Great Design - a triple giveaway

I felt it would be wonderful to start the new season with a great giveaway! I had the chance to review the Smithsonian's GREAT DESIGN book, written by Philip Wilkinson and published by the British DK publishing house.
Wilkinson takes the reader through an awe inspiring and thoroughly collection of the world's best design. 

here

I am quoting from the front flap since I could not sum it up any better:

"The book is an extraordinary photographic tour of more then 100 of the world's greatest designs. From the Red Blue chair to the Ekco Bakelite radio, the Vespa scooter to the Verdana typeface, the book tells the story of this modern art form from its birth during the industrial revolution to its high - profile status today. It explains the unique blend of aesthetics and engineering involved in the designing of a product that is both completely fit for purpose and unrivaled in appearance.

GREAT DESIGN takes you on a personal guided tour of each artifact, highlighting the main features and elements. By deciphering key points of style, it helps you to understand what design is and how it works."

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I had felt  almost a little wary of yet another design book, but to my great surprise I was captivated and pulled into it immediately. This book collects and displays a wide range of designs, from patterns to pitchers and cars to clocks, all in the most pleasing and easy to understand way.
A book, as well designed as its context. 

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GREAT DESIGN captures not only the world's most notable design of today, but gives a wonderful introduction to the development of design over the last 140 years.
One of the early designers is one we still remember well today: Michael Thonet. The German cabinet maker became famous for his revolutionary bentwood chair, still produced today. The simplicity and beauty of form and function captures all what great design entails. 

Some other examples are less known today, but well worth remembering. 

Other design objects were new to me, like the Kilta tableware by Kaj Franck (1952) or Konstantin Grcic's Miura stackable stool (2003) for the Italian design firm Plank.

But most of the objects were old acquaintances of mine, some of which I can find in my own household.... 
And of course, as always with beautiful objects, I get inspired....

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The book is categorized by decades rather then similar items or grouped by materials. This is a great feature since the time period brings many different design objects together and the reader gets a feeling for the trends in design in general and in particular. Design in all periods had far reaching impacts. Clearly, there are many more examples of great design and the author had to restrict himself, I missed a few things, like Ingo Maurer's light fixtures or any of the Mercedes automobiles or some Liberty of London fabrics.... but this is just me. I am fully aware of the difficulties to pull out just the most important objects in design over such a long period. And, like all books,  dedicated to time sensitive materials, it will need a new edition in the future....
The book is equally perfect for the design novice or the connoisseur, students of design and homeowners with a distinguished taste, in short, it's a great treat for all interested
in great design. 


The Smithsonian Institution was established in 1846 and is today the world's largest museum and research complex.
It includes 19 museums and galleries as well as the National Zoological Park.
The total number of artifacts, works of art, and specimens in the Smithsonian's collections is estimated at 137 million, much of which is contained in the National Museum of Natural History, which holds more then 126 million specimens and objects. The Smithsonian is a renowned research center, dedicated to public education, national service and scholarship in the arts, sciences and
history. 

The Smithsonian's Cooper Hewitt, national Design Museum is the only museum in the nation, devoted exclusively to historic and contemporary design. Many of the objects in this book can be found in the museum's collection.
And befitting a museum dedicated to great design, it is housed in the landmark Andrew Carnegie Mansion on Fifth Avenue in New York City. Only a few steps away from the Guggenheim and the Metropolitan, it is a delightful place to visit.

The book will be available in September 2013.

This giveaway is open to all residents in the United States.
Three books will be given at random to lucky readers.
If you are not already a follower, please follow this blog, leave a comment and make sure I can contact you back.

The winners will be announced in two weeks time. (09/14/2013)
The winners will get the book directly shipped from the US marketing firm responsible for the distribution of GREAT DESIGN.


Good luck, dear readers!

xoxo
Victoria





  



All images through EMG promotions.

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Forgotten pages?

Life has its twists and turns.

Mine has been packed with summer visitors, construction, day travels, writing, gardening, reading, cooking, cleaning. Doing things, you know.

The usual. I felt I would just bore you with my reflections on daily details.

There seemed too little to share other then things I have been talking about already.

And I have to admit it, I had gotten a little bored.

I took a good long break, with the risk of losing you. I know how much the blog world relies on the daily feed and responses. But the pressure was simply too much for me.

These pages have not been forgotten, but I needed the time to focus on other things.

Once school starts, I will return more often and hopefully some of you might join me again.

I have learned much over the years I have been writing. About writing itself, about design, human nature and our need to be heard. I have learned of friendships, grown and nourished through unusual pathways, some entirely virtual. What a wonderful thing.

I have learned that my thoughts can mean something to strangers, people I have not met and I might never see in my life.

It's forever a wondrous thing to write and send my words and pictures into the universe out there, where they might bounce around and find resonance. It never seizes to amaze me.

So, if you like, join me again in a little while, when the last summer days fold into autumn.

Maybe you remember, at the beginning of the year I thought of reducing and clearing out of stuff.

I have managed quite a bit, but there is still a lot more to be done. My goal is to reduce it all further. Clutter is my enemy, I love too many things, but I feel burdened down. Yet, reducing is hard.

I will share my thoughts on this and on the things which feed me. Books, ideas, new concepts of living and food, literally. As some of you might know, over more then a year now I have changed my lifestyle and studied nutrition intensively. Much has changed for me and many things I thought I could not live without have made themselves obsolete.

This new freedom has translated itself into other newly won insights: Things I can live without. Perhaps a strange concept for a design blog, but it rather makes sense to me.

I will take you with me, as I further try to clear out and bring fresh air into my closets, cupboards, bedrooms and kitchen. Will you come with me?

It interests me more and more how we live, not so much with what and how much we have. Less is certainly more in my mind and it counts what it all means. 

There will always be things in abundance: My curiosity, my hunger for knowledge, a little bit more wisdom, more peacefulness, more love, more reading, more history, more gratefulness.

More travel...if possible.

Less nonsense.

Less stress.

Less fear.

Less stuff.

Less talk, more listening.

See you soon!

All images by V.Zlotwoski

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Mother's Day

Guitar play woke me this morning and the smell of freshly brewed coffee. There were beautiful tulips blooming on the breakfast table and my lovely mother-in-law and I share this day together, which is rare and I appreciate it the more for it. There were phone calls and hand written notes, hugs and kisses...
Being a mom has taught me so many things:
To love without conditions, to take myself back and let my children lead, to trust, that my work as a mother has done something, which has bloomed, just like these tulips have grown seemingly without help from the soil.

This is how I feel:  It's my job as a mother, to give my children the support they need to face the world, a world, which feel so much more demanding and challenging then when I grew up. It's a world, which surprises me and sometimes scares me too, a future which seems more uncertain and  often feels frail, yet full of adventures for them to discover and to conquer.

It's the love I give, which is the fertilizer to make them grow, make them believe in themselves, which makes all the difference. 

Life is uncertain and as I grow older, I realize how much the strong, loving bond means between parents and their children, something I only begun to see, when I had my own. 
My childhood was overshadowed by events, which unfortunately altered my relationship with my parents permanently, yet I still feel connected and miss them in my life...This is irreplaceable and I am so aware of the importance of being there for my children, despite huge distances, continents away, despite different opinions about the choices they make and to know that they are strong and smart and capable, and being young and inexperienced is not a handicap, but a wonderful chance. The power of youth is to dream and hope, I see myself as their biggest fan.....

My guidance, the teaching is often half hidden, yet my life and my own dreams are what helps my children live their own life. We teach by example and I strife to be an example they can look at sometimes and feel inspired, but mostly deeply loved! And I learn from them as much as I hope they take from me....

As long as I shall live my children will have a harbor with me, a safe place to land, a hand to support and an open heart, a cheerleader and a dream catcher, a base and a jumping board!




Happy Mother's Day...




Image by V.Zlotkowski

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The holidays this year at home

The holidays are close, our oldest is soon coming to visit, we have begun to decorate the house as proof to ourselves, that we keep up the spirits even now, especially in honor of our beloved dog, who always enjoyed family gatherings and the living room, which had been "his" domain....

He presided over all, on top of the large ottoman. We now  have re-arranged the room a little, to give us all a chance to come to terms with his absence.

Traditionally we always have the tree at the spot, where usually his crate stands and this year the tree will replace it and then we will find something new in that space. 
For now, we have a small memorial on top of his crate. 
We will set up the tree on the third Advent weekend with our children.

There is nothing we can do about it and I feel it's better to change things rather quickly.
Thank goodness for the sunshine outside, it helps me in particular to keep my mood up and trying to enjoy the days ahead. 

Pine cones, a cicada shell and a seed pod share a display at the window in the dining room. 
The Buddha sits on top of the piano and watches calmly over all proceedings.

We have picked greenery and branches and have put them in large and small vases, I love simple arrangements, without to much fuss and easy to change, once needles start falling.

We have our small collection of smoking men and the Pyramid, things we've had for as long as I can think at Christmas time.

There are wreaths hanging on the bay windows, greeting neighbors, friends and us, when coming here. Small candles sit in every window, glowing warmly at night. The wreath at the door lites up at night as well, I love the festive glow, which I can see, when I drive up at night!

I decorated the small evergreen on our front porch with dried seed pods, hydrangeas, ivy and grasses.

I am sure, you all out there have your own wonderful traditions and I would love to hear from you, which are dearest to your hearts!
Enjoy these days, slow down, if you can, and just remember it is not all about shopping. Gather your memories, your loved ones, hold them close and share lots of laughter!

xoxo

All images by V.Zlotkowski

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Late late late autumn

{via}

As much as everywhere the next holidays are pushed, I am not quite ready for this... Traditional we are decking the halls not before the first Advent Sunday, which gives me still about 8 days without preparing for Christmas. 
I want to stretch these days, hold on to the late, late, late autumn days. 

Still making the few in between days after Thanksgiving count. I do love the early Christmas time, but also waiting until up to the moment. 

It seems allover to arrive a little earlier each year. Often I joke why not to keep the stuff up around all year, why bother? A little earlier to  shop a little longer, so I guess. It annoys me to see, how commercial reasons push us in the fast lanes. I refuse as usual and manage to overlook the early Christmas craze.

Of course I am thinking of the holidays long before these days, sometimes in summer and make my lists for the children, or my husband and friends....
But deep inside and at home I wait, wait for the first truly icy days, when I see the frozen garden holding still in the blue light of a late afternoon in early December, when chickadees and bluebirds begin to show up in my backyard for the morsels I lay out for them on the deck.

When on mornings around four the fox slowly makes his way through our garden and neighbor's cats look unsuccessful for chipmunks, now safely buried deep in their small cozy dens.

Then I feel the moment is right to pick evergreens to fill buckets and wreaths to hang on the doors and windows, to find the smoking man and stockings, more candles then at other times and to listen to Bach's cantatas or oratorios. 
Then the time is right for me to get ready for the next holidays...
Maybe it's because I am getting older that I want the time less and less to fly....

Until then I work, clean, order, catch up, finish with things I feel I need to complete this year, which passes, faster and faster.
Slow down, I think.
Do you feel like me?






Images as indicated and by V.Zlotkowski

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These days

These coming days weeks are the most important of our annual rites, filled with good will, cheers, sharing friendships and wonderful foods. There will be gifts given and received, wishes granted, hearts opened a little wider. 

I wish for all of us that the spirit of this wonderful time might be carried further, longer, into the next months, during darker, colder days, when some, we often overlook, might need our help most. Once the bells of the Salvation Army have stopped ringing... And the glitter of the holidays will be packed away.

My daughter has begun to help at a soup kitchen, set up in a nearby town, she is struck by the poverty and sadness she sees so close, regardless of the wealth around us. Homeless families, with little comfort during the holidays. Lonely elderly folks, without families at all. I am proud of her, for she is doing it without rewards other then the fulfillment in her heart.

When I list the things I am so grateful for again this year, a warm cozy home, foods, I want and can afford, my family safe, these are the things I see there missing first. 
And in times, when our family too has to be economic and careful with spending, we want to share some of our resources and time, for sharing them is a wonderful way to help. I feel better about that than anonymous giving, sending money to accounts, where the money might never reach the intended. 
May we never have to experience these hardships, but may we always live in the spirit of sharing and helping.

HOLIDAYS LAST YEAR...

I am enormously grateful for what this year has brought us, me. More friendships, more love, more creativity and health, more awareness and a little more wisdom for the things I really need and the things I am happy to have and to count as luxuries. For it is important to notice them to be grateful. I am not a minimalist and I love indulging, but I also feel the need to hold on and look. Less and less I need to consume things I already have, and more and more I need things, which cannot be bought in stores. Love, companionship, my girlfriends, my children, time, health and optimism. I can add to this list and I want to share it too.

Happy Thanksgiving, a happy holiday season to you all, may the lights shine bright and the feelings of these days may be carried on in our hearts and minds through the year ahead!

May you love and be loved!

XOXO

All images by V.Zlotkowski

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Today I love

This beautiful, clean styled room.
It lets me think of the coast, water, a stormy day, clear visions, a winter day, marshmallows by the fire, a book, a board game, conversations, a weekend away....

{via}

Happy Friday!

XOXO

Image via Ashley Rachelle.com

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Friday post

Winter's night from our front door

I haven't done a casual Friday post in a while and today I feel like sharing a few pics of the week...

Through one of our bay windows...

It has been a little crazy around here, still recovering from Sandy and welcoming the first snow (storm) to our shores...Which has left by now, almost as fast as it came!

Lovely white blanket of snow!

Such times always provoke in me domesticity and the need for cooking, stocking up on pantry items and nesting.

Slow cooked baked beans, recipe here
REALLY GOOD!

Baked acorn squash too...

Reading by the fire and looking for good movies to watch.

Oscar hates having his picture taken, so I sneaked one in with my iPhone, he hasn't figured that out yet...

I am a wildly eclectic reader, I love some entertaining reading, something that makes me laugh out loud, or when I feel on top of my game, a challenge to my thinking, a nudge into the right direction to motivate my creativity... there are so many fantastic books and I am not going to be stuck in one direction or other. I sample freely, always...

I found this yesterday and one of the first sentences in one of her essays, I happen to open up in the bookstore, begun so promising, I could not leave it behind...

Wonderful to motivate the dormant artist within...

Incredible fun....

And more added fun! ....
 

Something different altogether, but more then captivating, I loved the 'Glass Castle' as well.

What's in the movies, I contemplate to see?

A must!

Equally enticing.

I read the book, so ...YES!

Another one I have read.... maybe!

Family fun....

Love many of the actors, so yes?

By now I've heard and seen so much of it, I feel like skipping it, if it wouldn't be for  Helen Hunt....

Sounds like I wouldn't mind either...

 

Perhaps a little melancholic, but I am interested.

What do you think? Is going to the movies in your near future?

Alright, this has been a mixed bag, but sometimes this is all what I can come up with...hope there is something for everyone, dear readers!

Last night view back over our yard towards the Hudson valley

Happy weekend and be good, where ever you are!


xoxo



Images: Landscapes,still life and food by V. Zlotkowski, books via B&N, movie posters via moviefone.com (Sorry for the bad quality)

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