Areaware Desk Accessory Set Giveaway

The Style Page is sponsoring a giveaway with AllModern.com, an online vendor of modern furniture and home accessories.

For this giveaway, I've selected this beautiful desk accessory set from Areaware:

This desk set consists of a letter opener, tape dispenser, stapler, and a pen and letter holder. It was created by Indonesian designer Singgih Kartono, who returned to his home village to teach carpentry skills. He follows sustainable practices, in which trees are planted to replace those used in production. The desk set is made of naturally harvested mahogany and sonokeling wood.

Several bloggers have said that ContestMachine has been acting up lately. If you find you can't enter via ContestMachine, fire an email to me at thestylepage [at] yahoo.com or enter your name and email via comments.

All Modern has a fantastic selection of modern furniture and home accessories from many leading designers. Part of CSN Stores, All Modern is just one of over 260 retail sites that offer a diverse array of products from Herman Miller’s popular Aeron Chair to cookware by Rachael Ray.

Delirium and Co scented candle giveaway

What if your store sold coveted brands of candles such as Rigaud, Slatkin & Co., Voluspa, and DL & Co.? You might want to create your own brand of candles. That's what Los Angeles boutique Candle Delirium has done with its Delirium & Co line.

The Delirium & Co line features two collections: The Silver Period and The Blue Period. The Silver Period collection features light fragrances, while The Blue Period features deeper fragrances.

More Than a Pretty Face is giving away one candle in Scarlet Grapefruit from The Silver Period and one candle in Blue Absinthe from The Blue Period. Both Delirium & Co candles were introduced just this year.


Delirium & Co candle in Scarlet Grapefruit from The Silver Period collection

The Silver Period candle Scarlet Grapefruit is described as "a crisp sensual merger of ruby red grapefruit, red currants, apple, mandarin, jasmine and amber."

Delirium & Co candle in Blue Absinthe from its Blue Period collection

The Blue Period candle in Blue Absinthe is described as "an intoxicating masterful brew of Absinthe, vetyver, blonde woods, basil and rosemary."

One winner will receive the Scarlet Grapefruit candle, while another winner will receive the Blue Absinthe candle. To enter, indicate your preference: Scarlet Grapefruit or Blue Absinthe.

Think Pink

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, so expect a lot of pink-themed limited edition products, especially cosmetics.

This offering from Design With Reach is unique, as it features modern classic chair designs with pink upholstery.

The art of Jamdani weaving

I love ethnic textiles: block prints, ikat, suzanis, kalamkari - you name it, I love it.

That's why I was excited to receive this recommendation from tanjinaquazi via ThisNext for Afera Designs, a company that seeks to keep alive the art of weaving Jamdani. According to Chandana Banerjee of colouroftherain.blogspot.com, "The method of weaving resembles tapestry work in which small shuttles of coloured, gold or silver threads, are passed through the weft [yarns that are run horizontally in a loom]." Jamdani is practiced near Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.

A Jamdani weaver at work

Decorative arts such as Jamdani are at risk of dying out, as the weavers cannot support themselves by practicing their traditional art. Many go to work in the garment factories that churn out cheap clothing for export. Fortunately, companies such as Afera Designs are dedicated to keeping decorative arts alive and creating new markets for them.

Tips for handling postal mail

Despite my past articles on organization, I still was drowning in clutter. For nearly 14 years, my husband has been ragging me about clutter (in our home, the gender roles have been switched: he's the neat freak, I'm the messy one).

These tips might seem self-evident, but handling mail as it comes in prevents clutter:

* Throw away junk mail, but remove mailing labels with personal information and shred or tear up the labels before you toss junk mail in the trash.

* If you have online bill pay, schedule payments for bills as they arrive in the mail. Once you've paid the bill, stamp it as "PAID" and note the date paid.

* Throw away previous issues of any magazine to which you subscribe as the new one arrives, unless you are sure that you will go back and look at the old issues.

When I subscribed to Real Simple, I held onto the issues, as the matte pages and covers were too nice to throw out; also, I thought that I'd go back to older issues for any tips and other advice. Once I realized that I didn't go back to those previous issues, I threw out my collection of Real Simple. Now I'm holding onto issues of Domino. I don't always follow my own advice.

* The same principle applies to mail order catalogues. Too often, the content from one issue to another is the same; it's just been reorganized. When you receive the latest issue, throw out the previous issue.

In a subsequent article, I'll provide tips that I've found helpful on organizing paper files.

Eco-friendy housecleaning tips

When something gets overhyped, I tend to tune it out. So it is with Earth Day.

Nonetheless, here are some personal tips from Rachel Lane of Barcelona Bath & Body (via her email list) on eco-friendly housecleaning that are worth passing on:

~ Sweet Orange Essential Oil is an awesome adhesive remover. My husband gave it the ultimate test recently by using it on a soft cloth to remove the residue from all the dealership stickers he'd taken off his new car. Passed with flying colors!

~ Hydrogen peroxide in a spray bottle has taken the place of bleach sprays for kitchen surfaces. I even clean my cutting boards with it before running them through the dishwasher.

~ Vinegar is my glass, surface and faucet cleaner of choice. It works well in the dishwasher additive reservoir to leave your glasses sparkling. It also makes a great tile floor cleaner that leaves no sticky residue behind to attract dirt. My husband hates the smell, so I just finish up with a spritz of Room Refresh!

~ Baking soda and salt take the place of scouring powder. For example, if there's still discoloration on my cutting board after I use hydrogen peroxide on it, I use baking soda and salt to scour out any remaining residue food may have left behind. Then I put it in the dishwasher and give it a final spritz of hydrogen peroxide.

~ Water in a spray bottle and a soft rag have taken the place of aerosol dusting sprays and dusting wipes. Let's face it. Dry dusting doesn't work! But spritzing a soft rag with a little water works well and is safe to breathe.

Bonus tip~~Conventional wisdom tells us to sort laundry first by color, then by soil level. Washing heavily soiled items with lightly soiled items causes unwanted soil transfer. I save my rags for a separate load from my regular laundry. When my husband comes in from mowing the yard, I take the dirty yardwork laundry and toss it in the wash with my rags to make a fuller load. This would also work great for sports uniforms or work uniforms if you happen to have those in your household.

I like Bon Ami scouring powder, as it's not chlorinated. Vinegar and salt is also great for removing tarnish from pots and pans, but you need "elbow grease."

Finds from World Market

I love shopping World Market. It's what Pier 1 used to be, long before Pier 1 began aping Pottery Barn. I especially enjoy browsing the cookware, fashion accessories, and food departments: Katjes Yoghurt Gum candy from Germany is my current favorite!

I picked up the smaller of these two vases on my last visit to World Market:



It's ceramic and features the geometric designs characteristic of the Shipibo tribe of Peru. Most examples of Shipibo design feature an off-white background with the designs in black. Some are done on backgrounds of saffron or henna shades. This green is unusual, and beautiful.

On a previous visit, I bought the rectangular sushi plate, below. Instead of using it on the tabletop, I use it to contain my necklaces and bracelets. It's made in Japan, but the colors and design make me think of mehndi.



Do you get the idea that I like ethnic design motifs?

Olive Branch Menorah by Michael Aram

I discovered this beautiful piece at Carter & Spence, a gift shop in Warrenton, Virginia. I thought that the olive branch sculpture would be a great centerpiece for our dining table. Moreover, it would extend the Mediterranean theme we created by the display of all the pottery my husband and I bought in Greece.

Then I flipped over the sculpture and saw the holes for candles. Only then did I realize that it was a menorah, proving that you don't have to celebrate Chanukah to enjoy this piece.

Happy Chanukah to all our readers who celebrate the holiday!

The Style Page interview with celebrity makeup artist Matin - Part 3

In the third and final part of this interview, Matin discusses becoming Neutrogena Cosmetics' makeup artist, makeup tips, and his hobbies.

10. Tell me about Neutrogena approaching you to be its makeup artist. Are you also providing creative direction through developing new products and color palettes?

I met some Neutrogena people at a dinner party and we talked shop. Next thing I know, I got a call from them me asking me if I was interested in working with them. It was important for Neutrogena to have a make-up artist who not only understands how to apply cosmetics, but also the science behind them. Because of my science background, it was a perfect fit. I am providing direction on shades, textures and I test drive all the upcoming color products prior to production.
11. Can you share with our readers any advance information about new products from Neutrogena?

As always, Neutrogena will be launching products that are innovative while being both beautiful and beneficial.

12.Women want to know how to apply makeup and look beautiful, so this is probably the part that will interest readers the most:

a. For me (and probably many other women), shading the crease is probably the trickiest part of makeup application. It’s important to me, as I have deep-set eyes. What do you recommend in terms of eye shadow shades, choice of brushes, and application?

If you have deep set eyes, you do not want to “shade” the crease. This will make your eyes look even more deep set. Instead, try a wash of neutral beige (skin color) all over the eyes, then go with a taupe or caramel color and use it lightly on the brow bone to make the brow bone recede. Best is to use a fluffy small eye shadow brush (like laura mercier’s eye color brush) made of sable hair for the wash all over, and a smoother brush (like laura mercier crease brush) made of squirrl hair on the brow bone and under the brow to get a very sheer application of the powder eye shadow.

b. How best to apply foundation? By dotting the cheeks, “stippling,” or other means? Fingertips, sponge, or brush? If you use a sponge, do you moisten it or use it dry?

Use a dampened sponge with oil free foundation. Put the foundation in your palm and press the sponge (egg shape is the best) in to the palm of the hand to absorb the foundation. You should not see the foundation on top of the sponge. Then apply by patting the sponge and moving it quickly starting with flat areas of the face (cheeks) and neck and use very little if at all around the eyes and sides of the nose, smile lines and laugh lines.

For moisturizing, still one can use a damp sponge, or a brush or even fingers

13.Are you planning to write a book on makeup application?

Not yet. I don’t have any new concept for a book on make-up, but a book I will write, just not on make up ;-)

14.Your biography states that you enjoy “practicing Calligraphy, studying Islamic and Gothic architecture and shopping for exotic ethnic textiles.” I like textiles, too – especially block-printed textiles from India (see my blog posting Block-printed textiles, http://thestylepage.blogspot.com/2006/08/block-printed-textiles.html) and suzanis from Central Asia. However, I can’t find the bold suzanis online that I see in Domino. What textiles are capturing your attention now?

Well, I have always had a soft spot for suzani and chain stitching. I now have a foundation in Afghanistan called Afghan Hands Inc. (www.afghanhands.org) which is mainly a literacy program but it also employs the women (war widows) to do embroidery. We do bold patterns in wearable scarves and shawls using suzani and chain stitching and using the old traditional flowers on the fabrics but with a more modern color scheme.

Red shawl from Afghan Hands

Postscript: Matin was recognized as one of CNN Heroes for his role as a community crusader in starting Afghan Hands. He is currently on travel in Afghanistan and posts to the afghanhands blog.

A fabulous resource on home design too good to keep to myself

I was watching Sheila Bridges: Designer Living on the Fine Living TV Network yesterday, which had a feature on Pintura Studio, a design firm that designs and hand cuts stencils that are then used to hand print fabric and wallpaper. As Pintura Studio uses a lot of (Asian) Indian motifs, and I love these motifs (see my post on Block-printed textiles), I wanted to find Pintura Studio's web address. I Google'd on Pintura Studio, and found this resource: HomePortfolio.

Although I had just discovered HomePortfolio, many others had discovered it before: there are nearly 1200 saves of its home page in My Web from Yahoo!

HomePortfolio is a fabulous resource for everything to decorate your home. It presents offerings from many vendors and enables you to create your own online portfolio of items for the home. That's why I'm making special notice of this site through The Style Page blog.

Links for Pintura Studio and HomePortfolio may be found on My Web (tag: home).

PS Despite recent pictures of Sheila Bridges with a bald head, I am assured that she is in good health.

Erin Go Bragh

Wow! Talk about serendipity!

I discovered this bed set from Luxury Lab Linens today via roxi on This Next, the day before St. Pat's.

Check out the claddagh rings on the shams! (via roxi)

Goth candlesticks for Halloween

The end of this month is Halloween, and here are two candesticks with a great goth vibe for Halloween:


Klein Reid Black Bisque Candlestick - the "candle" may be replaced by one of your own.


dl & co. 'claw' porcelain candle holder by douglas little

Intentional irony

How's this for intentional irony? This chair, made of recycled paperboard, features the famous photograph of a nude Christine Keeler straddling a chair. Christine Keeler was the call girl whose brief affair with UK Secretary of State for War John Profumo (while she also slept with a Soviet spy) led to the collapse of the goverment of PM Harold Macmillian in the 1960s.

For more information about this famous photograph, visit Wikipedia. This picture has been much imitated: see the picture of the Spice Girls (one phenomenon of the 1990s that many would like to forget) on Wikipedia. Also, Joanne Whalley recreated this image when she played Keeler in Scandal (1989). More recently, Sharon Stone copied the pose for her flopperoo Basic Instinct II:

Treehugger used other styles to illustrate its post Flat-Pack for the Flat. Apparently, the irony was lost on them.

MoCo Loco: Doily laser-cut acrylic table

From MoCo Loco, the Doily table of laser-cut acrylic by David Eveleigh and Melissa Evans.

Laser-cut acrylic table by David Eveleigh and Melissa Evans

View other creative re-imaginings of traditional objects in acrylic such as the Louis Ghost Chair by Philippe Starck for Kartell and the Ghost Candelabra by Jon Russell for Innermost.

Free shipping from drugstore.com

Free Shipping on orders of $25.00 or more! New Customers Only. (Ends 4-30-06) from drugstore.com

This is a great opportunity to try Vital Radiance and L'Oreal HIP among other products (drugstore.com also offers an extensive selection of eco-friendly housecleaning products) and have your order delivered directly to your door.

How to organize bills and receipts

Now that the holidays are behind us, we've been jolted back to reality credit card bills for holiday shopping coming due. Before too long, we'll be getting tax forms from the IRS and state revenue departments. It's a good time to think about organizing bills and receipts.


The best advice that I've found for organizing bills and receipts came from the book Confessions of an Organized Homemaker by Deniece Schofield. Ms. Schofield recommends getting twelve file folders, one for each month of the year, and putting receipts and bills for a given month in the proper folder.

This system has served me well for many years. I've extended this idea to set up four hanging file folders, one for each quarter of the year:

Quarter 1: January-February-March
Quarter 2: April-May-June
Quarter 3: July-August-September
Quarter 4: October-November-December

I use a different color file folder for each quarter: for example, the three file folders for Quarter 1 might be red, while those for Quarter 2 are blue, those for Quarter 3 are yellow, and those for Quarter 4 are maroon.

For 2006, however, I've discovered something new: the File-it Calendar from Avalanche Publishing. Each calendar page is actually a file folder pocket in which you can store your receipts and bills. Each pocker has a fold-over tab closure to keep contents secure space on the back to record contents.

Once I've received the monthly bank or credit card statement, I check the receipts against the statement and shred those receipts that I won't need anymore. To prevent identity theft, I also shred mailing labels from catalogues and magazines that I'm going to pitch. I recommmend that everyone have a heavy-duty paper shredder.

At the end of the year, the folders can be moved to a twelve-pocket accordion folder.

Cars and Stripes

I am instantly drawn to stripes, and this article CARS AND STRIPES from Design Within Reach's DWR Design Notes tries to verbalize the appeal and significance of stripes.

The author writes, "Once you take notice, you realize that stripes are ubiquitous in the environment. My earliest recollections of stripes come from childhood, and they're all joyful: funny socks, Dr. Seuss hats, summer beach towels and surf mats."

Perhaps that explains why I'm drawn to multi-colored stripes, as on pajamas. They are so cheerful.

The author continues, "If you doubt that they carry meaning and cultural significance, consider flags generally and the flag proposed for the European Union in 2001 by Rem Koolhaas; it was an attempt to combine the spirit of many nations through stripes."

How could this author cite the hyperkinetic proposed EU flag (which wasn't adopted; instead, the EU adopted a more sober flag with a circle of gold stars on a dark blue background) and ignore the Stars and Stripes? Out of snobbery?

New for home: Kookoon, Asian-inspired furniture, and home furnishings for youth

Kookoon makes silk-filled comforters and silk bed linens. Other products include silk gowns and robes, eye masks, slippers, and even lip balms made with silk proteins.

The Style Page has its eye on Asian-inspired furniture. Furniture brands that have caught my eye are Gump's, the San Francisco-based home furnishings store and Wisteria, which imports Asian furniture, home accessories, and antiques. You may purchase furniture and home accessories directly from the web sites for Wisteria and Gump's (you may also shop Gump's via amazon.com).

Modernseed is both a web site and print catalogue offering contemporary furniture, clothing, and other products for kids. However, offerings such as the Modu-licious and Chicago case good collections from the Minneapolis-based design Blu Dot appeal to adults as well.

Pottery Barn's PB Teen also offers products that appeal to adults. The Style Page uses PB Teen's locker storage bins to stash magazines and catalogues and even file folders!

HOUSEKEEPING

Categories: Home, Housekeeping

I just completed an update of the HOUSEKEEPING page. I discovered that this page had not been updated in several months. This page provides links to many house cleaning brands that are environmentally safe and non-toxic (solid waste from empty containers continues to be a problem, however). Formerly, one could only find these products at health food stores; now, one can find them at supermarkets and other mass-market retailers. Target is marketing products from Method Home. Williams-Sonoma has a line branded under its name, but read the find print, and you'll see that the products come from Caldrea. Restoration Hardware is also marketing a line of environmentally safe and non-toxic cleaning products. Direct sales company The Pampered Chef sells environmentally safe and non-toxic cleaning products through its sales consultants.

The Style Page has tried Method laundry detergent, Method liquid hand soap, ecover lau

ndry powder, Tsunami Wave laundry capsules, and Caldrea dishwashing liquid, and can recommend them all. Our household relied on ecover for laundry as my husband and I were being treated for dermatitis. Those who follow this blog should know by now that I'm a sucker for great packaging, and the packaging for Method liquid hand soap is really cool!

The Style Page is not a granola-munching, Birkenstock-wearing purist: the Housekeeping page also provides links to products from 3M and Proctor & Gamble. If you cannot justify paying a premium for natural cleaners, simply use less of your current products: for example, try halving the amount of laundry or dishwashing detergent you use per load and see if the results are about the same. You know by now that wash-rinse-repeat is merely a marketing gimmick to get you to buy shampoo more often; now simply use less detergent for dishes and laundry.