Thank you Making it Lovely and her lovely reader Lindsay

Yesterday, the design blog Making it Lovely ran a story about urban chickenkeeping. She took the opposite tack I did when I wrote the definitive blog post on the subject last month.

Anyhow, in the middle of the doe-eyed do-gooding going on in her comments section. Seriously, I don't think the word "cute" has had that kind of a workout since this nightmare debuted. Go ahead, click that link. I dare you.

Where was I? Oh yeah, in the middle of all that squealing and swooning, a reader named Lindsay linked to my definitive blogpost on urban chickenry. It did no good because the swoons and squeals continued unabated. However, what it did do was make my traffic go off the charts. I love it when that happens. I had no idea that Making it Lovely (a perfectly wonderful and worthwhile blog even if we don't see eye to eye on this chicken thing) pulled those kind of numbers. Brava! So thanks for letting me bask in your glow for a few hours and welcome everybody who's clicking through here. You'll find no cute or mindless pablum. What you will find however, are the coolest commenters on the internet. Stick around.

Oh and Lindsay is none other than Lindsay Christiansen, whose Likely Design holds one of the most attractive Wordpress themes I've ever seen. Lindsay's a designer/ blogger who does virtual design and she deserves a round of applause.

Let's talk about bad trends

Like Totally '80s

I've been talking a a lot lately about bad trends. Bad trends in interiors that is. A reporter asked me to rattle off some examples of what I consider to be bad trends last week and I rattled off about 10 things without really thinking about it.

It started me thinking. What makes a bad trend? And is there really such a thing?

Hey kids! Let's make our character-less McMansion look like
a one room schoolhouse!

Well, yes there is such a thing as a bad trend. It's usually not the trend though, it's almost always the expression of the trend.

Duck, dodge and cover.

Timelessness is a myth. It is impossible to create a room or a home today and have it be anything but right now. You can do a revival. There's a Belgian revival and an Edwardian revival going on right now, but each of those things is a 2010 interpretation of those eras. Exact replicas would be unlivable. How do you put surround sound in an authentic, old Belgian living room? Where do you put two dishwashers and a wine chiller in an Edwardian kitchen?

Up, up and away in my beautiful, my beautiful balloon.

Times change, people change, life changes. That's a good thing.

I feel like I'm in a palazzo right on the Grand Canal.

So what can you do to keep a room or a home from looking dated? Well, I say there's nothing you can do to keep a room from looking dated. The key is to make it look good as it ages.

It's a tabletop fountain!

I say that it's not the trend itself, it's the execution. The problem's not that turquoise has been proclaimed the It color of 2010, it's uninspired turquoise paint jobs.

It's the color of the year so it has to look good. Right?

The problem's not faux finishes, it's faux finishes devoid of logic, context or skill.

The only l'oeil being trompe-d here is the one belonging to the poor soul
who paid for this mess.

What do you think? In looking over the interwebs and the design press (what's left of it) today, what's a bad trend? Is there anything to my idea about it being a matter of execution or are there some things that are just bad trends?

Somebody knows how to use an orbital sander.

A troika of bad taste --Baltic Brown granite, commodity tumbled marble tile and honey oak cabinetry. Wait, there's a wall plaque with some pablum written on it. What's Russian for a collection of four?

Wood Flooring: help an author out

I received an e-mail from Charlie Peterson this morning. Charlie's the author of Wood Flooring: A Complete Guide to Layout, Installation & Finishing from Taunton Press. He thanked me for reviewing his book and then he went on to tell me that the 330 pages of the book as it stands was whittled down from the 5200 pages he'd written originally. That's quite an editing job and I'm sure a lot of his ideas, tips and pointers were left on the cutting room floor.

Charlie asked me if I thought there were any way to make his book more useful. I'm flattered to asked that by someone of his stature and skill and even though most of you haven't read his book, I'm going to turn around redirect his question to you guys. In more general terms of course.

He'll see this post and so now let's play a game of focus group. If you're reading this blog that means you're interested in home design or construction in some capacity. As such, you're a target for books like Charlie's wood floor guide.

So when you're poking around in a bookstore, what do you look for in a design, architecture or construction book? Is it more important to be a coffee table book? You know, one brimming with beautiful photos of what's possible and little else?

Or do you look for something more practical and text heavy?

Is it possible to be both? Is it worth it to try to be both?

How do you like you how-to information? Is it more important to inspire or is it better to instruct?

In the meantime, I'm still reeling from the floor in the photo above. I cannot believe that it's a wood floor that he made. That's some skill.

Wood Flooring: A Complete Guide to Layout, Installation & Finishing

Wood Flooring: A Complete Guide to Layout, Installation & Finishing

I have been on a serious wood floor kick lately and in a move that makes me think they can read my mind, the great folks at Taunton Press sent me a review copy of Wood Flooring: A Complete Guide to Layout, Installation & Finishing by Charles Peterson with Andy Engel. And wow what a book. Between Peterson's book and the accompanying 60-minute DVD, it would be safe to call this the definitive guide to all things wood floor.

Peterson holds a degree in engineering and has a 30-year history in the wood flooring business. He's a master craftsman and the owner of CP Hardwood Floors in Gales Ferry, CT. That's Peterson on one of his floors below.

Photo by Randy O'Rourke

He made that floor himself and it was named 2009's Floor of the Year Award from the National Wood Flooring Association. If you need further proof of his expertise stop reading now. Wow!

©Tom Hopkins Studio

It's brimming with gorgeous photographs of course, this is a Taunton project after all. Beyond the coffee table qualities of Peterson's new book, it's also a thorough guide for professionals. Peterson starts from square one in his book with a basic lumber review. He progresses through instructive chapters on jobsite preparation, installing subfloors and then a thorough guide to installing both plank and engineered wood floors.

With the basics out of the way, Peterson then branches out into parquet, inlay, marquetry, borders, aprons and medallions. The work he shows is his own primarily and it's inspiring to see someone so dedicated to his craft.

©Tom Hopkins Studio

After all the eye candy in the middle of the book, he then moves onto chapters on sanding, finishing and then wraps up everything with a chapter devoted to problems and solutions.

©Tom Hopkins Studio

If you have a need to a good reference guide to wood floors, this is it. Interestingly enough, it's also a terrific inspiration guide and a fitting addition to my design library. That is a difficult balancing act to pull off and Peterson does it with grace and skill.

©Tom Hopkins Studio

You can order a copy of Wood Flooring: A Complete Guide to Layout, Installation & Finishing by Charles Peterson with Andy Engel through Taunton's website.

She's gone

The title of her post today was The End.

And with that, my bloggery role model posted her last post. Oh Decorno, the blogosphere won't be the same without you but I understand and can almost relate to your wanting to call it a day.

Decorno picked up one of my posts a year-and-a-half ago and it made me --my traffic doubled overnight. Decorno enlightened, mocked, rejoiced and above all never took design too seriously. So now where will I go to find a profanity-laden, hilarious take on the world of design?


Hey Modern Sauce, a niche just opened up for you.