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this is image looking far to cozy to a girl (me) who is becoming far too sleepy for a mid-afternoon spent still sitting at work...

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Neeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed.

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a little late, but it's the thought that counts

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this year, I'm trying for new years resolutions I might actually keep.

in no particular order:
-try new things. try everything once.  (note: book trip to reno. so I can shoot a man. just to watch him die.)
-learn how to properly use our slr camera.
-take many many kick-ass pictures.
-enter a design competition. (haven't done one of these in a while)
-read books I've been meaning to read for years.
-attempt to correct my posture (hey, it could happen)

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the floors!
the huge windows!
the loft!
the ceiling!
the bookshelves!
add a bit more color in there and I would be quite happy living in this space.

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this bike rack is just so freakin cool.

we definitely could have used a few of these in the tight spaces of our london flats.

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dear universe,

I would like both the chairs and the hat.

and no color changes please, the orange is the best part.

hugs and kisses,

bethany

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to quote honestlywtf:
Apparently putting together this do is as easy as dividing your ponytail in half and tying it into a double knot.


thus, I have tried the curious hairstyle.
tied said double knot bout 5 minutes ago.
let's see how it holds up.


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continuing in the "bags that bethany really really wants but in no way on this green earth can possibly afford" trend, check out this lovely piece of leather.

purdy, ain't it?
and even better, they have a wicked sense of humor.
take for example, their Common Questions page:

How can I convince my honey that I need this?
So you want it. Now comes the hard part of convincing your honey that you need it. Maybe if you throw some of these phrases into the conversation, it'll help.
Her to Him
You know, I feel frisky just thinking about that leather piece.
I would just feel so sexy carrying this on my body.
I don't think I'd need to go shopping for another thing all year after buying something like this.
Him to Her

Looking at this case just makes me want to HOLD you.
I don't know why, but owning a hope and a dream like this, makes me want to just sit down on the couch and OPEN UP about the hopes and dreams we share.
Think of all of the extra TIME we'd spend TOGETHER on our long walks holding hands and showing off the leather.
Me to Both of You
You'll be more popular. You'll have more friends. What's wrong, you chicken? I might invite you to my birthday party. If you don't buy this case, then next year, when you're scouring the internet again looking for your next garage sale piece because yours is already torn or broken, your mind will drift back to my words. You'll slowly shake your head and say, "Man, was that guy right or what". And then you'll slightly squint, press your lips together and give a few small nods. I tell you what, buy it now or kick yourself later.
I've made this for you to break in. It'll take a few months until it really starts to look cool, and you'll have to use it a lot. In fact, the more you use it, the better it looks (and it already looks great). It'll eventually form to the places on your body it touches regularly. The edges will soften and round some to become even more chic and classic looking than it already does.

Where can I see one of these cases in person?
I don't have any of the items in stores and we're not big fans of folks coming to our home because of the weirdo factor. My sister, Patricia, and her husband (my Chess and Scrabble nemesis) send out the leather from their place near Ft. Worth, Texas. But again, because of the weirdo factor, they don't want you dropping by there either. If it helps, everyone tells me that they're much more impressed with them in person.

Are the animals tortured before they are slaughtered?
Absolutely not! With some pigs we do use waterboarding and sensory deprivation techniques previous to slaughtering them, but the cows do not require any special handling.


How much do these leather things cost you, Dave?
Well, I lived for three years in a $100 a month apartment in Mexico with no hot water, because of these bags. My dog, Blue, and I drove for thousands of hours all over the North American continent because of these bags. I had a crooked Federale sent to kill me because of these bags (I convinced him that Senor Alarcon would never pay him) and we became friends). I've shed gallons of blood and tears and sweat and at least a quart of other people's, because of these bags. I've slept in my car or on the rack of my old Land Cruiser at least 150 times because of these bags. I've lost weeks of sleep and have gone hungry for days because of these bags. I was broke for years and even had to trade two of Blue's little puppies for a month's worth of tacos in order to eat because of these bags. I've been detained by who knows how many Mexican police because of these bags. I've thrown away thousands of dollars and made hundreds of mistakes because of these bags. I've been stolen from, taken advantage of and robbed because of these bags (they even stole Blue once, but I got him back). All of these things and more have happened to me because of these bags. They cost me a lot.


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I wanna go to morocco.

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this falls squarely into the "things bethany would buy if she had money" category .
(see also, the "things bethany would have to buy quickly as there are only 350 of these things being made" category.)

and while we're in the theoretical question arena, red or green?

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must learn how to do these.

but hair must behave so I can do these.
which sends the achievable success rate plummeting.

[via hip hip gin gin + all things stylish]

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dani and I saw these at a shop in london and were about to get them for our friend bethania, who fell asleep on the bus at 4 am on the way home from one of our parties, missed her stop, ended up waaaaaaay out past bethnal green when the bus turned around and had to wake up enough to figure out that to get back home she had to cross the street and wait for the bus going the opposite direction.

but they were a bit too expensive for a gag gift.

my favorite sticker (not in the set pictured) was "wake me up...anywhere but brixton".

classic.

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because one photo of these books just wasn't enough.

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just finished this collection of short stories on friday and I cannot say enough good things about them.
they were phenomenal.

written around characters with varying ties to India (first generation born in america, immigrant in america, impoverished in india, americans of indian decent visiting india, so on and so forth) the stories lull you in and then knock you flat on your back.
the characters are utterly relate-able, the plot lines recognizable as something, anything, you or somebody you know has gone through, and the writing is so seamless you almost miss your stop on the T. (no. of course that didn't happen to me. why do you ask?)
and in a pretty neat coincidence, the stories/portions of stories that take place in america are set in cambridge, boston, which I am currently turning into my new home.

needless to say,  by the time I got to the end of the book I wanted 10 more stories.
at least.

I'm not going to get that, so instead I am going to search down all her other books and read those asap.

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hedgehogs.

nuff' said.

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I want ALL OF THESE.

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so when I saw these mugs, I thought they were pretty neat.
not your standard letter associations, you know?

and then I looked closer.

and saw the "D" mug.

duuuudes.
it's a dalek!

I'm sold.

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Save the Words!

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The Oxford Dictionary is running a program where, in exchange for promising to use it in everyday casual conversation, people can adopt a kick-ass word that's been unceremoniously dropped from the english language over the years.


so thus introducing....my word!


snollygoster
n.
a shrewd, unprincipled person, especially a politician.


Instead of giving snollygosters the key to the city, it might be better to change the locks.


be prepared to have it dropping into your casual conversation.

give the website a look.
besides having tons of really quite amusing words, it is pretty humorous in and of itself.
one of it's FAQ's, among "can I send you new words to be saved?", is "what is a dictionary?". their answer includes its use as a doorstop.

adopt a word!

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WANT

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this right here is perfection in a bedspread. 

[debenhams via what you fancy]

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now that just ain't right...

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geography has never been my strong point (right up there with spelling), and it's been about 18 years (good god, already 18 years??) since I could successfully name all the african/middle eastern countries, but I am determined to practice this until I can name them all in one go.

educated about the world; here I come!

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For "those" clients. Also comes with wall-mounting hardware so you can camoflauge it as a piece of art until "that" client comes by. 

Visualize Bat - $95.00 : Orange32, Online Shop

I think our office desperately needs one of these.

In fact, every architectural office I know of desperately needs one of these...

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my sister totally got me these for christmas.

good taste runs in my family.

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up to seven books in two weeks! not bad not bad.

Small Scale Big Change, New Architecture of Social Engagement, published by the MoMA (nyc).

this is an incredible book.


architecture seems to have sunk into an established way of operating which, for the most part, takes little to no notice of the social/humanistic ripple effects of the work being produced and built. this book, based on an exhibition by the same name at the MoMA, brings to the front ground ten projects from all over the world that have pushed aside this established convention and immersed themselves in the less than ideal conditions in which they are operating. through community inclusion, tapping into local building materials/building methods/workforce to boost the economy and really just taking a holistic approach to design rather than an isolated one that lately has been producing little other than singular iconic structures or cookie-cutter buildings that look exactly the same no matter where they are being constructed, these designers and projects have been slowly improving the world and altering the perceived notion of what well-thought out architecture can achieve.


as somebody who is aiming to get into the humanitarian side of architecture, this book had its pages absolutely covered in underlining and notes from the get go.


just fabulous.


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I swear I had this exact same idea like 4 years ago.

 

that makes me just as creative as the guy that actually did it, right?

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the only reason I am awake enough to type this this morning.

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they're argyle socks.

for chairs.

brilliant.

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Inspired by vintage printing blocks, this beautifully finished chest of 26 drawers is made from solid oak - the perfect place to file everything from A-Z! The ALPHABET chest of drawers stands around waist height.

Kent and London - Handmade Chest of Drawers and Handmade Furniture

I want this sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much.

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these are just too awesome for words.


and I desperately want them.

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PENGUINS!!!!!

  

I wanna go to the aquarium and see the penguins!

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In Pursuit of the Common Good, Twenty-five Years of Repairing the World One Bottle of Salad Dressing at a Time, by Paul Newman and A.E. Hotchner.

my abhorrence of the phrase "the common good" aside, I absolutely adored this book.

so much so that I started it around 7pm last night and finished it around 10:30pm last night.
that's right.
it's a read all in one night it's so good you can't put it down kind of book.

I love everything about this man.
his movies.
his blue eyes.
his food (as I sit here eating his pretzels)
his sense of humor.
his charity work.

so to hear in his own words how, and why, he and his partner a.e. hotchner decided to give conventionality the proverbial finger, produce all natural foods without those pesky preservatives, and then give every single cent of profit to charities is pretty darn neat.

add to that the whole back story (and continuing story) of their Hole In The Wall Gang Camps (which apparently are now all around the world, something I didn't know) and you have a pretty compelling book.

and if the letters from campers to paul and hotch thanking them for their camp experience at the end of the book don't make you tear up a little bit, you have no soul.

and if the letters from consumers to paul and hotch about the various other uses for their salad dressing and a few just telling paul he has nice eyes don't make you giggle, [see above].

and, there are recipes in the back!
what more could you want?

if you love good food and good people, you'll like this book.

but fair warning, it'll really really make you miss paul newman...

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this one's for andrea, tom and their cat professor xavier.



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well now..
these are just beyond words cool.

 

[whole bunch more on the website.]

[animals on the underground via bb-blog]




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