish man was bugging you… just scooch on down to another oasis

ageeba, egypt

mmmm, egypt, i didn’t know you had it in you!!  but i like this side of you, i really do!

horseshoe bend, arizona

homeland represent! we’ve got some vistas of our own! awesome sunset, too, nice play, america, nice play!

skaftafeli, iceland

frozen bubbling, undulating roof over sandy watering hole?  hell, why not!

galapagos lagoon

just so we’re clear, any crystal waters i see, i’m going to pretend that they are all suitable for swimming… and especially in this case!  looks like you could dock your little dingy over to the sandy beach on the right, get a good days hike in and come down to that sparkling hidden gem of a lagoon to camp by!  ahhhhh

kawasan falls, cebu, philippines

sure, why not, why not just hang out in paradise on tethered bamboo rafts?  yes please.

mykonos, greece

fleet foxes named a song after you, and i know why, you are amazing.  and the song is too!

salzburg, austria

can you tell i’m dying to go swimming!?

the narrows, zion national park

serene. but kind of gives me flashes of possibly having to cut my own arm off with a pocket knife. bwah.

thailand

thailand, we’ve met before, but i want to meet this side of you… and i will, this february!  save some of this goodness for mama!

sardinia

ohhhhhhhhhhhhh, sardinia, you had me at ‘inia!

lago di garda, italy

that’s like a massage delivered through the eyes!

 

i am such a sucker for all these guys

check out her website… each pic is adorable and will pull on your doggy (or kitty or piggie )-heart-strings for sure!  so let that hard shell down for a sec and give the softy in you something to smile at!

be warned, these will give you, as cher (a la clueless) says, a ‘toothache’… cuz they’re so damn sweet!

 

http://www.sharonmontrose.com/dogs-in-studio/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

places i want to go to… now!

this heat is crazy–but don’t get me wrong, i’ll take this over sucky winter any day!

this summer makes me wanna escape to tropical hedonistic places where the palm fronds sway and the crisp water sparkles… and you wake from a lazy nap to dip into the refreshing waters that surround… followed by fresh fish and local fare for dinner under an unpolluted sky!!  oh i wish, i wish, i wish!  : )

panchoran retreat, bali

i mean SERIOUSLY!?!! this place actually exists?!!  complete and total amaze-balls!

{portofino, italy}

well done, italy, well done… crystal emerald swimming waters… yes puh-leeeeeeeze!

santorini, greece

ALWAYS wanted to go here. and dream of living here in a state of perpetual bliss with some unknown source of income!  tanned and naturally streaked hair amidst the chalky white buildings! ggawwhhh

bora, bora knows how to do it

split view of a waterfall in hawaii… taken my ariel herself, of course

belize. puh-leeze

jiuzhaigou national park, china… didn’t know china had this in her… well done, china, well done

ok, babes, let’s surf!

beach daze

Margaret is now a total beach babe.  She completely adapted to the waves on her first visit this weekend to the beach, and miss-fancy-pants broke herself in tha’ Hamptons no less!  She is so cit-ay!  But now that she is obsessed with all things beach, I think I will need to get her one of these totally awesome squeakers!  The website has some other cool stuff on there but it’s sort of annoying to navigate, just a warning.

And…! These toys will look pre-t-ty cool lyin’ around… especially if you live in the city and can’t have the beach with you!

Shell Dog Toys

 

Get your pets in the Summer spirit, too, with these Tropawcal Squeeki Shellz™ by Petprojekt™ — they squeak!

arrsome

awww sweet relaxation, because Margaret’s not already pampered enough, now she can be lulled into la-la-land by my gentle rockings!

studioPaulbaut Rocking-2-gether

2010

Hybrid Furniture

The “merge” & “morph” manipulation of the old school rocking chair and doghouse generates a hybrid “furniture” that combines the idea of shelter and body relaxation and pushes its functionality to a different, more personal level. Designed by Paul Kweton for Barkitecture 2010, Houston, TX.

Materials

CNC cut 1/2″ Plywood

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© Copyright PAUL KWETON 2010 RSS

all my friends now know what they’re getting for xmas

Yes, please!  This is right up our tacky alley!  I mean, last weekend we were lounging in bikinis next to the highway–I could explain that, but I won’t.  Now let me go fill up my purse, summa’s here!

Boxed wine fans, meet a new invention: the Baggy Wine Coat. Simply place a bag of wine in this purse, close the flexible top, et voilà! You have a way to carry your wine with you wherever you go. The savvy sack has a rubber bottom to prevent tipping over, as well as a side dispenser. Would you carry it — or do you think it’s just style over substance?

simply beautiful.

love this. Gotta love the glass walls, it’s almost like you’d be cooking in the forest amongst the trees–but with no bugs!

the house is just a complete, big-inhale of fresh air…. aaaaahh

(from remodelista.com)

Architect Visit: Allied Works Architecture in Portland, Oregon

From Julie May 31, 2011

Brad Cloepfil of Portland, OR-based Allied Works Architecture has won international notice for his museum projects (the Contemporary Art Museum in St. Louis and the Seattle Art Museum addition) and for his career-igniting work for ad agency Wieden + Kennedy. Cloepfil, who studied architecture at Columbia and worked with Swiss architect Mario Botta, cites the physical and spatial qualities of the Oregon landscape as his largest influence. We especially like his simple, clean-lined houses in wooded settings, which take full advantage of the surrounding views and landscape. To see more of the firm’s work, go to Allied Works Architecture.

Above: For a guest house in Dutchess County, New York, Cloepfil devised a series of intersecting steel-framed geometric volumes.

Above: New York architect-turned-interior-designer Lisa Frazar oversaw the interiors. Photo by Dean Kaufman via NYT.

Above: Detail shots from the NYT.

Above: Floor-to-ceiling windows dissolve the boundaries between indoors and outdoors.

Above: A contemplative corner offers views of the surrounding forest.