Etsy Favorite: Farouche

Now that I’ve got a new place to decorate, and in particular a craft space to decorate, I think I’m going to need more art.  Maybe one of these pretty pieces from one of my favorite Etsy sellers, Farouche will do.

This would be the perfect touch for my new office/craft space.


Happy to have this new home!


After all we are moving to “Fog City”.  There will be days when this one could be useful (wishful?).

P.S. Sorry for the last couple of posts being late.  I use the scheduling function in Blogger, and ever since the upgrade, it's not been working properly 100% of the time.  Ugh!

Leslie Oschmann

Leslie Oschmann is another brilliant artist that Anthropologie tapped for their International Artist Series.  Her connection to Anthropologie goes a bit deeper however as she spent 8 years as its Visual Director before deciding to travel and ultimately moving permanently to her father’s home country of The Netherlands and starting her own business named Swarm. 

Leslie scours flea markets and antiques shops for the furniture which she then covers with sections of old oil paintings.  She really has such an eye for creating these oil painting patchwork furniture pieces.  






To view more of her work visit her website. 

images via Swarm with exception of the second and fifth images which are via Lucky

Wedding Favorite

I came upon this wedding  while reading Anna Maria Horner’s blog (gosh I love her fabric!).  This wedding has got to be one of my favorites so far, and the photographers (husband and wife team, The Nichols) are being added to my list of favorites as well.  There are so many great ideas that I’ll have to make note of for the future and for parties at the new place. 


Isn’t her dress so pretty?  It’s like a giant doily (I mean that in a good way). 


The hay bales were covered with handmade quilts made by the bride’s great-grandmother and aunts.

Taking the homemade photo booth idea and adding a chalkboard for guests to write on to create a visual guest book. 

The couple used Anna Maria Horner’s Studio Scraps to create the garland in the background. 

Go check out the rest of the photos from this wedding here, and then check out more of the photographic stylings of The Nichols on the rest of their blog.

Friday Photo Finish

A few photos from our trip to Asheville focusing on the gorgeous old architectural details in this city.  Asheville is such a lush beautiful place set amidst the Blue Ridge Mountains.  It had the feel of a small artists community much like what you would find in Austin or Santa Cruz.   
Unfortunately it was overcast and then pouring rain while we were there, which doesn’t make for the best of situations to photograph under, but I think these came out okay. 

First Presbyterian Church of Asheville designed mainly in the Beaux Arts style by architect Douglas B. Ellington, who moved to Asheville and designed a few more buildings downtown after receiving much praise for his work on this building.  The domed roof is made of tiles in multiple colors ranging from green at the top down to brick red where the dome meets the brick sides.  

The is the top of the Asheville City Hall that was also designed by Douglas B. Ellington in the Art Deco style.

This was another Ellington building, the S&W Cafeteria that built in 1929.  It was part of a chain of cafeteria style restaurants that were built in the Art Deco style. 

The Public Service Building built in the Neo-Spanish Romanesque style in 1929.  Currently serves as an office building with shops on the first level. 

The Grove Arcade was meant to have a tower rising from the middle of the octagonal arcade, but only the two story arcade portion of the building was completed.  The original financier and idea man behind the project, Dr. E.W. Grove died as the arcade was being built, so Walter P. Taylor stepped in to complete it.  However the tower was not built as the Great Depression set in and there was no money to fund it.  It is described in the National Register of Historical Places as being built in the Tudor Gothic Revival style.  

The top of the Jackson building, Asheville’s first sky scraper.  It was built in the Neo-Gothic style.  It shares an elevator with the building on the right. 

The S.H. Kress & Co. was a chain of “five and dime” retail department stores throughout the U.S.  The stores were built in the 1930’s using the Art Deco style and were designed by architect Edward F. Sibbert.   The chain now exists only Puerto Rico. 

The Basilica of St. Lawrence is a Roman Catholic church in downtown Asheville that was built in the Spanish Renaissance style in 1909. 
images by me

The Cutest Custom Cake Toppers

I spotted these on the Etsy home page a couple weeks back, and just absolutely fell in love with them.  How completely adorable are these custom cake toppers made to order by Etsy seller Red Light Studio, aka Cynthia Spencer? 




Check out her blog for more photos of her work and check out this post about her topper’s recent appearance in the September issue of InStyle Weddings magazine.

On the Move

Pete and I are moving into the City... San Francisco that is!  We've been living down in San Mateo in a tiny studio apartment and commuting into SF for work for quite some time now, but in the last few months we've decided it's time to try something new and move into the city.  Although because we're both busy with work and other projects, we just didn't have any time to actually look for a place. 

Then quite by chance an opportunity presented itself  to us two weeks ago to move into the city into an apartment that was being vacated by some friends of ours.  We've been working out the deal with the landlord for the last week or so, and as of last night it became official!  We've signed the lease, and in two weeks, we'll be moving into a nice little three bedroom, second floor flat in a beautiful Victorian in the Lower Haight. 

I'm so excited to finally have space for a sewing machine (when I get one...soon!) and whatever other crafty things I want to do, and Pete will have office space to work on all of his projects as well. 

Not to mention what a lifestyle change it's going to be to no longer have to (be able to, really) rely on a car to get around town.  We'll definitely be walking a lot more.  We can ride bikes in the safety of Golden Gate Park, which is nearby.  There will be tons more new things for me to take pictures of as well.  I make it sound like we don't spend any time in the city outside of work, which we do pretty regularly, but we come to do very specific things like go to an event or a restaurant after work.  I'm so excited! 

I'm going to attempt to keep up my posting while we pack up and move, but I'm sure I'll be missing some days along the way. 

image via 3 Fish Studios

Hello!

Sorry for the lack of posting!  I was in Asheville, North Carolina for a long weekend to attend a wedding of two of our friends.  The weekend was wonderful, and the wedding was beautiful.  A great time was had by all regardless of the uncooperative weather.  

Unfortunately, due to the hundred years storm raging in Atlanta, we got back much later yesterday than expected, so no time for posting last night.  My heart goes out to the families whose lives have been impacted by the storm.  Flying into Atlanta yesterday evening, we witnessed some of the flooding as were approaching the airport. 

I'll be back with regular posts starting tomorrow. 

Best wishes to the new couple! 

image via Martha Stewart Weddings

A Few Pretty Things I Love

It’s been a busy, busy week at work this week, so I thought I’d take a quick moment to gaze at some pretty images that have been sitting on my desktop while thinking of the many other blog posts I am dying to write (NY Fashion Week!) if only I had more time… 

I need a glass top and print just like this for my nightstand… and maybe throw in the pink carafe and water glass as well.  I do get so thirsty at night.


How adorable are these sweet yellow doors?


I want an entry way with this bench and those prints… (note that detail on the back of the bench).


And across from the bench would be this staircase with its mirrored cabinets (also the mirrored door!).


Something about those pillows, that painting on the wall and especially that chair in the corner with the exquisite blue patterned fabric and yellow pillow make me come back again and again to gaze upon this image. 


And lastly these pretty in pink numbered bowls created for Sunday Suppers by Asya of Gleena Ceramics, which could have the power to make any food heavenly if eaten from (although Aran definitely needs no help there).

images top to bottom via: Better Homes and Gardens, Johner via Decorology, Pale & Interesting, Living, Etc. via Decorology, Burcu Avsar,  Karen Mordechai via Sunday Suppers.

Samantha Robinson- Handmade Porcelain

Anthropologie has recently launched its new International Artist Series which will feature limited quantities of handmade pieces by independent artists from around the world and sold in select Anthropologie stores around the country.  One of my new favorite artists from this series is Samantha Robinson, whose porcelain Watermelon bowls, which are molded on actual watermelons, and some of her teacup and coffee cup designs will be included in the series (Lucky has images of the actual pieces to be sold in stores here).  

Her designs are gorgeous not just for the handmade appeal of them, but for the bright colors and the fun patterns that she puts on them, which are making me very happy after our first gray and stormy weekend of Fall (ugh!). 


Watermelon Bowls… the bowls in the top photo are similar to the ones Anthro will be carrying.


Melon Bowls… beautiful orange patterns! 


Teacups… I’ll take one of each please!


Coffee Cups… sweet pastels like these make me wish we could jump ahead to Spring.


Coffee Cups… the perfect perk-me-up cup for your morning coffee… or tea or juice (Anthro is carrying ones similar to these). 

images via Samantha Robinson

Elsita Love Part II- Her Jewelry & Fashion

More work by the super talented artist and blogger, Elsita Mora.  You can see more of the felt pins and other jewelry she’s made here and the fashion images are from her fashion blog, The Hidden Seed.









You can see more of the felt pins and other jewelry she’s made here and the fashion images are from her fashion blog, The Hidden Seed.  And just a reminder, she has an Etsy shop too. 

Friday Photo Finish

A few beauties I took photos of over this past weekend in Mammoth Lakes. 





images by me