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In Sweden the push toward simple, economical living attracted young artisans eager to revolutionize the home furnishings industry. In the early 1930s one such émigré was architect and designer Josef Frank, who left Austria as the persecution of Jews mounted. Typical of industrial designers of that era, Frank worked in several sectors of the furnishings industry, designing furniture and textiles for multiple companies. His influential work included brightly colored, naturalistic patterns based on botanical prints by 18th-century Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus. Moved by the beauty and detail of these prints, Frank used them to decoupage the outside of cabinets and as inspiration for his own textile patterns. more »

There’s a kind of desperation that surfaces in the skincare aisle, when you’re looking for that for that one product which will perfect tired, dreary, misanthropic skin. However, if you don’t have these skincare basics in place, you’ll be disappointed — no matter how much money or magic you spend in the beauty aisle. You may even find that with these five steps, pricey products will be unnecessary. Nothing I’m about to say here is fancy or new. Sometimes in our pursuit of perfection, we forget to start with the basics. more »

The latest analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation, in collaboration with the Cook Political Report, finds that while a large share of voters are already firm about how they plan to vote in the 2020 presidential election (63%), there is a still a substantial share (30%) who say they have not made their minds up. With three in ten votes still up for grabs, this data note examines the demographics of swing voters: those who either report that they are undecided about their vote in 2020 or are leaning towards a candidate but haven’t made up their minds yet. It also explores the policy issues that could swing these voters to vote for either President Trump or the Democratic nominee. more »

As I ate each bite of the gift tomato I remembered our friendship and valued all that we have shared over the years. It was as much a treat in its own way as the heirloom tomato was. I think if we pay attention to the wholeness of what we experience, life ripens in our hearts as well as in our gardens. I thought of the immigrants who come to our country. There are differences, yes, but traditionally we have accepted them. Are we changing our generosity for politics? Have we forgotten that we were all immigrants at one time? Swans and ducks are all birds. Americans and immigrants are all people. If they can accept each other, surely we can do the same.  more »