We're back at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair in New York to scout out the best new products and see what's happening in the world of furniture and home design. This year is proving to be very innovative, creative, and quirky! We've found some amazing new products from old favorites as well as some fantastic new companies that are just entering the design arena. Click through to see our candid shots of things that caught our eye, and be sure to let us know which ones you've fallen in love with, too!
Traditional registries are fantastic for couples that need lots of bedding and kitchen items, but what about those who prefer art to blenders? Luckily there are plenty of options out there. Click through to see our five favorite design-savvy favorites!
Have you been throwing around pillows lately? Styling out bookcases? Generally decorating like it's your job? Well, sharing is caring, so come on and show us what you're working with!
Show us all the home-design mischief you've been up to via Instagram by tagging your images #casasnap. If we see a photo we like, we'll feature it on POPSUGAR Home! Pretty sweet, right? What are you waiting for? Start #casasnap-ping right now!
May is here and with it the official beginning of outdoor entertaining season. Since ambience is almost as important as the food (ahem), we have rounded up our favorite outdoor lanterns so you can concentrate on the menu.
May is in full swing, and with it comes the official beginning of outdoor entertaining season. Since ambience is almost as important as the company, here are my top three essentials for entertaining in style.
Melamine plates
Melamine plates ($6 each) are a great option for outdoor entertaining because they are virtually unbreakable, lightweight, and dishwasher safe. Plus, have you ever tried to cut anything on a paper plate? Guaranteed fail. These resemble hand-painted Mediterranean ceramics, which make you feel like you are vacation even if you are just picnicking at the park.
Lanterns
Indoors or out, candles are a great way to add ambience to any gathering. Since candlesticks are too fragile and susceptible to wind, go for some ornate lanterns ($10-$25 for two) instead. I love these for their great shape, their range of colors, and the fact that they come in three sizes. Pair the small ones with flowers for a complete tabletop look and use the larger ones elsewhere on the patio or in the yard. Rock the casbah!
Glasses
The trick is to find good-looking glasses that aren't glass. These come in three colors and have a great pattern on the outside that will hide the wear and tear that acrylic glasses ($7 each) always seem to undergo in the dishwasher. I also love that they are large enough for drinks that require ice.
As owner and director of contemporary art gallery Taylor de Cordoba and founder of an eponymous linen line, Heather Taylor has made it her business to be surrounded by beauty. Art is just one of her myriad inspirations, though. Her popular blog, LA in Bloom, chronicles the rest: cozy lifestyle finds, seasonal recipes, her talented group of lady friends, and her home state of California. We caught up with her long enough to find out the 10 things she's loving most right now!
I am always drawn to the boxes of old photos at my local flea market, but after stockpiling them over the years, I have to admit that I have no idea of what to do with them. Luckily, a company called Project B does, and the results are fantastic.
The team behind Project B seeks out anonymous vintage photos and makes them available in museum-quality, limited-edition prints — essentially rescuing bits of history and bringing them back to life.
The photos are strong on their own, but since they are already curated in albums such as Inside Hollywood and Americana, it's easy to buy prints that work well together. With prices starting at $95, you are going to be tempted to stock up on a little bit of history.
The intersection between healthy eating and good design has traditionally been a pretty lonely place. Tatyana Daniels Beldock, a former health care venture capitalist, set out to change that when she launched a line of plates under the name Slim & Sage. The concept is simple: since research suggests that 90 percent of weight loss is achieved simply by eating less, Tatyana worked with experts at Stanford and Harvard to come up with a plate that takes the guesswork out of portion control. Even if these plates didn't help reduce caloric intake by 59 percent(!), we would still love them — we don't think it's a coincidence that they resemble Hermès's famous Balcon du Guadalquivir pattern.
The bold geometric patterns on the plate hide the built-in grid for recommended portions: one quarter is for protein, one quarter is for whole grains, and one half is for vegetables. Made from porcelain, the plates are nice enough for company but discreet enough that guests will never guess the motive behind the pattern. We stole a minute of Tatyana's time to find out more.
POPSUGAR: What did you find when you researched why America has such a tendency to overeat?
Tatyana Daniels Beldock: Our plates have gotten out of hand. Plate sizes have been rising in the US over the last 50 years: the average plate in the 1960s was nine inches. Today it is 12! (Slim & Sage plates are 9 inches.) France, ever the throwback, measures in at just 10 inches. You may think all this expanding china has had little effect on your eating habits, but think again: a study in the journal Appetite found that people clean their plates an astonishing 91 percent of the time, no matter how much food is offered, even if they are no longer hungry. Also portions are larger in restaurants, fast-food joints, and prepackaged foods in grocery stories.
PS: That's an alarming statistic — 91 percent of the time, even if they are no longer hungry? Why do you think that it is? Some sort of primal throwback? Habit left over from our parents telling us to clean our plates?
TDB: Yes! Can you believe it? People clean their plates an astonishing 91 percent of the time, no matter how much food is offered and even if they are no longer hungry. I believe it's because we have been conditioned since childhood to clean our plates. The National Institutes of Health recommend replacing larger plates with smaller plates as a good way to combat this and trick people into eating less. "People eat what's put in front of them," they say.
PS: I think that we are all guilty of that! Why isn't this science more widely used and applied? It seems like a very straightforward, smart concept.
TDB: Often some of the best ideas make you think, "Wow — why haven't I seen this before?" I am not sure why it hasn't been done before, though. There was a study done at Google where they introduced smaller plates at their cafeterias and their employees lost an average of 10-15 pounds without even really trying.
PS: That makes it sound painless. I know that takeout is a great excuse for people to abandon portion control. When you order takeout, do you make a point to eat it on Slim & Sage plates?
TDB: Yes, absolutely.
PS: Right now the price point is about $25 per plate — do you have plans for rolling out a lower price point option? How about bowls?
TDB: Custom plates for spas and resorts are in the pipeline, and we are considering a lower price and children's line in the future.
PS: Great, we will keep on the lookout! Meanwhile, we just learned that Slim & Sage was picked up by Neiman Marcus. Congratulations!
The 41st annual Kips Bay Decorator Show House opened recently on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Not only is the house brimming over with amazing rooms and inspiring decorating ideas, but it also supports a good cause — all proceeds go to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. Since 1973, designers have been transforming a different Manhattan luxury residence with art, innovative design, beautiful furniture, and design ideas into the Kips Bay Decorator Show House, and this year is a stunner. Keep clicking to take a tour of the home, and then buy your tickets to visit Kips Bay between now and June 4!
Have you been throwing around pillows lately? Fixing some florals? Generally styling like it's your job? Well, sharing is caring, so come on and show us what you're working with!
Show us all the home-design mischief you've been up to via Instagram by tagging your images #casasnap. If we see a photo we like, we'll feature it on PopSugar Home! Pretty sweet, right? What are you waiting for? Start #casasnap-ping right now!
We love a good collaboration, and our newest favorite is a line of dish towels (yes, dish towels!) between San Francisco Bay Area-based artist/illustrator Lisa Congdon and ultracool Downtown LA-based shop/gallery Poketo.
The 100 percent linen towels ($20 each) are covered with handprinted pyramid geometrics and herringbones in a range of colors that feel a lot like Summer. And while we would be perfectly happy with these towels just cheering up our kitchen, they would also be fantastic as place mats, eco-friendly gift wrapping, or as hostess gifts. What I'm saying is, get ready to buy them in multiples.
