according to clothing designer alice ritter, her aesthetic is "french romantic meets annie hall." i can't think of a better way to describe her fall/winter 2010 collection, from opaque tights and updated menswear to striped boatnecks and classic chucks.
kim høltermand, a architectural photographer from værløse, denmark, captures water so still that the rocks in his photo series tuve, taken at lake tuvesjöen, near hornsborg, sweden, look as though they are floating in space, their reflection is almost invisible.
It’s just another day in Detroit on just another street. People trickle in and out of front doors on what was once a tightly packed row of houses. Today, some are occupied, while others are empty shells or vacant lots. Having lost over half of its population in the last 60 years, Detroit has an overabundance of empty houses, office buildings, theaters, and hotels. Starting in 2010, demolition crews began tearing down 3,000 buildings that the city had deemed dangerous. An estimated 10,000 buildings are scheduled to be razed over the next few years. By clearing out structures that cannot be saved, the city is hoping to erase years of neglect and abandonment, and give Detroit a chance for rebirth.
In an attempt to beautify areas of demolition, Michigan residents are starting to take action. Occupying 6 vacant lots on Oakland Street in Detroit’s North End neighborhood are 6 raised beds filled with rich black compost and nearly 8,000 flower bulbs. These new gardens are the vision and implementation of Bloom Town Detroit, a grassroots organization whose mission is to bring hope and beauty back to the community.
Soil preparation and planting for the project began this September and by spring these once desolate spots will be filled with crocuses and tulips in shades of purple, from lavender to deep violate. As the seasons change, so will the flowers. Once the spring plants die back, Bloom Town will replenish the gardens with a new color series of monochromatic annuals and perennials.
“I am deeply interested in the history of gardens (both stylistically and politically), the history of Detroit, and the potential of gardens to change the way we see and/or occupy the world,” said Ellen Donnelly, Bloom Town Founder and Director, who started thinking about transforming vacant lots in Detroit into monochromatic gardens shortly after her first visit to the city five years ago.
Bloom Town’s gardens are designed to mark and map once existing structures, and to show this, the blooms will outline and fill the walls and windows of conceptual homes.
“The layout of the gardens emerged from the initial concept of planting a garden within the foundation walls of a house. Dealing with budget constraints, I quickly learned that given my resources I would be unable to excavate and plant six gardens,” said Donnelly. “Instead, I decided that I would conceptually build a house of flowers by articulating the first floor plan of a house [which is] based on the memory of a house that I was once in, in Detroit. This memory-house does not lament the past, but seeks to engage its inhabitants in alternative domestic landscapes.”
Bloom Town hopes that the gardens will build an awareness and a presence in the urban fabric and increase the flow of movement through and around Oakland Street with those interested in seeing the project. The gardens are intended to be sanctuaries of calm, and places of gathering and activity, bringing life and color to the area.
“Overall, I think we have received a positive response from the community. At first, many of the local residents thought we were planting vegetable gardens and were disappointed to learn that our gardens would only yield swaths of color in the form of flowers, but over time, I think the idea of flower gardens has been more accepted to the point where people are looking forward to watching the flowers emerge and the chromatic transition of the gardens.”
Over the weekend, I volunteered with Bloom Town on the corner of Oakland and Marston. Neighbors came to see what all of the digging was about. A few picked up a shovel or planted a bulb, excited to get a little dirty and eager to help bring life back to their community. Starting this March, more volunteers will be needed on a weekly basis for spring cleaning on the sites, weeding, watering the flowers, and preparing for the next round of planting. Individuals interesting in helping or looking for more information on the project should visit www.bloomtowndetroit.org.
(photos by: erin)
ryan and emerson, the couple behind the design label emersonmade, left new york city in 2008 and moved into a farmhouse in a seaside town in new hampshire. the move let them focus on what was once emerson’s 1-woman business, and help it grown into a full-scale operation. known for beautiful handmade fabric flowers, emersonmade launched a brand-spanking-new clothing line in august, with beautiful pieces that are a little preppy and a little sexy.
in the 1980s, james r. murphy began teaching students at la guardia public high school mathematics and problem solving by creating string figures through a sequence of complex steps. one of the students, robin moore, photographed each student's achievement as a visual record, standing tall and proud behind decaying hallways and tiled bathroom walls.
this morning, i couldn't have been more excited to see my little town hit the big time when it was showcased in design*sponge's city guide. read more about how charming ann arbor is here.
no two stones are a like in jewelry label billy bride’s crystal rings. the beautiful pieces above, by designer renee warne, showcase champagne aura, clear quartz, titanium aura, and rainbow fluorite in a wearable structure made by hand from indigene australian materials.
vancouver-based artist, holger kalberg, focuses on form while exploring the boarder between imagery and idea in his geometric-abstract paintings.
first came jeggings. . . now ceggings? i have to admit, i want a pair, even if they are glorified cord sweatpants. the questions is, which one, madewell or anthropologie? luckily my sister is asking the same question and has already tried on both of these beauties—she dose not live in a shop-challenged city like me. her verdict, the madewell pair seem too thin, but the anthropologie pair, although thicker, have a faux zip fly. this doesn’t make the decision any easier.
my husband is currently taking a course on "space, time, and spacetime" at the university. it's making me feel the need to brush up on my geometry. maybe having these educational plates on the wall would help.
i just got back from a warm fall weekend at timber bluff near saugatuck with 3 lovely ladies. we spent most of our time in the kitchen talking, cooking, drinking, and madlibing, or at the beach curled up reading. on saturday, we went to crane’s orchard and cider mill in fennville to pick a few apples and try their pie and donuts before heading back to build a fire by the water and watch the sunset. a vacation with friends was just what i needed!
(photos by: erin, aruna, liz, + the-arse)
this weekend i’m heading to lake michigan to spend a few days with some friends. we’re planning on cider mills, wineries, bike rides, and beach fires. i’m counting the hours until we’re on the road.
(photo by: hellopoe)
geometric prints, cut-outs, and woven detailing are found throughout the fall 2010 collection of danish clothing line, nümph. the label is the collaboration of seven women that have teamed together through fashion and graphic design and marketing to create nearly 100 styles every season.
sweet recycled leather coin purses and pouches made from a variety of rescued colored scrap leather from ora, designed and created by randi obenauer in vancouver, bc.
sheets of plastic cascade over the tops of trees in this image found in photographer noemie goudal’s collection, les amants. the waterfall is just one installation in a series of constructed stories and small episodes recreated from different individual’s memories and goudal’s own imagination.
the list of things i've had my eye on this fall seems to be endless, here are just a few: (1) electric blue + black dress, (2) 3-pocket blazer, (3) english saddle biker boots, (4) grey jacquard tights, (5) single rope knot necklace, (6) black slouchy shoulder bag, (7) red slouchy mohair hat, (8) mochuco print cosmetic bag, (9) je t'aime pouch, (10) field notes journals, (11) americana quilt print
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