Virago Modern Classics

When I popped in to Foyles on Charing Cross Road, London last week I couldn't help but notice this Virago Modern Classics display. 2008 saw the 30th anniversary of the Virago Modern Classics, and to celebrate they produced this stunning set of eight hardcover books, featuring cover artwork by twentieth-century women textile designers, including Lucienne Day, Cath Kidston, Orla Kiely, Celia Birtwell, and founder of Biba, Barbara Hulanicki. The books are absolutely lovely, and would make a nice collection on a bookshelf!

Annette Bugansky

How gorgous are Annette Bugansky's ceramics? Annette trained and worked in fashion and costume design before becoming a ceramicist, graduating in 2003 from Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in Ceramic Design. Texture plays a big part in the pattern, colour and emotion of her pieces. Her work is highly tactile and sensual. Her latest range of porcelain knitted texture vessels combines traditional and experimental knitting patterns to create surface pattern. For each individual piece Annette knits a form to cover the vessel before casting it in porcelain. Porcelain has the ability to reproduce every detail and its translucent quality gives added depth. The porcelain is vitrified at high temperatures to produce a matt watertight surface. Just lovely. You can buy Annette's ceramics here.

BUSIG range at IKEA

A little while ago I went on an excursion to IKEA. Admittedly, I'm a bit of a homewares geek, but I was very restrained and bought very little on my visit. However, when I saw this BUSIG serving tray I just couldn't resist: The elephant pattern is busy (every time I look at it I notice something new), but the colours are neutral and subtle, which makes it a nice display item in the kitchen as well as a practical serving tray. At the moment there are only paper napkins and a cutlery set available in the BUSIG range (see the full range here), but I'm hoping they will release this as a textile print at some point—it would work very nicely as a cushion cover!

Sunday inspiration: Olive Dear

Last year I made an impulse purchase from Etsy in the form of this lovely bird print by Olive Dear (also known as Yellow Monday): My obsession with birds combined with my love of olive green meant that as soon as I saw this print I knew I had to own it! Olive Dear is the name that Sydney based artist Linda Kruger goes by, and her work covers a range of styles and media, influenced by a background in printmaking, as well as textile printing and design. Looking through her shop, I'm also loving the Red Ochre and Olive Green beans prints—they'd make a very nice pair hanging on a wall together. Very simple and effective; they really seem to embody a Scandinavian sense of design.

Desk Calendars

I like to have a pretty calendar on my desk at work. When I'm staring off into space instead of concentrating, I want something lovely to look at, and frankly my lamp just doesn't cut the mustard. So the search is on for the perfect 2009 desk calendar. Here are a few that have caught my eye so far: Letterpress calendar by Lark Press.

Postcard desk calendar by SureAsBlue. Fun desk calendar by p.s. paper goods. Trees desk calendar by Ink Drop Design. Letterpress calendar with wooden stand by Something's hiding in here. Desk calendar by Modern Art Every Day. With so many lovely choices I don't know how I'll ever decide!

I have a real love for brown paper and card, bits of string, and of course birds. That's possibly why the items over at PaperLeaf totally appeal to me. These gift tags feature a screen printed bird design, and are eco friendly to boot, made out of recycled manilla folders and packed in a biodegradable clear bag. Lovely.

The first post

I have been reading blogs for a while now. They are a great source of procrastination (and interest). In a sense blogs break down traditional barriers between writer and reader. I like that. So, I thought, why not start writing one of my own? As a place to document my own craftiness and the things that inspire me. Why not? I don't know how long this will last or how much enthusiasm I'll throw at it, but this is my go at blogdom. Enjoy.