Olive Manna - Textiles and Paper goods

Hi my name is Rosalind and I have an addiction to paper, fabric and packaging!



I have to say I practice an awful lot of self control, not only because I also have a small home but I am trying desperately to stick to my 'use what I have first' before buying new 'stuff' - self imposed policy... I also don't like waste or excessive spending.



However, after saying that - knock yourself out! This gorgeous shop Olive Manna has so much eye candy it hurts.... enjoy!

Macro Monday - Pansy

Teeny Tiny pansy from my Mum's garden. Beautifully rich in colour and so delicate, about the size of my pinky actually. I would love to try a little felt pansy - they are so cute. I hope you had a lovely weekend. Mine was full of family :-) which is extra nice when you don't live in the same city! My hard-working father and husband installed a heat-reflective alsynite (laser light) over the pergola frame. I am so grateful as it means no more standing in the rain to unlock the house with two kids, groceries and over-flowing nappy bag (you get the picture)... it also means Anya has somewhere else to play when it rains etc... I hope your weekend was fab... are you following the Handmade Living book tour?

Friday Favourites - Gold Vintage Handbags

I found these gorgeous vintage bags at Bowerbird Vintage. So pretty!


I have my Grandmothers Oroton crystal clutch similar to the pic above and I take it to all the weddings I attend. I do have a cute gold one she has given me also but I tend to favour the bling bag :-) I will take a photo of it one day and show you. Have a great weekend!

Lovely Japanese Books

I have had a sick little girl on and off this week, along with Christmas shopping so no time for creative spaces here today unfortunately. However, I found a lovely little store via A Cup of Jo that sells gorgeous Japanese craft books and of course divine washi tape!





There are several books showing ideas of how to use washi tape if you are need of inspiration or something to feed your obsession? A few more sneak peaks inside the lovely books on UGUiSU's blog.





Love this gift wrapping book too.

Chandelier #25 - pretty amazing

+

For the sake of art you are going to have to forgive me for posting feminine hygiene products on my blog!!!! Pretty spectacular, no?!! Made entirely from tampons! Eeek....

Woodland Fairy Birthday Tea Party

I never get sick of these gorgeous themed birthday parties. This perfect woodland tea party belongs to photographer Pascale Wowak's daughter Ellie. Pascale is famous in my world for this shot.



Themed by Lindsey of Blue Egg Events no detail was spared in creating a truly magical tea party in the woods. As a florist, I LOVE the use of moss throughout the theming.





For more enchanting photos go to Pascale's blog. It's always nice to see more on the menu than sweets too - some very cute fairy fruit wands and toadstool cheese :-) I hope you feel as inspired as I did.

Riley and the Curious Koala Book Launch

Yesterday we attended Tania McCartney's book launch for Riley and the Curious Koala. We went as a family and had a lovely morning out. Tania put together a gorgeous dessert bar and Liz from pARTy cakes made the most amazing cupcakes (as usual). Almost too cute to eat but we just had to and guess what they were scrumptious (as usual). See more of Tania's photos here.



The rest are a few of my happy snaps of the morning...

Art by Hella Jongerius

Fascinating artwork, "Coloured Vases" by Hella Jongerius via Wallpaper. Experimenting with colour where the vases are the canvas! The first photo really appeals to me because they are placed so perfectly in monochromatic colours - cool hey. I think they also remind me of Bison's milk bottles gathered together in colour clusters. Hubby's birthday tomorrow... off to do some preparation - have a great weekend.

My Creative Space - Baby gifts and glass door knobs

A little baby gift I made for a friend. Even though it's a gift for a baby girl it's nice not to be drowning in PINK!!!! I'm not giving away what it is as I haven't given it yet :-)





I bought these glass door knobs from Few and Far on holidays.... I had/have dreams of stripping back my daughters bed and dresser, painting them white and adding these babies. I have put them on as-is but need to buy another 4 and can't quite decide if the furniture is worth making over? Hmmm... everyone makes furniture makeovers seem so easy and quick... let me know if you have any tips!

Visit Kootoyoo for not just more creative spaces but a cool blog with lots of clever craftiness from Kirsty.

Donna Hay Online store

Donna Hay has a new online store! Some lovely goodies there for those of us that have never made it to the bricks and mortar shop. The waxy straws above are hard to find or buy at a decent price in Australia, just like those darn stripey paper straws! I think $10 for 40 is pretty good considering one local online store charges $12 for shipping paper straws!





I had to show a few photos of the actual shop in Woollahra it looks divine - just the kind of place I would like to visit after brunch out. I'd love to know your experience there if you have been lucky enough to visit the Woollahra store?







All photos courtesy of Donna Hay.

Grace Designs - Customer Loyalty Program

Just in time for Christmas, I would love to reward my fabulous loyal customers - that's you - with a loyalty program. Starting today - Tuesday, 16th November - until further notice....



*with a maximum discount of $25

T&C

• You can't use past purchases to accrue number of sales - it is only for sales starting today 16/11/10
• 25% refund will be done through paypal within 48hours
• You will receive 25% off every 7th purchase made, i.e: on your 14th purchase you also receive 25% off etc...
  
• Grace Designs retains the right to end this promotion without notice
  

Chandelier #24 - Aye Aye Captain

A unique chandelier in a simple room by Lila Diallo found on Apartment Therapy. You are almost transported back in time in a modern kind of way. Now off to scrub my decks...

Macro Monday - simple rose

Another flower from my Mum's garden! The stamen are so vibrant on this simple rose! We have pre-school orientation this afternoon. I hope Anya comes home happy and still wanting to go next year :-) She will be doing two half days - it will be very unusual to leave her somewhere for 3 hours and just hang with my little man on a regular basis. Good for everyone I think. I hope you had a relaxing weekend.

Friday Favourites - Upon a fold

I found this stunning shop - Upon A Fold - yesterday when looking for where I could buy Washi tape online and I can't stop looking at their beautiful products!!



Envelope Maker Set - love these and have always wanted one - so reasonably priced.



If you have seen these in the Donna Hay magazine and wondered where to source them? Look no further.



No tape or glue required for this one! cute.



Can you believe this bike is made from paper??!!!

Is it just me or is the calendar bursting with events?! My daughters social life is already starting to fill half of my Saturdays from here till Christmas!!!! She is only 3 yrs old. We have a few things to attend and I am hoping to get to the shop and have a poke around. I hope you have a fabulous weekend whatever you do.

My Creative Space - Washi Tape

Oh dear this could easily become my latest obsession... I have avoided buying washi tape for a while because it showed promise of a beautiful but dangerous new friendship! I bought this cute patterned roll from Indigo Love. Washi tape is made from traditional Japanese washi paper - it has a gorgeous soft texture and lovely to roll out onto card stock! There are a million places you can buy it online! One of them is here. Find out who else is playing along today at Kirsty's...

Ed note: Oh and Happy Wedding Anniversary to my lovely parents... xx

Doug up on Bourke

I finally had the pleasure of visiting Doug up on Bourke in person during my holidays. It was a treasure trove of goodies! I limited myself to a spool and letterpress 'G' as the prices were pretty high and the stuff I really liked wouldn't have fitted into my boot. No hat block unfortunately as that is what I was looking for!!! The staff are super friendly and helpful though - give yourself a couple of hours if you want to meander about.