A recent discovery – this husband and wife team in Green Bay who create shabby chic cottage decor. At OldNewAgain, you’ll find a large selection of wood letters, wood words, wood shelves as well as home organization wall decor from key hooks to wall vases to blackboards. I’d like these for my kitchen…I just need a little more wall space.

With such a LONG winter, I anticipate spending a lot of time outside this summer. I’ve been thinking about how to design our back yard and patio and saw these modern patio chairs on Design*Sponge. Designed by Todd Fillingham in Milwaukee, these modern patio chairs are made of solid walnut, northern white cedar and stainless steel. Each chair weights 10 pounds and both the wood and steel are rot and water resistant (though Wisconsin winters are a bit too rough on outdoor furniture to leave out year-round). I’m adding these to my wish list.

I discovered Wall & Deco on SwissMiss and now want to wallpaper every room in my house. I don’t know if I could choose between all the great options though. A few of my favorites are Svalbard and Typology.

My apologies for not posting lately. I’ve been quite busy with freelance work and family duties. ArtMail sent me this beautiful chair by Terry Boyle. Their write-up is below:

Terry Boyle creates unique pieces, utilizing a spectrum of mixed media, unified in a design moving the viewer to interact with it. Like having a seat in a chair, or running fingertips across a table. Each piece has its own character and personality-some more than others. A piece of furniture should speak for itself, through the form, material contrasts, and presence. In naming the pieces, they’re given poise, or brawn, or attitude. Now they’re more than just art, or even functional art. They have an identity.

Another sweet house spotted in Dwell. Just 20 miles southeast of Milwaukee, this stocky, cavelike 1970s bi-level was renovated by a creative young couple—Eric is a songwriter and JJ is a life coach—into a warm, modern home that embodies their core Midwestern values: simplicity, connection to nature, and strong family ties. Oh, I’m jealous. Work via Johnsen Schmaling Architects. See more here.

I just picked up Dwell’s “100 Houses We Love” special issue and was glad to see a home featured on Madeline Island. “Two Black Sheds” sits on four and a half acres of forest and meadows overlooking Lake Superior and is vacation home to Minneapolis residents Golob and Freeman. Architect David Salmela worked with the couple to achieve a house that was simple and didn’t involve a lot of work while having a space where everything worked together. Very cool. Read more about it here.

I love original canvas paintings and I love these from SuZanna Anna.

Spotted on the DWR blog: Steel. Glass. Stone. Now you can add Legos to that mix. Lego Architecture kits include everything you need build your own model of some of your favorite landmarks. We’re especially excited about their partnership with the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. Get your very own replica of Falling Water (above) or the Guggenheim, ready to be painstakingly assembled and enjoyed. The kits can be purchased in August at brickstructures.com.