a silk print for the last days of November

and with a a swatch of vintage silk in a feather print, we let November go, say goodbye for now to Thanksgiving, and welcome in December with its pine needles, its brown paper packages, its mittens, its champagne, its snows.

spiny lobsters and other textilic delicacies served up by anthropologie for spring

some stunning new textiles from anthropologie for spring... adore the soft blues and terra cotta pinks and corals of this needlepoint-esque lobster, made edgy and beautiful by its surprising scale, and slightly menacing, fibrous legs....

more favorites include another rug, inspired by a vera print, in scalloped-woven silk; a "freckled fish" pillow in hot pink linen, and anthropologie's take on dwellstudio's popular avian "Chinoiserie" bedding-- I think they got their watercolor parrots exactly right. beautiful, infused saffrons, and soft floral branches. really nice.

let march march on

feeling inspired by little quick iced shots of deep blue and lots of texture these days....

(click for the closeup. so good.)

silk felt soil dips its toe into the waters of midcentury modern....and finds the temperature quite lovely!

news:

i bought a loveseat!

I'm only going to post this teeny weeny pic of it because I don't want to BLIND you guys. I admit, it's not its most charming self at the moment. But doesn't it have potential...? soo many ways we could go with this little one.

zzzip! while you {zzz.....}.

so i've gone a little pillows-mad. (dear old september, the month of all months where pillows seem most appealing and where you have least time to enjoy them.)

From unison home: love! the faux-tweed....



and love (to the nth degree) the racing stripe bolster.

might as well give the appearance of zzzip while you {zzzz.....}, no?

image of '60s pillow reverie via desire to inspire.

look before you sit! (salvor fauna)

I adore what Ross Menuez, of Salvor Fauna, says about his process: "Almost all the best work, anything that... that you will like, years later, has nothing of you in it."

Porcupine sien on water, available at Design Public. A whole menagerie may be found at Areaware.

faded terra cotta pink and navy blue....

I am mad for this color palate of pale terra cotta pink and faded navy blue (spotted on Toast)--

Always did love Diana Vreeland for saying that "Pink is the navy blue of India..."! ... what better than to see the two collide in a bookshelf, or

on a dusky-colored sari that I saw walking away from me in Gujurat....


{welcome to all who are here via Design*Sponge! our contribution to the d*s blogger's guide to online shopping can be found here , along with contributions from 9 other inspiring bloggers.}

linen and silk: printed neutrals

have you heard of the online retailer "Fashion Fabrics Club"? Until recently I hadn't (certainly the name doesn't sound too promising) but they are definitely worth a look! If you have a project that requires some fabric (eg, I'm hoping to make some curtains in time for fall), you can browse on their site for hours: they have a great search engine, tons of natural materials like silk, wool, linen, and canvas, and excellent prices-- most materials come under $20 a yard. I just bought a bunch of different fabrics, 1 yard each, so I'll keep you posted and take some pictures when they come in.

From top: chocolate and ivory "circle" print in linen; a black and white silk plaid suitable for curtains; and this final silk chiffon print might make a cute dress....

monogrammed linens....

Monograms are by definition totally kitsch, no? Most of the time, they look copy-cutter, completely un-ironic, which can be a bit scary! Finding an unusual monogram, on the other hand, makes a bed-set become something truly eccentric and wonderful. Leontine Linens, based in New Orleans, has some of the most unusual, unique, splendid, overscale monograms I've ever seen. With names like "Baron." "Monarch." (Such a fun wedding present!) ... Somehow I get the feeling Nick Olsen would dig these.


The masculine "Joseph" and "Claude..." from the Baron collection.





And the more refined "Helena 2" from the Monarch collection, and "Jules," & "Trey" from the Directoire collection.





Have a languid, relaxing Memorial Day weekend, all! & see you back on Tuesday with some musings about the wedding!

pattern: oversized dots and oblongs in silky neutrals

o . O o . O o . o O . 0 0o O o . o O0 oblongs

Joy's nantaka joy line is out and it's too delicious....! (image via d*s). was so inspired, i had to show a sample of other gorgeous oval and oblong patterns in textiles and ceramics.

Embroidered tambourine fabric by Minä perhonen via photos from IdN spotted on Elly's site.


brooch by scottish artist Ann Little.


"Martini" runner by madeline weinrib

beloved Arabia: Finland giraffes found here.

when the world is puddle-wonderful and mud-luscious

i just might have to buy this book, wildflower garden, even though i don't really know much about working with a needle and thread... i badly want to learn how to make such beautiful little stitched sprouts and herbs!



ps- might anyone know where to find a good selection of japanese crafts books in boston? xp

washed-out citrons pt ii: remembering marni spring '05

i mean, seriously. does it get any better?

(ps: sale at garnet hill....)

* a cute lamp in chocolate...for ~$50, down from ~$170.

* a crewel rug in small sizes...

* a cashmere throw in a beautiful forest color for half off.

tie-ing the knot

over the weekend my main man and i went to the berkshires, and unexpectedly he popped the question!

i said yEs!!...

to celebrate, yesterday i bought him a couple of bowties from J.Press (graciously modeled here for you by the implacable Nefertiti). He doesn't wear bowties yet and neither of us knows how to tie them but i have some instructions and...

i hope we'll learn together.






.

sorry for the break in posting! it's been busy... but now i'm back!

c. f. a. voysey wallpaper and textile illustrations

am loving the early 20th c. arts & crafts designer c. f. a. voysey.

these are two preparatory illustrations for potential designs (carpet, and wallpaper) that he sketched. I wonder if current wallpaper designers sell sketches of their designs-- I think those images would be lovely pieces of artwork, in between finished wallpaper and actual illustration.


(image via de gournay).

happy friday!

vicki simon's deep sea felt rugs

mad for these felt rugs by Vicki Simon that Shelterrific's Allison has found. Fantasic. What inspires me is the line these pieces walk between abstract and figurative (just like the Zen Sekizawa photograph, below). Plus, they're so messy and scrawl-y that they poke fun at the seriousness of design, and I love that.

p.s: they really remind me of this amazing drawing that was posted last june on lena's blog that for some reason i haven't been able to get out of my head!

sartorialist... i must have been asleep

i. am. in. love.



love? yes. love.

"watercolor" pillow from habitat

designed by genevieve bennett for habitat. cotton sateen. (£25)

swoon!

dutch artist worth watching: beppe kessler

I feel so lucky to be able to share with you the work of beppe kessler, a dutch artist who is fluent in so many different mediums. Her burned balsa wood brooches astonish me-- they are leopard-like, seashell-like, and yet wholly inimitable. Her commissioned work "Home" (2005) picks up the burned balsa wood motif, and turns it into something completely different-- small houses, gilded with gold leaf and color.

I love also the delicate rug that she designed on commission, and finally, this spare, perfect brooch (click "artists" to find the work).

Beppe Kessler. Wow.

oh no she di-int!

Yup, pretty soon I will be the proud owner of this 8x10 cotton monkey rug. It was so affordable that it seemed silly not to try it, at least. We'll see. Sometimes you've just got to take a risk!!

things I like about it:
- the neutral, crisp background
- the jungly, large-scale print
- the colors (at least i'm consistent: it even matches with the nude color of "silk felt soil" and green header color of this post!)
- the shape, scale, and expression of the monkeys
- the sheer sillyness of it, as a fun contrast to our very minimalist beautiful greige walls with white trim.
- how it reminds me of this, and this, and is even a little bit in the spirit of this...

we will see, guys. maybe i've totally lost it! thoughts? condolences?