souvenirs du passé récent

i have yet another blog crush, this time facilitated by the blogger’s gorgeous home. isis regularly posts photographs from her home, which she describes as a work in progress, as well as mood boards and inspirational interiors which have helped inspire her home’s transformation.

i adore the vintage brondi telephone and cane chairs in the living room, and i am also madly in love with the orla kiely fabric pillows in the bedroom, which were purchased from handmade orla on etsy. it’s fantastic that so much of the homewares and furniture are from ikea, including the klippan couch in the living room and the photo shelf in the bedroom, which have been incorporated alongside her gorgeous antique finds.

you can see many more images from isis’ beautiful belgian home in her photostream here.

wake up and smell the coffee

1. coffeecompany 29 / 365, 2. Morning Coffee, 3. making sunday breakfast…, 4. There were the people who read and there were the others., 5. Red Latte, 6. time on your side, 7. ♥ H A P P Y . M O N D A Y ♥, 8. morning coffee, 9. sleepy coffee contemplation

these are my favourite coffee-cup-inspired photographs on flickr. well, you needed something warming to put in your newly cosy coffee cups!

nice ‘n’ cosy

1. little flowers coffee cosy, wayside violet

2. vintage thermos, le vintage maison

3. adorable bow coffee cup cosy, wayside violet

4. vintage ceramic tea pot with yellow cosy, the vintageholic frog

5. green and white knitted tea cosy, handy little me

6. the rust orange thermos, magpie mary

7. cable knit coffee cosy, wayside violet

8. egg cosy pattern, norah smith

9. cable knit mug cosy, wayside violet

when it’s so cold out that your morning latte is frozen before you’ve even stepped out the door, you need an extra helping hand keeping warm.

i love these adorable knitted cup cosies, which would be the perfect beginner’s knitting project for me! how sweet are the designs by wayside violet? the addition of the petals and bows on the takeaway cup cosies are just too cute! i’m thinking of trying to knit myself one in soft latte-coloured wool (how appropriate for my morning soya latte!) and adorning it with some of the gold vintage buttons i got in the holiday gift swap.

i also looove the vintage thermos flasks being sold by magpie mary and le vintage maison. these would be perfect to take on my forthcoming trip to dundee to visit the beau, to keep my hot chocolate warm during the six-hour train journey!

and i couldn’t resist adding in the cutest little egg cosy by norah smith. you can buy the quick and simple knitting pattern to make your own here.

hope you are keeping warm and snug wherever you are!

{you inspire me} emilie 79

oooh, i’m very excited to post the first {you inspire me} of the 2010 series, so let me introduce you to the wonderfully talented emilie 79!

i have long been an admirer of emilie’s beautiful parisian polaroids, which always make me think of jean-pierre jeunet’s amelie, which is one of my favourite films.

her photographs are truly unique, and each image she lovingly creates into a work of art, with the addition of tiny scraps of writing, illustrations or collage. the blue tint she adds develops the vintage nostalgia of the polaroid format, and further romanticises the parisian landscape (if that were at all possible!).

every time she updates her photostream i am in awe of her artistic talent, and she continually inspires me to view push the boundaries of my own photographs, and encourages me to continue the creative process beyond the image created just by pressing the shutter.

maybe one day i’ll share some of my own photographic montages, but none are nearly as beautiful as emilie’s photographs showcased here…

a fresh lick of paint

{st germaine}

{simple beauty}

{plush}

{paperback}

{new mexico}

there is always something about the start of a new year that makes me want to throw out the old, and start afresh.

so i was very excited to recieve an email from crown paint this morning, telling me about the new paint trends for 2010. my on-going love affair with paris means i’ve fallen in love with the classically romantic style of the st germaine trend, which would be perfect in a chic bedroom or dressing room. i’m also mad for the sun-drenched yellows and burnt oranges of the new mexico palette, which would be amazing in a bathroom adorned with bamboo accessories and overgrown succulents.

the paperback trend has been inspired by a bookshelf of faded penguin classics, and has wonderful accents of olive green and intense yellow, and the simple beauty palette reflects a more moderated and considered approach to consumption, harking back to traditional crafts, skills and materials. the premium plush palette perfectly encapsulates romanticised grown-up glamour, and features opulent tones that are at once darkly mysterious, yet beautiful.

ooo, which colour palette will you opt for in 2010?

breathe the new day

{via morning light in my room}

a new year

{all images via we heart it}

1. i am stupidly excited about seeing tim burton’s alice in wonderland, scheduled for release in the u.k on 5th march. i’m re-reading lewis carroll’s novel at the moment, and am busy planning my alice costume for my best friend’s wonderland-themed party in honour of the film’s release. please, please let it be as good as i hope!

2. i am also ridiculously excited to be taking part in susannah conway’s unravelling e-course, which starts next monday. i cannot wait to meet all of the other participants, to share stories and photos, and to benefit from susannah’s wise words and encouragement.

3. volume two from she & him, featuring the sultry vocals of the lovely zooey deschanel, is due out on 23rd march. i’ve definitely overplayed volume one, and have spent many an hour twirling and bopping along to it. fingers crossed volume two will be just as good!

4. i’ll finally get to see season 3 of mad men, which comes to bbc4 in the spring. about time i say!

5. i’m hoping to be able to plan a trip across the channel to paris sometime this year. it has been far, far too long since my last little jaunt, and i’m itching to wander the cobbled streets of monmartre and sip kir royals on the roof of la samaritaine again.

6. and may 2010 be the year i finally submit to the knit. there were a lot of people unhappy not to recieve hand-knitted scarves from yours truly this christmas…

7. 2010 will be the year i find the perfect pair of ankle boots

8. i’m looking forward to making lots more friends in the blogging world, everyone i have met this year has been so, so lovely!

and finally….

9. my beau will return home to me in september! yayyy!

(for those who don’t know, he has been studying in dundee since september. i cannot believe that by this september we will have spent an entire year apart – boo!)

{you inspire me} 2009

{delusion, honeypie living}

{anna amphigorously}

{sundrips, yyellowbird}

{inside man}

these are just four of my favourite flickr photographs from 2009. you can view the full {you inspire me} 2009 gallery on my flickr account here.

wow, what a year 2009 has been! i started this little blog in may, and i cannot believe how it has grown in such a short space of time. thank you from the bottom of my heart to each and everyone of you who has stopped by, for all your lovely comments and your on-going support. i hope you’ll continue to stop by here regularly to check out the new {you inspire me} series starting in 2010, which will profile my favourite photographers, illustrators, stylists and designers.

i wish you all a very happy new year and all the best for 2010. see you on the other side…

buttons galore

i’m very excited to be able to share with you a photograph of the wonderful assortment of buttons that carlie from razz the kid sent me as part of the holiday gift swap.

you wouldn’t believe how much i squealed when i opened the box and saw such a gorgeous jar, full of equally gorgeous golden buttons!

for some reason when i photographed the buttons in the jar you really couldn’t see how amazing they were, so i decanted them into this beautiful teacup (a present from a rather lovely friend of mine) and they looked so ravishing i had to share them with you!

the pool of tears

one of the films i’m looking forward to most next year is the release of tim burton’s alice in wonderland.

so it stands to reason that i would love these wonderland-inspired underwater photographs by elena kalis. you can see more of her amazing alice in waterland series here.

{via floddertje}