Home and Shopping

Val Castronovo writes: The botanicals, “portraits” in his words, are simple, elegant distillations of all manner of vegetation — sweet peas, sunflowers, ginkgo, water lilies, calla lilies, beanstalks, banana leaves, coral leaves, wild hibiscus, grass. The emphasis is on contour drawing. In these minimalist masterpieces, without shading, the line is the thing. more »

Rose Mula writes: I was awakened by what sounded like the pitter-patter of a gentle rain against my windows. I wish. Instead, it was the dripping of toilet water from a broken commode in the empty condo above mine. The demolition crew moved my furniture into a temporary storage pod, then started mercilessly ripping up floors and tearing down ceilings and walls, releasing trapped water before mold had a chance to establish a beachhead. more »

Ferida Wolff and Tam Gray write: A wildlife habitat can be in a backyard, on a roof, in a park or a school — wherever we can put together what is needed to make a nature-friendly environment. The NWF has certified over 150,000 sites across the US. Some states have a WHIP program encouraging homeowners by incentives to create a more elaborate habitat. more »

Since London will be the focus for the Summer Olympics, we thought we'd explore the British Museum Shop's offerings and, yes, there's no end of the intriguing and unusual.   more »