Marvelous Bookcases From Everywhere

Books are beautiful things therefore they need a beautiful thing to be encased into. The joyous news is that many people have seen and fulfilled this need already so I've had the best time just hunting for the most interesting or odd specimens to show you...

1. As the oldest invention: the wheel. This bookcase moves as you move. Doesn't seem like it should work if I'm honest but I'm told in no uncertain terms but a design engineer that I am, on this one, wrong.

2.They can send a message.....subtly 

3. They can be hidden where you would not normally expect...(I'd love to find a book in a tree)

4. I love the ingeniousness of these two, using anything you find to make a wall the main focus of the room. For example skateboards or even equations.

5.This design has such a beautifully fluid shape that I had to include. I wish i had a wall large enough to encompass this.

6. Last but not least, for all the hero fans out there Dark Knight bookcase.

 I hope you found these designs as interesting as I did, any comments are welcome

Storage Ideas From My Place

In a world where not everyone can get the amount of space they want (especially in England) hidden storage is king. If your slightly on the scatter brained side like moi you may tend to put things down and say I'll sort that out later which ends up with a pile of things to do at the end of the week. 

I am now on a mission to organise the lot. First off I bought a rattan bowl and basket like so (for only £3!!):  

Had a bit of a brainstorm of what was best to put in what, they're not specific for any use so I had many weird and wonderful trinkets to fill them with. However I finally reached the conclusion that my hairbands could fill the snake basket.

It now proudly sits next to Brian.

The dish was to become place to put things when I come in and cannot be bothered put them in their proper place. E.g. when alcohol is involved.

If you can think of a better use for them please do let me know because I am sure they will have changed their use by next week even.

Grimm Tales: For Young and Old by Philip Pullman

In this beautiful book of classic fairy tales, award-winning author Philip Pullman has chosen his fifty favourite stories from the Brothers Grimm and presents them in a'clear as water' retelling, in his unique and brilliant voice.

Who doesn't right up until they read this book love Philip Pullman? His Dark Materials were amazingly imaginative and made me fall head over heels for the world he created. When he took on the Grimm Tales I believed that it would be interesting to view his take on them. My thoughts were along the Angela Carter, The Bloody Chamber route therefore recognizable as which Grimm tales they were but only just. 

It was however very very similar to the Grimm Tales themselves, all the gore and horror that I presume he thought would shock his reader was already tame as opposed to the original stories. The strong morals seemed weakened and the imagery less vivid so packing less of a visual punch it was altogether reminiscent of a limp handshake. 

What disappointed me most I suppose is the expectations I had of this book. When he seemed to be such a heavyweight in the literary world with his imaginative skills and good characterization I thought the Grimm Tales would be something he'd grab by the balls. It seemed that he copied a lot of the original tales and put his "voice" into it. His voice seemed to make no big deal out of anything and made every tale sound exactly. Halfway through the book I thought I may have to stop just due to the monotony.

If you haven't read the original Grimm Tales I suggest you do, they're great but wouldn't recommend this. It's the bad sequel to the original great. 
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4 Interesting and Quirky Bathtub Designs

If you want to take your bathroom to the next level then one of these unique bathtub designs will definitely do that for you. Creating a statement in a space that is so personal to its owner is a delicate balance to get right. I believe that bathrooms are so often an afterthought in interior design that I thought I would focus my next posts on this particular room. To me my bathroom is what I face in the morning and what I wash my day away in therefore it needs to the calmest room in the house.

1. The Bathsphere by Alexander Zhukovsky - This design really hits on the idea of having your own personal, weightless bubble. You can change the temperature, humidity, light, sounds and smells to the exact mood you wish. Only downside is that you can hardly hide anything.....

2. Boat Bathtub by Wieki Somers - Less sci-fi and more a naturalistic statement piece. Its like an upside down idea, trying to keep water in a boat as opposed to outside. It however does encapsulate the deep peaceful feeling that you can have when drifting down a river in that same rowing boat. Found on Musings

3. Biblio by Antonio Lupi - Bathtub for the bookworms of the world of which I proudly include myself. Never more shall you run out of reading material mid-soak (a nightmare I cannot begin to comprehend). This brings the tranquility which many find in reading to your bath.

4. The Unit by Philippe Malouin - Saving space is not always a good thing. Kitchen and bathrooms to me different moods, spaces and not to be combined. 

Let me know what you thought about designs, or if not whether bathtubs aren't truly that important. 

Lucid Stead Installation by Phillip K Smith 3rd

This amazing art installation from Philllip K Smith 3rd makes the true beauty of houses show. This house at times looks half completed at other times looks so full of color it looks ready to burst. It can reflect the stars or reflect nothing it is so very very interesting I thought it was worth sharing.

Bedding!!

My new passion of the moment is home ware, anything that fits in your home I am now currently obsessed with. Which leads me to the nature of this post, on my travels through the internet I have found the most eccentric and intriguing bedding designs going. Which leads me to my favorite, DENY Designs.
Much like the site Threadless they use artists existing work or specific ideas for DENY to create these amazing unique covers. I doubt anyone can ever reach the end of their designs page, it seems endless to me. They are more expensive than you average covers however they have a decent thread count and are of good quality. You could see it as I suppose as a good investment. Then again that could be me convincing myself.








On a completely different spectrum Snurk are a new(ish) Dutch company who don't exactly do beautiful but are more innovative than that. Starting with the idea of a cardboard box duvet it was all uphill for there. They have truly interesting bedding choices, especially for kids as well that I truly find intriguing to watch. I just wish the UK had easier access. P.S. Fun Fact: Snurk means to snore in Dutch.

Last but not least I have Sin In Linen for any tattoo or henna fans this is more the site for you. Beautiful pin up designs that are truly individual and like nothing else on the market. True they are more just black and white designs but that can go with any color scheme you have, just tie it in with some nice colorful throw cushions and you are set!

Here Comes Trouble by Michael Moore

"I had an unusually large-sized head, though this was not uncommon for a baby in the Midwest. The craniums in our part of the country were designed to leave a little extra room for the brain to grow in case one day we found ourselves exposed to something we didn't understand, like a foreign language, or a salad." 

I came across Michael Moore when I watched the not-so-un-famous film Fahrenheit 9/11 (which on a side note  if you haven't seen you should). Once I saw someone see a situation presented by a government and say, I don't think that's how it really was it completely changed my perspective. I haven't simply accepted something that someone's told me since just because they are an authority. For this I am indebted to the man and I'm surely not alone.

The man himself has had one of the most interesting lives I've ever had the pleasure to read. Not in the fact that he's nearly died in death-defying acts but rather escaped America to Canada so as not to be drafted. Nearly been hijacked in a plane and disguised himself to get in a governmental summit suggesting all American businesses to move their factories to Mexico. A catholic schoolboy he just was never one for taking the common phrase "it's just how it is". It makes his life interesting and funny to read and held me to the end easily.

His prose style is extremely conversational, in fact there seems to be no difference in how Moore talks to how he writes. This makes the book piss easy to read since it's really you just chatting with him about what he's got up to these past 50 years. 

I know he's controversial, people hate him to the point of having a mini gunpowder (man-made bomb) plot against him and yet the other half truly love him. I fall on that side for sure, even if sometimes you disagree with his methods at least he is asking questions that need to be asked. Better than many many politicians. 

Whatever you feel I think anyone would find this entertaining at the very least.