noodle.

"run by award winning designer sally hudson, noodle designs and creates products for the home to enhance your life. the fresh, organic style that noodle is now known for across the world uses photographic images taken by hudson on her travels, which are then given a little noodle magic and digitally printed onto silk to create the lampshades and cushions." bringing the outside into the home! how fun to add glimpses of nature into your home and remind you of the beauty waiting just outside your door! along with lampshades and canvases, noodle offers up nature depicted on blinds, wallpaper, mugs, candles and who knows what's next! set in london along the sea and country side of east sussex, hudson has surrounded herself with inspiration for her next photo. noodle captures the color of nature, the texture, the absolute beauty and simplicity of leaves, branches and the light that falls on them. noodle has a glow. enjoy!

pinch.

pinch me! i stumbled upon this site and what fun! fantastic pinch-ed light, sleek textured furniture, and a great concept. collaborating in london, this husband and wife team of russell pinch and oona bannon, pull together their varied talents to offer the products you're seeing above. "having spent 5 years designing products for demanding customers buyers and specifiers, and another combined 12 years in branding and marketing, we understand client’s and customer’s needs. we take a pride in delivering compelling, dynamic and commercial ideas, from furniture, to cutlery to retail environments and exhibition spaces." pinch began officially in 2004 and already met with a variety of awards and press. i am loving their "armoire" collection too, you just have to check out this company. you just do not see products like these around and about!

marimekko fall collection.

"marimekko corporation began in finland in 1951. its founders, armi and viljo ratia, built the company on a strong desire to offer unique, long-lasting and beautiful products to post-war finland." offering a bold and bright line of textiles which are screenprinted, marimekko has branched out to also offer apparel, bags and interior design services. my best friend lives in finland and was born there, she lived in the states for a while then went home. i have been to finland to visit her and love the sense of whimsical, bright and cheery colors she and maybe many from finland seem to gravitate towards. she painted her walls, purple and decorated with orange and greens and reds. perhaps it is from enduring the long dark winters that she needs that color to keep her going. whatever the reason, i love that about finland and about her.
"more than a brand name, marimekko represents the desire for a modern lifestyle that is in harmony with the natural environment." enjoy their designs, colors, patterns and textures. you'll start noticing that the dull old chair or drab curtains in your home need a bit of marimekko!

before.

where the green metal awnings are i'll add my own deep chocolate brown awnings over them.

the space jutting out to the right of this photo is part of the restaurant next to me.

an outside view of the doorway and some planters outside, love all of the brickwork.

this is a long hallway i'll close off and use for storage, there is a bathroom at the very end and then at the end to the right is another door which leads into the restaurant kitchen of the fabulous restaurant beside me.




these are my only two windows, or one window and the doors, but i love how large they are.


hey friends, here are the before shots i promised of my new chocolate shop location! it's a beautiful "nantucket style" development here on cape cod and the spaces are filling fast. i'm grateful to have grabbed a beautiful and small space which we be easy to manage and transform. i will be getting started this weekend ripping out the corporate style carpet and the awful drop ceiling. i have tons of ideas, my head hurts at this point, and cannot wait to begin. i hope to open the second or so week in november so i better get busy. i am located next to one of the capes finest restaurants with a renowned chef and am excited to have some of her customers popping into my shop. the name of my shop is sepia, and for those who may not realize, it means a dark, brown, warm and syrupy color. we thought that the name was easy to remember and summed up all that is chocolate. so i'll keep posting some "in progress" shots as well here and there and then of course a final shot. any comments or suggestions will be received with excitement! have a relaxing weekend everyone and enjoy the beautiful fall days...

i've been tagged!

chris over at reverie tagged me! if you haven't visited her blog, you must. i love reading her clever posts about her and her husband pete. it's like a great on-going story with pictures and funny commentary, and a couple of very adora-ble pets. i find myself wanting to see what happened today and i have actually laughed out loud while reading some of her posts, great sense of humor, lover of shoes, pets and a husband named pete. really unique blog! so...on that note, i included the picture above as more of an abstract explosion of feeling i felt at having been tagged, it felt exciting and i wanted to share the feeling. just that there are really interesting people who lead very busy lives, stopping to read my little ol' blog is an amazing experience to me and i am grateful for that and also am grateful i can browse the great world of blogging and meet so many of these intelligent and artistic human beings.
i'm asked to tell 6 details about myself, so let me think...
1.) i have a beautiful son who is taller than me now and that just does not seem right! he has eyes that are gold and has stopped people in their tracks to comment on them. blonde hair and gold eyes, yikes i'm in trouble down the road with the ladies i do believe. i've created another human being who is gorgeous, artistic, reads edgar allen poe for leisure and listens to opera from time to time amongst his other selections on his much beloved i-pod. so ethan is my greatest accomplishment.
2.) about me: i love eating frosted flakes, dry only, right out of the box. they are a great creation in themselves and i can't say enough about the pleasure i get in opening a brand new box.
3.) i was a music major, having family members all around me growing up who played the guitar, my father still does. then switched to my stronger suit which is art. i majored in college in fine arts, painting, and now have switched to the history of art and architecture to finish my bachelors. (which has taken about 10 years but who's counting...)
4.) i love to run, dance, embarass my son whenever i can, i love to talk with a british accent in private and public, which then embarress my son and does the job i set out to do, i love italian food, thai food and am a vegetarian, i love being outside and would live in a tent if it had a bathtub.
5.) re-finishing old pieces of furniture excites me, finding old pieces of houses excites me (like shutters, columns, doors, lights). i like the energy you feel in older pieces, what conversations have they heard? hunks of old homes are interesting and intruiging to me.
6.) i have to live near an edge. meaning, i lived in colorado once for 2 years and after having grown up right on the water in massachusetts, and even though there is tons of space in colorado, there is no edge. i need to be able to go to the edge, where the water is and look out. something comforting about that.

that's me in a tiny, itsy-bitsy nutshell! and now i'd like to tag a few others which are part of the rules and the fun: and the winners are...
lisa renee at juxtaposition design, in plain sight by kelli renee ( i don't think they are related), latelierivedi from south africa!, soulpretty in new york, kristen at dream, design, live, and finally la porte rouge, who does not say much but says alot through her gorgeous photography, maybe she'll just use images?
the rules: link to the person who tagged you, list the rules, tag 6 others, and leave them a comment to let them know you've tagged them!

mkd outdoor.

mark knudsen, having been involved formerly in the design of medical instruments, automotive products and fly fishing reels, hones in on this amazing line of built-to-last outdoor furniture, aptly named mkd outdoor. sculpture really. and again...love the use of chunky metal against the natural wood, tough holding up soft. mkd's products are equally suited for both residential and commercial spaces. headquartered in stockton, new jersey, mkd outdoor is accessible, interested and awaiting your comments or orders. simply fabulous. oh...and get outside!

pallucco

"established in rome in the 70s, pallucco has always been one of its kind, disassociating itself from the prevailing attitude of experimenting with new solutions both in the furniture and the lighting sector. with an innate instinct for stylishness, it has always sought particular shapes and furnishing accessories with a high aesthetic and design content to the extent that it is today one of the few true design companies on an international scale." love that word "stylishness" and they've got that for sure. focusing on furniture and lighting they zero in on several designers which they feel depict the image of pallucco and what it wants to offer for the utilitarian, the artistic and the sublime. wonderfully special, eye-candy galore!

gnr8.

fun take on the average clock.


very comfy quilted chair.

what i love about this mirror is the un-framed nature with those cuts along the edges. adds a texture and element to the space that's smooth and sharp at the same time.


doesn't everyone need a lit up sink for brushing your teeth with?



these next two pieces below i thought would be fun for a larger kids room or playroom. available in solid or transparent colors, you can stack them, add on or take away to design your own shape and size. very inventive.




unusual products from an unusual company located in quebec, canada. through dwell magazine (my favorite so far) i discovered gnr8 or generate, however you'd like to say it. products are featured from an array of different and eclectic designers. some pricey, some not so. i liked some of their takes on lighting things up, on their furniture and a few accessories like mirrors and tabletop pieces. fun stop to pick out something of a conversation piece for sure. easy monday viewing!