Speaking of Etsy...

Etsy can be a great resource for inexpensive art. It can also be a great site to shop for unique furniture. Granted, there's a lot of schlock you have to hunt through to find the good stuff. Lucky for you, we've culled the wheat from the chaff, in terms of style and budget:

Lunar Lounge Design
Hands down, the best furniture on Etsy. Reasonably priced, simple designs, good quality. They're shipping from Canada, so you have to factor in some high shipping costs, but since the furniture prices are relatively low, you still (generally) come out ahead.

Some of the coolest shelves on the Internet:

I love their simple slipper chair, available in a multitude of colors:

Imagine lounging in this chair and ottoman outdoors:

Fit Furniture
No tools needed! Designed by architect/designers from the Motor City, these tables fit together without nails, screws or glue. The aluminum version is shockingly inexpensive ($125!), but this one appeals to our girly side:

Seibel Fabrication
If you like an industrial feel, this coffee table will be right up your alley, but act fast. Made from found objects, it's a one-of-a-kind:

Local Etsy Goodies

I thought I'd take a look at what local artists and craftspeople are selling on Etsy. Curiously, on the day I was browsing there wasn't a lot to offer in terms of art. I did find some standouts in jewelry and fashion though. Some of my favorites from the Lone Star State:

I would love a dozen or so of these adorable tops for the summer. The fabric is from Amy Butler, one of my favorite textile designers, and this Dallas designer will custom fit your top if you send a few measurements!

I love the slightly different neckline on these T's, and the imagery reminds me of wall graphics.

The 3D effect created by sandwiching art between various glass layers in this pendant is so interesting.

These drop earrings are great for dressing up or down.

I adore the simple design of these delicately interlocked circles. This would make a fantastically symbollic anniversary present.

Wearable art to go, this necklace will pop if you pair it with a crisp, white tee for summer.

Design Star's Fresh Crop

HGTV's Design Star will premier its new season on June 8th. Your design guru was curious, so I did a little research. Let the cast critique begin!

1. Trish Beaudet (Shelby Township, MI)
Trish's over-the-top audition video clues me into one thing: she will be the one who will annoy me the most. She comes across as a woman trying too hard...a desperate former cheerleader-type who would likely attempt the backstage seduction of Clive Pearse if it meant getting more airtime. The house she displayed (I assume it's her own) was done up in out-of-control old world style, which, to me just looks...old. I'll go out on a limb and predict that Trish will be the first to cry on camera.

2. Jennifer Bertrand (Olathe, KS)
I loved her from the start. She seems naturally sweet and cute and completely credible. However, there's a most shocking disconnect between her personal style (rocker chick) and the designs in her company's portfolio (faux finish a go-go). She's a talented painter, which may count against her if the producers are looking for someone different from Season 1 winner, David Bromstad. There's only one example of her interior design work on her Web site, but it's a good one:

3. D. Paul DeRouen (Lafayette, LA)
Behind Jennifer, D. Paul is my second favorite personality, based solely on audition videos. He's very approachable, down to Earth, and dang--the father of four daughters! He has a penchant for old world style, but unlike Trish, he shows admirable restraint. I want to call him DePaul DeRouen instead of the initial thing. If I were America and voting for the guy I'd most like to have a beer with, DePaul would win hands down.

4. Tracee Dore (Louisville, KY)
Tracee comes across as pretty knowledgeable and experienced. Based on her background, I'd expect her to hang in the competition a long time, although she's got a bit of what Jeb and I like to call "crazy eye." You know those women you see who are just oozing crazy from their eyeballs? Well, I'm ever so slightly getting those vibes from Tracee. I predict we'll see a lot of that crazy eye if she doesn't get her way during group projects.

5. Matt Locke (Los Angeles, CA)
Wow, what a 1-2 punch this guy is. He's a Princeton grad and appears to be a real craftsman as well. The only competitor with a professional-looking Web site, Matt is the one I most closely identify with as a designer--his style is simple, bold, and graphic. Although some of his stuff is so clean and modern it appears to house Fembots, there's a kitchen in his portfolio that I particularly love. For its soffits. Anyone who creates something this elegant and refined out of a soffit is clearly a Design Star--he's my first-impression pick to take it all.

6. Jerome Scottie Miller (Charlotte, NC)
Jerome's definitely a likeable guy (could be a contender for Fan Favorite) but I don't know if he's necessarily got the design chops. I do applaud his participation as an outsider (he's a property manager), but I didn't see any examples in his video that would inspire me to hire him.

7. Michael Stribling (College Station, TX)
I want to like Michael since he's practically a local boy, but his youthful arrogance leads me to believe he'll crash and burn early on. You get a sense that it doesn't matter if you love Michael, because Michael loves Michael enough for the both of you. He'll be the spaz out of the bunch.

8. Mikey Verdugo (Davie, FL)
"Cop by day, designer by night?" As unlikely as that sounds, that's exactly the story behind this contestant, who's also a former personal trainer (cue the shirtless construction scenes). Who knew someone who spends their days bustin' heads would have a knack for architectural spaces? Based on what he's done with his own house, he definitely has an eye, but it'll be interesting to see whether or not he can extend beyond that masculine look and design something a family could live in.

9. Mystery Contestant (?)
There's an unnamed ninth contestant, who won their spot by popular online vote. We'll have to wait until June 8th for all to be revealed.

Stay tuned!

A Desperate Appeal to House Hunters' Suzanne Whang

Dear Suzanne Whang,

Tonight's episode of House Hunters was the last straw for me. I cannot idly sit by while you continue to allow such hair and wardrobe travesties occur to your person. You may work for a cable network but it's the same network who gave Danielle Hirsch a rockin' do when she became David Bromstad's color assistant on ColorSplash, and both Hirsch and Bromstad flash pretty stylish attire on their show...so we have proof that HGTV likes a good fashion makeover. It's high time you lost the kiddie barrettes--you're not pulling off the cool indie barrette thing hipsters might sport--what you're doing looks like something I did back in the third grade. You know, where you take a little chunk of hair from the front of your face and clip it to the other hair above your ear? On both sides? Trust me, this is not a good look for you.

It's not really a good look for anybody.

And why, Suzanne, why all of the old lady knit polyester tops that appear to be from JC Penney catalog, circa 1983? That waist band line we see beneath your knitwear looks just as bad as a panty line. Seriously.

Now, I'm not going to suggest that I don't have reason to worry that Stacy London and Clinton Kelly will surprise me at any given moment with an offer to appear on What Not to Wear...but I'll claim a few hardships as a result of shopping issues due to my dress size and the fact that the fashion industry cannot get it through their thick skulls that there are plenty of voluptuous women out there who do not want to wear clownish prints.

However, YOU are adorable and tiny and have silky hair and a youthful complexion, but you're not doing anything with it. You have no excuse and you are wasting your good years by dressing like an old woman. What's next? Garish makeup colors and a bad dye job a la the retirement set? Incidentally, when I tried to find a picture on the Web to illustrate the badness that is your style...I could not find one single photo of you in those barrettes. There are tons of pics of you looking like this:


...so we know you know better.

Use your powers for good, Suzanne. That is all.

Today's Craigslist Goodies

Found some nice vintage pieces on Craigslist today, in case you're in the market and haven't trolled through the listings yourself. As always with Craigslist...act quickly, and good luck!

This first piece is my favorite of the day, and would soon be located in my own living room if we didn't have such a honkin' big TV now. If you're handy and expecting, you could also convert this cabinet to a stylish baby changing station.

Would love to have this piece too, if they had a matching pair:

I love the lines and legs of this couch. At this price you could afford to recover it if the upholstery doesn't suit your decor. You'd end up paying the same as a new couch but you'd have something much cooler than the standard fare.

I thought the backs of these chairs were interesting, and it'd be easy to recover the cushions to modernize them:

Happy shopping!

More from Photography Class

Tonight's photography class reminded me that sometimes you can make big improvements through small changes (which, ironically, is what I tell my clients all the time). Just by understanding a few settings on my camera a little better, I was pretty psyched about the results. I'll share a couple of shots I am particularly proud of:

In case you've never been to the Laguna Gloria, I took some shots of the grounds as well:

The little shack where my class was held:

If you are interested in taking classes at the AMOA: Laguna Gloria, you can find more information here.

Art Classes at AMOA - Laguna Gloria

I'm taking a 2-night photography class ("Using Available Light") at the Laguna Gloria and highly recommend taking their art classes if you have a creative bent. If you haven't been out there, it's really amazing. You have the Italian villa-style former home of Clara Driskoll on the one hand, which is beautiful for weddings and parties and whatnot...then there's this cute little cluster of small buildings where they hold the art school classes. The first night I attended there was a slight chill in the air, the light was beautiful, and when the cafe lights came on, it reminded me of that part in Roman Holiday when Audrey Hepburn meets her hairstylist for a night on the town--very charming and festive. What I really wished for was to be part of the lucky group enjoying their class in the open-air pavilion (my class was in a boring white box of a room, comparatively). Before the mosquitos descend upon us, that is one prime spot for an art class.

The class I'm taking is a bit of a disaster, actually. Not that it hasn't been useful--I've picked up one particular tidbit for color correcting photos that is totally worth the price of admission in terms of time savings for future online portfolio photos--but it's impossible to learn such a complex skill in two nights. Especially when you're not even altogether completely familiar with your own dang camera and have to spend much of the class time pressing button after button in frustration. *Update 5/2/08: The 2nd night of this class made a believer out of me. It all clicked into place...I learned several amazing new camera tricks and I can't wait to use them on the next room(s) I shoot.*

If you're interested in other classes being taught here, I'd wholeheartedly encourage you to sign up.