Books for Christmas and a huge giveaway!

This post is brought to you by Bookworld

Books: they are one of my go-to gift choices during the silly season because the love of reading and an appreciation of the written word should always be encouraged. 

Christmas is also a time of year that most people tend to unwind and take days off so books, especially among my friends and family, are a much appreciated gift.

The inky smell and crisp touch of a new book, yet to be discovered, is the most delectable of feelings. It doesn’t matter if it is a literary novel, design book or beautifully presented cook book – the promise of what is inside those pages is seductive.

I am super-organised this year and I’ve already bought the children some books to go with their toys on Christmas day.  But I didn’t realise the new Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 8: Hard Luck was out and now I will need to get a copy for my boys - they’re nuts for that serial and are loyal Greg Heffley fans.

On my wish list this year are a few design and cook books and Bookworld has a huge selection of popular and affordable titles which will fit the bill.

I’m eyeing off Donna Hay’s The New Classics and New Suburban: Reinventing The Family Home In Australia And New Zealand by Stuart Harrison. I love having books on my coffee table to flick through over the Christmas holidays.

And in big news we have a $150 book pack to give away to make sure that you and yours are busy reading this Christmas too. What a terrific prize!

All you have to do to win the Bookworld book pack is to leave a comment below telling us what genre of book you love best.

Entries close Tuesday 19 November 2013 with Jason selecting his most favourite response. Only Australian readers may enter and you must have a valid email with your response so that we can contact you as soon as possible.

Good luck!

EDIT: Congratulations to Courtney from Foodmuster who won the Bookworld book pack! Thanks to everyone who entered the competition. xx

A-mulching we will go...

Heigh-ho the derry-o, a-mulching we will go.

Jason sporting a new look this summer - the akubra is his chapeau of choice this season... 

This past weekend we've concentrated on mulching the back yard garden beds at the Sow's Ear. We had some leftover sugar cane mulch from the front garden makeover and bought another few bales to make a decent start.

This part of the Sow's Ear garden has been neglected for a while...Mulching it forces us to weed it!

It's a good project to tackle, as it forces you to weed the garden beds at the same time. Yikes!

We weeded out all the unwanted little nasties, placed a few layers of newspaper down and then covered it with a thick layer of sugar cane mulch. It instantly lifts the yard - from complete neglect to looking 'cared for' after a morning's work. We'll try to finish the rest of the garden over the next few weekends.

The mulch will keep the soil around our plants nice and moist and give us bang for our buck every time it rains or when we water.

The weather has been incredibly dry and all our plants are suffering from the lack of rain. No matter how much we water, it doesn't seem to be enough to make them thrive...they are just barely existing.

Fortunately, there is rain and showers predicted for all of this week which will be the opportune time to fertilise.

Is anyone else getting into gardening this summer?

Planet lamp

The Studio K Planet lamp is a highly desirable piece of Australian industrial design. Its simplistic shape and bold colours captured the imagination of post-war Australia and it is still being produced (although in limited quantities) today by Planet Lighting.

Designed in 1962 by Bill Iggulden, the Studio K lamp was the 'it' item among the general public and  many architects and designers. Strong and durable with an industrial edge, the lamp won many awards such as the Australian Design Award and the Prince Philip Design Prize: not bad for a task lamp produced by an Australian family business.

Orange Studio K Planet lamp

Last month an original Studio K Planet lamp took up residence at the Sow's Ear in Son #1's room. The new orange lamp replaces an old ikea one which lacked personality.

It makes a fabulous desk and reading light as it can be adjusted and angled to suit the task you are completing. It also has a decent length cord that reaches the only powerepoint in the room. Son #1 likes the new lamp too, thankfully!

Planet lamp

We feel cool owning one of these iconic lamps. 

Eleven Queenslander house renovation blogs and resources

I've been gallivanting around the countryside flirting with mid-century modern design and architecture and sadly neglecting core business which is the Sow's Ear and renovating this old Queenslander. Ha! Talk about sidetracked!

I guess after four years or so we can afford to slow down and take our time with this interwar Queenslander house. It is far from finished and we still have quite a few projects that we need to tackle...but all in good time. Jason's lost his mojo somewhat too...which is not a good thing when he's chief renovator...

Anyway, there seems to be quite a few other bloggers who are well and truly in the midst or about to embark on a major renovation.

Here is a list of the links,  if you want to get a fix of Queenslander house renovations via blog reading:

Crazy House Capers
West End Cottage
Bungalow Bliss
The Old Post Office
Life in our blue house
Sunshine and Paint Pots
Family H.O.M.E
Heart Hanworth House
Restoring the Old Girl
Old Pearly Jenkins
Hill Manor is a new to me blog about a young man renovating his 100 year old house in Toowong. He's got a big job ahead of him.

Some of these blogs have been on the scene for quite some time while others are new to me. They're all different and I think such diversity is always good when one is contemplating the task of renovating their Queenslander house.

If I have missed someone off the list, please let me know in the comments so that I can add them.

Also, for those who are keen DIY'ers there is a great book called The Building of the Queensland House: A carpenter's handbook and owner's manual by A L Jenner which was first published last year. It is a book full of advice, diagrams and has lots of details about the restoration of a Red Hill Queenslander - written by a local Brisbane carpenter who has years of experience restoring these magnificent homes.

I think the book is independently published and is available at Black Cat Books in Paddington and the Woolloongabba Antiques Centre.

I have yet to get my hands on the book but am keen to give it to Jason. The man needs his DIY mojo back!

QAGOMA California Design exhibition

A very cool new design exhibition has hit Brisbane - California Design Living in a Modern Way 1930 to 1965.

I attended the launch (thanks to the lovely Elizabeth from Walk Among the Homes who moves and shakes with all the right people) last week and had a sneak preview of what the exhibition entails at the Queensland Art Gallery.

The exhibition features many of the design icons that you would  normally associate with California during the mid 20th century and introduces us to some other new designs/designers from that period. Curated by Wendy Kaplan and Bobbye Tigerman from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LCMA), the exhibition is a tasteful selection of the work of pre- and post-war American designers.

Qunicy Jones and Frederick E Emmons sofa and side table from Spencer House 1961-64, with Milo Baughman cocktail table 1950

From the sleek industrial design of an airstream Clipper trailer and an Avanti Studebaker to the enormously popular furniture designs of Charles and Ray Eames, there's a little bit of something for everyone in this star-studded tribute to California design.

Airstream Clipper 1936

California furniture, fashion, textiles and jewellery have their moment under the spotlight in this wonderful exhibition.

Dan Johnson desk  1947 and Dan Johnson Gazelle lounge chair 1959

Levi Strauss & Co pants and top 1955

There is also an excellent book called California Design which goes into more detail about what is in the exhibition, as well as an accompanying book called A Handbook of California Design with biographies of the craftspeople, designers and manufacturers.

I received a copy of California Design for my birthday earlier this year and bought the handbook at the launch.
A lovely addition to my bookshelves at the Sow's Ear

Both are available at the QAGOMA gift shop 

Two very astute design junkies reading Australian Modern

It really is a fun exhibition and if you are into design, it is a must-see show. It closes on 9 February 2014.