white walls

as you may have seen yesterday there is a new apartment space in my life & first on the agenda: a fresh coat of white paint on the walls. at the moment, they are a horrid pale yellowish. this is something i will have to do myself but i dont mind, i find painting a room with a fresh coat very satisfying.

 I had to have my paint color (benjamin moore, snowfall) approved, but thats the good thing about white paint - its not scary to landlords. While deciding on a paint color i flipped through lots of my glossy archives in the hopes of garnering a few ideas about wall color - 

what i began to notice was that almost everything i've blogged, archived, tumbled and torn has white walls. i once read a decorators quote that commented on her belief that white walls make rooms to feel unfinished.

i must admit that i grappled with this though for a while and my conclusion: if thats true than perhaps i like the freedom that comes with a room feeling unfinished- possibility is everywhere, styles can be mixed and matched on a whim, texture is important for adding depth & anything is likely.

 white walls, boring and unfinished or simply possibility?

images: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

moving!

we got some great news on friday ~ our application for the apartment (the one with the tiny patio) was accepted! thanks for all your good luck wishes, they must have worked. we are going to be moving in 2weeks...that means lots of packing and a big sale at cottage farm. 

i already have tons of ideas for the new space that ill be sharing over the next few weeks, but first on the agenda is getting the space painted a fresh coat of white. 
hope you all are having a lovely memorial day/monday. 


images:1 & 2 

flowers for friday

 the poppy, so simple and yet an elegance unparalleled. paired with a locally made heath ceramics vase & an unexpected piece of studio pottery that reminds me of the gnarled tough bark of an old tree; an interesting contrast to the effervescent, crepe paper like poppy. enjoy, and happy friday!

the livin is easy

sooo...im still on the apartment search. its been a long, long search but i did find a sweet little spot and we've submitted our application and now its just fingers crossed, though i must say in this city its a crazy roller coaster ride. i basically assume i wont get the apartment at this point and try to forget about the whole thing until i get a call saying they loved us but their daughter just got kicked out of school and she'll live there instead - or something like that. im beginning to think we are cursed. 
any way i digress - apartment, application, not trying to think about it..but its got this adorable, teeny tiny little outdoor patio...so whats been on my mind? little urban gardens and tiny patio perfect seating. 

love this idea from LLH designs(via thestylefiles)for garden planting boxes. just perfect for a few head of lettuce and herbs.

add a few stackable tables and these super smart outdoor folding chairs. i love the wegner influence 

and because a teeny tiny patio(thats shaped like a bowling alley) would be as much fun without this amazing bowling set

top image from here

pretty baskets

its funny how tastes change and as you go along you open yourself to new things and new possibilities even in the most simple of ways. ive noticed myself being very drawn to baskets as of late...objects i never particularly cared for as strange as that may sound. 

 

but recently ive found i simply cant get enough. there are so many lovely shapes and sizes but what really gets me is the weave. it has to be quite right, though i cant exactly articulate what is "just right" yet. and they make such an perfect place for storing those things that seem to make their way around the house in such unruly fashion or  lovely wall decor

images: igigigeneral, ruemagazine, cottagefarm, thestylefiles, designsponge, thestylefiles (final 2) 

a- fair & a house

rounding out the recap of my weekend, sunday was spent at the maker fair and the 2011 decorate showcase house. at first it seemed like two radically different experiences but really the focus of the day seemed to be all about pushing the boundaries of design.

the maker fair was a bit of a trip. there were a million things to do, see and participate in. i sat in on a sauerkraut seminar and you can bet ill be looking for a few little crocks in my travels to try out the recipe in, i also got tips on trying a modified plan for other veggies. ill share in about 4 weeks! 

it was a lovely day and we spent most of the fair wandering in the sunshine and taking in the fun of the whole thing. 

everyone was in on the action at maker as you can see. little kids, BIG kids.

in the afternoon it was a trip to the 2011 san francisco decorator showcase. it serves as a fundraiser for one of the local high schools and i look forward to it each year - 2011 didnt disappoint. my favorite was the kitchen. designed by tish key. it perfectly married modern and clean with a hint of farmhouse.

i was so tired by the time i got there i sorta walked around in awe and only took a few pictures, sorry about that. but it was truly beautiful and i cant wait to go through and check out each of the designers portfolios.... dont you love that papyrus print on the roman shades in the kitchen! 

i also loved the champagne room, ya thats right - the champagne room. sounds divine doesnt it. it was previously the walk-in safe. a room full of bubbly sounds like so much more fun - and speaking of, the tile really got me in this space - designed by jutehome. 


if you are in the bay area the decorators showcase is open everyday, except monday, until the 30th of may.

open studios : heath ceramics

this weekend was on of the busiest ive had in a very long time & there wasnt even a wedding, well not one i was working on at least. 

it was glorious to have the entire weekend and i took advantage of every second. there were loads of things happening in and around the bay area, so many the city was running shuttles around to the different event so that people could try and pack in as much as possible. 

saturday was spent at the heath ceramics open studios (thanks jane for the heads up!) with lunch at cavallo point. this amazing bay area hotel is filled with the photographs of local artist and we strolled around taking advantage of the amazing art on view. i just wish we could have seen into the rooms, each features the work of a different photographer.

in the evening it was off to try a new pho place (a few of us here have a passion for this big bowl of vietnamese soup and travel around the city trying out new places) we finished with Artpad - an art showcase put on at the phoenix hotel. 

phew, and that was just saturday! 

it was a lot but i wanted to share some photos i took at the beautiful heath ceramics studio in sausalito. 

the two types of clay used at heath - a lighter and a darker base clay, rolled out in slabs and ready to be turned into beautiful objects. 

the seat of the master mold maker at heath, i couldnt help but love him all the more as he sits each day in a hot pink old eames chair - amazing right?!

a few shots of the various stations along the way, handles are attached, lids are made, pieces are dried

 

testing out some new glazes & a the new house numbers. i love the final shot of the classic bud vases in various stages of drying. look how much smaller the vase is when it is finally finished (1st on the left is a finished piece) 
many of the original designs first created by edith heath (who also went to the san francisco arts institute, where i did my masters!) are still in production today, a tribute to her vision and the beauty of her work. 

i treated myself to my first piece of heath too! a bud vase of course, in cream. i thought it would be perfect to place the little floral stragglers that are inevitably left after i make an arrangement - to give them a sense of grandeur.

flowers for friday

i love this combination, its elegant and romantic but still has a bit of an edge to it - just like a true garden. 

white scabiosa, white peony, thistle, poppy pods & green succulents 

tied up

long and lovely, i cant help but melt a little at these romantic braids. they seem to always suit even the most unruly hair and make it look sweet and tidy. i came across this elegant collection of styles at brooklynbride - i love that each begins with the same 3 strands and yet each outcome is so different. 
ive also been loving these hair tutorials over on acupofjo. have you tried any yet? the braided crown seems an adorable way to keep hair out of my eyes while working this summer ~ 

summer escapes

ive been working lots and lots lately. there are beautiful flowers at the market right now and im thrilled to be able to work with such gorgeous materials. the summer growing season is in full swing but seeing such amazing growth coming in from the outlying areas makes me yearn for the warmth that creates such beautiful blooms. i want to pack a picnic and some friends and head out into the sunshine  - 




image: this is the first day of my life 

can this outfit be turned into a room?

 remember that great column in domino... can this outfit be turned into a room, or something like that anyway?? its still one of the many things i miss from that mag. so i decided to do a little pairing of my own. 

 its not perfect, but i tried to take the essentials from each paring and match them up. i wish the girls glasses were black in the last image but alas - when i have my big studio budget ill remake the domino column for real. but for now.. hope you enjoy this fun little montage. 

image 1. outfit; room
image 2. outfit; room
image 3. outfit; room 

Cottage Farm is 2

cottage farm is 2 today. i cant believe it!  i first opened the store to help me with the material expenses of grad school and since i graduated last year cottage farm has become a full time endeavor for me. thanks to everyone who has helped me along the way, it has been at times challenging but also very rewarding.  i hope the next two years are as much fun as these have been. 

flowers for friday

 flowers for friday. purple artichoke, dusty miller & white ranunculus. i love this combination, rustic but refined and almost a black & white photo quality 

for love of: laura letinsky

 recently ive been thinking about the work of laura letinsky. i attended a lecture of hers about a year ago and ive been rolling her images over in my mid alot as of late. 

like modern day vanitas they have a persistent quality of absence. i find myself studying them for clues about who has just left the room and the lives contained just outside the frame. 

beautiful to look at - soft but striking pallets and lots of little details to captivate.