—Gina Bazer

I recently bought a cute Room & Board chair on Craig’s List, and wouldn’t you know it, the seller was a student at Harrington College of Design. Keith had a highly personalized new-construction condo, wallpapered and painted in cheerful, mod colors. Among the things that gave his space character was his modification of the developer’s kitchen. The kitchen was square-shaped but not big enough for a standard island, so Keith ordered one from Seattle-based Kerf Design and plopped it smack in the middle, gaining a little extra storage and a pop of originality. “They will custom-make and ship anything to Chicago and they were really easy to work with,” Keith told me. “The top of our island is actually Boomerang Formica that Formica Company has reissued.” Fun design tips from like-minded strangers. Yet another reason to love Craig’s List.

—Gina Bazer

I was a judge for the International Casual Furniture & Accessories Market’s Design Excellence Awards last week. It’s recognition for new product design in the outdoor furniture and accessories industry. I saw some great stuff! My favorites (shown here from left to right--these also ended up being winners): the Janus et Cie Forest chair (we didn’t know the manufacturers when we were doing the judging), the totally fun Emu Re-Trouve chair, the elegant Gloster Elan dining chair, the Neoteric Home chaise with a super-cool hydraulic device that allows a lounger to adjust positions without getting up; and the Rock Wood Cove modular day bed, which I saw in a lovely grey/white weave (shown here in a more typical chocolate brown). Other judges were Julie deLeon, designer and garden division manager of Chicago Specialty Gardens (we just shot one of her outdoor spaces for publication next fall), and John West of JW Landscapes (see a rooftop marvel of his we published here.

--JAN PARR

I walked by Zella Brown the other day and thought to myself: love that window display. So bold and colorful. Hollywood Regency style at its best. And then I saw that dog… Turns out that fake little pooch draws more people in off the street than anything else—and it’s not for sale. Owner Trisha London’s mom bought it for her 10 years ago and she can’t remember where. It’s so real-looking it’s creepy! But London, who has witnessed many people knocking on the glass to “get its attention” maintains that she will always find a way to incorporate the odd dog into her window, no matter what people think of it. The things that drew me in: the tulle-wrapped-metal curlicue chandelier by 2Jane (not too shabby for $409) and the fun papier-mâché birds ($30 each) and stool ($299) from Stray Dog.

—Gina Bazer

My contractor friend Dave Albin [albin720@aol.com] bought a fixer-upper vacation home in LaPorte, Indiana, has been working on it for a while now, and we drove up to check it out and have some end-of-summer R&R. It’s on a couple acres of land, so he put a lot of thought into landscaping the backyard, and came up with a great alternative to a traditional swimming pool. He researched and built a natural swimming pond, using a phyto-filtration system that apparently is really big in England. The idea is to have a deep area for swimming and surround that with a shallower area that’s planted with special grasses that purify and oxygenate the water, eliminating the need for chemicals. The water is kept circulating by the different water temps, a small waterfall and a solar-powered pump. I love the natural look of it, with all the rocks and waterlilies (and some melodic frogs, and friendly fish as well), and it’s going to be a lot more interesting to look at in the winter than a tarp-topped rectangular hole in the ground.

—BRADLEY LINCOLN

If you were captivated by the Jeff Koons exhibit at the MCA, on view through September 21, and want to own one of his original pieces, the upcoming fine art sale at Leslie Hindman Auctioneers is giving you a chance to pick one up. Lot number 49 is a set of three skateboards, painted with monkey faces in acrylics—the same distinctive style he used on these limited-edition beach towels on sale in the MCA giftshop for $60. This untitled, signed piece has an estimate of $3,000 to $4,000, but as Gina discovered in a previous blog adventure, that means bidding can start at $1,500. The auction is Sunday Sept. 7 and Monday Sept. 8; there are loads of terrific paintings and prints among the other 471 lots offered. I love the gutsy bravado of the Chicago imagists and am going to take a shot at some of the Roger Browns, Ed Paschkes, and Karl Wirsums on the block. Wish me luck.

—BRADLEY LINCOLN

Walking down Superior Street the other night, I spotted a shapely red fiberglass chair in a window across the street. I crossed Superior to get a better look and saw more colorful fiberglass seating and several other midcentury modern pieces, arrayed amid stacks of rugs. I was intrigued but left hanging: The store was closed, and there was no visible signage. So I walked by again the next day, saw a familiar face inside, and suddenly it all made sense. Juhm, the man with one name behind the recently shuttered White on Kinzie Street, has resurfaced to sell his reproduction classics at Generations Rug Gallery (200 W. Superior St.). He’s scaled back the offerings from his White days but also has some beautiful new pieces in wood—stools in the style of Finn Juhl, an incredible daybed in homage to Hans Wegner, and sleek modern planters. I’ll continue to save my pennies for the real thing, but I’m glad Juhm is back and that instant gratification remains an option. Store hours are Mon.-Sat., 10 a.m. to 7p.m., or by appointment: 312-222-0922.

—Megan Duffy Rostan
 

I’ve been going on and on for a while about how I’d like to bid on something at an auction. I’m scared of them for some reason—even eBay! So the other day after spotting the above table in the catalog for Leslie Hindman’s August 13 Marketplace auction, I mustered up the courage to go for it. OK, to be honest, a coworker of mine—an auction vet—shoved the phone-bid form in my hand and basically forced me to fax in the darn thing. I didn’t have much to lose. The estimated value of the table was $40 to $80. My max was $50.
    “They’ll probably call you and say, ‘We have an opening bid of $70,’ and then you can just say, ‘No thanks,’” my coworker said encouragingly. She also gave me a tip: “Don’t choose a round number like $50 or $100 for your limit; make it $55 or $110, because a lot of people have a round number in mind, and will drop out at that point. You’ll be mad at yourself if you stop at $50 and someone else gets it for just a few dollars more.”
     The next morning at 10:30, a polite gentleman from Leslie Hindman called, and from there on, it’s all a blur. I think he confirmed that I was indeed Gina Bazer, that I wished to bid by phone, that my lot would soon be up. In the background, I heard voices. It was the bidding process for the item preceding mine--“We have $400. Do we hear $425?” I thought, forget it, I’m out of this game. But then my turn came, and the nice man said, “We’re opening at $40. Would you like to bid $40?” And I said yes. There was some rumbling, and then suddenly I heard, “Congratulations. Someone from our accounting department will contact you later in the day.” What? That was it? The table was mine? I felt like I had won on a game show, which is exactly how my friend told me she feels when she gets her pick. The other nugget of info she shared a tad too late—since I was the only bidder, I probably could have gotten that table for $20! Oh, well. Bid and learn.

–Gina  Bazer
 

I stopped by the Antiquarians Building on Kinzie yesterday to check out the newly expanded V. Amsterdam, which now consumes the entire lower level of the building, and fell in love with the shop’s mid-century collection.
    Owner Marilyn Vogel offers an overwhelming assortment of 20th century American pieces, with an emphasis on Art Deco-period items and Asian influences. The result is a rich and sophisticated look that left me drooling.
    Vogel, a former lawyer who flips houses on the Gold Coast when she’s not busy collecting, opened V. Amsterdam five years ago. I spent much of my time there petting a striking 1940s American, curved-back side chair with tufted gold upholstery, pictured here. One of a pair and a perfect addition to my living room, but, unfortunately, not part of my currently non-existent home-décor budget. Other items I oogled longingly: a funky pair of Danish walnut-twisted leg stools, circa 1880, with a patterned leather upholstery and beaded trim ($1,550, also shown here); a 1950s Chinoiserie mirror with antiqued glass ($500); and a charming pair of late 19th century walnut bedside tables with mesh inset doors ($1,500).
    Lighting is obviously a passion of Vogel’s: lamps of all shapes and styles rest on every tabletop and stand in every corner. Among them was a pair of regal-looking black-shaded 1950s bronze table lamps ($1,400), and a beautiful set of Borghese library lamps ($1,250). I found a great pair of neoclassical-style milk glass table lamps for just $200.

—Jessica Linn 

I’m not usually a fan of patchwork patterns (in home design, not clothes—I live in madras all summer), as the look often comes across as too calico-country-kitchen, but these sassy Casama slipper chairs at Arhaus made me smile when they showed up on the cover of the latest catalog, hanging from trees. Like snowflakes and Meryl Streep roles, they’re one-of-a-kind, and are made of multipatterned color-saturated fabrics in a little village in India. You can choose a bright or a muted combination—I’m thinking one, maybe two brights for a sunroom or porch. The introductory price is $399, until the end of August when they go to $569.

—BRADLEY LINCOLN