Liekeland

The beautiful illustrations of Dutch artist Liekeland remind me very much of my childhood for some reason ....

Natsukashii ~ !


(found via Task-ka)

A pet present perhaps?

 

Oh wow .... I found this today, and it made me wonder whether I should be doing more to enhance the life of our fish. Maybe they're really bored just swimming around in their pots in the garden ...?

(fish pic from here)

Tips for single women, 1938

Take heed, ladies!

(more here)

Recognition

While we were out with the dogs today we saw Bracken's previous owner. She walked away before I registered who she was, but G heard her say to her child "Look, that looks like Ralph!" (Bracken's previous name).

Oh, if I could only tell her how damaged that little dog was, thanks to her family's neglect, and what a long year of rehabilitation (and expense!) it's been to bring him around to some level of normality....
At least he's a happy little chap most of the time now - we just love him and his strange little ways.

We call him our little geek.

Andrew Lyons

I like these images from illustrator Andrew Lyons. They remind me a little of Eric Carle's very hungry caterpillar.

~ found via Graphic Exchange

Fleeting and precious

Too often we bustle too quickly through life, getting caught up in trivialities and missing opportunities ....
This week I was reminded once more of how precious every moment is.

G and I have been meaning to catch up with a beautiful friend for a few months now, and when we mentioned this in passing yesterday we were told that the lovely Lisa had been killed in a traffic accident. I still feel sick at the thought. We muddled up the date and so missed her last dinner party, and we just thought she was out and about when we dropped by her shop and she wasn't there.

Lisa certainly had the 'champagne effect' - she brought sparkle to every situation and conversation, and I can't imagine such a vibrant life being suddenly and violently extinguished. She was lighthearted, stylish, bold and very friendly. Lisa was a highly-respected milliner who adored vintage style and seemed to have stepped straight out of another era, whether it be the exuberant flapper heyday of the 20s or the Carnaby St Mod scene of the 60s. She was extremely proud of her dapper young son Massey, and they made a notable pair whenever they stepped out!

Ave Lisa. Melbourne has lost a precious, twinkling spirit.

Summer is here ....

... time to get in shape!

Unfolding apartment

I love discovering beautiful, thoughtful design for small spaces. Michael Chen and Kari Anderson of Normal Projects have created some very inspiring projects:



These places are tinier still, providing food for thought about the choices we have regarding consumption and accumulation of stuff.

Waking up

I've been encouraged to wake this little blog from its slumbers ....

Although we only had a 2-month hiatus, maybe it's time to get back into things.... (let's see how we go ...)

For this evening, here are some pictures of black cat auditions from Hollywood in 1961:

Poor kitties!
I guess at least they got to meet Vincent Price and Peter Lorre ...

(thanks to our trusted friends at Retronaut)

Taking a break

After 6 years and 876 posts on this blog, as well as some dabblings in a couple of other blogs*, I think I need to take a bit of a break.

I'll definitely continue to visit the many wonderful sites that have inspired me over the years, checking in on friends old and new, and (hopefully) stumbling across ever-more-delightful ideas and images ...

.... but for now I think I just need to get away for some R & R.

I hope to return to this little blog within a few months, feeling refreshed and full of renewed blogging mojo - so please check back in every now and again.

Till then, take care and stay happy! I'll see you on the other side ...

* These sadly wound down a while ago, although you can still find them through the links under my profile message

(click pics for source)