CasaSugar

Roundup: Back to School Style

CasaSugar — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 11:00:00 -0700

Even though we're still in August, thoughts are inevitably returning to September and the start of the school year. Even if you aren't returning to school this Fall (and you don't have any little ones that are, either), you can still get the look at home with these cool finds. I love this Antique School Desk ($1,650). Originally from Belgium, this solid-wood desk features a flip-up top. I think it would look great in an entry or an office. See my other picks when you read more.

Before and After: Real Simple Meets P.S. 346

CasaSugar — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 05:00:44 -0700

The folks over at Real Simple (70 of them, to be exact) recently took part in New York Cares Day, and volunteered at the P.S. 346 elementary school in Brooklyn. In just five hours, they assembled 37 pieces of new Ikea furniture and applied their design expertise to an uninspired multi-purpose room. At the end of the day, the room had been transformed into a stimulating space that looks contemplated and composed. To see the after photo, read more.

Be sure to head over to Simply Stated to hear more about the project and see another photo. Wanna read about more deserving design makeovers? Be sure to check out this slideshow, post, and interview with Vern Yip about his facelift of two Bay Area community centers.
Source

Back to Old School: Timeless School Supplies

CasaSugar — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 10:00:56 -0700

I may be focused on household tools during Home Schooling month, but that doesn't mean I've forgotten my old-school roots. I've rounded up the ultimate in classic school supplies to get you back into study mode this month. You may have already gotten your college diploma, but I'm sure you'll appreciate the retro good looks of my scholarly finds. These items are yet another way to ensure that your home office is as stylish as you are! Check out this slideshow to learn the basics! Source

View Slideshow ›

Etsy Finds: Art to Get You Into the School Spirit

CasaSugar — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 09:00:57 -0700

Even though I'm far removed from my elementary and high school years, I still feel nostalgic every September, when my thoughts turn to big yellow school buses and swing-filled playgrounds. I'm betting that many of you feel nostalgic as well, especially if your little one is in elementary school this Fall. To get you into the school spirit, I've rounded up some great art that will have you singing your ABCs and reciting your multiplication tables.

View Slideshow ›

Home Library: Majestic Metropolitan Living

CasaSugar — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 10:00:10 -0800

Just a week after the fold of Metropolitan Home, I've got my hands on another city-centric design volume: Sue Hostetler's new book Majestic Metropolitan Living: Visionary Homes in the Heart of Cities. The shelter and design editor for magazines like Gotham, Hamptons, and LA Confidential, and the host of Plum Homes With Sue Hostetler on Plum TV (which "targets the most active, influential, and educated audience in the world"), Hostetler has tapped her cronies for tours of their unique and luxe urban dwellings.

The American dream of retiring to the pool and tennis courts in your countryside home is squashed by this book, which showcases a range of sprawling, real-life city homes. Each has an original sense of style, a warmth that defies traditional conceptions of "cold urban modernism," spectacular views, and in several cases, an outdoor space complete with a pool or lush garden. Many of the homes were created, not surprisingly, by converting former warehouses or other nonresidential buildings, or combining apartments.

Continue reading . . .

This Just In: Sundance's Architecture School Premieres Tonight

CasaSugar — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 16:00:56 -0700

Tonight at 8 p.m. (CDT), the Sundance channel will premiere an original six-part documentary series, Architecture School, which follows a group of students from Tulane University's prestigious School of Architecture as they compete for the chance to design an affordable home in Katrina-devastated New Orleans. The winning model will be built during the school year and put on the market, giving one recent grad one whopping résume bullet point at the start of his career. Stiff competition! The home will be built as part of Tulane University's URBANbuild program, which was founded in 2005 to restore urban neighborhoods as a response to the storm. Executive Producer Michael Selditch was so inspired by Tulane University's URBANbuild program that he designed and built the show specifically around the 3-year-old program. Tune in tonight to see for yourself!
Source

Roundup: Pencils Ready . . . Go!

CasaSugar — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 05:30:27 -0700

Whether you're returning to school or not this Fall, it always pays to have pencil and paper near at hand. Who knows when you might be struck by a flash of genius? I know that I always keep a notebook in my bag to jot down ideas about home decorating, a post for CasaSugar, or the plot for the great American novel. Whatever your writing habits may be, you can start your day's notes in style by carrying this To Do List Notebook ($6.50) from Brookline Street Studio. Inspired by the artist's collection of vintage, 1940s Dick-and-Jane flashcards, the covers are letterpress-printed with an antique, treadle-operated press using soy inks and 100 percent recycled cardstock.

For more of my favorite pencils and notebooks, read more.

Cool Idea: Lockers as Wine Storage

CasaSugar — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 12:00:23 -0700

I recently made a stop by the Roshambo Winery tasting room in Sonoma and noticed a peculiar thing. Keeping with the winery's offbeat aesthetic, a gang of vintage school lockers had been used as vino storage to create a retro, industrial feel. As it turns out, the lockers are the ideal depth to house a stack of wine bottles. Better yet, each shelf and locker allows for compartmentalization, so you can keep your sauv blanc separate from your cabernet. And if you'd like to keep the good stuff safe from the kids, you can always use a lock and key. Try salvage shops and 1st Dibs for vintage lockers. Or stop by your local school and see if they've got any to spare.

Ask Casa: Post-Grad Style

CasaSugar — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 08:00:56 -0700

Hi Casa!
I'm 22 and I just started my first job out of college. Unfortunately, I still live with my parents. But I figure that if I have to do so then I might as well have a room I enjoy coming back to after a long day of work. I've been wanting to redecorate my room for a while now. However, I don't have a lot of money to spend on new furniture or décor. Most of my furniture is mismatched, and I've had it all since college. Do you have any tips on how I can update my room on the cheap and make it a place that I enjoy spending time?
Thanks! - Kerry

To hear my suggestions for Kerry, read more.

Hi Kerry,

Congrats! I don't think you're alone in this query. Luckily, there are a few easy and affordable things you can do to perk up your bedroom. The idea is to give your room polish and a distinct style, separate from how your parents may have decorated.

First of all, shed everything! If you'd moved into your new apartment, you wouldn't bring everything you've owned since grade school that's still sitting in your parents' house. So, go through it all and recycle, donate, or toss won't you don't want or need. This will give your room a more grownup, less cluttered feel.
Next, create symmetry. The easiest way to do this is to use matching nightstands or bedside table lamps. You can find very chic, affordable lamps at places like Target and HomeGoods. A nightstand can be just a simple side table.
Get a headboard. A headboard will instantly give your room a focal point, and curb any mismatched feel your other furniture gives off. If you can't afford a headboard, try any one of these 10 cool alternatives to off-the-shelf headboards.
Paint your mismatched furniture in one color - glossy white always works - to give the space cohesion.
Create a designated sitting area for reading, having your morning coffee, or making phone calls, etc., with a chair, small accent rug, and small side table. Then you won't feel trapped on your bed or hanging with your parents.
Paint your walls. Color is an easy and cheap fix for any room!
Give your bed a grownup makeover with white bedding, and add color and pattern with throw pillows or a bedskirt.
Find cheap artwork at flea markets, garage sales, or student art sales, or create your own.
Make the space cozy with a rug.
Go "shopping" in other rooms in your home. Look around your parents' home for furnishings that might facilitate the above. With an open mind, you never know what you may find.

Source

Casa Verde: Quaker Oats Fuel This School

CasaSugar — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 06:15:22 -0700

I love to see America's universities taking a lead in environmental awareness and sustainability, so I was thrilled to hear about the University of Iowa's biomass project. For the past few years, the university has worked with a local Quaker Oats plant to replace the burning of coal with the burning of oat hulls, which are a waste product from the Quaker Oats factory.

About 60 tons of discarded oat hulls from Quaker Oats are delivered daily to the UI power plant, and this organic material is burned with coal to produce energy for the school. The oat hulls fuel 15 percent of the school’s total energy, generating nearly nine million kilowatt-hours of biomass power annually. This is equal to the amount of energy needed to power 900 average American homes annually.

Thanks to the use of the oat hulls, the university has reduced its emissions by seven percent already, equalling a reduction of 70,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year and 30,000 tons of coal per year, which isn't burned. Ferman Milster, associate utility director, says that the decision to move to oat hulls was easy. “I immediately recognized that burning biomass material has a very positive environmental impact and I saw an opportunity to reduce the University’s purchased-energy costs. Plus, the money we pay for that fuel material stays in Iowa."

You can watch a video documenting the project, as well as the University of Iowa's other green measures, when you read more.

Source

Sandy Chapman Long School House Pendant - $420.00	OFFI - Skool Chair - $189.00
Barrel Stave Blackboard - $195.00	Nelson (TM) Swag Leg Desk by Herman Miller - $1,849.00
Vintage School Desks - $149.00	Gus* - School Chair - $1,050.00
Black Recycled Rubber Bulletin Boards - $29.99	Courtney Oquist Off To School - $125.00
Italian Alphabet Prints - $39.00	Aaron Foster Wall Art - License Plate Map - $129.99
X-Acto Vacuum-Mount Pencil Sharpener - $39.99	Round School House Pendant - $420.00

Le Carnet Pad - Large - $8.00	Graphite Pencil, Quill - $46.00
Ikat Journal - $20.00	Set of 12 Twig Colored Pencils - $9.99
Edition Notebook - $9.95	Barneys New York Mondrian Pencil Box- Multi - $85.00
Bleeker Notebooks - $18.00	Tidy Oriole Pencil Cup - $18.00
Rhodia Essential Box - $20.00	Colored Pencils Set Of 16 - $14.95
Graphite Pencil, Leaf - $55.00	Spotted Deer Notebook - $12.00