Summer Vignette

Bold Prints & Bright Pops of Color

Summer is just around the corner! The sun is shining here in beautiful Seattle and the weather is finally cooperating enough to shed the winter coats with 80+ degree temperatures in the forecast. I am loving all of the bold patterns and bright summer colors after looking at drab rain clouds all winter. I love the vibrant juxtaposition of lime and gray, fuchsia and taupe, white and navy blue. Here is a little vignette of some of my favorite pieces for summer. I love playing with scale and proportion... like pairing a mini sofa with an oversize chandelier, or a cute garden stool with a large floral. My favorite part of summer is bringing the outdoors in with live botanicals via a small terrarium, floral and faux animal prints and decorative pieces. As always, I like to stick with neutral statement pieces (the pendant, tables, sofa) and bring in the color with accessories that can be swapped out easily from season to season. I would love to cozy into this reading vignette on a lazy Sunday with nothing but a throw blanket and a good book.

Zoe Ikat 24" Pillow Cover - Pottery Barn $39.50

Bloom Felt Pillow Cover - West Elm $49

Bradshaw Loveseat - Pottery Barn $1099-$1299

botanical no. 5510 - Kari Herer via Etsy $30

to another garden (a floral and llama print) - Leah Tumerman via Etsy $35

Box frame nesting tables - West Elm $249

Mallard Ceramic Lotus Stool - Cost Plus World Market $44.98

White Distressed Iris Frame - Cost Plus World Market $19.99

Black Tan Book Collection - Vintage Scholar on Etsy $42

Vintage Paris burgundy clock - DesignAtelierARticle via Etsy $54

ZigZag Wool Rug - Platinum - West Elm 5x8 $299

Faux Moose Head - WhiteFauxTaxidermy on Etsy - $89.99

Little Boxes Wall Organizer - UrbanOutfitters - $98

Multnomah Falls, Oregon - BleuOiseau via Etsy - $17

Two Tier Round Shade Pendant - Restoration Hardware - $475

Retro fabulous iPhone cover

I don't currently have an iPhone... but if I did, I'd definitely be getting one of these clever covers! I <3 it in all its hipster glory.

$26 via petekdesign on Etsy. <3

Visual Merchadising // Retail Design

As I have been entertaining the idea of opening my own retail store in the coming years, I have been increasingly interested in retail design and visual merchandising. Thanks to the power of the internet, we can now view gorgeous window displays all over the world thanks to fantastic sites like retaildesignblog.net where stores and designers can submit images of their beautiful designs. When I spotted this post featuring Diptyque Boutique's display created by Alexandre Roussard I was truly inspired. He created a beautiful garden to celebrate the origins of the limited edition Valentine's day scent and candle featured in the store.

Read more to see more pics after the break!

Gorgeous Advertisement Campaign // MOR Cosmetics "Color Your World"

Ever since I first saw Australian based company MOR Cosmetics packaging design two years ago, I have been in love with their talented and gorgeous packaging. This photo from their March 2010 campaign featured on NOTCOT's blog originally reeled me in:

RDujour just posted this year's campaign images and I had to re-blog my favorites! The beautiful colors and arrangements of objects successfully portrays this luxury brand's aesthetic.

Current Obsession: Jewelry Boxes

As a creative individual, I find myself exploring different mediums all of the time. I have been dabbling here and there in all kinds of different things! Reupholstering furniture (I have yet to upload pics though - *le sigh), making jewelry, making cards, painting (relearning water color and acrylics after a seven year hiatus!), doing interior design consulting work when it comes, product design, branding design, website design... Anyway, I could go on but the point of this is that sometimes I feel like I have artist ADD because I'm always looking for new projects! I'm currently working on a jewelry box collection. And not your average boring mother's box either! I have been hand crafting (adding wood working to the long list of projects..) some little gems to sell in my etsy store. I was originally intrigued by Anthropologie's Topsy Turvy Jewelry Box ($298):

I love the ecclectic design of it! It's very forward thinking having differently styled drawers looking to be achieving a balancing act all stacked together. I decided to take the idea one step further and create separate, free standing drawers...some that can stack or some that can be jewelry trays all on their own on top of a vanity table or dresser. I made some wooden boxes, stained them with gorgeous danish oil, upholstered them with some fabulous designer fabric scraps I had left over from school, found some hardware and put it all together into a lovely trio of mini stacking drawers/jewelry trays! I uploaded this set on etsy and am currently working on some new ones to list as well.

Click read more to see more images of the finished drawers and a little bit more about the process!

Little Hurricane - Haunted Heart

I have loved this song for awhile but when I stumbled across this live recording I was instantly in love. I am a huge fan of raw, live performances and the retro filming adds to the moody feel.

Store discovery + love

I love stumbleupon.com. It can be dangerous though, since I can inadvertently spend hours clicking stumble and seeing what kind of gems I can find on the web! I stumbled on this fantastic little boutique online retailer called Spool No. 72. What I especially love about it is that it was created by a mother and two daughter trio who design and make most of the offerings. I am in love with the logo, the branding and the gorgeous ecclectic mix of color palettes and textures that lend to a laid back and care free style. I think this is the style I hoped to find with Free People but didn't quite get it! Check the store out here. It's absolutely worth looking at just for the lovely pictures taken in house by their creative lead Tara Ehlis. Here are a few of my favorites. :)

First Aid Kit - The Lion's Roar

For being so adorably young and fresh, their music has the depth of an aged traveler. The video is beautiful and is set in their native Sweden. Their folk music is gorgeously haunting and I can't believe I'm only JUST NOW discovering them. Enjoy.

Can't get enough of this song!

Oooh Cake. I remember back in the late 90's and early 2000's when Never There and Short Skirt Long Jacket were popular. When I heard Mustache Man on the radio, I was hooked! The bass line is so catchy!

The Civil Wars - 20 Years

All of the stars seem to be aligning for me these days. So many little things that the universe is favoring me in that really gets me motivated to get out and be productive! As my wise other half is constantly reminding me, "thoughts become things." So we are putting our positive thinking to good use and demanding the best from the world. Expect to see significant new professional work in the following months!
I'll be taking a business/pleasure trip to Las Vegas next weekend (YAY!). I could really use some heat, sun and some inspiration. As I've been packing up my room this week... I've been in the mood for some melancholy, soothing music. My new favorite which has been on repeat a lot lately is the Civil Wars - 20 years. The duo's collective sound is so hauntingly beautiful. The next time you're cooped inside on a rainy day, put this on...

Ollipop Greetings's local presence in Portland

What an exciting year it has been! Even though I was out of town for nearly half of it, Ollipop Greetings has really started to grow and come into its own. This past Sunday, Portland Roasting opened its first cafe in the Convention Center, replacing the Starbucks stores that previously occupied the spaces. Being a local company with a sustainable mindset, they are also featuring local vendors and artists in their store. I was contacted earlier this spring to be a local artist featured in the store with my Portland Love postcards.

As soon as I find out about the grand opening event I'll post some of my own pictures but until then here is a little article about the new store.

I was also contacted by Upper Playground and will soon have all three of my Portland postcard designs sold there as well. For now the orders are small but I am so excited about the exposure that my etsy store will have through these fantastic local businesses. I have been a fan of Upper Playground's store since I first visited it a few years ago. I was extremely flattered to be approached by them. I especially enjoy viewing featured artwork in their gallery, Fifty24PDX.

Hopefully, by the end of the year, I'll have my cards at some other local retailers. Keep your eyes and ears open and wish me luck. :)

Update: 

 

Back at last!

After a six month stint in Alaska, I am finally back and running again in Portland! Just in time to experience the fall season (again), I am looking forward to finding an apartment, job hunting and taking a trip to Vegas! After listening to Mason Jenning's new song Raindrops on the Kitchen Floor, I had to revisit the classic Be Here Now because it seems to appropriately match my current mood and situation. Hopefully I will be able to have a productive season with Ollipop and La Petite Savante. Be on the lookout for new item listings soon! Enjoy the Mason video :)

Cute Retro Etsy Finds

Retro Tv Stand by bRainbowshop

Where's Alice by corelladesign

Retro Vegas "Flamingo Hotel" Neon Sign Polaroid Square Print by retrosquareprints

Summer time

In case you are wondering why the blog posts are few and far between, these are examples of what else I'm doing with my time. ;)

Pictures from my summer job! So beautiful.

1. Hurricane Gulch

2. Somewhere south of Talkeetna

3. Somewhere along the Chulitna River

4. Seward

The Avett Brothers - I and Love and You

This song has been out for quite awhile, but listening to their other song Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise has gotten me on a listening binge for this song again. I love this song so much. And the video.

 

And another favie: