Ephemera

Vintage ephemera can quickly become an obsession, as most of you probably know. One of my favourite places to get my fix is Bibliodyssey. The weird and the magical on paper - some jaw dropping pieces and some head scratching anomalies. Love these . . . .

Inspiration

There's a very odd, but very interesting, collection of treasures over at Bohemienne's shop. Love this little settee and the crinolin skirt. I've seen lots of pretty dresses hanging as decorations recently - great idea, have you tried this?

Board?

You may have heard me on Twitter - looking for organizational ideas for the studio. I have a large wall that I want to create an interactive notice board to keep us organized. We have distributors in 5 countries and I need to keep on top of each account. I don't particularly want a chalk board because I know that certain people will find it very hard not to embellish every note they write! So I had decided that a white board was the solution(yuck). But as I was browsing the Pottery Barn catalog I noticed a few good ideas including grouping a collection of small whiteboards together(below.) I think I might try that idea - but I like these boards too - I always fall for pretty over practical - must stop doing that!

I think this(above) might be the solution - a grouping of small whiteboards - it would keep the accounts organized and look better than one big, shiny, wobbly, white sheet - anythings better than that!

Found

I think these are so cute - pin cushion toppers - who knew such things existed - not me! But I love this idea(and I think my mother in law might love them too!) you can see more right here at Pinks and Needles.

Found

These pretty pillows are perfect for some spring redecorating - from Wendinskan!

Found

Some well placed patterns in unlikely places via Skona Hem. That's an interesting concept that I haven't seen before - a photograph of old school embroidery on a slick modern surface! I like it!

Found

A very pretty pair of vintage embroidery scissors from Luz. These are wonderful - cast steel - delicate but industrial. If I saw these is an antique store I would pick them up in an instant! {I must show you my antique paper scissors some time - they are very narrow and almost 18" long - sharp as a razor, tho they are probably 75 years old.)

$9.99 - steal!

Blogging it Forward

Today I am delighted to be Blogging it Forward! 300 bloggers, are partaking in a chain letter of blog posts. Yesterday's post in my group was by Button and Bean. If you have been following along you will know that the theme is "What Inspires Me." Cafe Cartolina has always been a collection of things that inspire me, so this was an easy task. I decided to be completely self indulgent and to pull from my favourite posts in the last couple of years. I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed putting it together. I'd love to know what inspires you - write me a comment way down at the bottom right after the 3 lanterns . . . . .

I'm inspired by Vintage ephemera:

Map from here, Above from John Derian

I'm inspired by decaying surfaces:

Elephant from Bella Luna

Above from Butik Sophie

These tile images are all from a fabulous collection by Rosa Pomar right here.

I'm inspired by vintage industrial anything:

Above images from "The Recycled Home" via Curious Sofa Diaries

Best shelving system on the market, above, from the Sundance Catalogue

Above from Cleveland Art - below from Style at Home

Above from Butik Sophie

I'm inspired by vintage storefronts:

I'm inspired by the colours and textures of other eras and cultures:

Above image by Kim Kyung Soo for Vogue Korea

Lastly I want to quote from my Blogger profile because I think it sums up my love for vintage . "I have a need to actively interact with vintage design - not just collect it and display it - it's a way for me to play with it and share it with others. Old steel engravings, lead type, wood block prints and hand written documents. I have a love of the old but a desire to be current. It's not that I am obsessed with everything old, it's just a reality, in the quest for artistic inspiration, that one will inevitably often end up back at the old stuff - you don't find inspiration at Walmart!

Don't miss tomorrow's post by Candied Fabrics. Thanks Victoria from sfgirlbybay for organizing the Blog It Forward Event.

Note: All of the images on this post have been seen here before - and credited before. If there is a particular image that you would like information on please email me - thanks.