light and airy pieces from the latest arts & science collection, by japanese designer sonya s. park. perfect for hot summer days. i can’t believe it’s almost april. yesterday, there was a layer of frost on the ground when i woke up and now the forecast for the next few days is seventy and sunny. definite progress.
i just came across jessica bruah's photo series "stories." carefully assembled, each staged image is meant to be seen as an isolated fictional experience. out of focus and dreamlike, bruah mixes everyday settings with realistic and bizarre elements.
every piece in jf & son's newest collection is constructed by hand with impossibly stylish prints and patterns. each season is an experiment for design team jesse finkelstein and katie king who mix modern elements with traditional beading, embroidery, and printing to create their one-of-a-kind designs.
part artist, part mad scientist. amy ross creates hybrid creatures by morphing animals with plants. these 3 watercolor pieces are in honor of springtime, with birds emerging from buds. a hyacinth popping out of a bluebird's head and a duck curled up in the petals of a magnolia blossom have me believing that there are more than flowers growing in my backyard.
merino gauze shawls and canvas bags by toronto-based textile designer virginia johnson are the perfect spring accessories. all of her prints start out as watercolor illustrations that are silkscreened onto various fabrics. ants, printed on the top shawl, are actually one of my most hated insects, but i don't think i would mind them crawling around my neck if it meant i was wrapped in one of virginia's beautiful pieces.
today is the first day of spring and i’m ready to get my hands dirty. this weekend, i decided to put together a few terrariums to add a little green around the house. i found some glass containers at the salvation army and went to a local gardening store, english gardens, to get some supplies. here is how to put them together.
(1) prep your container by cleaning and drying it thoroughly.
(2) in bottom of the contatiner, layer 1 inch of rocks, a thin layer of charcoal to filter water and help control odor, and add 2-3 inches of potting soil. water the soil so that it is moist and ready for you to start planting.
(3) put down a sheet of plastic to make clean-up easier. take your plants out of their containers and set them on the plastic. with a sharp knife, cut the root bulb of each plant into half or quarter pieces and carefully separate the top of the plant. the plants i chose were a selaginella moss fern and a small foliage plant.
(4) gently loosen the roots of each plant section and place them in your container. once they are arrange properly, add another inch of potting soil over the roots to secure the plants.
(5) to add details, tear off pieces of sheet moss and work them around the plants, covering most of the soil. on the exposed soil, add a few river rocks. finish, by dropping in a few mossy sticks or bits bark from around the yard.
(6) take a wet rag to clean off any dirt from the sides of the container and use a spray bottle to spritz the plants and clean off the rocks.
(7) for upkeep, water lightly every 1-2 weeks or when the soil starts to look dry. one of my containers ended up too full to close, so it may need to be watered more often. If the plant starts to touch the top of the terrarium it may start to die so keep them trimmed back.
(photos by: erin)
it's the details that count for canadian designers karen dagg and stacey peterson, the inspiration behind clothing line dagg and stacey. their spring/summer 2010 collection mixes eclectic patterns and airy earth tones in the creation of each tailored, feminine look. the images in the newest lookbook make me wish i was back in los angeles so that i could to twist my feet through long stretches of warm beach sand.
i just dusted off my ballet flats and they're in pretty rough shape after a year of constant wear. other shoes come and go, but there is something about these soft little slip-ons that i'll never get tired of. (1) toast turquoise canvas ballet pump, (2) kimchi blue floral skimmer, (3) giuseppe zanotti violet studded suede flats, (4) repetto classic blue denim ballet flats, (5) miu miu yellow patent-leather ballerina flats, (6) lanvin bright yellow patent-leather ballerina flats, (7) repetto classic brown ballet flats, (8) frye clover green studded flats.
april gertler plays with the border between reality and fiction in her work-in-progress photography collection “if only,” which catalogues scenes from various natural history museums that represent day-in-the-life diorama’s of birds in their (un)natural habitat.
the scratched out images in recent photography work by hollis brown thorton could be anyone, anywhere. his nostalgia is now your nostalgia, broken down, idealized, and forgotten over time.
samantha pleet’s latest collection contains an delightful mix of flirtatious day dresses and carefree rompers, essential for the upcoming season change. her video lookbook brings to life the perfect spring fling—a dip in a secluded stream, napping in a warm sun-drenched wheat field, a classic crackling campfire. i dream about those days. yesterday, i even got a little excited when i thought i saw a mosquito land on my windshield, a sad example of how desperate i am for warmer days.
artist djurdjica kesic moved from yugoslovia to melbourne, australia, in 1991. in her most recent collection, “nomad,” she uses her experiences with migration and the need for a portable home to create wearable pieces out of preloved objects. the unique necklaces above were constructed out of the timber veneer from a reclaimed jewelry box.
after hours in the car driving from michigan to minnesota, on our last stretch of highway along the coast of lake superior, ben and i saw a timber wolf flash across the headlights of the car before running into the ditch. the night was cold and still and we were alone on the road, so we slowed down and turned the car around to see if we could catch another glimpse. when the wolf saw that we were following him he came up to the car, circled it, then stood staring at us, curious, before playfully running down the middle of the road, almost like he was leading the way. i wanted to follow.
i spent a lot of time along lake superior growing up, so it was nice to take a trip up there again. ben and i skied all day and collapsed all night. on thursday, we took a day off and drove up the gunflint trail looking for moose tracks and explored grand marais and the icy lake shore with my parents. i even got to meet my friend jamie’s beautiful 6-week old baby boy mikah. when we left ann arbor a week ago it was covered in snow and ice, but when we returned last night most of the snow had melted in the 40-50° weather. it was a perfect return from a wonderful trip.
(photos by: erin + ben)
here are a few photos from our week of skiing in northern minnesota. back to the blog on monday.
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