Some things aren't meant to be...

It's a very cold, rainy day here in LA and I'm very sad to tell you that we had to withdraw our bid on the little Victorian. After having it inspected and investigating further we discovered that it would have been far more expensive than we realized to deal with the removal of the peeling lead-based paint. There's a new law that requires painters to treat lead paint as if it were, well, asbestos.
(More on that here...)

So our search goes on....


(Photo by Pearled.)

Redstone Diary

For me, this is one of the many joys of starting a new year: Flipping through the pages of a new Redstone Diary...

For years now I've been hooked on the colorful calendars produced by the UK publishing house Redstone Press.

Every year, they pick a different theme: this year it's The Artist's World.

Here's the site's explainer:

"Get to know: Louise Bourgeois, Georges Braque, Paul Klee, Vincent van Gogh, Frida Kahlo, René
Magritte, Kazimir Malevich, Henri Matisse, Claude Monet, Kurt Schwitters, Varvara Stepanova and many others through remarkable photographs and revealing texts. The diary also contains a special year-planner illustrated with a rare and beautiful series of drawings made by Pierre Bonnard in his diaries."

I can't wait!

My previous Redstone favorite: Happiness.

Do you have a diary that you're hooked on, too?

(PS: Amazon has the 2011 Redstone Diary stocked here.)

Stacks

New photos of books, mostly, on my tumblr page.

I'm having a very busy, stressful week trying to finish projects before the holidays.

But searching for beautiful images is so relaxing...

(Book stacks photo by Moa.)

Which books are you giving as presents?

Here's my list:

"Audrey 100: A Rare and Intimate Photo Collection Selected by Audrey Hepburn’s Family."
by Ellen Fontana

Maira Kalman's "And the Pursuit of Happiness."

"The Invisible Bridge" by Julie Orringer

"Cleopatra: A Life," by Stacy Schiff

"Frank: The Voice," by James Kaplan


What about you?


(Photo by Uniform Studio.)

What are you reading this week?

I've been swamped with different work projects this week, plus trying to get everything set for the purchase of the little Victorian house. As a result, my reading materials are really stacking up...but, I did start The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley. It's really wonderful!

What are you reading?

(Photo by Jessica Alena.)

The Bookshelves of Celeste Tumulte

This Lyon, France girl has fantastic style!