8 Favorites: Handmade Ceramic Spoons

As a Chinese American, I grew up using ceramic spoons at meals. One of my earliest memories of feeling safe and content involved this utensil: My amah (what I called my nanny) would sit on the steps in front of her house holding my dinner as I played in the dirt, meandering back to her only when I was ready for the next spoonful. I loved the cool, smooth...

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Keeping Cool: An Architect-Designed Ice Cream Shop in Vancouver

Mister Ice Cream in Vancouver offers the latest dessert craze—ice cream made to order using liquid nitrogen. (The technique has been popular in Asia for some time, say owners Michael Lai and Tommy Choi, and in San Francisco, Smitten Ice Cream is leading the charge.) Unlike readymade ice cream, which requires stabilizers such as eggs, the nitrogen technique...

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10 Easy Pieces: Portable Air Conditioners

If you’re in the north hemisphere, now is the time of year to consider an air conditioner. If you’re in an older building or small space (or both), a portable air conditioner can be unearthed or wheeled out every summer for that extra dose of needed cooling. There aren’t many portable A/C units that are good looking, unfortunately, but we’ve rounded...

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Current Obsessions: Craft and Kinship

Above: We’re longtime admirers of Brooklyn-based ceramicist Tracie Hervy (see 14 Women Ceramicists with Cult Followings). Her work is in high demand; for stockists, go to Tracie Hervy. Mark your calendars: Field + Supply, designer Brad Ford’s beloved modern makers market held twice a year in Kingston, NY, will be going virtual with Summer MRKT, a...

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Trend Alert: Handmade Graphic Flags as Decor

In honor of Fourth of July, a roundup of handmade graphic flags for the summer interior. Above: The Now or Never Flag ($350) by Beacon, NY-based Lost & Found Flag Co., pictured in a project by Staci Pfeffer Interiors. The flag has “hand-stitched appliqué letters and shapes on an all-natural linen field and is finished with natural twill tape,...

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Paddington Pied-à-Terre: A Colorful Small-Space London Design by Beata Heuman

If you ask Beata Heuman, the problem with most rooms is that “people lack an imaginative approach.” The same could not be said of the rising star interior designer. Heuman, 37,  is based in London, where she runs her own seven-person firm—in lieu of going to design school, she trained, starting at age 21, in the bustling office of Nicky Haslam, another...

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The Sand-Free Cottage: 8 Ways to Keep the Beach at Bay

In summer nothing beats the feel of sand between your toes. Unless, of course, you happen to be inside. Sandy floors (or worse, sheets) are the bane of every beach cottage. But, as this native Cape Codder has discovered, there are ways to keep the sand at bay. Here are eight solutions to stop sand at the door. Photography by Justine Hand, except where...

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Crafts and Kinship: Broom Making, Weaving, and More at Berea College in Kentucky

Founded in 1855 by an abolitionist minister as the South’s first interracial and co-ed institution, Berea College in Berea, Kentucky, remains a model on so many fronts. For one thing, it’s an esteemed liberal arts school that is tuition free. To make that possible all students hold jobs on campus, and for more than two centuries those work-study options...

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Elegant Storage À La Carte: Long-Lasting Freestanding Pieces from Henrybuilt

We’re longtime fans of Henrybuilt, the design-driven manufacturers of flexible, sophisticated, and exquisitely hand-crafted systems for kitchen, wardrobe, and all throughout the house. (They also happen to be members of the Remodelista Architects & Designers Directory.) And now, for the first time, you can order exceptionally made à la carte pieces...

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10 Easy Pieces: Bathroom Waste Bins

Unless your bin is tucked away in a cabinet or console, the waste bin is just as visible as any fixture, texture, or accessory in the bathroom. Small but essential, a trash can be stylish too. For proof, here are our 10 favorites from open waste bins to pedal bins in steel and heavyweight plastic. Above: The Authentics Tip 7 Liter Pedal Bin is a medium...

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