Before it gets too after-the-fact I need to take a quick break from our Organization Blog Fest to give a quick THANK YOU to the fine folks at notNeutral and Intelligentsia for the delicious latte I was served upon my arrival at the notNeutral booth at the The International NY Gift Show a few weeks back – delicious.

To give a little background: notNeutral has collaborated up with the best coffee people in the country – Intelligentsia – to create a line of durable and beautiful ceramic cups intended to be the “perfect vessels for all things espresso”. The entire project took 36 iterations and almost two years of effort:

“Our desire in designing this particular piece is a seamless marriage of form and function that aids the barista in the perfect pour and balances effortlessly in the drinker’s hand. In this case, the perfect cappuccino cup.

Indeed, THIS is a lovely coffee cup and lucky for me I was able to put one through the paces and enjoy some caffeinated goodness in the process!

We’ll post more about the project later but for now I just wanted to thank the fine folks at Intelligentsia and NotNeutral for the hospitality. Intelligentsia has several locations in Chicago, Los Angeles and now a instructional facility here in NYC. If you’re interested in advancing your barista skills I highly recommend checking out their classes. More on the cups here. Thanks fellas!

From the New York Gift Show

On location Intelligentsia barista pulling shots of liquid gold from a La Marzocco GS/3:

First up are a pair of Danish inspired lounge chairs my grandparents passed on to me about 15 years ago when they moved from Connecticut to Florida. I imagine they date back to the 50′s.

Every time we visited Grandma and Grampa the chairs made an impression on me as they were upholstered with the NASTIEST orange plaid fabric. Now 6 year old kids usually don’t pay much attention to upholstery, but I assure you, this fabric was so ugly, it’d give any American youth nightmares for weeks. It must have been added in the 70′s when everything was orange.

Anyway, I was delighted when it was revealed that the 70′s era upholstering was removable and underneath revealed a super swank, silvery-tan fabric in absolutely perfect condition.  Very 50′s modernist. VERY jet setter. I can just imagine my grandparents entertaining back in the day, listening to Dean Martin and having a martini or two. Now they are situated in my living room.

If there was fire, I’d definitely grab these on the way out.

As you can see I’ve adored one of them with the obligatory fake sheep skin throw in effort to get the “Domino Magazine look”. All the women in my life seem to approve.

Moving on.

Here’s what I wake up to everyday -  a single beautiful flower. OK it’s fake flower but still, I think it’s very Zen of me. Also pictured are a Pablo Tube Top lamp, a Numbers Clock by Jonas Damon and of course a relic from my former life as a underpaid rock star: My Tom Anderson Classic Drop-Top strat.

Someone returned a Lights Up! Weegee lamp for whatever reason so guess what? I adopted it and it’s in my dining room now. I love this lamp, it DOMINATES. (Three drunken party goers could easily do the “head in a lamp” shade routine with this bad Larry!)

OK on a serious note. Here’s an item I cherish and use almost daily. A simple leather money clip my Dad gave me years ago. I’ve used it forever and I before it became mine my Dad used it forever. It’s got his initials on it. How slick is that?

This is a MAN’S money clip. It looks cool when you snag a few dead presidents out of it. Every time I use it I think of my Dad. Sometimes it’s the little things…

You probably can’t tell from the rest of the pictures, but I really like COLOR. Also, despite the one fake flower on my night table, I enjoy having and living things around me. Plants, some fresh flowers and yes, even a classic fruit bowl can have a positive affect on your daily frame of mind. Here’s a beautiful bowl from Desu Design that I picked up to frame some lemons. It’s called a “hug” bowl. I guess it hugs the lemons. I kinda need a hug right now…but I digress.

While we’re on the subject of citrus, I’d like to make a health announcement. Add a little lemon juice to your H20 everyday – it helps correct the PH levels in your body and detoxifies your liver or something. I saw it on the internets so I know it’s true. It also tastes really good.

OK Guitar #2. It doesn’t get more CLASSIC than this! This is the “Eames Lounge” of the guitar world: A three-tone sunburst 1962 Fender Stratocaster!

Alright I’ll admit it, mine’s a Reissue so it’s not “the real thing” but it’s pretty darn close. (The real thing would set you back several grand.) Anyway, the reissues are made EXACTLY the way the originals were. They even use crappy magnets and soldering techniques as they did in 60′s to make it even *more* authentic. When you use the whammy bar the B string goes out of tune every time (just like the real thing). I think that’s awesome.

Anyway I love this guitar. It’s built like tank. It there’s ever earthquake I’ll hoist this guitar overhead to deflect falling debris. (Then of course, if the house then catches fire I’ll proceed to the living room to rescue Grandma’s lounge chairs.)

Finally we have an item from my morning ritual: espresso. Although I’ve recently discovered the joys of sipping tea throughout the day, without a doubt, my day ALWAYS begins with an espresso. No lemon. No sugar. No cream. Apparently my great grandfather “Floriano” used to drink his with a shot of grappa but that’s a tradition I’ve yet to embrace.

I like this stove top espresso maker for its simplicity and ease of use. It takes about ten minutes from the time I start the burner to the time I have to jump up and to save it from boiling over. During this time I’m forced to sit, contemplate my day and enjoy the silence of the early morning.

I’ve also got an electric espresso machine that’s not worth mentioning here. (It’s a Krups – gross) I’ve got my eye on upgrading to this beauty: Rancilio Silvia. Perhaps the folks at WholeLatteLove.com will send me one to review? (PLEASE find me via Google blog search.)

OK that’s all for now. To be honest I’m tired and it’s time to iron my socks, floss, and go to bed. I’ll leave you with one final picture of a another simple classic: My beat-to-hell Converse All Star slip-ons. As you can see, I may need a new pair.

*Feel free to share your favorite designs in the comments below…