the new york times

If you're trying to have a baby, you may have heard that after enduring a miscarriage, your body is more fertile. Unfortunately, according to a recent article in The New York Times this is just a rumor. While it's true that your progesterone levels (the hormone that helps with pregnancy) are elevated, there's no evidence to support the notion that it can help you conceive any faster. What's more important is that you get back to your regular menstrual cycle, because as soon as you're ovulating again, you can try to get pregnant.

Miscarriages aren't the most pleasant topic, but it's important to know that they're actually fairly common, occurring in 30 to 50 percent of pregnancies. The reason we think they're uncommon is because most miscarriages occur early on, so early in fact that the woman doesn't even realize she's had one. The good news is that when a woman does get pregnant again, she only has a 2.25 percent chance of miscarrying again. The odds of a third miscarriage are less than one percent.

Keep in mind that starting a family can take some time. As the article notes:

Another study in The New England Journal of Medicine followed a large sample of healthy women seeking to conceive and found that of those who miscarried, 95 percent became pregnant within two years.

So if a little one is on your mind, try to be patient and have fun making it happen.

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The New York Times article "Thinking Like a Student" takes a look at the thrifty, creative home-design moves college students, particularly architecture students, are making during these difficult economic times to make their homes a better place, aesthetically and functionally.

Along with the article is a wonderful slideshow showcasing many of these "on the cheap" tricks. One of my favorites was a set of candle holders fashioned from recycled light bulbs by Lauren Chapman, a student at Yale School of Architecture. By now we've hopefully all made the switch to CFLs, but that doesn't mean we should just toss those standard old bulbs in the trash.

To find out more about this project, read more

T magazine's Design Fall 2008 issue is now online! Among other things, the issue takes a look at provocative new design trends, profiles British editor turned designer Ilse Crawford, tours the design scene in Philly, visits Mario Bellini's Milan palazzo, looks at some inventive coat trees and umbrella stands, and sneaks a peek at a monochromatic loft and an Upstate New York steel-framed guest house. The cover, shown here, which features a chest of drawers that slide in opposite directions, is an allusion to the different directions design is taking today.
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I'm always keeping an eye out for unexpected centerpieces for your next party. This pretty alternative to flowers, which was created by New York event designer David Stark, was fashioned by first shaping wire into floral shapes. Then, biodegradable sisal twine was carefully wound around the wire forms. The unexpected effect is equal parts modern art and kindergarten craft project — definitely an effect I love. I think this would look great on tables at an Autumn wedding, and it looks so easy to make that if you were going to be DIYing your wedding, you could involve a number of friends and relatives in the process of making these.
If you're interested in seeing more of Stark's ideas for centerpieces, check out the slideshow at The New York Times.

Marilyn K. Yee for The New York Times

Clingstone, a 103-year-old mansion in Narragansett Bay, which was recently featured in the New York Times, sits on a rocky island that's barely bigger than the house. While this situation leaves very little room for a yard or garden, the ocean views make up for it, don't you think?

Eric Jacobs for The New York Times

Back in March, in an interview with German publication Die Ziet, prolific industrial designer Philippe Starck admitted to feeling "ashamed" for being "a producer of materiality," saying, "Everything I have created is absolutely unnecessary." In shock, the design world was buzzing. Would this mean retirement for the can-do-no-wrong designer? What would we blog about? Well, luckily, we haven't yet had to cross that bridge. It turns out, according to a New York Times article, despite his misgivings, Starck has been "advocating environmentalism" for some time in his personal life with his "organic diet, the solar-powered oyster farm he owns in Arcachon Bay in southwestern France, and so forth — ending with 'the least polluting plane on the market,' his private jet." And, more buzzworthy, he has designed a line of products called "Democratic Ecology," which are "relatively cheap, attractive, energy-saving products" meant to “introduce everybody to ecology.” The first is a "miniature rooftop wind turbine, priced between $780 and $1,250, which Mr. Starck said can produce up to 80 percent of a home’s energy." In the works as well is a solar panel film that covers existing windows, a prefab green house, an electric car, an eco-moped, and a solar- and hydrogen-powered boat. As to be expected, these eco products won't be a stitch "granola": Starck says, “It’s very, very important that they’re beautiful, because ecology should be a pleasure, not a punishment." Read more about the line in The New York Times's "And Now, to Try and Catch the Wind."
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The New York Times has an article and interesting slideshow showcasing the 1830 townhouse of director Roland Emmerich (10,000 BC, Independence Day) in London. When the German-born director moved into stuffy neighborhood Knightsbridge, he asked his interior designer to create a space that was “as nonfrumpy as possible,” that reflected "his predilection for art with a political edge." Especially during a national election, these days, political humor is rampant. But, most of us get our fill flipping through a copy of The Onion or turning on The Daily Show. On a tour through Emmerich's home though, you'll find Chinese propaganda posters, Mao sculptures, a desk made from the wing of a World War II plane, a life-size wax statue of Pope John Paul II reading his own obituary, and even a diorama depicting John F. Kennedy's assassination. Shown here is a bedroom decorated in traditional Brit fashion with "English rose" wallpaper and a chenille bedspread, but the designer took a light-hearted political jab by hanging a portrait of Princess Di giving the middle finger above touristy London statuettes and a pair of Princess Diana and Prince Charles dolls set in the fire place. Next to it is a bird cage shaped like the White House and a statue of Arnold Schwarzenegger inspired by Rodin's "The Thinker." I wouldn't feel at home in this space, but I'm wildly entertained. Are you impressed? Disgusted? Apathetic?
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