With thoughtful watercolor drawings, Kate T. Williamson captures the many moments of her daily life after moving back in with her parents for what was thought to be a three-month stopover but soon became a twenty-three-month stay.

Small details and ordinary scenes amount to a personal memoir that catches all the joys and embarrassing episodes of living once again with one's own parents. From spending her twenty-fourth birthday at a Hall&Oates concert with her mother to hiding in the fridge at a floral shop to avoid the 'what are you doing with your life' question, there's a sense of self awareness captured in her own script that is alternately uncomfortable and funny. This would be a perfect gift for anyone who has ever moved back in with their parents (or might be tempted to) and for those who have experienced the strange period of 'in-between-ness' that occurs after college but right before finding one's own roots.

[posted by katie]

Full of details that would make the most of a smaller space, this book has many photos that will help jog your creative juices. My favorites: Small House by Kazuyo Sejima & Associates, Healy/Kaplow Loft by Matthew Baird Design, and Anderson House by Jamie Fobert Architects.

"Small Environments focuses on the type of architectural details that make up distinctive residential spaces under 1,200 square feet [120 square meters]. It presents recent work by architects from around the globe in color photographs and architectural drawings. Rather than simply another compendium of small projects, the book is structured according to categories of architectural detail. It includes sections on components essential to the design of small spaces, such as built-in pieces, mobile systems, storage, outdoor rooms, siting strategies and daylighting details."

[posted by katie]

Even though this was published back in '06, there were quite a few homes in this book I had not seen featured before. My favorites: Cell Brick House, Castle Groenhof, and, of course, Denis House.

"Popular demand has led IMAGES' team of researchers to scour the world for yet another stunning collection of homes. The 100 fabulous homes carefully selected for this volume represent contemporary residential architecture in all its myriad forms. Vast differences in location, climate, culture, style, materials, interiors, and even furniture result in a collection that showcases, with full-colour photographs, plans and drawings, the best in international residential architecture. This is a book that can be browsed through time after time, with each viewing guaranteed to inspire, delight and surprise."

[posted by katie]

With so many intriguing details, this book leaves you with wanting more. Each section does an excellent job of focusing on particular issues concerning sustainable architecture, and there's a wide variety of building and design ideas to jump start your creativity. I kept wanting to see more of each home- more interior shots, more close ups on building materials, floorplans, etc.- but thorough exhaustive overviews is not what this book is about. Instead it zooms in on particular topics, highlighting how each home showcases the subject at hand. There's quite a few homes that shine- way too many to name.

"Sustainable Environments focuses on the type of architectural details in distinctive, sustainable residential spaces. It includes sections on components such as cooling or shading devices, building techniques that create minimal impact on the land, active systems, and the use of new sustainable materials as well as those that are salvaged or recyclable."

[posted by katie]

This little book is chock-full of modern interiors (just as the title suggests). Each residence is given 3 to 10 pages of coverage, mostly pictures but sometimes floorplans and cross sections are included as well. There are too many lust-worthy ones to name, but the crazy staircase of the XXS House stands out (shown top right). Overall, it's a spectacular resource to help inspire your home interior projects.

pictures:
(top right) XXS House by Dekleva Gregoric Arhitekti
(bottom) smart.space by AvroKO

[posted by katie]

Man, if you want to know more about the issues surrounding the U.S.-Mexico border, this book is for you. Sure, we  hear about illegal immigration, from occasional media sources to the debates of recent political primaries, and unfortunately that's probably the extent to which we bend our ear to the whole messy subject. This might be fine for some members of the general public, but for those of you that want a much broader overview of the concerns, Hyperborder is a good place to start.

With a staggering amount of facts and figures, it provides a thorough nonpartisan look at issues surrounding this region and how each country has become increasingly interdependent on the other. Future scenarios highlight possible outcomes (good and bad) while visual graphics help streamline data; making information more applicable and easier to absorb. Perhaps it's not bed or beach side reading, but it is a valuable source of information surrounding border issues, which is fast becoming a subject too large to ignore.

"The U.S.-Mexico border is the busiest, and among the most contrasting international borders in the world with over one million crossings daily. It is a dynamic site that encompasses modern global issues that range from migration to trade to international relations to national sovereignty, making it a HYPERBORDER. Considering the United States and Mexico are the leading immigration and emigration countries in the world and that by 2050 Hispanics will represent 25% of the U.S. population, both nations will need to re-evaluate their political, economic, and cultural relations as this demographic shift takes place." -hyperborder.net

a couple of quotes:

"More than 3,000 registered deaths are estimated to have occured in the ten-year time frame beginning in late 1994 when Operation Gatekeeper began...and around 1,000 unidentified migrants. About 1.5 times as many people have died on the border since its militarization process becan in 1994 than those who perished in the 9/11 terrorist attacks."-pg.181

"Currently the Latino community in the United States is growing at a rate almost five times that of the general population, a demographic explosion that is further increasing the group's economic clout."-pg.108

Also, check out Judi Werthein's Brinco [Sneakers], which were designed especially for migrant workers crossing the border between Mexico and the U.S.

[images on right via metropolismag.com]


[posted by katie]

With so many exquisite full-page photographs, this book does an excellent job of showing off some of China's most interesting converted spaces. I've looked through many a book on lofts, not only for the picture fix of light-filled rooms, but also for the eclectic mix of furnishings that usually come along with a loft owner. This book did not disappoint. Both residential and commercial spaces are featured, with over 200 full-color photographs to aid understanding of how such spaces have retained their original bones yet function as modern day cafes, offices, studios and homes. What I found to be most interesting is that some of the lofts could easily be in any other major city, yet others are full of furniture and objects that identify with the country's rich culture- it's a distinctive stamp on an otherwise pervasive trend.

[posted by katie]

The reviews are a little mixed on this one, but once again, the cover beckons...

"What makes a sustainable house a sustainable home? NEW SUSTAINABLE HOMES will address that question by presenting a wide range of projects where the architect and client have made a conscientious effort to incorporate sustainability into the design of the home and construction materials used in its execution. The result is a home that is less toxic to live in, is cheaper to operate, and often gives back to the environment rather than taking away. Also, and this is the most important consideration for many, it is a great looking, highly livable home that not only retains its value but has been shown to increase in value more quickly than more conventionally conceived houses because of cheaper operating expenses."

NEW SUSTAINABLE HOMES will show readers will learn about the many materials and techniques that make up today's sustainable house, including:
1) the use of pervious concrete on driveways that allows water to seep through to the water table below.
2) using bio–fiber panels in lieu of plywood for interior finishing
3) using organic, green roofs that improve insulation, absorb sound and manage storm–water runoff
4) solar water heating systems
5) use of high thermal performance windows
6) photovoltaic electrical systems

[posted by katie]

This looks entirely interesting.

"The allure of mobile, portable architecture is worldwide and centuries old, from the desert tents of the bedouin to the silvery capsules of the Airstream trailer. Mobile explores the ever-growing range of possibilities of portable, demountable, and mobile structures. Jennifer Siegal brings together the work of the most interesting contemporary designers of dynamic, active structures, whose work ranges from the microenvironment of a house that literally attaches to your body to the city-scaled macroenvironment of London's Millennium Dome, from the interior of a Boeing jet to an entire mobile community whose living units plug into a framework of flexible communal space, and from the practical design of transportable office space to the whimsical design of Pink Floyd's The Wall stage set. All of the designs celebrate the lightness, transience, and practicality that mobile architecture makes possible."

[posted by katie]

This looks to be a rather interesting read.

"[Art]ifact is about innovative product design that dares to go beyond the conventionality and bring a total havoc to our perception. With brilliant use of form (size and shape), material and colour, these designs stretch imagination beyond limits and create exceptional emotions and user interaction beyond the basic function. Challenging yet familiar, serious yet amusing, the titlele shows you a conglomeration of cool, intelligent, playful, ironic and unprecedented designs, each with an extraordinary angle, idea or story that will tickle our brain and touch our heart."

[posted by katie]