Getting cosier and cosier

- Teatime! Shall I pour you a drink?


- Popped this on your egg to keep it nice and warm.


- Mustn't let the pot go cold.


- Why don't you slip this on your mug?


- Now, can I tempt you with a cookie, a cupcake or a doughnut?






Teaset -The Lark, Eggcosy and teacosy - Handylittleme, Mugcosy - Waysideviolet, Cakes, cookies and doughnut - The Lark

I'm Hans Christian Andersen

More irresistible vintage textiles from callmejasper. Here's a set of 6 Danish Modern cocktail napkins (sold individually), inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's fairytales, just begging to be framed or used in one of your craft projects.

Roddy & Ginger

Here's some more of that Mediterranean sunshine I promised you, something evocative of holidays in Cadaques, Figueras or Girona, of intense heat, colourful markets, olive trees, long naps in the hamac and fiestas. Can you hear the cicadas?
Roddy & Ginger's new Sardana and Siesta designs are beautiful, once again. Inspired by a family home in Catalonia, these Spanish village screenprints are bright, cheerful and fun. They come in two colourways (orange/tan or dark teal/olive) and are available to frame or as cushion covers in natural linen or canvas.
Now, where did I put my espadrilles?

Little Pink Houses

I love Lisa Congdon's art. I love her sense of colour and composition. I think that what I find the most inspiring about her work is that she is a self-taught multimedia artist and illustrator. I also like collections of things and so does Lisa. No wonder then that I have fallen in love with her work for the Little Pink Houses show at the Curiosity Shoppe, conceived in collaboration with another great San Francisco-based artist and friend Mati McDonough. The show runs until 31 September.

* Link to Lisa's installation found via Poppytalk.

Lines and dots

A bright Bonjour to you all! Here's a a selection of colourful lines and dots from etsy to lighten up your day.

Colourful hardback book - exploring light and colour from 26olivestreet

Old pharmacy labels from Paper Aeroplanes

Wire fruit basket by De Beaux Souvenirs

Red and yellow snooker balls from Everyeskimo

Colour mixing wheel from Rick Rack Shack

Vintage Whitman Plastic Pick Up Sticks from Buppins

Vintage colour compass Grumbacher 1973 from Artphotogirl

London Town

I've been reminiscing about my student days in London a lot lately. Of course, I'm just back from a holiday in the UK but we didn't manage to go down and see the bright lights this time, unfortunately. I've promised Dylan a weekend away in the autumn, if he gets his brain back in gear and concentrates at school - those difficult teenage years - so until then I'll have to make do with my city-in-a-bag from Muji's and dreams of buying just one teeny, weeny roll of Lizzie Allen's fabulous hand-screenprinted wallpaper for the kids' bedroom (if you're seriously interested Pedlars has a great sale on). The good news, however, is that Famille Summerbelle's next London print will be in Ladybird red - hurray! I know what my family will be getting for Christmas!
I'm not going to start getting patriotic (Union Jack's seem to everywhere although I do like these paper chains from Creative Flourish) but once you start delving you realise just how much fantastic artwork London has inspired. Take M. Sasek, for example, his fabulous books are enjoying a revival and he even has his own new website.
Binth's colourful London city cards and prints would look great in a nursery or child's bedroom.



Papergrain, one of my favourite UK addresses for stationery, also has some beautiful writing sets, notebooks and greetings cards, my favourite being the Greenwich Observatory having lived in Blackheath and Greenwich for three years.





The London Transport Museum's online shop has an amazing range of London-themed products, including clothes, homeware, books, maps, toys and posters. I could write several posts on their poster collection alone. UK linocut printmaker Paul Catherall's Four Seasons are among my favourites, and elsewhere work by Gail Brodholt.








My very special London find comes from Verandah, a collective of designers and craftmakers based in Norwich in the UK. These soldier concertina cards are just perfect!


* London Calling print by Inkspotts

Vintage Czech posters

I have quite a large collection of mid-century matchbox labels and stamps from Eastern Europe, some of which I will be framing for my shop. I love the bright colours and graphics of my vintage Czech finds in particular, so I was delighted to find this amazing site via one of my favorite daily reads Ribambelles & Ribambins (don't be put off by the French, this is a treasure trove for vintage toy lovers). Terry Posters is a gem of a shop. It has a fabulous children's movie department where I found these brilliant, affordable animated film posters. Enjoy!

The vintage playroom

Like many, I love combining old and new finds to create a modern vintage look around the house. The whole family enjoys going to flea markets, car boot sales and Emmaus so we pick up lots of nice furniture there or go to one of our favourite brocantes.

There are some fantastic addresses online too. Here's a selection of furniture for children's bedrooms or playrooms from some of the European shops I love:









* Vintage child's woven basket chair from Winter's moon * French 60s children crossing sign from la Brocante de la Bruyère * Old Dutch children's kitchen unit from Old Basics (they do speak English and can arrange shipping) * Fun vintage building block coathangers from dedale-l'atélier *60s child's chair in yellow and red from Tas-ka

Kurt Jackson

How can I possibly write about the World Beach Project without showing you an amazing painted etching by my favourite British artist Kurt Jackson? You will be hearing a lot about him in this blog.

The World Beach Project

Be creative! Whoever you are or wherever you are, why not take your family down to the beach today and do some artwork? The World Beach Project, devised by artist Sue Lawty in association with the V&A, is a global art project open to anybody, anywhere, of any age and builds on the experience many of us have had on holiday of making patterns on beaches and shorelines.

Porth Nanven near St Just by Neil

All you have to do is take a camera, find a beach, choose some stones and make a pattern. You are only allowed to use stones, the aim being to work with different colours, sizes and textures.


Owen Beach by Kim Reidelbach

To take part in the project you will need to take three photos:
1) The Whole Beach (showing where you made the pattern, the weather, the environment)
2) The Process (showing how you searched for stones, sorted them and set them in place, etc.)
3) The Artwork (before it's washed away).


East Wittering by Oliver Hopkins

Southwold by Kally Davidson

What a simply brilliant way to get people interested in the environment, spend some time in the fresh air and be creative. Once you've submitted your photos, I'm sure your kids will love seeing their contribution on the interactive global map too.

Take your pick!

I love paper goods. I like to buy original notesets, notebooks, cards, travel journals, calendars and exercise books. I also have boxes and boxes of vintage bits and pieces that I save for the right occasion, the right present, the right school project... I always find a use for torn wrapping paper, old postcards, gift bags and envelopes, it's the compulsive 'reuse, recycle, recreate' streak in me you see.
However, I now know that I am not alone. There are some very clever people out there making my paper hunting task easier. The only problem I have now is deciding which one to choose!

Paper pail - Present and Correct
Paper pack 1 - Three Potato Four
Paper pack 2 - Found Paper Co.