holiday card creation

Just a sample of some holiday cards I created this week. I just love the colour pairing of robin's egg blue and red - it is so fresh! I am signing off for the weekend...wishing you a wonderful one!

my favourite flower

Yesterday my sister and I took a jaunt over to Hofland for some floral inspiration. I was so happy to find my favourite flower there - Craspedia {also known as billy buttons!} - as they are usually so difficult to find. These flowers, native to Australia and New Zealand, are cousins to the daisy...aren't they adorably sweet?

stunning photography...

...by Katya de Grunwald. These images make me want to cut a 'fringe' and lounge around in pretty dresses all day. So lovely! {via Decor8}

platypus cards

We really like green here at inBloom Studio, and that definitely includes green companies that are doing great things for the environment. I would like to introduce Platypus - a new not-for-profit company that sells cute animated e-cards and greetings, and donates the money toward carbon offsetting.


I collaborated on the Platypus logo design a few months ago, and I also helped design the look of their new website which just launched this week! The Platypus 'people', Brenda Morrow and Murray Foster {who plays bass for Canadian band Great Big Sea}, are extremely down-to-earth and have a genuine concern for the environment, hence the launch of their new venture. Please check out their website and their cute e-card animations and don't hesitate to make a donation to a great cause.

schoolyard studio

I am excited for the One of a Kind Show opening this week and the fact that this year I will attending as a visitor. The past few Christmas shows I have been an exhibitor, and found the 11-day, 11 hours-a-day show incredibly exhausting! So this year, I will be able to take the time to browse and enjoy and hopefully get a lot of Christmas shopping done.

Schoolyard Studio will definitely be one of my first stops! They have the cutest printed designs, and I just may have to purchase some of their printed tea towels, gift tags, and perhaps a bib for a new little niece that should be arriving any day! Their simple nature-inspired designs are lovely, and the fact that they use eco-friendly materials is a big plus.

I'd better start saving up some money...it's just too easy to spend at the One of a Kind!

blue + white

One of my favourite images - I love the soft blue, the distressed whites, and the graphic shape of the clock {from Real Simple magazine}.

so you think you can dance canada

A bit obsessed with the American version of this show for the past few seasons, I am so proud to say that I am LOVING the Canadian version even more. Some of the judges are a bit...well, irritating, and sometimes I wish that they could be voted off. But the dancers are....WOW!! Last night I just wanted the show to keep on going and going...they are all so phenomenal. I was shocked with tonight's results that Vincent and Arassay were leaving....noooo! They are two of my faves! But then again I think all of them are. And might I just point out the hotness of Nico.

Here are some of my favourite performances from last night. I hate to see any of them go!



{Vincent and Natalli with an emotional and shiver-inducing contemporary piece}



{Nico - sigh - and Lisa with a hot and spicy jazz funk number}



{Miles and Allie with a cute, cheery Afro Jazz piece}

my grandad

Just a quick post this snowy evening...the first real snowfall of autumn 2008 and it's a doozy! My poor sister just spent six hours on the road - SIX! - trying to drive home on the slippery, traffic-jammed roads, and normally her commute would only take an hour. I just couldn't help but giggle madly at her hourly updates, reporting that she had only moved a block or two since our last conversation. Sorry Mel....

On a completely different note, I have mentioned my grandmother a few times, but I just wanted to mention my grandfather too. Last night we met for dinner, as he is embarking on a journey to Hong Kong where he will be spending most of his days golfing and touring. Did I mention that he will soon be turning 88? And when he gets back from his trip, he will be waxing his skiis and heading up to Blue Mountain to hit the slopes for the winter. Is this guy for real?! By the way, he just bought new skiis, and a spunky little Pontiac Vibe in electric blue. The only way to get in touch with him is through email, and he always has the latest digital camera. And last night he announced that he just installed Photoshop CS3 onto his computer - even I don't have Photoshop CS3! It's hard to imagine that this gadget whiz grew up on a farm in Saskatoon without electricity.

I must say that my grandparents are hardy stock, and I do hope that is passed down in the gene pool! What an inspiration.

wall inspiration

Sometimes as I am watching tv, I see cool things that I just want to capture and add to my ever-expanding files and folders of inspiration! There is one commercial - for Alesse birth control pills of all things - that has such a cool background wall, and for the fleeting seconds it is on I am always inspired by it! It is a mural of sihouetted organic shapes painted in black on a white background. Luckily, after a quick search on YouTube, I found the commercial and was able to nab a screen capture of the coveted wall. I might just try painting something like this on a wall in our bedroom...

design for conscious living

I have been working on many websites lately, but the Design for Conscious Living website really was a joy. From the moment I met interior and landscape designer Celia, I knew we were on the same design wavelength! Her studio was beautiful - painted in greens and grays with dark wood accents, there were design books organized elegantly on bookshelves and a dream work/meeting table complete with funky stools. It was so natural and earthy, but sleek and sophisticated at the same time.

Each of Celia's rooms are inspired by nature, and pulled together with style. We created the same effect with her website - a very clean site, with hints of natural imagery, and colourful design elements. Be sure to check out Celia's portfolio. Needless to say, I would recommend her wholeheartedly!

pillow talk

On a bit of a cheerier note, my Amy Butler fabric pillow cases have arrived! A longtime fan of Amy Butler, I have been meaning to buy some of her fabric to create cushions for my couch. So you can imagine how excited I was to find LindyLou's Etsy shop, where she sells all sorts of colourful ready-to-be-stuffed pillow cases, starting at $10 each. Soooo worth it for a pathetic sewer like me! These would make some great Christmas presents too.

remembering

I wore my poppy proud today! I can't help but think of my grandma on Remembrance Day, and how it must have felt to have her young husband Ken leave for war, to receive a telegram that he was missing in action, and then a whole year later to receive confirmation that she had been widowed, all before she was the age of 20.

About 10 years ago, my grandma and I travelled to Germany together to see Ken's grave for the first time {my grandma remarried my grandfather after Ken's death}. It was astounding to me how many headstones there were in that cemetary, and worst of all, the ages inscripted on them - 18, 19, 22.

So I wore my poppy proud today, thankful for the freedom we have in this beautiful country, but knowing it has come at a considerable price.

dream studio

I think I have found my dream studio, on the Pottery Barn website! I do have a weakness for anything green, but I am also loving the look of this crisp white furniture, the clean black and white artwork, and the faux bois rug. It looks like the Pottery Barn line of paint colour is available in Canada now, at Benjamin Moore {although here, this same wall colour is called 'Jalapeno Pepper'!}.

And the windows and all of that light...the perfect studio space for sure!

a sweet weekend

Have a wonderful weekend! I hope it's as sweet as this beautiful packaging spotted at William's Sonoma {via the Dieline} which is just as yummy as it's contents I'm sure.

Although this weekend I think I will be missing Tina Fey's brilliant Sarah Palin portrayals on SNL. Let's hope there is just one more! Tina Fey, you are my hero.

purdy painting

Last year, for my sister's 29th birthday, I gave her a gift certificate for a painting to hang above her bed. And, well...a 30th birthday and a year and a half later, I finally completed it...yay!

The request was for a tonal gray-on-gray damask painting with a hint of teal. Well, voila! It found its happy home on her wall last night. Happy 29th birthday Shayna! Even though you are heading onto 31...

feist!

Last night at the very last minute, I was lucky enough to get free tickets to the Feist concert at the Air Canada Centre {thanks again to my husband Pete}! They were great seats - 6th row at the side - and it was a mesmerizing performance. Somehow calming and upbeat and joyous at the same time. I am in love with all of Feist's songs and listen to her latest CD, The Reminder, constantly. It is so ethereal, artistic, soothing, dark and light.

As a quirky touch to the concert {as if Feist isn't quirky enough already} she had 'shadow artists' projecting shadows with shape and light and images on a large screen, using a glorified overhead projector! The images were moved by hand and it was such an organic and whimsical touch that perfectly complemented the music.

My favourite song is Mushaboom...the music and lyrics feel so cozy to me and conjures up images of a future life with a houseful of kids running around a house in a forest with a huge garden and crazy art projects all over the place, 'collecting the moments one by one'...love this Canadian gal.