hallowe'ens past...

every year for hallowe'en, two of our best friends host an awesome, spooky, super crazy fun hallowe'en bash. and every year, the costumes get better and better. secrecy abounds in the weeks leading up to the event, and trying to figure out everyone's costume is tons of fun, as hints are dropped here and there. our group of friends go pretty much all-out for the occasion, and seem to raise the bar every year. it's definitely my favourite annual gathering, one my friends and i look forward to with delight as the night approaches. here are just a few pics of some of my fav costumes from hallowe'ens past. {hope you all don't mind my sharing them, thanks friends!}

from top :: dog + beth, gargamel, animal + janice , bender + leela

in the past 8 years, we've had parties with indiana jones; zoolander + katinka + mugatu; dee snyder; kiss [the whole band]; courtney love; prince; slash + axel; michael jackson [red silk shirt phase]; sally; shaggy + velma; yukon cornelius + hermey the elf; popeye + olive oyl; borat, wario + waluigi; buster + lucille 2; princess mononoke; spock + captain kirk; doc + marty mcfly; sayid + john locke; edward scissorhands; lydia + beetlejuice; the paperbag princess; higgins + magnum pi; margot + richie tenenbaum, wednesday addams...the list goes on. the costumes are always very well executed, with attention to every detail and creativity to spare. can't wait to see this year's crop!

modernemotive :: gorgeous paper goods

one of my most favourite things on the planet is paper. and i mean, i'm obsessed. i love the feel, the texture, the myriad of styles + colours + designs. i'm totally enamoured with office goodies, note pads, calendars, jotters, journals, books. you name it. but most of all i love stationery. there's nothing quite like well-designed, beautifully executed, and lovingly printed stationery. i love to collect cards and notes, and i must say, i often have a hard time parting with them. over the next while, i'm going to highlight paper goodies from some of my favourite shops, just a few times a week, to help me catalogue my obsession ;) i hope you'll join me!

on that note, i'd like to introduce you to modernemotive. designer + owner adele miller brings a sophisticated yet playful touch to her line of contemporary paper goods. i have been lucky enough to get to know adele over the past several months over on twitter. she was one of my first 'friends' in that crazy place, and i am so glad to have stumbled upon such a sweet, funny, caring, and talented gal.

it's easy to see that adele has a long history in graphic design. her patterns and layouts are some of the best i've seen in a long time. i love the use of subtle greys paired with punches of colours like tangerine, aqua, carnelian, and chartreuse.

part of modernemotive holidays 09 collection

what really draws me in to adele's work are the patterns. i think the wonder of a pattern is that it looks effortless, flawless, a perfect repeat. the fact is, repeats are one of the trickier graphic aspects to pull off properly, and adele achieves this with perfection.

a collection of thank you cards

another of my favourite design elements at modernemotive is adele's 'scribble' graphic. i love the look of the perfect hatching pattern within the letters or image. it reminds me of my endless doodling in highschool, just like this card. love it!

apple of my eye valentine greeting card

while it's exceedingly hard to choose, i think my favourite modernemotive card is the last one pictured above, the apple of my eye. that has long been one of my fave songs, and i just think it's a fantastic way to let someone know you care.

please check out the modernemotive etsy shop. it's a one-stop stationery shop chock full of notes, announcements, greetings, holiday cards, calling cards. i promise you'll love it. and if you're looking for a nice read, stop on by adele's blog and say hello, tell her i sent you :)

fog + trees

there's just something spooky about fog + trees. throw in the old dilapidated shack obscured by the dense mist, and you've got yourself an eerie photo perfect for the season. these photographs would make for some excellent atmosphere at your hallowe'en party.

images via shops as listed below, top to bottom

misty woods :: random crumb

haunt - 8x10 photograph :: traveling chariot

foggy burrit 5x5 print :: james lineback

homestead - original fine art photograph :: jared ks

hallowe'en decor

ghostly things indeed. just four more days till all hallows eve, and i thought these little bits of wall art could be that necessary last-minute addition to your holiday decor.

all images via shops as listed below, top to bottom.

ghostly things handprinted letterpress poster :: roll and tumble press

quoth the raven... :: paper acorn

spooky halloween blocks :: the bees knees designs

perfect fall day

we had a picture perfect fall day here in vancouver yesterday. crisp, sunny, blue sky. autumn leaves in yellow + orange + red + plum. i went for a short walk in the afternoon with my camera in hand. i snapped some shots, but it was so nice just to be out and walking around my neighbourhood, i spent most of the time seeing the world through my own eyes rather than my lens. i thought i'd share a few pics here, anyhow.

derek took the kids to victoria this weekend to visit his parents. it had been a while since our last visit, and i have been so busy lately that it seemed like a good opportunity for me to stay home to catch up and get through the orders i've got lingering around. on that note, i've removed all the custom and made-to-order items from my shop for the week. this should allow me to catch-up, and hopefully add a few new items later this week. i've got a little hallowe'en costume sewing to get finished, too. while it's nice to have this time to work uninterrupted, it's a little still around here, almost too quiet. almost.

lovely address file

oh, my. look at what my mailman brought me yesterday! i am beyond excited about this. sharilyn over at lovely design makes the most beautiful address files, and i have wanted one for a very long time. i'm a huge fan of sharilyn's style and aesthetic, and have shown pics of her covetable studio here before. the lovely design blog is a delight, too. every now and again sharilyn holds a giveaway for an address file on her blog, and guess who won this time? i could hardly believe it when she let me know. so so excited.

of course, the wrapping and packaging was impeccable. from the cute mailing label to the handmade recycled paper shred [so pretty!], card enclosure in a glassine envelope + bonus mini tags. i love how sharilyn wraps the file itself. she uses what look like old science textbook pages, taping them together and wrapping it with perfect precision. and the file. oh, the file. stocked with a pretty rainbow of coloured index cards, ready for me to write all my most important addresses. i can't wait to fill it up.

if you're looking for a beautiful address file with handmade vintage appeal, look here. you won't be disappointed.

thanks, sharilyn, it is absolutely gorgeous.

spooky papercuts

i'm loving papercuts these days. there are so many examples of fantastic papercut artistry out there, but today i thought i'd share some that convey a bit of an eerie vibe for the season. not sure why i find the butterfly spooky, but it may have something to do with this movie. moth, butterfly...you know. someday i'll get around to trying my hand at this intricate + delicate artform, but for now, i will ogle others' talents, and maybe buy a few.

images via shops as listed below, top to bottom.

bird mask papercut print :: elsita

original papercut illustration :: mr yen

swallowtail butterfly, original papercutting :: vegaslammy

papercuts - crows on tree :: mr macau

a green hallowe'en

like many others, i'm trying to be a little greener in my everyday life. of course at holiday times, there are so many opportunities to be a consumer. hallowe'en is topped only by christmas as the most consumerist holiday, and that inevitably means alot of disposable and discarded items. poorly made costumes worn only once, cheap plastic toys + trinkets, crappy decorations. but there are many alternatives, of course. vintage, thrifted, upcycled garments, even household items repurposed + used for costumes. natural, reusable or recyclable decor. eco-friendly party invitations + wrapping.

smidgebox hallowe'en treat buckets, the 09 batch

i definitely had this in mind when i made my hallowe'en treat buckets for my shop. i imagined they could be used year after year for trick or treating, but also as year round storage for small costume parts or little toys. so, i was beyond excited when i was contacted to take part in a green hallowe'en contest over at inhabitots! they found my shop at papernstitch last month, and contacted me to join in the fun. to enter, you just submit pictures of your creative diy green hallowe'en costume, and you could win some fun prizes, including a personalized jack on black treat bucket! so if you're thinking green for your tot this hallowe'en, head on over and enter to win!

in case you're wondering, i'm not making any more of these little guys until next year's batch. they were a big hit, and i can't wait to see some pics of wee trick-or-treaters sporting their smidgebox buckets!

the multi tasker

this is a new tote i'm getting ready to add to the shop. i made this particular one for a lovely friend, who asked me to make her a tote to use as a personal carry-all that doubles as a mama-bag, as she just welcomed her first baby.

it's a fairly simple silhouette, with one small and one large slip pocket on the outside. the inside is chock full of fabulous pockets. two are perfectly sized for holding a case of wipes and a few diapers, but can easily be used for a wallet, small notebook, snack, or the like. there is a small pocket for a cell phone, a pen slip, key strap with carabiner, and a medium zip pocket for goodies that must stay hidden. the straps fit comfortably over one shoulder, and are the right length that the bag won't hit the ground if you hold them down in your hand. it's a pretty good sized tote, and i've decided to call it the multi tasker, as i figure it could probably meet a whole range of needs.

what do you think? i'll be whipping up a few more of these in the next while to have at my craft shows this holiday season, and to put in the shop. hope you like it!

a pile of cloth blocks

look at all those blocks, i've been buried in them for the past month ;)

still three more sets to come in the next couple weeks, too. phew! lucky for me, i enjoy making them + love that each set is different.

a new name, a new colour scheme, a new stack of fabrics...

fabric buckets

i wanted to share a few things i've been working on lately. first up, fabric buckets! mostly custom orders, and a couple items thrown in for the shop.

{clockwise from top left}

'h' fireworks bucket

'c' green elephant bucket

spotted octopus, available in the shop

stone birds, available in the shop

'b' gift set, commissioned for a new baby in a chicago cubs loving family!

the prettiest tape

look what the mailman brought me yesterday. it makes me happy, i can't wait to use it for some pretty packaging! speaking of pretty packaging, check out the adorable gingham glassine bags that were sent along as a bonus. cute, no? i don't know if i'll have the heart to use them, i just want to keep them for myself!

pretty japanese washi tape, from lovepetitzakkajapan on etsy

one of a kind, vancouver

we had a busy weekend that just passed. it was thanksgiving, so thankfully we had three days off, but it was chock full! one birthday party, lots of sewing, one newly decorated nursery [our baby girl is 15 months, we figured it was high time she had a painted, pretty + styled room], and finally some pictures hung in our son's room, too. phew! all that and a turkey dinner on monday, to boot.

with all this going on, i still managed to sneak out of the house for a couple hours on friday night to check out the one of a kind show downtown. i'm glad i went, i met some lovely local design folk, and even picked out a few goodies to bring home. there were so many things to love, but i'll share just a smattering with you here.

{clockwise from left}

cabin + cub :: track and field :: the beautiful project

contexture design

{clockwise from left}

little red caboose :: uppercase magazine :: flightpath designs

mizzonk

i'll be back later in the week to share some things i've been working on. as i mentioned yesterday, it's been a little nutty around here, but i will be back to some semblance of normalcy next week, i promise.

busy busy busy

busy street at night., originally uploaded by hak aka Lewis Lin.

this picture perfectly expresses the rushing feeling i've got these days. [sorry it's a little cut off, something i haven't figured out with flickr-to-blogger with my narrow blog layout. anyone care to enlighten me?]

i've been busy! lots to get finished this week, and sent off in time for baby showers + halloween. i know i've been a little spotty the past while in this space, but i have some cool things i want to share from the 'one of a kind' show [which i snuck away to for a couple hours last friday night]. it's also been a while since i showed you anything i've been working on. i'll throw a few pics your way later in the week.

man friday

thinking about friday, start of a long weekend here in canada. liking this limited edition giclee print of man friday, part of a series depicting this colourful bird's wanderings, by san diego artist pragya k. i have rather enjoyed browsing her etsy shop this morning, you should check it out!

'man friday goes house hunting'

limited edition giclee print by pragya k.

the ubiquitous bubble lamp

while i love the bamboo veneer pendant i mentioned yesterday, it would probably add up to a little too much wood for our room. i've always had a soft spot for nelson bubble lamps. i know i'm not alone, but i think they're great in a bedroom, emitting a soft, subtle glow. my faves are the classic saucer + the criss cross saucer. yes, i think one of these would be just perfect.

images via modernica

bamboo veneer lighting

so we need some new lighting in our bedroom. really, i'd love to overhaul the whole room, but all new furniture is not in the cards right now. just the necessities. i like these bamboo veneer 'moso lamps' by schmitt design out of california. i found them on branch, which, by the way, is a great place to browse for high-style, eco-friendly and sustainable design. lots + lots of cool stuff.

image via branch

autumn colour week :: red heads

i absolutely love hats. always have. i've got a fair collection, but i don't have any red ones. so here are my red head picks, in keeping with today's theme for autumn colour week.

{clockwise from top left}

rosette fascinator - the flamingo :: giant dwarf

anouk in burgundy :: claudia schultz

008 hair comb :: l'ape zoppa

feruto felt cap racer :: feruto

1920's cloche, clay polka dot :: bonnie's knitting

classic cloche, red + black plaid with rosette :: millinerium

sonia rabbit cloche hat :: eugenia kim, via net-a-porter

{centre}

red cloche :: yellowfield7

autumn colour week :: brown = cosy

after a gorgeous sunny day yesterday, we are back with the rains here in vancouver. i thought these picks were perfect for a cosy day inside, and in keeping with autumn colour week, they are all in lovely warm shades of brown. i am dying to try all the edibles i chose here, it was all i could do to stop myself from adding them all to my cart last night. in due time.

{clockwise from top left}

the original pumpkin chocolate truffles :: jane of all trades

apple sweater - handknit - terra firma brown :: handmaiden bc

trocadero - fleur de sel caramel :: galipette

one pound cinnamon sticks :: it's meow or never

bamboo pebbles :: bambu, via branch

earl grey sandwich cookies :: whimsy & spice

{centre}

women's french press felted slippers - tan :: french press knits