Paul Rand Design

Paul Rand (1914-1996) was an amazing artist and designer, and I love his use of bold colours and simple design.
These just pop out with such beautiful patterns.

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Cotton Bags

These are my latest quick-fix sewing project. Sometimes I need to start a project and finish it that hour, just so I can feel like I'm getting something done!

I found the brown and cream elastic at Reverse Garbage and love the vintage feel of it with these fabrics, in particular.
These have already been gifted to some special friends and a new favourite thing to do is to use these to bundle up little packs of fun. Gift wrapping with fabric, if you like! I find them so useful - I often use cotton bags to store all manner of things: camera chargers, batteries, pencils, crafty bits and pieces. They could easily turn into a make up bag or travel laundry bag, too!

Blanca Gómez

I've always had a soft spot for Blanca Gómez and these prints are a selection of my favourites.
There's something so beautiful about how simple the images are - small people and bright colours which make for happy, happy times.
I love this set of four - the raindrops! The lights/bunting! Her hat!
You can find Blanca here and here.
Have a lovely weekend (can't believe they come around so quickly!) I am going to be busy working, writing, seeing some friends, and celebrating my Dad's birthday tonight. Whew! Hoping to also see Ponyo this weekend, but we'll see how the writing goes, first...

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Persistence and Perserverance

Image via Daydream Lily

Flight of the Conchords Poster

Image via Grain Edit

Fabriano Boutique

I was lucky enough to receive a beautiful bundle of goodies from the Fabriano Boutique from my good friend V.
I thought I'd share some of their beautiful stationery collections which have also been styled in such a lovely way.
I'm glad I wasn't in the shop myself - I may never have left...

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Crafty Weekend

A very busy weekend for me - so much crafting! I was actually really tired, and had some teaching and work to do, so crafty respite was very much appreciated.

These maps books (in progress) are for an etsy custom order - I just loved the colours of them all lined up together.

Melbourne Home

This beautiful home was featured in the Design Files - isn't it perfect?
I love the mix of cute prints with modern furniture and industrial chic.
And the Frenchy influence of the prints! Delightful!
Have a lovely weekend! I am planning to catch up on a lot of sleep, fill some etsy custom orders and see some friends. And I might sneak some crafty-times in for myself, too!

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Stationery Surprise

I was lucky enough to receive this delicious parcel from my lovely cousin S. She bought them for me on a trip to Malaysia and I am all a-flutter!
Beautiful, kawaii stationery is never lost on me, and I particularly adore these 'Household Matters' ones - "I can keep it up because I'm doing what I want" might even be my new mantra! Thank you so much, lovely S - can't wait to see you in October. xxx

Organising Fever Mark III

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Perhaps it's a response to life being generally a bit more uncertain work-wise, but occasionally, an organising fever overcomes me. I want to label, sort and categorise everything within reach, and these images seem calming and peaceful to me.

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The Uten.silo is also an old favourite of mine. I can't decide which I like better, the red or the white, but again there's something deliciously ordered about both. Is there anything that you organise at home that makes you sigh?

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Print Present

I was going to wait to photograph this little guy in a frame, but I just had to show it to you now. My lovely friends Nick and Darien gave me this incredible print for my birthday (which is, ahem, today!) - isn't it extraordinary?!

It is a screenprint with three different layers, and I have been marvelling at the detail. I'll take another picture once he's framed and up.

I'm planning to do half a day's work today and then have a break - hurray! I've already been spoiled rotten with lots of pressies in the mail - I will share them in good time.

You can see more of Nick's work here and here.

Quilt WIP

Here is a sneak peek of my quilt WIP. I am having slight reservations about it, along the lines of "why am I cutting up perfectly good fabric to sew it back together again?" and "this is the literal enactment of writing a thesis - arg!" but otherwise, I am enjoying the process.

The beautiful scissors you see are my grandmother's (they were her great aunt's before that). Heavy and authoritative, I feel like I'm continuing a tradition when I use them. Below is my dear grandma's jar of buttons, full of hundreds of spare buttons from my mum's school uniforms, jackets and shirts that have long since gone. As a child, I used to love pouring them out and running my hands through them, sorting them into colours and shapes.

Featured on the Etsy Treasury Today!

Cup and Saucer Embroidery

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A Print a Day has put up a lovely embroidery/crafty pattern of cups and saucers. Go on over and have a look - she has a PDF download available. So pretty!

Happy weekend, lovelies - I'll be back Monday after two baby showers, a welcome home party, a girls' dinner, some teaching and hopefully some quiet time reading on the couch. xx

Pocket Carnival

I was lucky enough to find the delicious Pocket Carnival, and am squealing about the cuteness of the designs.
Pocket Carnival can be found at MadeIt and Etsy and you can find their blog here.

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By the way, you would know how I love open shelves, especially in kitchens... Check out this post for some delicious open shelf-love.

Blue Waves

There is a beautful new column on Decor8 called 'Color me Pretty' and these blue images are the first in the series. Aren't they perfect?
I've been lusting over blues trying to think of new quilt ideas for our lounge room. And this is the best inspiration fodder I've seen in ages!

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The Dollhouse

This is one of the first times I've seen a child's toy and desperately wanted it to be mine. Actually, that's obviously a lie, but isn't this the most wondrous thing, ever? A dollhouse PILLOW? Too, too fabulous.

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Embroidery Hoops

I love the way people create cheap and easy to make artwork with embroidery hoops. Here are some of my favourites from the lovely Desire to Inspire.

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Papercraft Friday 9: Julene Harrison

I am absolutely smitten with the work of Julene Harrison - these are some exceptional papercuts! The best thing? She takes commissions and makes pretty things just for you. Subscribing to her blog and has made me so happy - do pop over and say hello! (You can also see her at her new etsy store).

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