henri, je t'aime!

Henri Rousseau is on my mind. Love his cheerful colors, climbing greenery and fantastical landscapes. One of the many things I admire about Rousseau is that although he painted a lot of jungle scenes, he never left France. He would get inspiration from visiting various exhibitions and the greenhouses at the Jardin des Plantes in Paris. Such a great imagination! Unfortunately, like a lot of now-famous artists, he was not recognized for his work until after his death. Being self-taught, he was ridiculed and many critics considered his work flat and juvenile. In reality, he was at the forefront of the vanguard movement among post-impressionists, influencing many other artists, including Picasso, Matisse and others. So, that's a pretty big "face!" to those snooty critics. I was lucky to see a huge exhibition of something like 50 of his paintings in 2006 in D.C. at the National Gallery. It was amazing. Some of my favorite of his paintings are, from above, Myself, Portrait-Landscape, 1890, National Gallery, Prague, and Woman Walking in an Exotic Forest, 1905, The Barnes Foundation, Merion, Pennsylvania, and more below:

The Dream, 1910, Museum of Modern Art, New York

The Wedding, 1904-05, Musée de l'Orangerie, Paris

 The Artillerymen, 1893-5
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York

The Banks of the Bièvre near Bicêtre, 1908
Metropolitan Museum of Art

Bouquet of Flowers, 1910, Tate Gallery, London

{All images by Henri Rousseau from Henri Rousseau: Jungles in Paris, ed. Frances Morris and Christopher Green, Abrams, New York, 2006}

tote it!

Recently discovered this new book, The Tote Bag by Jitesh Patel. A designer himself, Jitesh runs Jai Studio out of London and is also the author of the Tote Prints blog. The book is a photo survey of various tote bag designs by illustrators and designers from around the world. Even the book itself is wrapped in an actual tote bag. So cool! I ordered a copy, but in the meantime and in the spirit of toteness, here are some bags I found on etsy. Any one of these would be great for groceries, flea market finds, workout gear or hauling around art supplies. Check them out!

 Navy Kelp Tote by Zanna

 Cable Knit Tote by Justine Ellis

Passing Whales Tote by Bright Beige

Art/Punk Tote by Punk Masters

Keep it Chill Tote by Anna Tillett Designs

Dutch Tulip Tote by dutch door press

Nerd Glasses Tote by Naomi Cayne

 Red Check Tote by Rose de Borman

Gingerbread Fox Storybook Tote by Crowsmack

{Photos from top: The Tote Bag by Jitesh Patel, and Etsy shops: Zanna Printed Textiles, Justine Ellis, Bright Beige, Punk Masters, Anna Tillett Designs, dutch door press, Naomi Cayne, Rose de Borman, and Crowsmack.}

february inspiration

Where are you, Springtime? Seems like everyone's got either rain or snow right about now. Bring on some sun, please! Since we've got at least a month until daylight savings, I've been web-collecting a few things here and there to brighten up your day. Here are just a few - voila!

First up and pictured above is the Colour Mania book series. You can get yours at the delightful Rare Device online store. They have all kinds of other awesomeness, too.

 Above and below, photos from the Kate Spade site of their store on 5th in New York. I'm a sucker for anything stripey, and cannot get enough of these cheerful colors. I want to live in this room.

And, I'm so excited about the brand new issue of Lonny magazine - hot off the virtual press today! My dream sofa is pictured below, photographed by Patrick Cline and art directed by Editor-in-Chief Michelle Adams (co-founders of the magazine).

Photos below (also by Cline and Adams) are from another Lonny spread about the fantastic design work of Betsy Burnham. Those casement windows are just beautiful.

Speaking of Michelle Adams, her lovely line of organic cotton fabrics, Rubie Green, is making me want to reupholster everything I own. Photo below, from the Rubie Green site, features the East Village and Megan patterns.

{All photos in this post are from the shops/designers listed with each item.}

holiday gift guide 2009 – part deux

 Hello again and happy holidays! Now that the feeding frenzy of Thanksgiving and the mass bedlam of Black Friday are behind us, the gift-giving season is in full effect. Without further ado, here are some more unique and creative suggestions for your loved ones.

Pictured above is a lovely pillow from designer Lena Corwin. The whole site has some really nice ideas for your home.

For more home goods, you must check out the fantastic bedding and pillows at John Robshaw. Absolutely gorgeous, albeit a big splurge.

 For the book or design lovers on your list, the new hardcover Pictorial Webster's is a must-have for any desktop. Available at Chronicle Books and other online booksellers.

More fun desk/office/school supplies include this fantastic fluorescent pencil set from Spoon Sisters.

And, this set of fun, cheerful happy tape is a great gift. I'm dying to wrap a package in kraft paper and use this tape to make a plaid pattern all around the box.

For the calendar-lovers on your list, this desk calendar from Moleskine is a perfect stocking stuffer, available at the great guy shop, Gent Supply Co.

I am loving pretty much everything from Present and Correct, especially this fun grid blackboard. I may have to get this one for myself!

This is the grown-up version of glow-in-the-dark constellations on your ceiling – the Personal Planetarium from Restoration Hardware.

Oh! So pretty. This necklace will be a most welcome gift, perfect for any New Year's Eve frock. Available at Anthropologie.

These stylish Flight Bags from Wm. J. Mills and Co. are perfect for guys or girls and available in tons of colors. The vintage styling is really nice and the heavy canvas makes them durable and ready to last for years. (Found via the delightful blog Design Crush.)

I love this vintage xylophone player from the Hindsvik shop on etsy. So bright and colorful and a cute, one-of-a-kind kid's gift!

A nice gift for a co-worker pal or anyone's stocking is this beautifully packaged candle from Saipua. Available at Bird.

And, finally, for the naughty peeps on your list, they will love this coal chewing gum! Available at Paper Source.

{All photos in the gift guides are from the shops/designers listed with each item.}

holiday gift guide 2009 - part one

I've been collecting ideas for a gift guide series for a few months now. From books and stocking stuffers to some really beautiful vintage finds, here's the first part of the series – much more to come in the next few weeks. In the meantime, hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving!

First up, and pictured above, is a vintage classroom map from the trampoline shop on etsy. trampoline has lots and lots of specially curated vintage treasures, including the vintage dice collection pictured below.

Penguin Classics finally released their Coralie Bickford-Smith-designed cloth-bound collection here in the U.S. They are not just beautiful to display on your bookshelf, these are meant to be read – the absolute best classics, including Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice and Wuthering Heights, among others.

These mercury pendant lights from Mothology are just so pretty. They would look as beautiful over a dining table as they would in your home office.

With the demise of Polaroid, Fuji Instax is a nice replacement. Available through lots of retailers, I found this one and refill film over at Urban Outfitters.

Another Urban Outfitters find is this antique-inspired industrial accordion table. The price is a steal, and it would look great in almost any space.

If anyone on your gift list is as wild about office supplies as I am, this bright orange Swingline stapler from CB2 would be a great stocking stuffer.

More office/school supplies! This full set of yummy colored pencils from MUJI at the MoMA Store are almost too pretty to use.

For the little ones on your list, I love this fun, stripey duck by Esthex, available at Twig.

And, Pink Chicken has adorable kid's clothing - this Tess Dress is so sweet.

Another one for the kids, or yourself, is this delightful, limited-edition alphabet poster from Anna Bond's Rifle Paper Co. She just opened her shop this week and it is incredible!

For the men in your life, this cool vintage-looking Stanley flask from Restoration Hardware would be a great gift.

Another nice one for the guys, or maybe more for you? Whichever it is, this garter and stockings set from Academy for Wayward Girls is just awesome.

{All photos in the gift guide are from the shops/designers listed with each item.}