Bring on Spring.

This was going to be a post about upcoming warmer weather, and what I'd have to be on the lookout for in the coming weeks... but I'm almost universally disappointed with the S/S '11 stuff from all labels, nevermind the ones that will actually be available in Toronto. Not that that's a problem, because I have a far better, cheaper, idea (thanks to my friend Elle for the reminder):

Yeah, that'll do.

A blank page.

Write in this more.
Give my camera more attention.
Write in general, about something, daily.
Get back into books.
NYC.
A plane ride.
Revive daily exercise regimen.
Draw more.
Put friends first.
Save save save.

Just off the top of my head. Hope you had a good time kicking 2010 to the curb, and nursing the accompanying hangover.

Home furnishings.

In the time since the last post, it's subject matter has wrapped up another excellent season, mother nature did the same thing (allowing for fall clothing to finally come back out), and I'm currently on a job hunt. This has led to a tightening of the purse strings, and I've been good with self control, not even looking at most of my usual online haunts. Helping my family build a deck over the summer, I've been on a DIY kick lately, in an effort to both save money, and have some unique things instead of the default cheap and cheerless Ikea furnishings (though the planned PC setup I have makes most sense with their products). I stumbled upon this awesome shoe storage idea a year or so ago, and I've been slowly trying to hunt down the necessary things to build my own version.



I'd actually rather keep the white bristles instead of moving to black; sure, they'll show more dirt, but turning them black would destroy the visibility of what's stored, which is arguably the whole point. Magazin's website has long gotten rid of the product info, but I'm assuming it can't double as a bench. I'd like to fix that in my own version; maybe add a small solid piece on one side (or both) to make the whole thing more useful. Thoughts?

Modern Men: Mad About Design.

Summer usually means a welcome break from (most) television, but a summer largely free of it has been cut happily short the past three years for me with Mad Men. After catching the entire first season a week or so before season 2 started, I've been hooked since, it joining a handful of shows I actually make an effort to keep up to date on. You've no doubt heard or read plenty on Matthew Weiner's near-obsessive measures to ensure accuracy in regards to the time period, and I can't really add anything more to that that hasn't already been said. It's unreal how authentic it feels, not just to me, someone who can only go by word of mouth or idealized movies or television from the time, but to people who actually remember these booming post-war times. If you haven't yet watched it, I really suggest you do, while keeping in mind that it's a slow-burn type of show; it may take a while, but you'll find yourself growing attached to these characters, despite (or actually, because of) their flaws.

Season 4 brings us right back into the thick of things, and it's been fascinating to watch the show progress through design history. Now a much more productive outfit, Sterling-Cooper is getting caught up in the wave of modernism that really sums up the decade of the great space race.

Freddy Rumsen had a welcome return in last week's "Christmas Comes But Once a Year" episode, bringing a gift account with him. Walking into Roger's office, Freddy makes a comment about "getting sucked into that thing" and motions to the painting above. It's not the only new-school item though; Roger's wife has redecorated, and turned his office into the clearest example yet of modern design in the show. Saarinen tables, airy, minimalist leather bench and little stools in place of the bigger, solid old wood furnishings from previous seasons, and an awesome Castiglioni Arco floor lamp (though doubtful an original, for obvious reasons). Sadly, modernization isn't all perfect; the walls hint at the future generation's horrors of cubicles. Later on, Roger gives us another example of why his office is a modern design lover's wet dream:

An Eames chaise! Plus we get to see the another corner of the office, occupied by more mirrored or white surfaces. A move away the intimidating darker palette of the old office, Roger's office is all about the open air feel the minimalist style provides. Sure, a lot of this stuff was around before the year portrayed in the show (we're on the verge of '65), but only by a few years. The Arco lamp was first introduced by the Castiglioni brothers in 1962; the Saarinen tables in 1956. A year after them, we saw another important introduction...

Every typography nerd's favourite icon/target, Helvetica, pops up in the office. This isn't the first time the famous Haas foundry font has made it's way into Mad Men, but the red poster above is more easily identifiable, and looks to be on a wall full of inspiration. Its inclusion is an interesting one; as the show has shown over the past three seasons, advertising used to be a lot more copy-based. Artists were needed, absolutely, but the copy was essential. As time progresses, the ad makers are using less words to sell their wares, focusing more on harnessing the power of emotions from the viewer, invoking a particular feeling from them and then selling them on not just the product in question, but the brand itself, and the lifestyle associated with it. Take a look through a typical magazine today and tell me, automobile ads excluded, how much reading you really have to do?

Also of interest design-wise is that minimalist wall clock, looking like something you could grab on a trip to MoMa. Or, hey, why not just build it yourself?

All in all, it's great to see one of my favourite shows back on the air, and progressing flawlessly through history. The show has weaved historic events into episodes (the 1960 election, JFK's assassination), highlights the myriad different social expectations of a different generation, and keeps a finger thoroughly on the design pulse of the times. All of this mixes well with a complimentary cast of believable characters and writing, encouraging you to keep watching, since it all gels together so well. Seriously, if you aren't watching it yet, go do it! Oh, and one more reason:

Hey, Red.

Essential summer listening.

This post is now over a month late; we're into the third full week since summer officially started, and I had been mulling over a summer playlist since May. You can thank Mother Nature for forgetting about the four seasons this year and just skipping spring. Anyways, I finally got to throwing a very basic list together on my iPod, in time to head up to a friend's cottage a few weekends ago (which was an utterly amazing experience, by the way). It wanders from genre to genre; there's a lot of the de rigeur low-fi beach music from established favourites like Neon Indian and Best Coast, but also some older stuff from years passed, and even some new Drake (I'm sorry). The full list is hovering around 200 songs, but as I'm sure it's got at least a couple embarrassing additions in it (not to mention it'd be cruel to just copy/paste a wall of songs), I cut it down to the ones that seem to get the most playtime from me so far. Each song reminds me of certain aspects of summer; some of them are tied to things from the afore-mentioned trip (even though my iPod was barely touched), some remind me of childhood, and others just invite general summer feelings upon listening. It’s kinda hard to nail it down. Anyways, click past the jump to see the 17 I felt needed to be mentioned, 16 of which come with Youtube videos for easy previewing: