Design of the Day

Rehabilitated Dishware

Not much stops me in my tracks. This plate did:

Oh! Wow! So! Rad!

Then I hit this one:

Which one do I love more? It's hard to say! The orange is so fantastic, but the other is, well, pink! How are they this amazing? Sarah Cihat scours thrift and second-hand stores for old dishware then adds a modern twist, reglazes and fires them. I'm sure the "modern twist" is making my Mom's head spin. As a matter of fact, I can see fire shooting out of her ears all the way from California. Skulls have never been her favorite thing, so maybe I won't get one for myself.

But then I stumble across a white dish with a wishing well. It just screams wedding gift, Jonny and Pris style.

Click here to see Sarah Cihat's website.

A confusing path to success

My overwhelming obsession with Sharpies also extends to an obsession with using them. Using them to make lists. Only minimal amounts of work would get done if I don't make a list each day. But the list can't be just any list on any kind of paper with any kind of pen. It must be a neat, clean sheet of paper the same as yesterday's and written with the Sharpie color of the day. Some days may have the same Sharpie color as the day prior, this depends on my mood. The text is also of the utmost importance. I had tried using the PocketMod for a while, but NOPE it was too bulky, the lines were too thick and that made my writing feel too cluttered. The list must be perfectly spaced with a perfectly aligned left edge, if it isn't I start over. If a line runs too long, that's it, new list.

I have to make lists everyday because I could so easily find a million other things to do besides work. Things like petting the dogs, sitting in the sun or taking photographs could, and very often do, distract me from sitting down and actually working. This is where the neat, orderly insanity makes all the difference. I am just better at being distracted and that's why the overly systematic list works in my favor. My head fills up with all the things I should be doing and then opts out of all of them. But, if I make a perfectly aligned, tidy list it speaks to me in only ways I can hear. "HEY! YOU! Sit down! Make money! Then...buy shoes!"

When I hear that I sit down and work.

Design of the Day

Made by Tess Reuse Bags

Keeping on the green grocery theme today, I thought I'd show the fabulous Reuse tote made by my friend Tess. I have two of these gigantic reusable shopping totes and I love them. I am fully on the campaign to stop the use of plastic bags in stores, and with this I can get all my groceries in one barely liftable bag.

I've given many Reuse bags as gifts, but I'm always a little unsure of who will put them to good use. I gave one to my Mom, but I think I should have sent some the way of my sisters-in-law as well. As it turns out, Emily has decided to go green and she's taking her family with her...

Maybe Emily and I should forage our own campaign, the baby can join when she gets a bit older!

Click here to go to Made by Tess. (She doesn't post the Reuse bags on her website but if you mention "Heather's unusual Reuse bag obsession" I'm sure she'd be happy enough to take your order!)

Organic is just part of the equation

Have you ever wondered if how all the organic food in the grocery store suddenly appeared overnight? A lot of the brands you see these days like Kashi and Naked Juice aren't just little independent companies trying to make a go of it. They're part of huge multi-company conglomerates like Kellogg's and Pepsi. GOOD magazine put together a chart to help you figure out who really owns your tofu and yogurt.

Design of the Day

Arbor Sports

Originally I was going to post about this cool tree mural I noticed in Marina del Rey. After a little research I found that it isn't just a mural but a logo for an eco-friendly snowboard, skate and surf company. Arbor Sport has been green since 1995. Pitching the idea of sustainability to their clientelle isn't hard stating, "The hardest kid you know might be eco-minded to his core. You don’t have to broadcast it to live it - It’s not about identity, it’s about choice."

They have cute clothes too, most of which are 100% organic cotton or fully sustainable, naturally organic, pesticide-free bamboo.

Click here to visit Arbor Sports.