Chalkboard Favorites: Mirror of the Moment

These 8-sided beauties are making us stop and take notice.

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dwell studio's octagonal mirror
wisteria's italian octagon mirror

It's a Good Day

Do you read DIY Magazine? I'm kind of obsessed with it. The magazine is chock full of great do-it-yourself ideas from the Better Homes and Gardens team, as well as amazing homes and projects from incredibly talented artists and DIY-ers. I am in awe, and so inspired, after reading each issue. 

Another great thing about DIY Magazine? They feature lots of Etsy sellers, and I love discovering and supporting independent artists. I thought I would share a new find from the most recent Summer issue. 

This print caught my eye. It was in the background with some other artwork in one of the magazine spreads. I googled the phrase and discovered Wicked Paper Co.—a delightful design studio with inspiring, typographic prints. I fell in love with their work and thought the print below would make a great way to end the week. 

Wishing you all a good day, and a great weekend!

See you on Monday!

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It's a Good Day to Have a Good Day via Wicked Paper Co.

Famille Summerbelle

I recently came across this laser cut out map by Famille Summerbelle and instantly wanted to blog about it. I love cut paper designs and the intricate details and whimsy graphics really spoke to me. 

And that was going to be it -- a simple post on a lovely piece of art. And then I started looking through their website and found so many special items that I simply could not stop there. 

There are:

prints

family trees

wallpaper

paper banners (perfect for a party or even as decoration behind a kid's bed)

even tape!

 So much goodness on one great site.

Chalkboard Project: Inspired by CB2

I spotted the tablescape below in a recent CB2 catalog. 

Wine bottles wrapped in kraft paper, tied with string, and stenciled with numbers. That is just my kind of style—a bit rustic with a splash of typography. 

It turns out that this is also a very easy DIY project. Check out my own version below.

I simply wrapped five wine bottles in kraft paper, purchased here. Using a stencil, I traced each letter with a white pencil. This worked better than painting with the stencil since the curve of the bottle made it hard to create a firm seal. Then, I used white paint and a small paint brush to fill in the letters. As a finishing touch, I wrapped the bottles with my favorite yarn, which made perfect little bows.

I think these wrapped bottles would look great as part of a table setting for an informal dinner party. Or, just one bottle stenciled with a friend's initials could make a nice hostess gift. Just something a little different for your table.

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top two images by CB2
bottom images by The Pink Chalkboard

Bookcase Options

Lots of people have hardworking bookcases in their homes. My Ikea shelving unit was purchased years ago. I first used it as a room divider in my studio apartment.

I pushed it against the wall and used it as a storage/display unit in my next apartment

There are lots of ways to style a bookcase (sparse and airy, filled with boxes, color-coded, etc) but I recently came across two ways that I am loving right now.

Idea #1 is from an apartment featured in Elle Decor a few months ago. Space in each cubby has been fully maximized by cleverly arranging books horizontally and vertically. It's a great solution for all of that leftover space that usually accompanies a row of pretty (though usually short) lined up books.

Here is idea #2 and I think it it is genius -- converting your bookcase into a dollhouse!

Land of Nod's short and wide 6-cube bookcase case is perfect for this but I think my big Ikea shelving unit could work well, too. It would be more like a condo apartment in an urban hi-rise than the traditional "house" but wouldn't that be fabulous, too? One cubby could be a studio apartment, two stacked cubbies could be a duplex.  Oh, the possibilities!

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photo credits from top

Jess Fox

The Pink Chalkboard

Elle Decor

Land of Nod

The Shops at Target

On May 6th, Target will debut its new twist on designer collaborations, called The Shops at Target. Over the next few months, Target will offer a collection of special items from small boutiques at affordable prices, and we can't wait! We loved the Missoni collaboration (among others) and thank Target for making these specialty stores accessible to everyone. The "store within a store" concept is new to big-box retailers, and it's such a great way to take designer partnerships to a whole new level. Plus, if the advertising is this well-designed, we are sure the products will not disappoint.  

The first five shops in the collaboration are Privet House (a Connecticut shop offering a mix of vintage and new home accessories), The Cos Bar (an Aspen-based skincare company), Polka Dog Bakery (Boston's dog treat boutique), The Webster (an exclusive clothing shop from Miami), and The Candy Store (a San Francisco-based specialty candy shop).

Get ready for some more design-goodness from Target!

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all images via Target

Cheap and Chic

Looking for a quick update to your home and about to have some company stay over? Look at the email I recently received:

This sofa bed is streamlined, good-looking and cheap...and on sale for only $199! What a steal. I love multi functioning pieces and when they are pretty, even better. The stone color would work well in my place. And it's the perfect backdrop for fun pillows like these pairings:

Sale ends on Saturday. Will you have something new to sit and sleep on by the time the weekend is over?

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1. xhilaration flower decorative pillow and pop swirls pillow

2. abundance toss pillow and yellow ribbed toss pillow with buttons

3. fine lines chartreuse pillow and room essentials multicolor cityscape pillow