Wicked Turbulence

Holy Sh*t!!! We just had the craziest turbulence. You'll have to pardon my "language" but I thought we were going down. The plane dropped at least 10 ft and people were being tossed around like rag dolls. Ok, maybe not quite rag dolls, but almost. My laptop bounced off the table. I cried. A little. But there were definitely tears. Fear tears. And shaking, lots of shaking. Did I have the wherewithal to take pictures in this moment of terror you ask? No, no I didn't. But I did stage a recreation for your viewing pleasure.

Stylist Crush-Twig Hutchinson

I've found a new stylist to drool over! I first saw that beautiful bathroom image with the yellow dress on desire to inspire and had to find more! I could not find to much information on the stylist herself but I did come across her beautiful website where I found these inspiring photographs. I love the soft romantic looks she creates! I can't wait to see more work from Twig Hutchinson. Check out her online portfolio here for more inspiring rooms and vignettes. Oh, and PS- I am very excited to tell you that this is my very first post via airplane!!! So exciting! Oh technology...a constant fascination.

Vacation Time

Today is my first official day of vacation and I'm loving it! Tomorrow we are headed to the East Coast and I can't wait to see if the cherry blossoms are in bloom yet! Cherry blossoms in D.C. are one of my all time favorite things ever! If they are blooming you can be sure I will post some pictures....plus vacation time means more time for posts....


Photo and styling by the incredibly talented Studio Toogood.

Weekend Projects

In my spare time I have been turning this palette wood from this:





into this:





I'm working on a little project and distressing this wood is pretty time consuming but I am pretty happy with the results so far! I got a little 6 piece wood carving set this weekend and just started carving out grooves and holes and adding gashes. After that was done I sanded all the edges to give it a soft aged look and then rubbed some dark stain in to it. The pieces still need a second coat but that will have to wait until next time. I will post more pictures as the project progresses or when it is complete. Just wanted to show you a sneak peak!

Also, this is what Michael has been working on. We were busy woodworkers yesterday. This is his dream finally coming true. A veggie garden for our backyard! He made the box this weekend and I just took this picture of him putting in this special soil he ordered today.





Our garden still needs a lot of love but we have a plan in place. Hopefully we can complete it before the summer begins. I will post some good before and afters when it is done! Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Sanjhih

I just heard about these buildings through a comment on another blog I was reading. As I was looking for more photos of these mysterious buildings I came across some really cool images and wanted to share. These buildings are in Sanjhih, which is a small town located on the North Coast of Taiwan. The story behind them is a little blurry but the most common one is that these "UFO" houses were built with the idea of becoming a stylish holiday resort. Little is known about whether they were actually ever used, although the general consensus seems to be that they were never even completed. What is leftover to me tells the story of an inspired vision for something different, a dream. I don't know why I am always struck by abandoned buildings. I like to imagine what they once were and the stories behind them. These beautiful images are by Cypherone and you can find the rest of the images from this body of work here. I'm not sure what kind of treatment he has applied to the photos but I think it compliments the subject very well.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

I came across this sweet photo that someone had tucked into a jasmine vine the other day while walking around. Hope everyone has a fun day and a special shout out to Michael who is turning the big twenty ten in twenty ten today!! Happy 30th Birthday Michael!!!! and Happy St. Patrick's Day to everyone!

China Machado by Bruce Weber

I am enamored of the beautiful photos shot by the talented Bruce Weber for W Magazine. The subject is former model China Machado. The photos in the story are a collection of new shots taken by Bruce Weber at her Sag Harbor home and photos taken when she was younger by different photographers, although she was primarily the muse of the late Richard Avedon. In the photographs taken by Bruce Weber he has captured her beautifully as well as some gorgeous interior shots of her home. In this first photo she is seen in a stunning Alexander McQueen dress in front of a mural she painted inside her home shortly after her longtime friend, Richard Avedon passed away.








L: Here is she seen having dinner with Picasso in the 1950's in Spain (photographer unknown).
R: Photographed by Bruce Weber in a dress made of photographs that Richard Avedon had taken of her.


Here she is seen with longtime friend Geoffrey Holder ( a dancer, choreographer, actor, and painter!).


L: A personal invitation Richard Avedon sent her for one of his openings written on a torn out page from one of his photo books. All photographs from this post are from W Magazine March 2010.

There are so many more beautiful photos in the magazine, I definitely recommend checking it out!

Banana Toast and Coconut Tea

Breakfast this morning. I just have to share about banana toast. Created by my sister, Brenda, she first made this for me when I visited her in New Zealand. Sometimes I forget about banana toast and then all of a sudden I can't get enough! First, you gotta start with a nice good quality whole grain bread. It can be rustic or sliced, the heartier the better. Next, you toast it to perfection; I prefer mine a little extra toasted. Then you slice up a sweet banana nice and thin and kinda smoosh it on to the bread. Next you drizzle with olive oil, yes, olive oil! For the final and absolutely necessary touch you sprinkle generously with pink himalayan sea salt, it's best if you can grind it coarsely but fine granules will work deliciously too. Voila, banana toast! This was definitely one of my favorite creations of hers. Go ahead, try it, I promise you will love it! Thanks Brenda!

Out and About

I love the colors of this building I came across the other day.

Out and About

Walking around Oakland on Friday I came across these beautiful scenes...

Olaf Hajek

I have always loved the work of illustrator Olaf Hajek, a German born artist who now resides in London. As I was browsing his website I came across these gorgeous works that I had not seen before. I was taken away with his incredibly vivid palette and the composition of the paintings. I love how his work has a feeling of primitive and visionary art. They also seem to have an influence of wood block printing and the vibrancy of colors is stunning! I would love to have one of these prints hanging in our place! His first monograph, Flowerheads, has just been published and I can't wait for it to be available in the US to see it in person.

Loving Auriculas

Now that Spring is slowly sneaking around the corner I've got some flower fever. I recently discovered this flower via a beautiful article in UK House and Garden. The flowers remind me so much of the drawings that we all used to make when we were little! With a beautiful pronounced center, a flat face, and colors that seem as if they could only come from one's imagination...The Double auriculas are a little different but too beautiful not to include. (Sorry for the poor quality of some of the photos.)




photographers unknown

Out and About

Saw this interesting use of found objects while on a bike ride the other day....only in Berkeley! I don't find myself doing this myself personally but it does bring a smile to my face!

Colors

I really like how these colors go together. One a plant I came across on a walk and the other some graffiti from Montreal!

Our Sunday Project

We planted these beautiful grasses a while ago and with time and lots of rain the weeds were completely overgrowing the plants. I think it was actually starting to become a bit of an eyesore, definitely not the effect we were going for! We decided that this weekend we would finally finish our project that we had started some time back. It took us a lot longer than we had anticipated but I think the results were well worth the effort! After tying up the grasses into little "ponytails" we first cleaned out about 2-3 inches of weeds and dirt. This part was the most time consuming. Next, we laid down a paper made of corn to prevent weeds from returning. Lastly, we poured in the limestone gravel, which is actually very fine and sandy. The result is much cleaner and I think highlights the beauty of the plants. The limestone kind of glows and it has definitely improved our little area of the block! Next? On to the yard!!! (That one's gonna take us awhile!)