creative collections

I have just had a major penny drop! I spotted this great image as part of the latest Color Me Pretty post on Decor8

This lovely collection of vintage buttons very much reminded me of my mum and her incredible collection of buttons in all shapes and sizes. Just a few weekends ago we had pulled out some clothing mum had made for my brothers and I when we were young. Each piece had a fabulous button, whether one sweet mother of pearl or a series of more novelty buttons. Mum admitted she had made a naval themed brunch coat for my brother around some whale buttons she had. It got me thinking of some of the other wonderful collections my mum has.

Then I cam across this spoon collection image in my Flickr favourites, which when I found a while back also reminded me of my mum. She has an amazing spoon collection in all shapes and sizes, material and ages. So now the penny has dropped that my mum has a heap of cool stuff that would make amazing photos!
So today I have headed out to Flickr and found a wonderful range of collection photos, all of which share something in common with one of my mums many collections.

Vintage spools via hindsvik

a matchbox collection via Camilla Engman

old and new tins via cousas pequenas

bric-a-brac via sweetjessie

 Last but not least is this beautifully organised fabric collection from Ingthings

Along with great buttons, mum has some beautiful fabric remnants. My favourites are the ones which went into making some of my dresses when I was little. My mum has wonderful displays of her collections all over her house, but I had never considered photographing them. I like the idea of this as a project because behind a lot of the pieces there is a story which would be nice to capture and keep alive.

a little toe warmer

Whit's Knits: Elizabeth Zimmermann's Baby Booties, originally uploaded by the purl bee.

Just a little something colourful to warm up any chilly feet in Sydney today! I love these colours and could really do with some warm, woolly socks right now!

geometric gems - Sex and The City

Bernabeifreeman are a duo whos cut lace lights and screens are featured in many fabulous locations locally and around the worldwide. I especially love their lace lights, but more appropriately for my theme this week, they have partnered with Designer Rugs to create an incredible range of rugs in their own graphic style.

Applique - 100% Wool Rug

 Brodie - Wool and Silk rug

With a strong geometric feel, I think that any one of these rugs adds an element of Arabian style to any room anywhere in the world. They would certainly be an amazing feature piece! I actually think they look very much like the light patterns you get from Moroccan style lanterns.

Bias - 100% Wool Rug, with a peek of a Lace screen in the background

Check out the full range of bernbeifreeman Designer Rugs here, and also view all the great range of lighting, screens and more at bernbeifreeman.

look the part - Sex and The City

I can't have a week seeking inspiration from the new Sex and The City movie without involving fashion.
Luckily for me a little while back I discovered the wonderful website Polyvore. It's chock full of incredible clothes, shoes and accessories but my favourite part of the site is the create section where you get to put together incredible outfits using designer clothing labels like Diane Von Furstenberg and Alexander McQueen and unbelievably cool shoes by Christian Louboutin and Jimmy Choo. In essence it's a girls dream! I think of it as the modern day equivalent of paper dolls!
Not only can you browse amazing pieces, and of course find out where to purchase them should you be so lucky, but you can create mood boards using your fave designer pieces. There are some very talented people who are doing amazing mood boards - you can browse them all here.
I've picked out a few which I think would not be out of place in Sex and The City 2 with bright colours, amazing shoes and an overall feel suitable for camel rides across sand dunes - well maybe not suitable, but very chic!
Enjoy and go play at Polyvore for yourself!

Papaya! by Hennie Henne Baby featuring Aeropostale bags

Tangerine n Fucsia by Alexianoor featuring Lanvin dresses

Happy Birthday girls!! by ♥ℓιfε ιs bεαutιfuℓ♥(Busy) featuring Lanvin shoes

Just Another Woman In Love by Neki featuring Emilio Pucci dresses

a splash of colour - Sex and The City

After yesterdays 'goldwash' post, I've gone in search of colour today. My biggest problem is that all my favourite local retailers are in winter mode. The charcoal, black and navy colour pallette is a far cry from the exotic middle east flavour the fabulous 4 ladies encounter in Sex and The City 2. I did find some great inspiration from the portfolio of photographer Pia Ulin

These images sum up the look i'm chasing. I have turned to the UK based retailer Dutch By Design, which you can probably guess stocks pieces inspired by the Dutch design aesthetic.

First up is this Multi Colour Gypsy Chandelier which is a great eclectic mix of bright colours.

Next I found this String Door Curtain, perfect for making a grand entrance Samantha style!

and lastly while not middle eastern, this JuJu Hat feather cushion has the right amount of colour and fabulousness to be included here. It's actually modelled on a headdress of royalty in the African country Cameroon. Fun though right?
I'll off to try and track down more vibrant coloured goodies.

all that glitters - Sex and The City

To kick off my Sex in The City post series in true SATC style, I have gone for opulent lashings of gold all with a middle eastern flavour.

First up is this great Gold Moroccan Leather Pouffe from Graham and Green. You could perch your designer clad derrière nicely atop this.

Along side you would be this opulent gold Chrome Tam Tam table designed by Henry Massonnet in 1968. It would almost be rude to place a cocktail or champagne glass on top of this, but if you were Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte or Miranda you would do it anyway!

How about dining from these gold rimmed pieces from the Persis Dinnerware Collection By Rosenthal?

A few more pieces to complete the scene. The Gra Suspension Lamp By Terzani would cast beautiful light down over us as we gather around for a girls night.

.... and finally this beautiful Alessi Cactus Gold Fruit holder. I would like to see this overflowing with exotic fruit. So would you join me at this little golden soire I have planned out?

Sex and the City 2 - a week of fabulousness

I've decided to do another themed week around the upcoming Sex and The City 2 movie. Even if you're not a fan of the TV series and have no intention of seeing the movie, there is so much visual fabulousness that can be drawn on for inspiration.

 {above image from Tine K Home}

Tune in for posts full of colour and texture inspired by the middle east. I'll focus on home styling and products as well as a quick dabble into fashion. After all Sex and The City is all about those amazing clothes!

For this image and more - check out the movie facebook page and if you haven't seen it yet, watch the movie trailer over here.

custom cupcakes

A little sweet finish to the week.

I just discovered these Cupcake wrappers over at Alfresco Emporium. These laser cut paper wrapper slip over a standard cupcake to really dress them up! They come in packs of 12 and a range of themes, including a little boy friendly cob-web design.

It's probably a bit ostentatious, but don't they look lovely! They could also hide any baking imperfections nicely. Shown here: Seashells, Baby(which comes in both blue and pink),  Butterfly and my favourite Ivy

pebbles and felt

A few of my favourite things have come together and I am thrilled to have found them. I have a thing for pebble shapes and have made some lovely pebble finds over the past year. I am also a fan of felt. I love the texture and softness and think it has a real homely quality to it. You can imagine my excitement yesterday when I discovered the Delica etsy shop full of felted pebbly goodness!

Left: Felted Pebble Gift Set in Blue tones - All my favourite colours together >gush< I just want to pick these pebbles up!
Right: Aqua Dot Felted Bowl Duo - Another great colour and texture combo and great little bowls for keeping all sorts of knick-knacks in, or simply a nice decorating piece.

Even better for a necklace lover like me are these pebble shaped felt necklaces! I think I might combust as this is all so for me! I would take one of everything if I could.
Top left: Gadelle Felted Necklace - this beauty comes in a few colour ways with this denim blue one my fave.
Top right: Felted Pebbles on Leather Necklace - these are a more traditional pebble look and a statement piece necklace
Bottom left: Felted wool pebble necklace - a woolly pendant. The larger grey pebble is about 6cm diameter, so another nice big statement necklace
Bottom right: Silver white necklace - this multi strand necklace takes felt into the warmer months. The tight white merino wool balls don't look as cosy on the silver ribbon so you could wear this in spring or summer.

For more pebbly wonderfulness, I love these Felted Acorns. They are lavender filled and come in a nice colour range. Again my pick is the blue colour way. These would make a really nice gift that can be put out on display or tucked into drawers as a scent sachet.

.....and one more way to get felted pebbles into your life, this Set of 4 magnets would hold things up in style on your fridge. Visit Delica, my new favourite etsy shop and also check out the blog fro Delica's latest felted creations.

i wish - a collection of white bottles

I love a nice collection of bottles, particularly white on white and all different shapes. So I wish for this entire collection of White Matte Bottles from ceramicist Sara Paloma. For a cool $800USD I might have to start slowly with one piece at a time!

too much cool - Isa Form

I just took myself on a quick journey, wading through google translating pages from German and Swedish all because of this image.

There is just so much coolness about this room! I love the pops of green and yellow against the black and whit, the old school clock, peace sign and yellow taper candles. By far though, the stand out pieces in this room are the 2 prints - the big black and white pear and the yellow apple in green frame. I came across this image via A Merry Mishap's flickr favourites. Unfortunately I can't find the owner of this amazing room, but I have found the artist behind those cool prints.

From what I can tell Isa from Isa Form, found this great use of her prints from a fellow Swedish blogger Inspiration and Design and posted them to her own blog.

These 2 prints, pear and apple are from Isa's kitchen print range. I think they are so unique and just too cool.
There are plenty of other great prints to choose from in a range of categories, like Nature, Love and Buildings.

This is the Yama ki print from the buildings range and is another great use of simple black and white and an eye-popping colour. Anyway, I've had a fun journey and can only dream of having a dining room that cool!

living wall art

A while ago I saw some examples of Parisian vertical gardens which blew my mind. The master of this area is Patrik Blanc who has made this type a garden a true artform.

Vertical Gardens or Le Mur Vegetal are living works of art, which require no soil and are kept alive through built in watering systems. It is almost like painting with plants with care taken in selecting plants by colour and texture to create these breathtaking buildings. Companies as varied as Cartier and McDonalds have invested in Patrik Blanc's vertical gardens to embellish their buildings. See some of the amazing examples of his 'installations' on his website.
I really like the idea of a vertical herb garden for people like me who are a little space challenged. Our home has a nice sunny courtyard that could really do with some greenery. I have found a local company called Lushe who are vertical garden enthusiasts and sell systems for us mere mortals to try and emulate the great work of Patrik Blanc. They also document different types of vertical gardens they have come across like the
the edible wall in an LA Pizza restaurant.

or this Maze vertical garden which I think look great and no surprise that it comes from uber-cool US retailer CB2.

feet warmers

After the coldest May night in 4 years last night, I have found myself embracing my ugg boots for another chilly winter. I love my uggs and maintain a strict indoor only policy with them. I have found another alternative for keeping feet warm from a very stylish lady living in New Zealand.

 Holland Designs has a range of crochet patterns for sale which allows you to create some stylish indoor footwear.

{top left} Skimmer T-Strap Ballet Flats
{top right} Ladies Rose Garden Ballet Flats

{bottom left} Ladies Sporty-Casual Crocheted Flats

{bottom right} Ladies Cross-Strap Ballet Flats

Don't they look super comfy and not the least bit daggy! 

There's also a stylish alternative for men with the Mens Oxford Loafers

Also for those worried about your ankles getting cold then these Cabled Cuff Boots are for you

All these patterns are from the Adult Slipper section of the store. Holland Design also caters for little feet and heads with a range of booties, slippers and hats for kids. Check them all out in the etsy store.

Now I just need to learn how to crochet!

make work (more) fun

For some lucky people out there, work is actually a fun or at least enjoyable part of life. For others it's a bit of a drag. I'm a tiny bit of one, but sadly more of the second. Wouldn't it be great to find some ways to make any work more fun? Well lucky for us all places like Upon A Fold have a few cool and quirky products that could inject some happiness to the daily grind. They have collected some cool products from all around the world and I have picked out a few here to show you.

I know there are plenty of alternatives for the humble yellow post-it note, but these Match Post Its are by far the coolest I've seen.

I really like the retro styling of the packaging as well and would happily have these on my desk.
Next up are some "collaboration" tools. Well, it's paper you can scrunch up and throw around the office!

These Play More More More notepads are practical and lined on one side, while on the other they are printed with patterns that let you scrunch them into balls and kick about ideas with your colleagues.
Last, but not least is a great stationary product for tech-heads out there. I know  sit in lots of meetings with people who place their iPhone on the table in front of them. I would really like one of these Notepods in front of me and get to note taking in a traditional way!

There's even a iPad version already, which if I'm quick, could mean I beat my techy colleagues to the punch with having an iPad to take to meetings! I love fun stuff like this and am so pleased places like Upon A Fold bring them all together for us. Check out the website and blog here and find some papery wonderfulness for yourself.