Domestic Candy

Do you remember the lovely products by German based Domestic Candy I showed you in March? Kerstin has updated her Dawanda shop with these vintage cutting boards she turned into wall art. What a nice way of recycling! 

Don't the graphical patterns on them make you think of security envelopes?

Stilleben shop. Denmark

I could put almost all products on my wishlist that are available in the Danish online shop Stilleben. Not only the beautiful vases from Meyer-Lavigne I wrote about back in February, also these beautys shown above: Teapot designed by Helena Rohner, Milk and Sugar by Ditte Fischer, Industreal lamp and Industreal vase designed by Guillaume Delvigne, lava stone by Made a Mano and this beautiful sugar spoon.

Circus Violet

Studio Violet (the joint venture of Camilla Engman and Elisabeth Dunker) has launched a new collection called Circus Violet. As always their work is playful and gorgeous. The new collection includes re-used porcelain for a show in Karin Eriksson gallery, prints, stamps and black drop decals that I've been adoring since I've seen them the first time on Elisabeth Dunker's kitchen wall.

See more of this collection on Studio Violet homepage, for purchasing visit the Studio Violet shop.

(All images from Studio Violet)

My home on Kireei

There is a little tour of my home over on the spanish interior and lifestyle blog Kireei. How exiting! I met Cristina from Kireei on the online-course I'm attending right now. The course is called Blogging Your Way and it's taught by Holly Becker from decor8. It's fun to make new friends while learning usefull things.

Thank you, Cristina!

Five Forty: Rag Rugs

Yesterday Re-Nest introduced 10 Things Made from Upcycled Sweaters. That led me to Five Forty, an Etsy shop offering these eco-friendly hand woven rag rugs. They are woven in a special way with recycled textiles used for both warp and weft. 

Wouldn't they be perfect beside the bed? They must feel so soft and warm under your toes in the morning.

(via Re-Nest, all images from Five Forty)

The Brick House - Tour

Do you like vintage finds? Then you will love the home of Morgan Satterfield. I'm so happy that I stumbled upon her blog The Brick House. Her blog is all about living in a modest mid century cement brick house, renovating and decorating it. Morgan is not only a fellow blogger but also an owner of an Etsy shop filled with mid century and danish modern items. 

I thought it would be great to share some of her interior shots with you because I'm sure you will enjoy them. Morgan was so kind to answer me some questions. Thank you so much, Morgan!

Here we go:

Please introduce yourself and your Etsy-shop.
Hi all, I'm Morgan, owner and restorer of The Brick House. The house is located in a small boring retirement community in the far reaches of Southern California. I scavenge old ladies houses and local thrift stores for the best in Mid Century and Danish Modern design to entice and excite at my Etsy store, Brick House Vintage.

Tell us a littlebit about your house, how long do you live in it? With who do you live in it?
The Brick House was custom built by a local mason in 1951. Its pretty unique on our block and is completely made of cement bricks. Modestly sized and full of original details it hasn't been Home Depot'd over the years - it is also a bitch to fix. I met the grandson of the mason who built it when getting quotes to repair some plaster. There were no exciting stories, just a simple guy who built the house for his family. I live with my boyfriend known as "The Boy" and my dog known as "Iggy Julius Huggleman". We've been living at the Brick House for just over a year.

Where is your favorite place in your house? And why?
My living room. We never use it. We have "important" conversations there. No television, no computer - just a bright clean room filled with some of my favorite things. Sometimes I stretch out on the big gray sofa to relax and play with Iggy.

Do you have a favorite furniture, accessoire or art piece? 
All the art is my favorite. I went to art school, I work in the arts, and I'm a painter. I collect a ton of vintage paintings, weird art, needlepoint as well as my friends work. I constantly curate and arrange the pieces in the house to change the space. I think artwork makes a house. Its the first thing I look at when going into other peoples homes. I always want the artwork to be a little jarring and unnerving in the otherwise calm and beautiful space to keep things energetic.

Have you any tips for finding treasures on fleamarkets or thrift stores?
Be patient. Look through junk. Know what you like. Go ALL the time. Thats really the only way to find deals, consistent looking. Lots of times you'll find nothing. Don't get discouraged. Be patient. Be patient. Be patient.
Go to high priced vintage stores for inspiration and to see quality pieces. Touch them, ask questions, do research. Then really look out for those shapes and materials you love. Training your eye is the hardest part. It can get overwhelming looking at all the crappy stuff to spot a really rad piece. Once you do though, its like heaven. A great piece at a good deal can't be beat - its like double chocolate cake with crack topping.

(All images by Morgan Satterfield, The Brick House)

MeBox

Fun is useful in many cases, also when it comes to organizing. Everybody knows the good old cardboard boxes but the MeBox has a special labeling feature to add a fun and decorative twist to it. The ends of each box  have a grid of perforated discs that when punched out reveal a letter, number or symbol. 

I found out that the MeBox is a self-initiated project by Graphic Thought Facility, a London based design consultancy. They have some other interesting projects on their site worth checking. 

Find out about stockists for the MeBox on the MeBox website. Also try out the virtual MeBox to see what your design could look like.

(images from GTF and MeBox)

Paper cranes

I'm sorry that it has been so silent over here this week. My university has started again and I've been very busy. I have to find a good rythm to include blogging to the busy days.

How do you guys include blogging into your life, your job, studies, etc.? Do you prepare posts in advance to post on days when you don't have the time, or the mood to blog? Or do you have any  other hints?

Back to the topic. Paper cranes are popping up everywhere lately. I collected some different versions and I like to see these all together. Isn't it fun to see what different people with their different creative minds make out of the same topic? Using different materials, colors and media the results are unlimited. Isn't that inspiring?

Starting from above: 

Multi-colored origami cranes in a jar from Origami Jars, Birdshade made out of paper cranes from Tas-Ka, Cranes in Red printed fabric from Aunty Cookie, Rubber Origami from B.Lightdesign find the DIY version of these rubber coated paper cranes on Instructables, Sterling Silver Origami Crane Necklace from Silver Clouds, Purse with hand embroidered paper crane from Plus 1 Design.

Essimar

I wish you a happy easter! 

Isn't this bunny gorgeous? It's named Otto and it's made by Esther aka Essimar. You may know her and her work already but I thought her bunny would fit the easter theme perfectly. 

Essimar is one of my favorite Etsy sellers - she has such a talent to make these pieces, cut and printed all by hand. I'm in love with the colors she uses and her graphic and abstract screenprints. If you don't know Essimar yet don't miss her Etsy shop where she lines a lot of her beautiful paper work. I've also enjoyed following her working process and inspirations on her blog and flickr. 

Products shown: Otto Conejo (shown above), Piso de Bano print, Tlin screenprint with graphite, Shilpa Fig mini print, Concha Panda Bear

Enjoy the good weather and the holidays!

P.S. A huge thank you to Kim and Jo from Desire To Inspire for mentioning me in your Easter reading guide and welcome to all of you who found your way here through Desire to Inspire.

Melin Tregwynt

I found these lovely blankets and cushions from Melin Tregwynt through the lovely blog A Mad Tea Party With Alis. 

Based in Wales, UK Melin Tregwynt combines the tradition of the Welsh doublecloth and blankets with modern patterns and gorgeus colors.

Some products are available online via StylishLife you can also contact Melin Tregwynt directly through their website to make orders.

(images from Melin Tregwynt)

Guest blogger on Bloesem

This week I'm guest blogger over on Bloesem. I'm so exited about it and it is a big honor for me. Bloesem has been one of my favorite reads for years now. Thank you Irene for inviting me. 

My guest posts will focus (mainly) on european designers and online shops, here are some peeks what there will be going on. 

If you're not already a regular reader of Bloesem, please come and check it out. I'm sure you will enjoy it.

  

The Butter Flying

To celebrate the beginning of a hopefully very happy week I share with you some colorful garlands and mobiles.  The Butter Flying is a Montreal based designstudio run by the French interior and product designer Sylvie. I found out about her through a comment Sylvie left on Visual Notes. And I'm so happy she did, so I could find out about her cheerful work and her Etsy shop. 

Fun Is Cool

Happy friday! I introduced you a print from Fun is Cool in the last post. And here are some more beautiful products from Sarah. I especially love the original drawing called Olivia (the one on the top). Sarah also makes knitted treasures as these rabbit or koala brooches and acorn pouches. All these products are available in her Etsy shop. Check out her lovely blog, too.

Spring for your walls

Here in Berlin the weather is getting really springlike. It is getting warm, the sun is shining and birds are singing all the time. These prints bring the spring to your walls, don't you think? I'm really longing for these fresh and warm colors.

Starting from top left: Rocky Mountains Drawing No.1 from Jaimers, I Am Hating This from Julia Pott, Live What You Love Letterpress Print from Hijirik Studio, Irana Douer Limited Edition Giclee Print from Poketo, Tattoo Sweater And The Colours Of Everything Inside... from Fun Is Cool and RJD2 Print from Sonnenzimmer.