Online research tools for MCM furniture

So you have bought some swanky MCM furniture and you want to learn more about the cool cat who designed it - where to go? Here are some useful links that give you a bit of insight into the designers and manufacturers that may have designed that piece you just picked up.

Lushpad - Besides being the all things MCM version of Craigslist, this site also have useful articles about MCM designers and manufacturers. Currently there are articles about how an Eames fiberglass chair is made and famous designer couples.

Herman Miller and Knoll - You can read designer biographies about new modern designers in addition to MCM designers such as Charles and Ray Eames, George Nelson, and Alvar Aalto.

Wright 20 - Not only is there some serious eye candy on this sight, but if you are in the market for higher end and rare MCM pieces (think FLW, one of a kinds, etc.) this is a good place to see what the going rates are for pieces in the market. You can search their past auctions and purchase catalogs for upcoming auctions.

Apartment Therapy - Occasionally, they will have in depth posts about particular designers and trends. The best way to find these posts is to search by the designer or manufacturer's name in the search box.

1st Dibs - this mega site of all things furniture, design, and jewelry has multitudes of articles with designers, artists and the like. Search the "Creators" tab to view retrospectives on a selection of designers.

Google and Wikipedia - Basic I know, but you can usually find some basic information or links to blogs and forums that may be discussing that chair you are looking for or that credenza you just picked up.

What was that about the First Day of Spring?

Yesterday was the first day of Spring. Apparently, Texas didn't get the memo, because this is what I woke up to today. Enjoy the snow while it lasts! I'll be inside with a cup of coffee and my snuggie.

Weekend Plans

1. Friday night, fall down the rabbit hole at Late Nights at the Dallas Museum of Art. There will be showings of the 1933 film version of Alice in Wonderland and the Disney cartoon version. There will also be karaoke, live theater, and lots of events for the kids.

2. Be a Pinball Wizard this weekend at the Texas Pinball Festival in Grapevine.

3. Saturday is the Dallas Center for Architecture's monthly architecture tour of the Dallas Arts District.

4. BONUS: Take your pooch down to Deep Ellum's Pup Crawl. 30 bucks gets you a t-shirt, complimentary appetizers, and drink specials. After party is at the Doublewide. Proceeds benefit the Deep Ellum Bark Park.

Eames Font from House Industries

House Industries, a typographic mecca, just released the Eames Century Font. This font was developed in collaboration with the Eames family and consists not only fonts but design objects. In addition to the typeface collection, House Industries also has silk screen prints and these Eames House blocks, which are hella cool. See the collection here.

Weekend Plans-Festival Edition

1. Put your green on and head down to Fair Park for the North Texas Irish Festival. There will be celtic music, beer, irish step dancing, beer, storytelling, beer, vendors selling all matter of irish and celtic wares, and this thing called beer. Come see your blogger kick up her heels with Shandon School of Irish Dance. We dance at 5pm on Saturday and 1pm on Sunday.

2. Friday is the beginning of Savor Dallas this weekend. Friday night take the wine stroll through the Dallas Arts District from 5-8pm.

3. I know the last few weeks have not felt like Spring will ever get here, but one of the first signs of Spring is Dallas Blooms at the Dallas Arbortetum. The entrance plaza is a Lake|Flato design.

Free Green Who's Next Competition

If you recall, last year The Architect placed 3rd in Free Green's design competition to design a house in Greensburg, KS.

The Architect is now competing in Free Green's Who's Next Competition. This competition was to design a house for an empty nester couple or a young couple looking for a starter home. The Architect chose to design for the starter home couple - which is the house you see to your left.

In this competition, there will be public voting which counts for 50% of the judging criteria. So head over here to view the project and vote! Enter "daniel day" into the search by designer box in the upper right corner of the screen to see his page. Initial public voting is open from March 2 - 17, 2010.