I came across an adorable elephant tea pot recently that I felt I just had to buy, even though I already have a perfectly good teapot in my cupboard already. Here it is:

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For several weeks, the little dude's been sitting on my counter, waiting to be used.

Finally, a few days ago,  because I was sick, I got around to making some tea. And you know what I found?

This tea pot sucks.

I mean... it's awful. Truly.

Worst. Design. Ever.

You have to turn it practically upside to get any tea out, which makes liquid seep out from under the lid, likely burning your hands. And the holes on the inside of the pot are so small, you can only pour a slow-moving, measly dribble.

This is seriously annoying.

So, since functionality is nil, I'm going back to my old pot. But what to do with this elephant? I don't want to give him to Goodwill where he may be bought by some unsuspecting individual who will soon find him/herself with scalded hands. And besides, the thing's cute. It doesn't work in the way it's intended, but it's still cute.

So, I thought: planter.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but this planter idea isn't really working, is it? What can I do differently to make this elephant useful in some way? Do you think it would be better with a different kind of plant inside? Help!

Okay, so I have a dining set. A complete dining set. As in, a set that came together. A matching set.

This is, allegedly, a design sin.

Now, I agree that most matching dining sets are ugly. The one above practically makes my eyes bleed, it's so ugly.

But my set is MUCH nicer. And in my defense, I inherited it. And beggars can't be choosers. Also, it was made in Canada, likely in the 1940s. It's a warm, aged colour. The oval table has two leaves in perfect condition, and while the caning on two of the six chairs is damaged, that's only because my friends are aggressive asses. Or rather, they have aggressive asses.

The buffet features roller doors and felt lined silverware drawers and all in all, it's pretty nice.

But it matches.

And that bugs me.

So, I've been thinking of getting some new chairs. I'm not sure I can justify this, either financially or practically, but it's what I'm craving. The caned chairs will have to go into the basement (which is problematic) or I'd have to sell them (more problematic still, both for emotional reasons, and because I find it hard to break ANY set, and especially since two are damaged).

But I'm still considering it.

I'm also dreaming about what NEW chairs would look best with the old table.

At the moment, I'm leaning toward Eames Eiffel chairs, either in white, or multi-coloured (which is to say, a different colour for each chair). What do you think? Authentic Eiffel's are out of my price range, but my lovely Twitter friend Janice (from Life Begins at 30) told me they've got knock-offs at Kitchen Stuff Plus right now. AND they're on sale for $60 apiece.

Do you have any other chair suggestions for me? I want something that provides contrast, that will be practical, and that will stand up to the occasional aggressive man-bum at a drunken party. Ideas?

I really enjoyed the October 2011 issue of Style at Home, until I flipped to the piece on pg. 78 entitled "Modern primitive."

That title was emblazoned across this image:

The room? Beautiful. Gorgeous. I love it.

Using the word "primitive" in relation to a story about African-inspired style? Pretty darn offensive.

I tweeted about this and put a comment on Style at Home's facebook page, but no one responded.

Look, I'm not interested in being politically correct, but I am interested in the power of language and the idea that language does, in fact, matter. Educated, savvy young journalists (or just plain "staff" if that's what you want to call them) should have known better.

The web-version of the same story opens with the following lines:

"A fresh take on classic African style, modern global is a meeting place for natural materials, worldly finds and exotic textiles."

Note how they use the term "modern global" here. I'm fine with that. But the piece was actually called Modern PRIMITIVE. And global and primitive aren't interchangeable words.
It's a magazine, guys. Editorial concerns should really be paramount.

Let's do better.

I love the picture, but using derogatory, and yes, racist language in headlines is not chic.

Once upon a time, I had a clock. A wee Big Ben alarm clock, that hadn't worked in years.

And because I am a weirdo, I took the clock apart.

And now I don't have a clock anymore. Now I have this:

I also have no idea what to do next. Can this project be salvaged? Do you have any ideas?

I feel like a clock-murderer. Help me make something of this hash, blog friends. Save me from myself.

I want my 2012 IKEA catalogue so BAD. Lookit' all the cute stuff!

BÄRBAR bird tray is $4.99.

Mid-century-inspired BLOMSTER candle holders ($19.99/set).

Practical, enviro, hand-powered LJUSA flashlight.

That said, it's not going to be all chocolate and roses at IKEA in 2012.

Consider this $9.99 LEKKAMRAT doll.

Creepy, hideous, odd.

Oh well. Not everything at IKEA is a winner.

*Edited to add: apparently, a friend bought the bird tray YEARS ago, so the IKEA website lied to me when it said these products were brand new. Oh well. The doll is still creepy.

So yesterday, driving home from work, I got stuck behind a huge, obnoxious white Hummer.

Just seeing those things annoys me and I try not to focus too closely on them, lest my head explode.

But in this case, the driver was also an asshat who refused to signal and I was stuck behind him for ages. And you know what I noticed? This. (Or is it these?) Hanging from the the back of the truck:

A little research revealed that they're called "Truck Nutz" or "Bulls Balls" (there are various brand names available) And they're apparently a realtvely common truck accessory.

Seriously.

A search on Flickr revealed a few creative common's licensed images that will give you the full effect:

I don't really know what else to say about this. I thought those weird cartoons of Calvin and Hobbes peeing were bad enough.