9 Best of Craigslist Vancouver June 9th

elephant garden stools

70s folding table

outdoor chess set

midcentury Danish studio pottery

brass peacock fireplace screen

Moroccan brass tray top tea table

a peacock

a whole pile of bent plywood school chairs

Moroccan folding screen

One of The Most Important Chairs of The 20th Century

my chair

my chair

If you've been following my adventures on Instagram and Facebook, you're already aware of my dream kitchen dining area and my three chairs for $25. The chair above is one I sold last year. If you follow me on Twitter, you know we're moving again (ADHD or sane decision - you decide). I also decided to sell my mid-century dining table and chairs - which has left us - once again - without a table or chairs.

So, now is the perfect time to acquire my dream kitchen dining area! Out with the old, in with the new!

As I was perusing Craigslist for Best of Craigslist Vancouver content, I thought, 'There sure are many of those Marcel Breuer Cesca chairs around. How can I tell what's a fake?' Well, it turns out the Cesca chair was never patented (blame it on Mart Stam) and is, therefore, in the public domain. Le Corbusier is turning in his grave. 

There are actually two Cesca chairs—the B32, manufactured and mass-produced by Thonet from about 1930 to the end of WWII (stay tuned for my Thonet tubular steel rocker adventure), and the cheaper version manufactured by Knoll from the 1950s to the present.

1928 designed version:

• warm beech patina
• back and chair, each made of a single bent piece (bentwood)
• back has a marked curve
• caning was done by hand and sewn into the bentwood frame
• slight incline to the front edge of the seat
• curves of the tubular steel frame are even
• large bolts

After the war, Breuer made some changes to the original design. The seat back and chair were altered, the bentwood frame thickened, and the size of the bolts decreased.

All that's left of the more expensive original 1928 design:

• hand-caning
• chrome plated steel caps on the tubing
• rods inserted to maintain the curvature of the tubular steel shape 

For a fun read on comparing multiple copies of the Cesca - and a Cesca chair checklist - check out this article from the New York Times archive.

last image: B32 version via the V&A

From the Archives - 10 Random Things About Jean Michel Basquiat

Jean-Michel Basquiat 1982

© James Van Der Zee

1. Initially, Basquiat wanted to be a fireman.
2. In third grade he sent a drawing of a gun to J. Edgar Hoover (no reply).
3. Basquiat played the synthesizer with Vincent Gallo in a band called Gray (named after the 1918 classic of human anatomy Gray's Anatomy).
4. He was the only kid in his grade nine academic life drawing class to fail.
5. His mother encouraged his interest in art and stressed the importance of education.
6. In 1981 he made his first trip to Europe to exhibit a one artist show under the name SAMO.
7. Basquiat described his subject matter as, 'royalty, heroism, and the street'.
8. His heroes included Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Charlie Parker, Joe Louis, Sugar Ray Robinson and Billie Holiday.
9. The sidewalks of Greenwich Village were his temporary store front as he sold painted t-shirts and postcards under the name SAMO.
10. Helped Andy Warhol rediscover his relationship to painting after 20 years of not picking up a brush.

Untitled (The Boxer), 1982 ~ sold November 2008 $13.5 million

© The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat

Originally published March 26, 2009

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16 Best of Craigslist Vancouver May 27th 2014

 70s hammered copper fireplace hood

 Bamboo screen

 Massive marble table

 1950s iron cafe set

 Collection of 1970s Hornsea Bronte pattern ceramic tableware (I had this too - it's fabulous sold mine for $300 about ten years ago).

 Mid-century king size teak bed and side tables (what appears to be teak in the photo anyway)

 Hollywood Regency mirrored screen

 Mid-century teak desk

teak folding chair with Navajo rug upholstery

Huge 1970s metal wall hanging

Brass arc trilight floor lamp

vintage Indian crewel rug

Asian high boy filing cabinet

Your velvet throne and matching sofa

Collection of vintage Moroccan home decor

and the 1970s Fisher Price A-Frame cabin (I had this too!)

Where have all the Conversationalists gone?

Last Wednesday, I was feeling good. The sun was out, I was in my favourite part of downtown, and I felt inspired and alive - like my good old manic days that would last for weeks. The ones where I'd start four businesses, thrift shop for 12 hrs straight and forget to eat. Am I in denial to miss that? Anyway, feeling so inspired and alive, I automatically thought of my friend Ken and our hours-long vintage and fashion conversations, so I headed off to shoot the shit with him down at Deluxe - then I remembered Ken was dead. So I thought, well Rod will be there, I'll go shoot the shit with him, then I remembered Deluxe was gone - closed due to a $3000 a month rent hike. Okay, no need to get down, I'll go talk design with someone at Inform. Well, the only bodies at Inform were ones glued to computer screens behind cash desks. Five bucks, they're practicing the snobby sales technique identified in the UBC study, Should the Devil Sell Prada? Retail Rejection Increases Aspiring Consumers’ Desire for the Brand?

Well whatever, not yet feeling deflated I thought, 'Okay I'll go sit down and have a coffee somewhere.' Somewhere, conversation was already flowing, and I could at least be part of it. Uh, since when have coffee shops been so quiet? Not one person was engaged in vocal conversation with anyone. Not because they were glued to a book, writing, or staring off into space thinking, but because their heads were bent down, staring into their phones. Holy crap, people get with it. My public library has more conversations going on! I left without buying a coffee (or tipping someone for bending their arm beyond 85 degrees).

Highly irritated, I turned around and headed back home. On my way, a homeless man complimented me. (I was hoping to run into you, but I'd put a little extra effort in that day.) I turned around and said, 'Thanks.' He said, 'Anytime, sweetheart'. So, from now on, when I want to have a conversation, face to face with someone, I can feel confident the homeless guy at Water and Cambie will participate - and I guarantee he has a hell of a lot more stories and opinions to share than the dipsticks glued to their screens. What's that old saying, 'All text and no talk makes Jack a dull boy'?

God, I miss hanging out and just talking.

Stacy Reynaud
image: Simone Signoret, Marilyn Monroe, Arthur Miller, Yves Montand

Quote of the Week - Herman Hesse

 stacy reynaud

There is no reality except the one contained within us. That is why so many people live such an unreal life. They take the images outside of them for reality and never allow the world within to assert itself.

12 Best of Craigslist Vancouver May 7th

Percival Lafer leather sofa and arm chair

Glass and chrome table with chrome cantilever chairs - and sumptuous ruby velvet cushions

Copper chandelier

Mid-century red tweed teak love seat

Folding Indian table aka nomadic furniture
 one here too

Kai Kristiansen rosewood chairs

Vintage wooden office chair

Mid-century teak record stand book shelf

Bentwood antique theatre chairs

An old door - throw some wheels on the bottom and voila - a table.

Remember this one from back in 2009?

Original 1980s black leather Fleuvogs!

and a 1971 VW van-cum-juice bar

Before and After - West Vancouver Home Demolition

1930s American Bungalow - interior images and the story here
I'd originally posted about this home on November 5th 2013

When I spoke with the contractor back in November he told me the home would be small as the woman and her two sons didn't want anything large. I'd hate to see their interpretation of large!

When She Came There The Cupboard Was Bare

stacy reynaud

You remember that guy back in 2002 that survived a week trapped in his car living off fast food condiments found in his glove box right?

This is my go to recipe when I have no food in the house. It's similar to my Leningrad Stew that I lived off when I was very, very short on money and unemployed. I remember having to stretch $10 in grocery money over a week (thankfully, it was just me). You can buy a lot of rice, beans and nearly rotten vegetables for $10.

What you need:

1. 1 can mixed beans
2. juice of half a lemon
3. 3 tbsp olive oil
4. 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
5. 1 tsp crushed garlic 
6. salt and pepper to your liking
7. plus any veg you may have around  - I use cucumber and celery
8. for extra protein add one hard boiled egg and some crumbled feta

What you do:

1. rinse beans until all the bubbly foam stuff is off
2. combine oil, vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper in a large bowl
3. add beans
4. toss until all the beans are well covered
5. add optional veg and toss again
6. let marinate for a few hours if you have time
7. serve at room temperature topped with cheese, hard boiled egg, tomatoes - whatever
8. keep some fresh sour dough bread on hand to soak up the saucy goodness left over

Serves two

Adapted from Moosewood Cookbook - my all time favourite cookbook!

Keep your pantry well stocked with various varieties of beans, vinegar, olive oil and lemon juice - you'd be surprised at how many different recipes you can come up with.