Herriott Grace

I have a real crush on this shop. I didn't just find out about this duo either, I've
known of this father daughter team for quite a while, not sure why it took me this long
to post them. The shop is almost always sold out, good for them, and stocked with the
finest array of handmade spoons, pedestals and rolling pins. I can honestly say that I
would clear my kitchen of cooking utensils to have just a handful of these fine
instruments!
The blog is worthwhile too.

guest post, Seventy Tree

I'm happy to have Kerry here posting from The Seventy Tree. She's keeps an inspiring
blog and is one of the sweetest out there!She has has a fantastic shop too,
I bought this postcard and it came with an adorable pin, which Israel wears on his scarf!

Hello everyone! It is so nice to be here. Thank you very much Jennifer for inviting me along to guest post on your lovely blog...which is very exciting for me, seeing as I have followed you for so long!

My post for you all today includes a real mixture! Random bits and pieces that I have been gathering and am very much liking at the moment. I hope you do too!

First up is this very cool space. I'm a big fan of warm wood, mid-century furniture and white walls, teamed with brightly coloured accessories, so this is pretty perfect (in my opinion). Via

Secondly, I've chosen one of my Etsy finds, a very sweet polaroid camera necklace by That Kate. Definitely going on my Christmas list. I love it!

Next up are these amazing lampshades by Londoner Sarah Newman, whose company DesignBark exhibited recently at Tent London (a superb exhibition that was part of London Design Week). My little family went along, so I got to see these in the flesh....and I have to say, they were beautiful. I'm a big three-sided-shape fan, so I really want one...but which colour??

Finally, I have chosen two Folksy finds, 'Monty The Sleepy Fox,' a gorgeous lambswool knit by Sara Carr. He is so cute...my daughter would love him, but she'd have to share him with her mummy too! And to finish off and to say thank you for having me, I have chosen this very appropriate 'Thanks, Merci, Tusen, Takk, Grazie etc" screen print by talented design-duo, All Cats Are Grey.
Thanks again Jennifer for having me. I've had lots of fun putting this together. I hope you all have lovely days x

Thank you Kerry!

blue

I'm now thinking that I'd love a little cobalt blue in our room, but what? Maybe
I can find a frame or something. Why is this so hard? I feel stuck. Well, I also
have a tight budget so it can't be anything costly.
I have been taking in all of your suggestions, by the way, and weighing them
carefully. Thanks for all of your comments! I will keep you updated.

help! bedroom update

You remember this post, right? I wanted to bring you current on what it looks like now. The
most popular advice was to add yellow, mustardy yellow. I think that's great
advice and so fitting with the blue hues I had in there but I decided to go
my own way, sorry!
It's really important for me to feel that this room is simple and tranquil,
I spend so much time in here with Israel, getting dressed, folding laundry
not to mention sleeping. Ideally, I want our room to be low maintenance and
simple but not look unfinished. Well, that's the goal anyway.
I removed our headboard, and while my husband had a really hard time supporting
the idea at first, he and I love it so much more now! I also added some black
and gray-ish pillow cases, which were just sitting in my closet unused. I also
changed the butterfly chair cover to black and removed the huge, admittedly ugly,
mirror that used to be above our dresser and replaced it with a small painting.
I also moved my Mother's Day gift from Israel to my bedside, it's his hand print!
A few minor changes but I'm much happier with it. I know that our bed frame needs
repainting, if not replaced altogether and we are really in need of some sort of
graphic rug, maybe on husband's side of the bed? Oh, I almost forgot, I also found
this cute little footstool for $2 at a roadside sale, and did a sloppy recovering
job. I think I'd like to later recover it in some sort of wool, we'll see.
I also want to repaint the front of the dresser, that strange funky floral thing
is really bothering me now and I'm wondering if it would be too big of a task to
try to restore it to the original stain?! I'm looking for some sort of pendant lamp
to hang above the butterfly chair too, any ideas there?
So...how do you all feel about a little red, with an itty bit of yellow? You did
see I added the yellow Craspedia, right?
Yes, I know the photos are terrible but I'm getting a new camera soon so just bare
with a little longer!

weekend stuff

Last night we celebrated my husband's birthday with a few friends. I had a
panini bar and pulled out all of my black and white serving dishes. There
was really no theme, he is an adult after all, but I kept the decor real
basic so that the color was contributed by all of the food, except for the
black and white farfalle, which made a really yummy pasta salad!
The German pottery saw some foliage, as did our office desk. I picked up a
bundle of fresh flowers at our farmer's market and just two days later, one
of those roses dropped nearly all of its petals. I am seriously considering
just leaving them there, they are so pretty.
My new mini chair came in today, I'm thinking of collecting a few. This one
is actually sturdy enough for Israel to play with, a good way to teach him
about design maybe?

contemporary coffee tables

bird

Some of the best wearable patterns, and I love the photograph printed dresses
by Zero+Maria Cornejo.

source

t shelf

This brilliant birch, steel cable and zip tie furniture can be folded flat or
easily expands to fit your needs. I love how perfectly plants, books and little
accessories fit so easily. Such a great way to maximize space and be adaptable.

Hazel and Hunter giveaway!

One lucky person is going to win this great, organic pillow cover from Hazel and
Hunter. The sweet Julie sent one of these to me recently, I'll post pictures later,
and I have to say that it is incredibly soft and has this subtle sateen finish to
it. Please visit the shop and comment below about your favorite piece. Open to
international readers and ends next Wed night at midnight.

Good luck!

creatures

Some really amazing pieces that are welcome to find their way to my closet any time!

in the city

We went into the city this morning, had breakfast and did some walking. Somehow
the air and the light downtown feels so much better, the trees are prettier too.
For those of you who have never been to Boise, it's a nice place, well we like it
anyways.
Israel loves to point at everything, he found a fascinating dog and was showing his
"dada".

early gifts

It just works out that all three of our birthdays are crammed into this time of
year, right before the holidays. We just finished up Israel's birthday, Friday
is Jeremiah's birthday and two weeks after is mine.
I've been surprising him all week with sporadic gifting and today's looked something
like this. He's an illustrator and is always creating his own fonts so the Speedball
book is perfect for him. He was in need of a new alarm clock and since we're both fans
of Dieter Rams, I found this perfect little Braun clock for him. The Kaj Bojesen-ish
wooden duck is actually more for me but we can both appreciate it.

random weekendness

Israel and I visited my favorite bakery today to pick up some Japanese pastries.
The one on the left is filled with ham and cheese and the second is a sweet coconut
roll. Israel ate a small cheese bread all by himself, he loves bread and since we're
still waiting for his teeth to show up, it's something he can eat all by himself.

The weather finally feels like Fall, thank goodness! I love the smell of Fall, and
just about everything that comes with it. Israel was able to wear a scarf for the
first time Friday, I had it made for him while I was still pregnant. He's also happy
to be wearing some skinny black cords and suede slippers. I love that boy!

I photoboothed myself to give you an idea of what I look like right this minute.
I almost never include photos of myself on the blog, something I plan on maintaining
for quite some time because I hate the way I look in pictures and only about twice
in my life have I liked a photo someone has taken of me.
Still, I thought it might be time to break the anonymity for just a day to talk
about my hair. It's getting pretty long and while I like the idea of long hair,
it's high maintenance. Most days it sits as a bun on top of my head, my husband's
least favorite look. You can see it's naturally wavy, so straightening it is a
major project and one that Israel doesn't like waiting around for. Should I cut it?
I've been pondering the idea for a while but the last time I chopped it off I ended
up hating it a month later. Not sure what to do...

Want to see a more interesting hair story? Check out Sandra's new do!

Fall

I am more than ready for Fall dressing, am I the only one? The warm days seem to be
lingering here and I've overheard several people sharing their gratefulness for the
extended Summer, what?! Enough, I say. Here's a little something to get you in the
mood for my favorite season and all of the great colors and fabrics it brings!

source

almost walking

Israel is standing as much as he can. It's funny how babies reach this age where
sitting just isn't enough any more. It's also funny what they'll use to prop
themselves up with. We received a large envelope in the mail and Israel tried
to use it to stand up with!? Silly baby. I hope he doesn't walk too soon, I'm just
not ready for that madness but I guess it's totally up to him.
He's still irresistibly cute, walking or not!

Guildford

The new brick and mortar store for Toast. Looks very English to me, although I've never
been so how would I know? Either way, I'd love to see it in person!

Lonny

How great would it be to wake up to this view, oh and have someone make you breakfast.
I hate making breakfast, says the mom who is tired of scrubbing pans of oatmeal and
eggs!

source

Finnish Design Shop

A few things I'd love to order for the house, the stacked shelf module is one of
my favorites by far, the ability to configure the boxes into any shape or order
is ideal. This would be great for Israel and something I know he could grow with.
All from here.