Today's Treasures

Happy Wednesday! Halfway through the week, and im fully charged in the inspiration and motivation department. Yesterday was a day of browsing around in a few of my favourite shops on Granville, as I convinced myself I was 'running errands' (hey- someone's gotta do it).
I've got a few finds to share and spread the mid-week love.

I discovered these Pantone mugs at Moulé, and naturally, I wanted them all.

Also on my Wednesday wish list (because who doesn't have a new wish list everyday)

'Be done with all the rest' print (Chapters)

This book and journal from Chapters

Floating Shelves (EQ3)

Cork Coasters (EQ3)

Roscoe Rug (EQ3)

BLOOMINGVILLE 2014 NEW WINTER AUTUMN 2014 CATALOGUE

Dear Bloomingville,
please I beg of you - come to North America.
Love from,
Your not-so-secret admirer.

Since Bloomingville released their new 2014 winter autumn collection, i've been reconsidering my entire autumn wishlist - bloomingville, bloomingville, bloomingville. If you've never heard of them before, prepare for a real game changer. They never cease to amaze me.

I wanted to share these beautifully styled and composed photos of the collection. I admire every single piece in this collection, it's safe to say that I would buy everything pictured in this catalogue if I could! At the least I will be getting my hands on a few of their new vases (and lamps..and shelves..). The geometric shapes and mix of materials are irresistible and plus, get a load of this cool and comfy color palette.

Please, do yourself a solid and check it out for yourself.

TOP PICKS H&M AUTUMN 2014 HOME LINE

See full autumn collection here

BARB'S PASTA

Sun dried Tomato, Basil + Olive Linguine

This pasta is loaded with tangy, slightly salty bite from the sun dried tomatoes and olives, and is pulled together with the fruity olive oil, hint of garlic, and sprinkle of parmesan. Every time I think of this dish there is no question that I am making it for dinner that night.

Being the flavour fanatic that I am, I often go for bold tastes and flavours and enjoy mixing them together - anybody that spends a full day with me can vouch for this one. Often times I get carried away with the lemon and my family won't go near the dishes I prepare - this only means one thing... more for me ha!
However - this dish is one I have managed to perfect, in fact it is almost impossible to go wrong.
It is quick + simple to prepare and a go-to for impressing any guest. I originally got the idea from a family friend who followed a recipe in the White Water Cookbook (which is by the way, one of the best collections), naturally, when I made it I didn't follow the recipe at all and created something of my own.   It's an incredibly flavourful summer favourite as it can be used as a main or a side dish, and served hot or maybe even cold as a pasta salad.

Alter + adapt each of these ingredients to your liking, this is one of those dishes I never typically measure as it depends on what I have on hand/what flavours stand out to me that day. The measurements below are basically irrelevant.

Ingredients - based on 4 servings:

Pasta -
375g pasta of your choosing
 *I usually go with a whole wheat or spinach linguine of sorts - use appropriate amount for number of guests

Sauce-
1/4 cup olive oil (more or less depending on amount of pasta, this is the base to the sauce)
Juice from 1 lemon
Handful of fresh basil
1/3 cup sundried tomatos
1/3 cup black kalamata olives
1/3 cup artichoke hearts
1-2 tbsp minced garlic
Ground pepper to taste
Himilayan salt to taste (one dash if any - this depends on how salty your olives are)


Topping-
6-8 Cherry Tomatoes cut in half
1/4 cup freshly grated parmasean
Ground pepper to taste

Top with Fresh ground pepper and grated parmesean

Instructions:
Gather all ingredients, prepare as appropriate.
Boil water for pasta, and follow pasta directions according to direction.
At the same time you waiting for water to boil to cook pasta, heat up olive oil in medium frying pan on low-medium heat.
Add garlic, sun dried tomatoes, olives, artichoke hearts and basil. Squeeze lemon into pan, add salt + pepper to taste.
Reduce heat and let simmer until the pasta is el dente. The longer you manage to simmer the sauce, the more your flavours will develop.
Drain pasta well, and put into pan with sauce.
Stir around pasta on low heat until pasta is coated.

Dish out pasta + top with parmesan cheese, ground pepper + fresh cherry tomatoes.
Serve + enjoy + repeat!

LIMITED PERCEPTION CLOCK

 I seemed to do quite the clock series during my second year of industrial design, starting with this one.

The 'Limited Perception Clock' is a play on the analog time teller. I tried to manipulate the two different arms on a clock face so that they would be two very different entities working together to tell the time, while relying on the user to fill in the gap. I ran into a lot of functionality issues with weight and balance on the clock motor - but in the end, my final prototype worked like a charm.

This is definitely a project I want to develop further and fine tune in the future.

Here is a peak into the process along with the end result. 

Funny, how things work.
How to read the time:
1 - Note that the notch at the top of the wood is noon or midnight (12:00am/pm)
2 - The small aluminium square marks the minutes. The notch in this one is called the 'indicator' - in order to read the minutes you will look where this notch is pointed in relation to the wood back board. In the following picture it is about 12:05
3 - The glass laser etched/cut plate indicate the hour. Follow the notch straight down until your eye meets a number marked (or assumed) on the glass plate.
4 - The seconds hand spins as per on a normal clock.

As the metal indicator turns on the minute, the glass plate moves relatively on the hour.
Titled the 'Limited Perception' clock as time is not easily read- but perceived. This is where it gets into the conceptual side of the design so I'll leave it at that.

2:05

CHAIR AND CHEETOH

  

A little throwback to last summer when I was refinishing pieces like a mad woman.  I took this simple black wooden chair and painted and distressed it et voila. My cat insisted on being part of this photoshoot - a handsome fella he is that one. Looking at these photos sure makes me miss being back home in the Okanagan with the endless orchards and unlimited project space. My creative impulses sure have taken a hit since living in the city where square footage has equal value to gold. Let me tell you - furniture design and 500sq. apartment don't mix. Fortunately, I have just moved into a new place that's a little more forgiving -- although nothing will compare to my parent's backyard and spare bedroom (aka my studio) back home.