In a recent article on CNN.com regarding COINS (Collaborative Innovation Networks, or online communities of like-minded individuals up for a good common challenge or two), noted science journalist Dr. Paul Willis asks, “Is collaboration the future of innovation?” It’s a really good article and you should read it, so I won’t go into minute detail, but the author […]

   
What does HBO’s current mini-series, John Adams, have to do with contemporary lighting? Well…both are illuminating, appeal to bright people and kindle a desire for, and an appreciation of, self-expression. And then there’s that Father of Electricity thing.
So I started wondering what it would be like if John Adams and Ben Franklin were alive today […]

 
If you’ve ever studied a traditional Japanese flower arrangement and said to yourself, “Hey, that looks easy. I think I’ll try it at home” you may find out later there was more to your project than, at first, met your eye. It’s kind of like Picasso’s simple line drawings: anyone may be able to imitate […]

I know you’re a modernista in spirit, especially when it comes to home décor, but I’m just a little bit curious about the ends you go to and the means you use to personally express yourself, and if you desire that self-expression to be consistently rolled up in one well-designed life, or if you even think […]

 
The question is, why wouldn’t you want to add some metal to your petals and do a little “hardscaping” before the season’s in full swing and you haven’t the time, nor as many choices, to pepper your patio with the pretty and the practical (not always mutually exclusive, as you shall soon see!):
             
A dining set […]

 
Some of the most redeeming physical features of Chicago’s North Shore suburban enclaves—I mean, besides expansive views of Lake Michigan, the splendiferous Ravinia Festival, wide open green spaces, network of scenic bike paths, world-class Botanic Gardens and densely wooded ravines and forest preserves—are its magnificent mid-century modern homes, or what remains of them, lodged like […]

                                                                  If you’ve driven past the relatively new storefront at 1245 Chicago Avenue in Evanston lately and wondered what it was, me, too (admittedly […]

Sure, many parts of the Midwest are still blanketed in the white stuff, but that’s only temporary, right? Right? Well, can we just pretend that that’s true? It is officially Spring, gosh darn it, after all, and not a moment too soon to start thinking of, once again, making our gardens snow—er, grow.
Seven years ago, […]

                       I shop for home accessories the way others stock up on shoes, makeup or boxed sets: to feel better. What does that mean? It completes me. And it lasts way longer than a pedicure or massage. Let’s parse that “complete me” thing for a sec (and tale anthropomorphism to […]