Displaying posts from October, 2010

If you’d like to send us photos to include in next week’s “pets on furniture” post, please ensure your photos follow our basic rules: First, the pet must be on a piece of furniture. And said piece of furniture must be clearly visible in the photo, so it takes center stage rather than your pet. (Think of it more of a photo of a great piece of furniture that you want to show off…and your pet happens to be sitting on it). And second, the photo must be of decent quality. If it’s dark or fuzzy (from a camera phone) then it may not make the cut. Thanks! (Photos, your name, location and a brief description can be sent to desiretoinspirekim@hotmail.comand PLEASE don’t send me closeups of your pet!)

“Danny is our Aussie Shepherd X who shares my passion for bright colours and gorgeous (if not slightly over the top) furniture.  He loves our turquoise sofa just as much as I do!”
– Agata (Hamilton, On)

“Lily thinks she is the Queen of England and just loves to sit on her Ercol Evergreen throne where she can survey her kingdom. It’s a hard life!”
– Cat and Matt (London, England)

“This is our Spoodle Maggie chilling out on our Ikea floral chair and leather lounge. She really doesn’t have that much to be sad about (it’s all for the camera).”
– D&J

“Here’s my year-old kitty Yoni on ‘his’ sofa – you can see ‘his’ tree in the background, and his attempts to destroy the sofa (a hand-me-down from my parents) on the left. I made the cushions myself and the wool cloud rug (which he loves) is by Donna Wilson. Also a bonus photo of when he was smaller and used to hang out on the fireplace mantel.”
– Katie

“We have four cats and each one has its favorite place in the house, like Clarita “on the safe highlands” and Biancchino in the drawer. But sometimes some of them get together for a nap in our vintage armchair.”
– Maristela (Brazil)
  

“First photo is Bodhi, on one of two Ikea sofa’s in the living room. He sleeps like this often. The other photo is Oliver the cat and Bodhi’s sister, Brinkley, later in the day on the same sofa. I, of course, was on the other sofa, so they had to share. You’ve featured Brinkley before, sprawled out on the coffee table.”
– Beverly (Houston TX)

“This is Gus, our 3 year old Portuguese Water Dog, loves to lay on our bed.  He feels like a king when I let him on the bed. I only do this when my husband is out of town! He is the best pet ever -so sweet and lovable.”
– Melanie

“This is Sullivan and his chair. Almost 3 and shares his birthday with Brittany Spears!”
– Andy (NYC)

“I bought a school desk to replace my London Tier phone book table. It just didn’t “tie the room together” This is Yap-Yap, my Maine Coon/Siamese mix in her new napping place. So much for a phone sitting there.”
– Gina (Portland, OR)

“‘Moss’ chilling out on the bean bag”
– Hilary (Brisbane, Australia)

“Puck on chair.”
– Jackson

“vivi is my 15-year-old persian. needless to say that she sleeps 24h a day.”
– Christiana (Brasilia, Brazil)

I think I need a holiday. I have spent the past 2 days in bed with a migraine. Too much stress, too many deadlines, not enough time to breathe. I’m dreaming of running away to a piece of paradise somewhere special. Welcome Beyond hand picks the most beautiful and unique vacation properties around the world. I lost my heart in Florence on my first and only visit. A truly magnificent city and beautiful people (perhaps that is why I lost my heart!). My fantasy return involves this beautiful hotel, Riva Lofts. The trouble is there are too many stunning properties on Welcome Beyond‘s books as you will see…

Still dreaming of a getaway. Perhaps Locanda al Colle in Camaiore, Tuscany. Stylish and well appointed with an eclectic yet luxurious decor with hints of the 40s and 50s. A relaxed retreat for international travellers. Even better this is not an hotel but a home open to guests. Perfect base for exploring a part of Italy that I can never forget.

And as much as I love the easy elegance and luxury of the above properties (hardly rustic I think you would agree) the property that tugs at my heart is The Beachouse in Vendays-Montalivet, Medoc, France. Memories of lazy family holidays in a shack right on the beach come flooding back. A house that is not too precious. Where it is all about family and friends, fun and days spent lost in the sand dunes. Bliss! Want to join me?

Over the last couple days I was agonizing once again over what the heck I was going to do for today’s Flickr Finds post. I was SO running out of ideas for those posts and these days I am finding that alot of photos on FLickr that I’d LOVE to use are download-disabled. I thought about instead doing a “weekly recap” – showcasing all of my favourite photos from the posts we had done the week prior. I’ll give it a try this week and see how it goes (click on the photo to go to the post it was featured in).

… still borrowing pictures from Kim’s fab flickr

WINKS – weekend links. Here we list what has come in during the week, things we’ve found and things we think you’ll want to see. If you’d like to see your blog or website featured email us and if we think it fits with our readers we’ll link you. So what’s in this week?

• Beautiful rugs combining Aboriginal designs and traditional Kashmiri rug-making techniques. Chain stitched, using hand dyed wool and finished with a heavy cotton backing, each rug is a completely handmade piece.  Even better this project is owned by the artists, rather than licensed to a third party. A more empowering way to work, this brings many direct benefits to the artists and their community. You can find them here.

• Cheeky, retro, vintage and just a touch naughty. Love these handmade wallpapers and homewares by Dupenny. “Sense of humour is always priority” says the website. Burlesque in the bathroom perhaps? Pasties in the parlour? I know I need those tiles for my new old kitchen!

• How beautiful is the rich red of the 2010 hand-dipped Winter Seasonal Collection from Heath Ceramics? And the lovely tonal values of Snow Dip. Want to wrap my hands around a cup of hot chocolate in one of those mugs.

• Playing with the shape of an arc but with steel and concrete and a fine red wire the AD 46/10 by Romain Duclos of Rlos Design. Clean modern lines balancing lightweight frame and the solidity of a heavy weight. Love the whimsy of the coloured flex.

• Hello minimalist lovelies! Elegant, sleek, functional. Fabulous pieces by well-groomed-fox. That has to be the best business name I have heard in ages!

There’s another new online magazine in town folks! And this one is CANADIAN!! We received an email from Jessica, the art director, who with Lynda Felton (stylist) and Rhonda Riche (writer), decided to create an online mag joining all of the experience they had in the Canadian magazine industry (the likes of Canadian Living, Chatelaine, Flare, Style at Home, Canadian House & Home….). They say Covet Garden is for folks who are curious about real spaces. It’s a peek into the homes and lives of some of Toronto’s most interesting people – but the kicker is they are spaces that have not been styled by interior decorators. Love that! I grabbed a bunch of photos from their first 2 issues. The first several are of the Leslieville home of teachers Shelley and Brendon and their daughter Clover.