doggie odds & ends

I'm not usually one for doggie paraphernalia but these were way too irresistible...

Doggie bone paper clips by Fred & Friends

Hello friend letterpress greeting card by Anemone Letterpress

Tofu, the gentle dachshund knitting pattern by Dangercrafts

a kinder, gentler philosophy of success : alain de botton

Alain de Botton talks about success, failure and career crisis. I love his (humorous) analysis of how we process and react to these. He is as good a speaker as he is a writer.

perpetual paris

I'm very excited to share Perpetual Paris, the latest project from my friends at Little Brown Pen. It's a beautiful perennial calendar and photo collage made from 49 photos taken on all of their trips to Paris. It's a kit you can clip together at home and hang on your wall. It's beautifully (offset) printed on 17 point uncoated card stock paper. I adore the way the story is told through the video they put together too.

I had the honor of coming up with the packaging design :) What a fun project it was! It's a beautiful and unique idea for a holiday gift. It's available now at their etsy shop and on Little Brown Pen.

LOVE.

All photos by Little Brown Pen

xroads philippine sea salts

I was thrilled to learn about xroads Philippine Sea Salts™. I was born in the Philippines and natural sea salt was the only type of salt that I knew as a child. I still believe it is the best type of salt. I still recall seeing salt beds every time our family took a road trips to the beaches for summer vacations. There would be salt beds along side of the road for miles. I loved seeing people sweeping up the blanket of salt crystals left behind by the evaporating sea water at the end of the day. It's a type of farming that requires only manual labor. No machines or fossil fuels involved.

I love that xroads is out there sharing this hand-harvested, eco-friendly treasure to the rest of the world. The company is all about giving back to the local community and honoring everything that local farmers and artisans have to offer. The packaging that utilizes all local, plant-derived materials (such as woven nipa palm locally known as 'banig') is also beautiful and simple. It makes a perfect gift for friends who love to cook or as a housewarming gift.

Check their site for more info and to place an order. Thank you Nichole for the tip!

orbo novo (new world) by cedarlake

I was thoroughly moved by the CedarLake performance this weekend of Orbo Novo and was surprised by my reaction. It's a style of modern dance that I'm not as familiar with, it's not a style that I have studied myself. But what I witnessed on stage really blew me away. The dancers made me wish my body was as articulate as theirs. It made me want to study dance more than I do, that I should have studied it more throughout my life.

The piece explores a detailed account of a neuroscientist's own experience of having a stroke. There was a narrative, speaking parts interwoven with dance. It was innovative, moving and beautiful. The score was incredible and performed by an orchestra (live) behind a scrim which was at the back of the stage. Looking forward to seeing more productions by CedarLake.

Orbo Novo (excerpts) from Caleb Custer on Vimeo.

africa in new york

My multi-talented friend, Earle Sebastian, is the Creative Director for Keep A Child Alive and their Annual Black Ball fundraising event. Keep A Child Alive aims to provide life-saving treatment for children and families living with HIV/AIDS in Africa. It is, of course, spearheaded by Alicia Keys. In addition to being the Director behind Alicia Keys' Alicia In Africa documentary, I must add Chief Production Designer to his long list of his job descriptions.

I loved what he did with this year's 6th annual Black Ball fundraising event. The theme celebrated a modern day Africa. He told me about the idea of a tent in African culture. It is traditionally used for gatherings such as feasts, musical events and weddings. In addition to bring people together, tents also represent shelter from heat, pests or severe weather. To carry this idea through, he used enormous mosquito nets to decorate the ceiling. It had a beautiful effect, imparting diffused light onto the space. Lining the wall behind the bar were numerous vintage photographs (mostly sourced from France) in various mismatched frames. The tables were set with mismatched plates to evoke the feel of a colonial home. During the cocktail hour, models (as in live human beings) completely dressed in traditional African tribal garb and makeup walked among the crowd. Beautiful framed photos of the same models decorated the space as well.

This type of event design would be so amazing and fun to take part in. What a great creative project it must have been to put together and a fabulous event to attend!

For more information about the event, click here.

All photos from BizBash.com

inspired transformations : was/is

Featured in this week's New York magazine are several home design transformations entitled Home Design Fall '09: Was/Is. Below are two of my favorites: The Wall Vanishes and The Pastoral Porch.

The first is an abandoned East Village brownstone building transformed into an amazing condo with a vanishing wall. The before and after photos are incredible! It's difficult to see in the photo, but there's actually a glass fence that acts as a barrier from the outside for when the wall "disappears." I love it.

The interior of the building AFTER (scroll down to see BEFORE image)

The front of the building BEFORE

The front of the building AFTER

The interior of the building BEFORE

The second example, The Pastoral Porch, is a barren brick terrace turned living garden designed and built by a veteran green builder and furniture designer. The porch is now filled with vegetables and herbs that can be harvested year-round. I love the innovation that happens in New York where space is so limited.

All images from NYmag

Check New York magazine to read the full article and see additional examples.

my ultimate dream kitchen

This is hands-down my ultimate dream kitchen. The furniture and kitchen design is by Hansen Kitchen out of Copenhagen. Gorgeous with plenty of light and no obnoxious color palette (except for the plants I would bring into the space). Spare yet lived-in and comfortable. I also loved the Joyce cabinet by Pinch Design in London and old school stool from Restoration Hardware. I always love mixing old with new. It makes things more interesting and less homogenous.

One day...

photos by Hansen Kitchen

Vintage chair photo from Restoration Hardware

Joyce cabinet by Pinch Design

two blue wolves by sparrow hall

I'm thrilled to share with you Two Blue Wolves Digital Collection, by my friend, Sparrow Hall. It officially launches today. Two Blue Wolves is a beautiful short story that explores memory through a woman suffering through Alzheimer's disease as well as through the eyes of her caregiver.

Sparrow Hall shared the story with artists around the world and if it resonated with them, encouraged them to reinterpret it in their own medium. The artists included musicians/bands, filmmakers, poets, dancers, etc. This first-of-it's-kind digital collection includes all of these reinterpretations inspired by the story. It is an e-book, audio book, soundtrack, music videos, posters and more. 15% of every purchase will benefit the National Alzheimer's Association. This launch coincides with National Alzheimer's Awareness month (November).

Watch the trailer below. For more information, view/listen to previews, a complete list of collaborators and to purchase the collection, go to: SparrowHall.com

I've been a friend of Sparrow Hall's for many years and I've watched a bit the story (after the story) unfold as he worked to put this project together. His vision and passion for what he does—not to mention his talent—reaches far beyond the writing. I am truly inspired.

slash : paper under the knife

The Museum of Art & Design's current exhibition entitled Slash: Paper Under The Knife was an incredible collection of work done by artists from around the world. All use paper in some way shape or form. One of my friends from Amsterdam, Dylan Graham has an amazing hand-cut, large scale piece in the show. Unfortunately, photography wasn't allowed anywhere in the museum. I highly recommend seeing it. The work is best viewed up close. Below are some images of the work that are part of the show. I wish I could have taken photos myself!

Our House by Olafur Eliasson

Concretion by Shaul Tzemach

Flat File Globe 3B Red Version by Noriko Ambe (one of my favorite artists)

science and art on paper : matt shlian

With a background in sculpture, book arts, print design and paper engineering, Matt Shlian crosses the disciplines of science and art. His sculpture is of particular interest to me. I am amazed by it from both an aesthetic perspective as well as from a scientific one. He looks to science as a basis for his work and as a way of understanding the human body from a molecular level. Beautiful and fascinating.

The idea behind misfold is based on the idea that the root cause of Alzeheimer's disease is protein misfolding. Amazing.

le corbusier : maison la roche

This is Maison La Roche and Maison Jeanneret in Paris designed by one of the most well-known pioneers of modernist architecture, Le Corbusier. I took these photos during my (amazing) month-long stay in Paris in 2005. It was established as a museum in 1968 but is currently closed for renovations. The La Roche-Jeanneret house is actually a pair of semi-detached houses built in 1923(!). The houses are also holds the world's largest collection of Le Corbusier's drawings, paintings, studies and plans.