mural ii

this is another print i'm thinking of buying. a surreal landscape with a crackled, aged background reminiscent of a vintage photograph. i really enjoy the mood this piece evokes. by marion herman at deviantART.

submerged

i also enjoy this print by lois. i'm thinking about getting the 10" x 15" print for $16. i love urban scenes, particularly dysfunctional cityscapes with steampunk/post-apocalyptic themes, and "submerged" fits into that penchant really well.

lollipop

there's something endearing and distracting about this print .... the cuteness wars with the lolita-like characteristics of it. maybe it'd be more appropriate if you could see a skirt? either way, i like the sketchiness of the drawing and the false repetition of the wallpaper. 8" x 10" print is $14 by karincoma at deviantART.

forgive the lapse in posts, we were getting new floors put in this weekend and had no internet.

urban heirlooms

brilliantly designed, i love the concept of this wallet ($60) from urban heirlooms at etsy. the leather and the stitching is great, but especially the use of the antique key. my only problem is that it consists of a single compartment, and while i use a billfold wallet, i don't like i'd be content to just have everything jammed into one pocket. because of that i think i'd reccommend it to folks who either just want a few things to carry around, when they go out to dinner or to a club for instance, or to folks who carry their wallet in a bag or a purse. there are three other colour/leather options for those who prefer black, tan or caramel. at present, the only other item in the shop is this adorable "parlour pillow" ($45) :

toy sounds

so i'm really curious to hear what these sound like, because yes folks, these are 2.5”x1” lego speakers for ipods from fred flare for $25. the other colours and the look of it all fitting together can be seen below ... apparently two of the little bumps there are the up and down volume controls, and the black + signs are the openings in front of the speakers themselves. i'm actually a bit dumbfounded at how cool this looks, but that's why i really really really need to know how they sound.

cats from outerspace

so i love these pod pet beds ($155) from hepper. they make more modern yet practical ways to incorporate all that pet stuff than can took far too ugly when only functional matters are considered. other models include this nest ($95) version:

how many stomachs you got?

oh cut + paste, you so silly. but i do adore puns, wallpaper-based design & line drawing, so this card just about does it all for me. $4.50, designed by chewing the cud. three designs in total, including my second place favorite:

pinned to your breast ...

i love this lush brooch from bijoux bijoux, made of nickel, hematite, and some other things i can't translate from french. $33.

never forget ...

this is a great idea, and i'm kinda bummed i didn't think of it first ... bridging the gap between scrap books and photo albums, and giving us a place to put all those concert tickets that you used to just tape to your wall but now when you've actually painted/wallpapered the place yourself there's no way in hell you're gonna tape something to a wall so instead you need a ticket stub diary. $13 from chronicle books.

baked sentiment

the motto of this boston design body's various lines is "make cupcakes not war," with kitsch logo placement prominent in every place you thought of and a few you hadn't. johnny cupcakes sells t-shirts like the one above ($35) and the belt below ($22):

sampler

so the april sampler is in the shop, and a peruse of the featured merchants found me in turn browsing the wares of allie's adornments ($18), who makes lovely earrings, bookmarks, and other things from vintage ephemera. i was particularly drawn to her because the lovely packaging that comes with her pieces as well, like the above earrings made from 1800s antique buttons. the pieces sent to the sampler are bookmarks ($8) made from antique buttons as well:

accidental interests ...

ever since i lived with my tea-pot obsessed aunt, i've had a fondness for the varied ideas that dedicated teapot crafters come up with. i've seen teapots made of an absurd number of different materials and shapes, the concept integral to each being the marriage of form and function. the above teapot ($400) combines a whimsy with colourful practicality that i can definitely sign on for. for those looking at a realistic price range, you can sample the wares of sideways studio through these containers,which run a paltry $30-$36 in comparison. part of craftboston.

the art of storage

so i'm not sure if you can tell exactly how great this bookshelf is due to the size of the photo, but let me point out the obvious just in case: its a bookshelf made out of books about books (well writing). and on the artist jim rosenau's site for this into that, you can see a number of other examples of both his wit and its application. his pieces definitely fall more undrer the category of art than proper furniture as indicated by their price tags (the above piece is $375), butif one in particular suited you and your home it'd make a pretty amazing conversation piece. and several of the galleries pieces will be on show at craftboston on march 28-30th.

from outer space

craftboston is coming up, and i'll be looking at some of those invited. i adore the look of this ring by artist lisa crowder. called a 'cocoon temple ring,' and selling to the tune of $185, it marries a certain amount of innovation and form that really appeals to me. for those who prefer their jewelery to not catch on things so much, check out the more subtle for $135-$160 double riveted and textured rings:

deviations...

sorry not so many posts, i've been under the weather of late. as part of my cassette fixation, i present this print by %fangedfem of deviantART. $45 for a 20" x 30" print. a second print by the artist below.

a little birdy told me ...

i'm not sure why i don't already own a cuckoo clock like this one, because as soon as i saw it i had a pretty immediate need to have one. i think it stems from how prominent they always were in old cartoons ... i'm not off-base, am i? i feel like they were featured in all those tom and jerry style saturday morning cartoons. so this one from stacks and stacks is only $175, which seems to be pretty low considering other models are upwards of a grand, and the care indicates "the clock cuckoo's once on the half hour and counts the hour on the top of the hour. the german all brass weight driven movement should be wound once a day by raising the two pinecone weights." so i guess being required to wind it is a downside, but if all you need to do is say, remember to raise the pinecones when you leave for work in the morning, i think it'd be okay.

the wash cycle

these napkins have a lovely sketch of a bicycle with the parts labeled ... like the natural history of bicycles. from the new spring wares over at indie fixx. $18 x 4.

girl put yo records on

if anyone wasn't sure of it already, let me make clear my predilection of music-related paraphernalia rendered kitsch. these plastic record earrings are $12 at shana logic.

take it from me

four lovely cephalapodian notecards for $6 with blue envelopes ... i love them. from enfin, la voila.

where it is wetter ...

i'm quite struck by this print ... i'm not sure how to treat it with a feminist lens. i mean, at first glance its a prone, naked female form, but i think there's an indolence to the pose that lends it more strength than usually rendered to this kind of a subject. but hesitations aside, this is an evocative, well-done 12" x 18" print of an original oil painting for a mere $16. from RW2 Gallery.

cross-pollination

so despite the somewhat predatory name, this jewelery from parasite is both beautiful and versatile, albeit requiring a bit more care than some other pieces. both the necklace and the earrings are $54.55, and are delicately blown glass that you fill with a bit of water and cuttings of lovely flowers or plants. for the photos they opted for a flower in the necklace and long leaves for the earrings so you'd get an idea of how to "dress" them if you will ... its a pretty bold concept. available at the scandinavian design center.

cross post ...

lensizm did a post on laptop bags today as well, and they found some stunners. the above bag from jtote is my favorite, i think it would match 80% of my wardrobe (which, yeah, gives you a hint as to what i look like every day), though it runs a hefty $224 price tag. check out their other 4 finds ($26 to $208).

softwear

so i've spent a few minutes now trying to decide if this "refract" laptop bag ($86) has enough machismo in it, but i don't think i care ... the stitching, the colours, everything is great. apparently its only 12" across though, so i'd have to get out the ruler to decide if it was big enough. if orange is more to your taste, look at this model below:

one punk posy

these beautiful cards ($2.75 for 1) were what inspired me to follow up on a rare bird finds post. besides the fine lines of the crown, i love the typography used ... the same font is used in these correspondence cards ($12 for 4) that i also picked up. the seller, one punk posy, also has a series of one-of-kind cards printed on varied cardstock with crisp iconic images like tea kettles and boom boxes. i like.

on the cheap

so after posting those wastebins yesterday, i've spent more time on the sale section of chiasso's website and i really like these nesting plates they have on sale for $10 from $38. the 12" x 12" marylin chopping board below is another interesting purchase, marked down from $28 to $18.

forward march

this is an egg cup, and she looks pretty badass. like an egg cup warrior, if you will. she gonna roll up on you and hit you with her spoon the pour boiling egg whites in yer face. yup. $35 at pylones.

i was staring at the sky, just wishing for a star

i think that this waste bin ($78) would go well with the crumbled architect's blueprint that i posted before, but i suppose there's a risk that the disheveled look will translate from decor to practice ... either way, i doubt i'd be able to resist getting this pencil cup (for $30) to take the trend at least that far. from chiasso.

analog boy

anyone who saw my post a little while back about this bag can rest assured that it is for sale at fred flare for a measly $16. i'm gonna buy nine or ten.

future imperfect

i've been on a deviantART kick for a bit, and i love this digital art print by spyroteknik. there are several sizes available but the default is 20" x 30" at $62.45, which is pretty fair for a piece of that size. it would pair well with the piece below, 20" x 30" at $49.95.

apples and oranges

i love the idea of this t-shirt over at luckythreadz. $16.

toasty

despite the price tag ($98), i'm mad impressed by this hoodie and i want a boys' version on the double! before spring! sort it out turntablelab!

timewarp

i've found the new hotspot for retro accessories and homewares methinks ... if you don't believe, look a little longer at these 90s florescent floppy disk coasters (don't think about the €27 price tag, dollar to sterling conversions hurt brain cells as well as wallets) so for €11 you can get this mad kitsch gold cassette pin from supermandolini. i especially love the satin substitute for tape reel ... if there isn't a beautiful drag of dense 90s irony in a ruined tape you'd lovingly dubbed "greatest ballads ever" i don't know what is. because we remember those ballads, and them shits were so not great with hindsight. right? right. (i might have taken this too far, but hey)

odi et amo

wow. these $10 bandages are from a website specializing in fake food, donna marie's fake food. add them to your cart when picking up fake wedges of cheese and slices of juicy plastic looking $12 watermelon.