jenniferbrola.com

our last sneak peek of the day takes us down to buenos aires, argentina to the home of eliza jane curtis, the mastermind behind the beautiful hand-printed greeting cards morris & essex. she describes her cards and apartment as reflections of her love of color, plants, animals and a bright jumble of vintage influences. i’m totally loving her space and it’s openness, which is definitely different from the architecture in maine, where she is originally from. check out more, full-sized images right here (photos by caitlin m. kelly). and don’t forget to check out her super cute site right here. [thanks so much, eliza!] -anne [above: Living room seen from the stairs. This space is so huge. sometimes we have fun dragging the furniture around to switch things up or make room for ping-pong games or movie projections.] The bedroom is sunny and white. The windows and door open out onto our terrace. Most of the furniture came from the huge Mercado de las Pulgas flea market a few blocks away. The beard picture is by ashley g. I love her bearded men. This guy looks a lot like Mike. I made the paper cut-out. The bear-headed lady is from Oh My Cavalier. This is our dining room. It was once an open courtyard but now it has a glass roof. There are still old tree stumps embedded in the poured concrete floor. I love how many older buildings in Buenos Aires blur the lines between indoor space and outdoor space. It’s cool having a jungle in the dining-room. The kitchen is little but it works fine. I recently enjoyed an inspiring interview with Mark Bittman about cooking in a tiny kitchen. I made the curtains using a carrot for a stamp. The bike print is from Chris Piascik. Homemade spice labels. i love these crazy bathroom walls. the couple that owns the apartment are friends of friends, they painted all these squares. Bedroom window, looking in from the terrace. . . I found the red apple tray on the street last year. What luck! Sometimes I work on projects here. I do have a separate studio space, about ten minutes from home. The plastic swimmer is just one of the interesting characters in my little plastic figurine collection. Notebook is from Sukie. I made the yellow pattern painting and the folded-paper egg. It’s great seeing birds looking in at me through this window when I open my eyes in the morning.

these beautiful objects are by designer gülnur özdağlar and are made from used PET bottles. they have such a gorgeous marine-life quality to them it’s hard to believe they’re handmade from a plastic material. click here to see more of gülnur’s beautiful work. [stay tuned for another sneak peek at 1pm...]

i love catching a design studio right before they move to manufacture their work. this weekend i heard from david horan of hundredstendunits in coventry, uk and i was instantly smitten with his studio’s simple, modern furniture. along with his business partners matt bassett and tom nelson, david has designed a lovely line of contemporary furniture and and home accessories. i can’t wait to see them produced and out on the market, but until then you can check out their work here. as always, if you’re interested in a piece, you can always contact the designers to talk about a custom production or when their work will be near you.

for anyone who has picked up a copy of the new handmade nation book you may recognize some of the spaces from today’s first sneak peek: jill bliss. artist, designer, crafter, jill is just one of the many talents showcased in the new documentary, also titled handmade nation, due out early this year. today we’re excited to show off her portland, oregon home. i love that the colors in her home feel like something straight out of one of her illustrations. click here for more, full-sized images, and here for more of jill’s work. as always, you can find all of our wonderful sneak peeks right here. [thanks, jill!] -anne originally from northern california [the bay area and a farm in the central valley near chico], i’ve also lived in nyc, and currently call lovely and amazing portland oregon home. i love rainy days, overcast weather, moss, and trees; so this is the perfect place for me! i’m currently living in a huge old four square arts and crafts house with roommates. the house is the biggest one on the street so i suspect it was the original farm house for the area back when it was built in 1912. the last owner spent several years restoring it somewhat, there’s evidence that it had been a boarding house at some point. as a result of all the recent upgrades, most of my decorating has been limited to repainting all the rooms which, because of the sheer size of the house, actually took about 6 full months [and counting]. i’ve also had to buy or make some furniture since this place is much bigger than the one bedroom apartment situation i was previously accustomed to! that being said, my roommates and i prefer zen-calm places without a lot of clutter so i try to keep the visual craziness to a minimum, or at least tucked away.

because we’re all feeling the squeeze of the current economic situation, i’ve been paying attention to affordable artwork a lot lately. there’s not shortage of great prints available online and this one by alyson fox at little paper planes ($50) caught my eye. i love the hand-drawn frame around the woman, it’s almost doesn’t need a frame because it’s built in. i’d love to hang it on a photo line with clips in a dressing room, it just has that feminine feel to me. i’m also loving these two prints ($50 and $24.99) by chris silas neal at thumbtack press. he has such a nice way with color. click here to pick them up online or view the rest of his work for sale.

good morning and happy new year! after 2 weeks away from d*s it’s so great to get back to work. over the past 14 days i’ve been working on some new projects for the site and hope to introduce the first next week, but in the meantime i wanted to kick things off one of my favorite gifts i received this christmas. marimekko designed an eyeshadow, face color and mascara package for avon and i was thrilled to get the beautiful blush in my stocking. it’s practically too pretty to use (i love the way the actual makeup creates the floral image) so right now it’s just sitting on my bathroom window sill staring at me. also, three new wedding posts at the martha stewart blog went up over the holidays if you’re interested in checking out name-changing, wedding party and lighting talk. [quick update: there's a huge marimekko sale going on at always mod right here]

today i’m back in virginia and ready to celebrate the holidays with family and friends. for the last post of the year we decided to shoot a holiday video at my house with the winterns, des and sam. as we all head home for the winter break, i thought it would be fun to share some great last minute cooking and crafting ideas so i hope you’ll enjoy the finger knitting project (crochet chains for your tree) with des and the chocolate bark recipe. it’s one of my favorite winter treats to make. thanks to des, sam and jimmy for their video help! i’m signing off until the new year and will be back with regular posts on monday, january 5th. i’m gearing up for some exciting new d*s projects in 2009 so i’m going to use next week to prepare and get all of my ducks in a row. so until then, best wishes for a happy holiday and a wonderful new year! i’ll see you in 2009…

i first fell in love with night owl paper goods when i came across their eco-chic cards printed on wood, and now i always love seeing what new things they’ve cooked up. so today it’s a real treat to have a peek into partner alan henderson’s birmingham, alabama home. we were expecting something with a bit more of a “modern yet folksy” look (that’s night owl’s tagline, afterall), but we totally fell in love with the natural palette sprinkled with botanicals and clean spaces with lots of natural light. click here for more images (i can’t wait to see what they end up doing with visions of their dream garden), and here for more from night owl paper goods. and don’t forget, you can find for all our - nearly 200! - sneak peeks here! safe travels to all as you make it to your homes for the holidays! [thanks, alan!] -anne [above: The front porch opens right into the living room, no entry hall in the house. The sofa was our first major furniture splurge, the Harrington by Todd Hase in a cream mohair that we'll keep forever. Lindsay had the curtains made with $3/yard tattersall fabric from a shop in Mississippi.] Our living room opens to a porch that extends across the entire front of the house. The desk overlooks the garden. One of a pair of bookshelves in the living room that Lindsay has had since college. We’re obsessed with amber glass. You might have seen our kitchen in Cottage Living. We simplified the space by swapping out busy granite counters for Alabama white marble. This is why we bought the house–for this room and all its windows. The botanical photographs are by our friend Melissa Springer. The map is actually pieced together from cheap prints that Montgomery artist David Braly aged and put together for us. Phoebe Howard really upgraded this space with wallpaper and good wool curtains–it’s our first grown-up dining room. The chair fabric is Ikat from Hickory Chair. Unfortunately, it’s discontinued. The bedroom isn’t done–the chaise came from Phoebe Howard in Atlanta and needs to be recovered, we loved the shape of it. This is our office, I found the desk in the early 90s at a department store in Lexington, KY that was going out of business, and Lindsay had my amber glass bottles turned into lamps. The office upstairs, showing the original coal-burning fireplace. The banding on the walls is an homage to David Hicks. Lindsay’s drawings from architecture school hang in our office. The computer desk came from Plexicraft in NY. This is a classic four-square parterre, and it’s always changing–Lindsay and I had over 100 basil plants last summer, and heirloom tomatoes. This year we had whiteflies and hungry caterpillars. Next year it will be all about herbs and zinnias. Lindsay has someone building architectural tuteurs in the center of each square.

our first fabulous sneak peek comes from d*s reader and freelance writer leah hennen, of the blog more ways to waste time. she, her husband nick, and their two children have been in their circa-1939 oakland, ca home for nearly three years. she cracked me up with her comment that they worked on it from the top down (mainly cosmetic changes), and “are just about ready to start all over again (like painting the golden gate bridge).” but for now we’ll have to enjoy it in its present glory. there are so many great spaces in her home, so be sure to click here for more fantastic images! stay tuned for one more sneak peek coming up at 1pm! [thanks, leah!] -anne [above: My husband and I hemmed and hawed over the paint color in our bedroom for about a year. Finally, he made an executive decision and choose Benjamin Moore’s Chocolate Sundae. I think he was right — the color is deep and luscious, but warm. I chose a satin finish for the paint, because I wanted the walls to literally glow at night. (We have 70-year-old lath and plaster, so the walls are definitely imperfect — a fact that the shinier paint does highlight, but I don’t mind the flaws.) Although the room faces north, it gets tons of light from a big corner window and a French door, so I wasn’t worried about it being too dark. Crisp white trim, bedding, and a large bookshelf, plus mirrored accents around the room help offset the deep color. We got this Asian-style open bookshelf from Pier 1 awhile back, on sale for something like $200. The stuffed corgi was a present from my kids. The magazine collection represents only the last few months’ worth of shelter titles that I still need to tackle. It’s a sickness, I know. I kind of hate the couch, chairs, and ottoman. Once I figure out what to replace them with — and if we ever save enough to actually buy those replacements — they’re going straight up on craigslist. My husband and I are both pretty tall (6′2&” and 5′10″), so the couch is more comfortable for us without the back cushions. The throw draped over the back is from Designers Guild, and the linen pillows are from Anna Joyce (a splurge from Portland’s Olio United), Sharon Spain, and Paper Cloud (both bought on super-duper clearance at Oakland’s Atomic Garden, the floor lamp is from IKEA. . . We really needed an entry table, but I didn’t want something solid that would block light from the glass bricks that flank our front door. This clear acrylic console table from CB2 was the perfect solution. The vintage metal locker baskets below hold shoes, kids’ backpacks, and other clutter that tends to pile up inside the front door. I used the Orla Kiely wallpaper left over from my dining room hutch project to back the bookshelves. The ceramic horse head and turquoise dish are from eBay. The white bowl is from Perch! This is an earlier iteration of the living and dining rooms. The family room. We opted for daybeds instead of a couch, since this doubles as a guest room. The paneling is knotty pine. We painted it all white to help lighten up this dark basement room. Except for the mirror and the books, everything in this picture was found on eBay; the metal “sculpture” is actually a vintage industrial cake beater. The latest evidence of my incurable lamp addiction always seems to end up on this cabinet. The white Parsons table is from West Elm. The paint color is Benjamin Moore’s Soft Fern. My 13-year-old’s lair. Let’s not go in here … I have a little problem when it comes to buying vintage kitchen items. We tucked a small workspace and sewing- and crafting station into a corner of the dining room. I can set up here with the laptop, or my daughter can sew while I keep an eye on her. The desk is West Elm’s white Parsons. I found the vintage tulip-style chair (most likely by Burke) on eBay. The credenza, Buddha head lamp, metal H, vintage letterpress letters, and ceramic bird figurines are yet more eBay finds; the black-and-white photo was a flea market score; the tiny print is one of Chris Crites’ paper bag mugshots; and the ceramic pear is from Heather Knight’s Etsy shop.

last week when the winterns and i were in the city looking at holiday windows we ended up spending quite a bit of time in the hable construction shop on perry street. i was totally smitten with these beautiful felt ornaments by llubav choy duerr. i posted her wedding ring pillows a while back but i’m so thrilled to share these gorgeous handmade ornaments she made for the holiday season (her husband chris names each piece!). in addition to the cute little garments, she also made the beautiful felt garland. it’s hanging in llubav’s son’s nursery and is perfect for children and adults alike. you can order through hable if you’re interested- or if you’re shopping in nyc be sure to stop by and check them out at the store, their full cuteness is best expressed in person. that little cape at the top? so adorable.

kristina is away on vacation right now but i wanted to get one last holiday recipe up before we all take off work for a few. this delicious recipe comes from event and wedding designer wanwisa posner, whose beautiful macaron tower was a hit last month. she’s sharing a seriously tasty recipe for doughnut holes that would make for a perfect holiday treat. just click here for the full recipe or click “read more” below to get cooking. one important safety note from kristina and wanwisa before you get started: hot oil can be very dangerous so don’t take your eyes off of it! when disposing of oil (if you don’t plan to reuse it) let it cool completely and pour into an old can or container (that can be sealed). i usually freeze mine a bit to help it solidify. then you can dispose of it safely in the trash- just be sure to never dump oil down your drain! Recipe: {About 24 donut holes} One canister of Pillsbury Buttermilk Biscuit dough (8 large biscuits) 20-32 fl Oz. of Canola Oil (depending on the size of deep fryer, wok or cast iron pot) 2 cups of sugar 2 tablespoons cinnamon Cookware Small wok, deep fryer or cast iron French oven Spider Skimmer or metal slotted spoon In a small wok, deep fryer or a cast iron French oven, heat up some oil to 350 degrees. While the oil is heating up, pop open the biscuit canister and pull apart three equal parts of dough from each biscuit. Using the palm of your hands, roll dough into smooth round spheres. Use either an Asian Spider Skimmer or a metal slotted spoon to drop a few balls at a time into pot. Fry in batches of 5-6 at one time. As the donut holes cook, they will rise to the top. Allow them to reach a nice golden hue evenly around before removing from oil and placing on a large plate lined with a few layers of paper towels. Mix sugar and cinnamon in a shallow bowl. While warm, roll the donut holes in your sugar mixture and cover evenly. Plate them and serve while slightly warm. Side note: I also love covering these donut holes with plain confectioner’s sugar. For more variety, you can use a piping bag to add a fruity filling (I love them with fresh strawberry preserves). Serve them with a nice cup of cappuccino for a chic coffee and donut theme. An even more creative and fun idea is to serve these fresh warm donut holes alongside mini ramekins filled with a couple scoops of coffee or espresso ice cream! About Wanwisa Having planned her dream {foodie} wedding complete with a nine course reception menu at Per Se in New York, Wanwisa created Modern Vintage, a blog about everyday inspirations for event and wedding planning. Modern Vintage, initially Wanwisa’s answer to filling that post-wedding-planning void, grew rapidly and Wanwisa’s inspirations have been featured on sites like Style Me Pretty, Hostess With The Mostess, and Elizabeth Anne Designs. In July of 2008, Wanwisa joined Bliss Events Group, spearheading Bliss’s newly launched New York Office and joining the editorial team of Southern Weddings (Bliss Event’s Wedding Magazine) as Fab-Finds Editor. Why Wanwisa chose this recipe Growing up in a Thai household in New York, I remember the few “American” dishes my aunt would cook for us; she always added that touch of Thai to everything of course. There was her famous macaroni dish that was topped with equal parts of Sriracha (a spicy garlic based hot sauce) and tomato sauce and then there was my favorite, her wok-fried sugar donut holes. These two bite treats are simply deep fried balls of Pillsbury Biscuit dough tossed in some sugar. Easy and comforting, I love this dessert so much that I chose Per Se’s “coffee and donuts,” the restaurant’s elegant version of fried dough and sugar, for my wedding reception’s dessert course.

today’s second (and last) diy project comes from two of my favorite designing dudes- conn and john. we got to see their hawaiian home this past june and today they’re sharing a fun aloha state-inspired holiday wreath. i’m a sucker for a fun wreath so i’m excited to share their project here. just click here or click “read more” below for conn and john’s full instructions. thanks conn and john! Aloha and Mele Kalikimaka everyone! This is a very simple and low cost… in our case no cost, way to jazz up your front door this holiday season. I was inspired to make this a few months ago when I noticed how the Manilla Palm fronds dried in semi-circles. Always thinking about how to re-use things, It hit me… A Holiday wreath. I used several dry manilla palm fronds, a few seed pods from a royal ponciana tree some banana bark as ribbon, Christmas berries and some protea given to us by a friend. Instructions: Materials: (use what you can find laying around your yard) 5-6 dried Manilla palm fronds Banana Bark - enough to wrap around as a ribbon (you can also us raffia or real ribbon) 5 Royal Poinciana Seed Pods 12-15 various Protea Flowers (or other flowers that dry nicely or are already dried) 5 small cuttings of Christmas Berry branches with berries attached or similar Thin wire Wire cutters (wire wreath frame if desired) Living in Maui lends itself to a a bounty of materials year round. Those of you in the colder regions may not have as many materials in your yards to work with, but I bet you could find a few bits of nature sprinkled around that could work. Dry branches and twigs, evergreen cuttings, holly, feathers and even dry leaves would work just as well in this homemade wreath. Use your imagination and just have fun with it. The palm fronds I used have a nice thick center stem so I did not need a wire frame to mount this onto. If using evergreen cuttings you may want a wire frame as a base in order to achieve a nice round wreath. The other great thing about this wreath is that I can just throw the entire thing into the mulch pile. The small amounts of wire used will break down quickly. If you are using a full wire frame, I would suggest taking all the trimmings off before discarding. That way, you have the frame to use again and again. 1. Begin by cutting off the base of the fronds. Then lay your fronds or branches out to get an idea of how big your wreath will be. Next begin laying one frond on top of another about 1/3 of the way up the stalk. Attach with a small piece of wire. Continue until all fronds are attached and close by connecting the beginning of the length to the end forming a circle. 2. Wrap a small piece of wire around one end of your banana bark or ribbon and attach that to your wreath from the back side. Wrap the ribbon around the wreath. Secure with another piece of wire from the back. 3. Next I added the seed pods. I first made a hole by hammering a nail though one end. Next, lay your pods out on top of the wreath so you can achieve proper spacing. Insert a piece of wire into the nail hole and attach to your wreath. 4. Cut the heads off the Protea, leaving at least 1″ of stem. After all the stems have been cut off, lay the heads on top of your wreath and arrange as desired. Remove from wreath and place on the ground in exactly the same order as you took them off. That way you will keep your placement and order when attaching them. Take a piece of wire and pierce the stem and begin attaching all the way around. 5. I then took the Christmas Berry branches and simply tucked them into the ribbon. 6. Take another piece of wire and attach to the top back of wreath, making a loop for hanging. We hung ours around our ALOHA sign at our front door. 7. Hang and enjoy.

today ac and i are packing up and heading off to VA for the holidays but today and tomorrow i’ll be posting as always. i have a few great holiday diy projects left in my inbox so today and tomorrow i’ll be posting some of them in hopes that you might have some get crafty when you’re home with family. today’s first project belongs to alice of peapods- she created this easy, last-minute label project using something we all have laying around the house- catalogs. as many times as i unsubscribe from various catalogs they always show up in the mail- so this project is a great way to make the best out of them- using only a gift tag punch or a pair of scissors. click here for the full project. thanks, alice!

this time of year the days just seem to fly by and this week was a total blur! next week ac and i are heading down to virginia for the holidays but i’ll be posting through next tuesday so please tune in next week for some fantastic end of the year sneak peeks, the last d*s video of 2008 (holiday crafting and cooking!) and some more diy projects to do while you’re home with family. in the meantime, i’m off to my bedroom to start packing and wrapping gifts for next week. also, i have so many holiday diy projects to post i don’t know where to start so i wanted to end this week with a great project from amanda at vintage glam. she used a common found material (wire hangers and plastic bags from the laundromat) and created a beautiful holiday wreath in only a few steps. amanda was kind enough to share her full steps with d*s so just click here (or click “read more” below) for the full project. thanks to amanda for sharing. see you monday!

• must-read post of the week: ikat trend roundup
• new sneak peeks: hello lucky (with interview), dvider, baked bakery- charleston, lynn of satsuma press, jill of studio olivine, brie harrison,
• new diy projects: erin’s holiday placecard/favor, kate’s recycled painting noteboard, hand printed fleece scarves, glitter ornaments, holiday garlands
• new before and afters: megan’s ikea stools, emily’s chair, piper’s chair
• podcasts + videos: mike perry, the arm letterpress studio, design by the book- episode two
• artwork: lisa jones uk prints, hyperakt + moontree obama prints
• 2009 calendars: helen ige, stephanie meurer, hammerpress
• misc: hello handmade holiday banners, hk living furniture and accessories, veekee silk scarf agendas, ninainvorm ceramics
• in the kitchen with: kristine sitko’s balsamic chocolate truffles with cherries recipe

Amanda’s Holiday Wreath You’ll need: -wire hangers (the type you get with your dry cleaning at the laundromat) -plastic bags (the type that you get with your dry cleaning at the laundromat) -pliers It’s very simple to make the wreath: Step 1: Using a wire hanger, make a circle shape with the help of pliers). Step 2: Cut the plastic bags in 1/2″ wide strips. You will be left with tons of plastic bag “rings”. Cut both ends of these rings. Step 3: Fold strips in half. Cut the folded end. Fold the strips in half again. Cut the end. Repeat until you have strips that are 5-6″ long. Step 4: Tie strips onto the wire. Tie the strips tightly together next to each other until you no longer see the wire. To make the floating word ornament: Step 1: If you have an old glass ornament and wants to recycle it, take the cap off and fill up with bleach and salt. This will remove the old paint, leaving the ornament in clear glass. Skip this step if you already have a clear glass ornament. Step 2: To make the hanging JOY inside the ornament, I used leftover alphabet stickers and carefully placed each letter on top of the edge of each other. I did the same thing on both sides so one can read from any angle. With the help with a safety pin, I poked a hole in the middle of the word. Step 3: I threaded the word with a thin fishing line, tied a tiny knot on one side and then threaded again through the ornament cap. Tied a knot from underneath the cap and tad-dah! Floating word ornament is done! To add some color, I tied a red ribbon around the ornament. Tah-dah! Wreath cost: $0 By: Amanda of Vintage Glam

We couldn’t get enough of great gift and/or entertaining ideas even in the In the Kitchen With column in the lead up to Christmas. Photographer Kristine Sitko has given us the perfect holiday treat, either to pass around on a tray at your next friendly or family gathering. Or, if you go crazy and make too many, package them up with a beautiful bow in a nice piece of porcelain or a vintage cup and saucer, like the fabulous one in the images. The lucky recipient will be your friend forever! Just click here for the Kristine’s Balsamic Chocolate Truffles (with a hint of cherry) recipe or click “read more” below. This is my last post before taking off for (hopefully) sunny California, my end of year gift to myself! I’ll have my holiday music cued and ready for the loooooong flight. But we’ll be back in 2009 with more fabulous recipes and photography from lots of amazing people. What we have in store for you will knock your socks off! -Kristina Balsamic Chocolate Truffles (with a wink of cherry) 8 ounces dark chocolate, chopped (the best you can find. I heart Valrhona.) ¼ c cream 2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar 8 dried cherries ½ c cocoa powder 1) Put balsamic and cherries into a small pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Remove cherries and discard (or use later in a salad. You won’t regret it.) Set balsamic aside to cool. 2) Melt chocolate and cream in a double boiler (or a heat-proof glass bowl over a pot filled with water), making sure the water is hot, not boiling. Place melted chocolate in a small bowl and add the cooled balsamic. Mix well. Cool in the refrigerator about 1 hour. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour, until firm but moldable. 3) Roll mixture into one inch balls and place on a parchment lined tray. Pour cocoa powder into a shallow dish and roll balls to cover. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container up to one week, but don’t keep them all for yourself. These intense little treats are meant to be shared. Why Kristine chose this recipe: As the snow settles in around me, my tastes shift towards the dramatic and these little truffles do drama in spades. Be warned - they are rich, but I’m pretty sure that a small bite of rich can stand up to just about any plate of fine one can throw our way. I hope you enjoy them. About Kristine, in her own words: I became serious about photography as a means of supporting my freelance writing career, and soon found that I preferred photography. To me, it’s a means of becoming familiar with the things and places I love most in this world. These days, I run a photography shop, have put together a book of my fine art series, Smoke and am working on a new blog, the information for which will appear on my etsy site shortly. I specialize in travel and lifestyle photography, but am happy to photograph anything that I consider beautiful in hopes of understanding it better.

our special friday sneak peek is home to london-based, textile designer brie harrison who just launched her new website. the shop portion of her site is still to come, but you can find her work featured in the pages mike perry’s new catalog of hand-drawn pattern, over and over. judging from her cards below, i can’t wait to see more from her, but in the meantime, i’m going to continue to lust over all the great patterns and textiles from her travels that she’s woven into her home. you can click here for more, full-sized images. [thanks, brie!] -anne [Above: This is me on my sofa in our lounge on a bright sunny morning. The sofa is a present from my parents and the cushions are collected by me from various places and some I made from vintage fabrics found in flea markets in NY. Anna Wolf took this photo of me when her and her boyfriend Mike Perry came to visit this summer. ] The picture on the shelf is by one of my friends -the very amazing illustrator sanna annukka - she gave this to Jim and I as a present a few years ago and I  think it fits in very well with the colours in our lounge. The donkey on the shelf is from a boutique in Paris and the russian dolls James brought back of for me from a trip to Berlin. The basket on the floor is from a market in St Tropez. Our TV is about 13 years old and I had in my bedroom when I was a teenager and I can’t bear to get rid of it as it still works although it looks a bit of an eye sore here but wanted to show you a real representation! Our bed is from muji- which is brilliant for simple basic items. the floral throw is from portobello market in London and the white embroidered sheet is from a vintage shop in California called jetrag. The cushions are from India and Morocco. I love this wall when the sun shines on it. The map is of the New York subways and is actually just a piece of wrapping paper but I think its far too nice for that!- James and I have spent a few summers out there working recently and we love it out there so much. The Barbar picture on the left I bought James for christmas- it has little mini elves carrying a sleigh which makes me smile. The triangle pencil drawing is by our friend artist Amy Green. This turquoise chest I bought for next to nothing from a salvation army store and painted it- same with the chair. The frame leaning against the radiator is a poster from one of my favourite films Amelie. the gold framed picture is of a card by Johnathan Dilnott - I want to splash out and buy one of his screenprints one of these days but for now I just have the greetings card framed. These shelves in our bedroom don’t have that many practical things on apart from the books. I just needed somewhere to put all the things I love collecting. The two big geisha bobble dolls are vintage from Beacon in NY and the black and white photo is of my mum in the 70s. Charley Harpers birds and words is a new purchase- I have fallen in love with his beautiful illustrations. The black floral fabric covered frame in the centre bottom is designed by my best friend Anja Sheriden, a very talented textile designer…. and more tins! These are the cards I have designed for art angels. I have just finished 6 more for them that will be out early next year and will also hopefully feature wrapping paper and possibly notebooks. I am planning on making some of the designs into limited edition screen prints to sell on my website very soon!

still looking for a 2009 calendar? hammerpress recently released this beautiful “dirigible” 2009 letterpress calendar (printed on heavy chipboard). you can pick one up right here for $30.

when it comes to shopping, ceramics are the one design category that i can rarely resist (second only to textiles). if i’m out picking up something for a project or as a present for someone else, i always come home with some tiny ceramic piece, whether it’s a tiny salt dish or a vintage teacup. and these pieces by nina of ninainvorm would definitely go home in my bag if i was out shopping. nina sells her beautiful ceramic work on etsy for prices range from $25-$45, just click here to shop and check out her full collection on etsy.

morning eye candy: new cards from frank viva and todd temporale at whigby. click here to check out their new online shop and the new 2008 collection.

levent and romme is a fantastic new brooklyn-based design studio founded by anne romme and fiyel levent. anne and fiyel attended the cooper union school of architecture together and are now embarking upon creating their own studio for architecture and design. there’s always something so exciting about getting to see a young, women-run team on the cusp of doing something really spectacular (like those headboards above). i got to see more of their work in a brochure the other day and it’s really, really beautiful. you can view their first designs on their blog, right here. but stay tuned for more from them soon… [ps: my new wedding post at martha stewart is up, and glamour.com did a fun interview about makeup with me right here. it was a treat to talk about something other than furniture for a bit] [headboard by levent and romme] [screens by levent and romme] [placemat design by levent and romme]