Autumn is in the air and it makes me want to go out and buy little owl-themed products. I mean, what better to bring in a new season other than cute little bird things! In all seriousness though, I heart owls. Here are a few of my favorites fond on the web:
Left to right: 1. Owl Pitcher / Mod Cloth 2. Owl Fabric Handing / Darly Bird 3. Owl Tee / Supermarket 4. Ceramic Salt & Pepper Shakers /Salt & Pepper Shakers 5. Owl Chalkes/ Modern Dose 6. Owl USB Stick / Urban Outfitters 7. Owl Mug/ Mod Cloth 8. Lamp Piggy Bank/ MOMA 9. Owl Door stop/ Anthropologie 10. Owl Twist Placemat / Doe SF
Chris Chun, Australia-based artist and designer creates beautiful patterns, compositions, and paintings reminiscent of vintage pieces with an modern Asian flair. He says that his inspiration comes from living ‘La Dolce Vita’! His shop has an array of pillows, paintings, prints, stationary and coffee cups. I have to order some of those cute prints for my home as soon as I can! Here are a few of my favorites.
Last June I had the pleasure seeing a new solo-show of artist Alexis Anne Macenzie at ParkLife in the Ricmond district of SF. I was immediately drawn to her colorful collages of beautiful and bizarre objects. Each piece is carefully put together, some even share great little says such as ‘Never Be Sad’, ‘To Me It Matters’, and ‘True Love’. Hope you enjoy it as much as me.
For my birthday this year, my family got me a lovely yellow Kitchen-Aid mixer, so I eagerly welcomed a bake challenge. First up, French Macaroons. These delicious lightweight cookies are sandwiched with swiss meringue buttercream. (They are also low in cholesterol!)
Here in SF, there are tons of bakeries carrying a wide-range of flavors from the classic pistachio to lavender & passion fruit. My favorites are Orange Blossom from La Boulange and Jasmine Tea from Paula’s. I LOVE all of the bite-sized flavors and decided to try it myself. I turned to Martha for some guidance.
You can find her recipe here. Be sure to also watch her video as well, watching the how-to definitely helps. I found the overall recipe to be a little challenging. I couldn’t seem to achieve perfect puffy little circle. Check out Sarah’s blog post here about her woo’s on the baking ordeal.
Personal tip: I had to use ‘hard peaks’ in my meringue instead of “soft” to achieve a thicker dough. Also, add lemon extract, food coloring, dutch cocoa powder and ground pistachio to change up the flavors a little. Mix and match as you please.
Visiting my mom this past weekend, I found the sweetest friendly reminder on the
sidewalks of Manhattan Beach in LA. Hope you enjoy it!
This weekend I decided to make a cute banner for our home as a daily reminder. I made some circles letters spelling out, ‘Keep Moving Forward’, cut the paper, hung it together with some string…and Voilà! I got the idea for this project here and here. Maybe you’ll be inspired to hang up an encouraging reminder for your home & family! Enjoy~
Everyone’s all about saving those pennies now days. With the economy slowly (every so slowly) getting better, we’re all concious of how we spend our dough. I thought I’d do a Top 10 of some fun money savin’ banks to help us through these tight times. My personal favorite from the bunch is the little houses bank that you can build yourself (how cute!!). It reminds me of my own little houses print here. Thanks for coming by~
Left to right: 1. Crochet Mushroom bank / Vivre 2. Volcoino Bank / I Love Uma 3. Alder’s Elephant Bank / Unica Home 4. Vintage Ceramic Owl Bank/Etsy 5. Build it House Bank/ Wrapables 6. Love Gernade Bank / A Plusr Store 7. Glass Piggy Bank/ Velocity Art & Design 8. Lamp Piggy Bank/ MOMA 9. DwellStudio Snail Bank / Design Pubic 10. Cupcake Coin Bank / TipTop Tea Shop
Wow, it’s been a few months since my last post. All I can say is tough times call for other priorities. Time to look for some new inspiration to recharge my spirits. I will make a solid effort to begin contributing again. After all, my crafts and drawings contribute to my sanity. For today, take a look at what I’ve found…
…a great company, started by a group of graphic designers based out in London called, Present & Correct. I love their great posters, office supplies, and designer stationary. I have a personal obsession with desk organizers and instantly feel in love with their peppermint desk tray, wood desk tray, and the tubular tidy tray. Take a look at a few of my favorite wall posters here, I know I got inspired, hope it does the same for you. Enjoy!
A few weeks ago, we were asked to be Godparents for our nephews and participate in their baptisim ceremony. It was such an honor we wanted to give them a gift they could have for years and years…plus, our lack of funds definitely has helped us look for more ‘DIY’ ways to give gifts. The saying ‘Let Your Little Light Shine’ is a line from a great children’s song from Sunday School. Also here is a pattern I designed for some children’s gift wrap. Hope you enjoy my happy doodling! 
Helen Musselwhite is another amazing artist/illustrator whose medium is paper cuttings. From the UK, Helen’s distinctive hand crafted quality and her attention to detail with whimsical scenes really draw me in. Check out a few of my favorites above.
