valentine menagerie

My photo skills are no match for the brilliance of my dear friend Robyn and the beastly menagerie she styled for her mantle this year.

She purchased plastic zoo animals and dinosaurs (like these) and coated them with high gloss red and pink spray paint to create a graphic and textural Valentines Day display.

vogue knitting live 2012

A couple weeks ago, I made a last minute trip to NYC to attend the 2012 Vogue Knitting Live event. I attended a class on natural dyes taught by Isa Rodrigues, a color lecture presented by Kaffe Fassett and explored the well stocked marketplace.



While I was there for the conference, I also made a point of exploring a few noteworthy fiber sources in the city.

Purl Soho





I saw so many things here that I can't stop thinking about. Neon cashmere, special ribbons, charming textiles and felted wool to name a few. Purl Soho has a great online store. Check it out here.


Wool and the Gang





The Wool and the Gang site has been a favorite of mine for a while, so it was fun to visit their miniature space in Soho. Their chunky yarns make every stitch legible and are perfect for beginners! The projects are straight forward and fashion forward. Yarn, kits and ready to wear items are available in the store and online.

Habu





I knew very little about Habu before visiting their shop during my trip. This is knitting on the edge. Unique fibers, patterns and textiles are the story at this little unassuming shop. I purchased sterling silver wire that is just begging to be knit into jewelry. The silk wrapped stainless steel yarn and super fine merino are waiting for me to knit them into the scarf below.

da da da doggie

During my visit to Austin, Texas last October, I was overjoyed to stumble upon the life sized Chia Cow by Nathan Alcantara. Chia Cow is part of CowParade Austin, an art project on display throughout the city by over 60 local artists.

Since meeting Chia Cow, I have decided we need a life sized Chia Yorkie here at 123 house. Easier said than done.

I might just offer a reward for this kitschy little find...serious inquiries only, please.

wool and the gang

I knit. I am on day 13, I am a new knitter, an infant.

In 13 days I have managed to practice a lot of my stitches, learn about knit graffiti, roamed several knit shops, and found some really cool projects to work on.

One of the company's I have learned about is Wool and the Gang. They have luxe yarns, fun projects (that you'd actually wear) and a hip corporate culture.

I had no idea that knitting could be so cool. Will this be my vehicle for rebellion?

happy spring

Today Josh and I went to visit some new friends and have lunch. Our friends' children made us beautiful invitations so we wanted to do something special for them. We brought them each one of these little arrangements assembled from various sweets.

winter greens

Knowing she would have a partner in crime, my darling friend Debbie asked me to join her on Sunday for a holiday wreath making workshop at Red Butte Gardens.

I chose to use various winter greens and dried limes, the smell is absolutely divine.

letterpress cards

This Saturday, I spent the day at Sycamore Street Press in Heber, Utah to make our holiday cards. There were 10 people in the class and we all learned how letterpress works and then printed our own cards and made custom envelope liners. It was quite a lot of fun!

Since many of you will actually be receiving one of these, I can't completely reveal them, but here is a little preview.

1, 2, 3

When Josh and I got engaged, we sat down and wrote a list of people we would like to work with on certain things for the wedding, our "dream team". Ashley from Isabell's Umbrella was the only person we wanted to work with to do our invitations and other graphic projects.

We wanted something that would express who we are and what is important to us. Ashley suggested using our 123 house theme, and we loved it! We had three progressive steps to the wedding, 1. the ceremony, 2. the dinner reception and 3. the dessert reception hosted by Henri and Franklin at 123 house...naturally.

Here are a few pictures of our invitations. They turned out even better than we expected. The gorgeous letterpress was done by The Mandate Press.







Top images from Under the Umbrella.

fun in the sun

sun + water = art prints

get lit

I have loved the Moooi Random Light for quite some time, however I am not in love with the $600 price tag.



Ready Made magazine featured an article this month on creating these string globes. Could I? Would I? Should I?

toasty times

The air is crisp, the light is thin, and toasty times are coming. I am starting to make a list of my fall projects.

Has anyone made homemade marshmallows before?

wee pies

Gonna make some wee pies, as soon as I pick these up.

homemade home

Inspired my my friend Tina over at Wildflours (again), I am giving some thought to building a modern gingerbread house this year. I have wanted to do this for a long time, and I would love to enter a contest...does anyone know of any?



Image from Apartment Therapy

stitch by stitch

I just found out that a local shop teaches quilting, and I have decided that this will be my new fall and winter project. Oh, I do love to hibernate...I can't wait to get started.

nice ice

My mind is churning with ideas for a holiday centerpiece with these icy looking glass balls.

sew what!

I love entertaining, and I love discovering ways to make it look like I did more than I actually did. It's all smoke and mirrors, friends!

Today I discovered Sy an iron on hemming tape available from Ikea. Add some of this to the edges of one of their beautiful textiles and voila, you have a new table cloth or table runner to deck out your table.

So what if you can't sew or you're too lazy, no one will ever be the wiser.


{a little bit of this}


{and a little bit of that}

clearly clever

Last year my friend Melissa brought me a lovely candle from her trip to Paris. I noticed that the shop had used clear stickers instead of tape on the wrapping paper.

I've been meaning to order these so that I incorporate this clever little trick into my gift wrapping practice.

cool storage

I am in love with these freezer labels from Martha Stewart. Print them out here. You'll be organized and have a cute looking freezer.

first impressions

When we moved into 123 house a year ago, our acquisition came with an ugly door. We are itching to replace it soon.

We love this one by Milano Doors. Wouldn't it look beautiful in a nice tomato red color?


{milano 23 door}

guardin' the garden

We have spent the last few weeks preparing our yard at 123 house in hopes that spring is still on it's way.

Henri, our head of security, has been trolling the yard protecting it from any misdirected birds, bugs, or otherwise.


{poppies growing in our yard at 123 house}


{henri enjoying his outdoor play space}