La neige, elle est belle...

Yes, the snow is beautiful, like a thick layer of frosting, but unfortunately not so sweet. Last week, it was a spill down slushy subway stairs. This week, I'm waylaid by a sore throat. What to do when winter's got you down and out? Curl up on the couch with a cozy blanket - ideally accompanied by a warm furry friend and a dark hot chocolate.

That is why I am a new fan of Frankfurt's The Blanket Store. Cozy, toasty blankets of softness from around the world (South African mohair, anyone?) await your discovery. This is one store I wouldn't mind being locked in overnight (as long as I had the aforementioned hot chocolate for sustenance, that is). Images via dwell.com.

Been Tied Up!

Yes, I've been busy, neglecting my blog for a few days. Whew, it's good to be back. But I have, literally, been tying knots, albeit in my very limited free moments. I've been taking Jolene's Giant Granny Square Blanket workshop with Callia at Purl Soho, and am working on creating my own granny square masterpiece (even if currently it's only a mouse-sized blanket). If you're in NYC, I highly recommend stopping in their cute Sullivan Street store - even though I can barely crochet and know next to nothing about knitting, I could spend an hour in the store just ogling all the beautiful yarns and amazing colors. (All images via the purl bee)

A Fall, and Fall Fashion

Silly me, thought I could get away with not wearing my snowboots last night for once. Traded them in for cute little ankle boots, and what did it get me? A nasty spill on the subway steps and a bruise roughly the size and color of a large ripe avocado. What to cheer me up? A quick jaunt through the Fashion Week pages - Here are a few faves from Peter Som, above.

Also loving this Marchesa skirt that reminds me of a jellyfish, below left, in the most beautiful ethereal way, and the bright orangey-red lips at Tory Burch. Images via Style.com.

Illusive Part 3

Love the blue cloth cover with matte white foil-stamping on the third edition of this illustration compendium that I had an opportunity to peruse in the bookstore the other day. Full of new and emerging artists from around the world, there's lots of inspiring visuals in here. Images from Gallery Nucleus.

Secret Garden

Fantasic botanically-inspired pillows by Swedish duo Adam & Viktoria via the Lisa Fontanarosa Collection.

ooh, pretty...

Love all the pleat-y details in these short, frothy, flirty dresses by J. Mendel.

Bag o' Love

So glad I signed up for Linda&Harriett's email list. So glad it's a snowday and I'm getting caught up on my emails. This cute little item was awaiting discovery in my inbox, it contains a set of notecards (you choose the letterpressed design), a notepad and pencil in an adorable screenprinted hot pink heart bag. Yes, it is perfect for Valentine's day, but good for spreading a little love any time of year.

Thinking of Spring/Summer

I know, we're in the middle of a snowstorm (at least those of us in the northeast). But that doesn't stop me from lusting after these summer-inspired necklaces by Lizzie Fortunato Jewels, designed by sisters Elizabeth and Kathryn Fortunato, from their Spring/Summer 09 collection, above. Conjures up visions of bare feet and bonfires on the beach...

I also am blown away by the colors and sculptural quality of the creations for VPL Victoria Bartlett, below, also from Spring/Summer 09. The origami cranes, just stunning.

Spoonflower rocks

I recently designed some custom textile patterns for a project that I will be sharing with you very soon. Just the other day, I was thrilled to open my mailbox and find these printed fabric samples of the designs from Spoonflower.com; they are gorgeous! In case you're not familiar with them, Spoonflower is a relatively new, highly innovative company that provides custom-printed fabric in small quantities, on several different types of fabric. I am so happy with the print quality and color integrity on these and I can't wait to place my order. Be sure to check out their website for lots of other great fabric designs!

For the crafty politico

Came across this fierce Obama cross stitch pattern while doing some project research this morning. It made me giggle.

Vintage Finds

I was one of very few shoppers willing to brave last weekend's bitter cold at the Hell's Kitchen flea market (thanks to my strategic tights-under-the-jeans layering system); I picked up a small army of vintage scarves in awesome patterns and colors. These make for great design inspiration, and can be incorporated into various projects - I think my fave is the insanely bright, watercolor-y floral below, but there's something really sweet about the turquoise dot pattern, above. Happy Friday!

Papernstitch Faves

Lovely Pieces is a featured shop over at papernstitch this month, and I wanted to feature some of the other shops I've discovered on the site. There are some beautiful photo prints, and many of them have special deals for papernstitch visitors. From top:
isphotography, Sweet Potato Anna, Kitty Rogers Photography, D.S. Brennan Photography

Alexander von Reiswitz

Alexander von Reiswitz has an amazing body of work. I was stopped in my tracks when I saw these bull portraits from the "Toros" series in the window of the Lumos gallery in Soho; they seem to capture something powerful yet innocent about these massive creatures. Von Reiswitz has also created animal portraits at the Berlin Zoo and of show animals in training; you can read more on the lenscratch blog.

Loving...

...these gorgeous patchwork quilts from Sally Campbell home textiles; the Australian designer works closely with many different artisans in India, who specialize in natural dye block printing or intricate hand embroidery, to create these amazing handcrafted textiles, and a percentage of the profit goes to support rural communities.