Stratis Vogiatzis

Greek photographer Stratis Vogiatzis is hugely talented, he is also self taught. He took three years to photograph these humble inner sanctums. I think they really open the window into people’s souls. His depth of photography subjects is staggering. See more here on his site, found via.

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I have been thinking about this home for a while now. It turns out a long while. Vogue Living published it in Aug/Sept 2003! I used to hoard all my interior magazines until I bought for Heals. I sat next to another buyer who would rip page after page out of magazines, at the time I thought that was sacrilegious. Now I think it is genius. There is no inspiration in a closed magazine. Not when you don't have time to flick. So now all my magazines get shredded and inspiring shots go into my expanding note book. How I did not keep these images I don’t know, but I was so delighted to stumble upon them at Moodboard. I love the collections of lace and gathered finds they look as if they have been put together effortlessly. And that painting, to me it is so beautiful and of course inspiring.

Oh what fun it is to ride

I thought this was fun. Frederique Morrel and her husband use fibreglass taxidermy moulds which they inject with expanding foam to create these life size pieces. They then cover them with vintage embroidered pieces, add real antlers and then finish them off any tricky bits with realistic resin pieces.

You can see more creations on their website here.

Growing.

I am working on this for my lounge as my sister is about to stake her claim on one of my paintings. I offered to paint them one for their new home they bought last year. They have thought about this for a long time and last week she called me and asked for this one.

I will feel a little sad when it goes. I painted it just after having Matilda so for me it represents the time when we were a family of three adjusting to being a family of four. Helping Dillon to become a big boy, and letting him go a little and at the same time, discovering the surprise of just how much more love you have to give to the new little lady love.

Oh, and the joy of having pink in the house!

Now it will go and hang in my sister's house. A house where there is a new baby. And now they are learning and adjusting from being a family of three to a family of four. 

Oh the joy!

Chocolate heaven

A pround little lady with her homemade chocolate treats. Together they went to a frinds house to bounce on the trampoline. Up and down, round and round they went, singing and giggling all the way.

Into the blue

Serentity. Feels good.

Photographer Jacques Dequeker.

found via murmurs

see a little more here on my tumblr page.

Sarah Maingot

 Today I needed inspiration, I found it here amongst the colours and shapes of Sarah Maingots look book.

Love you G&G.

Kate Kelleher

I found these pebbles on a beach, this time last year, while staying with our good friends. Sunshine and laughter. That’s what I remember.

I found these friends a long time ago. They stay these friends. They share the laughter. The tears. Always there.

I found these pebbles in my box full of lace and buttons. The pebbles have holes. So I string them together to sit side by side. Like my friends.

I found a place to hang my pebbles. So I can remember. The sunshine. The laughter. My friends.

Woooowwaaa! Stunning show off hair accessories. And my goodness isn't the lady so beautiful? My sister has similar hair colour. It was troublesome for her growing up, not now though, people stop her in the street wanting to know her secret.

She holds no secret it is all hers.

One for Joy.

I loved working on this painting. It’s large scale of 2m x 1m delighted me.

But I loved it also for another reason.

Ivor commissioned it for his wife Nadia to celebrate the birth of their little girl Yasmeen. Such a personal and touching gesture, and one he chose over diamonds, which of course then had me quaking in my boots. That’s a tall order to fill.

We delivered it last night, luckily radiant Nadia was suitably shocked and loved the painting. We also got to meet their beautiful new arrival who was nestled in Nadia’s arms, content and sleepy, meowing like a little kitty.

I am sure she will make them so proud and shine brighter than any diamond. Gorgeous little lady.

Theatrical Liliroze.

Theatrical Liliroze.

We have had a theatrical adventure of a weekend.

We started off meeting friends and going for a delicious modern Chinese meal at the glamorous Yauatcha. The food was so delicious I nearly licked my plate. Then off we went.... clubbing. Yes, I know! Earlier in the day my sister said to me, ‘do people our age go clubbing?’ The answer to this is simply, ‘no they do not’. Evidently unless you are a sugar daddy or eighteen, everyone else is tucked up in bed, and let me tell you the reason for this. The next day is a killer. Full stop. Luckily I escaped with Dillon to the cinema to see The Tale of Despereaux, which meant darkness and popcorn with my cuddly boy. A great comfort blanket for a sore tired head.

Yesterday was filled with sunshine and a christening for Lottie. Bubbles, lovely lunch, oodles of children playing on the lawn, delicious cakes. Gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous. Tom was a proud godfather and we gave Lottie a Liberty Merci suitcase filled with treasures and a little knowledge for a life of adventure.

What more could a girl want?

Little Darling

Gorgeous little dresses from Let them eat cake.

Too nice to wear they should be framed!

Bruno Fabbris

Dreamy photographs from the portfolio of Bruno Fabbris. They make me want to point my toes and dance, twirling round and round with the smoke and the tulle.

I am going clubbing on Friday. I will have to try not to go too crazy, I haven't been on the dance floor for a while.

Seed Cathedral for the UK Shanghi Pavilion 2010 World Expo.

all images © Heatherwick Studio

Wow wow wow! Look at this, it's the Seed Cathedral for the UK Shanghi Pavilion by Heatherwick Studio built for the 2010 World Expo.

It is made of 60,000-plus transparent acrylic shafts containing seeds at each base. During the day the 7.5 meter long shafts guide light into the cathedral, illuminating the interior. While at night the light source imbedded in each shaft glows, allowing the cathedral to glow.

all photos © Daniele Mattioli

 It was built to raisee awareness of the Millennium Seed Bank Project, an international conservation project housed at Kew Gardens here in London. So far they have banked 10% of the worlds wild plant species and hoped to have reached 25% by 2020.

An amazing structure housing the potential of life.

P.S. Talking of seeds I nearly forgot to add that Dillon gave me a seed from his toast at breakfast. When I asked him why? He told me that we should plant a toast tree!

Where the little people live.

In a year’s time, when my kids are a little older and can sit still for more than a minute, magically a small house will appear at the end of our garden.

This is where, if they are good, very very good, and love the garden and each other. (i.e., not pick my flowers and leaves, blind each other by throwing sand, whack the slide with a golf club, spray each other with the hose until someone squeels.... you get my drift) A little fairy might just find it's way to this house to live with us.

If they are lucky and exceptionally good, a small village of fairies might just find it's way to us. We shall have to start practicing to be good, because right now it looks like a sand storm has just hit our garden.

And a fairy would not like to get sand between her toes, now would she?

Photography by Koto Bolofo found via fashiongonerogue

The rainbow of Liliroze

One day I will get to the end of the rainbow and find Liliroze with a picnic.

Joy.