Pretty Things You Don't Need But Want: Nordic Glass Birds

It's not secret that I love everything Scandinavian and I mostly shop at Ikea. In Singapore Ikea used to be the only place for scandinavian style, but now there's a more expensive range from Style Nordic which is now open a Delfi Orchard (isn't that a flood prone place?) to tempt us. These glass birds at their website were so beautiful, they need to be blogged. Sadly they are priced out of my budget, from $149 - $999! I hope that's in Singapore dollars.

Singapore's Etsy Girls

I wasn't aware that the Etsy store had sellers from this tiny island as well. It was quite refreshing to stumble upon them. I first came across the delightful Paper Exploits run by Kelly, a Literature undergraduate at the National University of Singapore (she must be a book lover too). I adore her monster bookmarks.




Then there's saplanet by Lis, with handcrafted products you can make yourself. This crochet doll craftwork is called Amigurumi and looks fun to do. I was attracted by this see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil set. She sells both the dolls and the doll making kits if you're into exploring your artistic side.

Amigurumi is the Japanese art of knitting or crocheting small stuffed animals or dolls. The Japanese words ami, means crocheted or knitted, and nuigurumi, means stuffed doll.




I also came across Lily at Lily Pang, who does lovely paintings of owls which she sells as laptop stickers as well. It's just nice to see Singaporeans exploring their artistic side.

More Nordic Design Inspiration

If it's possible to fall in love with a room, then this room and me are soul mates. The red silver wallpaper and the full wall book case make me swoon. I love Swedish Design and I wish I could understand the language so that I can read their design magazines. The breathtakingly beautiful images that I long to replicate, are from Skona Hem.



I want that painting in Chartreuse and the hot pink lamp. I think this would only work in an all white room for the lovely contrast.

Nordic Design Inspiration

Here are some pictures that inspired me today. I just like looking at beautiful things, but who doesn't. What struck me about this bedroom is the gorgeous iron wrought floor lamp. All the decor images originate from Skona Hem, a swedish design magazine.



The red ikea clock looks so striking in this mostly white room. I love the red and white print rugs as well.

Pink is a Tricky Hue

How to make pink walls work and not make the room appear too garish. There is a fine line between tasteful and tacky. If your bedroom is pink and tacky, learn how to make it sophisticated at Style at Home.



{Images: Style at Home}

I liked this tip from Decorator Anne of Cincinnato Interiors:

A modern look for pink is to balance it with chromes and brushed nickels. Soft pink paired with accents of whites and creams gives a room a fresh look -- as long as the pink isn't overdone.

Enchanted Dolls

These captivating porcelain dolls are by its creator Marina Bychkova (Russian origins) who aspires to:

....create dolls with so much love that they enchant people at first sight with their compelling, delicate, life-like beauty.

This beautiful creation with henna work on it is named Lavanya. All her dolls seem to have haunting limpid far apart eyes and bruised lips.



The peacock tattoo on this doll's back took my breath away with its intricate detail.



Is it just me or does this last doll look a little like Singapore's famously doll-faced local blogger Dawn Yang?





Update: Well maybe this one looks a fraction more like her, because her lips are not that bee stung?



Look at more of The Enchanted dolls here. They have an erotic quality and are definitely more a work of Art that you would find in a museum, than for a child to play with.  It seems they cost a whopping $5000 each.

Thinking Pink

Beautiful print called Emma Armchair by Etsy seller, Emmakisstina. Boy would I love to have that hanging over my bed. What a lovely focal point that would be.



I love the candy striped furniture and the opulent shocking pink carpet in Amanda Peet's Living Room featured on the now discontinued Design magazine, Domino.



Zooey Deschanel on the cover of this wonderful little magazine in 2009. Bubblegum pink and blue-toned red add lovely contrast to the cool blues on the cover page.

Modern Placemats

According to the Modern Twist website, you can actually get these cool placements at Takashimaya in Singapore. They cost a whopping US$18 each. I think maybe I'd better stick to the pretty ones at Ikea which cost about a fraction of that. Will keep looking.

Supersized Knitting

30 year old, Dutch designer, Christien Meindertsma, started a trend of knitting with giant knitting needles and producing lovely things like rugs and poufs.


{Image: Paper and Stitch}

Her beautiful rugs are knitted from sheep wool. She is unique as she values the animals that help to produce the product. Christien creates a rug or sweater for instance from the wool of one sheep and then tags the rug with the picture and identification number of the sheep which 'donated' it's wool. She works closely with farmers for her project called Flocks. I think it's a great idea and makes us more appreciative of living things that help to make the product. Usually when we look at any finished product like a wool sweater, we hardly think of the animal that contributed towards it, so it's great that she is doing this. She wants us to make the connection and hopefully we become, more respectful and responsible towards nature.




{Image: The Design Files}

You can read more about her amazing work at The Design Files.

Muji Cushions

These mustard yellow cushions from Muji have been enticing me to buy them. They are ever so soft to touch. So soft that you can leave a finger print as you poke it and it will slowly go back into shape with it's special pliant latex material within. The US Muji website states the cover is 100% cotton and the material inside the cover is Urethane (highly resilient and flexible) foam.




The only thing making me hesitate is the cost - almost $39 Singapore dollars. Why does everything in Muji have to be so beautifully minimalist and tempting! Darn them.

Spring Cleaning

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I am in the middle of spring cleaning. I had a sudden urge to de-clutter. You see, when I do get these urges, I become ballistic and clean in mad spurts. After an hour of it I get tired and leave it for the next burst of energy. My method is to dump out the contents of a whole drawer, stare in horrer and despair at the worse mess I've made and reassess the stuff. How did I ever accumulate so much junk. Upon closer inspection - but those are good junk!

The worse bit is the dust. I am allergic and it makes me sneeze and I feel that it's getting into my eyes as well. To be honest it's just a little, but even a little dust drives me crazy. That's why, even though I love the breezy look of open shelves I have chosen closed cupboards with loads of drawers instead. But even that makes me gripe. Why can't all drawers be airtight and not allow even a speck of dust in. I wonder if this has something to do with our weather - the dustiness. Is Singapore air not as clean as I think it is? Is there a dust problem in countries with pristine air like Iceland and New Zealand?


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Anyway a dust-free cupboard would be something I would pay for. OCD much? Luckily, so are most of the people I gravitate towards. My friends are all really clean and neat people. Much better than me. E in Australia, S and U in Singapore and my partner as well. I aspire to be as clean, neat and organized as they are. I am only organized in spurts. After that it all goes pear-shaped as Gordon Ramsey likes to say.

The hardest part is getting rid of things with sentimental value that you tend to hoard even though it's from years ago and occupies loads of space. I still keep all the cards and letters my friends E sent me from Australia. She wrote such kind, lovely things that still make me happy today as I slowly re-read them. My friends and aunts and uncles used to send me such thoughtful and pretty cards. Way better than the e-cards and Facebook messages I am guilty of sending myself these days. Sometimes being connected that way may not be such a good thing. It's just less personal. Somehow when something is convenient it just seems less thoughtful. Now I feel so guilty because I tend to be lazy and end up sending e-greetings even though I intended to send a lovely card or letter. There's also a paranoia about it getting lost in the mail or going to the wrong address, but those are just lame excuses.

I am still only a quarter way through, but the more I do the happier I get. I think it will take me at least a week or more to get everything sorted out. Sorting your stuff makes you realize that you do have three extra toothbrushes or you need more clothes hangers, and now you know exactly how many more you need - otherwise I would have winged it and ended up with more stuff I don't use.

For me, decluttering my physical stuff is a spiritual exercise that allows me to feel mentally decluttered as well and that's a nice feeling.

Pretty Rain Clouds for Your Wall

Sometimes the simplest idea can be the most striking like this little wall decor rain cloud sold on Etsy.

More lovely rain clouds to hang on your wall from French Interior and Product Designer Leptitpapillon based in Canada. Doesn't she make it all look so deceptively simple and make you want to take up some craft?


I love her particularly striking black cloud as well.



The paper cutting mobile is so pretty too.

How to Decorate A Room With Pink Walls

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I absolutely adore the shade of blue those two armchairs come in. I also like how blue and yellow work so well in a pink room. It sort of prevents the room from becoming sickly sweet which can be a problem with too much pink. Usually I see it offset with black or chocolate, but I like what they've done here.



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I like the use of red and is that khaki?


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I'm no expert but I think the browns and creams really work with this gorgeous shade of pink.

Catherine Hammerton: Vintage Asthetic

I absolutely love tiny floral prints and I am swooning over these interiors by UK designer Catherine Hammerton as seen on Design Sponge.  These are of her own home.







Her kitchen has got to be the prettiest I have ever laid my eyes on! I love the lightness of the rooms and the splashes of that gorgeous red.

Beautiful Illustrations by Michelle Maule

These lovely creations are being sold on her Etsy shop. The first two are original works. How I wish I could draw and paint like that. What a gift!







The super talented, pretty artist blogs on How to Draw a Cup of Coffee.  Don't you just love her glasses?:

Inspiration from Sex and the City and More

I love gazing at beautiful photos. Decor photos that impress me the most are the affordable, simple clean scandinavian influenced rooms with a burst of color that gives it warmth. Also I like rooms that look cosy and lived in. A high end model show room can be visually beautiful, but feel uncomfortable and hard in reality. I get a lot of inspiration from Apartment Therapy which features cosy and chic homes.  Wish my home could be that pretty, airy and neat as well (I am also trying to get inspiration to do a major spring cleaning).


I love the splash of fushia and green in this room.


Pretty wall vases. What a nice idea.


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There's that gorgeous pale pink vintage rotary telephone again. I really like the two stacked vintage suitcases as a bedside table. That would be great for storage too.


I just had to add the picture of Carrie and Big's New York apartment from Sex and the City 2, just so I could quote the fabulous line "I've been cheating on fashion with furniture". I love the shade of blue of those armchairs too.

Design Inspiration

I was browsing a lovely blog called Decorology.  I fell in love with the deep purplish navy, almost black armchair with the ornate French vintage legs.  The vermillion lamp acts as a great accent.


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I think this cup might be available at Style Nordic at Ann Siang Road. I know it's bad to covet, but I covet it deeply, especially the one in midnight blue.

Klaus Haapaniemi’s new Taika (Finnish for fantasy or magic) collection for Iittala merges folklore and architecture to create a modern world on ceramic dinnerware. Produced in two colour schemes, Haapaniemi unveils a world of mythical creatures, animal hybrids with some human features, living within a floral and fauna based forest.

Each Taika piece is hand crafted by applying silk screen print design to basic white porcelain before being glazed and fired. Modern style comes to life in this dinnerware collection, maintaining Iittala’s ability to mix and match pieces while adding a touch of magic to your home and everyday life. Iittala products are built for life and oven, microwave and freezer safe.

Dimensions:
Cup 200 ml, saucer 15 cm
Price:
£19.00

Dimensions:

Cup 100 ml, Saucer 11 cm
Price:
£15.00

And more from Cloudberry. Imagine a treetrunk vase.



Or a Living Tiny Train Wall Sticker


And what a gorgeous pale pink rotary phone. I wish we could have kept our old phones but the telephone company then which was Telecoms Singapore took our beautiful old ones away and replaced then with the ugly push button ones. These days with Singtel you have to buy your own phone. I can see why Vintage is back in vogue.


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