Love and Nature

I just found a reason to have a child. I was in Target today picking up a few things, and I happened to walk by the kids decor aisle, and stopped dead in my tracks. There, on sale, was the cutest lamp I've ever seen. It had owls and squirrels and was a lovely shade of green. When I got home I looked up the rest of the collection and truly fell in love.


The collection is called Love and Nature, by Circo. Here is one example of the bedding available.

Look at this pink owl bank! You don't even need a child as an excuse to buy this.

Hedgehog Bean Bag!

And the aforementioned lamp. This picture does not do it justice. It has an inner shade with three cutouts, two owls and a squirrel. The green seemed to be more of a sage in the store. I absolutely adore this. It was on sale for $17.99, too! I should have snagged it.

Here is, arguably, the cutest item in the whole collection. A mushroom nightlight. Another must have.

You can find the whole collection at Target.

Hour-Glass Fabulous

The September issue of Marie Claire had one photo on the last page of the magazine that totally inspired me.


I absolutely LOVE these dresses. I doubt I could afford one, or that I could even find a shop that carries one within a 500 mile radius, but a girl can look, a girl can dream....


From Mary Katrantzou, these perfume bottle print dresses create an amazing, feminine hour glass illusion.


Plus they have incredible colors and look like they would be comfortable to boot. Too perfect.




See the full collection on her website. I immediately fell in love with this designer when I saw this quote on the front page of her website:

"A woman who doesn't wear perfume has no future." --Coco Chanel

Don't you want to go spritz something on now? Such glamour in perfume, and in these fabulous dresses. If anyone wants to donate one to me, I'd be forever your girl.

Adventures in Baking!

Am I the only one who has never heard of this? Apparently you can make a cake with only a box of cake mix and a can of soda! People who are on Weight Watchers diets love this because you can mix cake mix (you can even use a reduced sugar mix) with a can of diet soda, and cut out all the calories from the eggs, oil, etc. If you make it in a muffin pan, each cupcake is only 1 point. How cool is that? As I am a horrible dieter, this is not what is intriguing to me, however. I'm thinking of all the great flavor possibilities. Just think of the wide array of soda flavors these days....lime, strawberry, ginger ale, blackberry, etc. A box of cheap cake mix and a cheap can of soda and you get a fantastically cheap and innovative dessert! I love this! There are plenty of low-cal recipes for frosting out there....using fat free cool whip or various other great ideas. I'm thinking an icing made of powdered sugar, a little milk and a splash of vanilla would be delicious on a ginger ale cake. Mmmmm. Many thanks to my facebook pal Daina for enlightening me! :)

Mad Men Yourself

Another long absence....sigh....sorry dear reader. The real world got in the way again. The good news is that Mad Men is back on AMC! Check out this website that allows you to make yourself as fabulous as our favorite Sterling Cooper employees.

Here's me and Don Draper.

Have a great weekend!

Here's to fabulous you!

tiny + clever = cool

I know I'm not the only one who is obsessed with miniature art. These clever artists seem to be popping up everywhere! Here is another example from UK artist Dan Jackson. His photographs have definitely captured my imagination. You can buy them here as a print or greeting card. Lucky you!

le chat et le chapeau

I found this adorable pom-pom hat at an antique mall for a quarter. My Sampson kitty decided he must be included in the picture. I just knew you'd find this adorable.

Mad Men

If you don't watch AMC's Mad Men, you should really consider it. Not only is it a fantastic drama which has won numerous awards for its fabulosity, but it is also a major source of inspiration due to the spot on set designs and costuming, set in the late '50's/early 60's. There is nothing I don't love about this show. Season 2 just came out on DVD, so put it on your Netflix queue pronto, because Season 3 starts August 16th!



Every time I watch it all I can think is, "I want that. I want that. I want that."



The Mad women.



I have a major girl-crush on Joan. Her clothes are to die for. And she's just so together. I love a girl who knows what she wants.

Today's Temptress

So you know how you can buy fabric on Etsy? Look what I found. Do I even need to say that these are all of my favorite things combined in one delicious textile? It is a limited edition print by Lara Cameron from Australia. I found it here. And they have other colors. And more birds. If only I could take out a loan for fabric.

long time, no blog

I know it's been a long time since we talked, but let's try to not make this awkward. I moved, life got busy, but I never forgot you, I promise. Let's yadda yadda yadda over all that and get to the good stuff.



So I found this fantastic Etsy shop that specializes in "modern screen printed textiles" based on original artwork. It's quirky and vintage and modern and just plain cool. It's called Branch Handmade and was created by Todd Kamps and Ashley Redmond. They also have their own website.

There are tea towels (which I am kind of obsessed with). LOVE the poison bottle design.



Fabulous clothing!



That scarf must be mine. I crave it.



Lovely bedding.

IKEA Inspiration & Other Random Ideas

I have been really busy packing and cleaning for the move to the new house, so I apologize that I've fallen short of my daily blog goal. Today I was browsing around the internet looking for lighting ideas, and I found myself on the IKEA website. As per usual, I ended up in the fabric section and found these great curtains. I must share.

These are three separate panels. They suggested layering them to create a different effect...how cool would that look as a room divider???


The next one had me so excited I was exclaiming to my pets about it. I love birch trees and the woodsy look in general. I believe these were made for me!

I would also recommend picking up the June issue of Elle Decor. They did a spread (called "Country Club") on the weekend house of couple Dale Saylor and Joe Williamson in upstate New York. (Of course, this is not one of the stories they chose to feature on their website.) It is filled with delicious ideas that incorporate my love for the natural/scientific and Midcentury Modern decor. There are grain sack pillows, twisted root coffee tables, a gigantic antique globe, terrariums, real turtle shells on the wall, and my favorite, a rustic mudroom with a collection of old buckets and watering cans. Along with a stainless steel tripod lamp, Eames chair, nested end tables, and other clean line furniture. I really love how they combined a Midcentury Modern look with the found-treasure country natural look. Although for me personally, I would have leaned towards a more modern look with just a few of these rustic touches. The best part about this stylish couple is that they got all this great stuff the same way those of us that can't afford country homes do....on ebay, flea markets and the like. Very inspirational.

The Bird Nerd is the Word

I found this wonderful Etsy store and must share. It is called BirdNerd, and if you love birds like I do, you will be in heaven. I urge you all to run there now and drool! And then buy something! These works of art are the creations of Chelsea Grove.

A lovely collage. She also has beautiful prints of her work available.


Birdie Jewelry!


Awesome plush!


There are many stickers and note cards for sale. She has collections of note cards, or there is a "choose your own" option as well.


I am in love with these tea towels! There are many birds to choose from, but this Starling really speaks to me.