Saturday morning, Boston welcomed back one of our own, Decor8‘s Holly Becker!

Holly came to Boston from her home with her husband in Germany in support the launch of her first book, Decorate: 1,000 Design Ideas for Every Room in Your Home. The event  started with Holly giving a how-to all about mood boards. I missed this part but was told that the second floor of Anthropologie was PACKED — an impressive fact, given that the Back Bay is more a place for brunch on a Saturday morning than a place for design discussion.

Following the mood board event, Holly signed books. The book signing was scheduled to end at 12:30, but the line just wasn’t having it. I picked up my copy of Decorate and got in line around 11:45, and ended up in front of Holly about an hour later. As I got to the head of the line, Holly greeted me with a, “Gradon?”

Yep, six years after first becoming blogging friends — starting in the same city — we finally got to meet each other!

She stood up, walked around the table, and gave me a hug. We had a quick chat (as quick as you can have with a pack of ravenous fans waiting in line) about the book, about loved ones in other countries, and about starting families — at least Holly and her husband starting a family. That’s the plan for the Beckers shortly after Holly gets back from tour (so exciting!)

I had to run off to spend the day with my family, and now Holly’s on her way to Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and finally, New York… before going back to Germany and her husband.

It was a shorter visit than I would have liked, but it was great to finally meet one of my first friends from the blogging world.

Through its previous events, SHIFTboston has asked designers to rethink Boston, rethink experiencing Boston Harbor, even rethink the Moon. This time, SHIFTboston wants you to rethink… a commuter rail line?

For “WHY STOP?”, SHIFTboston has partnered with the Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s South Coast Rail Economic Development and Land Use Corridor Plan (great name, huh?) to challenge “urban planners, architects, urban designers, designers and landscape architects — professionals and students — to explore and visualize destinations along the proposed South Coast Rail extension, which will connect Boston to Taunton, New Bedford, and Fall River, Massachusetts.”

This is a great idea. As a Bostonian that doesn’t own a car, the idea of traveling out to New Bedford or Fall River would need to include a lot of planning — let alone a reason for making the trek. Why would we go through the effort?

This is where SHIFTboston comes in.

The planned extension of commuter rail lines from Boston’s South Station to the Massachusetts South Coast has the capacity for broader re-conception and re-imagination of the region. We encourage competitors to investigate and to explore the potential of this new network and its RESOURCES. Competitors might animate the rail system by adding to or enhancing the latent urban NETWORK. These NEW destinations could draw from the regional and local resources, industry and culture such as, universities, agriculture, arts, marine industry, historical institutions, tourism and recreation. FUN? Consider what has not yet been considered — contemporary communal and PUBLIC meeting places, open markets for local food production, a regional cultural campus of performance space and theaters connected by rail, or new research and development campuses or dense residential districts. The submission might explore these stopping points along the rail as part of system of supporting links which make up a greater network. The competitor might also choose to focus on further developing the central core of one or more of the cities on the line, such as Fall River or New Bedford.

Competitors can choose to submit a proposal for one of four locations: the New Bedford stop, the Fall River stop, Environment, or “You Tell Us” (which sounds at once like a cop out AND much more complex).

The jury includes representatives from architecture, urban planning, academia, and government:

• Julia Czerniak, Director of UPSTATE and Associate Professor at Syracuse University School of Architecture, Syracuse, NY
• Diane Georgopulos, Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency (Mass Housing), Boston, MA
• Greg Guimond, Deputy Director and Comprehensive Planning Manger of the Southeastern Regional Planning & Economic Development District (SRPEDD), Taunton, MA
• Scott Lang, Mayor, New Bedford, MA
• Edward Mitchell, Assistant Professor at Yale University School of Architecture and Principal of EMA, New Haven, CT
• Chris Reed, Principal and Founder of Stoss Landscape Urbanism, Boston, MA
• Adèle Naudé Santos, Dean of Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Architecture, Cambridge, MA and Principal of Santos Prescott and Associates, San Francisco, CA
• Michael Sorkin, Principal of Sorkin Studio, New York, NY

The winning competitor, as chosen by the jury, will present his or her concept at the SHIFTboston WHY STOP Forum in Boston in October among members of the jury, government, community and business leaders, local developers and regional economic development groups.

The winning entry will be featured in a new game for mobile devices which will be featured at the Forum and as part of the WHY STOP Exhibition. Winning and select submissions will be on public display as part of a traveling exhibition which will begin at South Station in Boston, the New Bedford Public Library and then Fall River begining in January of 2012.

Interested in submitting an entry? The deadline for submissions is one month from yesterday, Friday, September 16, 2011. To register, visit http://shiftboston.org/competitions/register.php

I love Reside. Walking around the Huron Ave/Concord Ave/Fresh Pond triangle, Reside is a standout in an already outstanding area. Which is why my initial reaction to the news of their new location on Washington St in the South End was a mix of excitement and apprehension.

How would the cutest, nicest store with the most fantastic furniture in the prettiest part of Cambridge do in a new neighborhood, let alone the South End?

Not that I have anything against the South End. It’s one of the most vibrant design neighborhoods in the city, and I often spend time there. But it’s a bit… fancy compared to Fresh Pond. How will Reside hold up?

I headed out to Washington St to find out.

All in all, Reside holds up well in well in the South End. The space on Washington St feels like a perfect fit for all of the twentieth century modern furniture and accessories.

Yes, I said “twentieth century” and not “mid-century.” The range of options at the new store expands beyond the mid-century focus of the Cambridge store. The space is packed with furniture, yet not so much that you can’t browse. I think this is one of owner Pamela Watt’s special abilities — filling a space without overfilling it — and it’s something that not every vintage retailer grasps.

Aside from the furniture, Reside South End seemed like it has more accessories than the original store. There were vases, a bunch of glasses on a shelf unit when I visited, as well as a case of jewelry handmade by Pamela’s daughter Nicole.

Every time I walk into Reside Cambridge, I fall in love with a different piece of furniture, and this was no different in the new space. This time, it was this Scandinavian teak dining table. Utterly gorgeous, and it would look great in our new dining room (more on that later.)

All in all, Reside holds up well in the South End. It’s different than the space on Concord Ave, as it should be. Now the only problem is deciding which one I want to visit more.

Reside South End
1409 Washington Street
Boston, MA 02118
857-350-3594

The Globe, Herald, and Universal Hub have reported that apartment developer Avalon Properties has proposed building a 29-story residential tower on Stuart St. in Boston.

If approved, the 404-unit apartment tower, designed by Boston’s own CBT Architects, will take the place of a parking lot adjacent to the Jacob Wirth tavern. The building will feature “luxury studios renting for $1,800, one-bedrooms in the low- to mid-$2,000 range and two-bedrooms starting at $3,000 a month.”

While the image doesn’t show much detail, the building will be shaped like a T, with narrow street frontage. The design is generating split opinions on the ArchBoston forums, with some negatively comparing it to Vancouver’s residential towers, and others wishing it was an even stronger reflection of the West Coast Canadian city’s noted architectural style.

Personally, I think it’s a tasteful — if not terribly awe-inspiring — design, and it will be a good addition to the downtown landscape.

Mine is an opinion shared by some… and not by others. The Herald article quoted Ken Ham, president of the Bay Village Neighborhood Association: “It’s a great project,” he said. “It gets rid of another parking lot, puts another great building near us, and fills a void between Bay Village and Chinatown in a rundown area.”

Conversely, the Globe quoted Lydia Lowe, executive director of the Chinese Progressive Association, who said in response to the proposal, “It sounds like the same old kind of thing we’ve been seeing a lot of in Chinatown. I don’t see it adding to the community’s priorities.” This is similar to Chinatown’s response to another 29-story residential tower on the other side of Chinatown back in 2007.

What do you think? Do you like the look of the new tower? Do you hate it? Do you think a luxury apartment building is what Stuart Street needs?

If you consider yourself an “emerging interior design pro”, make plans to head to New York next month.

On September 16 and 17, the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) will introduce GO PRO: NYC, “a weekend of events tailored specifically for emerging professionals in the interior design industry.”

The two-day event will start with PROject, a tour of the  New York Times building, guided by FXFOWLE Architects, the building’s designers. After, enjoy a reception and talk by Guy Geier, Managing Partner, FXFOWLE Architects, in the offices of Covington & Burling, featuring 360-degree panoramic views of Manhattan.

Saturday includes two information-packed sessions. PROduct will feature carpet designer Joe Carini of CariniLang, discussing his experience working with Nepalese weavers and creating innovative maps of New York at his showroom.

In the afternoon, PRObono Work is a panel discussion on “the responsibility of the design community to take an activist stance and embrace pro bono work.” As part of the panel, there will be a case study of the Harlem-based Girls Educational and Mentoring Services (GEMS) facility—an organization that empowers young women who have been sexually exploited.

The panelists will include John Cary, President and CEO of The Next American City and author of “The Power of Pro Bono“; Sonya Dufner, FASID, Associate Principal, Director of Workplace at Perkins + Will NYC; Rachel Lloyd, Founder and Executive Director of New York-based Girls Educational and Mentoring Services (GEMS); and Courtney E. Martin, author of “Do It Anyway: The New Generation of Activists“.

The weekend will end with PROfessional Development at the Vitra showroom, a chance to “mingle with design professionals by practice area and expand your professional network in the sectors you want to pursue.” And what design event would be complete without “delicious fare, libations and dancing”?

Visit GO PRO: NYC for more information, and to register.

Jill Rosenwald is Boston’s favorite potter — or at least DesignBoston’s favorite! Since I first met Jill (I think it was at an event at Vessel), I’ve loved Jill’s sense of style and craftsmanship, and her ability to mix Yankee preppiness with the clean lines of modern design.

Jill recently launched a new website. Along with the bio, catalog, and contact information, Jill’s now offering e-commerce, meaning you can order her lamps, bowls, vases, and more with just a click.

But what if you’ve already bought a piece by Jill? Well, there’s something for you, too. Between now and October 31, take a photo of your Jill piece and send it to her for your chance to win a custom monogrammed mug!

We spend three weeks sculpting, painting and caring-for each item so, when we box up the finished piece it is a bittersweet goodbye. What comforts us is knowing it arrives at a stylish pad. Show us just how stylish! Whether you fill it with sunflowers, stir cookie dough in it, or simply place it on the mantle for all your guests to gawk at… let’s see your Jill in its new home!

For all the details, check out the giveaway page on Jill’s site. And, while you’re at it, Like Jill on Facebook, and follow her on Twitter.

One trait that I see over and over again in designers is that they’re always looking for ways to improve things. Whether it’s Le Corbusier with the density of Paris, or Michael Graves with a teapot, designers look at the world differently than the rest of us.

That belief holds true for Brookline-based architects Jin Choi and Thomas Shine of Choi + Shine Architects, who saw beyond the simple function of electrical pylons and designed giant, 150-foot figures with arms raised to carry electricity across the countryside.

Making only minor alterations to well established steel-framed tower design, we have created a series of towers that are powerful, solemn and variable. These iconic pylon-figures will become monuments in the landscape. Seeing the pylon-figures will become an unforgettable experience, elevating the towers to something more than merely a functional design of necessity.

Originally designed for a 2008 contest in Iceland to redesign powerlines (how they lost, I have no idea), Choi and Shine entered the pylon design into the Boston Society of Architects‘ Unbuilt Architecture competition this past spring. That, they won.

Despite the large number of possible forms, each pylon-figure is made from the same major assembled parts (torso, fore arm, upper leg, hand etc.) and uses a library of pre-assembled joints between these parts to create the pylon-figures’ appearance. This design allows for many variations in form and height while the pylon-figures’ cost is kept low through identical production, simple assembly and construction.

The idea of these towers running across the bare, Icelandic terrain is pretty epic, but I wonder how they’d look running along I-95, bringing power from Connecticut to New York City. Or just a few walking away from the power plant in Everett, across the Mystic from Charlestown.

Like the statues of Easter Island, it is envisioned that these one hundred and fifty foot tall, modern caryatids will take on a quiet authority, belonging to their landscape yet serving the people, silently transporting electricity across all terrain, day and night, sunshine or snow.

(via Boston Phoenix)

Earlier this week, the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) concluded their Greenway District Planning Study, setting building height limits along the 1-1/2 mile long Rose Kennedy Greenway.

To ensure that no one building or collection of buildings dominates the Greenway in terms of its scale, orientation, or architecture, the team examined potential massing studies from the perspective of the park user. Heights were also carefully analyzed for their potential to cast large or lengthy new shadows on the park parcels. Final height recommendations range from buildings between 175-200 feet along the waterfront to buildings ranging as tall as 400-600 feet on the city side of the Greenway.

The objective of the study was to create a set of guidelines specifically for the parcels adjoining the Greenway, with the following goals:

• preserve the newly created open spaces (environmentally, aesthetically, and economically) by identifying densities, height, and other building massing criteria compatible with the recreational activities and horticultural life that are being encouraged to grow there;
• Activate the broader public realm in and surrounding the parks by identifying and strategically locating desired uses, particularly at the ground plane, that will contribute positively to the Greenway;
• Ensure the long-term value of the public’s investment in creating the Greenway by shaping development to maximize the quality of the parks and extend their impact beyond its edges to the Downtown neighborhoods;
• Balance the development pressures within the Greenway District and with other growth areas and development opportunities in the City as a whole.

Using the new guidelines, the BRA and study-partner Utile estimate that between 2-million and 3-million additional square feet of buildings can be constructed along the Greenway, offering housing, shopping, and work space for up to 9,000 additional people.

The new ruling, as expected, has created winners, like Government Center Garage developer Thomas O’Brien, and losers, such as Donald Chiofaro, who has proposed a 625-foot tower where the Harbor Garage currently stands.

I’m excited to see how the Greenway — and the spaces around it — continue to adjust to the best possible fit for the residents, workers and tourists that frequent the area.

The Boston Globe recently reported on a proposal by local developer Samuels and Associates for two new buildings in the Fenway.

A building at 132 Brookline Ave. would house 170 high-end apartments and include retail space on the first floor. A street over, on the corner of Boylston and Van Ness streets, another building would hold 150 luxury apartments, 200,000 square feet of retail space, and 225,000 square feet of office space. The company also plans to build 500 parking spaces underground.

The two 15-story mixed-use projects are part of the larger Fenway Triangle development by Samuels & Associates — including 1330 Boylston Street and Fenway Triangle Trilogy. If the rendering above is any indication, the new buildings will keep the design theme of the earlier two (which were designed by Elkus Manfredi), modern but uninspired.

Assuming these buildings are a success, further development could include two further buildings along Yawkey Way, between Boylston Street and Brookline Ave.

Back in 2006, I questioned whether the Fenway was the right neighborhood for these developments, and the increased popularity of the buildings — as well as the nearby Landmark Center — show that Samuels & Associates are onto something.

Since moving his studio from Fort Point to Milton, Quentin Kelley’s been busy introducing new pieces to Infusion Furniture, his line of handmade, modern furniture. Quentin was nice enough to send over photos of his newest pieces, continuing on his theme of clean, modern lines built with old-world craftsmanship.

I especially like the Glass Top Dining Table (above). With a clear, glass top, the focus of the table is the four legs and connecting cross-beam, especially paired with Kartell’s Louie Ghost chairs.

Quentin’s new pieces also have an added functionality, adding to their modern appeal. Take, for instance, his Transformer Dining Table . An elegant piece available in a variety of woods, the Transformer would make a beautiful anchor point for a dining room. Hold up, you say, you live in a small apartment without a dedication dining room — it’s more like a dining space — what then?

Simple. You just fold the table up and it becomes a nice sideboard.

His new Media Cabinet has a more straightforward functionality, and equally direct aesthetics — the strength and quality of the woods he uses are first priority, allowing them to tell the story of the piece.

The story of the material is even stronger in the Slab Coffee Table. With simple footing underneath, the focus is on the grain and coloration of the single slab of wood that is the top.

It’s been over three years since I’ve first met Quentin Kelley, and it’s great to see him continue to produce quality, unique pieces that represent his day-to-day inspiration as a craftsman.