starting simple

not that it wasn't long enough already, but lately i've added many home projects to my "to-do" list.  one of those projects is to revamp the art throughout our house.  i'm starting in c's room - we have some lovely prints already from matte stephens and berkley illustration, but i need to mix it up a bit.  i'm eagerly awaiting the arrival of these:

abc poster trees from isak

reading is cool from etsy's dazeychic

i also have a new quilt and a banner on my list for his room.  we recently had an incident that resulted in bleaching his baby quilt (i don't normally use bleach unless it's a laundry emergency!) and apparently our blue, lime and gray blanket is now a rather icky blueish, brownish and yellow! i might add another bookshelf too as his collection of books are creeping into ever more nooks and crannies. and since i haven't really gotten around to getting rid of diapers yet i might recover the change pad to match the future quilt (unless we have underpants triumphs soon!).

other things to-do include getting new stuff into my etsy shop, finishing the scarf on my knitting needles, making c's halloween costume, sewing many wee person clothes, making a respectable handful of christmas gifts, upholstering an ottoman and chair, recovering the dining chairs, refinishing a vintage end table, many photography projects, still that plan to figure out screenprinting and the list goes on and on. so i'm starting with simple - ordering artwork.  that gets something checked off my list with relatively little effort!  done and done.

beelightful

found the cutest shop on etsy this weekend, and had to mention it. beethings is full of adorable bird prints and other lovely treasures. this print of bluejays caught my attention.

jamie and i quibble fondly about what constitutes the "true" blue jay. being from ontario, home of actual blue jays (in my opinon) with pointy blue heads and very blue bodies and a team named after them and of course i learned the words to "ok blue jays" in elementary school gym class, i tend to think that the real blue jay is the one i've always known. jamie makes the case that the bc jay is the stellar jay, therefore superior because it's name idicates an above-average level of jay-ness. i still disagree - it's just not blue enough. so i couldn't help buying the print. nobody uses stellar jays when the want to show a blue jay. ;-)

pipes - not so good for your health, but great in artwork

i'm always finding and falling in love with new artwork featuring quizzical animals smoking pipes. maybe pipes are the new owl? ;-)

so i love this print from wayne pate featuring a nautical (think beachcombers) seagull smoking a pipe and wearing gum boots. love his fisherman-meets-frenchman sweater!

i also love this merman print - beards! fish tails! berets and striped sweaters!

both are large, poster-sized silk-screened prints and at $35 each they're a steal. i really need more wall space in here!

diving whale family print

i couldn't resist ordering this lovely 2nd edition woodcut print of a diving family of whales from tugboat printshop of pittsburgh. it's part of their woodcut series "the deep blue sea" and i fell in love in a second.

the three deep-blue whales reminded me of our little trio family. there's something about the number three; my favourite high-school english literature teacher, mr. newbigging, used to say that three is a magical number. i see threes everywhere, sneaking up on me like little ambassadors of the number world. it seems a good family size number too - one that really requires participation from each member, like a shaky three-legged stool!

the artists behind the brand are paul roden + valerie lueth. their prints are all limited editions and actual prints, not digital reproductions. their pieces are "100% original drawings that are hand-drawn, hand-carved and hand-printed on archival paper in our in-house printshop". how cool is that?

you can buy it - and many other awesome prints - online through their website or in their etsy shop.

lovely pinecones from lovely design

i was delighted this morning to see that sharilyn of local favourite lovely design has just issued a second, limited edition run of her beautiful conifers of canada and beautiful leaves of canada posters. they're hand-screened on coasterboard and measure 12" x 16".

i've had my sights on the pinecone poster for ages and am really looking forward to getting mine, framing and hanging it in our home.

lovely mondays: the colour mustard

this week's 'lovely monday' post features a much-loved and often misunderstood colour: mustard! not the bright yellow mustard of hot-dog fame, but more the murky tint of a lovely dijon or grainy english condiment.

knee-length linen tunic dress from pamelatang featuring lovely hand-stitched embroidery details. love the look of mustard, charcoal and denim together.

girl and cookie jar mixed media collage from vancouver fave, cabin+cub. original and one-of-a-kind, it's a totally unique piece: vintage book illustrations, paper ephemera and ink illustration on wood veneer. and of course, everyone loves cookies.

the crafty fox says goodbye to visitors from the fantastical matte stephens, one of my very, very favourite etsyians. we have two of his prints in cole's room (the kaliedoscopic-pipe-smoking duke of ny and no-longer-available gocco bear monster) and i adore everything he makes. have you seen his new piece, charles eames as a log? love! must have!

the fantastic truffle bag in mustard from morelle. i have been coveting her bags for an age. they're so beautifully constructed and so fashionable. large enough to carry a laptop or books, this one is made of leather and perfect for yourself or as a gift.