Hammocks & Candle Wax.

Overjoyed to share photos this morning from the newest Rue Magazine cover story, which I had the pleasure of writing and which features Emily in her lovely home. Emily's East Village apartment is barely 400 square feet, but she's managed to fit a hammock in her bedroom, and a world's worth of travel souvenirs in its nooks and crannies. 

"I had a non-stop year last year," she told me. "I was working more than ever and it was difficult to find time to unplug. I got the hammock as a sort of escape. It's its own little world, where I can sit and look out my window."

Other stand-out details: the photo collage on her front door, and a hardened pool of melted candle wax, which is the result of a spill in a former apartment. "I like physical expressions of the passage of time," she says. 

Emily's also just launched a new print shop called Terra Incognita, featuring iPhone photos from her many travels. Lily, Jamie, and I are considering this one for our living room.

Photos by Emily Johnston and Nicole Franzen for Rue Magazine. See the latest issue, here.

Lookouts.

These photos, part of a series called Miradors by Erwan Fichou, are striking and surprising and exceptionally strange. Taken in Mexico City, the images feature passersby perched on carefully manicured treetops. What it all means, I'm not sure, but I like it. Reminds me of the beautiful, brilliant Eyes as Big as Plates.

Further foliage-related reading: the handwriting of trees, headwear inspired by "the texture of earth and forests," and my article on Swedish treehouses for VICE. Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Photographs by Erwan Fichou. Thanks, Thisispaper.

Rothko Nails/Pollock Britches.

For a snowy Monday, modern art for your fingernails, and cotton britches inspired by Jackson Pollock. You know, just some basics.

See also:
1) Sweet Valley High in miniature
2) Not a Rothko.

This, Too.

Words to end the week, from poet Mary Oliver. Stumbled on this by chance and thought it was perfect.

The Uses of Sorrow

(In my sleep I dreamed this poem)

Someone I loved once gave me
a box full of darkness.

It took me years to understand

that this, too, was a gift.

(From Thirst, 2006.)

--

Wishing you a wonderful weekend. Coming next week: Rothko manicures, dangerous women, a new POV.

Words by Mary Oliver. Photos by my friend Emily Johnston. (More on Emily, here.)

Meet the Parents.

For whiling away a Thursday morning, photos from a 1971 issue of LIFE, featuring rock musicians with their moms and dads. Below, from top to bottom: Frank Zappa, Joe Cocker, Eric Clapton, Grace Slick, and Elton John (whose mother was quoted as saying, "We used to put him to bed in the day and get him up at night for parties").

See more at LIFE, here. Photos by John Olson (Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images).

Further reading: hardest-core music fans and a pair of Argentinian bandmates who perform for plastic animals. Read on, rock on.

Attic Antics.

This tiny apartment is located in an attic in Madrid and belongs to a DJ, two facts that should automatically qualify it as the coolest place on Earth. In addition, though, it hosts a multitude of secrets and surprises: trap doors, hidden rooms, movable walls. There's also a swing, a tea room, a hanging table, and a disco ball. "Every house, in its way, is a theater where you perform your everyday life," say the architects. I love that.

Thanks, Fast Company. Visit architecture firm elii's website, here. Images by Miguel de Guzman. 

And speaking of interiors, my newest interview for Freunde von Freunden is up today. It features fashion designers Mike Eckhaus and Zoe Latta, who make clothing out of materials like clear leather and fishing line. My favorite bit from our interview? Zoe's remark about an unfortunate haircut from her younger days: "I looked exactly like David Hockney and no one told me it wasn't okay." See the full feature, with photos by Brian Ferry, here.

Flowers in Flight.

There was a moment yesterday when I swore I could feel spring. I could feel its brightness, its colors. I could smell it. It felt tangible, and so close. Then I remembered it was January, and 35 degrees. That 35 degrees felt like spring because we'd just had nearly a week of weather with temperatures in the teens. Still, I remembered spring. And that made me happy.

While I've always loved the thread-wrapped arrows and silkscreened moon dominoes created by Brooklyn artists Fredericks & Mae, today was my first introduction to the duo's line of spring-like flowered kites, made to commemorate the Roman titan Flora. Says Gabriel Fredericks Cohen, "We're consistently attracted to items that occur in multiple contexts across the globe and throughout history. The arrow shows up in every culture on every continent. So do kites."

Visit Fredericks & Mae, here. Stay warm!