Paris Concept Store Hones in on Contemporary Design

 Irwin Weiner ASID - About ten days ago, Jay and I explored MERCI, a Parisian shopping concept store that provided a fresh and startling mix of new and used merchandise, but the merchandise extended into categories like fashion, home accessories and furnishings, kitchen and bath, and books - and some great all-natural foods and a fresh take on the bistro scene. My Little Paris, a blog we love when it comes to one of our favorite cities, describes the store as follows.

Welcome to MERCI, a store which is lovely, lovable and loving. It’s located in a majestic, sun-lit loft where you can browse from room to room just like in a real house. Stop and look through an old-fashioned trunk spilling over with unique creations and finally find that little dress nobody else has yet to wear! Don’t forget to buy a tiny bunch of roses at the flower shop, and cuddle up on a sofa in the book corner as you check out the latest literary sensation and sip a well-earned lemonade. You’re not going to believe this, but you’ll be raising money! The profits the store makes on your purchases are donated to charities.

Charitable donations - count us in! We love to shop responsibly, and this was a great way to make our purchases count. So what about the home design scene at MERCI? Big thumbs up all around. We thought the collection of home goods was amazingly well curated. One-of-a-kind architectural and antique finds cuddle up playfully with some truly hip and beautiful furnishings. Here are a few examples; click on each photo for more information, and sign up for MERCI's newsletter so you can enjoy their upcoming online shopping experience.

Pressed Chair, Aluminum, by Harry Thaler for Moormann

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Great Idea for Recycling Plastic Dinnerware!

Irwin Weiner ASID - Don't you love it when people make something creative and clever? I thanked my lucky stars when I came across the following video featuring the collaboration between recycling artist Sayaka Ganz and kinetic sculptor Jim Merz.

These two creative and clever souls who recycled plastic dinnerware and created kinetic light sculptures, entitled Luminariales 2.

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Paris Style Video: Karl Lagerfeld Crystal for Orrefors

 

Irwin Weiner ASID - Greetings from Paris! Jay Johnson and I are in the beautiful French capital on vacation, and that of course means that we're on "assignment" for Design2Share. We never go anywhere without reporting back on residential and home trends, and that includes the latest international hotel scene and other looks in public spaces that will soon influence the shape of home style. While we're gone this week, we thought it would be fun to focus on different elements of French style in select videos. First is Paris-based fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld showing off his crystal designs for Orrefors.

Go to the Karl website for more information about Karl's world of design. We definitely checked out his recommendation of favorite Places and hope to check out several, e.g., La Societe restaurant and shops like Sennelier and Colette. 

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More Halloween Art and Craft Projects for the Home

Irwin Weiner ASID - OMG. I usually refrain from using texting abbreviations in my post, but Oh My God doesn't begin to cover my reaction to the crafty, thrifty, enthusiastic Do It Yourself Halloween decorations coming from Barry Belcher. Today's featured video is a mash-up of his craft creations and inspirations from this year and last year, and you'll like his craft-craziness.

He's one part zany and two parts clever, and you might find some great take-away ideas - and you can click on the links in the video to see tutorials on how to make the projects that you see. Visit the Barry Belcher Art and Design website and blog for more information.

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