O Yes.

Seriously, I can't wait to get out and vote for Mr. O. I have such a big ol' political crush on the guy. On a side note, I've been totally remiss about keeping up on my posts (but I'm making a promise to myself to be better) but thought this was a nice way to re-enter the blogosphere.Via A Cup of Jo by way of Ginny Branch. By Casey Brooks. Phew!

Holy Crap

First off, I have to admit (sadly) I’m not someone who typically gets excited about the Olympic games. I’m not a huge sports enthusiast, and I don’t go crazy over fanfare. Parades, fireworks and athletic victories don’t do a whole lot to move me, even when they happen all at one event (especially when the host of said event has a nasty history of bullying sweet little peace-loving Tibetan monks). But I gotta say, when my husband was watching the Beijing opening ceremonies, I got sucked in and promptly blown away despite myself. It was goosebump inducing and inspiringly beautiful. I so wish there was a good video I could link to that would do it justice, but I haven't found one yet. So enjoy these images from Getty via Boston.com. Apparently the profoundly talented director Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern, The Road Home) was the creative genius behind it all. Can I just say....I looooove the Olympics!

Like Exhaling Through Your Eyes

It’s true. With their soft whiteness and light, airy spaciousness, it’s the best way I can describe these interiors found here on P2an’s flickr set. These are a rollover from my previous post—I decided they were far too gorgeous not to document. And I have to give credit where credit is due: I never would have found this beautiful set were it not for This is Glamorous.

Simplify, simplify, simplify

Thoreau never wrote truer words. It’s funny: sometimes as my head and life feel fuller I find I crave spaces that are more spare. I’m sure I’m not the only one. So in the midst of the hectic-ness that is the day-to-day, this image is absolutely appealing to me. From one of p2an's flickr sets...there are some gorgeously simple and severely (but expertly) edited interiors here.

Birthday Shout Out to My Girl!

Love and wishes for a crazy-good birthday to my amazing and sweet sister-girl!

Uncomplicated, Practical Beauty

That describes the work of Dieter Rams, a German designer and the genius behind the most iconic products put out by Braun from the 60s through the 90s. (These images from the Dieter Rams group pool on flickr). His style was so perfectly timeless it still feels entirely modern. In fact, you don’t have to look too hard to see his influence come through in Jonathan Ives’s stunning work for Apple.

Beautiful Trickery

I’m transfixed. Just recently I’ve been noticing a very cool photographic effect/technique popping up called Tilt Shift Photography. From what I gather it can be acheived with an expensive lens or through Photoshop manipulation, but either way, the end result is magical. Some how life-sized scenes and landscapes look like wee little scale models. The above images are all from photosets on flickr. (From top to bottom: JeanGenie, Buteijn, ChanceKear, JeanGenie, Rolohauck, TiagoDaniel).

What a Crock

Speaking of eBay and things to find there...aren’t these little guys handsome? As soon as I my eBay shopping moratorium ends, I’m going to continue my search for old Dundee Marmalade crocks here and there. They are no bigger than a jelly jar so they’re perfect for keeping desktop miscellany tidy. They look sweet all lined up holding pens, pencils, brushes, exactos, what-have-you...The subtle type and stamp imprint variations from jar to jar make them so interesting.

Second Hand Finds

Oh how I looooove Ebay and thrift shops. So much better than over-priced, homogenized Pottery Barn will ever hope to be! However, it’s still easy to nickel and dime yourself. Or more accurately, it’s easy for ME to nickle and dime MYSELF. After some heavy shopping activity this spring, I’m currently on a self-imposed Ebay moratorium. But browsing is still allowed...

Lovely Found Photos

...From Martin Isaac’s flickr photostream.

Variations on a Theme

The theme being a light and airy kitchen. There’s something about simple white in a kitchen that feels so right. So clean.....so culinary. I still gravitate towards the marble countertop/subway tile/white cabinet combinations, but the mod kitchen at top with the screens is lovely. The two stunners below that are both by Steven Gambrel. (via Absolutely Beautiful Things — she always has the most stunning kitchens on her blog). The black grout with the subway tile on the bottom photo is unexpected and gorgeous.

Welcome to the Dollhouse

I just couldn't resist posting these dollhouse interiors I found on flickr! Equal parts hilarious and impressive. Apparently there's a whole, wide world out there of doll collecting fanatics (and I use the term fanatic with reverence) who go crazy creating amazing designer interiors for the Kens and Barbies who wouldn’t think of settling for less. Who knew? The photos above are from Michael Williams's flickr set—an homage to Jonathan Adler (check out the teeny tiny Adler ceramics—and the David Hicks wallpaper)! Fabulous.

Heavens to Etsy

A permanent fan of ephemeral items, I was in heaven when I discovered Alpenhimmel on Etsy (thanks to Ruby Press).

star search

I love vintage astronomy maps. It’s cool and weird to be looking at an old map of stars and think about how the sky itself is sort of an old map of the stars—in the sense that many of them have actually died years and years ago, but they are so far away we are still seeing them shine. Mind bending. Anyway, I saw one very much like the all black one above in an interior done by Thomas O'Brien and fell in love with the idea of these star maps as wall art. It was large, on a white wall and looked gorgeous. The one on top is a page from an astronomy book I found on ebay, where each page shows the night sky as it changes from month to month. I’m planning on framing several and hanging them as a series.

Decorating Made Easy (!)

Better Homes and Gardens “Decorating Book”, circa 1961 (cover, below). Aside from entirely sage decorating wisdom this little gem has pages and pages of sweet illustrations. While the Decorating Book is a little harder to find, the very cool Handyman Book from Better Homes (1966 edition) is available on Amazon right here.