Pretty pretty pillows

Today I discovered Envelop, a wonderful online store with a huge collection of printed cotton goods. All the designs have been submitted by designers from around the world, and it's a lot of fun to browse through all the different styles in search of favourites...

I've selected a few of the ones I like - they would look great in our guest room!
You can see the front and back of each of them hereunder.



(1) "Rovo" by noumeda
(2) "Little Blue Day" by Suz Sanchez
(3) "Sleeping bear" by Flora Douville

Exciting tickets

Remember this present? Here is what was inside.

It looks very real, but if you look closer... you will notice that the tickets came from here and that the passport is actually a cute little notebook!

More light!

I was not a happy camper when the alarm went off this morning: it was one hour earlier than last week, it was the end of a great weekend, and to top it all, it was pouring rain!

But the weather went for a full switch over the day and it was a real delight to cycle home after work in a bright and warm afternoon... So: yey for daylight saving!!

Amsterdam

We just spent three lovely days in Amsterdam for Mart's birthday. We wondered along canals, marveled at skinny houses, went to see Alice in Wonderland in a fantastic movie theater, enjoyed Saturday morning markets, visited two fancy old canal houses and had fabulous food.

Happy birthday Mart!

We had sushi for dinner for Mart's birthday - and tomorrow morning we are off to Amsterdam for a long weekend. Yey!

A little bit of sun

It's so good to see the sun again!
Unfortunately I don't think it's going to last until the weekend, but still... it was good while it lasted!
Photo (4) is the souvenir t-shirt I made for my dad.

Stuctures

(1) Tiles in Carmel, California
(2) Roadwork fence in Fremantle, Western Australia
(3) Train station roof in Liege, Belgium
(4) Fence on the High Line, New York
(5) Wall in a Bart station in San Francisco
(6) Window display in jewelry shop in Berne, Switzerland
(7) Airing grid in an underground station, San Francisco
(8) Tiling in War Cemetery in Magraten, Netherlands

"Reading"

Shaun Tan explains that his books are "best described as ‘picture books for older readers’ rather than young children, as they deal with relatively complex visual styles and themes, including colonial imperialism, social apathy, the nature of memory and depression."

This book, which we bought online after deciding we couldn't fit it in our suitcases from Australia, follows a dad who emigrates to another world, his adaptation to his new life, and the stories of the ones he meets. The book doesn't have any words yet you can "read" all the characters' emotions and follow the story in minute details. I devoured it with a cup of tea on the weekend, and loved it!
It's a strange but amazing feeling to go through a whole story without reading any words, just getting carried along by the pictures...
I love the fact that people speaking any languages can "read" this story.

Spring!

To celebrate the first day of spring (even though it doesn't quite feel like it yet over here!) I made a cherry blossom wreath to cheer up our apartment.
I had tried to make little origami flowers recently but didn't like the way they looked, and then yesterday I found the perfect little shaped paper-cutting tool in the city - it worked perfectly!

Yummy brunch

This morning we made simple sweetcorn cakes with avocado salsa, a recipe from Australian cook Bill Granger - together with a freshly squeezed orange juice, it was delicious!

Starry night

After seeing famapa's post a few weeks ago, Mart and I ordered this wonderful light.
It finally arrived on Thursday - we were so excited! We put it all together this afternoon and were extremely satisfied with the result. It looks soooo pretty in the dark!

Saint Patrick's

Joanna and I made little shamrocks broaches for the Saint Patrick's drinks at our work today...