Considering it took me several months to decide which pillows to buy for the living room, it should come as no surprise that it’s taken me ages to pick out a new lamp for my home office. I admit I wasn’t nearly as dedicated to (read obsessed with) the cause as I was with the pillow search, but nevertheless it took a while to make up my mind. And also the $25 gift card to West Elm probably factored into the decision.

Anyway, a few days ago my industrial task table lamp arrived from West Elm, and after the 15 minutes it took to get it out of the box (seriously) I instantly fell in love.

First, the polished nickel is wonderfully shiny, so I was immediately mesmerized. Second, this is one tall table lamp. At almost three feet tall, it’s as graceful as it is modern thanks to the long, sleek silhouette.The lamp is adjustable at the base and the center joint of the arm, but what I really love about this part is the detailing of the knobs. Instead of the tension-style mechanism found on a lot of lamps like this, and at this price point, this lamp has knobs similar to the look of a wing nut that unscrew for precision adjusting. Did I mention this lamp was just 60 bucks?

This is the kind of lamp you want to buy in a six pack and put them everywhere. The design fits into a variety of decor styles, and the lighting is just great—it illuminates a large piece of real estate in my office, and I definitely don’t need the overhead light to work. The base has a relatively small footprint and would fit nicely on a nightstand or on an end table without taking over the entire surface. This lamp is heavy and very well made and I’m impressed with the quality after having it less than a week. I fully expect it to last for a very long time.

After visiting the International Furniture Fair at the Jacob K. Javits Center a few weeks ago, I have come to some conclusions regarding the latest, greatest themes in Home Furnishings.

Faux Wood Lamp Shade

Wood, wood and more wood.  Unfinished wood of every dimension was a hit at the show.  Utilized in innovative ways to make this old standard look updated and interesting.

Wood Cutting Board by Canoe

Cardboard and paper products.  Making furniture and lighting out of paper is a way to embrace the “recycle-reuse theme” in a fresh way.  Hassocks made of corrugated cardboard were front and center in this trend.

Wall Shelves by Stephen Hugo

Brights in a variety of materials including plastic, wood and resin.  This trend is refreshing to say the least. Tying in culture with current design is a nice twist, making the usual “unusual.

Bedding by West Elm

Bold floral patterns in stencil-like form.  Prints are still kicking and look revived once more.  Two and three color cutouts make this category a trend to be reckoned with.

Pillows by Thomas Paul

Nature themes abound.  Birds, bees, butterflies and all living creatures in between.  Paired with new green, these subjects look alive in home furnishings.

The big Herman Miller sale has come and gone, and while I didn’t end up with a pair of Eames molded plastic chairs for the dining room (since there’s no new dining room table to put them at quite yet), I am, however, anxiously awaiting the arrival of my shiny new Eames Hang-It-All!

I fell in love with Charles and Ray Eames years ago when I was assigned to write an article on mid-century masters. It was one of my first magazine assignments, and I remember spending the day at a local independent shop filled with the classics I had only seen in photos, and learning about Eileen Gray, George Nelson, Eero Saarinen and of course, the Eameses.

That was the day I truly fell in love with mid-century design, and vowed to eventually fill my home with a modest collection of all my favorites. Needless to say it’s been slow going, but I’ve wanted this mini icon for my office for a while. And you know, sale! And free shipping!

But seriously, the Hang-It-All sort of epitomizes what I appreciate so much about the work of Charles and Ray Eames—how they translated their innovations in furniture design to something as trivial as a coat rack. To create the steel frame, the Eameses used the same techniques for welding wires that they developed for their wire-base tables and wire chairs.

The Hang-It-All was originally one of several pieces of furniture and toys the Eameses created just for kids, and was designed in 1953. It has more than a dozen hooks topped off with maple balls in two sizes and nine glossy colors, making it as functional as it is good looking. After being discontinued in 1961, the Hang-It-All was reintroduced in 1994, and has been keeping kids and adults delightfully organized ever since. I’m looking forward to using it to properly display—and yes, organize—my collection of handbags, scarves and other accessories.

Images: Herman Miller

New Caribbean Design  is not just a product line but a concept. This company, which I stumbeled across at the ICFF in New York a few weeks ago, is innovative and colorful and has products that inspire.  I love companies that are brave enough to utilize bright colors in a professional way.

Their tag line is: “LOVE, FREEDOM, FLOW”, which I think is ingenious.  These poetic lines describe the unity behind the concept of this design group.  They support artisans in the Caribbean Islands and pool the products together to sell under the company name.  Craft, tradition and contemporary design is their aim.

*If you are interested in more of their wonderful products, go to their website and click on press kit.

Nature, nature, nature… the most popular theme in design today.  Many of the products seen on the market now are a reflection of years of concentrated work by young artists of our time.  These delicate lights made of  bone china are inspired by the aloe plant. Created by New Zealand born Jeremy Cole , each lamp illuminates and decorates in a fantastical way.

Placed in an interior in groups of two or more, Jeremy Cole’s lights conjure up  a world all their own.  They speak for themselves, so here’s a few more to get you going. 

Can you Canoe?  Well now you can!  This store, located in Portland, Oregon has a beautiful website that features their world wide product collection.   Their clean taste suggest the finest from an array of different categories.  I think I see a trend here…

So many designers are taking the minimalistic road these days.  You can see form the photos below that this is another “Scandinavian” inspired collection to the likes of “Ikea”, “Muji”, “MOMA” etc.

The constant theme that I see which is holding this line together is the ever popular “plywood’ used as a viable material in product design today.  Plywood is pretty nasty in it’s raw form, but when it is taken to a higher level it becomes the cream de la cream.  Remember the Eameschair?  Ray and Charles Eames were pioneers in the plywood arena.  Their first success story was this well known chair.

Click here  for more on chairs from Tchochkes.

Last week was Earth Day and it reminded me about the need for a ceiling fan in my living room. I already have one in several other rooms in the house.

Ceiling fans are a very energy efficient way to cool your home. They work by increasing air movement and helping your body lose heat. Installing fans can also drastically reduce your air conditioning costs, since they consume approximately half as much electricity as air conditioners. Turning your fan on and your air conditioner down a few degrees will result in an overall cost savings.

So if you live in a hot climate and don’t own one you should ask yourself why.Unfortunately this is not a picture of my living room.

But with all the designs and options available today its difficult to choose one that adds to your room decor, matches nicely with the materials, design elements and colours.

An inexpensive ceiling fan can run as little as $40. A moderate price fan will set you back about $100 to $200, but you can also spend over a $1,000 without really trying too hard!

The process can be daunting. Here are some tips:

Select the size – Ceiling fans come in sizes from 29 to 54 inches, with 52-inches being the most common. To determine the appropriate size for your room, you’ll need to know the square footage of your room.

Select the features: Many fans come with a variety of options to choose from:

Lighting: might be beneficial if you don’t have a sufficient light source in the room. But be aware that some open fixtures may cause a strobe affect when the fan is in motion.

Blades: that can be reversed for a dark/light wood look variation, various colours and themes. The number of blades doesn’t affect performance significantly, except that larger blades will increase air circulation. The fans can also be on a lower speed and therefore quieter.

Downrods: needed for high or sloped ceilings.

For safety reasons, the fan blades must be a minimum of 7′ above the floor and the tips of the blades must be at least 18″ from the wall to provide sufficient clearance for the blades.

From my own experience ceiling fans need a significant clearance above and around them in order to feel any air flow.

Controls: hand held remotes or wall mounted face plates that control speed and light. Alternatively you can just use the pull chains.

Here is the outstanding uni-blade called the Enigma (I wonder why?) by Fanimation:

Unstable for my liking besides setting you back $1K!

The double blade fan called Involution appears to spiral inward as well as out:

You can view it in motion on the Fanimation site.

The triple blade Torto’s standard 52″ sweep claims it pushes air at an angle.

Definitely an innovative concept.

The Westwind Classic Red is strong splash of colour.

I wouldn’t want it on my ceiling, but there are certainly spaces that it would suit.

Then of course there are those that go over the top:

When all is said and done the idea is to get a cool breeze.

Photos courtesy: Fanimation, Casablanca, Craftmade and Hunter

Coat Trees by Usona

I found  the link to Usona while thumbing through a favorite shelter magazine and was pleasantly surprised to find some whimsical, colorful and useful ideas on their website.  I love to see a company utilize brights in their line up of designer home furnishings and accessories.  More often than not home product is blurred by the beige brigade.  I can see integrating the coat trees shown above in a group but I am pretty sure I would get upset if someone actually hung a coat on one of them. 

Etched Glass Vases

These vases paint a pretty picture with their finely etched swirls.  I can feel their weight just by looking at this photo.  The white is my favorite, but I am sure that the black is a best seller.  Actually, I’ll take all three!

Take your choice from the colors of the rainbow, there’s one for every mood.  These simple but colorful metal chairs would be great indoors or out.

Diamonds are a girls best friend, how about this mirror to reflect on this thought?  The color choices for the glass bowls below is just perfect.  Now that’s my favorite blue.  This site is definately worth a click or two.  

Viento Chairs by The Chair Factory

I just love the name of this website, it makes me think of the Walt Disney movie “Anastasia” when Micky cuts a magical broom in half and it can’t stop reproducing itself.  thechairfactory.com offers chair after wonderful chair to choose from.  We all know that “You can’t survive on chair alone”, so the site also has many other colorful furniture categories.  The bright plastic theme is emerging throughout the furniture world as a fresh Spring trend. 

Tatami Chair   

Aside from the plastic line the Chair Factory has upholstered chairs.  I like the style of the ”Juve” chair shown below.  It’s traditional yet edgy, this chair can be set into many design schemes.

Here’s an armless version of the Juve chair in cream. 

Here’s one for the road.  The “Euroma” chair caught my eye as a great addition to the great outdoors.  Any way you slice it, the chair is one of the most important design elements when it comes to taking a load off.

Last weekend, while en route to a concert, my husband and I stopped at the Apple Store in Memphis to check out the just-released iPad (totally awesome, by the way) and pick up some accessories, namely, new cases for our iPhones. Which for me is easier said than done, because for the past year-and-a-half that I’ve had this phone, I’ve yet to find a case that I actually like, let alone love. Therefore, my phone has been naked, until we discovered some really cool cases by Uncommon.

Made from shatterproof polycarbonate, Uncommon’s capsule-style design is tight-fitting and stylish, with a twin-shot dark matter bezel (whatever that is) that keeps the screen safe without covering it up. Which is one of my biggest complaints about so many iPhone covers: that awful plastic screen cover that inevitably ends up with air bubbles that will never go away, no matter how hard you try! But I love the way this case protects the phone completely, and doesn’t add much bulk to the iPhone’s streamlined design.

But my favorite part about the Uncommon cases are the endless artwork possibilities. Not only can you choose from dozens of pre-made designs, you can also create your own artwork for a completely customized case. The husband chose the Grid case (above) featuring a graffiti design by legendary artist MQ. I picked Hybrid Design’s Oma+Olaf Owl, with its bright-blue background and simply adorable black-and-white owl design.

At the moment, only cases for 3G and 3GS iPhones are available, but you can sign up on the Web site to be notified when the upcoming cases for the iPad, iPod Touch and Blackberry become available.