Love this guy's work. Jon Contino - he makes it look so easy! Hand lettered with an authentic, block printed vibe - luv!

Ephemera

Don't you love these? - little book seller's labels. From here.

A couple of lighting choices that I REALLY like - from Villa d'Esta. This floor lamp is fabulous, don't you think? I would truly love to have it in our living room.

Nice!

Mmmmm, this is nice! Doug took a picture of this vintage bird cage at Fan Tan Gallery (one of my fave stores) last week. I noticed the pictures on the camera yesterday and I was like - wait a minute, that was for sale and I didn't see it? Didn't you think I might want to buy it? Sheesh - men!

Inspiration - type

Guess what these are? Vintage outboard engine logos from the wonderful little maritime museum at Cowichan Bay. Fab vintage type from lots of different eras.

Hello!

Good morning! How's everyone? We got back last night from a lovely trip to Vancouver Island. Had great fun - despite the flat tire on the Mini in the middle of nowhere! I'm looking forward to showing you a fab café today that we found in Victoria and a few fun vintage things over the next couple of days - read on . . . .

Boats at Cowichan Bay.

On a Mission.

I picked up this sweet little pennant at a little antique shop on our way back through BC yesterday - thought it was super sweet and I like it's mini size!

It's all in the details - and the coffee, of course!

I have a favourite new café in Victoria - The Union Pacific Coffee Co. Doug and I were so impressed with the style and decor in this place - we were convinced that a graphic designer must have built the interior because it seems to all revolve around the name, the logo and the theme. It has a great Pacific Northwest feel with giant vintage beams and lots of natural materials. I absolutely love the wall of old doors - can you see them? They go all the way behind the kitchen and then there are a couple of enormous ones on rollers that slide closed to hide some storage. There are lots of iron plumbing fixtures incorporated into the wall displays, the decor and the furniture and some wonderful vintage, cast iron table bases. The menu is built like a train station timetable and it feels like at any minute the numbers will al flip randomly! It's been a long time since I've been inspired by an interior like I am by this one and I hope these pictures do it justice. The Union Pacific Coffee Co. 537 Herald St, Victoria, BC.

Note the 'wall of doors' and the iron pipe seating.

The Cartolina iPhone app, available here.

Vintage buckles

I find these celluloid or shell buckles all the time in junk stores. I always buy them because they're so pretty and I use them with scarves. I spotted this tutorial on how to make them into little frames at Martha Stewart. I'm not sure I'll do this but I love the image of the buckles and I'll definitely continue to collect them.

Fan-tastic

This is cool - a vintage Singer Sewing Machine advertising fan. So pretty and in mint condition. From Eclectic Pelican.

Hutch Makeover

Loved this makeover at Apartment Therapy. This hutch was transformed by Jesyka D'Itra Marés. She did a great job - you can see the full post on her blog, Visual Vocabulary (love the name of that blog!)

Foundling Swatches

I'm quite moved by these and I think you will be too. I found them at wildmuse.net via a link on Pinterest. They are from the Foundling Museum in London and, believe it or not, there are 5000 swatches!

From Wildmuse - "Fragments. Remembrances. Scraps of cloth or small tokens attached to the handwritten records of foundling children were kept as a means of identification. It was hoped that these remembrances would be a means of one day uniting mother and child under more hopeful circumstances.

Occasionally, there were happy endings where the child was reclaimed, apprenticed, or adopted. However, more often than not, the foundling children immortalized in these unusual ledgers died young and were buried in unmarked graves. What almost all of them have in common is that this is all that is left of their existence, which is perhaps more of a mark than most people leave, even those who have happier beginnings or more successful lives.

There are just bits of cloth, a ribbon or a button attached to the faded pages in a record book, something so practical and seemingly ordinary which have across time and upon rediscovery become completely fascinating. So beautiful and sad. Haunting.

Apparently someone on the hospital staff folded the paper sheets into small packages of nine folds, most of which were never opened, and eventually collected into books. For this reason, they were accidentally preserved and rediscovered two and a half centuries later."

There is another good post and more of these images right here.

Inspiration?

I like this bar cart from Pottery Barn but when I saw it I was immediately reminded of a similar piece that the clever chaps at Cleveland Arts produce(see bottom picture). Cleveland Art source amazing, historical, American industrial salvage and restore and redesign into one of a kind pieces in their LA workshop. The PB piece is made in China. Remarkably similar wouldn't you say ;-)

Pottery Barn - above.

Cleveland Art - above - made in the US.

Textured tutorial

I've been looking for the source of this first image for days and finally found the blog where it originated. This is a tutorial on how to decoupage with eyelet or lace. I think it's very effective and I'm going to try this - just as soon as I retrieve my box of fabric from behind 900 lbs of cards! I think this is a good one for you guys to try - and then send me a pic!

Pillow inspiration at Crate and Barrel

I spotted this pillow at Crate and Barrel - I was immediately reminded of one of the Quilts of Gee's Bend. The designer was probably inspired by the random shapes and colours of those fabulous quilted creations.