Bright Green

Is my new favorite color. It's so gloomy in Denver these days, it feels like a little burst of spring in my living room! I went to Urban Outfitters and bought new pillows for the couch, a new green rug for the entry way, and a bowl for incense. Isn't it cute? I love Japanese-style illustrations.

Fairy Light!

I thought I would take a moment to share my new prototype! It's a 24" tall lamp for over my desk. I had originally made this with LED christmas lights, but they sort of burned out after a few weeks. So I swapped the broken lights with a compact flourescent bulb (only 15 watts, but quite bright) so no danger of a conflagration. Result? I love it. Especially since the cord no longer has a tail of little lights. I'm thinking of making a few more of these in different colors and putting them up on my Etsy shop. The cool part is that if the light isn't on, it looks like a plain colored box -- then it turns into a viney thicket when it's lit up.

PS - It's actually not super hard to make, although it is a bit fiddly around the corners: just print a design on the back of colored paper and fold the corners into a lid shape. Then mount a low wattage light in a cardboard box and pop the printed "lid" over the top. Make sure you cut a hole for the cord! You can also make a table top version if you make a holder for the bulb. Pretty!

Squid Fans Rejoice!

This is too cute. I might buy a dozen and create a flotilla. However, I do not agree with the description on the website that it's shaped like a small whale. It looks like a squid to me. Weirdos.

It's Amazing!

I have been wanting to get a Panton chair for quite some time. So iconic! Would look so fabulous in my bedroom! I have shied away from the price tags, though, because no one really wants to go into debt over a chair. The fiberglass originals can run over $1000, and even the plastic reproductions can set you back $300, not including shipping. But the Mid-Century furniture fairy must have been watching over my eBay search, because I found this. There are lots of colors, so if you have been crushing on this chair, get to it!

Not one, but TWO reproduction Panton chairs (full size, not juniors) for $195. And $49 shipping. I kept thinking there had to be some kind of catch, but apparently this seller is in fact shipping out these chairs for less than half the going price. I think I'm still in shock. I will update this when I receive them and let you know if there is an irate demon or something that comes in the box that explains the low price. Not that I expect one, but you never know.

Ooooh, That Had to Hurt. . .

Sorry, no post today. I took Thing One and Thing Two to the vet for dental work, and they are drugged out of all recognition and need extra rations of petting. Once everyone has been sufficiently appeased, I will be back. In force.

Confessions of a Recovering Monochrome

As you may recall if you've been taking notes, I have only recently started to wear colors other than black and grey. It has been a revelation and a chance to apply color theory outside of my studio. I knew that design degree would come in handy eventually! If you want to see some examples of folks who live and breathe fantastic technicolor and cute style, take a look at these style blogs:
StyleBytes yet more proof that the Scandinavians are more stylish than the rest of us, and always will be
Smaggle Style daily updates of Antipodian chic
Some Girls Wander (aka The Black Apple) fabulous DIY style, be sure to check out her artwork too!

Artist Roundup!

I must say I had a very satisfactory Valentine's Day. The Boy took me to a lovely romantic dinner at a French restaurant and then to the theater for a performance of Cirque du Soleil. I had never seen them live, and it was beautiful. . .although I do think the song lyrics may owe some small debt of inspiration to an overindulgence of cough syrup. I hope all of you had a wonderful time as well, or at least made it through without incident.

I wanted to show you some artists that I have been keeping my eye on. First is Blaine Fontana, who has a very well-designed website and a graffiti-meets-classical-technique style that I love. This is one of my favorites.



You may have seen Irene Suchocki's work already as she has been featured on several design blogs (I wish I could remember exactly where I saw her linked from!) She is absolutely worth a second round of mentions. Her photos are simply amazing -- she has an incredible eye for composition. They remind me of traveling in Germany when I was young.


If you're in the mood for something a little NSFW, check out Symon Chow's burlesque sideshow images. Rrrrrr. He has some very well done image manipulations as well. Either that or he has the world's largest porcupine made into a hat.


I've been watching Jonathan Wayshak for a few years, and his macabre, sketchy style just keeps getting better. He has a massive online portfolio that you can happily spend hours poking around in.



No list of my favorite artists would be complete without Phil Borges and his breathtaking portraiture. I was watching Kundun a few days ago and I was reminded of his work with displaced Tibetans. The personal stories of the monks and nuns caught up in the struggle are truly profound.