I’m completely in love with A Stacking Hommage, the final project of one Dirk Winkel, recent graduate in Industrial Design from University of the Arts, Berlin, which he describes as “three classics of design history, redesigned as a low-price, stackable plastic chair.” (Barcelona version shown.) F-ing brilliant. Now will someone please manufacture it?
Garden Design
Vancouver Garden Show highlights
While my participation in the disembowelment of a display garden was certainly memorable, I scored more than just discount perennials at the Vancouver Garden Show. I was very pleased to discover that, although some of the feature gardens kind of sucked (it’s no Chelsea, that’s for sure), the “urban deck showcase” had some really great […]
Paris, Part Two
I guess it’s not all that surprising that a Parisian arts and culture centre with a giant golden flowerpot at its main entrance would lead me to discover a modern garden pot company. Teracrea was at the Pompidou Centre as a temporary exhibit at the Printemps Design studio. I wasn’t allowed to take photos in […]
Paris, Part One
I’m home. We had a wonderful time in France, and already miss it. Well, parts of it. Miss: the fresh, fresh, gorgeously-decadent food; the mind-blowing wines for under $10; the accessibility of great art, architecture and design; my sister. Don’t miss: the smoking; the humidity; how easy it is to overindulge. Now it’s time to […]
Rainy day gardens
After my brother-in-law shared these gorgeous photos, taken this past (rainy) weekend, I started thinking about designing for the rain. Rain is such a given here on the West Coast (especially during winter months) that designing your garden with the rain in mind is such an obvious (and necessary) thing. If you don’t think about […]
Green driveways
I’m working on designing a French Country-style front garden for a client, and a large part of it is taken up by the driveway. Right now, the whole yard is dominated by concrete – driveway, walkways, steps. It’s too much! Anyway, I was thinking of using some sort of permeable pavement or gravel/grass country-lane type […]
Looking for love. Loveseats, that is.
I’m looking for an outdoor loveseat for my third-floor balcony. I know, I know. Sounds suspiciously like I’m wanting to create an “outdoor room,” right? And they have been so overdone and overexposed lately. “What’s next,” you’re asking, “the behemoth barbecue, the outdoor shower?” Well, no, just the loveseat. And maybe an ottoman. And a […]
Reader garden featuring Cotoneaster bullatus
I got the most wonderful e-mail from a reader in Victoria the other day. (Victoria is southeast of Vancouver, across the Straight of Georgia. I think that when gardeners die they go to Victoria; it’s a very mild Zone 9, and a lovely city to garden and live in.) Anyway. Pat wrote in response to […]