These 3 pieces are some of my favorite from the AP vault. Not only are they a fun batch of mix-n-match monster features, but visual proof that buried somewhere deep within my DNA lies that love of creating monsters. My beloved grandmother recently just turned 86, and as my mom put it - we are 'attempting to mine her memory as much as possible' in regards to grandpa's work. There is just a lot she doesn't remember. My uncle states: "I'm not sure what the purpose was. He may have used them as examples when he was negotiating or demonstrating options to a client". Ahh, character comps. Sounds familiar.

Grandpa was always larger than life to Ryan and I. His career laid the foundation for our love of art. Unfortunately during most of our youth, we lived in different states and didn't get to see him as much as we would have liked. We grew up in Central Oregon while our grandparents lived in a little town called Oroville, about 90 miles south of Sacramento. I remember the yearly visits and the family gatherings at Christmas, but like most families at that time, we didn't have the money to travel often. Unfortunately, my memory of art conversations with him are fairly limited. I just remember always being in awe around him. He had a deep, soothing voice that commanded the attention and respect of everyone nearby. And I remember him always smiling and laughing. I like to think that had something to do with loving his 'job'. But on the other hand, I'm not convinced that artists really differentiate 'job' from 'life'.

In 1989, my father landed a new job in Sacramento. Relocating from a sleepy town in Oregon to a larger city was a big culture shock for me. And ironically - shortly after that, grandma and grandpa actually relocated to Washington state. Grandpa passed away in 1995. I was 20.

At the time of his passing, I was playing music and touring. Being in a band was my life. Art (visually at least) was on the back burner . I knew that it was something I was going to circle back to, but it wasn't in my immediate future.

Now that I'm 35 and have been doing this 'professionally' for almost 10 years, you can imagine how many questions I wished I would have asked him. It's something I can't spend a lot of time thinking about because of the obvious reasons.

I am grateful to have most of his pieces that he left behind, and the many family members who are helping to remember/research where and when these amazing illustrations came from. Many, many, many more to come.

Thanks, grandpa.

Here's another one from the files. Most likely late 1970's. Post NASA freelance. Looks to be something for 'Butte County'. Possibly a small local newspaper.

Many of you know that our grandfather, Alfred Paulsen, was a gifted illustrator who worked for NASA for 25+ years. During his tenure there (and after), he dabbled in all kinds of fun freelance work on the side. Recently we've started unearthing loads of his work and will be posting it on the blog from time to time.

I'm not sure what this spot was done for, but couldn't help but crack a smile just looking at it. Circa sometime in the 70's.

Much more to come.

Charles and Ray just moved in. Thanks House.

One of my all-time favorite architects, William Krisel is being honored at a new show at MODAA in Culver City. Along with Joseph Eichler, Cliff May, Richard Neutra and others, Krisel was instrumental in developing California modernism as we know it today (over 30,000 living units to his credit). One of my favorites of his was the home he designed with Dave Palmer for Bobby Darin in 1955. Love that butterfly roof.

These images of the Ijburg house by Dutch architect Marc Koehler is making my Monday morning a bit better.

Via Contemporist

Anna-Maria Sviatko from Canberra, Australia may have created a dollhouse or two that my daughter and I would actually have to arm wrestle over. And yes, dollhouses are METAL!

You'll never look at gas stations the same again. Frank Lloyd Wright, Mies Van der Rohe, Arne Jacobsen ... I had no idea they also contributed epic work to the world of auto fuel. I am guessing it was a tad cheaper by the gallon back then, no?

Thanks Frank.

Love the environment and have heaps of cash (doesn't that go hand in hand)? Well, if you do, you can now strive for a LEED platinum rating (which is actually a really cool thing). The Margarido House is the first home in Northern California to do so, and it's obviously breathtaking.

Loving Anna Weiss' home AND blog!

London based design firm SHH designed the coolest McDonalds I've ever seen. And of course it's in England.

Loving these illustrated vintage kitchen ads over at the See Saw blog.

Via Mid-Century Modernist

Richard Neutra's Maxwell house (built in 1941 for $6,750) recently moved from Brentwood to Angelino Heights.

LA Times: "Saving the house has become a labor of love -- some say obsession -- of the owner, developer Barbara Behm, who does business under the name Princess Bovlana. She plans to restore the house "from top to bottom, and everything in between," before selling it."

See the amazing pictures here. Many thanks to Barbara for realizing this home was worth saving - can't wait to see it finished.

In another chapter of my "House Industries Continues To Do No Wrong" book, Andy Cruz (who is currently guest-blogging over at Dwell) just unleashed this ridiculously cool dollhouse, promoting their new typeface, Studio Swing. Just stupid awesome.

DWR House Numbers are 50% off at the moment, which means you can have the coolest door in your apartment complex or dorm for only $40.

The House Industries collaborative effort with the Eames Office (2007) is something I just stumbled upon. Does anyone out there own one of these 10 limited solid maple / walnut pieces? Epic.

This is just too cool not to post. This is a shopping Mall in St. Petersburg, Russia and was designed by Vitruvius & Sons.

Via Computerlove.

Kerf is a custom furniture and cabinet maker that I've been a fan of for years. After seeing one of their amazing kitchens in Sunset last year, it solidified my love for their style that reminds me of a contemporary modern take on those classic Eames storage units. Oh, and they happen to be right down the street too.

About: "Kerf Design is a custom furniture and cabinet shop, committed to environmental responsibility through the use of sustainable materials and methods. Our shop is based in Seattle, Washington. We specialize in building modern cabinets out of plywood and plastic laminate. We look for inspiration in the construction process, the materials that we use, and in discovering new solutions for each project that is brought to us."

Build has an excellent rant, I mean blog about the current "nostalgic faux-crapsman" town homes popping up everywhere around Seattle. This was just a topic of conversation amongst friends last week, it's good to see we're not alone. 

They also posted a link to a Seattle Times article regarding the same issue.

While we were on tour last month, we had a chance to walk around Fullerton in So Cal and hit some of the cool vintage and music shops. We stumbled upon Otto, which was by far my favorite. Full of mid-century goodness of all kinds, it was hard for me to walk out of there without emptying the bank. I did however manage to score some Gama-Go goods and a miniature LCW to match my life-size version. Score.