brrr

this is beyond adorable. fine little day's daughter made this for her mother (Elisabeth from Fine Little Day) Isn't it just amazing? It almost makes me think of it as a little blue whale...I just love it. PS. Fine Little Day just re-did it's website and has a complete new lay-out. very fancy, I dig it.


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I'm not gonna lie. It's COLD outside!

That means snow! It snowed for the first time this season. It was great, I took a walk and believe it, or not...people were outside enjoying this time of the year as well. Walking their dogs, kids walking with their families, oh and get this. runners. Yeah, there was a guy running with a beanie, gloves, long sleeve shirt, and what else? SHORTS. The guy was wearing shorts. Crazy, I tell you. Crazyness. But I love how full of life it is here. I'm really blessed.I'm very sad to announce that I will be missing Blackbird's Holiday Party tonight. I rsvp'd to go, but with no car....I'm thinking, I'll stay warm and not take the bus. And part number two to the sadness...I'll be missing meeting the author of United States of Americana, Kurt B. Reighley. Looks like such a great read, I highly recommend getting it. I'm on my way to!!!

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Made from 100% Organic Egyptian Cotton, Under the Nile appears on zulily today! Their onesies look so soft and cozy! Handmade in Egypt.

retardical

...for a girl that is clever enough to say, "that's retardical" is MARVELOUS.

Sarah Silverman has such a sweet personality and with her new book, Bedwetter out (I'm only 139 in line on hold at the library)

Yeah. NBD. (no big deal)

She's not only known for her gorgeous natural looks, but as well as for her radiating humor. Bedwetter, simply put is a sort of a memoir and it shows more I think of a side that we don't exactly know about her, which I'm excited to read on about. I've heard nothing, but good things about this book, I can't wait til it's in my hands. I wonder if there is any swearing in it? ha. I like a woman who is honest, true to herself, and works hard to get where they are at, it reminds me of myself, although I don't know where "at" is at this point of my life, but I know that I'm a hard worker and it will pay off in the long run. And if Sarah worked hard throughout her life even through stabbing some dude's head with a pencil once when she was younger (it's okay Sarah, I once got suspended from school for throwing a pencil at my biology teacher) and by swearing along the way, then hey I think that tells me that there's a pretty mother fucking good chance that I will.

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have a lovely day !



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xx

vuvuzelas

Got to visit Lucca while in Seattle this past week...the store has so many special goodies that are hard to find. It's been in the old neighborhood of Ballard for over 10 years. Lucca is sought to resemble a Parisian gift salon from the late 1920's...I fell in love instantly as soon as I saw that it sold Pia's book: Paris Made by Hand, which is only sold in selected boutique stores.



...speaking of Paris, my good friends just got married this past weekend and are on their way to Paris for their honeymoon! I was privileged enough to design their wedding invites!

with frost, please.

one thing, i can't live without is confetti.

i think when we move, which probably is the end of this summer, or early Fall....our going away party's overall theme will be confetti. we'll just have a ton of colored bits thrown around at each other, it's going to be fettiabulous.


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Showered with sprinkles. Life can't get any better.

Johnny Cupcakes.

CUPCAKE CANNON from kamp grizzly on Vimeo.

* pia jane's new book is coming! I have the first one, Paris: Made by Hand. Now, Amsterdam: Made by Hand will be here in a few, can't wait...her official book launch will be held at the American Book Center

*A knitted world. Imagine that.

* I'm getting really annoyed of door-to-door soliciting. They freak me out. I don't want your Vietnamese discount take-out flyer, please just chill. But then again, I refuse to put any sign up that says, "no soliciting" cause I mean that's just dumb.

*Toxic water. Read about it.

scraps

..good morning.

Had my coffee, a toast & an egg.

Now, I go off to teach kiddies.

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Reading room house pillow at hij kids.

The Easter Egg by Jan Brett, top #1 on NY Times children books.

swell

design & styling of frieda maria is tidy, lucid & organized. me encante. luvv it.


..these textiles, folkloristic..extraordinary.


J.D. Salinger, famous "for not being famous", author of the classic (though, controversial) Catcher in the Rye died yesterday at the age of 91 in his home in New Hampshire. Pictured above as young and modest, Salinger had been in seclusion for more than a quarter of his life up until his death, maybe ever earlier.

currently

"Tradition must be honored and promoted for the betterment of all, the loss of tradition values is the most likely culprit"

Currently reading Mireille Guiliano's French Women Don't Get Fat. All about a French woman's philosophy and lifestyle that includes...drinking wine, taking the time to set the table, taking note of your offenders (bad habits)...this book doesn't get any better for a girl that just wants to cruise around the grocery store, splurge on some tasty ingredients and mix them all up at home, invite friends over, and have a dinner party, a real dinner party. Mireille just recently came out with her newest book that came out this past October, Women, Work & the Art of Savoir Fare: Business Sense & Sensibility...a guide to navigating the working world as a lady. Mireille is the senior executive of Veuve Cliquot Champagne and gives numerous tips on how to succeed in the world of business, bettering your communication skills, balancing work & life, and much more. Read a great Q & A with Mireille about her newest book.

café on a sunday

Stamp of goodness created by Camilla Engman and Elisabeth Dunker at Studio Violet of Sweden. The creative duo are eminent at making things just simply great.


Making things pretty.

Is always pleasant.




Sandra Juto
Coffee shops.

I want more of them.

To sip & chat.

And talk about life.


Sometimes I visualize that there is one around the corner of my home.



Sandra Juto

Isn't this a keeper?

A Children's book found via Fine Little Day.

I need to buy some more old children books.

olsen twins

"I had dinner with my friend in California and she was saying that the two of you are among the very few celebrities that have a style of your own", Bob Colacello

bday wish list

We Are Not Two,We Are One Print by Christopher Bettig.

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here are just ... you know ....some birthday goodies on my wish list!
The story of the lady herself, Julia Child.
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Can I please have my gocco print maker ....someday!?
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uppercase

Issue #3 is out !

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the new issue of uppercase is out! Inspired by many manly hobbies as woodworking, axe design, lutherie, bespoke suits, cycling and sailing...loving it. Someone say sailing?? There will be interviews with blogger, sfgirlbybay, the Regional Assembly of Text and Geninne Zlatkis....upon more!



Ryan Meis & Sarah Labieniec

+Sandra Monat

garance & scott

Gotta love Stockholm.

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From Australian Vogue featuring Garance Dore, a French based illustrator & photographer.

The world of photo-blogging can't get any better. Garance's boyfriend Scott Schuman aka The Sartorialist can't stop taking all these great street shots of people! . Look at this draped pocket dress he snapped...ahh! Loving it.
Just this past August, he came out with his own book The Sartorialist...featuring all of his incredible photographs from all over the world...definitely on the books to get list! Go get yours!

judge the book

If you haven't visited Book by Its Cover , make sure to do so. Book by Its Cover is ran by Julia Rothman, an illustrator based out of Brooklyn. There are some amazing book covers that she's collected over time. Its really hard not to pick up a book at the library when I'm all about it's cover. Its just really tempting...sometimes I just want to see who the artist is, but other times I am curious to see what the book is all about. If you're thinking about something to do one day while you're not busy, you should take a day trip to the library and just stroll by the aisles finding your favorite book covers....out of 10, there might be 2 that you are willing to read and check out! Who knows you might want to read all 10 of them!

Cuba en la gráfica by Reyna Maria Valdes

Green Guide for Artists by Karen Michel

250 Treasured Country Desserts by Andrea Chesman & Fran Raboff

five-hundred days

Does this book look familiar at all? Well, if it does...you might of already seen 500 Days of Summer.

Not every movie can have a happy ending. This is that kind of movie.

I think it was a good film, but not great. Its a little complicated, for me at least.


Quote from book:
"In architecture, as in so much else, we cast around for explanations to our troubles and fix on platitudinous targets. We get angry when we should realize we are sad and tear down ancient streets when we ought instead to introduce proper sanitation and street lights. We learn the wrong lessons from our griefs while grasping in vain for the origins of contentment...


For article on 500 Days of Summer, please go here.

Girls from Ames, Iowa

Photo Credit: www.girlsfromames.com

Imagine maintaining the same friendship thirty years after the friendship was created. Childhood friendships are very hard to maintain especially when relocating from one city to another, which is real common. But this wasn't the case for the Girls from Ames. A true story of eleven girls who grew up in Ames, Iowa that managed to move around to eight different states and still maintain their strong, remarkable friendship. As a New York Times Best Seller for non-fiction, Wall Street Journal Columnist and author Jeffrey Zaslow captures an extraordinary story of the joys and challenges of a long lasting friendship between Karla, Kelly, Marilyn, Jane, Jenny, Karen, Cathy, Angela, Sally, Diana and finally, Sheila. Zaslow shares how a strong bond between female friendships can really shape every single aspect of a woman's life. Being raised in the sixties and seventies, these girls bring great stories that will really open up a new outlook on friendships, particularly between females and their ability to influence the way we might see our friendships today. Our friendships that may last or may not. And if they do last, it lasts for a reason. People become who they're because of their relationships with close friends and these girls explain just that. There is now data that shows that women can actually benefit from maintaining strong friendships through the decades. Researchers recently started to pay much more attention to the importance of friendship for one's health. And it recently has been proven that those women with stronger friendships are much more healthier and happier, with stronger marriages as well. The fact is that we rarely appreciate the friendships that we have. As Rebecca G. Adams, professor of sociology at the University of North Carolina says that, "Friendship has a bigger impact on our psychological well-being than family relationships." For some really great articles, go to www.girlsfromames.com and click on, "Media Coverage", you can then find some very intriguing articles that focus on friendships and health. We are very lucky to have these girls reveal their lives with us throughout this story that Zaslow shares. The Girls from Ames is a story that will guarantee every woman will relate to and become inspired by.



For original post, go here.

HAPPY 100th POST!

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Thats right ya'll, 100 posts I've done. Thats a lot of typing! But its been phun, and I'm going to continue this frolic ride for as long as I know!

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And I know its been a while though, friends...but, I have some pictures to show and a lot a lot of information to share!
... some of you might of known, I stepped out of my cave & showed some art work downtown last Friday. It was a lot of fun, though I'm pretty disappointed with how the weather was, but there was nothing I could of done or mother nature could of done, so it was what it was. The gallery set up is outside, so with a lot of my frames, I had to use these funky screws on the bottom of them to sustain them from the wind, so it wouldn't kick them over...I'll have more pictures of some of my new work later, but here are a couple of visuals!

Both above are 5 x 5 in. watercolor, ink & various material.






A mural I did at the Gypsy Den.

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Sharkspeed did an amazing show that night as well.


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........




.I also just made some of my "bizzness cards" if you will........
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What I chose to do is use paint strips that I had gotten from Lowe's and Home Depot, and printed right on them. On just one strip, 3 cards could fit. Its pretty resourceful considering the fact that most people just toss these nice colorful strips away once they decide on a paint color! But I decided to use them in a much more economical way.!


1.) Necklace 2.)Book: Script & Scribble 3.) Felt Placemats 4.) Foks Scarf 5.) Chinese Laundry sandals & Matix skirt
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Here, I come Seattle. I have one paid vacation at the end of this month, so I just bought my Seattle tickets. I can't wait!

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what makes you smile?

my flickr buddies.


miss molinethis picture reminds me that i need to straighten out my cubbies!! Its shown a little in this picture, but she categorizes her ribbons by color in glass jars....freeging SMART





decor 8's german apartment!


miss decor 8's living space....the girl loves white!



kay loves vintage, visit her


i love the variety in color with dining table chairs. how boring is it to just have the same type of chairs. its like playing a board game when you have people over for dinner, don't you want to pick your color?
<_>


and finally, my last flickerette....i enjoyed this one visual just because it kind of reminds me of myself, and how *hold on i just looked at the clock its 1:11am, making a wish...........*

woofffff........ ok i'm back...

so it reminds me of myself, and how thats me writing on the chalkboard "must go to sleep joanne must go to sleep joanne need to wake up early and head on the treadmill must go to sleep joanne wake up early joanne ....bleh bleh bleh. "

ok just a few more thoughts, and i'm out of here. xoxox.

. . j . .






marc do....


<_>

.......i can't wait until next week. HERE in Las Vegas, Faythe Levine from Handmade Nation will be signing her book at the Pool Trade Show.

POOL, PROJECT, & MAGIC all at once.

Its going to be fashionrama 2-double O-9 all next coming week !


okay, so I really don't like doing posts about celebrities and such....

but there is something about Maggie Gyllenhaal that makes her really sassy!

And I really think that her and Peter Sarsgaard are very very sexy together. Did you see how cleaned up he was at the grammy's? ....not so much in Garden State!





...all of you know about this particular campaign ad.

The credit to making this happen, Mr. Shepard Fairey.

Its probably one of Obama's most famous and effective ad ever during the his campaign. Fairey has been on my favorite list all throughout art school, and still is. I remember I got super excited one day when I was taking a photo class back in 2003, I did this photoshoot by the Welcome to Las Vegas sign on the south end of the strip, when I saw "Obey the Giant" paster on an electric power box...it thrilled me, I remember screaming to Benjamin, "LOOK BABE!!!! ITS SHEPARD!!!!" The man got some skills. And his art work has shown that, and has ran with me throughout my art education. YAY for Shepard, read about his lawsuit with the AP, Associated Press.






all images above via <->

since Valentines is just around the corner, I thought I'd share this Valentine Poem out of POETRY to Make You Smile that I picked up from anthropologie about a month ago...

Chipmunks jump, and
Greensnakes slither.
Rather burst than
Not be with her.

Bluebirds fight, but
Bears are stronger.
We've got fifty
Years or longer.

Hoptoads hop, but
Hogs are fatter.
Nothing else but
Us can matter.

Written by Donald Hall


some of our favorite poets of the past including Emily Dickinson, and others. take a look at these 100 poems that will for sure lighten your day up. from the ups and downs to the "spontaneous delight of just being in the world" by Jane O. Wayne


buy at Barnes & Noble