Rather than let you draw your own conclusions here, I’ll explain this photo. While visiting our friends, Lucy brushed up against a wall of wet paint and ended up with a blue hip, tail and even some white trim paint on one paw. She kept sitting when I tried to take a picture so I’m holding her up. Lucy’s friends Maggie and Abby apparently saw that as a golden opportunity to sniff her butt.
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Art, Art: Phone Photo Friday, Family, Family: Lucy | Tagged: cell phone photography, dog, Lucy, Phone Photo Friday, wet paint | 
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Posted by mahlbrandt
Apparently this aired on Late Night with Conan O’Brien a year and a half ago but I just came across it this week. What a beautiful work of art combining modern dance and shadow puppetry! This group is called Pilobolus.
Leave a Comment » | Art, Art: modern design, Art: music | Tagged: conan o'brien, dance, pilobolus | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
I found this poster through INK & WIT and followed the blog trail until I could eventually find how to purchase it from the designer.
Flow charts are always fun and I love the philosophy – if you’re not happy, change something! Jason noted that if you either always say yes or always say no, you get “Keep doing what you’ve been doing.” And, if you don’t start saying “yes” you’ll never get to happiness.
Side note: Have you ever seen Yes Man? Good movie.
I finally got the poster in the mail and found the perfect spot to hang it. We’ve got this funky angled wall in the kitchen. (Someday I’m going to cover it with pegboard & cork.)
It can also be seen from the living room, which is the temporary home for our mid-century modern credenza that’s destined to become our master bathroom vanity.
And, most importantly, it’s in a place where I’ll see it every morning as I head out the door.
(Click • for source.)
5 Comments | Art, Art: graphic design, Art: modern design | Tagged: choices, flow chart, graphic design, happiness, poster | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
Last weekend we tackled the most intimidating part of the bathroom renovation (in my mind, at least): pouring the concrete shower base. I’ll just show what we did through pictures. And of course I use “we” very loosely here.
Shower all cleared out and ready to go.
Mixing up the concrete mix and water in our pitiful, rusty old wheel barrel. (See the broken wood handle?) I was going to do this part but it turns out my arms are too weak. Each bag of mix was 60 lbs dry.
I prefer to watch this guy in action anyway. I’m excellent moral support.
First bucket full of concrete gets placed. That float is named the Task Force.
Second bucket down. Creating a slight slope toward the drain was very tedious. And important. Jason and his task force can handle it.
The consistency is like wet sand. Not as liquidy as I had imagined.
Four bags/bucketfuls down. 240 lbs. More of the very meticulous smoothing and creating a slight grade toward the drain.
Some days I am very grateful to be married to a perfectionist. Another half a bag to finish it off and get that slope just right. (4.5 bags of sand mix, 270 lbs, 4’x5′ base at 1-1.5″ thick in case you want details.)
All done. Just needs 24 hours to dry. Phew! The whole process only took 3 hours but was very labor-intensive. I’m so glad it’s done. Thank God it all went smoothly. Now on to finishing the rest of the tiling … another update coming soon. I HOPE!
Keeping up with our progress?
1 Comment | Art, Art: bathroom renovation, Art: interior design, Art: mid-century design, Art: modern design, Family, Family: Jason | Tagged: bathroom renovation, concrete shower pan, master bathroom, tiled shower | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.” — William Morris
Leave a Comment » | Art, Other, Other Things: Wise Words | Tagged: beautiful, design, home, quote, wise words | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
I can’t begin to explain how thankful I am for a new, warm, (cute), down puffer this winter. I love that it can completely shield my face from cold mornings walking Lucy and it’s fun-winter-hat-friendly (leaving only my eyes exposed, when necessary!).
4 Comments | Art, Art: fashion, Art: Phone Photo Friday | Tagged: cell phone photography, Phone Photo Friday, winter coat | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
Tile is officially HALF done! Yay! We’ve been working hard on it and our goal is to finish the shower this month. (Sorry for the pieced together photos. Couldn’t get it all in 1 shot.)
We started putting drywall up to close off the laundry area with some leftover pieces from another project.
We designed built-in shelves into one side of the shower wall. In order to finish them with cement board so we can tile, we had to put drywall up on the laundry room side.
Jason bought the concrete for the shower pan today. Saturday is the day we mix and pour and level and pray. I’ll try to remember to keep my camera handy during the process.
Phew! We’ve come a long way! Need to catch up?
4 Comments | Art, Art: bathroom renovation, Art: interior design, Art: mid-century design, Art: modern design | Tagged: bathroom renovation, master bathroom, tile, tiled shower | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
Lucy, the official mid-century modern life mascot, has hypoglycemia. At least that’s what some of my doctor family members have suggested. Her symptoms:
• vomits when she’s hungry and will eat grass or dirt first if it’s available
• got very weak & disoriented after a long walk (first instance)
• trembling (later the night of the first instance)
• seizures – she’s had 3, each one after bouts of exercise before meal time
I found this great resource on dog epilepsy that has suggestions for naturally treating hypoglycemia. It suggests 5 feedings a day—2 dinners and 3 snacks—with snack suggestions like fruit, veggies, crackers, yogurt, hard-boiled eggs, and cottage cheese.
In order to feed Lucy five times a day I ordered her an automatic food dispenser from amazon.com that I call the Super Feeder. It doesn’t make as much noise as I was hoping but she’s getting used to listening for the motor. Lucy’s hypoglycemia prevention schedule is:
• 7:00 am – breakfast: 3/4 cup dog food
• 10:30 am – snack: unsalted cracker with peanut butter
• 2:30 pm – snack: 1/4 cup dog food + milk bone
• 5:30 pm – dinner: 1/2 cup dog food
• 9:30 pm – snack: unsalted cracker with peanut butter
(She’s a 20 lb. cocker spaniel for reference.)
We’re on day 4 and so far no seizures, no trembling or disorientation, and she’s only vomited once (used to be once every 1-2 days). No word on how many pounds she’s gained.
Look for another bathroom renovation update tomorrow!
6 Comments | Family, Family: Lucy | Tagged: automatic pet feeder, dog seizure, hypoglycemia, Lucy | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
Not technically from a thrift store, we got this funky, mustard-yellow, wood-handled teapot from Stu on our trip to Cincinnati. (We met him at a thrift store so it’s almost a thrift store find.) This was one of the first things Jason spotted when we walked in the door.
It’s definitely vintage and the inside was really cruddy. It had some caked-on calcified minerals stuck to the bottom and insides. (I made that up but it was something hard and gross!) Thankfully my amazing, persistent, determined husband spent hours soaking, scrubbing, soaking, scraping and washing it until the speckled cobalt blue insides were restored almost back to their original mid-century modern glory.
Leave a Comment » | Art, Art: Cooking, Art: mcm thrift store find, Art: mid-century design, Art: modern design | Tagged: mcm thrift store find, mid-century modern, stu nitzy, teapot, vintage | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
Location: NW Nashville/Bordeaux
Leave a Comment » | Art, Art: Drive-By Shooting, Art: mid-century design, Art: modern design | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
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Graphic designer, MCM interior design enthusiast, wife to amazing guitarist and hard working realtor, mama—by way of foster care, adoption and biology—and follower of Jesus Christ.
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