best of the week.

• Blogger’s Favorites – SF Girl by the Bay (Victoria) from Simple Lovely.
  
• Domino Archive: Quirky Kitchens from automatism.
  
• I am loving this new project/business from two great bloggers: BAKERY - we bake businesses.
  
• gen + ben from Party Perfect (I am obsessed with pretty weddings lately.)
  
• diy wednesday: felted rocks from Design*Sponge.
  
• Perfect pancakes: Strategies to make the hottest hot cakes ever from The Chicago Tribune.
  
• Ode to My Deco: Collecting from sfgirlbybay.
  
• A Totally Romantic Proposal...On the Brooklyn Bridge! from Smitten (does it get any cuter than this?)
  
• Wooden Gift Tags For All from The Small Object's Steno Pad.
  
• Artist Interview: London Photographer REN ROX from Design That Kills.
  
• I *heart* Macarons from Tartelette (this is from last week, but I can't resist posting it since I am a macaron adoree.)
  
• Spring Fever from clever nettle.
  
• 
  Blogging Babes: Meet Holly of Decor8! from Girls in the Beauty Department.
  
• in the kitchen with: hable construction from Design*Sponge (mmm, Country Style Chocolate Chip Cake- I'll be baking this up this weekend.)

flickr friday : balloons.

I never realized how many pictures of them I had in my flickr favorites!


1. She said she won the world, at a carnival, 2. Pink Party Balloons on Purple, 3. lori laughs, 4. red balloon, 5. balloons, 6. Let Go, 7. Untitled, 8. balloons as street lamp dusk soho, 9. Got Balloons, 10. Magic is a gift for the Lonely Souls, 11. Untitled, 12. balloons in a gray sky., 13. Woohoo, 14. hello, 15. Day 61 - Colors!, 16. helium friends

etsy finds of the week.

1. Medicine Cabinet Gocco Print from Urban Lumberjack ($15), 2. Katherine - PRINT from nosideup ($20), and 3. Nesting Heart Bowl Set--robin's Egg Blue from Red Hot Pottery ($30)


4. Susannah Scarf-Black Stacked Teacups from Ebba Handmade ($10), 5. plantlers from Hisss ($12), and 6. Looking Back print of original drawing from IrenaSophia ($20)


7. Powdered Sugar Dress from Sarah Seven ($375), 8. The Slide from kiki & polly ($20), and 9. spring green flower pin from refashioned ($10)

thought of the day : commands.

"Please Do Not Copy..." from Christopher David Ryan's commands designs. I cannot even begin to tell you how much I love these. (Prints available for purchase here, $12-$100)

ten images of inspiration : yellows.

Is it just me or has yellow been popping up everywhere? I have never been the biggest fan of the color, but suddenly I am really enjoying seeing it everywhere. Perhaps it's because I have a deeper appreciation for the sunshine since moving to rainy Portland.












Images sources (from top to bottom): Jimmy Backius, Mikael Dubois, Cig Harvey, Fifi Lapin, Abby Powell, Amanda Friedman, Julia Rothman, Rodney Smith, Miss Aniela, and Cori Kindred.

print + press : a giveaway!

I have some exciting news this morning: The ladies behind print + press, the lovely Abby Powell Thompson and Chelsea Parker Guidry, are sponsoring a giveaway for Design is Mine readers! The giveaway is for their first month's collaboration, which includes a gorgeous photograph by Abby and a beautiful letterpress print by Chelsea (additional details can be seen here).

For your chance to win: Please comment on this post by Sunday, February 22nd at 11:59 p.m. You can say a simple "hello!" or anything you'd like. Just be sure to include your first name and last initial. The winner will be announced Monday morning.

Also, be sure to check out the print + press site on Monday- their new collaboration will be premiering!

conversation cushion.

I really adore this idea- The Conversation Cushion, designed by Barnaby Barford and André Klauser, is filled with 100 printed questions, which can be pulled out through cuts in the cushion. "If you haven’t got anything good to say, come and sit next to me." (Available from Thorsten van Elten (£44.00)

flickr photo of the day : a nice little pile.

Untitled by manuela kloss.

things i love thursday.

Quickly, before it isn't officially Thursday anymore!


1. Reconstructed, Bustle-back, Nautical Dress ($65), 2. Lavender Jug (price unknown), 3. Daily System ($12-$199), 4. Landsby Bread Board (£24), 5. Pompula pattern, 6. Monsieur II ($30), 7. lucie glasses ($78), 8. Desk Globe (£22), and 9. Vintage Scandinavian Books ($40)

interior inspiration : rachel whiting.

I came across the portfolio of photographer Rachel Whiting over on decorology the other day and I am in love. Her site is like a treasure chest of eye candy- check it out.

thought of the day : a perfect pair.

"You're the cream cheese to my bagel," from Dara DiLiegro's illustration portfolio.

a book by its cover.

Really, few things make me happier than a good book with an even better cover.


1. Oh the Glory of It All" by Sean Wilsey, 2. A Fine Frenzy by Noel Woodin, 3. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close: A Novel by Jonathan Safran Foer, 4. The Crime Writer by Gregg Hurwitz, 5. The Giant Golden Book of Biology: An Introduction to the Science of Life by Gerald Ames/Charley Harper, 6. One Minute to Midnight by Michael Dobbs, 7. Sparkle and Spin: A Book about Word by Ann Rand, 8. This Is London by Miroslav Sasek, 9. Ruby by Francesca Lia Block, and 10. The Life Unlucky by Jordan Crane.

freebie of the day : paul & joe wallpaper.

Today's freebie: Some lovely desktop wallpapers (plus a screensaver for both Windows and Mac) from beauty extraordinaires Paul & Joe.

ten images of inspiration : i do.

After talking to my husband about renewing our vows next January (we want to do it every five years, as a loving gesture to one another), I started getting caught up in peeking through stunning wedding photography. Oh, I would have been quite happy to have had any of these photographers snapping shots at our wedding.

Photographers (from top to bottom:) Mel Barlow, Margaret Singer, Kate Headley, Max Wanger, Tec Petaja, Our Labor of Love, Jose Villa, Christian Oth Studio, Anna Kuperberg, and Laura Novak

collections : florals on furniture.

In general, the idea of floral patterns on furniture tends to leave me with a bad taste in my mouth, picturing the kinds of furniture one might find in your grandmother's house or a standard country bed & breakfast. As you may have noticed, though, I have been obsessed with florals lately (most likely due to the time of year), so I have been spending a lot of time seeking them out in various forms. I am happy to have found many beautiful pieces of furniture featuring floral designs that don't happen to resemble Grammy's living room.

1. Script Flower Small Round Table ($32), 2. Claude Sofa (price unknown), 3. SKRUVSTA Swivel Chair ($149), 4. Monaco Armchair (price unknown), and 5. Antwerp Chair, Bloom ($1,498)


6. usame table ($300), 7. VANVIK Bed Frame ($379), 8. Alstromeria Ottoman ($298), 9. Bird & Floral Print Upholstered Chair - Tangerine ($299), and 10. Graphic Armoire ($3,995)


11. Flower Basket Table ($248), 12. Mademoiselle Chair - Missoni Fabric ($950), 13. Graham Cabinet ($2500), 14. Sebastian Sofa Chair ($567), and 15. Antoinette Fainting Sofa ($575)

thought of the day : blah.

"Blah Blah II," from the portfolio of Tauba Auerbach (This is kind of how I am feeling at this very moment.)

flickr photo of the day : dark lady.

Untitled by mirjan.

interior inspiration : airspace locations.

I just spent a whole lot of time browsing through every place on Airspace, a company that provides absolutely stunning locations in Europe for the film and photographic industries.

I know you can't see me, but I'm swooning over here.

"beards are really making a comeback!"

The other night, my husband and I had a rather long conversation regarding beards. We discussed the best beards throughout history, beard grooming, the Northwestern beard (which is sort of a mixture of indie rock and lumberjack), and his beard specifically. At the end of our discussion, he made a joke that I should do a design post based on The Great Beard. Low and behold, I decided to go with it. This one's for you, honey.


1. Norman by Ashley Goldberg ($35), 2. Bee Beard by Julianna Swaney ($23), 3. Bearded Grandpa Painting by i made you a beard ($20), 4. Crumbs in Beard by Katherine Brickman ($40), 5. All The Bearded Men in My Life Print by Kelly Lasserre ($40), 6. Shen Plum Print by Shen Plum ($18), 7. Storage Beard by Little Robot ($19), 8. Beards Are Sexy Mens T-Shirt by The Bold Banana ($14), and 9. Beard Poster by Michael Buchino ($20)

freebie of the day : poster children.

Late last year, Readymade Magazine asked five artists to reimagine the populist poster art of the first Great Depression and design their own versions. All of the posters are available right here for download. They are quite beautiful.

fashion week : built by wendy.

I have been closely following New York Fashion Week, as I usually do, but I have to say- I am not really feeling it. I cannot really pinpoint what exactly it is that I am liking about the collections I have seen so far (Too 80's-esque? Furs? I don't know), but I am finding myself rather bored and uninterested.

That being said, I really love some of the pieces from Built by Wendy's show. Sure, there are quite a few ones that don't really strike my fancy, but I always adore designer Wendy Mullin's sweet romantic cuts and patterns. What does Mulin have to say about her fall collection? "This season's Built by Wendy woman is modest and winsome, a girl as much at home at her French boarding school as she is traveling the world."



Also, check out these photos from Refinery 29 taken backstage at the show. So cute! (all above images from here at Elle.)

thought of the day : don't be so serious.

"Lighten Up," from the portfolio of UK illustrator/designer Sophie Alda.

things i'm loving : monday evening edition.

Above: 1. Love is the New Hate Watch ($14.99), 2. Night Owl clock ($30), and 3. polaroid mirror ($23)
Below: 4. capezio lace up dance shoe ($55), 5. magnets - flight of the conchords ($9), and 6. Class Act Jumper in Navy Denim ($32)

anna kern : interior photography.

I may like things a bit kitschy and bright, but I would be more than happy to move into one of these gorgeous interiors shot by Swedish photographer Anna Kern. So very, very pretty.

flickr photo of the day : enough.

"Room205" by StudioGabe.

style icon : elvis costello.

I hope all of you had a wonderful Valentine's Day weekend. I would like to introduce a new section of my site called Style Icons. I always enjoy doing fashion posts on here, and I always love the sections in blogs/magazines such as Nylon and WhoWhatWhere dedicated to the fashion choices of specific individuals. And so, here I go, starting with one of my all-time favorite musicians: the fabulous Elvis Costello, whose style has always struck me as what cool is all about.


1. Straw Fedora ($9.80), 2. risky business glasses ($11), 3. Tailor Gabe blazer ($365), 4. Boosted Stiloso Headphones ($62), 5. Dit Dot Silk Cravat (£18), and 6. Elvis Costello - My Aim Is True (LP) ($11.77+)