Voila - an office!

The last week has been very busy at Cartolina - new app launch, big orders, new catalogues and a whole bunch of pretty new designs that had to be finalized for printing by today. So I had pretty much run out of steam last night - no post for you, sorry! But I stumbled on this this morning and I just had to show you. What a clever way of installing an office reading nook into your living space. It looks like it was previously a closet. Beautiful and so inspiring! From Whimages.

Style Francais!

When I have spare time (like I have any of that!) I love to browse the pages of Marie Claire Idée. We are lucky in Canada because there's a good selection of French style magazines to be had at the news stand. And, you know what, they are so French, it's fabulous! So, if you're not in Canada and you'd love a little French flair, Marie Claire Idée is online - enjoy!

A visit to the market - #1

I really like the Poppytalk Handmade Market so today I am going to feature some fab finds from the holiday market. First up are these wonderful ribbon buckles from D Sharp - letterpress embellishments for your gift wrapping - so cute!

D Sharp

A visit to the market - #2

Next up are these wonderful calendars from The Paper Thieves. I'm a big fan of this designer's work - and these are so original, unique and innovative - what a great gift!

The Paper Thieves

A visit to the market - #3

Lovely vintage treats from our 3rd market vendor, Odd and Old. It's not just handmade gifts at The Poppytalk Handmade Market - there are some fabulous vintage and antique gifts too!

Odd and Old

Get The Look

There's a great article and some fab sources at Etsy this morning in their Get The Look Decor series. I think you'll love it - eye candy galore. Go now!

Inspiration - vintage playing cards

I'm finalizing some new card designs for Cartolina this week - must get them to the printer by the end of the week if they're going to be ready for the January shows. I spotted these old playing cards which gave me a little inspiration boost yesterday. I really like the herringbone border on the pink cards.

Available from the Vintage Scrapshop!

Happy weekend!

You can see more images and info on our 2 Cartolina iPhone apps right here!

Sweet stuff

I recently met Canadian cake diva Rosie Alyea(Sweetapolita) on Twitter. You must go right now and check out her incredible blog. Not only is she a very talented baker but she is also an incredibly good food stylist and photographer - combine these assets with a fabulous sense of design and you have the most wonderful eye candy. Every time I tune into Rosie's blog I am blown away by her skills and the way she generously shares her professional secrets. Looking for a beautiful cake for an upcoming event - look no further! Introducing Sweetapolita . . . oh my gosh this looks so yummy . . .

Found - enamel panels by Janine Partington

Enamel on copper panels by Janine Partington. Aren't these clever? The white is the enamel(glass) and the copper is the substrate. Fab!

New love

I went to Victoria last weekend. When I'm in Victoria I never miss an opportunity to visit Fan Tan Gallery - one of my favourite shops. This time I fell in love with an Indian quilt and couldn't think straight for the rest of the afternoon - so had to go back and get it! What hooked me was the bright orange and turquoise panels lying next to the muted rose and teal panels - I love it. The quilt is very crudely done and overwashed which makes it even better as far as I'm concerned. It's covered in rows of tiny, bright coloured stitches - I'm in love!

I've found some more washi tape - at Fred Flare. This time with polka dots. I know you love this stuff ;-)

Found - Narcise

Being so obsessed by old engravings I couldn't pass this by - a vintage Japanese bank note layered between glass and silver. I don't know about you but I never get bored with this type of pendant - I can look at tatty bits of ephemera under glass for hours on end! This piece is by Narcise.

It's here! The new Cartolina Holiday app is now available at the app store. We've been working hard on this for the last few weeks and are thrilled to be able to offer it to you as of today!

Our Holiday app is all about sending brief but beautifully festive messages using one of our customizable Cartograms. Choose from the selection of holiday designs, customize your message and then you can either email or text it to the lucky recipient. The Cartolina app supports dozens of languages and allows you to send to multiple recipients. I think that the Holiday app will be fabulous for pretty party invitations this season. But that's not all - due to popular demand we have added a 4th line of text for your messages. So now, instead of 3 lines you have 4 lines available to you. And, yes, we will be adding a 4th line to the original Cartolina app in the next couple of weeks when we upgrade the app with a new selection of Cartograms. The Cartolina Holiday app is available for just $1.99. *Click here for more details and a direct link to the app store.* If you are looking for the app at the app store on your phone, search for 'cartolina' and it should pop up!

The Cartolina Holiday app is a great alternative to sending a plain email or text message.

For less than the price of a card, $1.99, the Cartolina Holiday app is available from the Apple iTunes store.

For more information on the app or any other Cartolina products please email me.

Check out or website at www.cartolina.com

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