Happy Halloween!

Pete and I had a few friends over last night for some pizza and some pumpkin carving.  It was a lot of fun and I look forward to repeating it in the years to come.  Here are the results…

Pete’s contribution :)





Have a wonderful Halloween!

images by me

Fun with Geometry

No, really.  Aren’t these geometry inspired jewelry pieces by marañón so wonderful?  I could almost forget how torturous that class was for me. 




discovered via Unruly Things

Trafalgar’s Square

While searching for watercolor prints on Etsy for yesterday’s post, I came across this adorable shop called Trafalgar’s Square, which is filled with the most adorable illustrations.  Kit Chase is the artist behind these heartbreakingly sweet characters.  So perfect as a gift to the child in your life or for an expectant mother. 







Isn’t the braid on the girl in the last photo so precious?  You can see more of her work and purchase it through her Etsy shop.  Oh, and she loves to do custom paintings too! 

All the Pretty Watercolors

I’ve been seeing some gorgeous watercolor paintings while flitting around the blogosphere lately.  I think they catch my heart because my mom used to paint with watercolors when I was little.  Both of my parents are rather talented natural artists.  I have a talent for appreciating beauty, but I've never been very good at drawing or painting.  Photography has been my way of compensating for my inability to capture and hold onto beauty in any other way, which is not such a shabby talent to have at all, I might add.   

Anyway, here are a few of my favorite watercolorists that I’ve come across recently…
Caitlin McGauley’s watercolors for Lonny Magazine were simply beautiful.  Here are a few more samples of her work from her blog.



The blog, Inside the Loop, led me to these exquisite watercolors of bull fighters by artist, Happy Menocal, who has a wonderful and wicked sense of humor.  




These last ones are by Chelsea Cardinal via Oh So Beautiful Paper.

Happy Birthday Dad!

Wishing a happy birthday to one of my biggest fans, my dad.   

And a day late happy birthday to my sis as well!

Etsy Love: YogaGoat

I had saved an image of one of YogaGoat’s (aka Amanda Ryznar) pieces to my desktop awhile back, but hadn’t gotten around to writing a post on her or the piece.  It was the blue version of the dahlia bowl seen below.  Well I finally went back to her shop recently, and discovered a few more beautiful pieces that I thought I would now share with you. 

Such great detail and shading.




I love mugs with little thumb rests on the handle.



Wouldn’t these be so cute sitting in a bowl?  They also come in white and can be personalized as a wedding favor, etc. 

Check out more of her work here.

Friday Photo Finish

More birds for you this week. These are from my first trip to the newly remodeled California Academy of Sciences, and were taken in the Rain Forests of the World exhibit.  

Blue-gray Tanager


Speckled Tanager


Saffron Finch


Paradise Tanager


Silver-beaked Tanager


Blue-gray Tanager


Red-shouldered Tanager


Turquoise Tanager

images by me

Josh Brill’s for the Birds

Adore these limited edition art prints of birds by Josh Brill.  Reminiscent of Charley Harper’s style, but stripped down to just the barest of geometric forms. 







These limited edition prints are available on Josh Brill’s website, Lumadessa, for just $20 each with 5% of the profits donated to Animal and Environmental charities.  

The Sartorialist in SF

I’m so excited!  Scott Schuman, aka The Sartorialist, is going to be in San Francisco tonight signing his first ever book at Paul Smith from 7:30pm to 8:30pm.  The bad news is that I have a bad cold, and will most likely look pale faced, runny nosed, and puffy-eyed in front of one of my fashion idols.  C'est la vie... 
 
image of Garance Dore & Scott Schuman via The Sartorialist taken by Joe Ferrucci

Lonny Magazine

I know that Lonny Magazine is old (but great!) news to many of you, but this post is for those of you, my readers, who do not obsessively read blogs like I do, and may be missing out on experiencing what could possibly be the next-generation of the magazine world.  I’d also just like to help get the word out as much as possible in appreciation for all the hard work that was put into this just for us. 
So for those of you who don’t know, Lonny Magazine was launched this month as an online only decorating and lifestyle magazine, and was created by Rubie Green founder and former domino magazine market assistant, Michelle Adams and photographer, Patrick Cline.  The reason behind the project was to try to find a way to fill the void left by the demise of many of our favorite print magazines.

The first issue is just amazing and beautiful, and I want to hold onto to forever in the way that many of us felt about domino.  Here are some of my favorite images from it.

The easy answer to the question of what to do with mismatched wood furniture, paint it!  Paint it white, paint it bright… paint is the great equalizer!


I can only wish my new office would someday look like this (dog included).  Alas it will be sometime yet before all the boxes and piles of stuff can be sorted through and cleaned up.  I totally heart that blue rug and the lambskin throw on the chair.  That throw would go a long way to keeping me warm and cozy on the chilly foggy nights here in SF. 


I love the ikat fabric on those chairs and the latticework on the walls that add much needed depth and texture in a mostly white room.


Orange and gray are so pretty/masculine together.  That painting on the wall would go great in my new apartment.
 

Remember summer?  Wasn’t it just a little while ago?  Oh how I want those lanterns!  Pinks and oranges, oh my!  How did I become so obsessed with orange?  Good thing it goes well with my true blue love (note the blue vase on the table and the pillow on the left). 
To me, content this good is definitely worth paying for, although I don’t know if that is the direction they are headed in.  Just go check it out and give them your support. 

images via Lonny Magazine