Getting into the Holiday Spirit!

Enjoy this festive treasury I made on etsy! There are some really gorgeous items on Etsy, as always. I picked some nice woodsy/warm/rustic things. Hope it gets you into the Christmas Spirit, if the non-stop Christmas songs on the radio haven't already!

 

Lovin' this etsy front page

pretty blush pink!

Mark Your Calendar...

one of my favorite things to do at the end of the year is search for a one-of-a-kind calendar to display in my office for the upcoming year. I just love letterpress, so my 2010 calendar was from paper-source:

this year I would love to buy one on Etsy, so I've been looking for just the right one. 

Here are a few of my favorites. By the way, calendars make fantastic Christmas presents... 

the front runner. this one is printed on fabric. $20 from lisaruppdesign 

maybe not very useful, but it's a design masterpiece.  $16 from themuststachstore 

perpetual calendar, $22.40 on sale from orangebeautiful 

flip wall calendar from jessgonacha, $30

"Best Year Ever" I love it. $20 from spreadthelove

personal: Plushies!

I don't know about anyone else, but I really enjoy dreaming about how I will decorate my future child's room, what types of toys I would buy him or her, that type of thing. I know etsy is a treasure trove of cute baby items. Lately I've been seeing lots of plush toys that are so adorable I feel compelled to snatch them up and save them for when the time finally comes.

Here are a few of my absolute favorites. I'm particularly fond of the ones that use vintage floral fabrics.

From the top:

sleepyking | madebymarta | kellienoelle | erikamade | maggierama | rabbitsmoon 

Bridal Shower Inspiration

Lately I've been trying to come up with decor ideas for a friend of mine's bridal shower, which happens to be beach/nautical themed. I immediately started scouring etsy for the cutest nautical items... and I found them! I guess I have a fondness for sea creatures-- sea urchins, starfish, seahorses... Here's some imagery to inspire you.

1. Sea Urchin Salt & Pepper Shakers • Potterybarn.com

2. Sea Urchin Tea Light Calligraphed Place Cards • bumbledesign.com

3. Sea Horse Cupcake • Melanie Parker on Flickr

4. White Coral Sculpture • bassettfurniture.com

5. Ceramic Cake Stand • vesselsandwares.etsy.com

6. Coral Drink Coasters • thepaperpeony.etsy.com

You can also check out my current etsy favorites to see more nautical themed items.

Custom Design Sneak Peek!

I've been working on a custom mock-up design for the past few days. So far it's been my most favorite one to create. The bride & groom's wedding colors are papaya and gray. I could not have picked a yummier color combination myself. I was so excited when she told me she loves sweets and wanted something fun, and also mentioned she wanted the typography to stand out.

Here is a peek at what I've come up with so far. And yes, those ARE cupcakes and gumdrops!

Following the favorites trail

Today I did a little thing I like to call "following the favorites trail" on Etsy. I can usually find some pretty amazing things this way as opposed to using the search function, where it can become quite overwhelming to wade through so many-- for lack of a better word-- unattractive items. Here are a few of my favorites I've chosen from looking through others' favorites lists...

recycled lambswool slippers, from woolybaby

butterfly mobile from royalbuffet

bib necklace from theshophouse

Using Yellows

Yellow is such a popular color this year, I thought I would share some of my favorite yellows.


I love this etsy front page treasury. The curator uses yellow so subtly.





Some of my favorite flowers are yellow. Forsythia blooms in the Spring, and Craspedia or "billy button" can be dried and used indefinitely.












Yellow makes a good match for colors like grey, dusty pink, eggplant, or chartreuse

My favorite Etsy boutonnieres

It took me a while to figure out how to spell boutonniere, but once I did, I found several pages of beautiful boutonnieres, not to mention many talented etsians. Here are a few that stood out from the crowd:


This one might be my favorite. Subtle & pretty.
Get it from ekaminsk



If it's green, I like it. I was drawn to the spotted
feather & earthiness. This is one is from lfinkels



this one is from tinarie21. I love the dotted ribbon
wrapped around the bottom and the monkey tail.



Peacock feathers are so popular right now, and I love
that whichgoose paired it with a button!

There are many more etsy sellers who make gorgeous boutonnieres, here are a few that caught my eye:

JLoveS
myrakim
amanda1986
easteryu


enjoy!

Oh Baby!

•In Stitches•

•White Dahlias•

•Little Ray of Sunshine•

Here are a few birth announcements I created for a design challenge on minted.com. The first one was chosen to be sold as an editor's pick! "White Dahlias" and " Little Ray of Sunshine" are available for purchase through my Etsy shop.