a new pretty place - eat drink chic

I love discovering new places to visit and find pretty inspiration and lately I've added a new blog to my 'daily reads'. Eat drink chic is authored by Amy Moss in Melbourne, Australia. She had my heart when in her bio she writes " i like pretty things. obsessively so". I'm sure you're all nodding along with me at that statement. It turns out we have more in common, as we both have toiled away for a decade or so as graphic designers, only to realise that the job is nowhere near as creative as we would have hoped! Once again I'm right there with her! To satisfy her creative needs, Amy has travelled down the path of styling and creating pretty graphic design giveaways through her blog. Amy has such a pretty style using floral prints and pretty colours. She also has a great eye and her blog is full of inspiration on fashion, homewares and design.

This is one of her printable download freebies (get it yourself here). I love the colours in these Summer Vintage Floral Gift Tags and I can see that a career in styling is working for her as all her photos are beautiful!

I just love the buttons used in these ThankYou Cards! What a lovely ladylike touch!
These, as well as the Love tags below are both articles Amy has contributed to wedding style website Once Wed.

I really get a kick (and a bucket load of inspiration) from bloggers like Amy. I love seeing someone achieve something through their creativity. I actually stumbled across her blog through an amazing image I had spotted a few times while I've been on the lookout for wedding styling inspiration.

I love this image of suspended glass bottles with colourful blooms. It turns out that this was from Amy's own (surprise) wedding. Amy and husband Mark suprised guests with a picnic style civil ceremony at what was supposed to be their engagement party. Amy styled the event herself as created some beautiful areas. Make sure you pop over here and read the story and see more pictures from this beautiful wedding and enjoy my newest favourite blog - eat drink chic

a dash of colour - colourful furniture

As mentioned earlier this week, the arrival of spring here in the southern hemisphere has got me all inspired to throw around some colour! Here are a few inspiring ways to add some colour around your home....

This charming writing desk is from the wonderful and witty Jo from blog Mo and Me. If you need a nice time out, head over to her blog and read all about how Jo and Mo 'collaborate' in crafty, creative ways. You can read about Rudi the writing desk here.

Mrs Schmitts Daughter

More witty fabulous and colourful inspiration from Mo + Me. This bright cabinet was christened Mrs Schmitt when Jo found a piece of paper with a quote for a day out at the zoo bus trip with coffee and cake. It was addressed to a Mrs Schmitt and so the cabinet was named. Read about Mrs Schmitt over here and see how she fits into a bright and colourful room.

Another talented blogger is Louise of Pour toujours blog. This is her 'Magical' yellow bedside table. Louise has done some wonderful "upcycling" in bright and vibrant colours. See some of her other projects on her blog here.

This great injection of colour is certainly a way to add some personality and fun to a room, or hallway in this case! Check out the story behind Kathrin's bold but fantastic pink door here at her blog Where Your Heart Is. I also love the way the hallway is painted grey on the bottom half, and the art wall arrangement. You can see more of this lovely home in Germany here on Flickr. Another of my favourites is this incredible bright red bookcase....

So are you now inspired to inject some colour into your home now too? I like the idea of painting the back of a door a colour. I think it makes for nice surprise when you open the door!

a rescue project

I think it's the change of seasons that is drawing me to colour. As flowers bloom and things generally are getting greener, I have found some great examples of people brightening their homes through bold use of colour and pattern. First up is some of the wonderful work by Clara from The Home in Paradise

 

This charming shelf unit is affectionately named Inglorious Bastid and was given one last chance by Clara. See how she transformed a cheap and dull piece of furniture into something new and fresh in this blog post. I love all the before and after shots and step by step details. We have a similar story for a set of shelves in our home. I had used the shelves for a while but when we upsized our home, they became redundant. They were actually at the front door waiting to be taken to the rubbish when a moment of inspiration struck and I imagined the daggy 'pine' laminate replaced with a gloss white finsh. After a quick trip to the hardware store for primer, paint and some new handles we had rescued our own "inglorious bastid" and it lives on as a gloss white shelf for my cookbooks and magazines. It's actually quite rewarding to tackle a little project like this. You feel a sense of pride in bringing new life to a piece of furniture!

Do you like the look of those magazine holders in the second shelf? Well the crafty Clara has created these from the flimsy cardboard magazine holders from Ikea, but also suggest using cereal boxes too. So clever! I like the idea of putting your own stamp on things, and simple (cheap) projects like these are so easy to take on. Get the 'how to' over here and please also check out Clara's blog . There are lots of great stories and projects that Clara has taken on in her home in the Caribbean. Who knew a keyboard and mouse could look so pretty!

newsworthy jewellery part 2.

Following on from my post last week about zoemou jewellery, here is another local Australian jewellery brand I found from the same source - here. I'm a long time fan of resin jewellery and homewares so these stunning pieces from the girls of  it was me are instant favourites!

These pieces from their current spring summer range have that great blend of femininity with soft pinks and delicate ribbons, rocked up with a dose of black lace and mesh. I love the combinations of shapes and colours in these stacks! I would love either the white lace or black lace square cuffs.

As well as the neutral palette, it was me has some luscious summer colours in their range. I love that the turquoise has been paired with the blues for an ocean colour theme and then used as an accent with the melon/peach bangles. I love these colours together for summer!

There are coordinating resin rings which have an organic, hand finished shape and again come in yummy, juicy colours! Head over to the website for a browse yourself. I'm sure you will picture yourself with an armful of these amazing bangles too!

i wish for.... a kristina klarin necklace

I think this beautiful fabric and bead necklace would be perfect as a summer accessory. It's by the wonderfully talented Kristina Klarin from Kris's Color and Stripes blog.
See more big, bold and colourful pieces in the online shop here

newsworthy jewellery

It's not often I find pretty inspiration from the news, but such was the case a few days ago while reading the news online. I cam across a gallery of vintage inspired jewellery and have some new local Australian jewellery brands to share with you.

These lovely pieces are from the Gypsy Moon Collection by Zoemou. I can certainly see the art nouveau influence in these pieces - especially the top earings! The Gypsy Moon collection is the first collection using sterling silver and there is a great back story to the collection.

"Each Zoemou “Gypsy Moon “ piece is named after Roma gypsy names, such as Danika (translating to ‘morning star’), or Electra (translating to ‘brilliant one’). Every item is totally unique and individually hand cut by talented artisans. Even though made of sterling silver, the Gypsy Moon collection adheres to the Zoemou philosophy of feeling lightweight and natural, whilst being feminine and strong."

Sourced from the Gypsy Moon Look Book

 

This style of jewellery is my favourite. I love intricate cut outs and large statement pieces. Here are some other piece I would own in a heartbeat from previous collections:

 This very cool Numbered Barcode necklace was part of a collaboration with designer Daniel Avakian.

This Chrysanta piece from the Secret Garden collection is my absolute favourite. This was the 3rd Zoemou collection and the pieces are crafted from leather. The range was inspired by the book of the same name.

     Young children discover a magical garden behind wild ivy and as the garden blossoms and flourishes, so does the lives of the children.

Source Secret Garden Look Book

Sun kissed..

Sun kissed.., originally uploaded by .bella..

As a little make-up for no posts for the last 2 days, I wanted to share some pretty, so here is one of my Flickr faves by the lovely Bella Kotak.
I love the happiness in this image and the beautiful muted tones.