Yeah, I know.
I have plenty of bags.
This one doesn’t have an outside pocket for my phone (something I have decided is important.)
It doesn’t have shoulder straps (another important feature.)
There are plenty of reasons for me not to buy it, but …. it really might be the embodiment of happiness in purse form.  Don’t you think?

If [...]

We bought this vintage Waverly fabric swatch book at auction recently.  It was a true impulse buy.  I had not even seen it on preview.  But when the floor person was holding it up for bid, and flipping through some of the pages, I caught a glimpse of my childhood.
It’s funny, but if you asked [...]

Steve went to an auction down in Kingston the other night, and came home with some treasures!  He had seen this chair in the listing online, and it was the main reason he went.  It is an LC7 chair designed by Le Corbusier.  This one was originally purchased back in the ’80s, but it’s ours [...]

What exactly is it about letters, type, font that is so fascinating?  I can’t quite put my finger on it – the pull I feel towards typography. It’s not about words, although I love words.  It applies equally to characters printed on a page, painted on a sign, created out of wood or metal as [...]

Someday, I am going to learn to print on a letterpress.  It is something I have wanted to do for years.  Tucked away in my in-laws’ attic is a wonderful antique cast iron press that was used to make shipping crate labels when their homestead was a working farm.  Someday I am going to haul [...]

I know, I’m a few days late.  Story of my life.  But I am  excited to start the new year, and invite you to come along with us as we find out what 2010 has in store for the Tandem crew.  And no, the above photo is not one of my kids or anyone I [...]

Well, we made it through the Christmas hustle and bustle.  Only a few bumps and bruises to show for it, and some lovely family memories that make all the work worthwhile.  Now here we are — Dec. 26, 2009.  Tomorrow Steven, the kids and I will head south on our annual post-Christmas pilgrimage to Grandma’s [...]

Where are the true roots of modern design?  My formal art education is somewhere between lacking and non-existent, but sometimes that is a good thing.  It frees me to stumble upon my own little revelations of culture and form with joy, instead of having them covered (as I’m sure they would have been) in some [...]

Okay, I admit, I am not qualified to make that statement.  I don’t know how Hans feels about Twitter (or felt, as he passed away in 2007.)  What I really mean is, we love Hans Wegner and we love Twitter.  Let me tell you a story.
Steven found a wonderful Hans Wegner J-16 rocking chair for [...]

That’s right, the lion!  Steven and I and the boys are traveling to NYC tomorrow for a short visit.  We are looking forward to walking Greenwich Village in the pleasant fall weather, eating good pizza, and spending a couple of nights in a nice hotel (which the boys love).  But the highlight, the absolute pinnacle [...]