Lots of love for Lotta

I've spotted an incredible stylist who has my heart completely today! Lotta Agaton is freelance stylist in Sweden who has styled images for some of my fave places like H&M Home and Elle Interiör where it doesn't matter if you can't read Swedish, you can just enjoy the visuals!
Lotta has a portfolio of stunning images which you can view for yourself here but I have gathered some of my faves together.

 I am so in love with this room. Often a black and white room can appear stark and cold, but the 'lived in' look of the sofa cushions as well as the hints of green leaves make this feel like a very liveable room. Don't even get me started on the wall too. I want everything there!

These images almost could form an inspiration board for me. I am totally in love with the simple black and white palletes used in most of these images, and the typography - swoon! I also love the dusty pink of the chair in the bottom right image. It's a little bit retro and not a too 'girly' pink that it makes it look too feminine. I've no idea where the incredible typographic prints come from, but they are a constant feature of Lotta's work.

 

More typography and prop wonderfulness! Again I love the shot of greenery which brings these scenes to life and gives them a scent. I also have total envy for all the beautiful, quirky and fun accessories in these shots. I think that is one of the strongest draws for me to Lotta's work, there is always something fun, whether it's a great quote in a print or a wooden hand flipping the middle finger!

Anyway, I hope you like this tiny glimpse into this talented ladies work. Please check out the online portfolio as it is jam packed with amazing images, you can also read Lotta's blog here where you will see her inspiration sources. Finally you can become a fan on facebook (search Lotta Agaton Interior Stylist) and check out some behind the scenes of some of her photoshoots. It actually has made me miss my previous life as an assistant stylist!

hello 2011

Hello 2011 and hello my long neglected blog. I can't believe it's over 1 month since my last post. It's taken me a while to get over the mad dash to Christmas and New Year and to be honest I haven't posted here through complete lack of inspiration. Luckily today I got as little kick in the butt and I'm off and running and excited to get creative this year. The kick start came from the wonderful Color Me Pretty column on Decor8. This month the talented Leslie put together a yellow inspired post, where she mixed yellow with craft paper and soft greys. I spotted an image of a hot air balloon printed over a map and thought it was so lovely I've gone out hunting for something similar.

This digital collage,  Life's Journey1 by Crimson Circle Studios is close to the image I spotted on Decor8. This talented Australian creates other beautiful collage images from vintage books. Check out the etsy store here.

 Here's another nice graphic collage this time by Nesta Home. The above image is part of a series created for different American cities called Dark Cities. The technique combines modern photos printed over vintage atlas pages - these page are from a 1929 Atlas Book.

As well as these prints, the Nesta Home etsy store is chock full of graphic design inspired goodies. I really like the Urban Throw Pillows and this (above) Numbers hand printed pillow.

Keeping on the graphic design theme, how fantastic is this  Building Footprint Print by VisuaLingual. I like the way of celebrating a location in a non-literal way. This image combines the overview of the neighbourhood as well as coordinates of the an old German neighborhood, Over-the-Rhine, Cincinnati.

I think one of the reasons 'map art' has inspired me so much is the sense of travel and adventure that a map can capture. This above print, Anywhere from the The Wheatfield embraces this beautifully.

Immediately I have started to think about nice ways to commemorate holidays using maps and graphic elements. Here is another beautiful artwork - Open Space by  LauraTwoTina - a collaboration of two artists, Laura Gaffke & Tina Hirsig. The story of this piece starts with an Italian holiday and ends here with this lovely piece. For me the ideas are already flowing about how I can use maps to create some artwork. I'll keep you posted.

Christmas Inspiration - H&M Home 2010

H&M Home once again have put together beautiful inspirational Christmas looks for 2010. Though we can't buy the lovely products (unless you are in a select few European countries), we can get inspiration and ideas to follow. So here is Christmas 2010 according to H&M.

This Christmas trend is wonderful and feminine and let's you use homewares and textiles you already have and can use again at other times of the year. I really like the lace accents, especially the hanging piece over the table. I also think the silver and white combination works in both a wintry Northern hemisphere as well as the hot, summer Christmas we enjoy down here in the Southern hemisphere.

In this more traditional Christmas look, it is the use of natural linen and canvas which gives a modern, relaxed look. I love the use of traditional typefaces and icons to give a vintage feel.

 

Finally, for a modern Christmas look go for this purple, black and bling look. The purple can be substituted for any colour you like, just make it bright so it  jumps out from the glamorous black and blingy setting.

To check out the H&M Home Christmas Trends visit the website here

What's your favourite look? I think mine is the red and linen combination because of it's relaxed yet traditional feel.

Christmas spirit

After finally putting up my Christmas Tree last night I have had to face the fact that not only is Christmas coming, but it is very close by! Today I have found some beautiful Christmas Wreaths which I would love to adorn my front door with. Unfortunately not many of them look 'transportable', however they may inspire some DIY projects.

These first few are from the Lunatique Boutique etsy store. I love the subtle Christmas colour palette of reds and golds as well as the use of fabric, feathers and paper. I find these are not too 'tizzy' and have a nice natural look. My favourite is the top one where the twigs spray out from the circle. See these and more in the etsy store here. Pictured above the Elegant Woodland Holiday Wreaths.
Click for links >  Top,  bottom left, bottom right.

This wreath is from Goodie True Shoes (another very cool store name!) The Evening Gatherer wreath has lovely earthy tones that match the yarn, felt and wooden material used. This wreath also has moss and seeds, but these are not able to be shipped internationally. I could see an Australian version of this wreath with native seeds, gumnut pods and leaves.

This pretty wreath is certainly something that could been used as inspiration for crafty people. This lovely jute wreath is by Catnap Cottage. The 'beach chic' look of jute makes this a great wreath for us Southern Hemisphere dwellers who have a summer Christmas. I love this fabric, the red and white reminds me of a candy cane, but it is such a modern interpretation of the Christmas look. The trick here is to find beautiful, quality fabric or ribbon.

 

This last wreath is a masterpiece from The Linnets Wing. Again I like the wild, unstructured style. I also like the natural colours given a bit of holiday silver bling. The real appeal of this is that the natural elements are sourced from Erika's Pennsilvania home. This wreath is "hand-collected, hand-dried, and hand-made from start-to-finish." Learn more about Erika's wreath and other creative projects on display in her etsy store.

create in serenity

I've enjoyed a little whirlwind of inspiration this morning, starting with a post about hand carved stamps by Ez on Creature Comforts. I **really** want to try this and followed a link through to a tutorial here. While I am still excited about stamp making, it quickly went to the back of my mind when I spotted this photo...

I was taken at the thought of being able to look down at such a beautifully set up table for painting, plus the little work-in-progress birdies are lovely! Then I clicked on the next photo and saw what it must be like to sit at this table and gaze out for inspiration.

This table setting is from very talented Mexican based artist Geninne and she has shared them on her flickr account here. Sitting at this table in an open landscape is such an appealing thought to me. To be able to do it from the comfort of home is an added joy I'm sure. A place to create is something I have wanted to create, but never seem to find the time to make an artistic space, let alone use it! The fruits of Geninne's wonderful surrounds are evident in her beautiful work.

 One of her favourite subjects is birds and this print above Bird No. 30 and many more like it are available in Geninne's etsy store. She also sells pillow covers featuring her prints here.

My favourite is this Birdcall print. It showcases both Geninne's fine art and graphic design background.
If birds aren't your thing, you can check out some other subject matter in the etsy store.

I'm quite partial to this Pile o Wood print. If you visit the etsy page, you will see the inspiration image and really get a feel for how Geninne translates images into her own artistic style.
For more from this lovely artist check the blog, flickr, etsy store or big cartel store.

looking forward

It has now been way too long between posts but I am overjoyed that I find myself with a few minutes to finally put together a post. I have a backlog of pretty discoveries I want to embrace, starting right now with beautiful illustrator Emma Kisstina. I have previously written about her sweet and indulgently girly prints here. Thanks to the great new(ish) "you might like" feature on etsy, I found Kristina's Illustrated 2011 calender.

Each month has been hand drawn and digitally coloured. The calender comes as loose A4 pages you can choose to display anyway you like. A clever idea is this one above where each month is framed and the glass is used to circle important dates or write reminders

Here is a taste of a few of the months. To preview the full calender pop over to Kristina's flickr page here.

You can purchase the calender on etsy here.

Enjoy!

a fresh wardrobe - ruche

I have found myself wanting to freshen up my wardrobe as we move into spring. I think it has to do with that tricky transition time going from a winter wardrobe to a spring wardrobe, when you need to dress for a range of temperatures. I don't know about you but I always feel a little strange baring my arms and legs for the first time after winter. Anyway I have found a 'look' that I love courtesy of a beautiful US based online clothing shop - Ruche.

Described as "a modern boutique with a vintage touch", this shop is a beautiful place to find fashion inspiration through a combination of beautiful clothing and stunning Look Books. The quality of the photography and design alone is worth a look. I love the mix of texture and colour in these outfits and they are all so 'wearable'!

It's not just the beautiful clothing, but the entire outfits head to toe - the shoes and the accessories. I would love to get all the looks in their entirety!

I also appreciate that the Look Books are all left on the site, despite it now being Autumn in the northern hemisphere, us southerners can find inspiration from past seasons. All the above images are from the Spring 10 or Summer 10 look books.

Here's a look that I can wear this week. A delicate ruffle print top wrapped in a cardi in a pretty spring colour. I feel a shopping trip coming on and I will certainly be using the beautiful Ruche as my own personal style 'look book' this spring! Visit the Ruche online shop & blog for some inspiration no matter what hemisphere you are in!