{Good Read} Uppercase #11 love...

My love of UPPERCASE Magazine isn't new. I've been a fan for awhile now- I'm only missing the 1st issue in my cherished collection. The magazine never ceases to inspire & delight me. I'm always amazed at how timely the topics are- it seems like each issue is always full of everything I'm currently interested in.  Now I know I say this EVERY time, but issue number 11 is my absolute favorite so far. In addition to the stellar content- there is another reason why I was thrilled when I flipped through the pages... 

Sayer was pretty excited to see the "Wise Old Owls" article too- particularly the {covet} page (pg 101). It's always nice to get a nod or mention in print- but when it is in a favorite magazine that is so beautifully curated & designed, it's particularly smile inducing. 

I'm still savoring the magazine but here are four articles that caught my attention right away. 

- carving a niche : the small marvels of artist diam chau - page 39-41

- scherenschnitte - page36-37

- Scratching the Surface - page 86-87

- fibre and fire : Lizz Aston - page 82-85

Funny, but two of these articles caught my attention because of Chris. He is a ceramicist & has been doing "sgraffito" for over 20 years in his personal work- which is where I first learned the term. In the work that he does for hutch studio, he has been exploring the concept of "sherenschnitte" over the last few years. So I the, Scratching the Surface and scherenschnitte articles, stood out to me in particular. 

This is truly a gorgeous magazine & I don't have enough thumbs to give it the "thumbs up" that it deserves. If you are local to where I live - you can find this great magazine (in person) at, ideal: carefully curated goods,  in Bellingham, WA. 

Thanks Janine, you made my day. Kudos on other fantastic issue!

{Good Read} Anorak + Alain Gree = LOVE

What happens when a new & innovative children's magazine & press pairs up with a favorite children's book illustrator? Perfection, that's what. 

"PLOC Magazine is the happy mag for little ones (kiddos from 3yrs-8yrs old) that contains tons of games & coloring stories for budding readers - & published by the gorgeous Anorak Press & illustrated exclusively by Alain Gree. 

I've been a fan of Alain Gree's illustrations for awhile now & have even have found a few lovely vintage Gree books for Sayer over the years.  I just learned about the children's magazine, Anorak this summer & was delighted with the 2 issues that I purchased. You can imagine how excited I was to hear about PLOC!

 

It definitely passed the Sayer test. These were his favorite 4 features on first read. They couldn't be more perfect for his interests right now. While this is a UK publication, the world wide web allows all of us to partake in the fun. Definitely a favorite find & good read. Hope you are finding time to relax & curl up with a good magazine or book this weekend!


Visit Anorak here.
{new l/s rabbit tee here}

{Contributor} La Petite Magazine #4...

Have you seen the new issue of La Petite Magazine yet? It came out on Friday & it's just gorgeous! Rachelle & Jennifer Lee have expanded their La Petite team by adding Peggy (Paul & Paula blog) & Stacie Bloomfield (Gingiber) which seems like a perfect fit. I was particularly excited to be asked to contribute another book article, given the theme of issue #4 is all about the '70's & '80's. It was a nostalgic & fun project that was really close to my heart for sure. 

At first, the task of writing, for the love of books, for this issue seemed a bit daunting. There are so many books during that time period that I adore- I ended up having to editing myself several times. Once I decided on The Giving Tree being a major part of the article, Sayer & I set out for the park with a camera, The Giving Tree, & a picnic in tow. 

We had a blast! It was the first sunny day after tons of rain so it was fun to romp in the fresh air. I was thrilled to have captured the afternoon in photos. I actually wrote the article after I chose the photos to use. I tend to work that way. I illustrate before I write stories too. It's funny, but seeing these pictures of Sayer wearing his suspenders, channeling Shaun Cassidy & Mork, took me back to the days on the grade school playground. I loved it! Sayer doesn't know the Do Run Run or who the heck Mork is, but he rocked the look all the same. 

Details of Sayer's retro look (if you are interested) :: 

suspenders- vintage from 3ringcircus 

hat- handmade by Armelle for Pure Pixie

big collared shirt- Kate Quinn Organics

owl tee- (his momma) klt:works

shoes- Vans

jeans- Old Navy

Books in my 70's & '80's time capsule stack ::

Security is a Thumb and a Blanket

Pippi Longstocking

The Tent (Wonder Books)

The Velveteen Rabbit 

The Story of Ferdinand

James and the Giant Peach

The Best Nest

In a People House

The Patchwork Girl of Oz

Frederick

Where the Sidewalk Ends

The Giving Tree

Crictor

Pet Show

And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street

Weedle on the Needle

So cruise on over to flip through issue #4 of La Petite here. For those of you that lived through the 70's & 80's like me, it will give you a beautiful trip down memory lane. 

Thanks for including my article Rachelle! It's an honor to be apart of this issue!

{Good Read} Tomi Ungerer...

{Tomi Ungerer}

I had a chance to pop into one of my favorite shops called IDEAL a few weekends ago. (Last October, I had a trunk show at IDEAL & posted about it here if you would like a peek into the shop.) I was actually meeting up with one of the two owners, Lisa to hang out & chat about design, books & motherhood that day. But, I fit in a browse through the shop before we left & ended up purchasing two books, Moon Man & The Three Robbers. Lisa is a lover of children's books too & recommended them, plus I was immediately drawn to the illustrations. When I got home, I realized that I had another book illustrated by Tomi Ungerer called, Snail, where are you?, that I got for Sayer a long time ago. Lisa had also reminded me about another one of his books, Crictor, that I remembered really liking as a kid. So it appears that I've enjoyed his work for a some time now.

{The Three Robbers}

{Moon Man}

{Snail, where are you?}

{Crictor}

A few days after I bought those cool Tomi Ungerer books at IDEAL, I stumbled on this post  when I was cruising through my favorite blogs. Not only did I  become even more enchanted with this artist & writer, but I discovered that I had just bought a book that he had illustrated (but didn't write) in the $1 bin at the thrift store a week prior called, Seeds and More Seeds. The illustrations are more like Crictor & I also liked the style of  typography.

I always enjoy learning about artists & writers and finding little interviews like this one. I can officially say that I'm a Tomi Ungerer fan. Are you? 

*Click here to see who the winner of the 5 Creative Bundle Competition is. Due to the interest in this competition, I posted on Wednesday rather than waiting for Fabric Friday. 


Hope you have a great weekend! Do you have anything fun planned?

{Good Read} even though I can't read Japanese...

There are many languages on my list to learn these days. I rely heavily on Google translators daily it seems. While learning Japanese seems interesting for a number of reasons, being able to finally read the Paumes series of design books would on top of the list. It takes a special book for me to buy it even though I don't know how to read it- but to buy three books written in a different language would take something special. When I first read about the Paumes books, I immediately went on a search for them. As a New Year's gift to myself, I bought the, children's rooms "Stockholm" & The Finland Family Style book. My favorite thing to do is flip through them before I go to bed. They give me extra creative dreams.  Later, for a birthday/Valentine's Day gift to myself, I added, Paris Creative Couples to my stash.

{These photos are from my Paris Creative Couples book}

{These photos are from my Finland Family Style book}

{& these photos are from the Children's Rooms "Stockholm"}

It seems particularly relevant to share my love for Paumes right now. Yesterday, Paumes started a charity event called "Pray for Japan" for the people suffering from disaster of the earthquake & tsunami. It's an art exhibition in their gallery where all of the sales from the artwork will be contributed via Japanese Red Cross Society. You can view the participants & more about the exhibition here  . If you wish to donate to Japan relief, I've got a button on my sidebar that takes you straight to a few ways to do so- including Red Cross. 

It's always nice to see interesting companies & talented individuals making a difference. It just makes me like them even more. 

{Good Read} Dr. Seuss...

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss! We had a little birthday celebration of our own this morning with the Cat in the Hat. But tonight we will be reading some of our favorite Seuss books.  I have been tripping down memory lane with some of these books lately. I recently bought Sayer, "In a People House" & "The Best Nest" which are two of my childhood favorites. I remember studying every picture & memorizing every phrase. "Sam the Firefly" is another one that evokes fond memories.  Well really.... they all do! 

I stumbled on the annual Read Across America campaign today & they have a great way to celebrate Dr. Seuss' birthday. 

What is your favorite Dr. Seuss book?  It'll be nice to read with you tonight!  

Play! Design for kids....

It's here- it's here! My copy of "PLAY! Design for Kids" just arrived  from Hamburg and I'm just over the moon. It's so cool! 

"Play! reveals an inspiring cross-section of current projects and trends. Design for kids- worked out in play or inviting you to play along. 53 designers whose work combines concept and design with a playful sense of joy." Elly Plass & Henning Otto, EIGA Design

I wish I could show you every page! But here is diverse peek... 

Ingela P Arrhenius/ Sweden

Jonathan Calugi/ Italy

Manuela Olten/ Germany

ninetonine/ Spain

Thomas Lupo/ Germany

Maren Bottcher/ Germany 

Farina Kuklinski/ Germany

Kristin Loffer Theiss/ USA

Yippee! Did you notice why I'm so excited? I'm just thrilled to be among this group of 53 designers chosen for "Play!". Not to mention, I have learned about so many interesting designers in the directory at the end of the calendar. For more information about how to purchase this calendar check here & here. I'm now going to go look through this again. I think 2011 is going to be an exciting year..... 

{Good Read} where children sleep....

When I first read about the book, Where Children Sleep,  I immediately pre-ordered myself a copy. It arrived last week and it's as beautiful as it is real. James Mollison photographed children's bedrooms around the world, from sixteen countries including the US, Mexico, Brazil, the UK, Italy, Kenya, Senegal, Japan, China and Nepal. His interest in this idea came from his acknowledgment of the importance of his own room growing up and he wanted to document how circumstances & different social situations would affect where a child sleeps. There is both a picture of the child and the child's sleeping space/room, plus a little description of the child, which I think is genius. I find the juxtaposition of both, extremely intriguing and effective. This book is written with the age groups 9-13 years old in mind. 

"I hope this book will help children think about inequality, within and between societies around the world." says Mollison in his introduction.

These are only a few of the rooms- I just wanted to give you a peek. The idea of where children sleep appeals to two sides of me. Being that I make decor for children's rooms, there is a curiosity about how and where different children live- what children find comforting. But before I started klt:works I worked for years in social services. I taught in a juvenile detention, worked with at risk youth, and found jobs for people with significant disabilities. I have had the opportunity to see the diversity in how youth live in just the small town that I call home. This book embodies so much that I am interested in. I also look forward to sharing it with Sayer when he is older. A definite "Good Read".