Thursday, May 31, 2007

Ready for Market...

These Dorothy Clutches are on their way to the show on Saturday... Created with a variety of silks... featuring a detachable flower pin, strong magnetic clasp and a three interior pockets perfect for your credit cards, cash and a classic shade of lipstick... The Dorothy Clutch will retail for $35.



























Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Fleur Bobbies

These little blooms will be making their debut at our show on Saturday. Made from bits of vintage style fabrics and beads, they will accessorize any summer hairdo. Each bit of fabric is specially treated to retain shape and each petal is cut by hand. A set of two retails for $6.






































Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Bloggy Hibernation

I have been happily hibernating in the SimplyJune studio and somehow a few extra stitches and just a few more beads turned into a little bit of a blogging hiatus. I'm back now with a bunch of new things to show you and an upcoming show to catch up with old friends and make new ones!

Join me this Saturday June 2nd at Wish Studio's Indie Designer Boutique Show. This is part of Redbrick Art Center's Open Studios in Beverly in conjunction with Beverly ArtsFest. If you are already on our mailing list, you will receive a coupon later this week that you can use at this event.

















This beauty will be available at our upcoming show... I re-purposed this vibrant vintage tablecloth as a baby quilt. It is completely hand quilted including a hand stitched binding and lined with 100% cotton batting. It is sure to become a family keepsake.







































Etsy - cassiemarie

I love blogging about my favorite new indie finds and today this beauty arrived in my mailbox. Check out cassiemarie on Etsy. She makes these beautiful handpainted pendants. Her shop also features handspun wool yarn and lacy handknit arm warmers that I must have before next winter arrives.

Shop Indie!




















Tuesday, May 15, 2007

And Morning Glories Bloom...

"On Sarah's wall, green trees grow tall, / and morning glories bloom," ... a quote from one of my favorite childhood books by Doris Orgel and illustrated by the extraordinary Maurice Sendak. It tells the tale of a young girl named Jenny who longs to play in her older sisters room while she is away at school. Jenny's room is plain because she is not yet old enough to take care of her things. However, Sarah is older and more responsible. Her room has beautiful wallpaper with morning glories blooming on her walls. Jenny is too little to reach and open her sisters door, but one day discovers that she has grown just enough to reach the lock. She spends her day playing carefully with Sarah's toys and Sarah comes home to find Jenny in her tidy room. Jenny has shown that she too is old enough to care for nice things. Now Jenny has beautiful flowers growing on her walls too...

I found this beautiful vintage tablecloth, which I am now making a small quilt from. I think it would look beautiful in Jenny's room...

Monday, May 14, 2007

Floweret

We are busy in the Simply June Studio getting ready for our next show. Floweret pins are blooming in an array of silks and hand sewn bead centers. We have also been busy ordering new fabrics for some Spring and Summer totes and spending some leisurely Spring afternoons quilting by hand. Stay tuned for more details about our upcoming show at The Wish Studio in Beverly, Massachusetts on June 2nd!



















Thursday, May 10, 2007

Pendant Love

I spent some time leisurely browsing through Etsy the other day looking for some new jewelry pieces to dress up my summer wardrobe. I love pendants and this vintage-esque pendant just called out to me. One could browse for hours on Etsy...like a store made up entirely of one's favorite things. The designer, Angelica, sent me a sweet note along with my purchase as well as a fabulous pair of rosy pink earrings...I was her first customer. Buy Indie and support some really incredibly talented, industrious and thoughtful beings.


Wednesday, May 09, 2007

Cotton Candy Crocs

Well my curiosity finally overcame me... After ogling the store displays from afar, I finally walked over and slipped on a pair of Cotton Candy colored Crocs and it was love at first step. Like a small child with a brand new toy, the cashier had to practically peel those Crocs out of my hands so that she could scan them. I don't think I even made it to the car before my old shoes were off and my Crocs were cushioning each step. I've had them for a few weeks now and wear them almost every day. I still tell Jason on a daily basis how much I love my Crocs, but he has kindly asked me to stop mentioning how wonderfully pink they are. I guess I could see that this could be annoying, but you just have to see for yourself how wonderfully pink they are. That's all I have to say...

Tuesday, May 08, 2007

Yard Sale-ing

Ah, Spring has sprung and my beloved yard sales are back! The last few weekends showed a trickle of listings, but this past weekend seemed to be the Grand Opening of my favorite season. I have gone yard sale-ing since I was a kid. Each time the car would stop, I would clamber out to see what treasures awaited. My treasure list has changed over the years, but still nothing beats the rush of a great find. We had limited time this Saturday, but still managed to squeeze in a couple of good finds. Jason pulled the Jeep up and I clambered out... bringing these treasures home:




















Monday, May 07, 2007

t.y.p.e.w.r.i.t.e.r...

I found this vintage typewriter a while ago...you may remember my ramblings on the subject last summer...the tap, tap, tap....ziiiiiiiiipppping that was my current vintage obsession. Well, this typewriter has made its way into various corners of my home, appeared (very photogenically might I add) alongside the Nataliya bag in my online shop and was even the subject of some of my recent photography. This poor guy needed a place to settle down and enjoy his dapper self. So, here he is as of this weekend displayed in our kitchen alongside my photography. I also hung the great typewriter dress print by the talented Emily over at The Black Apple.






































Friday, May 04, 2007

Re-purposed Skirt

One of my favorite things to do, that you know even if you only occasionally stop by my blog, is to thrift. Sometimes I am in the mood to slowly hunt for that rare find...a unique garment or vintage treasure and other times I just breeze through the shop stopping at whatever catches my eye. This toddler skirt was found on one of those latter days. Reminiscent of an old patchwork quilt and spotted with some of my favorite summer hues... This is a super easy project with endless variations. I simply turned the skirt inside out and sewed about a 1/2" from the edge, then turned the skirt back to right side out. I then took two purchased bamboo purse handles and attached them by sewing loops made from grosgrain ribbon. This stitching I did by hand. As you can see, I even left the garment labels in for a bit of re-purposed charm...











































































Thursday, May 03, 2007

Dorothy Clutch

I'm still working out the design a bit...simple...organic...silk (I love the crispness of silk). My grandmother Dorothy always carries a clutch. As a little girl I always thought my grandmother was so regal...truthfully, I still do. She turns 90 this summer. She is a college graduate...Phi Beta Kappa...a teacher of the English language as well as German. She speaks very properly and I still mentally check my grammar while I talk with her. I used to think she was royalty. She almost always wears a dress fancied up with a pretty necklace and earrings...face made up and hair neatly coiffed... a clutch in one hand and a voguish hat with maybe a feather...this is how I picture her...



















Wednesday, May 02, 2007

Spring Clean

My kitchen had its Spring Cleaning over the past few days. Every inch of it now sparkles and smells of Meyer's Clean Day Geranium. I love being able to open the windows and doors and let the fresh air in.

The beauty on the red chair is a small quilt I am currently working on. I am using a charming vintage tablecloth backed with a cute cherry print cotton. This is my first hand stitched quilt and I love the slow detailed work...tiny stitches on crisp white vintage cotton...ahhh

Many other things in the works for my upcoming show...including silk clutches...very vogue...