CasaSugar

Inspired: The Darwin Centre at the Natural History Museum

CasaSugar — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 05:30:18 -0700

The Darwin Centre at the Natural History Museum in London is a new $78 million scientific research and collections facility that opens to the public on Sept. 15, 2009. In this photo, a projection of butterflies shows on the hand of an employee. Besides the butterfly projection, the museum also houses a collection of 17 million insect and three million plant specimens. Inspired by the butterfly projection, I decided to see what other fluttery creatures the home lepidopterologist might love to add to her house.
For an absolutely magical addition to your garden, consider this Neiman Marcus Butterfly Bench ($2,500). Made of steel with a galvanized zinc and epoxy finish, it will stand up to the elements, as well as any little girls that are eager to climb aboard this fanciful, fluttering bench.

Check out my other favorite butterfly finds below!

Guess What These Butterflies Are Made From?

CasaSugar — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 15:00:00 -0700

Artist Paul Villinski makes this stunning butterfly art from things he finds crushed on the streets of New York City, items found in most households, that we all regularly recycle. Can you guess what they are?

Steal of the Day: Mixko Delight Belle Light

CasaSugar — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 14:00:53 -0700

I don't know what it is about butterflies lately, but they've had my heart all aflutter. The cutout butterflies on the Mixko Delight Belle Light ($49, reduced from $83) are quite dainty and appeal to the side of me that secretly loves pink, unicorns, and party dresses. And I love how the light just seems to peek through its skirted edge. I also don't think I've ever seen a felt lamp shade before . . . people seem to use whatever they can get their hands on these days (kitchen canisters, Tupperware, vellum). No, I don't think my husband would be a fan of this Lepidopteran light, but it would be quite cute in a girl's bedroom or a feminine powder room.

Desire/Acquire: Butterfly Chandelier

CasaSugar — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 06:15:29 -0800

I've oohed and ahed about this gorgeous chandelier in the past, but that's no reason to not sigh over its beauty one more time. The Bodo Sperlein Niagra Chandelier ($45,000) features porcelain butterflies lit up by fiber optics. It is, indeed, an object of immense beauty. However, since I wouldn't pay over 45K for a car (unless it's an electric Tesla Roadster), I'm probably not going to drop major bank on a single chandelier.

Luckily, there's a much, much more affordable option that shares the butterfly motif. To see where to get it, read more.

The Pottery Barn Kids Butterfly Chandelier ($79) is a fraction of the cost of the Niagra Chandelier, and that cost is reflected in the materials: The butterflies are constructed from heavyweight paper. However, I think that with the right accessories, and placed in a corner where it won't be touched or jostled too much, this kid-marketed butterfly chandelier could shine in a feminine home.

Love It or Hate It? The Vitra Virus

CasaSugar — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 15:00:00 -0800

Artist Pieke Bergmans has created a collection called the Vitra Virus, which disrupts iconic pieces of wooden furniture from the Vitra Home Collection by blowing hot and fluent crystal onto the furniture so the wood itself burns and the crystal and furniture melt together. As a result, the crystal becomes a pedestal for the crystal object or "the crystal object sits on the furniture like a parasite, a virus."Above, he's tampered with the Sori Yanagi Butterfly Stool ($645-$860), an award-winning midcentury design, but other subjects include works by Charles and Ray Eames, Jasper Morrison, Jean Prouvé, and more. Are you a fan of this work of art, or do you think he's just messing with a good thing?

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Nine Nice and New Things From Urban Outfitters

CasaSugar — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 12:00:46 -0700

Urban Outfitters may be the go-to fashion and décor shop for high school and college kids, but the retailer's inventory is looking a little more grown-up these days. For instance, the Carnival Slipper Chair ($325) cues in on the ikat trend in a sophisticated, Pottery Barn-like palette. Like this ripe find? Then, read more.

The butterfly chair has always been a favorite of youngsters, but the Leather Butterfly Chair Cover and Frame ($248) leather update makes it much more mature.

The Medallion Cut Lantern ($12) has a chic Moroccan vibe that would light up any indoor or outdoor space.

Here's a few more:

View 6 Photos ›

Found It! Rees Roberts Bedroom Stool

CasaSugar — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 05:30:28 -0700

This photo, from the portfolio of Rees Roberts, would've been a great example of a masculine bedroom. My eyes immediately honed in on the handsome, minimalist stool in the center of the photo. Curious as to where you can get it? Then read more.

It's the Butterfly Stool, by Sori Yanagi ($645). This beautiful, minimalist design is made of plywood molding construction and won the gold medal at the Milan Triennial in 1957.

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Link Time!

CasaSugar — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 13:00:35 -0800

Porcelain goes punk.- 2Modern
Lifelike crocheted butterflies are a sweet ode to our fluttering friends.- Shelterrific
Meet another master carpenter.- Charles & Hudson
Tour a moody Aussie mancave.-AT:LA
Learn to make beaded flowers.- Craftzine
Check out an entirely papered space.- Desire to Inspire
Visit a Parisian home entirely engulfed in ferns.- Inhabitat

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Link Time!

CasaSugar — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 13:00:00 -0800

Beat the Winter blues by fashioning a technicolor felt butterfly mobile. - Craft
10 easy steps toward DIY valentines. - Simply Stated
A home studio space full of creativity and warmth. - Decor8
Who knew cut white paper artwork could be so breathtaking? - Desire to Inspire
Jewelry designer Megan Auman launches a chic home collection. - Poppytalk
Top 10 ways to recycle your old towels and sheets. - Re:Nest
Haunting photographs of 100 abandoned homes. - Charles and Hudson

Crave Worthy: Bodo Sperlein Niagra Chandelier

CasaSugar — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 15:00:24 -0700

From a young age, like many little girls, I fawned over butterflies, scribbling them everywhere in crayon. In fact, I even wrote this poem in kindergarten:

Butterflies are pretty things
Floating lightly with their wings
Higher, higher in the sky
Oh how I love the butterflies.

Nowadays my adoration of the insect is fleeting, and I actually find them rather lame when reproduced (thanks Mariah Carey). But, when a product like the Bodo Sperlein Niagra Chandelier for Lladró ($45,000) sails my way, I resort to that childhood fascination. The design pays tribute to Lladró's love for nature, taking the magic of the forest and its ethereal creatures and turning them into contemporary fixtures for the home. If this chandelier doesn't have you penning poems, what really does?
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Black Florafauna Vinyl Shower Curtain - $19.99	Butterflies Set of Four Coasters by Fringe - $55.00
Butterfly Rug - $3,300.00	Uttermost Farfalla Table Lamp - $405.00
Delight Shade by Innermost - $90.00	Waiting-In-The-Wings Hook - $24.00
Audrey Drape - $79.00	Assouline Botanicals - $50.00
Diamantini Domeniconi - butterfly clock by diamantini & domeniconi - $253.00	Hybrid-Home Butterfly Geometry Limited Edition Print - $40.00
Nature's Wonders 5-Piece Snack Table Set - $149.99	Warhol, Butterflies 1955 Poster - $79.00
Plush Living - Nook Butterfly Silk Pillow - $64.00	Christopher Marley Xantha Duo - $400.00
Christopher Marley Butterflies - $325.00	Antique Butterfly Trunk - $475.00