Howl Interiors: Decorate Like You Give a Damn!

Last Saturday Karly and I accompanied our bff on an alcohol soaked wedding dress shopping extravaganza (holy jeebus, Sunday sucked), and we happened to pass by Howl's new storefront on South Lamar while hoofing it across Unbridaled's parking lot. I've driven past this place a few times and their siren sign always calls to me. Each time I've fought the urge to U-turn in the middle of Austin traffic, fishtailing and tires squealing all 70's car movie style. Did I mention that the sign is eye catching?

It promises a carnivalesque good time, and it delivers. Come on, let's take a little tour.

The first thing you need to know is that this place is dark and moody, and my ancient point and shoot just can't handle anything other than rainbow flecked crystalline sunlight with grace and aplomb, so sorry for the janky pictures.

I'm going to go ahead and say this place is one part Uncommon Objects, one part Uptown Modern, and no parts Room Service. If you aren't an Austinite, let me translate: there's some rust, some burl -- both 70s and antique, and there are zero ceramic owls.

Karly already has her first purchase wrapped up and ready to go. Too bad we are po bitches.

We both deemed this lucite couch worthy of our love and affection. I am burning that pillow with my mind, though. Firestarter style.

Jesus don't want me for a sunbeam.

Cousin It the goat wants to live in Ike's room.

A gorgeous olive burl Baughman table just like the one I found for my buddy's house. The elephant is trumpeting his seal of approval.

I found the store to be charming, and the proprietor to be adorably adorable. The prices ranged from holy %^* expensive to quite reasonable -- they had a flossy Paul Evans/brutalist barrel chair in dire need of upholstery for about $250, which is not bad for Austin prices. I was hoping to find a bit more modern in the mix, mostly artwise. I'm on a big antiques jag right now, but I feel like all that patina needs some edge to sharpen it up.

Hopefully Howl is reading this and will call me with a bargain basement de Kooning or Sol Lewitt... fingers crossed!

We Are a Part of the Patchwork Nation

Patchhhhhhhhwwwwworrrrrrk! Say it for the people! Say it for the children! Do you think Obama's entire inaugural address could be set to the tune of Rhythm Nation? It's undoubtedly best not to find out, but what a speech! It was especially nice to have a president acknowledge what every American already knows: hey, we're all different, and that's a good thing. So put away the one size fits all rhetoric of the past, and enjoy the pretty fruits of our collective, cobbled together heritage, design style.

Photo via Innumerable Goods

Patchwork quilts and pillows have long held the symbolic weight of history -- a scrap of grandpa's shirt here, a square of baby's first blanket there, and in time a singular piece of fabric weaves together the stories of generations. Perhaps the zeitgeist of changing history is sweeping through the land, because patchwork is EVERYWHERE, but this ain't your grandma's country quilt.

Nosireeebob, patchwork can be modern, even mod. Arne Jacobsen's seminal Egg Chair, reconfigured by artist Tal R, is bright, bold, and one of kind -- awww, just like us. Look! There's even a stars and stripes model. And that actually makes me... proud.

Patchwork goes haute in this gorgeous living room featured on Desire to Inspire. I will take the entire room, please, but the space would be bland city without the sofa, which looks like it was produced by Squint Limited, makers and purveyors of all things bright and patchy:

Can you even imagine all the labor that must have gone into the tufting on that headboard?! And I enjoy peeking into their studio in the background... I would love to rifle through their stacks and stacks of fabric scraps. But for me, the real prize is that kissing bench. Momma like.

This headboard featured in Living Etc is a little more DIY friendly, but still patchylicious. I love the tiny red buttons hidden in the tufts, like secret surprises only sleepers can see.

For some global flava, these patchwork couches made of treasured Turkish tapestries by Bojka are singularly spicy and delicious. Found on super blog, Double Takes.

Ok, this patchwork beanbag couch by Bertjan Pot is kind of like something my grandma used to have, but it's so much more squishy and inviting than grandma's hard, lumpy, bumpy seating. I envision a sleepover party with pillow fights and popcorn, but don't eff up my rad duct tape rug, you messy beasts.

We can't let fabric have all the fun. Welcome to the patchwork party, crazy case goods by Boca do Lobo (designers with a cute wolf logo). This inspires me to paint all the drawers in my buffet table different colors, although I think I might fail to capture the full range of awesomeness without some mad carpentry skillz.

Speaking of mad carpentry skillz:

I'm sure fitting all those tiny pieces of wood waste and off-cuts together into something -- anything -- was challenging. Making an actual load bearing chair out of scrap is pretty damn impressive. Good job, Amy Hunting!

Meanwhile, I have a minor obsession with vintage patchwork goodies, but not quilts...

I'm a woozy floozy for pretty much anything in Paul Evan's Cityscape series. Super shiny patchwork metal casing + ultra square lines = unmitigated lust on my part. Meow. Both pieces available at 1st Dibs if you got the money, honey.

Yes, the times they are a changing. So why don't we all sit down over some tea to talk about it? This Tea For Two set by Vika Mitrichenka is sure to get the conversation flowing. How about, you say "Toe May Toe" and I say "If you break my fancy tea set, this happy fun time tea party is over, pronto." Oh, alright. I say "Toe Mah Toe." Because, thanks to Obama I'm feeling warm and fuzzy like that.