Get the Look: 38 Modern Wall Hooks

We never seem to have enough hooks, whether it’s in the closet, on the back of the bathroom door, or in the kitchen, I’ve been meaning to add to by my desk for my tote bag too, instead of always draping it on the back of my chair. I don’t want it to stand out, so I’ll need to find simple modern wall hooks.

With the holidays upon us, not to mention what’s sure to be a snowy winter,  adding hooks to inside the closet, by the door in the entry, and pretty much all over the mudroom is always a good idea.

Here are 38 mostly modern wall hooks from StyleCarrot partners and other shops, many fun, all functional.
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S H O P P I N G 

1 Forged heart hook at House of Antique Hardware

2 Octopus hook at Wayfair

3 Minerva hook at Anthropologie.

4 Aquatic Life Starfish hook at Anthropologie

5 Mediterraneo wall hook by  Alessi at AllModern.

6 Cleaved Totem hook at Anthropologie

7 Rustic hook by Monroe Trades at West Elm.

8 Curve Hook by Normann Copenhagen at Gretel Home.

9 Wishful Thinking wall hook at Lulu & Georgia

10 Whale Tail wall hook at AllModern

11 Branch hook at Target

12 Birch coat hook by UrbanCase at 2modern.

13 Cisco Fox Wood wall hook at Target

14 Rope & Metal hook at West Elm.  

15 Hook by Line Depping + Wrong by Hay at A+R

16 Driftwood Wall Hook by Kiel Mead for Areaware at Horne

17 Arrow hook by Design House Stockholm at Nova68

18 Beslagsboden rounded coat hook by Smedbo at AllModern

19 Streamline hook at Anthropologie

20 Wook wall hook by Blu Dot at 2modern

21 Peace Hand wall hook at AHA Life.

22 Wall Cleat by Wrk-shop at A+R

23 Talking Heads hooks by ENO Studio+Sebastian Bergne at A+R.

24 Stropp copper & leather coat hook at Dwell Store

25 Spire gold metal wall hook by Finell at Lumens

26 Coatrack Dot hooks by Muuto at DWR

27 DUO wall hook by Blomus at 2modern

28 Dipped gold wall hook at H&M

29 Ready hook with mirror by Normann Copenhagen at Dwell Store

30 Slivered marble hook at Anthropologie

31 Leaning edge aluminum wall hook at CB2

32 Arrow wall hook at CB2.

22 Crew single wall hook at Room & Board.

34 Brass & Marble Loop hook at LaSelva Design Studio

35 Tulip hook by Arblu at YLiving.  

36 Breyman copper wall hook at Schoolhouse Electric

37 Birdie wall hook by Umbra at The Container Store

38 Glass knobs by Tom Dixon at YLiving

Get the Look: 30 Modern Rocking Chairs

A few weeks  ago I did a small roundup of modern rocking chairs to accompany a decor story in the Boston Globe. (Every Monday my lovely colleague Jaci Conroy writes an interior design article for the Globe and I pull together a corresponding group of furnishings & accessories.) I found so many great modern rocking chairs + contemporary rocking chairs that I figured a blog post was in order.

These all have great styling and are a far departure from traditional rockers or overstuffed gliders for the nursery. We have an Eames molded plastic rocker in sky blue on the Cape that we bought for my son, though I think it’s in our room now. Sometimes I use it on our little deck. I didn’t include that iconic example here, but there are other examples (mid-century modern furniture replicas), like the #16, the Swerve which has jaunty cut-outs and a full wooden base.

I love the look of  #5, a very spare rocker from NYC shop Matter, and of love the tall mint-upholstered one by Normann Copenhagen. And if only I could place that blush colored Artifort rocker in the model apartment I’m decorating. Probably thought, the one that makes the most sense for my lifestyle is Gus Modern’s GT rocker (#13). It is definitely a contemporary rocking chair in style, but with enough cushion to be comfy.

Shop 30 modern rocking chairs from StyleCarrot partners and other favorite shops.

Contemporary & Modern Rocking Chairs

1 Comback Rocking Chair by Patricia Urquiola for Kartell, $890 at YLiving.

2 Taxed Rocking Chair by Segis, $1,309.99 at AllModern.

3 First Rocking Chair, $3,170 at Matter

4 Buttercup Rocker by Blu Dot, $899 at Lumens.

5 Era Rocking Chair by Normann Copenhagen & Simon Legald, $1,860 at A+R.  

6 Terra Rocking Chair by Antonio Forteleoni for ATIPIC, $1,172 at AllModern. 

Contemporary & Modern Rocking Chairs

7 Outback II Rocking Chair, $329 at CB2.  

8 Hand-Woven Rocker, $299 at Urban Outfitters.

9 Geneva Wood Patio Rocking Chair by Safavieh, $216 at Target

10 500 Series Rocking Chair by Artifort, $4,006 at YLiving. 

11 Stingray Rocker by Thomas Pedersen, $4,537 at Danish Design Store.

12 Luxembourg Rocking Chair by Fermob, $1,024 at Horne. 

Contemporary & Modern Rocking Chairs

13 GT Rocker by Gus Modern, $1,150 at 2modern

14 Rapson Rocker by Ralph Rapson for Loll Designs, $1,159 at YLiving.

15 Aquios Bentwood Rocking Chair by CorLiving, $102.05 at Overstock

16 Swerve Rocking Chair by Modway, $299 at IFN Modern

17 Regatta Rocking Chair, $499 at Crate & Barrel.

18 POÄNG Rocking Chair, $169 at Ikea.  

Contemporary & Modern Rocking Chairs

19 Risom Rocker, $2,470 at DWR.  

20 Version 5 Rocker by A. Jacob Marks for Skram, $5,302 at Lumens.

21 Voido Rocking Chair by Ron Arad for Magis, $985 at YLiving

22 Mod RockerBy Iglooplay, $326 at 2modern

23 Mid-Century Rocking Chair, $599 at Land of Nod. 

24 Mod Lounger by Lisa Albin for OFFI, $599 at YLiving

Contemporary & Modern Rocking Chairs

25 Rocker Chair by Guidecraft, $109.95 at AllModern.

26 Sleepytime Rocker by Nursery Works, $499 at YLiving

27 Rapson Greenbelt Rocker with Arms by Ralph Rapson, $1,695 at YLiving.

28 Wicker & Chrome Mid-Century Rocking Chair, $850 at Chairish

29 Springwood Rocking Chair, $799 at Land of Nod

30 Mademoiselle Rocking Chair by Artek, $1,538 at 2modern

Contemporary & Modern Rocking Chairs

31 Windsorrondack Single Rocker by Board by Design, $4,100 at Aha Life

32 Rocking Chair in Scrapwood by Piet Hein Eek, $921 at The Future Perfect. 

33 Rocking Chair by Adrian Pearsall,$3,000 at Azalea Modern, 1stdibs.

34 Upholstered Mid Century Rocking Chair, $281.71 at shopladder, eBay. 

35 Rocking Bent Wood Chairs, $1,875 at S.Julian, 1stdibs.

36 Do Do Rocking Chair by Jean-Marie Massaud for Poltrona Frau at Switch Modern.

Get the Look: 20 Modern Doormats

In true New England fashion, the Boston is not quite sure whether it’s winter yet. There were a few really cold days, including a recent Sunday when my 12-year-old went to a Patriots game in the rain and snow. I don’t mind the chilliness (I’m a tights and boots girl for sure) as long as there’s sun. That day did incite me to unearth the ice scraper and transfer it to the car. Not looking forward to using it.

Since we live in an apartment, most of the slush (and there’s plenty of it), gets left in the lobby. But still, we have a good doormat outside our door, and a more decorative one inside. Come snowy times, additional rugs get spread across the foyer, so as not to completely destroy my Jill Rosenwald gray area rug.

I know this is all kind of mundane, but I live in Boston, in the city. That means messy weather and no mud room. Even if you have a house with a white picket fence in a tropical clime, you still need a doormat, right? I’ve rounded up some door mats today, mainly coir and natural coconut fiber doormats; mostly modern doormats, many colorful doormats, plus neutrals, some in adorable silhouettes.

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S H O P P I N G 

1 Roam Sweet Roam Mountain Range Doormat, $34.99 at ModCloth.

2 Chilewich Stripe Shag Floor Mat in Mineral $50 at Burke Décor.

3 Multicolor Leaves Coconut Fiber Doormat, $19.99 at Amazon.

4 Cape Cod Polypropylene Doormat, $69.99 at Hayneedle.

5 Hedgehog Doormat, $39.95 at Crate & Barrel

6 Multicolor Flip-Flop Doormat, $16. 99 at World Market

7 It’s Cold Doormat, $24.45 at Wayfair.

8 Haute Habitat Coir Bear Doormat, $34.99 at ModCloth.

9 Computer Keyboard Coir Doormat, $26.97 at Amazon

10 Harvest Striped Doormat, $24.95 at Pier1 Imports

11 Green Chevron Coconut Fiber Doormat, $39.99 at Hayneedle.

12 Nautical Anchor Floor Mat, $28.95 at West Elm.

13 Chilewich Bold Stripe Shag Outdoor Floor Mat, $50 at Horne.

14 Camouflage Deer Doormat, $17.99 at Wayfair.

15 Oval Knot Woven Coco Doormat, $16.99 at Amazon

16 Dahlias Handwoven Coconut Fiber Doormat, $32.30 at Wayfair.

17 MacKenzie-Childs Courtly Check Door Mat, $160 at Horchow.

18 Natural Chevron Coir Doormat, $29 at Pottery Barn.

19 Nautical Rope Doormat, $49 at L.L. Bean.

20 Herb Garden Doormat, $68 at Terrain. 

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   s h o p    o u t d o o r   d e c o r  at  t e r r a i n >

Designer Spotlight: Shelley Simpson of Mud Australia

Earlier this summer, Shelley Simpson, designer and founder of tabletop line Mud Australia, visited Boston for the first time. Natalie van Dijk Carpenter, owner of South End boutique Lekker Home, hosted her for an evening. I was out of town, but was able to catch up with her a few days later by phone.

Mud Australia Founder Shelley Simpson At Lekker Home

Shelley Simpson and Natalie van Dijk Carpenter at Lekker Home in Boston.

Mud Australia porcelain is handmade in the company’s Sydney factory by in-house ceramicists, from Limoges porcelain, sourced directly from France. Unlike much tableware, to which the color is applied after the fact, Mud Australia tints the porcelain beforehand, which provides a distinctive depth of color. (It also means if a piece chips, the exposed portion isn’t white.)  The interior of each piece has a vitrified stone-like surface that becomes smooth with handling, but the interior is hand-brushed with a clear glaze. The look and feel is organic and the colors neutral, punctuated with a few brights.

When did you first start making pottery? 

When I was 28, I moved from Melbourne to Sydney, where I rented a house with a woman named Joy, who had a kick wheel in her back shed. She was always harassing me to have a go with it. One weekend when she was away, I got some clay and played around. She was very cross with me because she said my things were prettier than hers!

So you didn’t start out as a ceramicist? 

I’m creative, but I’m not trained in art. I draw now, but nothing like my 13-year-old son, who has a natural gift for it. But I have an eye for color and form.  My schooling has been  throwing things away.

How did you decide to pursue it as a business? 

I had applied to manage a theater, but they looked me over, in part because I was a woman. Joy and I started Mud Australia together in 1994, though she left the business after a few years and I’ve continued on.

And now? 

Mud Australia has 70 shapes and 18 colors. We’ve been focusing on new shapes lately more than colors. The latest is a series of mixing bowls and baking pans. We’re doing pendant lights in three sizes, and have a mortar & pestle in production. That really shows the durability of porcelain, so you can feel confident you’re not buying something fragile.

Are there pieces that are distinctive to certain regions?

The shapes work for anything. You can eat Yorkshire pudding, sushi or Middle Eastern food from the same bowl comfortably. That said, we have a distributor in Korea with three shapes specific to their market, including a kimchi pickle dish.  We also make exclusive pieces, like vases, for restaurants.

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Mud vignette

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 Photos by Ant Geernaert

What designers do you admire? 

 Gwen Hanson Pygget, an Australian potter  who created art pieces rather than functional ones. They’re absolutely beautiful. We’re in New York City now, and just went to the Judd; his color is exquisite.

What influences you when it comes to creating pieces for Mud Australia?

I love to bake, which is how we came to add the new baking pieces. I make Pavlovas and exotic birthday cakes for my kids and other family members. I once made a snake covered in marshmallows. Almost sculptural stuff. I go all out when it comes to baking a cake. For my daughter’s 16th, I made a cake with eight layers in rainbow colors, covered with white icing. The restaurant we brought it to was very impressed. My husband makes the dinners at home. Food is very important to our family.

What’s your home like? 

We live in a top-floor apartment in a four-story building in Sydney that’s an Arts & Crafts style, with an old French lift. There’s loads of trees with a vista to the harbor and a large deck; we do lots of eating al fresco. We’ve never lived in a house or on the ground. We want a garden. We are going to put the house on the market soon and find something new.

And of course you have plenty of Mud Australia dishes?

Yes, everything. And pieces that didn’t work out too.

What do you like most about your line?

Everybody’s  Mud Australia dinner set is unique to them, which I think sets us apart from other companies that present full collections. When you go to the store, you can get creative, which is fun. You can buy one piece at a time. Your collection can be a complete rainbow, or blackm white, and gray, or all pastels. Recently, one guy did slate and pink, which I wouldn’t have thought of, but when I was packing it up I thought, “This is amazing.”

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Get the Look: 30 Colorful Dining Chairs

Oddly, in all these years, I’ve yet to pull together a roundup of modern dining chairs. I’ve done Get the Look posts for modern patio chairs, modern desk chairs, and modern dining tables, and plenty of other furnishings, but alas, no modern dining chairs. Until now. There’s quite a variety here. There all modern silhouettes, but some are wooden, others acrylic or plastic; only a couple have upholstered seats.

All of these modern dining chairs sport fun colors. There’s a dining room photo by Petra Bindel that I’ve been kind of obsessed with, featuring three Muuto Nerd chairs in pastels around a pale wood table in a white room. When I decorated the dining room in my friend Meredith’s NYC condo, we used Eames chairs in three different colors around a Saarinen pedestal table.

There are more brightly colored modern dining chairs around than you may think. Made.com has several chairs in fun colors, including a hot pink that’d make Barbie blush. Home furnishings site Lulu & Georgia is full of color, with a couple of great purple dining chairs, among others. Crate & Barrel and West Elm sometimes have amazing colors too, but you have to get them quick because they tend to only stock them for a season; and of course, Ikea is worth checking too.

Here are my 30 colorful, modern dining chair picks.

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S H O P P I N G 

1. Stacking Chair by Lucian Randolph Ercolani

3. Globus Chair by Jesús Gasca for Stua

4. Yeva Side Chair 

5. Edge Chair by Novague 

6. Cornell Chair

7. Pushpin Chair

8. L’eau Chairs

9. Ruby Chair

10. Dwight Chair 

11. Butterfly Chair by Lucian Randolph Ercolani

12. Ghost Chair by Philippe Starck

13. Isabella Leather Wrapped Side Chair 

14. Nerd Chair by David Geckeler for Muuto

15. About A Chair AAC22 by Hee Welling for Hay

16. Tucker Chair

17. Bleecker Chair by Happy Chic by Jonathan Adler

18. Modern Dining Chair

19. About A Chair AAC12 by Hee Welling for Hay

20. 111 Navy Chair by Emeco

21. Maui Armless Chair by Vico Magistretti

22. Veda Chair

23. Vintner Side Chair

24. Era Chair by Michael Thonet 

25. Alchemia Side Chair 

26. Eiffel Dining Chair

27. Nadia Side Chair

28. Wishbone Chair by Hans J. Wegner for Carl Hansen & Søn

29. Kitsch Dining Chairs 

30. J110 Chair by Poul M. Volther for Hay Denmark

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