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The first floor with bedrooms overlooking rooftop gardens.

Japanese stationery company Postalco's spiral-bound notebooks (seen here in Size A6) have a water-resistant, starch-pressed cotton fabric cover, so rest assured, they will outlast any great adventures that you embark on. Available in red, light blue, and navy blue. $25

Each of the sliding trays in Pozner’s tidy office desk serves a different function.

ROULE TRAY Designed by Pauline Deltour for Discipline, the Roulé tray is inspired by classic copper pots used in jam making. Carrying through with this inspiration, the tray features an exaggeratedly large rolled edge that is not only an aesthetic choice, but also a practical one—the edge facilitates handling and stacking with other Roulé trays. Made from copper or brass, this tray has a distinctive shine that has a mirror-like effect on the objects it holds. The classic shape of the Roulé tray recalls traditional and simple serving trays, but the luxe materials give the tray a refined elegance that will add sophistication to a cocktail party or dress up a side table arrangement.

Moleskine has debuted a new white notebook in its online store. Inspired by the concept of a black canvas, as well as icons like the Beatles' The White Album, Le Corbusier’s white blocks, and Malevich’s pivotal White on White canvases, this fresh twist on the classic 192 acid-free page notebook is sure to be an instant classic.

Red & Black TrayA simple graphic tray with an elegant carrara marble inset. $195

Perfect for colorful macaroons, this geometric tray is designed by Clara Von Zweigbergk and is arrangeable to fit your appetite.

Serve treats on a tray as rich as dessert itself with the marble-and-walnut Duo serving tray from Bower.

AJ SERVING TRAY There is something undeniably refined about a stainless steel bar set. Whether it’s the subtle shine or the coolness of the metal, Stelton’s Cylinda-Line, designed by Arne Jacobsen, presents the essential elements for a modern bar. The series uses simple cylindrical shapes to provide a minimalist, clean continuity between the pieces. The AJ Serving Tray features two side handles for easy carrying, and is an attractive way to serve cocktails to guests, or to place hors d’oeuvres on a coffee table. As a standalone item, the tray adds elegance to a cocktail party. Grouped with other pieces from the Cylinda-Line? That’s a comprehensive, sophisticated modern bar.

Wolfum The L.A.-based design shop led by Annabel Inganni sets itself apart with a combination of materials and textiles. Its serving tray exemplifies Wolfum’s infatuation with patterns in a simple form created from Baltic Birch plywood.

Pass the party appetizers on this tree-lined tray made of fabric that has been pressed into birch plywood and laminated. It's shatterproof, waterproof, and lightweight for easy carrying of all your favorite bites.

The Best Ice Cube TrayTovolo’s King ice cube tray is tops because the larger surface area slows the dilution of melted water in your beverage. See the full analysis, which gives more thought to ice cubes than we ever have, at The Sweethome.

Our tranquil excursion would require this bundle of camping-themed notebooks by Subtle Acts for jotting down nature-induced inspirations. $28. Photo by James Ransom.

The unfinished sketches that populate the pages of Geary's Elevated Journal leave space for your own artistic expressions.

The utility and durability of the Spiral Journal, which features discarded watercolors, make it perfect for producing colorful creations of your own.

Linda Geary is cofounder of the Painting Expanded Symposium, a program that promotes discussions around contemporary painting. Her series of vibrant notebooks aims to continue that conversation. The Stack Book contains 32 color swatches that formed the basis of one of Geary’s collaborative art projects and encourage you to get creative, too.

The Archimetric Notebook and Drawing Tool Set is an elegant notebook designed for architects, designers, or anyone who is interested in scaled drafting. The pages of the notebook are ruled at a scale of 1/100° and 1/50° for precision drafting, and the book also includes blank pages for notes or freehand sketches. The grey pages are lined with white, making the graphs almost appear to fade away from the pages. The result is a surface that sets drawings apart form the lines, letting them stand on their own. The Arhimetric set also includes drawing instruments, including a scale ruler, protractor and t-square, and a bookmark.

The Fake-Jacket Journal, also by Russell, comes with two reversible jackets, which allow you to present four different faces to the world depending on your mood.

Russell's Drawn to Music notebook, which features a built-in record sleeve, encourages you to doodle while listening to your favorite tunes. A line at the bottom of each page prompts you to note what you’re listening to as you draw.

De Waart added a chalkboard to the kitchen for writing memos and for drawing, as Tammo does here.

Debuting at ICFF 2014, David Weeks and Neal Feay Studio collaborated on a collection of trays. In response to Weeks's angular design (left), Alex Rasmussen of Neal Feay dreamed up its curved counterpart.

The thin Corrugated Notebook from Nomess Copenhagen is available in white, black, and brown, and features contrast binding and a bookmark ribbon. With a cover made of corrugated cardboard, the notebook has a pleasant, tactile feel, and the slim silhouette makes it a good choice for commuting.

Designed by innovators Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec for FLOS, the Piani Table Lamp offers stylish and modern asymmetry for the home or work environment. Made of injection printed ABS, this unique lamp provides both direct and ambient light with energy-efficient LED technology.

Public Supply’s Dot Paper Notebook is designed with simplicity in mind. The five- by eight-inch notebook includes 96 pages of dot paper, inviting just enough order to focus penmanship, but enough open space for users to feel free to sketch or create their own note-taking system.

Jason Polan, known for his ambitious project to draw every person in New York City, has created a series of journals that help people take note of the world around them. The ultra-portable Observation Notebook features eye-shaped cutouts on the back cover, making it ideal for conducting covert surveillance.

Seating Trays made of plywood, walnut veneer, cast silicone, and felt.

Here's the stand unfolded.

Sunrise Tray by Anna Þórunn-A piece that stuck in my mind and felt distinctly Icelandic with its sense of imagination, storytelling, and good common sense and utility was the Sunrise tray by Anna Þórunn. A product designer by trade, Þórunn relies on her ability to tell traditional stories in a witty, thoughtful, and contemporary way. From the Rúdolf magazine rack on wheels (charming!) to the seriousness of the Norðurmyrin cuttingboard (the blood from cut meat filling grooves mimicking street patterns telling the story of conflicts among early settlers) to the raven inspired (of course) Feed Me bowls, Þórunn captivates and leaves you wanting more. "I see shapes and forms in everything, so with this tray I saw a house, a mountain and a sunrise so I went with it," Þórunn told me. Photo by: Tiffany Orvet

While its molded plywood underneath, the variegated Juhannustaika Round Plywood Tray ($229) sports the organic designs of Aino-Maija Metsola taken directly from Marimekko fabric. It's food safe and ideal for serving or just display.

Wood is a favorite material of owners Daoust and Baker, who select pieces that show off the natural grains of each cut.

When it comes to inspiring great work, look no further than Charles and Ray Eames. This bold notebook features a numerical pattern made famous by the pair, and includes an interior pocket, bookmark, and elastic band for keeping the notebook secure.

A view of the interior pages of the Archimetric Notebook, showing one of the drafting tools.

Polan's Collection of Paper Options features twelve hand-drawn patterns, prompting new and inventive creations every time you turn the page.