A Random Obsession

ou can't go wrong spending an afternoon in Home Depot and I often find myself just stopping in to gain inspiration from all the gadgetry and tools.  I can spend hours in front of the paint chips alone.  That being said, there are items all over the joint that just make me gag.  Case in point, some of the hideous options in the lighting department.  I mean, WHY do landlords always opt for the "nipple" ceiling fixtures with the brass trim.  No! No! Nooooooo!!!!  Luckily, my landlords chose something a tad less hideous for my living room and bedroom, but these too lack any real style.  Enter my latest dream chandies: the "Random" lighting by designer Miranda Watkins!  I adore simple yet chic uses of otherwise inexpensive and readily available materials.  These simple wind-chime-esque pendants made from plexi are fantastic and could find a new home in my 80's inspired living room once my long awaited tax return arrives. 

Perfect!

ot to get all Black Swan on your asses, but I just stumbled upon the website of a self-proclaimed "Super Dave" at superdave.se and what David Taylor does is simply perfection!!!  I am in absolute LOVE with his candlesticks, but the oil "candles" are beyond breathtaking.  The emotions I feel right now are probably similar to what Natalie Portman's character felt when she was on ecstasy.  I need a cold shower....excuse me.

Japan - 3.11.11

y thoughts and prayers go out the people of Japan and the communities so devastatingly affected by the earthquake and tsunami. 

Acute Case of Francophilia

egarding indoor lighting, my strong preference, when applicable, has always been candlelight.  It's flattering, mysterious and romantic.  Of course, the most romantic of all cities is Paris.  As a self-proclaimed Francophile, I feel the perfect marriage of these two beliefs I carry have been realized in the form of these "Bustes de Cire" by the French royalty of candle-makers, Cire Trudon.  Problem is, they are so wonderful I'd hate to light them! 

Riveting Wallpapers

hat butch lesbian Miss Rosie aint got nuthin' on the latest collection by Phillip-Jeffries Ltd.  I'm addicted, in the best way possible, to the new line aptly named "Rivets".  So masculine and hard, but the underlying texture seems to lend a Japanese-like simplicity and calmness.  I love the grid patterns the rivets create and I could easily imagine this in my bathroom above the chair rail height tile.  It would extend the "tile" look all the way to the ceiling.  And perhaps make ME seem a bit more butch. No? Yeah, you're probably right.   

Fossil Fantasy

or whatever reason, and don't try to analyze it, I am recently drawn to natural elements.  Course, it all has to have that ULTRA modern, sleek, slick edge to it in order to send those shivers up and down my bony spine.  This side table certainly helps get my rocks off on that level.  I mean, caveman chicness to the max.  Those monkeys from 2001 Space Odyssey had the same reaction to that modern black obelisk so I'm pretty sure I'm having the correct reaction regardless of evolution. I'd love to evolve this amazing table by Matthew Studios right next to my bed.  

Giving me a woody!

ou would be hard pressed to find the activity I hated most out of all my experiences as a young lad than the time I was forced to go camping in the mountains of Santa Cruz.  The dirt, the lack of running water, bugs and the paranoid fear that Michael Myers was going to leap out at me any moment all conspired to turn me into the eternal "city boy" I am today.   Now, I enjoy nature and all it's beauty, but only in controlled environments.  What's more controlled than Lucite!?  And what could be more beautiful to said self-proclaimed city boy than these "petrified" stools by Bleu Nature.  I've said it a million times and I'll say it again - French just do it better.