My weird little space down the bottom of my stairs

I'm not finished ... but this is the strange little space which is part entry hall/part useless area in my new old house. We only ever pass across it or turn to climb the stairs. With no money to spend I pasted up some old book pages and moved in some vintage furniture from other rooms. It definitely needs more finessing but you can hear me whine about it discuss it over on Jo's Page. Maybe when I go back to work and earn some money in the next few weeks I can make it a bit more presentable. At least that's an incentive to go back to work ;)

A little piece of heaven - Cottekill Church and House

Potter Ayumi Horie lives in a very special place. Well at least for now she does. I'll let her explain, "Ten years ago, I bought this village church and simultaneously renovated and lived in the space for three years. I'm now selling the church, house and studio located in the Hudson Valley, two hours from NYC. We've ... had studio sales and annual craft sales in the church, so it's perfect for artists and musicians."

"I'm sharing it with you in the hopes that you might share my project with other designers/future DIYers.  I'd love to spread the word about the sale of the church, too, in an effort to find just the right buyer...ideally, someone who will continue to use the space to create art and support the growing arts community."

Oh Ayumi! How could you tear yourself away from such a beautifully gentle home. If only I lived in your neck of the woods ... and lovely woods they seem. If you want to be part of this lovely old church's history you can find out more here.

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Small space ideas

My brother-in-law Dave sent me a link to a really cool office warehouse makeover in Brazil. It's the office of a sports marketing company and they asked architect Simone Tasca to work some magic. Some very clever ideas were introduced that are awesome for folks dealing with small spaces. First, there is the lounge room, with seating made up of painted pallets (and on the wall to hang the TV).

Then there's the dining room with an expandable dining table created by 2 tables of almost the same size on casters where one has it's legs cut slightly shorter so it can roll under the other. LOVE THAT!

This bathroom is adorable. A whole bunch of mirrors for visual interest, a concrete slab (?) counter made to fit in an awkward corner and a pail for a sink. Industrial chic! (Love that wall-mount faucet!)

Photos: Alexandre Dotta

Latest project from Errez Design

Ruben D Gutierrez of Errez Design sent us photos of one of his latest projects. Jo and I are fans of his work (previous posts here and here) and were excited to see what he had taken on lately. This time it's a modern beach house with a bit of a Hollywood Regency vibe. The colours and patterns are so fun and eye-catching. What a cool pad for parties!

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Design Bureau

Design Bureau Magazine, published in Chicago by ALARM Press, is just a little different from your usual design magazine. They don't so much focus on one specific niche of design as many other 'design' publications tend to do,  but rather they cover design as a whole including a wide range of topics such as architecture, interior design, fashion, product design, graphic design, and more. Their mission statement sums it up best.

"Design Bureau delivers an honest and inspirational global dialogue on design from diverse disciplines and points of view. It gathers people like you—creative professionals, style arbiters and industry leaders—and connects you with a like-minded community of design enthusiasts across the world with one common idea: discovering great design and the people who make it happen."

The bi-monthly magazine available through subscription here. (I concentrated mainly on interiors while I was selecting images to use. Can you blame me? I'm into room porn!)

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