Flavored Light

Raspberry-textured lamp for $42+ (depending on modifications). A crystal ball, $50+:



And $200 even for a set of repurposed mason jars:



These all seem like fixtures that Mrs. Darling (from Peter Pan) might choose for her home.

The history of lightbulbs is somewhat interesting, although it could use more romance.

Claywitch

Small Spells was recently featured on The Dainty Squid's "Friday Favorites". I am glad to explore a studio full of the simple, glossy pieces that I tend to adore, even if my journey is limited to a website. I do yearn to test the weights and surfaces with my hands...

Rachel Howe is the artist who casts these quiet enchantments. She describes her products as "functional ceramics". After all, isn't it magical to be able to use something beautiful? Art for its own sake is fine, but I prefer craft's ability to multitask.

Fresh & Gold

How do I love thee, $29 soap dish thingy? I love thee greatly, that's how.



I dunno what I'd use the cup for, but I would put this yummy-looking lavender stuff in the dish. Just kidding--it would probably be plain ol' Ivory, or whatever it is that my household uses. But I'd like to lather up with schmancy suds.

Crumpled

$432 origami-inspired lamp that looks much bigger than it is. Observe how the glow shrinks in context:



There is also a $357 version with black legs:



And one that will stand up for $652:



"This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine." It sounds like the light won't shine without a concerted effort to let it. The natural state of one's light is to be switched off.

The only writing advice that really matters is to just sit down and do it. That's the difficult part. There's a quote, attributed to various people in various forms, but mostly Dorothy Parker, that goes, "I hate to write. I love having written." There's no joy in forcing words out of my fingers. The satisfaction comes when I read them afterwards and judge them to be good. Even then, I like the idea of self-expression more than anything else.

Complex City Systems

// Simon Cook //

I've been trying to read more science. During my internet wanderings, I can't help but notice that people just say things without any data to back up their suppositions. That drives me crazy. So I am seeking out concrete information about my interests. The problem is that high-level texts are, um, high-level. I lack the foundation to understand them. Sometimes when I want to dig into a paper or a study, the abstract and the introduction are the only parts I can parse. Here's an example from "Digging the New York City Skyline: Soil Fungal Communities in Green Roofs and City Parks":

"Green roofs have become increasingly popular in urban sustainability initiatives, as they provide a number of ecosystem services that mitigate the effects of urbanization such as decreased storm water runoff, enhanced building energy-use efficiency, and reduced urban heat island effects. An additional benefit of green roofs that has not been fully explored is the potential reservoir of habitats for biota residing in or migrating across the city. Like city parks and other urban green spaces, green roofs provide vegetated islands that birds, insects, and other airborne organisms may make use of in the urban matrix. However, the historical focus of green roof research has been on infrastructure and engineering, so the role of green roofs as biodiversity reservoirs has only recently been emphasized."

I took out the citations to promote readability. Does that say something about my character?

// David Ross //

Some other PLOS ONE offerings that I wish I could truly get:

// "Global Patterns of City Size Distributions and Their Fundamental Drivers" // "The Collaborative Image of The City: Mapping the Inequality of Urban Perception" // "Urban Scaling and the Production Function for Cities" // "Network Structure and City Size" //

From that last one:

"The average American spends about 4 years of their life in motion. The amount depends on who they are, what they do, where they live, and how they choose to travel. Most Americans live in metropolitan areas that enable people to engage in the activities they care about efficiently, by bringing activities and people close together for mutual economic production, trade, and commerce, social interaction, education, and defense. This proximity (accessibility) must provide advantages, otherwise cities would not exist. But not all cities are equally efficient. They vary in size and scope, they vary in the density and location of activities, and they vary in their internal circulatory systems that enable people to move between places. As the world continues to urbanize, even small gains in intra-urban organizational efficiency will lead to large gains for humanity as a whole."

// James Mitchell //

// Blood is the New Black //

Night Mugs

It's too late for this. I stopped drinking caffeine for the day almost twelve hours ago, but here I am wanting to pour coffee into $22 worth of vintage German cups. I would spill some on the saucers, just so they could have a use. My eyes are heavy and big, the way they get when I've spent too much time online. I have ten Etsy tabs open, literally. Ben Folds is singing through my unimpressive computer speakers in another one.



$90 set of white mugs, perfect for a diner:

Curated Space

I am completely loving spanosees, an interior design blog that was recently started by the lady who runs Spano Vintage. I have written about the shop previously. In the same vein, there is the quietness of Lone Flag, a boutique that is "dedicated to premium products [...] built with quality and purpose in mind."

Bay Windows By The Bay

// David McSpadden //

One of my favorite sights in San Francisco is the profusion of narrow, fripperous Victorian homes, which are concentrated in Pacific Heights but can be found throughout the city. These "painted ladies", which I prefer to call "birthday cake houses", are famous enough to have their own Wikipedia page and a devoted walking tour. The architecture photos all came from Flickr, and are linked to their sources.

// Orin Zebest //

That cyan paint job is the same color as this seafoam eyeshadow:

// Frank Kovalchek //

For the sage-colored house in the middle, I give you Napoleon Perdis loose powder in "Jaded Genie":



Which color is it actually??? Darn misleading product photos! Still works though, right?

// Frank Kovalchek //

Temptalia reviewed a way prettier OCC lip tar, shimmery gold "Triptych".

Okay, I think I'm all matched out for the moment. But I can't resist 1) saying that these "pearls" are lovely and 2) including a few more house shots:

// Dominick //

// David Ohmer //

// Frank Kovalchek //

// Wikimedia //