For the last month, I have been using a service called Dropbox. This service, like its name implies, is an online storage that you can use as a drop box. You can put almost anything in this box and retrieve it later. Cool, I know, but where it really gets good is that it syncs between multiple devices. My dropbox is synced between my iPhone, iPad, MacBook, home Mac and work PC. Wherever I am I can access my dropbox. Earlier today I saw a tweet that linked to PDF article about industrial design. I was on my work PC and wanted to read this article later. So instead of emailing it to myself or trying to use instapaper or evernote, I just dropped it into my dropbox. Later during lunch I opened the dropbox app on my iPad and opened the PDF article to read in iBooks.

I never know when I will need to access a lot of different files and having the ability to easily have all of these documents in a single place is life changing. I have clients all the time asking me to email them this or that, and being able to email the file, even over a cell network, really gets noticed. It takes one minute to do, but to the customer it makes them feel like they are that important that you will drop everything you are doing to get them the file. Easy.

The uses for this service are endless. This happens to be one of those services that are so simple and easy to use that you wonder how you ever made it through life without it. They have three packages: Basic (2 GB) free, Pro 50 (50 GB) $9.99 a month, and Pro 100 (100 GB) $19.99 a month. Go check them out. You won’t be disappointed. Dropbox

Earlier today I was going through photos on my phone and it dawned on me that I had a rolling photo essay of my life. Vacations, family moments, births, deaths, strange objects, interesting textures and patterns, cities and countries, and more. Every photo is a moment in time with a story, however insignificant, associated with it. As I looked through the thousands of photos, I was struck by how strange and beautiful our lives are. Take a quick snapshot everyday with your phone and before you know it you will have a visual journal of where you have been, the people you love, and the things that inspire you. It doesn’t have to be an iPhone or a phone at all, but something you carry with you every day to document your strange and wonderful world.

Okay. Here we go.

Materials

• glass tile (1 foot square)
• grout (water proof or not, your choice/color your choice too)
• sponge (preferrably a grout sponge)
• utility knife or scissors
• towel
• cutting surface
• cork with adhesive on one side (I found this at Home Depot in the Organization section)

(1) Using a glass that you will use on your coaster, measure to make sure that your coaster will be large enough and your glass isn’t hanging over the side. Cut the glass tiles out of the sheet of tile (mine were four by four tiles). The tiles are held together with a kind of mesh. Once you have your four by four tile square you will need to clean up the bottom edges where the mesh will be sticking out I used a utility knife and scissors to trim it back so it wasn’t poking out from under the glass tiles. (picture 3)

(2) Cut a piece of cork and adhere it to the bottom of the tiles. I cut my cork a little smaller than the actual width and height of the glass tiles. I did this because I didn’t want to see the cork when it is on a table and it gives the impression of the glass tile coaster being elevated off the surface. At least in my head. :)

(3) Push grout into the openings between the tiles. Make sure that you have a scrap piece of paper underneath your tile and begin spreading grout over the surface. You can use grout tools to do this, but I found it easier to just use my fingers. Your fingers are able to push the grout down into the openings between the tiles easier and you don’t have as much pressure being put on the tiles, which makes them slide around. Make sure you go over the surface a few times so all of the openings are full of grout. I cleaned up the sides a little here just so the grout isn’t bulging out the sides (not pictured).

(4) Let it sit for a few minutes and with a slightly damp sponge gently go over the surface of the tiles to clean up the grout. I go very gently here as I don’t want to put too much side pressure on the corner tiles. Rinse out the sponge and repeat this a few more times or until there is only a slight haze on the tiles surface. Don’t worry about the sides or the haze as were will clean it up more once the grout has had time to dry.

(5) Read the direction on the grout that you have used and see how long you need to let it dry. Mine was twenty four hours. Once that time has passed I use my utility knife and I clean up the sides where grout has pushed out. I curved the grout line back beneath the edge of the glass as I feel it gives it a better appearance than being flush on the side. Then using a slight damp cloth wipe the entire glass surface, top and sides. This will clean up the haze and the specks of grout that you may have missed with the sponge. If you have let it sit for the correct amount of time then you should be able to use a little muscle to clean them.

(6) Once the glass tile is all clean there is only one thing to do, and that is make yourself a drink and use it!

You can use waterproof grout or you can seal the grout if you want, but I am not necessarily convinced that this should matter. Unless you spill something with color on the coaster the only thing touching the grout would be condensation. I guess this it up to you. I would be gentle with them initially to make sure the grout is completely dry, but I think they will withstand quite a bit of good use.

I was able to make nine coasters with the single foot of glass tile that I bought. I did buy another piece, but I have not yet begun working on them. I am looking forward to having people over and see what kind of reaction I get from them. I think they will be quite a conversation piece. I definitely plan on making a few of these for a few friends. Feel free to drop me a note in the comments if I was unclear on any part of the description and I will be happy to answer your questions.

Cheers.

I saw some bundles of sunflowers recently when we were shopping and they made me feel so happy just seeing them. The idea of doing a sunflower arrangement for her mom kind of stuck in my head since then. So, this morning I went and bought a couple of bundles without really knowing how we were going to present them to her. Remember that Home Again store I recently wrote about? I figured I would go there and see what inspired me. I love this store and I will make any excuse to go wander around for a little bit. They had many interesting vases, but I didn’t really want a vase (or at least not just a glass case). I wanted something unique. I saw this milk can standing on the top of a large bookcase and immediately knew that this would be perfect. The white can was beginning to rust in places and it was just the right height that I wouldn’t need to cut the sunflowers down. It was perfect. The milky white color of the can really draws your focus to the sunflowers. I was kind of tempted to keep it for us, but that would defeat the purpose and effort for her birthday. I hope she likes it.

The other thing I liked about this article was the design of poster. So many people would try make the comparison a grid or spreadsheet style, but the bout poster is such a fantastic idea. Lots more fun to read. ;)