Found: Bean Forest (and happy Friday!)

I almost broke my spending freeze (on day two!) to pick up a few of these buttons from Bean Forest on Etsy.  I probably will, later.  For now, I'll just laugh at the humor that perfectly suits an English major.  Check out the art/lit/history/music section if you love books and could use a laugh.  Oh, and have a very happy Friday and weekend!

Sidenote:  Unfortunately, I don't love the whole shop.  Some of the buttons have a mean-spirited social/political bent to them and that is one of my biggest pet peeves .  Actually, it IS my biggest pet peeve.  It doesn't matter if you're partially right--you can still be polite!  And don't generalize about people!  Ugh.  Still, these particular buttons made me laugh so much that I had to share them anyway.

Found: Lovers, by Jarek Puczel

Source: saatchionline.com via Katie on Pinterest

This oil painting by Jarek Puczel has stayed with me since I first found it on Pinterest.  I love everything about it--the tones, the way the lines and faces blur into each other, and the slightly mysterious aura it seems to exude.

The artist's caption reads thus: "When we love, we think constantly about each other."

That is the true difficulty and treasure of love, to think constantly about someone else (and not always consciously, either).  You are somehow fully (or even more fully) yourself and yet it becomes impossible to tell where you end and your beloved begins.

Three Things

Source: vanityfair.com via Katie on Pinterest

I am rather obsessed with Downton Abbey.  It's so good!  Best part?  PBS has the episodes available online right away.  I'm also rather in love with the music...and the characters, and the suspense, and the time period (1912-1918, so far), and the wardrobe, and everything.  It's so emotional to watch, and the most recent episode had the most joyful scenes, in spite of being set during World War I.  Go watch it.  Now.

Source: notyouraverageordinary.com via Katie on Pinterest

Since hearing an interview with Erin Morgenstern on NPR, then reading Brandi's post about The Night Circus a few weeks later, I've been trying to get my hands on a copy.  This week, I stumbled across it at a used bookstore and picked it up immediately.  I've only read a few chapters, but I plan to devote tomorrow to the rest.  It is enchanting thus far.

Source: thefirstlime.com via Katie on Pinterest

My hair is still too short for a lot of these styles (it hits the top of my shoulders), but I've been braiding it almost daily.  As soon as it grows a few more inches, I'll try the fishtail and the five-strand braids.  I'm trying to break out of my ponytail habit, especially because I need to look a bit more professional and a bit less college student nowadays.

Before I Die

Dreams, big, small, adventurous, or simple, can be a food for the soul.  They push us forward into the next day and the next and every one after that, giving us the impetus to expand our lives and grow.  Most people probably have some sort of mental list of things they'd like to do before they die, things that may seem in the future but get closer every day...yet get lost in the every day.  

Earlier this year, Candy Chang, a cofounder of Civic Center and TED fellow among numerous other accomplishments, launched Before I Die, a project that transformed the side of an abandoned building in New Orleans into a giant space to articulate and share dreams.  It's a giant chalkboard, with spaces for people to fill in their hopes and dreams.  Some of them are inspiring, others a little heart-breaking, and a few are even kind of funny.  

Since the initial project, Before I Die has been recreated in at least nine other cities, using the Toolkit from Civic Center, and people continue sharing their dreams.  What would you write? You can share your dream here.  

All images are borrowed from here, available for use for publicizing the project.  Oh, and yes, I found this on StumbleUpon.  I'm sure I'm not the first person to blog about this project, but I really, really love it.

Stumbled.

Guys, I just discovered StumbleUpon.  I know, I'm like a billion years behind the rest of the web.  I mean, I've seen it before, sure, I just never tried it.  But yesterday, Tina, author of English Muse posted about it and I clicked on over.  Now I'm hooked.  I've got a whole bunch of things I'll be sharing with you soon.

So far, this is on the list of the coolest things I've found.

It was posted by him and made by them and it's a little bit awesome.

If you're on StumbleUpon, I'm liltoiloflove.  If not, you should join, unless you have things that you really should be doing, like schoolwork or real work, because the internet is a very easy place to get distracted in.

Right, I'm going to work on my homework now.

The Smiling Victorian

Most photos from the Victorian era are formal, with stoic expressions that look as if one is trying to contain all emotion, whether positive or negative, behind a tensed face.  The reasons given are various: photos were an expensive and formal event, photos were taken postmortem, people were unhappy, it took so long for the image to be captured that maintaining a smile was difficult and painful...you get the idea.  Basically, smiling was unacceptable and difficult*.  That's quite a blanket statement to lay across an entire era, and apparently it's not entirely true.

Enter The Smiling Victorian.  An old friend of mine share a link that led me to this group on Flickr that collects Edwardian and Victorian photographs with smiling subjects.  Even a slight smile will do, so long as one does not look entirely drab.

I especially love the number of images I found of sisters together, smiling of course, apparently happy to be with each other.  Most of the writing from the Victorian and Edwardian eras that I've encountered is something much less than happy, so I am happy to come across something that shows that at least a few people--women in particular, if you go through the set--were smiling, at least long enough for a photo, and that really is something.

*Of course, most people know and acknowledge that this isn't completely true, but it's an idea that pops up quite frequently.

Perhaps you'll be as intrigued by this one and that one as I am.  There must be a story involved, but do you think we'll ever be able to know it?  Maybe I'll invent it.  I've been looking for a good story to write.

Imagination

If anyone knows where this originally came from, I'd love to know.

Source: imgfave.com via Sarah on Pinterest

I would love to create this myself and place it in my little corner workspace.  Even regular work can become creative, and a little imagination and inspiration can improve the quality of any work, not just creative.  Wouldn't a sign pointing the way to the best imaginary places encourage an imaginative approach to daily life?

A Bit of Luck and Blessing

Sometimes, when I say I'm lucky, I mean that I'm feeling blessed.  I tend to use luck/lucky for something possessed and blessing/blessed for something felt.  So sometimes I'll use the two words together in a sentence.  A few weeks ago, I was lucky enough to win a giveaway from Rouge and Whimsy on So About What I Said... and I feel blessed that it happened on a day that I was in need of cheering up.

I also bought this pretty headband from her shop.  

{photos by Erika because mine aren't as pretty}

Isn't it pretty?  I picked up the package from my parents' house yesterday and it's just as pretty in person.  Thanks, Erika!  I love it!  And thanks, Melissa, for hosting the giveaway.  Now you should sneak over to her shop and take a look for yourself.  You're bound to find something sweet and girly that makes you feel pretty.  

Left Brain, Right Brain

Source: theentertaininghouse.com via Rachel on Pinterest

My boss at my old job taught psychology courses at the school and incorporated a survey of our left or right brained characteristics into our employee evaluations.  It wasn't the first time I'd done a survey of this sort, but it allowed me a little self-discovery at that point, especially because I'd been through a lot of huge changes since the last time I'd done any sort of personality inventory.

I discovered that I'm mostly right-brained: creative, yearning, imaginative.  But my right-brained tendencies are heavily checked by the few left-brained characteristics I do have, which weigh rather heavily: analytical, love for the familiar, practical.  I'm also (if it's not too self-flattering to say) a master of words and language.  By this I mean that I may not always write with aesthetic mastery or even be interesting, but that I have a pretty good grasp of grammar, syntax, semantics, and vocabulary.  However, the way I feel about syntax and semantics (and not so much grammar or vocabulary) is more governed by my creative, yearning, and imaginative impulses; I love examining the way that words placed together in different ways can have so much impact on the way we are perceived and the way we feel and I could really go on for ages about that.

I think everyone exists somewhere on a spectrum between the left and right brain; it's not a dichotomy by any means.  It is interesting, though, that some characteristics will weigh more heavily than others and come in uneven doses, and that most people will find themselves leaning one way or the other.

Where do you see yourself in this spectrum?  Have you encountered it before?

You can see the other illustrations done for this ad campaign here, along with the text in an easier-to-read version.

Terrain Dreams

I know you've read about it a million times by now, but the new Terrain site is crazy gorgeous.  The favorites file is so much fun.  You can look at all your favorite items together and arrange them however you'd like, or even sort them into different folders.  Right now, I'm imagining my home, filled with textures and colors in these gorgeous hues.

terrain dreams by littletoiloflove on Polyvore.com

You can take a look at my favorites here and then start your own selection.  Have fun imagining!

Fun Found About: Hey Chickadee

Lately, I've been thinking about how to make my style--clothing, writing, reading, decorating, everything--more grown up and mature, but every now and then, something too irresistibly cute comes along.  This morning, it was the online boutique Hey Chickadee, discovered via a friend's tumblr page.

Let's explode with cuteness now.  Is that okay?

Source: heychickadee.com via Katie on Pinterest

Source: heychickadee.com via Katie on Pinterest

Source: heychickadee.com via Katie on Pinterest

Source: heychickadee.com via Katie on Pinterest

I want them all, please, and I don't really even wear jewelry, aside from my wedding and engagement rings and the occasional necklace my aunt makes me.

Just a Wee Bit of Fun

This is no surprise to me.  My sister and two of my dearest friends have called me Elinor since the first time we watched Sense and Sensibility as little girls.

Take the Quiz here!


Who are you?

FOUND :: Nostalgic School Supplies

Growing up, I went school supply shopping in June, usually within a month of the end of school.  Sometimes I held out until July, but I usually didn't make it that long.  I was always more excited about entering the next grade of school than I was about having summer break.  My process for picking school supplies often involved several trips to Big Lots, where they had a steady supply of Lisa Frank everything, and Target, where I picked up my less vibrant items that the school required--a red folder for math, yellow for reading, etc.

{by Robin's Egg Blue Nest on Etsy}

In fourth grade, we had bigger desks, so we got to use binders.  I was so excited to purchase my first binder that I think I bought three before deciding which one would go in my desk.  In middle school, we didn't get our supply lists until two weeks before school started, and it drove me crazy.  I couldn't wait that long, I just couldn't!  So I shopped to outfit my locker in purple shelves and sparkly magnets.

{by Earmark on Etsy}

In high school, I finally held out a little more, since we only got our supply lists on the first day of classes.  At that point, school was thoroughly routine, but I still stocked up on enough loose college ruled paper that I still have some left.

{by forrestinavintage on Etsy}

In truth, right now, I'm a little antsy to get back to school.  In August, when I plan to start, I'll breathe a huge sigh of relief.  I was excited to finish my coursework in three years and graduate in December, but I wasn't ready to be done with school, which is good, since I'll most likely be a student for at least another six years.  That means I get to keep stocking up on school supplies, right?

{by faded plains on Etsy}

In short, I've always been a nerd about school (except in the time between spring break and the end of the year, but that's beside the point).  You can laugh at me now (I know my mom already was), so go ahead, but then take a look at all the vintage school supplies on Etsy.  I compiled a treasury last night that you can look at here, featuring the items in this post and more.

FOUND :: Old New Again, on Etsy

Okay, if you know me, you probably know that I've lived in Kentucky for twelve years now, a slight majority of my life, but I'm still definitely, totally, and surely a Wisconsin native.  So when I find things from my home state, I get a little bit like that annoying kid saying "pick me! pick me!" every time the teacher asks a question--I stick my nose in the middle of things and say "Hey, I'm from there, too!"

I'm definitely going to be that kid right now and brag on these folks up in my home state who create some pretty fantastic upcycled goods in the hometown of the great and beloved Green Bay Packers.

They have Wisconsin in turquoise wood.

{Wisconsin light turquoise wood wall hook by Old New Again on Etsy}

They also have Kentucky in slate.

{Kentucky wood wall hook, slate, by Old New Again on Etsy}

If you're not looking for state-shaped wall hooks, Old New Again has a number of other wooden shabby chic items for your home, like this welcome sign.

{wood sign cottage style welcome by Old New Again on Etsy}

I must agree with the imperative statement on this sign.

{read sign wooden wall art by Old New Again on Etsy}

Every piece of wood is hand-picked, so even though their prices are a little higher than other sources, their pieces are carefully made with great quality.  Old New Again is "a husband and wife team supporting [their] family with [their] goods," which impresses me even more.  Their shop is gorgeous and you really should take a look.

ventures into the blogosphere :: Needled

For the last week or so, I've been reading pages and pages of Needled.  Kate Davies, the author, is a scholar and clearly a knitting genius.  She also writes regularly for Rowan and The Knitter and can definitely be classified as an expert.  I can't seem to get enough of the all the historical and sociological knowledge she shares of knitting, her home in Scotland (that looks amazingly gorgeous), garments, and, well, just about everything she ever brings up in posts.  Her patterns all have historical background and influence, and are available for purchase, but look incredibly complicated to me!  Perhaps someone who is capable of actually purling could create them, though. 

{manu cardigan; click image or link to see pattern listing}

I'm also developing a serious case of wanderlust since finding her very seriously gorgeous images of her outdoor adventures with her husband (and occasionally their dog).  This wanderlust is accompanied by a very serious desire to start graduate school.  If I ever find myself wondering if even more higher education is what I want in my life, a few minutes spent reading any well-researched and well-supported writing reminds me of the depths of my school-nerdiness--which reminds me, I need to begin reviewing my (weak) Spanish so that I can pass the proficiency exam before I start my Master of Arts in English.  Oh, yes, I decided on a degree plan--had I told you that?  I'll be spending the next two years (or six or seven, if I'm able to go on to get a Ph D) immersed in research and literature.

I'm afraid I haven't written as clearly as I'd like, and that I haven't fully convinced you to look at Kate's blog, but seriously--if you want to know more about the history of different crafts, and if you want to read about it in an interesting and clear manner, you need to go read Needled, now.  You'll walk away with greater knowledge and (most likely) a healthy dose of inspiration.

The image included in this post belongs to Kate Davies.  If you share it or post it elsewhere, please give her credit.

FOUND :: shop local, part 1

I found myself writing a post of near-epic proportions concerning my opinion on buying local, fair trade, secondhand, or handmade, and decided that it would need more revisions than I feel like writing at present and was more suited to a Friday essay post than a Tuesday handmade finds post.  So I'm sparing you the tedious verbosity and I'll be blabbering about one of my favorite Etsy features instead.  I've found some pretty neat things using this feature, and I think you'll like it, too.  My bridesmaids in my wedding all got these adorable slippers that I found, made by a local (to where I lived at the time/plan to live soon!) knitter, Casey of Clamors.

I found her using the Shop Local feature on Etsy.  It's on the homepage, left side, right below the "pounce" feature, and I love it.  When you put in your city's name, it'll pull up the one hundred most recently updated shops on your area, along with a few items from each, and you can browse your way through local makers.  Buying these slippers from Casey meant that first, I supported a local crafter, and second, I saved money on the shipping, since it only went through the post offices in my city.  If you felt comfortable with it, you could even arrange to meet someone locally* (provided you follow some basic safety tips), or pick something up from a craft fair, instead of ordering online.  This feature lets local buyers connect with local makers.  You may be surprised at what you find is going on right where you live! 

This is what's going on in my hometown...

{coffee mug cozy by then there's this}

{falling leaves brooch or necklace by Zia's Cottage Industry,

from both my home state of WI

and my hometown of Louisville! 

Oh, how small the world is}

{vintage shoe printer's block by fisherville studios}

Have you found anything interesting in your area lately?  

*Please note: if you ever meet someone in person that you originally met online, meet them in a very public place, with friends along, and absolutely do not go anywhere private with them.  Most people in the handmade online community are cool and safe, from what I've learned, but you should always watch out for your safety. 

FOUND :: Easter Treasuries on Etsy

Spring is hiding somewhere past the chilly temperatures we're still feeling here, and Easter's not so far, either.  I feel like Easter is often overlooked, or fully occupied by bunnies and eggs, when it comes to craft and handmade design.  It's sort of funny to me, since Easter is a celebration of the resurrection, of a return to life, and what could be more wonderful than that?  Maybe it's just my experience, though, feeling like Easter gets forgotten, since we don't get a lot of days off around Easter (like we do for Christmas and Thanksgiving) and the holiday gets a little forgotten.  Anyway, since I feel a little more interested in celebrating this year, since I actually get off for the weekend, I did a little Etsy hunting to find some treasuries--and some lovely things--that are perfect for spring and for celebrating the miracle of Easter.

the cycle of life by ArzuMusa

{by maclancy on Etsy}

Shabby Chic Easter by Lauren Blythe Designs

{by sweetsimple on Etsy}

And just to keep things interesting, I'm going to put one together myself in a little while.  In the meantime, here are two more treasuries you might like.

French Country by Baymut

{by blueberrycream on Etsy}

April Showers by foresstinavintage

{by sparklethots on Etsy}

I'll give you the link to my treasury in a few hours.  Until then, have a lovely day!

All images belong to the shop owners listed beneath.  If you're interested in purchasing an item, the link below the image will take you to its sale posting. 

FOUND :: the little fox, on Etsy

{the book lovers postcard set}

When I spotted this collection of postcards on my cousin's blog today, I knew I'd be writing about the shop.  The Little Fox describes herself as a "picture crafter, imagination enthusiast, and bedtime stories fabricator."  Her illustrations reflect a fairy-tale aesthetic expressed in wide-eyed, sometimes ingenuous, primarily female subjects.  They're adorable and they're somehow enchanting.

{baby owl print}

Her prints ship free worldwide, so don't worry that she's in the United Kingdom.  The Little Fox is also having a sale at the moment, so this print is only twelve dollars, placing it in the category of affordable art.  I could see these in a young girl's bedroom, or in a creative space, or even in a whimsical living room, which I fully intend to have someday.  

{hello, mr. hedgehog}

The Little Fox also blogs on a whimsy and pretty site here, which you should most definitely read for at least a bit. I'm a little in love with the colors and font she uses.  They're so sweet and fanciful.

all images link back to their listings on Etsy and belong to The Little Fox.  please be kind and give her credit if you share these images elsewhere, because they are copyrighted.

dishtowels.

I just realized something silly about myself.

I really, really like dishtowels.  Pretty dishtowels.  I was busily browsing anthropologie (trying to get some creativity flowing in my brain) and looked at no fewer than four in a row.  Some of them are so lovely, and take artistic elements you'd usually find in a print and put them into a practical item.  Take this one, for example, from anthropologie:

{from here}

Or check out these from Heart of Light:

{by heartoflight on etsy}

Maybe this one will give me motivation to do the dishes (even though C. normally does them)...

{by showpony on etsy}

This one would probably get framed, not used.

{also from anthropologie}

I have got to learn more and start doing some printing on fabric myself, because I could spend a fortune if I were to indulge this pretty textile obsession that I feel growing at present...