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SPECIAL PREVIEW

Handcrafted Modern Europe: At Home with Midcentury Designers

Readers of this blog may remember photographer Leslie Williamson's amazing reading list from 2011. I mentioned then her remarkable photo book, loaded with the home interiors of many mid-century American designers. (If you somehow still haven't heard of or seen it, look here). The book screamed for a European sequel, and Leslie has spent a good part of the last 2 years (and her own money) creating what will be an absolutely gorgeous collection of visits to the homes of designers like Alvar Aalto, Finn Jhul, Gae Aulenti, and Bruno Matthson, to name just a few (and above are Leslie's shots of bookshelves from the designers just mentioned). It will be beautiful, no doubt, but it's an important book as well, documenting the rapidly disappearing heritage sites of these influential designers. PLEASE support Leslie's Kickstarter for the completion of this book, and check her blog for details on an upcoming sneak preview slide show in San Francisco on March 7th.

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READING FURNITURE 
MULLER VAN SEVEREN

 Created as a joint project between an artist and a photographer, and drawing on inspirations ranging from the Bauhaus to Donald Judd, these minimal pieces, made rich with beautiful materials (leather, stone, lacquered steel) bring wit to luxury, and function to art. Especially thoughtful is the built in lamp, optional on much of their seating. See more here.

via the beautiful site The Milanese

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PREVIEW
ALBAM UTILITY SHELVING

I received an exciting email this morning from the gents at Albam, the impeccable UK men's shop. They've turned their well-honed style sense toward furniture in celebration of their 5th anniversary. As they say themselves, they're "not reinventing the wheel" - just "continuing on with the ethos that they carry so well in clothing and applying it to other spheres". Sticking to simple classics has served them well and modeling their new offering after a vintage favorite of UK design is a good call. Albam's beautifully refined Ladderax-like system should do well for them (Ladderax was, after all,  the single most searched-for term on my bookshelves blog), and they carry on a great tradition by making their shelving to order by skilled craftsmen in England. It's all very new (not even on their site yet), but the system can be seen at their Monmouth St. store in London, or you can write info@albamclothing.com with questions. 

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BOOKS AT HOME
ATTIC APARTMENT IN VIENNA 

About 2 years ago my friend Abby forwarded this awesome NYT shoot of the Viennese attic apartment of Ingrid and Christian Reder. It's made its way around the blogosphere since then, but I keep going back to look at this one for some reason. Could it be the ideal blend of well-worn classic furniture with well-chosen contemporary art? The thoughtful lay-out that makes a 1,700 square-foot apartment feel like comfortable home? Or could it be, just maybe, the books, lining the walls of every room in the house? It's all of the above, of course, but though my home is loaded with shelves, this place still gives me something to aspire to...

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10 PICTURES
 from Instagram

 Been having a lot of fun posting to IG lately. See the feed here.

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BOOKSHELVES


NUAGE BY CHARLOTTE PERRIAND



Cassina have recently re-released Charlotte Perriand's most iconic shelving . Known by a variety of monikers over the years, and always fetching top dollar at auctions, these units were originally designed for university dorm rooms. It's about time they became a regular offering on the furniture market. Though the legs are on this re-issue are a bit blockier than the usual front-to-back taper on Perriand's earlier units, the early 1950's design looks as good as new.

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PARIS

BARBER & OSGERBY


The "Paris" system (designed in 2008 by Barber & Osgerby for ClassiCon) is like an elegant re-thinking of the classic cinder-block-and-plank shelving found in a million college dorm rooms. They've taken the bulk out of that old standby with open rectangles of powder-coated steel and walnut or lacquered shelves. These supports also allow for more books to go where the blocks would have normally taken up so much space. Another beautiful solution from these masters of playful simplicity.

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BOOK / SHOP POP / UP

Gravel & Gold


Take a peek at our San Francisco pop-up shop here. Installed with our good friends at Gravel & Gold.
Shop open from 12/09/11 - 01/06/12.

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COMING SOON

THE SHOP


Postings around here have been pretty light since summer, but for a good reason. Besides doing a pile of summer reading (thanks everyone for your amazing lists), and bringing home a baby boy (thanks, Jess!), I've been working on a (very small) retail project. Above are a few sneak peeks at what's to come...

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DANESE

SARMIENTO


One of the vexing problems of shelving design is depth. Most cases err on the side of very deep, 11-12 inch shelves, to accommodate art books as well as small paper backs. But sometimes the art books still hang over the edge, while the rest of the books end up looking lost on the shelf, either pushed way back, or pulled to the front with 8 inches of wasted space behind them. Francisco Gomez Paz has looked ingeniously at this problem with the Sarmiento, designed for Milanese innovators Danese. The design is very shallow (under 5 inches), with the shelves angled at 20 degrees, meaning that while almost every book will exceed the shelves' depth, the angle will keep them in place.

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TOM KÜHNE

SUPERSYSTEM SHELVES


I blogged about the Supersystem elsewhere a few years back, but a recent conversation about them with a friend made me go back to Kühne's beautiful site, where he's posted better images than when I first mentioned them. A beautifully simple frame in wood or aluminum, the Supersystem also provides some inspiring thinking for the ambitious DIYer.

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SUSPENDED SHELVES

LAB


Elodie Laléous started Lab in France, using local craftsmen to produce furniture and textiles "inspired by the '50s, from Charlotte Perriand to Eames to Finn Juhl, but with a slightly rustic touch." These suspended shelves certainly show their pedigree and come in custom color combos, painted with care in well-chosen palettes from Farrow and Ball.

via Ensuite