Searching for "sponge" (17)

After L's post about Alexandra Wentworth's "crazy" hand-painted rug, I got to thinking about all the amazing handmade flooring treatments I've seen over the years...

My very favorite has to be this rustic hand-painted wood floor (above), which I spotted on Off The Wall's blog about a year ago. The floor was a finalist in design*sponge's Lena Corwin's Printing by Hand Contest (here).

Here are just a few others that stuck out in my mind ::

Wooden floor patterns hand painted/designed by Ida Corti e Paloma Barcella :: via Mandarine d'Italie...

Stencil-painted lace pattern created for a guesthouse in Marrakesh, using a custom-designed stencil by Royal Design Studio :: via The Design Files...

and last, but certainly not least, the hand-painted porch of Nicole (of Pink Loves Brown and Making It Lovely)... all done in 48 hours with just $500 and while nine months pregnant! Check out Nicole's post on the entire project here.

Holy cow. the SCOOP came in #6 on Home Rejuvenation's poll of Top 10 Most Influential Design Bloggers! Thanks so much to everyone who voted for us!!! (See HG's poll results post, here.)

We're honored to be on a list with 9 other great blogs (a couple of which I hadn't heard of before - and am now excited to check out!)... here's the full list:

1. design*sponge :: if you're not checking in on this blog pretty much daily, well, then you're missing out. Not only does Grace find the most amazing interiors, goods & artists - she also posts several times a day, so you'll never get bored.

2. NOTCOT.org :: updated constantly with submissions by both NOTCOT editors & readers alike, this blog is ripe with awesomeness.

3. decor8 :: this is one of those blogs that I simply don't check in on enough. Holly, who runs her own design firm, posts about pretty much anything inspiring & beautiful - including a lot of reader submission for DIY projects & crafts. To top it all off, the redesign of her blog is simply stunning.

4. Apartment Therapy :: with versions for 6 different cities, this is a great site for unique home accessories & amazing home tours... I'll admit, I really only read the AT Chicago version ;)

5. SWISS MISS :: Swiss-born, turned Brooklyn-ite, Tina posts about pretty much everything: design, gadgets, prints, artists, interiors, fashion... which is why I, personally, adore this blog...

6. the SCOOP :: I don't have to tell you how fabulous this blog is... you're already reading it!

7. inhabitat  :: this is one I hadn't heard of before - but I'm glad to now know about it. With it's plethora of contributing writers, this blog covers innovations in technology & sustainable/eco-friendly design practices. I've already gone ahead and bookmarked this one.

8. MoCo Loco :: I'm very familiar with this site due to the fact that Jw is one of their contributors... it's an excellent site for (mostly) contemporary design and architecture, but also has regular art posts (Art MoCo)... very sophisticated stuff here.

9. desire to inspire :: an Australian and a Canadian trying to inspire the world one room at a time. MidCenturyJo and Kim give us a peek into the most beautiful interiors around. This is serious eye candy for those of us who love interior design.

10. Oh Joy! :: the blog of designer-extraordinaire, Joy Deangdeelert Cho - this is another that has a little-bit-of-everything - it's also great to keep tabs on Joy's own design work & amazing paper goods, Nantaka Joy!

If any of these are new to you, I urge you to check them out! Or if you're a regular visitor to some or all of these - keep reading! I know we all appreciate it, and we're doing it for you!

image c/o me.

Whenever anything OrangeBeautiful lands a coveted mention on design*sponge, I'll be the first to admit that I feel a little bit like a celebrity...

Thanks to Grace for posting up a lovely mention of our new calendars this morning... we really appreciate it!

image c/o d*s.

Eric over at Broadway Paper sent me & B an email letting us know that he spotted our catalog over at design*sponge yesterday... sure enough, there it is atop the laptop of Summer, from the lovely, Fawn & Forest! How exciting! Eric certainly has a good eye... I don't know if I would've caught that if he hadn't pointed it out!

Check out the entire Sneak Peek of Summer's home... it's fabulous (even without our catalog ;)

thanks for the tip, E!

Pop Pervert / ittestudio :: pattern rendering.

After a tough week, I've been a sponge for new inspiration... here are some of my favorites from the week:

How could I not be inspired by this :: hand screen-printed album packaging for Sidedown Audio's launch albums: GMOVJ and Castrovalva.

I'm obsessed w/ hoodies :: Moto Hoodie, from Prairie Underground.

I wish my bathroom looked like this... and I love that yellow floor! :: image by photographer, Antoine Bootz via desire to inspire.

great shop | beautiful site | stunning photography :: from Cotton Idea Studio with photography by Trever Hoehne.

pieces from the Spring/Summer 08 Collection :: Janis Breslin.

lovely bookbinding work :: Angela Liguori / Carta, Inc. (left) and Bari Zaki / Ardour Bookbinding (right).

love these :: Doily Cards, 6 for $12 by Beau Ideal.

love this photo, love this couple, love those bikes :: photograph by Orange Girl Photographs.

so gorgeous :: beautiful florals by April Joy Events.

always a fan of his work :: Paperdoll VII by Dolan Geiman.

more beautiful patterns :: Pop Pervert / ittestudio :: rendering/wall covering & Nouna pattern.

a last image from Jordan at Oh Happy Day :: I just love this image... and that jacket.

Thanks for the inspiration, everyone... this will definitely get me by 'til the weekend!

As I was perusing design*sponge the other night, I was so pleased to come across some images of a home that I was already familiar with: the home of Erin Loechner from Design for Mankind! On Monday, Erin's lovely rooms were featured in a d*s Sneak Peek... Here are some great shots from DFM's Flickr home. set:

Just so you know, that framed print in the 2nd image is from MidCenturyJo's Etsy shop (aka Jo Walker from desire to inspire)!

Thanks to Grace & Erin both, for the peek into some amazing rooms!!!

images c/o DFM

There have been a few requests for an easy way to reference/re-visit my November '07 guest blog over at design*sponge... Since there have been many new guest bloggers since then, my posts have been pushed toward the back & are a little hard to access at the moment...

Here's a bulleted list for your (re-)reading pleasure...

• (1) the intro post...

• (2) some thoughts about being good in business -

• (3) my interview with Richelle Albrecht from Chicago-based invitations & stationery company, Girl Metro, Inc.

• (4) some of my favorite reading recommendations that could come in handy for to-be and existing business owners alike.

• (5) a second interview, this time with Lisa Elkins of 2 Point Perspective, an architecture & furniture design firm, specializing in modern, eco-friendly design.

• (6) Small Business is Still Business, a post about treating your little business with the same seriousness as you would if you were responsible for running a major corporation...

• (7) a final interview with one of my favorite artists, Dolan Geiman... be sure to check out the interview and the goods at his Etsy shop...

I hope that those of you who are making some business-related resolutions for 2008 will find some inspiration here!

also, if you're up for some more d*s archives, just out the Sneak Peek of my apartment, right here!

if you haven't already done so, please head on over to design*sponge and check out my latest post - an interview with Richelle Albrecht of Girl Metro, Inc....

and keep checking in all this week for more d*s guestblog posts by yours truly!...

image c/o Girl Metro, Inc.

...now I'm also guestblogging the week on the ever-lovely design*sponge!

The whole week will focus on small business, design, being good & all sorts of other (hopefully) helpful & informative stuff.

thanks so much to grace for asking me to participate!... I'm looking forward a to great week. Check out the posts here!

images from d*s.

I received many thoughtful gifts at my baby showers, including original artwork by two of my favorite people, Molly and Emily.

My sister-in-law Molly (an artist and art teacher) created the beautiful pair of tiny paintings shown in the photo above. The lilac is a photo transfer of the first baby carriage, and the green is the initial "B" (for baby) - since we haven't yet revealed the baby's name. Both paintings are acrylic and gold leaf, and the colors were used specifically to coordinate with the nursery palette.

Emily created the graphic "Laugh...Dream...Love" poster and printed it on a Gocco. She presented it to me in a floating glass frame with a border of lilac around the poster. You too can have a copy of this limited edition print - she just added it to her Etsy shop. (Lucky me; I got print Number One!)

There are a few additional items I would like to create for the nursery. I was inspired by the work of artist Jeana Bartroff, whose home was recently featured in Cookie magazine's blog. The silhouette paintings above were painted with white wall paint on brown paper bags. I would love to do a monochromatic silhouette series of book characters like Madeline, Eloise, and Curious George...we'll see what I come up with.

Finally, the chandelier pictured above by Lisa Congdon was featured recently in a Design*Sponge post on Rare Device. I would like to create a mobile using favorite papers, similar to the idea shown above, that can be switched out at whim to keep the baby interested!

Painting images by me. Poster images from OrangeBeautiful. Silhouette painting images from Cookie. Chandelier image from Design*Sponge.