5 Design Stores You Must Visit in Copenhagen

During my trip to Copenhagen with my girlfriend Lin, I swear to you, every time we headed out the door, I had to prep myself for the overwhelming design-store coolness that would instantly appear on its cobblestone streets.

Here was a typical conversation I had with myself:

"Calm down, lady. You can do this. You do not have to buy everything you see. Just appreciate things and move on. Maybe take some photos, maybe not. Keep the credit card secure at all times. If you start to tear up because you are surrounded by such bonkers-awesome home design, just hold it back. No design crying in Denmark! You will look ridiculous! You will scare Lin! Keep it together, Feezor!"

In short, everything I've ever pinned on Pinterest ever, everything I've ever included in a roundup for Herman Miller or mom.me, basically came to life in Copenhagen. Here are the places that made me the most overly and inappropriately emotional.

1. Normann Copenhagen. Normann was the first store I just had to see when we got to the city--I feel like I've written and daydreamed about it more than any other place in Copenhagen. It's a bit out of the city center, so plan accordingly! Østerbrogade 70, 2100 Copenhagen

2. HAY. Oh heavens. Such clean and modern and beautiful design. HAY makes everything from pillows to notebooks to brooms yes brooms look better. (Their store, in the city center, is pictured above.) Østergade 61, 1100 Copenhagen

3. Illums Bolighus. Just the typing of this store name makes me catch my breath. (This is not a joke. I almost turned around and walked back out when I first witnessed it. IT IS TOO MUCH FOR ME. HERE IS WHERE I MAY CRY.) Everything you need is in this shop. Everything. If you only have 24 hours in Copenhagen, this is your design store. 10 Amagertorv, 1160 Copenhagen

4. Tiger. Tiger is apparently all over Europe, but I wanted to include it here because the Denmark store was cheery and well priced. It reminded me of a mini IKEA, sans furniture and with more food options. Rådhuspladsen 59, 3.tv, 1550 Copenhagen

5. Sogreni of Copenhagen. Sogreni isn't a design shop per se, but it is a design-y bicycle shop. The perfect Copenhagen souvenir is here: one of their pitch-perfect, super-chic bike bells. Get the brass version--the owner told me it has the clearest tone. Sankt Peders Streage 30A, 1453 Copenhagen

The Paris Plan - Achieved Today: Rule #10.

Holes in Things

After scoring this varsity letter at the Golden Nugget flea, I found myself sifting through a dusty box of old photographs. Nothing really struck me (it was mostly pics of Persian rugs and sculpture, perhaps from an archive at a museum) until I came across this photo.

It stopped me in my tracks. On the back, it had a big official-looking stamp: "Nuclear Tests, Nevada, 1962."

I got home, did a little research, and figured out that it's the Sedan Crater at the Nevada Test Site near Area 51. I got it for a buck.

It's terrifying and beautiful all at once. I just can't stop thinking about it.

DIY Varsity Letter Art

The book I've been collaborating on over the past few months has to do, in part, with flea markets and home design. And that means I spent much of my summertime browsing the aisles and bins of fleas in the tri-state area. (It's been heavenly.)

Seeing as how I live in 475 square feet of space, however, I am not able to take advantage of most of the deals I come across; there simply is no extra room. Except apparently when it comes to art. If the stash I've been accumulating lately is any indicator, I have no problem with the idea of purchasing something I can later frame and hang -- like this varsity letter I unearthed at the Golden Nugget in Buck's County, PA, while visiting my friend Danny (himself a flea expert).

I've been collecting A's for around 15 years at this point, so am a bit overloaded on the letter, to be honest. But this little treasure was one of a kind and only $1. It reminded me of pennants I'd seen framed at the Boat House in Lambertville, NJ. Plus, I liked that it has a history: it's probably from an old-timey letterman jacket worn by some jock with a greasy pompadour and a comb in his back pocket. (Or whatever. Just let me dream my Danny Zuko dream, okay?)

Danny (Seo, not Zuko) (although I am pretty sure Seo could rock a pompadour much better, if he wanted) advised that I put it in the freezer overnight, just in case its fabric contained dust mites. When I was in the clear (whew!) (and gross!), I mounted it on a piece of $1 hot-pink felt. I cut the felt to the size of a $10 Ikea Ribba frame, and then used similar colored thread to sew the letter to the felt. To keep it stabilized, I also stitched the felt to the frame's paperboard mat.

For a grand total of 12 whole dollars, I now have a new letter for my collection that sits and cheers me on at my desk. (I need all the help I can get, really.) Cute, right?

Oh! And P.S. This where I insert a "tell me about it, stud" joke. You're welcome. xo

Hello, Domaine

Hurrah! The unsurprisingly glam-packed home site Domaine launched yesterday with one of my favorite people at the helm: the uber-talented Mat Sanders. Domaine is as effortlessly stylish and slightly quirky and classically cool as he is. I know Mat and his team have put in a ton (A TON) of work to launch the site, so check it out here and leave 'em some love.

And if you're feeling nostalgic, take a look back at some of the M-Dashing posts Mat did with Guerrin Gardner back in the day before Apartment Therapy got smart and swooped them up. (I particularly love this post and this post.)

Congrats, Mat and team! It's beyond breathtaking. So proud!