I feel so very lucky yo be able to bring you Bailey Amon’s interview, she is one half of the very talented duo known as Antiquaria. Unless you have been living under a blog rock, I am pretty sure you have heard or seen their gorgeous work. Bailey is the lettering artist and Emma James the illustrator, together they create work that makes you want to shout ‘Brava’ at the top of your lungs, it’s just that good! Speaking of good, between Bailey’s interview and her new calligraphy tutorial series you will find so many resources and such good information for your calligraphy adventure that you won’t know what to do with yourself! Read More

When I was thinking about my future life with baby, way before baby was a twinkle in our eye, I had visions of what that future nursery would look like.  I knew of course it would be neutral, a soothing oasis for both bebe and mama.  After all I reasoned Einstein, Mozart, Tesla, and a host of other prodigies surely did not have a cacophony of primary colors, patterns, plastic and flash cards in their nurseries, so I think I would be just fine not having them in mine.  I also had visions of maybe a more traditional look, classic pieces like the Jenny Lind crib and washed organic linen bedding. I didn’t even know that baby bumpers, baby quilts and pillows were an absolute no-no. Some states have even banned bumpers all together! Sigh.

My current reality is that we live in a 526 square foot apartment, a very modern industrial space and no matter how hard I tried to go against the design grain with the space it just wouldn’t work, the only thing to do is go with the flow (and space restrictions).  That means I am going modern, much more modern than I ever imagined I would (yes, think Eames Shell rocker modern).  I love clean lines, but this “nursery” (we gave up our bedroom and have divided the space into half nursery half studio + office for me) is taking me into territory that I feel a little precarious in.  I will post soon what we have purchased thus far as our base pieces and what I am hoping I will bring in to make the space feel less stark, I think texture will be key to soften all those sharp angles.  I do have some obstacles to work with like our 18ft high ceilings, which sounds amazing in theory but when it came to paint the space was a total nightmare.  I had to go with a bright white paint (so lucky the room was tiny, this paint is a fortune!)  for a couple reasons, one being the walls are textured (ick!) and with another color  it would be too obvious that they are orange peel-esque. If they were flat I may have gone with Benjamin Moore’s Gray Owl.  The other reason for the white is that there is no window in this room, for someone like me that lives for light it is another nightmare scenario and if I was going to be working through a Pacific Northwest winter in this space I wanted it to feel as bright and cheery as possible.  I understand the no windows could be perfect for a newborn and being able to get her to sleep, but don’t worry about ventilation, it’s a loft space so everything is pretty much open to everything else.  I wanted to change out the very ugly carpet in the room at the very least rip it up and paint the concrete white, but it’s a rental and we don’t have plans to stay here that long, if I wasn’t this pregnant I would definitely have thrown caution to the wind and ripped it up ages ago, but I wasn’t up to it before and now even if I wanted to bending is not an option for me and deck paint, well that’s not going to happen with baby on board! I am trying to think of some sort of solution, the room is not a perfect square or rectangle so using a rug has proven to be both awkward and futile.  Wish me luck, it is no easy feat trying to wrap up clients, projects and get ready for a baby all within the next few weeks (weeks?! Gah!).

And this nursery is just one of my all time faves, by the talented Susan, just beautiful!

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I am very excited to be adding some new offerings before holiday!  I know from how many times the hand drawn wreaths have been downloaded (a mind boggling amount) that people want a hand drawn wreath in their life so I decided to pair it with Miss Jess’s amazing Jacob Riley font.  I usually don’t disclose the fonts I use in my designs but this is one that I just love and I think may get overlooked in all her beautiful script offerings, you need to own it (and hopefully my stamp), also take a peek at Saltpetre as well!  I think this stamp will be perfect when prepared with your homemade cookie recipe, I made it so it could fit on the large parcel tags where you can write a note to your recipient on the back! I believe it will have a longer life than just holiday so it’s an excellent addition to your stamp arsenal.

Our postmark stamps have been a favorite since I launched them way back when with my first shop.  I have never done a separate cancellation stamp before but thought it would be a sweet addition to this new offering, I hope you like it as well!  You can always get your own custom postmark stamp here and add your own creative text! I have a few more pieces and a new ink color to reveal but I think in the interim I should be giving away one of the above stamps, don’t you?

Just answer the following question by, Sunday, October 27, 2013:

What is your favorite Christmas/Holiday song?

The winner can choose their fave stamp from above!  I always announce the winners on the bottom of my Monday posts so if you played last week then please check to see if you won the prize has not been claimed yet!

P.S. Mrs. Limestone has unveiled her new Halloween decorations for 2013, it’s out of control creative (as always!)

As I roll into my 8th month or actually 9th, since technically you are pregnant for 10 months (unless of course you give birth early), I am happy to say as of today I have not purchased any maternity clothes besides my ever present ‘belly bra’. I have been on such a tight budget since I got sick that having to add a new (expensive) wardrobe to the mix would not be a good thing. I have stopped wearing pants that zip, although I can still button and zip my pre-pregnancy jeans which has my best friend noting, “It is more a testament to how inappropriately low you wear your jeans than anything else.”  Well, there’s that I suppose.  I have stopped wearing the jeans because when I sit my belly rubs against the buttons and that’s no fun for anyone.

I picked up a few items that I have been rotating that I think were well worth the meager investment.  I bought a couple pairs of faux leather leggings, I feel like they look a little more polished than a cotton legging, but they are equally as comfortable, the slight sheen is also very slimming (optical illusion). I didn’t know these had a name but I picked up some thin knit ‘cascading cardigans‘* in black, heather and camel (they didn’t have the ones I got on line but I linked to something similar), they are so versatile, you can dress them up or down, wear loose or belted, the flowy thin material is perfect for a growing bump and doesn’t add any extra bulk (at 8 months, no one wants/needs extra bulk). I already owned a few Splendid sheer tee’s (a fave) but I also picked some similar ones up at F21 (for a fraction of the price), which again have a nice flow and don’t add any bulk. Since I always wear my belly bra (I love it) under my clothes I don’t have to worry about the material being see-thru. Lastly, unless you are super tiny at this stage of the game (whatever), bending and tying your shoes is probably not happening.  I picked up these super cute riding boots with zippers for under $40!  They are not leather which means I can wear them out in the rain and because my feet are changing sizes (mostly to swollen ham hocks) I don’t need to feel too guilty for the purchase. I think they completely tie my outfit together keeping it from becoming too casual.  Granted, I am not going out often right now, mostly doctor appointments (thrilling I know) and the occasional business meeting, but I don’t want to show up in sweats, so I think this little capsule wardrobe has been good to me. Best part?  I can wear these pieces long after the baby arrives!  It pleases my multi-tasking, minimalist heart to no end. Heck, you don’t need to be preggers to take advantage of these steals and of course you don’t need to go all black, many of the items above have alternate color ways!

*The Cascading Cardi shown is from Rachel Zoe’s collection.

P.S. And the winner of Torrie’s stamp is… Mel!  Please email me with your shipping address so I can send your beautiful stamp out!