Optical illusion Wednesday

The ever brilliant Richard Wiseman strikes again. This is without a doubt the most persistent illusion I've ever seen. Click on the image and it will get larger.

My brain is so determined to see spirals that even when I trace what are clearly circles, I perceive a spiral. I don't know about you guys but I cannot force myself to see these circles. Man! These spirals that aren't spirals won't go away.

Human brains are pattern recognizing machines. I say that all the time. As such, the need to see a pattern can override reality without a whole lot of prodding. I'd love a real explanation of this particular illusion from a physiological perspective. Seriously. What structures in my brain are overriding what my eyes see? Wild stuff!

Melody's new venture

A great friend and occasional contributor to this blog, Melody McFarland, has launched a new venture and I want the world to know about it. In addition to being one of the coolest people I know, Mel's also a very gifted photographer. And her new venture is her unique spin on pet photography.

She calls her take on pet photography documentary style. No props, no poses, just a beloved animal being itself. She works in a 30 mile radius of our hometown, Lancaster Pennsylvania and will extend her reach as needed.

This is Melody's dog Sinbad and he is the most eerily photogenic dog on the planet.

If you're in her part of the world, give her a call. If you're not in her part of the world, join me in wishing her tremendous success in her new venture. Go get 'em Melody!

Check out the rest of her portfolio on her brand spanking new website.

When people live in glass houses, where do they buy furniture?

The great Alice Liao from K+BB Collective found this yesterday and I couldn't pass it by.

Carlo Santambrogio and Ennio Arosio are visionary architects and designers base in Milan. Their vision is remarkably transparent.

Together they run an architecture and design firm called Santambrogio|Milano. Alice's article yesterday dealt with their architectural concepts and they are thought provoking to say the least. What I can't get past is their furniture and fittings. Santambrogio|Milano is committed to exploring a fully transparent world.

A true glass cook top

A deconstructed and redefined kitchen sink.

A stair.

Double vanities.

A sofa.

A bath tub

A lamp and a chair.

Of course it's impractical, but I think there's something to be gained from what they're proposing. Where do you go when there's nowhere to hide? Is it possible to furnish a room and set a tone with the room's surroundings? I believe firmly that things like genuine warmth comes from the lives of the people who inhabit a room, and an all-glass room really puts that belief of mine to the test.

Could you like in a glass house? Live with a glass room? Cook in a glass kitchen? Sleep on a glass bed? Does ordinary furniture enhance or does it hide? Hmmmm.

Check out Alice's post to see what they do with architecture.

An Adirondack chair for the 21st century

This is the Emmet Collection by Loll Designs for Room and Board.

Loll Designs is the brainchild of brothers Dave and Greg Benson and they refer to their offerings as outdoor furniture for the modern lollygagger. They get points for using that word and they get even more points for making all of their outdoor furniture from 100% recycled high density polyethylene. In addition to using recycled consumer and industrial plastics, the products they produce are also 100% recyclable.

The Duluth, MN-based Loll Designs is committed to obtaining its raw materials in the US and Canada and manufacturing everything domestically. From their website:

By purchasing raw materials from the USA and Canada for manufacturing our products in the USA we reduce shipping distances both to our facility and out to our customers. Many products made in China actually start their life in the USA as raw material shipped to China to be manufactured, and then shipped back to the USA as finished goods for distribution. Being made in the USA means a lot to us since we live and work here and so do our employees. You can be sure that our employees earn a better than living wage, receive health care benefits, Holiday and Vacation pay, are eligible for retirement plans, and actually like their job. By purchasing products from Loll and other companies who also manufacture in the USA you help to perpetuate the local economies of the USA and North America directly. Thank you!

These are definitely my kind of people. It doesn't hurt that their Adirondack chairs look fantastic.

The Emmett Collection by Loll Designs is available from Room and Board and the prices range from $179 to $649.

Great gobs of glass

The national tartan of Cornwall

Glass cabinet and door knobs are some of my perennial favorites. There's an art to them of course and a well made glass knob is a piece of art so far as I'm concerned.

It's no big secret that I love Twitter and one of last weekends great finds was Merlin Glass. Merlin Glass is the project of Liam Carey. Liam's been working with glass in Cornwall, UK for the last 30 years and he's specialized in knobs and handles for the last 15.

Liam's work is done by hand entirely and everything is made to order. This is a Cornish craftsman who brings art to every day and for that he deserves a round of applause.

Here are some of his cabinet knobs.

And here are some of his door knobs.

Liam calls these his Love Handles.

Amazing stuff and he works with people all over the world. You can see the rest of his wares and contact him via his website.