latitude + longitude

portuguese artist, luis dourado, creates digital collages, turning and distorting roads and waterways in porto and berlin, in his map manipulation series.

valentines day wish list + gift guide

when i think of valentines day i get a flash of red and pink hearts, baby cherubs with tiny bows and arrows, chocolates and flowers, and filling out boxes of cartoon cards for my classmates in elementary school. ben and i usually skip this date night, but just incase, here are some ideas from my own candy-covered wish list, and who says he can't appreciate some of them as well: (1) seesaw miss/need/love you cards, $6; (2) fresh sugar lychee scented candle, $48; (3) ketchup classic repetto flat, $260; (4) byredo gypsy water, $195; (5) vintage book of love poems; (6) dent bud vase, $36; (7) eberjey sugared grapefruit set, $84; (8) rifle paper co., custom heart portrait print, $250; (9) yayoi forest pink heart necklace, $275; (10) a nice bottle of bubbly, $35; (11) champagne flutes, $10.95 each; (12) asos leather portfolio clutch, $76; (13) wouters + hendrix rose coral ring, $287; (14) bodum chocolatiere, $40; (15) vosges drinking chocolates, $4.50 each

just in time

south korean-born designer, hanii yoon, of fashion label hanii y, combines her love of vintage and bohemian style in her spring 2011 collection. with a bright and beautiful maritime color palette of reds, blues, and browns, yoon mixes delicate floral dresses, sequin details, and structured jackets, creating a little something for everyone.

arrow cuff

i love this big, beautiful, gold-plated brass cuff from fortune favors the brave's debut jewelry collection.

sealed off

up-and-coming photographer, alex kisilevich, creates a story through each of his images. in the series “bubble troubles” individuals, isolated and alone, face challenges with no apparent solution, the look of loss and abandonment stretched across their faces or in their inanimate body language.

visual diary

as a painter and photographer, canadian-born artist brad phillips combines both of these elements in his pieces. capturing single moments—a woman’s shoes, a cracked door, a collection of paperbacks, two people holding hands—and calling attention to the small intimate moments that make-up everyday life.

les quatre cents coups

over the weekend we watched les quatre cents coups (the 400 blows), an assignment for ben’s film class. the 1959 french film directed by françois truffaut, about a boy and his struggles with adolescence and the authority figures around him, sheds light on the cruel treatment of juvenile offenders during that era. in the film, the black and white images of france, cobblestone streets, and smoky tin rooftops are breathtaking.

colorful kicks

beautiful woven flats and lace-ups for spring: (1) (in photo) minimarket wedge boot + osborn oxfords, $165; (2) osborn rio boot, $180; (3) twelfth st. by cynthia vincent ballet flats, $195; and (4) jeffrey campbell blue combo sneaks, $110.

daydreamers

eco-friendly designer and toronto native, erin kleinberg, got her start at w magazine before launching her first line in 2008. the lookbook for her latest spring 2011 collection (featuring chanel muse and musician, irina lazareanu) has me longing for warmer weather with bright floral prints and playful rompers.

a fine balance

propped on two hands in somewhat compromising outdoor settings, surrounded by the wilderness that he loved, artist robert kinmont photographed himself in 1969 in the series “8 natural handstands.”

across the grain

toronto based visual artist, vanessa maltese, works with various techniques and mediums, experimenting with drawing, painting, and sculpting. these carefully crafted geometric pieces use birch plywood panels as the canvas, exposing sections of wood between blocks of color.

weekend pieces

over the weekend, i went to a friends birthday party, slept in, made oats and egg sandwiches for breakfast, curled up by the fire, and watched the golden globes. i had high hopes to get a lot accomplished, but in the end, the snow and cold squashed my ambitions and instead i settled in for a relaxing few days at home. this has been a reoccurring result of january in the midwest. after watching the awards, i realized that i really need to make a few trips to the theater over the next couple of weeks to catch up on movies.

(photos by: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)

ice fishing

over the weekend, it’s predicted to reach -10°F in my little hometown in northern minnesota. this time of year, the town literally moves out on to the lake with dozens of ice fishing shacks like the one above. they plow roads, put up stop signs, there are food vendors, you name it. if i were out there right now, i would be dressed head-to-toe in insulated pants and a jacket, but, here is a more fashionable alternative, all cold weather and fish guts aside. (1) topshop faux fur trapper hat, (2) jcrew cashmere getaway hoodie, (3) the lady & the sailor basic tee, (4) ag dark wash jeggings, (5) shopbop drop crystal necklace, (6) tretorn + ace hotel limited addition strala boots, (similar to the pair in the holiday gift guides, but i love the red sole on these), (7) me & arrow blue pyramid tote, and (8) ash horn toboggan.

pocketful of secrets

mother + daughter design duo kaya and nina egli communicate transatlantically to create their clothing label family affairs, with kaya in switzerland and nina in new york. they find a way to work together, adjusting and refining each piece, despite the difference between them.

come closer

born in 1980, françois coquerel as been photographing since 2006 and currently lives and works in paris, france. with a growing collection of portraits, coquerel often places his subject in the center of the image, searching for and focusing in on the small contradictions.

bearskin rugs

using recycled stuffed animals, argentinean artist agustina woodgate has designed and created a series of plush rugs. taking apart each memory and affection, each love and abandon, woodgate combines the different elements into one final piece that represents a story from the past and a reference of the owner’s personal history, displaying and organizing their memories and lineage.

no regrets

i’m a total chicken when it comes to tattoos. i just have this feeling that the design i pick will be the next tramp-stamp or tribal trend of the late 90s. tattoo artist amanda wachob is pushing the boundaries between body art and fine art. her abstract designs resembling brush strokes and paint splatter are amazing; however, it’s her conceptual “bloodline” tattoos that the commitment-phobe like myself can get excited about. using distilled water instead of ink, this lack of pigment creates an impermanent marking that eventually heals with time.

winter 2011 sales

there are so many great winter sales happening right now. i wish that i could give my closet a complete overhaul. i think a lot of these would transition well into spring: (1) rachel comey pocket tee, $299 $149; (2) belle by sigerson morrison bootie, $295 $206; (3) steven alan agatha blazer, $298 $149; (4) toast rosa dress, $162 $82; (5) apc electric blue skirt, $135 $67.50; (6) anthropologie beneath the surface shell, $98 $49.95; (7) faliero sarti fringed scarf, $267 $188; (8) repetto brown classic flat, $260 $182; (9) calypso charles sweater, $325 $149; (10) chloé paraty sunglasses, $350 $175; (11) jcrew felted wool mini, $88 $69; (12) ally capellino patience lambskin bag, $428 $342; (13) lily & jane edie striped shirt, $174 $110; (14) current/elliot trouser short, $180 $100.80; (15) madewell steeplechase belt, $48 $38.

she just vanished

spanish clothing label masscob was founded in 2003 by designers marga massanet and jacobo cobian who influence each collection’s dual personalities of both masculine and feminine. i love the colors for autumn/winter—pale peach, burnt orange, and dark mustard, along with a mix of florals and plaids. the season’s video is stunning and the storyline sweet and sad. it begins: “she must have been about 10, grew up here for some years, about 15. she had the look of someone who wanted to leave, to run away. she did.”