roadside scholar

stuff i found on the highway of life

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valentine shopping fun (round up)

late to the party, my head is swimming with all the vday goodies i’ve seen floating around here. some of these items might not make it to your mailbox before the big day but you can still enjoy looking at some of my favorite categories…

romance in photography from jennifer squires, art of whimsy, kayleen michelle and alyson jones

 inspired jewelry from laurie chapman, margaux lange, victoria buckley and stephanie simek

ceramic and glass bliss from lily pottery and jeri goodman

soft-sided accessory love from las lopezlas, fringe, stewart and brown, and linda lye

poetic paper from l2 design collective, porterness, amy blackwell (via) and able and game (via)

love spray from reed seifer

 

chocolate creations from jean philippe maury, christopher elbow and knipschildt

sweet and funny illustrations from laura george, seaspray blue and le papier

pillows: pooh, humble and veronique

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gone but not forgotten finger puppets

these little gone but not forgotten crocheted finger puppets of deceased popular culture icons by designer francesca basilico for i golfini della nonna are darkly amusing. and sad.

the set includes heath ledger, the maharishi maresh yogi, yves saint laurent and other noteworthy people.

find them at moss.

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jen hopwood’s snappy pillows

i am liking these snappy animal pillows over at mahar dry goods right this very minute. the 12″ x 20″ pillows, designed by jen hopwood, have covers are made of durable cotton canvas, come with a polyester insert and include five sturdy felt animals to mix and match according to your ever changing moods. whee! i would have had a ball playing with these in my room when i was a kid.

bonus: they’re on sale right now – 50% off! and that isn’t the only thing over there that’s on sale either.

snatch these up and find other fun things on sale through september 8th, 2008, right here.

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martha bishop recycled pillows and quilts

i love these contemporary handmade pillows, blankets and cotton quilts from michigan artist martha bishop, aka the lazy gal. it’s obvious that she has a terrific sense of humor, and bonus: her felted wool pillows are made from recycled sweaters, with cardigan backs for ease of pillow insertion!

purchase these pieces on martha’s website, where you can see much, much more (and thanks for the great tip burt!).

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fauna chico keychains

i never wanted to carry a stuffed animal around with my keys until i saw these humorous handprinted keychains from new york’s salvor fauna. they’re pretty big — about 3″ x 8″ — so now i just need a purse big enough to keep it in.

find these pieces and see their other supercute animal accessories at design public.

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organic cotton veggie toys (cute)

it’s farmer’s market season and what better way to teach your child about the benefits of organic farming than with this adorable set of 100% organic cotton vegetable toys, from janice masoud and the folks at the sekem farm in egypt. little ones can use them as teethers and bigger kids can engage them in creative play.

the set comes in a useful wooden crate and is available at janice’s online shop and also at uncommon goods.

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la pomme sewn toys and pillows: miniview

i am back from my weekend in nola, which was lovely (more on that later). equally if not more lovely are these soft linen and cotton pillows, sachets and toys from philippines-born, french-based artist apol lejano-massebieau, aka etsy seller lapomme. many of the pieces in apol’s dreamy collection are crafted from rescued and recycled materials and stuffed them with delicious dried lavender. each and every piece also has a wonderful and quirky story behind it. i wanted to know more of apol’s personal story, so i asked just three questions…

q: where do you live, and where do you make your lovely things?
a: i live in a little village in southwestern france, and i used to sew on my dining room table, until it stopped being fun finding pieces of thread in the salad. so i recently bought myself a little mobile home and installed it on the property, beside my dry garden. i painted the walls a shade called raspberry, and from march to mid-april i have a view of flamingos feeding in the marsh in front. it is wonderful to finally have a space for all my mess!

q: do you have an art background? how did you get into making these sachets and pillows?
a: what i am, mainly, is a writer, who had always had a deep appreciation for the visual arts and the fabric arts. sewing was something that i did on-and-off, and had always wanted to do more of, except that life had always been too busy.

when i was a child, my sisters and i would prepare for christmas by making handmade toys to give to cousins, although sometimes the toys were so freaky our cousins would cry. then at university i was part of the costume department of a theater group, and i got to make fun objects like a stuffed octopus and metallic dance suits. then i stopped for more than a decade as real life and a high-pressure job happened.

after a serious rearranging of my life, finally, after a long iI am able to again handle fabric, needle, and thread. this time, i have no plans of stopping.

q: would you rather sleep with lavender or eat it?
a: lavender in food requires a light touch, otherwise you feel like you’re eating a garden. so unless i really really trust the kitchen, i’d rather just sleep with the herb.

purchase these pieces and see the full collection at apol’s etsy shop, and say hi to her on her blog too.

thank you apol!

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tamar mogendorff textile art

i am a sucker for beautifully sewn cuteness, so look at these exquisitely crafted (and photographed) pieces from brooklyn textile artist tamar mogendorff. they’re made from linen, vintage buttons and fabric, wool, ribbon and other materials.

purchase select pieces at enfant terrible and see the full collection on tamar’s website.

via poppytalk

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