{envie: janet hill}

Omygoodness!! They are the prettiest! Read about Janet Hill on Daisy Pink Cupcake just now and I just had to post something about this! Then I followed the link to Janet's blog and I felt like having the prettiest web-wandering :-) Janet also has her shop on Etsy. If you're like me, you're just gonna fall in love with Janet's work, beware....

{kindwords friday: sharing happiness}

"Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared."
- The Buddha (c.563-c.483 BC)

If you like you can click on the image, save and print it.

Happy Friday!

{junkstyle me: my desk 09.05.28}

Remember the happy bears prints? Think they look nice with the white frame that I found at a junkyard sale. And, don't you think those jars and bottles are perfect to put flowers, colored pens and pencils? It makes me very happy just to look at them. Uh huh, junkstyle me!

{project thursday: fabric and floral}

Fabric covered boxes

Country Living is unarguably one of my favorite places to hunt for crafty ideas. Just like today, and I am very very happy to find some fresh, bright, and doable projects - exactly what I had been thinking for today's Project Thursday: I have a stack of boxes, pinboard, journals with tattered covers, and guess what, a collection of vintage fabric I haven't used! Sounds perfect. The instructions are clear and simple, too. All these pictures in this entry are from Country Living and each linked to its original page (some are with intructions). I selected those who are doable for me today, with the exception of the peony wreath...I just love it very much, so even if I won't make one today, I label it as 'bright idea', I keep it in mind :-)


Colored pencil vase


Fabric covered journals


Bandana table runner


Message board


Peony wreath

{envie: Carolyn Quartermaine}

British artist and designer Carolyn Quartermaine is my idol... well, one of my idols in the design world. Her style, her choice of colours, all. And I love it how she uses her own home as "an inspiring three dimensional sketchbook" - as quoted by Elle Decor.

Her book "Revealed" (Conran Octopus, 2001) is one of my main inspirators and I have special folder for all Carolyn Quartermaine related files I could find: magazine articles, pdfs, images, that I can take a look often, training my eyes and visualizing I could live the CQ-style :-)

Such an envy, really. And now looking at those files in the folder again, I dream of transforming my room into my own 3D sketchbook, just like Carolyn Quartemaine...

For the moments, here are the looks I'm dying to covet, from Carolyn Quartermaine's home:


Here's how I really really want my drawing room to look like. Clean, fresh details, but somehow there's a kind of artistic mess here and there.


The details are exquisite...


This is beyond sitting pretty. Here you sit gorgeous


That's how I would have my storage to look: unconventional, magical


Perfect setting to embark on a fairytale dream land, a beautiful rest

{blogging tuesday: picture frame paper}

New theme: Blogging Tuesday! Yay! Starting now Tuesday entries will be dedicated to everything blogging-related. Having different themes for each day makes me feel more organized, somehow :o)

Let's begin with something I've been eyeing for sometime now. I've seen in several cute blogs, mostly scrapbooking blogs, lovely square photo frames with a space for writing below the picture... and guess what, I wanted to create ones, too!

These ones below are in jpg format, 900x900 pixels, and perfect for pictures 800x600 pixels in size. Simply open the picture and frame paper in Photoshop (you may of course use other programs of your preference). Copy the picture and paste it to the frame paper. Normally the pasted picture will fall into the middle of the frame paper. Drag the picture up, using the move tool. When in doubt I would click 'select all' and then align the picture horizontally center. Then I can add my own text using the type tool.

Well, it took me sometime to get familiar with Photoshop, didn't you know that :-D but I think the trial-and-error's really worth it. Let me know what you think.

PS: to download the frame papers, click on the picture then save them to your hard disk.

{wallpaper monday: dream}

1280x1024 px

So dear friends, I feel creative today (vacation does have good effects on creativity, doesn't it...). What about another wallpaper, before ending the day? Enjoy and dream a sweet dream :-)

To download, click on the image and save it to your hard disk.


1280x800 px (widescreen)


1024x768 px

{wallpaper monday: at home}

1280x1024 px

Site reconstruction in progress... in the meantime I hope you enjoy the new free wallpapers. Guess, I really enjoy my vacation at home :-)

To download, click on the image and save it to your hard disk.


1280x800 px (wide screen)


1024x768 px

{retro finds}

Gradually cleaning the space in my server today, I was fascinated by how much files I have accumulated over the past few years in my computer. Many of them, of course, were stored as inspiration, ideas, eye candies ... phewww! And while archiving the snapshots from my camera's memory card, I found these pictures I took of old Burda magazines from the 60s...oh yes now I remember digging my mother's collection of fashion magazines the last time I went home a few months ago. Somehow I was amused to find how interesting and hip their style is, so much in line with the current trend plus such an unarguable character. Adding a bit of tweaking and adjustment I dream of recreating the dresses and the coats. And look at the patterns, and the colors. I'm so glad mom still keeps those old magazines :-) Here they are a few little collages I put together from the snapshots.

{a.proud.auntie!}

Oh no! It's been more than one month since my last entry!! Have you ever heard of a lazy artist before?? That sounds like me :-D Though I might have a lot of excuses but certainly there's no room for those excuses :-D

Anyway, I'm back online and I can't wait to announce to the world how excited I am to become an auntie!! Well well, life is so good so far, I'm blessed with so many wonderful kids who call me 'auntie'. But on 24 april 2009, the blessings were doubled, I'm officially an aunt. My little sister in Stuttgart, Germany, gave birth to a super cute baby boy. His name is Attila, but my super sister calls him 'superboy'. Ok ok, no protest is allowed. I can only hope that my super nephew will soon realize he has a super auntie, too *giggle*

And about the graphics...



I've been busy lately but I'll take a week off from work next week and work on the graphics (good news, I hope! :-)). After moving to the new server, I had problem accessing the member area, and after a few attempts to fix some pages, I just decided to re-arrange the whole site altogether.

So please don't be dissapointed if you find that my website is closed for a few days next week (or perhaps already this coming weekend). It will only be emptied and then replaced with the same graphics + new items, with new arrangement, for what I hope to be an easier navigation.

In the meantime this blog is always up and open. I'll be right back...