Giant Stuffed Animals :: Florentijn Hofman

Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman creates some fantastic installations in public spaces. You can see his work - like the amazing giant pianos on a beach - on his website and at Galerie West, where the giant softies were exhibited. Aren't they just fantastic? They make really me smile.


And not to be outdone by their softie friends...


Thanks to Donna (my lovely firend who's always sending my great links) for the link to Today and Tomorrow where she found Florentijn's work.
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Harajuku Girls

If you're into people watching and fashion a trip to Tokyo wouldn't be complete without a Sunday visit to Harajuku. The youth culture and way the (mostly) girls dress is really out there and absolutely fantastic.

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Monday BlogDay :: Heart Handmade

Heart Handmade, the home of independent design, is one of my faves and if you don't already know it, it's worth having a peek at.

This is so gorgeous!

Apart from all the wonderful art, craft and design that Marichelle discovers, she also writes about the creators as well as retailers, she has 'how to' features, and a weekly interview called The Other Half with the partners of well known creatives. Marichelle says: Heart Handmade is the chance for me to pay homage to the craftsmanship and love that goes into Handmade.

Image Source: All images from Heart Handmade.
Visit Heart Handmade for links to the individual artists/crafters.

Inspired? I know I am.
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Have a Lovely Weekend

Just popping by to wish you a lovely weekend my friends, and to show you what's on my five-and-a-half year old's mind...


Roxy was sitting quietly this morning drawing - which isn't unusual - and when I asked her what she was doing she told me she was making herself a credit card! Oh dear. It's very well done, and pretty funny but I'm slightly concerned about her wanting a credit card at this age. (I love her curly 'signature' and that she's noticed that the numbers should be square.)

See you Monday. I'm hoping to be back firing on all cylinders by then as I'm still struggling to get well.

Enjoy!

x
Lisa

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Shiny and New

I get so much pleasure out of browsing and reading books and magazines. I think that I buy too many, but I just love them. There's something so lovely about being surrounded by beautiful books. And they are far easier to justify than, say, another new pair of shoes.



I recently subscribed to UPPERCASE magazine and my first issue arrived last week. I'm so excited about it - it's the most beautiful and inspirational read, printed on thick matt paper. Delicious! The design is just wonderful, as is the content - perfect for the design-obsessed. To see some spreads from this issue click here.

This "magazine for the creative and curious" is produced in Canada and although the international subscription doesn't come cheap, it's so worth it. I'm bummed that I missed issue one (the 1,000 copies sold out before I subscribed), and after devouring issue two I can hardly wait for the next quarterly installment. Janine Vangool of UPPERCASE Gallery is behind this nascent, independently published magazine - get on board and subscribe to support it.



Two beautiful books I bought recently are Russian Textiles, Printed Cloth for the Bazaars of Central Asia, and Naive, Modernism and Folklore in Contemporary Graphic Design. Both are full of beautiful images and designs. The images below are from the Russian Textiles book.



And here's a peek inside Naive:




And of course I am always picking up vintage children's books whenever I come across them.



I went to a charity book fair this morning and have a pile of new treasures to photograph and show you some other time.



My friend Jude found this piece of vintage fabric at a market last week for me to add to my collection.



And lastly, following my post on crocheted jewellery a couple of weeks ago I just had to buy something because I still haven't attempted to learn how to do it myself and I'm totally obsessed with crochet at the moment. I bought two lovely organic linen lariat necklaces from Latvian Esty seller magdalinen - you can see the other one here.

Do you have any books you'd like to recommend, or favourite magazines? Have you bought or been given something you love recently? Or is there something you're coveting? Share some links or a description in the comments - I'd love to hear what it is.
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