Reversing Books

Elizabeth from One Must Shock the Bourgeois* is a frequent reader here, and I was browsing her blog after a recent comment (I do read them *all*, even if I don't reply) and found this intriguing idea: She flipped most of the books in her bookshelf spine side in.

Before

After

On pure aesthetics, it's a total win: The colors are more muted, more similar in tone. It's less distracting and cluttered. Her accessories are part of the same color scheme. It's lovely.

However there's no way it would fly at my house -- library organization was one of the most fraught negotiations of our early marriage, and not being able to see what books you have would defeat all organizational efforts -- but I thought it was interesting, nonetheless. Would you do this to your books?

*Just for the record, I'm firmly in the bourgeoisie, as defined by Wikipedia: part of the middle or merchant classes, and derived social and economic power from employment, education, and wealth. And not shocked by Elizabeth's blog--it takes more than reversed books to shock me. :)

Best Cafe Design with Green Themes

I love very much on green theme in a public place such as a cafe, here I collect several picture of green theme cafe from several places, just feel free to enjoy this green looks cafe design.The first cafe is Akasha Richmond's uber-green restaurant in Culver City. A green cafe withan eco-friendly uniforms, great space, lighting is just right, noise level is "spirited but manageable," there's a pizza she's ordered more than once, her friend got all "dreamy-eyed" over a vegetarian bowl with Punjab beans, desserts are delcious.

This is the Lettus cafe, a green restaurant, a natural cafe that made of natural fabrics and a unique stone-like floor, The fabric is 100 percent natural and will not off-gas toxic chemicals into the air—an environmental complement to Weiss’s organic food. The floor is covered with all-natural tiles from Royal Mosa, a company that recaptures and recycles all of its waste, from pigments to gas particulates.

source: http://la.eater.com, http://www.treehugger.com

Liquid Lights

One of the things I love about steampunk is that it blends opulence -- antiques, velvet, dark saturated colors -- with industrial roughness. These lights by Tanya Clarke are a good example -- she combines recycled plumbing pieces with hand sculpted glass drops and lights the whole thing with LEDs.




Whimsical and fun!

Find more at Liquid Light.

A Perfect Library

Loved this library, designed by Sills Huniford Associates.

The ladder, the desk, the balloon curtains, the glass fronted bookshelves... they are just perfection.

via Things that Inspire.

The Cargo Hold Restaurant

My sister took these pictures of the Cargo Hold restaurant at the aquarium in Durban, South Africa, knowing it was just my style.

The designers based it on the idea of a ghost ship, attacked by pirates, that drifted to shore.


A couple more pictures and a review from Kim's South Africa.

And one final exterior shot by StefanieInez on picasa.