Week #4 Wrap-up

First up, I wanted to mention how amazing the ALT Design Summit was last weekend! I was happy and impressed to be around such a down-to-earth, fashionable, and fun group. Thanks to all who came to hear our panel, and in case you want to know more -- there have been lots of great recaps around the web, here are a few : Apartment Therapy / Mint / ISLY. I hope to attend and meet more of you next year! (Wish I had taken some photos)

On to the 'top ten style' wrap-up of the 4th week of 2010...

1: Branding and packaging really does make a difference. Check out what Amy at Eat Drink Chic did with her McFancy post, super cool.

2: Joslyn (who is even more lovely in person -- that I got to meet at Alt ) did this wonderful post about happiness that was very uplifting -- read it here.

3: Yay! Liberty of London is coming to Target. (thanks for the reminder Steph)

4: Like Dear Ada I am yearning for Spring and these flower photos by Bill Beckley are stunning.

5: Have you been noticing pops of hot pink in fashion -- so fun. Loving the Vanessa Bruno collection first spotted here.



6: I meant to share this a few weeks ago, but in case you have missed it, they are showcasing a new version of Emma on Masterpiece Theater - you can watch a segment of it online here. I love Masterpiece Theater!

7: Picked up Food Rules at the Library, can't wait to thumb through it.

8: If I get more serious about sewing and purchase a sewing machine, I would want my workspace to stay clean and tidy like this space Ellie posted at Mint -- I love the industrial look.

9: I can't stop thinking about these beautiful Mociun rings Lena Corwin posted. Gorgeous!

10:Have you listened to the Hope for Haiti Now Album? Justin + Charlie do a pretty great job with Hallelujah.

Have a wonderful weekend, my dears!!

keep calm and...

If you have been a reader of design blogs for the past year or so, you would have most definitely noticed the 'Keep Calm and Carry On' poster craze that swept the design world! Originally created as a motivational poster by the British government at the start of World War II, it has recently been rediscovered and reproduced as motivational art {you can purchase some high-quality reproductions in many colours here}. I will admit that, unable to decide on a colour, I have purchased one or two of these posters meself!

But lately I've been seeing some creative and humorous twists on the 'Keep Calm' poster...check out this very cool 'Keep Calm and Rock On' poster...perfect for my guitar-playing, rockstar hubby!

And how perfect would this poster be for Miss Cuppie?! So cute! By Jenny's Bake Shop.

This card by Earmark might be going a bit far bit it did give me a chuckle.

Happy weekend Bloomies...keep calm but have a good one!

Yoli Berlin

Love the look and design aesthetic of this newly opened frozen yogurt shop in Berlin called, Yoli.

(via Yatzer // images : Yoli Berlin)

Sondre Lerche

I feel like listening to Sondre Lerche today, have you checked out his latest album, Hearbeat Radio?

(photo by Isabell N Wedin)

vanity search is on...again!

So D. and I thought we were so clever...we had everything figured out for our bathroom reno coming up in February. We bought our perfect little vanity on sale from Gingers in November which led to the choosing of specifically matching tiles that required 2 separate trips to Gingers to get the colour right. We picked all the parts and accessories and were all lined up for second week of February, had our room booked at D's sister's place when low and behold Gingers told us that the vanity that started the whole renovation project wasn't going to be in until at the earliest end of February! Looks like everyone else liked the price and arranged their renovations around it as well! So, needless to say we aren't too pleased with the service we received, and we don't want to postpone our project any longer! So back to the drawing board, where on earth will we find an affordable, 27" wall-mounted vanity that will match the tiles we've chosen??

Well let me tell ya...looking through the exhibitors listing from last week's Interior Design Show I found these most beautiful vanities from a bath company called Decotec Paris Inc!

Now they might not be just everyone's taste so knowing we will be selling our place in next couple of years we didn't think this was quite the place for such a statement. However, I loved this company and decided to look and see which Canadian company distributed their products. This crafty super-sleuthing led me to another loverly discovery...Vienna Douglas Collection! And would you know that they carry beautiful {and affordable!} vanities that just might do the trick?! D. and I are going to check them out in person on Saturday...wish us luck!

Hello iPad...

You look like one sexy machine, starting at $499, learn all about it here and the features -- wow. Besides crushing on this remarkable piece of technology, does anyone else have a technology crush on one of the most amazing design gurus around -- Jony Ive, maybe it's the accent.

lipstick jungle necklace envy

This is the necklace that I first noticed. I really like the flower beaded in the pearls. Close up below!

In August, I bought the Lipstick Jungle DVDs for my plane ride to Israel; however, I didn't end up watching them while there. I just lugged them all across Israel instead - yay! So, when I got home, I decided to work out while watching them in the home gym - it helps me keep up my endurance on the elliptical if I have a tv show to watch! Lo and behold, I realized I loved Lipstick Jungle, and I have been lamenting the fact that it was CANCELLED after only 2 season. Why??!! In particular, I love their clothes. But what I REALLY noticed is how awesome all their necklaces are. They have the coolest necklaces ever, really. So I spent about 3 hours screen capturing some necklace shots for you, and for me to remember when I've finished the last season. Wahhh...

Tea Sub

I cannot get over how cool this Tea Sub is -- designed by Ototo, it inspired me to play the famous Beatles track. I'm not sure if this tea infusion baby is available for purchase yet, but I've seen it here.

While on the subject, have you seen the Yellow Submarine movie? I haven't watched it all yet, but it looks groovy.

(via PaperTastebuds // images from Ototo)

Just a peek...

We are making progress on the moving front. The key is figuring out what you are good at and then divvying up the work. Dustin is good at taking Ikea furniture apart and then putting it back together again. He carries a drill around and takes things out of walls and then puts them back into new walls. He will wake up at 7 am and then work steadily until midnight, without complaint.

{wall hook}

I am good at taking things out of boxes and organizing them neatly in their new homes. I work furiously for awhile and then I have a tendency to sneak into other rooms and fall asleep for a few hours. I don't even need a bed - give me a blanket and a relatively clear corner and I can nap. I call this "pacing myself" which sounds much nicer than "being lazy."

{pots and pans}

We are both really good at eating pizza. I can't even tell you how much pizza we've eaten over the last few days, because frankly it's embarrassing. We eat it cold, out of the box.

{pizza, cold}

I can't wait to share pictures of the new place, once it isn't just a sea of boxes. In the meantime, I have nothing for you. No food is being produced, no clever projects are being made. It's all boxes, all the time. Give me a couple days.

Rifle Valentine's Day Cards

Loving these beautiful Valentine cards from Rifle.

Seasonal decor

I agree with Page who shared this lovely winter wreath and how to make it over at Purl Bee, along with this statement.

"I am a big fan of winter decorations that are festive, but that don't hit you over the head with a specific holiday or theme. Decorations that cheer you up and add charm to a room, but don't feel like they need to be removed the moment the occasion has passed."

How many of you have more seasonal decor (fall, winter, spring, summer) rather then holiday specific? In general, I don't have a lot of decor, but I am wanting to embrace this seasonal methodology, it makes so much sense.

Nerdy Knitting Animation

For all the other nerdy knitters out there check out this adorable little animation by clicking on the picture {sorry I couldn't embed the link...blogger wouldn't make it be the whole size and cut off half the video for some reason} Thanks Lynn for sending it to me...I'm off to knit another form of a scarf. {Can someone please teach me how to knit something else?!?}

World Wide Bakery Calendar

This World Wide Bakery calendar design and application is incredibly smart created by Futura.

Quick break!

The moving is going well, and we're loving our new place. But it turns out I was being overly optimistic to think I could blog through the move. There's just too much to do! It took everything we had yesterday just to make sure we'd have access to clothes this morning.

I'll pop in with some pictures of the work in progress soon. Pinky swear.

funny wedding trailer

Craigger sent me a link to this funny "save the date" wedding trailer. The message seems a bit daunting, but I love the idea and applaud the couple for creativity!

my house: the office {and some exciting news}

I've featured a few snippets of my home so far, here and here, however I wanted to introduce you to my office! Yes, my friends, this is where it all happens...inBloom central! A lot of creative brainwork takes place in this room and this is where many event designs, graphic designs and websites are born. The light was beautiful in the room this morning and my desk just happened to be clean so I thought it was a good time to take some pics!

But I also wanted to share it with you, as my little office's days are numbered. We have some exciting news - in just a few months it will transform into a nursery for our 'Baby Bloomer', set to arrive this summer! Yippeeee! I can hardly wait! And even though I love my creative space, I have a feeling I will love, love, love it even more with a little one in here.

Lots of IKEA shelving for lots of artsy stuff! And say hello to my sock monkey Sylvia, with the big orange beehive {from The Monkey House}.

This cool old-school flip-clock screensaver can be downloaded here {found via Making it Lovely, via Swiss Miss}.

I am obsessed with paper - handmade paper, patterned paper, coloured paper, any paper! I collect it but never really know what to do with it so I constructed this paper hanger display out of bamboo sticks tied together with ribbon, to hang the paper as art. The glass 'white board' from IKEA helps me keep track of all my to-dos, both business and personal. I'm a chronic list-maker. The pencil holder is just a can covered with some Japanese paper. And framed is a handwritten note from my mom.

The doll on my shelf was sewn by my great grandmother {the one who liked minis too!}.

And lastly...my inspiration magnet boards {also from IKEA} where I display my collection of cute business cards, fabric swatches, images, and things that I just find neat.

Friday flowers (moving edition)

We got the keys to our new apartment today (squee!), which means we've been systematically tearing apart our old apartment for the entire week, in preparation.

My flowers from last week are going strong, and I appropriated a few of them for a tiny arrangement. My mom found this beautiful milk glass bud vase in a thrift store and snatched it up for me (she knows me well) and I needed to get it into circulation ASAP, even though there isn't much point in putting flowers around the house when everything else is already in boxes.

{milk glass bud vase}

I've got my fingers crossed for a nice smooth move this weekend. I'm aiming for no more than 2 moving related freak outs. Because aiming for none would be unrealistic.

ALT

Speaking at Altitude Design Summit today about Designer Vs. Design Blogger. Excited to meet a lot of design and blog friends. Have a great weekend everyone!

Rob Ryan

I came across one of Rob Ryan's beautifully designed book covers, Birds without Wings that inspired this post.

1: Exhibit from Yorkshire Sculpture Park photo by Jonty Wilde
2: Birds without Wings
3: Dress by Rob Ryan from British Vogue

The Pigeon Wants a Puppy

Over the holidays, D. and I accidentally had a puppy for a day. We were walking home from the Boxing Day sales when an adorable little yorkie ran out into the middle of King and Bathurst without a collar or anything! We grabbed him before he got squished by a car and walked around the block with him for about an hour and a half hoping that his owner would be running around looking for him. Some kind neighbour gave us a little leash, we went to a local pet store and bought a collar in the hopes that he would lead us to his home. He didn't. So we took him to a vet to get scanned for a microchip. He didn't have one. But the vet gave us free packets of food to take home to feed him. About an hour after we got home his owner stopped by our condo looking for him. So we had to give him back...sniff sniff. In a matter of 3 hours we had acquired a dog, a leash, a collar and 3 packages of food. We kind of look like we were dog stealers and we were a bit embarrassed!

Sooo...once we didn't have our new pet I realized I just couldn't live without a dog! I began scouring the internet like a crazy woman for little yorkie puppies because I wanted one so badly. D really didn't want one at this point in our lives so after A LOT of desperate negotiating sadly I had to give up my obsession with getting a little puppy. The very next day after I realized I wasn't getting a puppy I was grocery shopping at the Superstore and the cutest book in the whole entire world basically fell in my lap in an aisle that really shouldn't have had books. It was called The Pigeon Wants a Puppy. I felt like I was watching me in the form of a pigeon! And to think I'm in my 30's...{sheepish}.

Anyways, I fell in love with Pigeon. He is just the cutest little thing ever and says the most adorable stuff. I highly recommend it to anyone and totally wish that I had bought it! It looks like there is a series of Pigeon books...they are really good for a giggle.