More eBay Finds

eBay Find of the Day: Vintage Fishing Floats

I love how a group of vintage glass fishing floats looks in a low, wide bowl -- so casual and beachy and summery. I love them even more in a tall glass canister set on a windowsill, with the sun seeming to illuminate them from within.

This set of 11 small handblown floats, beachcombed from the Japanese shore, will get your collection off to a very nice start indeed.

Current bid: $10 (Note: This auction ended in May, 2008. You can find similar vintage floats on eBay right here.)

Over and Out

Photo by lexandthacity

Have a lovely long holiday weekend (and unofficial start of summer), y'all!

See you back here on Tuesday.

Deal of the Day: Memorial Weekend Sale at 20x200

This weekend only, the great print-release site 20x200 is offering 20 percent off its entire inventory of limited-edition prints from some of the most exciting emerging and established artists and photographers around. (That means 8.5-by-11-inch prints are just $16, 17-by-22-inch prints are $160, and 30-by-40-inch prints are $1,600.) Top: Chi Birmingham's Studio Apartment.

Some of my other faves:

Jessica Snow's Paradigm Shift

Ann Tarantino's Breath Portrait

Jessica Bruah's Untitled #46

Linzie Hunter's Say Goodbye

Ky Anderson's Many Mountains

Kate Bingaman-Burt's I Bought All of These

See the rest of 20x200's available inventory right here. To take advantage of the savings, enter coupon code RIDONK at checkout between today and 11:59 p.m. Monday, May 26.

Etsy Find of the Day: Spruce Home Poppy Bench

News of Spruce Home's lovely Etsy shop has been making its way around the blogosphere, so I don't want to rehash what other bloggers have already covered. But I did want to let you all know that the shop has recently been restocked with some great new rehabbed vintage furniture.

My absolute favorite is this sweet bench, reupholstered with a colorful and graphic modern floral pattern: Perfection in an entryway or at the end of a bed. It's quite reasonable at $215, and shipping (via Greyhound) is free.

(Continuing our dog theme today, how cute is that little chihuahua??? If I buy the bench, do you think the ladies from Spruce might throw in the pooch, too?)

See all of Spruce Home's Etsy offerings right here.

That's Random: The Worlds' Ugliest Dog Contest

Remember Elwood, the reigning Ugliest Dog in the World? Elwood is facing down 15 of the homeliest pooches on the planet for the dubious title during the 20th annual World's Ugliest Dog Contest.

I'm noting a theme here: Hairless Chinese Cresteds. (Will someone please explain to me why these dogs exist? They look like mutant rats.)

Still, the contest organizers take pains to point out that each contestant is dearly loved by his or her owner, and that the contest is all in good fun. In fact, like the challengers in other beauty competitions, many of the entrants have "platforms" -- raising awareness about canine cancer, for instance -- and the winner typically serves as an ambassador for an animal-related good cause during his or her reign.

The Ugliest Dog will be crowned at next month's Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, California. Until then, you can vote for your favorite physiognomically-challenged pooch right here.

But I'm sorry -- if Pee Wee Martini (above) doesn't scamper away with the prize, then this contest is fixed.

Double Take: Pottery Barn and IKEA Rugs

Do my eyes deceive me, or are these two rugs -- the one on the left from Pottery Barn, the one on the right from IKEA -- actually one in the same? (And if so, who's ripping off whom here?)

Pottery Barn's Pieced Awning Stripe Mat (shown here in blue, though it also comes in black like IKEA's) is 100 percent cotton, and runs $109 for a 5-by-8 and $179 for an 8-by-10.

IKEA's Stockholm Rand Rug (shown here in Nicole Balch of Making It Lovely's dining room) is made from 100 percent wool, and costs $179 for the 5.5-by-(almost)8-foot size and $299 for the 8-by-11.5-foot size.

I can't believe I'm about to write this, but not only is the IKEA version pricier, it sounds like it may actually be the better quality of the two. (God, how often can you say that about an IKEA product versus practically anything else? It's like we're in Bizarro World or something ... )

Anyone seen both of these in person and care to weigh in on their relative appearance and quality?

Mark Your Calendar: Capsule Design Festival

If you're in the Bay Area and looking for something to do on Sunday, May 25, be sure to stop by the Spring 2008 Capsule Design Festival in San Francisco's Hayes Valley.

The Festival, billed as the largest independent design event in Northern California, is heavy on wares from local clothing, jewelry, handbag, and baby-goods designers. But art, handmade textiles, and home accessories are well represented as well. (If you're not in the area, click on the links below -- many of the participants have online stores or Etsy shops you can browse.)

Some of the 160 designers who'll be on hand:

Kate Durkin

Ezme Designs

Grandarray (aka illustrator Hannah Stouffer)

Hilary's Dolls (aka softies from artist Hilary Williams)

Lizard Press

Mediums to Masses

Raeburn Ink

The ladies from Rare Device (aka Rena Tom and artist Lisa Congdon)

3 Fish Studios (aka artists Wexford Girl/Annie Galvin and The Lonely Robot/Eric Rewitzer)

The Capsule Fest runs from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, May 25, and is centered around Octavia and Hayes streets in San Francisco. Click here for more info.

More eBay Finds

Cool Stuff: Micki Kids' Tables

Super-genius idea, and super-cute to boot: These kids' table-and-stool sets from Swedish company Micki have wheels for easy mobility and an integrated catch-all basket that you can simply toss those toys and art supplies into once playtime's done.

If someone made an adult coffee-table version of this -- with a bottom basket for magazines, remotes, and so on -- I would be all over it.

The Snake, Hedgehog, and Crocodile sets are $115 from the Scandinavian Design Center.

Etsy Find of the Day: John Clark's Portraits of Women

These portraits, drawn with Sharpies on old book pages by Ann Arbor, Michigan artist and Etsy seller John Clark, remind me of that Nails song 88 Lines About 44 Women. (Uh-oh, am I showing my age again?)

The images are deeply penetrating, the imagined stories behind them perhaps a little sad, the succinct titles -- formed from words on the page that have been left exposed -- telling but elusive. I can't stop thinking about them. Top: No Man is Worth That Much; above: I Wanted to Get Away

Clockwise: My Empty Bed, He Loved Her, Close the Door, and Without a Word

Clockwise: That Last Night, I Saw It in Your Face, Another Story, and It Was Very Hot

There are dozens more, all equally compelling. Prints are just $10 each; originals, $70 to $100. Clark will do custom portraits as well.

(Discovered Via Holly Becker's "A Few Good (Etsy) Men" slideshow over at the Domino site.)

Objects of Lust: Angus Hutcheson Lighting

Those crafty Scandis are at it again -- selling strangely compelling light fixtures that I want but can't have.

This time, it's Danish decor e-shop The Moood that has these kinda weird but nonetheless awesome lights. And thanks to a reader tip and Google Language Tools, I can actually read the site.

Turns out, the lights were designed by a Brit -- Angus Hutcheson, who now lives and works in Bangkok, Thailand -- and are sold in Denmark. (Hey, let's hear it for the global economy!)

The fixtures are, as you might expect, prohibitively expensive -- but whether that's because of the dollar's weakness or because they're just so cool, I'm not sure.

Top: Hanging World, 3,795 Danish Kroner (about $797); above: Elfin Tree, 3,995 DKK ($839)

Chrysalis Sky 8,495 DKK ($1,786). The shade is made with silkworm cocoons.

Midnight Moon, 5,495 DKK ($1,154)

Three Stone Floor, 8,995 DKK ($1,889)

My Chrysalis, 3,795 DKK ($797)

See all of Hutcheson's lighting at The Moood right here -- and check out more of his designs here.

(P.S. Update: It looks like at least a few of these fixtures -- plus Hutcheson's Heaven lights, above, with shades made from mulberry bark -- can be ordered through Fordbrady in Los Angeles. Still probably tres expensive, though.)

That's Random: Look What Leslie Made

OMG, people, I am so over the whole "Keep Calm and Carry On" thing.

It was vaguely charming at first, but that poster has become so ubiquitous -- like the pink "For, Like, Ever" prints that suddenly seemed to pop up everywhere -- that it's become a cliché. (Please don't hate me if you have one hanging on your wall. To each her own -- and if it makes you smile when you see it, then, well, carry on.)

So when I was scrolling through my daily blog reads just now and saw this on one of my new faves, Reclaiming Miss Havisham (authored by the refreshingly snarky and occasionally acid-tongued young Miss Leslie King, who tends to like things darker and weirder and isn't afraid to thumb her nose at prevailing decorating trends), I spewed the coffee I was drinking all over my computer screen.

Right on, sister. Because sometimes, y'know, you just feel like a smartass bitch -- and during those times, Reclaiming Miss Havisham is the design blog for you.

P.S. Leslie, where can I get mine?

Etsy Find of the Day: Norajane Pillows

Check out these super-fun and affordable throw pillows from Etsy seller Norajane. They're a bit smaller than normal -- many measure about 12 by 12 inches -- but that just means there's room for more of them! Above: Chocolate Teacups, $18

Aves, $18, and Japanese Blossoms, $22

Trees and Sky, $18, and Echino, $20

Leon and Leona, $30

The In Crowd and The Out Crowd, $20 each

See more from Norajane right here.

The Artful Home: Christopher David Ryan Leafy Mysteries

I love this set of 15 ethereal "Leafy Mysteries" images from Brooklyn graphic artist Christopher David Ryan. Above: Figure 8.

Figures 10 and 13

Figures 5 and 6

Figures 14 and 15

Figures 1 and 2

Each 11-by-17-inch print is $20 right here. See more of Ryan's work here and here.