One of my favorite things to serve, when we entertain, is a Crudités platter. It’s healthy and just about everyone finds something appealing. I used to serve it with Tahini, but lately I’ve been mixing it up.

Cucumber Ranch Dressing by Martha Stewart

            1 medium cucumber, peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded, and grated on the large holes of a box grater

            1 tablespoon shallot, finely chopped

            3/4 cup sour cream

            1/4 cup low-fat buttermilk

            1/4 cup mayonnaise

            3 1/2 tablespoons (about 1 lemon) fresh lemon juice

            1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt

            Pinch of cayenne pepper

            3 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

            3 tablespoons fresh chives, finely chopped

Directions:

.                 Stir together cucumber, shallot, sour cream, buttermilk, mayonnaise, lemon juice, salt, cayenne, parsley, and chives in a medium bowl. Season with additional salt and cayenne, if desired.

Recent Sunday evening

(Available at http://www.okstore.la/ )

Having grown up in Sweden during the 80s and early 90s, I was too young to appreciate Ingmar Bergman’s film work beyond Fanny and Alexander, which I remember watching the Christmas it was released. Let’s just say, I had nightmares. 


It wasn’t until my mid-twenties when I saw Yasujiro Ozu’s, Tokyo Story (1953), that I started grasping what Ingmar Bergman was about.

The film follows a married couple, visiting their children and grandchildren in a big city, Tokyo. The sadness lies in that the younger family members have little time to give their elders, which intensifies the disconnect between the generations. I see this theme in Wild Strawberries, Autumn Sonata, Saraband and although the language and traditions are different, the sensibility and knowledge of how one is supposed to act and feel, even its importance, feels familiar.

(Available at http://www.okstore.la/ )

Moving into this house, I was introduced to the beauty of Japanese design and I’ve had the opportunity to meet some incredible people that make and sell some of the most beautiful things I’ve seen, but none of this prepared me for a visit to Hokkaido.

The appreciation and knowledge of Scandinavian design is immense. It was funny to walk into a store, finding Swedish snowboard gear and pottery in one place. It made me proud of my heritage, but more than that, it fit. Woodwork, pottery and ceramics have a long tradition in Japan and although I wouldn’t venture to deem the techniques to be shared, there is the sense of a common form.

My photos don’t give this justice, but please take a look at the Kitka blog post on Asahikawa:

http://kitka.ca/?p=12007

Ray Hamabe was our guide in Asahikawa and here’s a post on one of his stores, Less (Life Ease Simple Stylish):

http://kitka.ca/?p=11827

Beautiful objects around the house

Lisa Larsson figurines

Scandinavian ceramics

August

Gogo

Opening the front door, one is confronted by a large picture window, looking out over Glendale and the San Gabriel mountains. We’ve kept the living room sparse and open. Some guests find it overwhelming at first, but within moments, they usually know what to do.

4th of July Sparklers

Enhancements

Don and Shirley Johnson, the second owners added a garden shed and a lattice wall. These are clearly non-Schindler, took up a lot of space, covered the view of the main house, and felt out of place. After looking at Schindler’s drawings, we decided to remove these along with the concrete steps leading down to the patio and the brickwork surrounding these steps. It should be noted that neither steps nor brickwork appears on the original drawings, though R.M. Schindler was known to leave things out of his drawings, and add things on depending on budget and need.

Here’s the demo and the layout for the new concrete steps.

Simplicity and keeping the design low to enhance the sense of openness was of essence. There was a moment of trepidation, but when the designer Michael Boyd suggested we imagine the new design could to fold into the house, I got it. The space has been transformed and the next step will include plants and a new fence.

WE NEED BOOKSHELVES AND YES, WE’RE BREAKING THE RULES

Option by Lindon Schultz

Taku’s version.