Sweet Sweet Life

anything goes

I've got a thing for textile jewelry at the mo.  Such incredible creativity out there, so much color and fun.  See what I mean?!:

Necklaces made from vintage kimono fabric, by something kawaii...

Beautiful mod fiber ring (for Haiti relief) from Ashley Jewelry (this shop is incredible--I love each and every thing)...

Beautiful felt ball necklace, from Homako... 

"triangle explosion" from the totally awesome spin thread...

mustard and grey crochet ring, from wonderful Elin Thomas... 

"Rojo Pasion" necklace, from alas del sur...

I love this loopy felt corsage, from seventy seventy-one...

 
And check this adorable "Queenie" crochet ring, from sweet Melbourne-based gitte... 

Looks like anything goes, these days.  How fun is that?!

Have a great one, friends...

xoxox.

it's right around the corner, friends...

Here's a wonderful gift for the day of love:  A stunning, one-of-a-kind piece of artwork from the beautiful shop Sarah & Bendrix, run by the oh-so-talented Veronika. 

Look!!!:

 

The last two can even be personalized with a date or text, if you tell Veronika at time of sale.  How lovely!  My favorite is the top one, but believe me, any gal would love to recieve any one of these.  (And the black and red one would work for a guy, no?)

Quantity discounts apply...wouldn't this be lovely for a daughter?  Oh, I wish...

 
 
 See Veronika's shop, for lots more!  Just perfect.

xoxox.

signs of hope

Hello, sweet friends!

I was noticing this morning all the ways I'm working at keeping my spirits up, these days.  I'm a very "visual" person, and I really find that these sweet messages (below) keep me going.  You know, some days...

A postcard from Veronika...she posted about these cards and other wonderful ones that she scatters around her house here...

Little vintage figures "rockin' on"...

"Everything's Going To Be Just Fine," from Reeta's wonderful shop...

A cool little book with lots and lots of "good advice for hard times..."

Another wonderful print from Vanessa's shop (I didn't know I had such a collection!)...it says "I think that everything is going to be okay..."

 

And we cannot forget this one!  Still there, still getting me through each day. 

I love to see all of these words and images around me as I go about my business...You might think that all they do is remind you that everything is not okay at present, but I find that they really do make me feel better.  As you surely know, it's important (in good times and bad) to keep perspective, and recall that "this, too, shall pass." 

Sometimes I forget that, but it makes all the difference.

Cheers!

xoxox.

crochet truancy

Hi, guys...

I've been a truant, from Pip's Granny Square School.  I feel really bad about it, but you know what happened?  As soon as I started to work on the Granny Square, all of a sudden I got tired of Granny Squares.  They just seem to be everywhere.  So, although I still am totally charged to learn to crochet, I'm a dropout.  (The instructions were awesome over there at Pip's--it's no reflection on her whatsoever.  'Kay.)

Here's what I want to try now:

Innit awesome?  I love it to pieces.  From the incredibly lovely and useful site Pickles, where you can find instructions to make all sorts of totally ace things like this wreath and this string lamp.  But they also have the how-to's for this baby, which they call Puff Granny as a tribute to the granny square ('cause it's crocheted, get it?!)   As soon as I brush up on my very, very basic skills, I'm doing it.  Makin' the puff granny.  They used their own fat & happy brand of yarn, which is disarmingly lovely, but way out of my price range (as is a pack of gum, so I'm not casting aspersions).  I'm thinking I'll use some of this.  Do you think that will work?

I'm so excited.  Let's hope I can follow through!  (If I can just find my size 15 crochet hook, I'm in business.  It could be anywhere.)

Oh, yeah!  And you've got to check out Pickles, if you haven't already.  They have tons and tons of wonderful tutorials--crochet, knitting, crafty, sewing, you-name-it--over on the left side (scroll way down for English).  It's all cool and colorful and fun and they actually look do-able.

Later, 'gators.  See you Monday!

xoxox.

easy-peasy stuff for the walls

Hello, again, sweet friends.  Just popping in to show you my new "art," made from my long-ago purchased Ikea fabric.  Some here:

I posted this picture on flickr, and there has been a tiny bit of discussion (prompted by me) as to whether these are upside-down, or not.  But ultimately, the fact is, it would be pretty darn simple to turn them over, so I'm not going to worry about it...They are stretched over existing cheap-o canvases from Michael's, because they were lots easier to come by than stretcher bars, which I would have to drive into the city for, by golly!  I just thumb-tacked the material right over the canvases, and presto-chango, up they go!  Sailboats and mountains, or pennant flags?  You decide!

This one I even got lazier.  I stretched this fabric over existing paintings.  They are ready to pop back out again, when I tire of the fabric, which is bound to happen at some point...This is an odd pic, I know.  These hang over our ginormous television set, which for some reason, I am embarrassed to show you.  It's like, if you are a thinking person, who reads books and cares about the world and it's inhabitants, you aren't supposed to have a big t.v...You should be "above" that, am I right?  (Truth be told, I didn't pick out this monolith of viewing pleasure, but I certainly have become accustomed to it.  I kinda even like it.)

Anyway!  Easy-peasy.  Just pop on over to your local cheap craft supply, get yourself some crappy canvases--which are less expensive than good-quality stretcher bars in some cases--throw some of the incredibly awesome fabric being printed these days over the top, and you've got yourself some nice walls.  Not a new trick, but certainly a good one.

Oh, and here's my doll-head trio, inspired by Libby:

(It's time to give this table a good coat of paint, no?)

And a random torso, with a very colorful necklace that I could never pull off, but she certainly does, and with flair:

 That's it from these parts.  We're looking forward to a cozy and wet weekend 'round here.  How's it looking for you?

Cheers, sweet ones!

xoxox.

incomparable yokoo

You probably already know her, because she was just in the New York Times, for heaven's sake, but I live under a rock, and maybe you do, too?  So, here you go:

Totally wonderful, original, out-sized, and awesome.  It's Yokoo, and I love it, I love her, she's just fabulous and everything about her makes me happy.  Read more here, in her charming and very clever featured-seller interview, and jump into her flickrstream here, for lots, lots more.

I'm so glad that there are people like Yokoo in the world.  Yay, for that!  

Have a great one, sweet friends!

xoxox.

a red letter day :: shannon

Okay, you guys...I can't tell you how pleased I am.  Shannon Lamden, creator of Auntie Cookie, artist, mom, blogger, and very cool person (one of my heroes, really), has graciously allowed me to share some pictures of her home on Sweet Life. 

A red letter day, my friends...

 
So.  Auntie Cookie.  Beautiful home.  You may have seen it before, but let's refresh, shall we?  It's so worth it. Take a peek:

One of the many, many reasons I like Shannon's decorating style is that she appears to love letters as much as I do, and scatters them with abandon throughout her home...(I do love anyone like me.)

Artwork, both hers and others, is abundant.  That's one of Shannon's ampersand cushions, right there on the couch...

The perfect shade of blue, in the kitchen...

More letter, more lovely...

Shannon calls this her "token blogland mantel."  (Call it what you will, Shannon.  Still rocks.)

And guess what?  This is cool.  Shannon's two daughters share a room, which heretofore looked thusly:

Sadie in a crib...

Lola not, two sisters sharing rooms...Sadie gets bigger, a bigger bed for her is in order.  What to do?  Their room is already so fabulous!  How to proceed?  Can you top it?! 

Well, Shannon can...

Beds go together, and Sadie gets a new quilt, made by Shannon.  Here's what she says about it:  "Now that the kids are in bunks, Sadie needed her own quilt cover. So I whipped one up. Literally. Being the second kid who irritates a lot, I just went through the stash and grabbed what fabrics I like. Mostly old, some tea towels, some designer stuff, some annoyingly fray'ey chenille and oh my freakin' god - NONEof my own fabric. Cut, pinned, sewed, back with some leftover flannel from a flat sheet and freakin' oila. She got herself a doona cover. Cant say I never make her anything."

(Did I say yet that I LOVE HER????  Because I do.  Read her blog.  The whole thing is pretty much just like this.)

Here are a few more detail shots of the girls' room.  It's just perfect, in a whole-new-better way.

 Love it.  Love it.  LOVE it. 

Need more?  No worries.  Go to Shannon's flickr, website, blog, and shop to fill your kick-ass, off-the-cuff, cooler-than-I'll-ever-be decorating cup.  Thanks, Shannon.

Cheers!

xoxox. 

a bit smitten

Frankly, I am more than a little bit smitten with these dolls.  I kind of can't get enough of them.  Made by Peggy, an artist living in Taipei, they are so crazy-sweet, I can't stand it. 

Just look, and you shall understand!:

These are Anna (left), and Betty (right), and in this particular picture they are doing gymnastics.  (Don't ask me why, just enjoy...)

Anna shows up a lot, in all kinds of outfits:

Anna swimming--I know!...

Betty is around sometimes too:

And this sweet artist makes all kinds of other lovely little things:

So, you maybe should just go see.  Peggy has a flickrstream here, and a little shop, called Rainbow Box, here....Don't you just love all the creativity in the world?  The stuff people are making just because it makes them happy to do so? 

Yeah, me too.

Enjoy, my dears!

xoxox.

the lost princess

I cried when I first found The Lost Princess.  I really did.  It is true that I'm emotional lately, but that's not the whole reason.  It's because it is so lovely, and dear, and filled with wonder and longing and dreams and...well, a girl's heart.

It may be, for me, the most wonderful blog of all time (it inspires such superlatives)...it's for girls and princesses and women who remember being both.  Do not miss it.  Do not.

Found via  little.lovely.  Thanks, Khali.

xoxox.
  

more from the "so cute it makes you want to cry (in a good way)" department

Yup.  It's about these little bow rings, from Luce Knit.  Everything about them rocks, but the colors are truly ace:

I will take one for every finger, please.  Thank you.

xoxox.