1. not exorbitant or extravagent by city standards, however in a rural setting (like upstate new york) it is in fact, quite fancy.
2. a wonderful blog dedicated to art, design and other things that are indeed upstate fancy.
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I love little vessels to hide things in. I especially love ones that have little surprises of their own inside. These colorful bambina vessels from Popkraft have a wonderful burst of color inside, waiting to keep your little treasures safe and warm. These also work beautifully as a small single flower vase as well, check out how cute that little orchid looks in the pollock inspired piece. Right now she has a buy 2 get one free sale on her bambina vases, so shop well, and shop fast.
It’s been raining here for about a week. I would like the sun to come out for a bit sometime soon, but the rain does help with being able to get the really big weeds out of the ground. We are taking a trip to the garden center this weekend, so I’m very excited to see what I can pick up there. In the meantime I’ve been designing some lasercut plant stakes, and wante dto share with you guys two of my favorite garden plant marker makers on etsy. Metal hand-stamped markers from Nina Gibson Designs, and Stoneware markers from Dbabcock. Happy gardening everyone!
I hate crowds. I’ve always been that way. Im the fast walker in Times square when I have a place to be. I’m the person who slows down when people behind me get too close. I’m fine in lines as long as they are orderly. And I do not do well on the subway without headphones or a good book to lose myself in. With that being said, I love the idea of having a tiny crowd with me all day long. These little rings by Germany’s Dieter Dill Design provide the perfect size crowd for be to handle. I know they wont get out of control and start bumping into me or listen to really bad music with their headphones only half in their ear, If this did start to happen I would have bigger things to worry about.
Littlebighead has been one of my etsy favorites for quite a while. Her drawings are very imaginative, and reminiscent of a fantasy world where animals can talk and ghosts are your friends. A lot of her works is very simple ink illustrations on paper, and while she occasionally does full color works, the black and white pieces are my personal favorites. One of my favorite things about littlebighead’s shop is that the majority of her available pieces are original artwork, so you can feel proud to have an original, and at $15-30 you can have an amazing treasure for your walls, without breaking the bank. Definitely get one of your favorites now because before long she’s going to be HUGE!
One of the things i miss most about living in a small town is garage sales and thrift stores. I don’t miss the lack of other things to do however. I am going to upstate NY this weekend to see Matt’s sister graduate so maybe we can sneak in a thrift-store visit between congratulations. The plates by Sarah Burden really caught my eye this week. I love when people take something that is looking rather unloved, and revamp it to make it a must have. Upcycling is such a simple idea a lot of the times, and in a throwaway culture, in which we live, I always appreciate an object knowing love made it into something better than it was before. So check out her upcycled dishware, this girl can really draw.
I’m fortunate enough to be able to make a living as a designer, so I know how hard it is sometimes to come up with something new and different that will make your clients stand out. I’ve been thinking a lot about little things and how something small can make a huge difference, and you can’t really get much smaller than the barcode. A barcode is something people don’t think too much about. It’s on almost everything we buy, black and white with those little coded lines, containing the information that will allow us to purchase it and take our finds home with us. But really, aside from the inital thought of “Does this have a barcode or should I grab a different one off the shelf?” who really pays attention to the barcode. The Japan based D-barcode has made the barcode their bread and butter (Your total comes to $4.87 please.) Check out their brilliant barcode designs, if your looking for a little inspiration in making your next product stand out.
If you survive the cuteness factor of these new designer toys, you have me beat. These amazing wood toys from Noferin are beyond words. Noferin is the collaboration of two amazing artists: Candy and Nick. Candy paintings intricate paintings of the make believe Carrara Island and Nick turns these works of art into little wood sculptures. Their previous series of toys have long sold out, but chin up, the newest collection launch next Tuesday, May 5th. So head on over to their site, and add your name to their mailing list so you are sure not to miss out. I mean really who wouldn’t want one of these amazing creatures.
I love the illustrations by Claire Scully ( The quiet revolution) She has such a great eye and raw talent. I’m always impressed when an artist can excel at more than one drawing style, and Claire does just that. My personal favorites are the pieces in her bejeweled series. The colors are so vibrant and the details are almost unthinkable, such small shapes making up the bigger picture. She has a few of her pieces on pillows and tote-bags up in her shop in case you love them as much as I do. Also be sure to check out her blog for more fun treats.
I’m not such a big fan of warm weather. Give me a crisp fall day and I’m as happy as a jack-o-lantern. It seems that spring is over all ready, this weekend in Brooklyn we saw temperatures as high as 89, and I have the sunburn to prove it. We did however enjoy sitting in the backyard sunday morning while it was still a little cool in the shade, while Einstein played with his favorite ball and we relaxed a bit after spending saturday at the Flea. I realized how many birds congregate in the yards behind out apartment, and thought about getting a bird house to put on the fence or hang from the beautiful magnolia tree that has just finished blooming. Well I love these swallow bird houses from Duckabush Woodworks. Available in a variety of colors, these amazing handmade birdhouses would sure to make some little bird very happy. How cool would these look lined up on the edge of the forest, a little bit of added color, and some beautiful birds too.
Yesterday I received a large order of coasters and other fun things from my favorite laser cutters Ponoko. I spent some time working on a new design for a new series that’s a little more organic then my other coasters and I got to hold them in my nervous little hands yesterday for the first time. They need a few tweaks the next go-around but I have to say I am very happy with them. I took a quick snapshot of one to share with you guys since hopefully I will sell out of them this weekend when I’m vending at the Brooklyn Flea. So if your in the area stop by and say hi, I’ll be in good company with the {newnew}. I put a set aside for myself for a more professional product photoshoot. I also have some felt doily’s on their way that I just finished designing, I know you guys are going to love them!
