Ace Hotel's

My "day job" is in the travel industry. You can probably imagine I did jumping jacks and leaped for joy when I discovered Ace Hotels.

With locations in New York, Seattle, Portland, and Palm Springs, this chain is definitely the new "IT" hotel.

Yummy.








all images by Ace Hotels

Chirp Chirp!

Adorable bird finials from Stray Dog Designs...not that I have anywhere to use them at the moment, tempting nonetheless!



all images from Stray Dog Designs

Playing with your food has an entirely new meaning ...

I am seriously considering doing this to my own dining room table. Gotta love chalkboard paint.

from design*sponge

Enid

Loving the goods over at Enid this moment. Aren't they delicious?


Whale Print, $38; hand-pulled "wake up and smell the coffee" screenprint, $30 ; summer trees frame, $62; trees note cards, $20


all images from enid

Illustrator, Oliver Jeffers

A brief visit to my favorite bookstore over the weekend had me browsing the children's section for some "big board" books to read to Addy at bedtime. One of the first book's I picked up was "Lost and Found" by Oliver Jeffers. Not only is Oliver the author, but he also illustrated this beautiful book, about a lost penguin looking for friendship in warmer climates.



Not only does author and illustrate children's books, but he is also a talented painter, and creator of not so normal "objects" as his website suggests. Such a talent, don't you think?





I'm always amazed how something such as buying a book can lead you down the path of the unknown, in this case, a fabulous artist in his own right.


all images by Oliver Jeffers

Exhaustion

I'll admit it, I'm not supermom. Shame on me for thinking I could be. Eesh.



Last week was THE HARDEST WEEK OF MY LIFE...no sleep, and a cranky baby. Not just me, BOTH my husband and I. Thank goodness Mom came to the rescue and offered to take her for a night so we could catch up and get some much needed REM sleep which neither of us have had since Addy arrived 8 weeks ago. Can you believe it? Eight weeks already!

Now that I've realized I can't do it all, and have implemented some serious time management skills, as well as weekly visits to both Grandmother's, I'll have a little bit more time to spend with you all! Yay!

Happy Monday everyone!

The Townhouse {from Poppytalk}

The creator's of one of my favorite Canadian blogs out there, Poppytalk, have just started a new blog entitled The Townhouse to chronicle the adventures of their recent purchase of a 1970's townhouse in Vancouver, BC. I'm a huge reno geek, so I can hardly wait to see what they do to the place!




One day I will take that step and buy that fixer upper in which I can instill all of my design dreams and desire's! Someone give me a kick in the a## or some cash please! :-)

Happy Monday everyone!


all images from The Townhouse

Fasionable Laundry

LOVE these pretty frilly laundry bags from India Rose . This would make my almost daily chore enjoyable. Perfect for those of you heading to the laundromat. MUCH better than a plastic laundry basket don't you think?

image from India Rose

Monaluna

I'm crushing on so many fabrics at the moment. Gone are the days where I favored french toile in red and yellow....here are the days of hand screen printed cotton.

I don't know what I'll do with all this fabric that I'm crushing on. Buy it. Look at it. Make a pillow. Make curtains. Does it matter really? I could just stack it all together and be happy with it as-is.

Every time I see a new fabric, I hunt down the designer. Don't you think these are pretty? These are from Monaluna.

images from monaluna

These are designed by Jennifer Moore, from Oakland, CA. A former employee of Pottery Barn, she is now a surface and textile designer and d.i.y. enthusiast. You can visit her website, or her blog to see more of her work!

StyleRoom

Has anyone joined StyleRoom yet? Sure, there is tons of inspiration out there already from visiting photo galleries of our favorite glossy magazines and blogs, but it's hard to find original spaces some of the time that have been decorated by real people.

This is where StyleRoom comes into play. A user-generated database of photos of interiors uploaded by everyday people. Have a problem with your room? Post a photo and ask for help! It's that easy, and so cool!

Here are some of my personal favorites. Enjoy!

Sewn Natural

Jen from Canadian Etsy shop Sewn Natural contacted me recently to tell me about their handcrafted, beautiful, and organic picnic blankets. They are absolutely beautiful! She also handcrafts children's bedding, accessories, and apparel, and various other fabric products for kids and babies.

all images from sewn natural

I love that all her products are made with natural fibers, the majority being organic or upcycled. This is so important!

Get Outside!

LOVING this gorgeous outdoor tent/lounger/chaise from Fute Design.....wait, is that an elephant coming out from behind the pool house? Sooo Out of Africa.


image from fute design

May Luk Ceramics

May Luk Ceramics, from Take Me Homeware

So Original

moustache salt and pepper shakers, $28 from paperdoll woodshop