Tangents at the Market

This container and these bowls came home with me the other day when I went to the market. I'm not sure how it happens, but after I pick up the pasta, the milk, the bread, I wander over to the household items. Sometimes I look at socks, and eye the newest shampoo. It's all a diversion on my way to the check-out, a kind of daydreaming while looking at things I don't need and would never buy. Last week when I went, I looked at serving trays and cake stands, swooning over a glass turquoise cake stand. But every single one was broken in the box, the top separated from the stand. Clearly it had not been adhered properly, and was sadly poorly made. I usually have to eye my cart before I leave to make sure I have more food than 'things' because I can get carried away looking for pretty things to decorate with, and it seems now more than ever that in Turkey the shelves are getting flooded with things made in China. Unfortunately, the cake stand was made in Turkey by a brand that I typically like. Hopefully this isn't a sign of poor quality to come.

Dhoku Rugs

If I can't have Jonathan Adler's Richard Nixon rug, can I have these by Dhoku, please?

A thoughtful postcard

Everything good has a story behind it, and some of the lovely things I've collected over time are no exception. Last year I bought a vintage embroidered tableau from Emily Lynch Vintage with the title "To a Friend's House the Way is Never Long" and it was nearly identical to the one my mother made when I was a child. I had to have it in my new home in Turkey, so I ordered it from Emily who cheerfully obliged my story about reclaiming a childhood artifact, and waited for the mail. And waited. Turns out some silly postal worker confused Turkey with Saudi Arabia and routed the embroidery via Saudi post, and when the package arrived in the mail, there was a stamp in blue informing me of it's detour. Happy to have it, I chuckled, but also thought, this oversight is a bit illustrative of people's misconceptions about the Middle East.

The adventurous embroidery, framed

Emily made my day again by sending a thoughtful postcard in the mail recalling this incident and our amusement over it, and in terms of customer loyalty, the postcard idea really works. It made me happy to see something besides a bill in the mailbox. The 94 cents an international postcard costs could secure a lasting relationship with a customer, and I immediately went to Emily's Etsy shop to peruse again.


This time I found a beautiful vintage tray that I think might just make it in the mail, if Emily is willing to take a chance on a the postal service again. Lest my earnest promotion of the tray cause someone else to want it as much as I do, I should really put it in my cart right away. It is one of a kind, after all. I do wish people like Emily much success because of the effort they put into reaching out and connecting with customers. It really makes a difference in if I return to a website to shop again.

So long, farewell

Now, more than ever before, do we get the opportunity to reflect on how interconnected everything is. When one thing slips, everything tumbles. Sorry for the cliche visual. This came home to me yesterday when reading twitters and tweets and blog posts about Domino folding. I mean, I know that the milk I buy supports the farmers who produce it, and the produce I buy from the bazaar allows farmers to plant more. This year, more than ever I've said my prayers countless times thankful that I have healthy food to eat. But somehow, the idea of Domino disappearing has hung over me the last two days. It makes me grumpy. I was so excited last summer when I was able to get an international subscription, and it started showing up in my tiny mailbox. What will take Domino's place? In this (cringe) economic state, will anything? My guess is that we have been slowly taking over its role by blogging about shelter and interiors, as House Obsession said yesterday.

Like Sassy, Jane, and Raygun (I miss Raygun!)*... my first introduction to how hip and consumable font and graphic design can be, Domino will have its vigil. Should have kept those back issues.


*I mean, come on, who didn't love a magazine that had Iggy Pop, Jamiroquai, Rage Against the Machine, Kiss, and Liz Phair covers with nearly unreadable font? Images taken from David Carson's design website, once designer for Raygun.

Get the Look

If other people plan their blog posts, I'm more of a fly by night blogger; when I see something that gets my attention I share it. Typically it is something that lands in my inbox with bright and pretty colors, so when I started receiving Etsy's Get The Look email, it dawned on me how brilliant it was. Through Etsy sellers like Spruce Home you can buy handmade and/or vintage items that resemble the ones you see in beautifully arranged and designed interior of people's homes as seen in Design*Sponge or The Selby. Not only does that tap into my weakness for coveting other people's things, it inspires that jealousy to action by shopping handmade. Which is not guilt-ridden in the slightest.

Flocked wallpaper

I love this selection of flocked wallpaper from House Beautiful. While I won't be putting any wallpaper in our new apartment (yet), I do adore these patterns and may look for something similar here to do a corner or a wall sometime in the future. They feel very fall to me.Right now our floors have huge holes from the plumbing being put in. I know very little about cement, except that nearly all buildings here are made with it. It is strange to me to think that to put in a new electrical line one has to drill through cement to do so. Once the walls and floor were stripped of tile, it looked much like a commercial building site... chipped tile powder, lots of crunchy pieces below your feet. I'm getting ready to do the Before of the Before & After, but want it to look teeny bit nicer inside before I do that.

Treasures

treasures, originally uploaded by ATLITW.

The small treasures in this photo are so diverse and beautiful. What is it about collections of things that drive me wild? Here I am, on a Sunday night attempting to declutter my studio (my magazine stack to throw away is 30 high), and yet, I see little piles of other people's things and I get a crush on their stuff.

I discovered Cooliris.com tonight, and it is the best thing I have found for photo viewing online in it's own separate window, all the images neatly organized.

Botanica

Yummy. Through Mikasa and Amy Butler's site (in October). Wish I could write more, now, but I have to run. Eye candy it will be for now.