1. Treehugger for their “Most Beautiful Street in the World” post.

2. Apartment Therapy for this home office tour.

3. Design*Sponge’s wonderful wrap up of home office spaces.

4. Design Milk for their Designer DeskTop Wallpaper series.

5. MujiUSA has some very sleek minimal designs for the home office including these acrylic organizers.

6. Luludi for their cool way of incorporating plants into the home office – hang them on the wall.

7. Cleverhands shop on Etsy has a interesting alternative to the pencil case – check it out here. Good for home office workers on the go.

8. Vienna-based designers Less & More create beautiful wooden desk organizers. You can see them here on the US-Supermarket site.

9. Design Notes funny post on a new game – “Six Degrees of Cranbrook”.

10. Desire to Inspire’s post on a cool Toronto office.

What do you listen to while you work? I mostly listen to Jazz during the day when I work, either instrumental or with words.  I will pepper in some Soul or World Music if I need a boost!  Erica Badu, Adele, Aretha Franklin, Corinne Bailey Ray, Angelique Kidjo or Toots Thielmans will always makes me happy! As the evening nears, I tend to play something a little more moody, like Gretchen Parlato, Jeff Buckley or Esperanza Spalding.

How do you listen? Since I have my own office I don’t have to wear head phones when I listen to music.  I generally listen through the speakers on my computer. I try to keep the volume at a respectable level, yet still serve my need for the music to change my atmosphere.

Do you have any favorite music websites/providers? I listen to Pandora on occasion.

Does music influence your work? Listening to music while I work helps me to stay calm.  My job can be tremendously stressful.  Mostly I am responding to people streaming into my office all day long with problems.  I try to use a creative approach to solve the complex and challenging issues surrounding art and politics, such as how to continually provide cultural and artistic services throughout the City of Los Angeles with diminishing human and financial resources. Music helps me to think outside of the box when searching for innovative solutions to these concerns.

Who influences your musical taste? My daughter Brynne.  She is part of an acoustic/indie duet called Le-Ti. She gives me a new mixed-cd about once a quarter with some amazing music on it.  That really pushes me to keep expanding my musical taste.  I find that the time of day or the beautiful California light and sunsets will also influence what I listen to!

What song or artist best represents the work you create/ If your work was a song or a musician, what or who would it be? Well, it’s the end of the year and everybody wants everything completed right now, so I would have to say today my work feels like the painting The Scream by Edvard Munch.

Felicia Filer’s Playlist

Esperanza Spalding, Fall In

Bobby McFarren, Invocation

Adele, Rolling In the Deep

John Coltrane, A Love Supreme

Wayne Shorter, Dance Cadavarous

The Beatles, Blackbird

Emanative & Ahu, Turn Your Lights On

Erykah Badu, Gone Baby, Don’t Be Long

Gretchen Parlato, Winter Wind

Azymuth, Free As A Bird

Jeff Buckley, Grace

Constructed of oiled oak harvested from German forests, both the Objekten DOCK Box and Dock Tray are available in light and dark oak versions, and each providing a handsome way to not only display/view your favorite screened device, but also offering the “landing station” to keep clutter at bay and decrease the chances of “now where did I put that _____?!”

By Gregory Han

You established your firm in 1997. What led to that point? After graduating from The University of East London in 1996 I worked briefly in the design department of Routledge, a leading academic book publisher. In 1997 I opened my own design studio in London and worked for various clients including Penguin Books, The British Academy of Composers and Songwriters, The Industrial Design Centre, Time-Out Online and The Guardian Newspaper. Around this time I also began teaching graphic design at The University of Luton and Central St. Martins.

I moved to the states in 2000 to teach at Northern Illinois University. In 2006 I moved to Long Beach were I am a Professor at California State University. I divide my time between teaching, designing for various clients and playing with my sons Auden, Louis, and Julian.

I have recently been commissioned to design typefaces and type treatments for The New York Times Magazine, UCLA Extension, and Sagmeister Inc.

Above: A quote from the Eames’ on Byrom’s dining room wall.

How long have you worked from home? And where is home? I split my time between home and my faculty office. When I moved to Long Beach from Chicago six years ago I wanted to find a house where I could walk to work. I have been lucky enough to find a place that is a 30 minute walk from my house to my office on campus, which is perfect.

How would you define your aesthetic? I create physical/structural graphic design. The move to a three-dimensional approach in typeface designs was born from a desire to move out of my ‘comfort-zone’ and force myself to create/build letters from a new standpoint. I began using the conventions of typographic design in three dimensions, using unfamiliar applications, materials and processes as a way of forcing myself to find new forms. Not only must these three-dimensional designs adhere to typographic principles (uniformed x-height, structure etc), but they must also address architectural considerations including physical strength and structural integrity. I am interested in finding new constraints for which to effect my designs – and force my hand.

When you set up your home office what did you have to keep in mind? Were there any particular obstacles to overcome? I want to be able to have my kids come and go in my workspace, so I have to keep it pretty basic and with nothing too important lying around. Therefore I do all my drawings (and store all my designs and blue prints etc.) in my small office on the CSULB campus. I do more preliminary or conceptual work, and a lot of writing, at home.

Is there any piece of home office furniture you covet right now? I’d like to swap my desk for a George Nelson Rolltop Action Desk so I can just lock it all up and go… see previous answer for reason why!

What desk accessory can’t you do without? A pencil, a sketch book, and a decent pencil sharpener … and a Mac.

What and who inspires you? Charles and Ray Eames have been my biggest inspiration. Their work, and how they chose to document it, always seemed to be very playful and joyful. They were open to exploring new materials and processes and worked hard to master the associated constraints. They were also endlessly prototyping and experimenting.

I’m also impressed by designers like Alvin Lustig, Massimo Vignelli and younger designers working today like Jonathan Keller, who are able to work across disciplines, but still keep their own design principles intact.

1. Inhabitat ran a post on a beautifully designed little prefab cabin inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright.

2. Interior Design magazine “10 Questions with Konstantin Grcic“ - who designed, among other pieces, Chair_One.

3. Huffington Post for their piece on the Eames’ film “Powers of 10″.

4. Co.Design on how plywood change the world…look out for pieces by Ray and Charles Eames.

5. Architizer for Drew House - an amazing building that includes a tubular section for the living area.

6. The Office Stylist for her post on 22squared’s cool office space.

7. Cubicle Refugee for her lovely, color-driven tumblr blog. Lots of eye candy during your coffee break.

8. Pinterest has so many good boards loaded with home office ideas but make sure you check out Design Studio for really eclectic mix of images.

9. Poppytalk for her home work space post.

10. Habitus for their interview with BassamFellows.

1. Under Desk Heater, $89.00 Created to fit right under your desk, this soft plug-in floor mat provides extra warmth to legs and feet looking for relief from a winter-y workday. Get it: warmlyyours.com

2. Plus-Minus-Zero Heater, $389.00 Infuse your workspace with a little extra color using this lively compact design. Get it: Generate

3. Crane Space Heater, $34.99 Retro cool (in a way only a space heater can be). Get it: Amazon

4. Bionaire Ceramic Mini Tower Heater, $53.45 With a digital thermostat controls, LCD display, and remote control, you might feel like it’s your own robot of warmth. Get it: Amazon

5. Anna Little Ceramic Heater Stadler Form, $79.99 Add this streamlined design to your desktop and turn up the heat. Get it: Horne

Images linked to their sources within the numbered text

But let’s face it: there’s always that “gah!” feeling—a moment when you realize that there was one more perfect song that you wish you had included. In that spirit, we gave a few past Playlisters the chance to add that one extra tune to the mixes they previously created for our column. Here’s what a few of them are choosing to include. (We think it makes a pretty great mix just in itself!)

Song: Candomblé by Utsumi

Added by: François Chambard of UM Project

Song: The Drying of the Lawns by The Tallest Man on Earth

Added by: Interior Designer Isabel Borland

Song: July Flame by Laura Veirs

Added by: Art Director & Graphic Designer Rick VanderLeek

Song: Painted Eyes by Hercules and Love Affair

Added by: Designer Matt Singer

Song: I’ve Been Tired by Pixies

Added by: Architect & Designer Emily Fischer of Haptic Lab

Song: Golden Years by David Bowie

Added by: Graphic Designer Carolyn Sewell

Song: Hounds of Love by The Futureheads

Added by: Resource Specialist and Musician Royce Epstein

Song: Turn On Me by The Shins

Added by: Writer & Photographer Nichole Robertson of Little Brown Pen

Song: Off to the Races by Lana Del Rey

Added by: Daniel Kanter of Manhattan Nest

Song: XO/The Host by The Weeknd

Added by: Matthew Hickey of Turntable Kitchen

Image by Daniel Kanter

Photo: Paul Raff Studio

First things first, we’d immediately replace all our keyboards and mice with Bluetooth-enabled devices. For batteries, we recommend using Sanyo Enelops. They’ve tested well in our Unplggd labs and have been a personal favorite around the office.

Next, we’d pair down the desk to just 3 main areas: 1) the main computer, 2) a desk lamp, and 3) the landing station for our smartphone. We’d even go as far as to create a separate area for keys and wallet since they make more sense by the door than on a busy surface as the primary working desk.

A potential spot for a fourth area would be reserved for audio junkies such as myself, in which case we’d make room for set of audiophile monitors or our favorite headphones.

We could even devise similar plans for a tablet-only setup by creating a quick and easy docking station that’s both functional and clutter-less. A simply designed stand like the Upstand allows for just that.

Lastly, we’d address the issue of wire management, both nearby items and along the underside. Remember, even the slightest overlooked detail can ruin the perfect setup!

What are the bare essentials for your dream desk setup?

By Anthony Nguyen.

How long have you been working as a photographer? What drew you to shooting? I graduated with a BFA in 2002 from the from Alberta College of Art & Design. Assisting for 4 years I officially started shooting full time in 2006. I originally went to college to specialize in graphic arts/design, but changed my major after the first year. I really had a hard time sitting in the same room working on drawings all day. Photography allows you the freedom to explore the environment around you. I appreciate this and wanted to fully discover the medium.

Tell us about your workspace. Any special considerations that effected the way it is set up? I actually share a workspace with two other photographers. It’s a large setup with a car studio and two smaller studios. I feel very fortunate to have the freedom of space.  The first part of the series started in the studio space but found some of them would take me far too long with many interruptions. I recently moved it to my office above the studio and am able to work on the projects much easier.

Your new work, Disassembly, strips down electronics to their elements. You’ve managed to capture a real beauty in the bits and pieces that come together to form once ubiquitous pieces of technology. The typewriter and rotary phone certainly no longer have a place in our home offices. Was there a reason you didn’t choose a laptop or cell phone? Most everything that I have taken apart has been mechanical. If you press a button or turn a knob you can physically see it doing its job. They are very interesting and complex inside. New technology although very complex, is not on a level you can see physically. I have taken apart my iPhone before and inside there are minimal parts.

What inspires you in your work? Things I see, sounds I hear, conversations with people, it’s amazing what can come up if you let your mind wander.

2. Saltsurf.com’s blog is beautiful. Even if you don’t surf or have never been to the beach this blog takes you away from your desk for a few minutes and lets you indulge in gorgeous shots of beach and ocean. Plus their new canvas totes would hold your laptop rather nicely. Enjoy!

3. Design Observer for Adam Harrison Levy’s review of A History of the World in 100 Objects by Neil MacGregor. Sounds like a fascinating book.

4. Milo Paper for their cool notebooks. They’ve dubbed them “Men’s Collection” which is a shame because they really would be perfect for women too. So don’t be put off. Check them out – you can even personalize them.

5. SF Girl By Bay has revamped her site and now there’s even more great interiors for home office inspiration.

6. An Organized Nest for their 6 tips on dealing with mail – real snail mail not email.

7. Oki Ni for this awesome messenger bag/lap top carrier.

8. House Beautiful gives us a nice slideshow of 16 different home office styles.

9. Architizer for this amazing house by Blank Studio. It’s in a town called Superior at the base of the Superstition Mountain range in Arizona.

10. Brain Pickings for Maria Popova’s thoughtful post on Charles Eames (including a great link to an Eliot Noyes essay on Charles).

For the past few weeks Susan Lyons, our Materials Creative Director, has covered Herman Miller’s five material design principles over on our Discover blog. We’ve heard about honesty, utility, economy, pleasure, and possibility and the role these principles play in helping us choose the materials for our designs.

One principle is particularly relevant to Lifework readers: It’s the idea of utility. Lyons talks about utility in connection to Embody – a chair that finds its way into many a home office. “When we talk about material utility,” Lyons says, “what we really mean is that we use materials to solve problems.”

To hear Lyons talk about the rest of the principles simply follow these links: honesty, economy, pleasure, possibility.

To find a home office chair check out our tips on how to choose the right one for you. (And FYI – we’re now shipping our most popular office chairs for $29. Read all about that here.)

Angela: “It’s 2012, a brand new year wide open with promise and possibilities. If “get organized” is one of your new year’s resolutions again this year – let’s look at what might have gotten in the way in the past and work to change it in the future. I’ve compiled a list 7 Organizing Mistakes to Avoid in 2012 to help you sidestep the most common roadblocks to a well-organized workspace.

1. Not knowing your personal organizing style – When it comes to organizing, one of the key elements is to understand your personal organizing style. What does this mean? It means that you need to analyze your current organizing habits before you implement new systems. For example – are you a piler or a filer? Do you like an open bin system or drawers? Are you an “out of sight out of mind” person and need everything visible or do you prefer everything to be put away? Do you like paper or are you striving for a ”paperless” office?

2. Going for quick fix solutions - Quick fix solutions offer the promise of magically whipping years of clutter and disorganization into shape. If you see a storage product or new piece of technology that seems to offer a quick fix, hold off, it may just wind up as another piece of clutter, frustration and ultimately a wast of money. If the product doesn’t match your personal style, it will not work for you long term. Whether for weight loss or organizing, quick fixes rarely work. Know that like anything worthwhile, getting organized takes time.

3. Boxes and bags syndrome – This is a very common one and I see it all the time. You may be so frustrated with all the clutter on your desk or you might just need to clear it in a hurry – you put all the clutter in a box or bag and stick it in the closet. Before you know it there is an avalanche of boxes and bags in the closet causing you stress and possibly even a great deal of shame. Avoid the boxes and bags syndrome by implementing systems – such as mail processing systems that prevent clutter from happening in the first place.

4. Vagueness about your possessions – It’s important to know what you have. One thing I do with clients all the time is consolidate like items. Organizers are particularly skilled at identifying patterns. If you are a Staples junkie like me for example, keep all your office supplies in one area so you know what you have and what you need to replenish. You’ll avoid duplicates, cut down on clutter and save money in the process. Also, when you are clear on what you have, you’ll be able to purchase the right containers to store them.

5. Procrastination and Avoidance - If you have been living with clutter for a long time, there is a high level of procrastination and avoidance that may cause you to freeze up. This paralysis leads to avoidance leads to frustration. Getting organized is a process. Fear of beginning or not knowing where to start is a common obstacle. This can be addressed by simply making a decision. Make a decision to start with the simplest task for example or with the area that is causing you the most stress. Another great way to begin is to start with the area that is of most interest to you or that will give you the most satisfaction or have the biggest impact. Regardless of what you chose – make a decision!

6. Someday/Somehow syndrome - The someday/somehow syndrome results from not having a plan. Your plan could be a simple one such as I’m going to spend 10 minutes a day organizing my files or I’m going to come in on Saturday when the office is quiet and do a major purge. Whether your style is to do a little at a time or tackle a project head on, having a plan will help you get it done.

7. I can do it myself syndrome – When it comes to getting things done in our super fast-paced world, we all can fall into the trap of thinking we can do it all ourselves. Avoid this organizing mistake by bringing in what my colleague and pioneer in the field of chronic disorganization, Judith Kohlberg has termed “a body double”.  A body double is someone, a friend or family member for example, who will sit with you while you organize and de-clutter. Make sure you chose someone that is supportive and non-judgmental. You’ll  be amazed at the results of asking for help.

Hear a little of what’s playing in her Brooklyn studio—also responsible for creative collaborations in architecture, art, furniture, and even kites—in our latest Playlist.

What do you listen to while you work? I spent years working in buttoned-up, quiet architectural offices in the city, so I definitely take advantage of having my own non-traditional working environment. The music is always loud when it’s playing in the studio, usually drowning out the din of DUMBO’s bridge traffic. When I need to focus on a specific sewing project, I listen to audiobooks downloaded via the New York Public Library. The NYPL has over 20,000 audiobooks available for download in MP3 format for free, and I average around 12 books a month. (Mostly classics like War and Peace, Proust, everything written by Dickens and Edith Wharton…and now I’m blacksliding into YA with the Hunger Games series.)

How do you listen? In the studio I have set of old speakers plugged into the laptop, or an iPod when I’m listening to an audiobook. When I work at home, the situation is analog. My boyfriend (writer Matt Lombardi) and I have a vinyl collection and a room full of instruments accrued through years of participating in Brooklyn’s DIY music scene. I’ve never been in a band, but Matt and his brother Jay (an artist and designer based in Philadelphia) are constantly making music. It’s so much fun to be around.

Do you have any favorite music websites/providers? I was an avid user of Muxtape, which sadly got curbed by the RIAA. I’ve been using 8tracks for the past few years as an alternative, which like Muxtape allows users to create mix tapes for their friends by uploading digital music they already own. It’s a wonderful online resource because individuals are authoring each mix to showcase their own discoveries.

Where do you find music recommendations? Who influences your musical taste? Matt makes me 8track mixes, and he has an encyclopedic knowledge of indie and garage rock, which I love. I have very intense work habits, so Matt’s mixes are usually themed (pointedly) on my obsessions: never sleeping, being broke, and WORK. They are amazing. [Hear three of his mixes here: Church of Work, Busted, and Sleep Tired Sleep Tired.]

Does music influence your work? On a recent large scale project, I listened to Bjork on repeat for months…when I listen to “Volta” now or look at the work I produced while listening to that particular album, the two things seem dependent on one another. I have a teenager’s obsessive love of music.

If your work was a song or a musician, what or who would it be? Animal Collective.

EMILY’S PLAYLIST

She Works Hard for the Money, Donna Summer

Never Get Ahead, Bobby Conn

We Gotta Get Out of This Place, The Animals

I Want Some, Make Up

Factory Girl, The Rolling Stones

Work Song, Dan Reeder

Welcome to the Working Week, Elvis Costello

Hold On, John Lennon

Images: Emily Fischer and portrait of Emily from PSFK interview here.

Dayone $9.99
What better time to start a journal than a turn of the new year? Dayone is a deceivingly sophisticated journal app for your computer and mobile applications. One of the biggest issues with keeping journals is making it easy enough to write in. Dayone has covered all the bases by integrating smart features like menu bar quick entry, reminder systems, calendar view, and more. It also has Dropbox integration for syncing.

Sparkbox $19.99
Forget iPhoto. Sparkbox proves to be the next best thing in image management. Some of the handy features includes the Safari Websnap extension integration. If there is a blog page full of images you want to save for later, in a single click you can have them all downloaded and ready to categorize in Sparkbox. There are also color-coded image searches, and a brilliant tagging/highlighting feature which allows you to annotate images with your thoughts. All of this comes packed in clean UI which will fit right in with other Mac software.

BeHealthy Free
BeHealthy is not only concerned with your time spent on your work, but the time spent away from work as well. Using a very simple timer feature, BeHealthy can schedule you eye breaks which you’re able to “postpone” for a minute if you can’t step away at that very instant. The app is very unintrusive (until it needs to be) and does one (important) thing, but one thing well.

Fantastical $19.99
Fantastical is intended to be a supplemental tool to your iCal, Google Calendar, BusyCal, Entourage, or Outlook. What makes Fantastical special is its incredibly fast and intuitive method of inputing new events (and having that input sync easily). Open up Fantastical from your menubar and begin typing a short sentence for your event like “pick up the kids from school at 3.” and Fantastical will parse/input that data into an event for your favorite calendar application. If you’ve been having trouble adding dates to your current calendar because you’ve found it to be too cumbersome, this might be your answer.

Things $49.99
No doubt the priciest of the apps mentioned here but this is a biggie of real importance: a task manager. For a student it can be your homework book, for a professional, your daily tasks at work, and for everyone, your personal checklist for everything from buying flowers for the anniversary to remembering to write that blog post before bed. Things has been around for a little while now and they still seem to be considered one of the top dogs in task management (and for good reason!) We highly recommend giving it a try and seeing if the intuitive task input/management system works for you.

By Mike Tyson.

I’m a designer and my wife Jess is a children’s photographer. We have a one year old daughter and a super mutt named Wrigley. (A very un-creative name for living in the Chicago area, but it’s too late too change it now!) We live in the western suburbs of Chicago, and love the midwest. We are just a few miles away from Frank Lloyd Wright’s studio in Oak Park, IL. Our ideal work space would definitely be influenced by his prairie-modern style – local materials, plenty of natural light and a fireplace to get us through these cold Chicago winters.

Above: Marden House by Frank Lloyd Wright

We also like a lot of the mid-century designers (Harper, Girard, Lustig and Ray and Charles Eames) -  their sense of modern design mixed with delight & whimsy, especially now with our one-year old daughter, is really fun to explore. Jess recently painted these Alexander Girard inspired nesting dolls for her nursery. The pottery is a custom (pink!) Teco Pottery from our friends at PrairieMod, the Girard blocks were a gift from House Industries and I made the pink sun artwork.

In 2012 we decided to start phasing out our office and desktop and being completely mobile. We love the idea of being able to work anywhere, especially outside with an amazing view.

I would prefer to give the Kobayashi’s weekend retreat (above) a try, but wouldn’t argue with Jess if we had a great deck like this facing Lake Michigan.

2. Dezeenscreen for their lovely video on the Sharing Plug – a new plug that offers a good solution to home office cable chaos.

3. Hongkiat for their post on 5o great work stations.

4. Unclutterer for their round up of organizing tips.

5. 20×200 for their great collection of affordable art. Perfect for sprucing up the home office.

6. MarketingTech Blog for their infographic on the rise of the mobile worker. We certainly aren’t alone!

7. Scientific America ran an interesting article in early January on the mobile worker and how technology is aiding the transition from office to home office.

8. Desire to Inspire for the crazy workspaces post.

9. Chictip has a good post on home office set ups.

10. The Selby for his coverage of Olaf Hajek’s home and home work space.

Always be curating new files. Whether we’re managing photos, (legally) downloading songs or starting a movie project, it’s easy to get lost in the plethora of files being created on our computer everyday. These files can build up over time, even long after we no longer need them. The trick to managing storage is being organized, know where files go after they’re downloaded or created. Have a good folder system going so new files are always being filed away. When it comes time to delete or back up data for more storage, we could simply move the entire folder instead of going through individual files.

Limit browser storage. Our browser is always backing up elements of the sites that we visit to enhance the web experience, the more it backs up the faster we browse the web. With the media heavy websites today, these “temporary” files can build up and take a good chuck of memory in our computer. We keep these files in check by clearing these files regularly. We also set a maximum limit for the browser to store these files. Usually these settings can be found under the Options or Preferences menu of the browser.

Back up, back up, back up. Getting an external hard drive is the basics of freeing up space on a computer, but it’s important to actually back up regularly. Having a good file structure could make this process a lot easier. Set up an automated solution like Time Machine or other software can make this process quick and painless. This also allows us to get rid of those important files on our local drive that we don’t always need to have with us. We regularly back up photos, music and movies that we’ve worked on and purge them from our local drive.

Turn off/restart the computer. Whether it’s a Mac or a PC, the OS usually backs up the documents and files is being worked on in case of any mishaps. Similar to browsing data, this can build up quickly on a computer. We found that by restarting our Mac once in a while, we recover about 1-2GB of storage space. Turning off the computer and letting it rest also has the advantage of saving energy by limiting electricity draw from the standby mode and improving the computer’s performance by clearing its RAM.

The Cloud is our friend. With so many cloud services for music and movies available, there isn’t much reason for us to keep physical media on our computer anymore. For the music lovers amongst us, services such as Spotify, Rdio or many others give you access to most of the music ever created in the world for a small fee or even free. For the TV and movie buffs, check out the perenial favorites such as Netflix and Hulu, the major streaming services are even creating their ownoriginal content. And with the growth and development of web tools such as Google’s services to Microsoft Office’s effort to “cloudify” themselves, soon we may not even need all those pesky programs taking up valuable storage. For the anti-Google fans, check out Lifehacker’s list of Google alternatives.

What are your tips and tricks for keeping your files from taking over your storage? Share with us in the comments below!
By Eric Chen

1. Alada Gold Winged Teacup, $161.25 Handmade porcelain and 18K gold wings. Because some of us think of tea as much more heavenly than coffee. Get it: shophorne.com

2. Tap For Tea, $39.00 Inspired by the Chinese custom of tapping your fingers to say “thank you” when tea is served, this design by Willie Tsang features a clever gold fingerprint pattern on its saucer. Get it: gnr8.biz

3. Glass cup and saucer, £6.95 Watch as your favorite blend brews in this elegantly simple cup and saucer set. Get it: teapigs.co.uk

4. Tea Mug, $20.00 This handle-less ceramic cup from South Korean designer Luna Seo features a small indentation along the rim to keep your tea bag in its place. Get it: momastore.org

5. Blomus Darjee Tea Glass, $18.98 The unique stainless-steel handle of this mug-style glass helps ease the heat (and increase its cool factor). Get it: allmodern.com

Michael Coren over at Fast Company makes the case for a 21 hour work week. I certainly work far more hours than my part-time job demands. But for me there’s a real blur between work – creating this blog – and writing or reading about things that interest me. And for many of us isn’t that the perfect job: one that mirrors your personal interests? When I’m reading Dezeen online or flicking through the pages of Wallpaper or Elle Decor or reading the newspaper in the morning over breakfast – I’m learning and absorbing and everything I’ve taken in feeds my work. If I included all those hours how long would my work week be? How many hours do you work each work?

What do you listen to while you work? We fight between Radio 4 (Stan) and music (Sophie). Sophie is proletarian. It’s class war—all day, every day.

How do you listen? Through a laptop running (via cable) to a Citronic 2000W PA power amp and Peavey 15″ cabs.

Do you have any favorite music websites/providers? The BBC iPlayer is an outstanding example why public ownership of the means of production, done well, works best.

Where do you find music recommendations? Who influences your musical taste? We are forever coercing each other into liking new things.

Does music influence your work? Music is part of who we are; it influences everything. Look at anything we’ve ever made and you’ll see the music in it.

If your work was a song or a musician, what or who would it be? Stan was a musician before he did this. The song “China (Acoustic)” [in the music mix below] was his work.

STAN & SOPHIE’S PLAYLIST

In for the Kill, La Roux (Skream remix)

Gold Dust, DJ Fresh

Express Yourself, N.W.A.

Forgot About Dre, Dr. Dre featuring Eminem

Provider, N.E.R.D.

Close to Me, The Cure

Walk on the Wild Side, Lou Reed

Montego Bay, Freddie Notes & The Rudies

Everything I Own, Ken Boothe

Into the Mystic, Van Morrison

Caravan of Love, The Housemartins

China (Acoustic), Summer Holiday

Deliverance, Bubba Sparxxx

Mo Money Mo Problems, Notorious B.I.G. featuring Puff Daddy & Mase

Images courtesy Stanley Wilson & Sophie Gollop

It’s interesting to think of this technology at the end of its natural life. We are on the brink of the next wave and in my mind it has to be some kind of tablet type device. Although having spent the weekend without my laptop trying to work from our iPad I am much relieved to get back to this MacBook Pro. The tablets need to resolve their cumbersome typing problems. If they could fix that I’d blog from the iPad in a heartbeat!

1. Eric Fischer’s amazing Flickr site. Fischer captures people’s photo-taking habits (locals and tourists) on maps and publishes them to Flickr. The images are really beautiful. Below is a snapshot of Chicago – the blue denotes locals taking photographs, the red is tourists.

2. Core 77’s store for their Hand-Eye Supply spiral bound notebooks that are wrapped shut with a strip of elastic that doubles as a pen holder. Clever.

3. PSFK for their piece on Mercedes mobile workplaces…more on this next week!

4. SFMoma’s artist’s series lets you buy prints from young contemporary artists. The latest contributor is Jason Munn and his clean-lined graphic work would make a great addition to your home office.

5. Danish architects MLRP for their amazing mirror house. Part fun house, part sleek contemporary design.

6. Designer Seung Yong Song’s wonderful Object-O.  A paper lantern perches on top of a chair – it’s the ultimate tiny home office.

7. Wallpaper for their W* House. Check out the study for some incredible home office accessories (yes, they have included our Airia desk)

8. W magazine wonderfully over the top House Tours series. Love this dark-walled library. I imagine you’d cosy up and get a lot of work done here!

9. Apartment Therapy – which has undergone a major redesign – for their coverage of digital decals for the home office.

10. Designboom for their online store selling original designs. Have a look at the 24k pencil. Nice accompaniment to the gold typewriter I covered yesterday.

1. Kami Wood Mug, $78.00 Handcrafted in Japan from castor aralia wood, the thickness of this simple mug is only 2mm—thin enough to allow light to glow through, yet thick enough for durable insulation. Get it: muhshome.com

2. Small Diamond Knit Cozy Mug, $22.00 The hand-knit cozy surrounding this porcelain mug makes taking on a winter day a bit easier. Get it: leifshop.com

3. Ripple Mugs, $28.00 Water inspired each piece in this dishwasher-safe collection, which merges the durability of porcelain with a handmade, minimalist look. Get it: tasknewyork.com

4. Striped Mugs, $40.00 Artist Heather Dahl hand-paints these bright mugs in orange, navy, or celery (and we especially like their light gray interiors). Get it: curiosityshoppeonline.com

5. Color Dipped Mug, $28.00 Another great pick made in Japan: straightforward white porcelain mugs dipped in hues of charcoal, red, yellow, or blue. Get it: poketo.com

Images linked to their sources within the numbered text

Bassam also stressed the importance of showing art. ” We were part of Art Basel so we also thought it important to show art which we feel is an important link to the artful background of Herman Miller. Showrooms and displays were well known for their use of art and combinations of objects. So, we just couldn’t have a dry corporate graphic!”

Above: Ray Eames at her Case Study home with models of the sculpture similar to the ones in her drawing for the “Modern Living” exhibition.

But there’s more to this image that initially meets the eye. “Note it was the first time the public would see the model of the Eames La Chaise, which Charles and Ray designed for MOMA’s Low Cost Furniture Competition,” says Daniel Ostroff, editor of EamesDesigns.com.  ”If you look closely at the drawing the faintest outline of it is shown in the foreground, which is where it was actually placed in the exhibition room.” You can hear Ostroff talk about the La Chaise here.

What do you listen to while you work? I started listening to Spotify after I got bored with Pandora. I am always genre-jumping depending on my mood and work load. I am a huge music junkie, always listening, collecting, reading, and writing about music. I have a somewhat specialized knowledge of certain periods in music, my favorite being British Post-Punk. I am also a huge ska fan, and I always listen to 60’s-era ska. So those are my go-to genres but I listen to lots of current indie rock, lots of classic rock, lots of garage, you name it. When I am doing research, I prefer more mellow music, but when I am writing specs I prefer tunes with more energy to keep me going, like The Ramones.

How do you listen? I listen to headphones on my iPod every day on the subway; I use that time to learn songs for my band. We started as a Go-Go’s tribute band, so I spend a lot of time learning the intricacies of each song on my way to work. Once I get to work and turn on my computer, I listen to Spotify. If I am working at home, then it’s more complicated because I have more choices and can crank up the volume. We have a vintage Bang and Olefsun turntable and a ton of records, so it’s fun to play them (but it’s annoying to have to get up and flip records while I am working). So I usually just load up the CD player or listen to Sirius satellite radio (my favorite stations are Little Steven’s Underground Garage, First Wave, XMU, and Classic Vinyl). I usually don’t listen to MP3s at home; I save that for time alone with my iPod.

Do you have any favorite music websites/providers? In addition to Spotify, I like Hype Machine, which catalogs MP3s posted by music blogs. But generally, I’m old-school and collect CDs and vinyl. I do buy from iTunes, but it’s not my preferred method of obtaining music. Digging in a record store is still one of my favorite things to do.

Does music influence your work? It doesn’t influence my design work as much as visual art does, but it keeps me company and is a wonderful companion—I couldn’t get through the day without it. It can help me adjust my mood to suit the tasks I am doing. Record cover art is also inspiring! I love graphic design and typography, so I am as equally interested in album art as much as the music.

Where do you find music recommendations? Who influences your musical taste? My musical taste was set very early, in 1979, when I was ten years old and heard “Rock Lobster” by The B-52’s for the first time. I was completely awestruck, threw away the Muppet Movie soundtrack I used to carry around on my portable Panasonic 8-track player, and never looked back. My older neighbor also taught me about New Wave and Punk. That was and still is a huge influence. I also know a ton of people who are in bands and into music, so we all share info, recommendations, etc. I go to a lot of shows as well; my boyfriend is a music promoter and we are always seeing bands. My band also meets other bands that we play with, so there is never a shortage of new music, or the desire to learn about older music. Another huge influence is the music scene in Philadelphia, which is really vibrant and thriving right now. We are so lucky to be a part of it.

If your work was a song or a musician, what or who would it be? Elvis Costello once said, “Writing about music is like dancing about architecture.” So I don’t think I can answer that—it’s so complex and would change all the time. Some things can’t be captured in words.

ROYCE’S PLAYLIST

Newly Released Stuff:

Romance, Wild Flag
Bedroom Eyes, Dum Dum Girls
Baby Missiles, The War on Drugs
Austere, The Joy Formidable
Belong, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart

Miranda, Surfer Blood
Recharge & Revolt, The Raveonettes
Georgia, Yuck
Colours, Grouplove
I Love My Label, Wilco (cover of Nick Lowe)
I Am Trying to Break Your Heart, J.C. Brooks & the Uptown Sound (cover of Wilco)
Valerie, Amy Winehouse
Cruel, St. Vincent
Crystalline, Bjork

Old Stuff:
Roadrunner, The Modern Lovers
Crazy Rhythms, The Feelies
Do It Clean, Echo & the Bunnymen
X-Offender, Blondie
Lost in the Supermarket, The Clash
Mind Your Own Business, Delta 5
Damaged Goods, Gang of Four
Going Underground, The Jam
Transmission, Joy Division
Echo Beach, Martha and the Muffins
The Beat, Elvis Costello and the Attractions
Typical Girls, The Slits

Fire in Cairo, The Cure
This Charming Man, The Smiths
Images: Royce Epstein