Happy Monday!

I'm signing off for a couple of weeks rest & relaxation so thought I'd leave you with this little number.

Bliss...

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

x x x

Things that made me happy in June...

I thought I'd include a little round up of some instagram action in my look back at June and all the things that have put a smile on my face this month; 
feasts, discoveries, laughs, buys and wants!
There seems to have been a lot of new recipes tried and tested, mmmm, as well as holiday preparations, getting in the mood for some serious down time and desperately wanting a flamingo rubber ring to take with me.
(I think the hubby would disown me in the hotel pool)

(follow me on instagram here)

Enjoying...

seeing our poppies bloom!

Reading...
Womens Health magazine
(first time reader and loving it!)

Listened to...
The Fatboy slim collection - Florence and the Machine
The Craig Charles Funk and Soul Club albums
Adam Lambert - Stina Nordenstam

Feasted on...

lots of healthy breakfast smoothies including this strawberry, pineapple and kale smoothie
bircher muesli from the 'Keep it Vegan' book by Aine Carlin
these green goddess sandwiches
 these two guacamole recipes in a hope that I can ever recreate the AMAZING guacamole you get in Dos Camino, New York (out . of . this . world)
this kale and parmesan hummus (instagram snap)
these scrambled egg and asparagus toasts
these cheesy bacon & kale potato skins
this harissa salmon with zesty couscous
this simple poached egg and avocado toast
(I seem to be obsessed with poached eggs and avocado at the moment and any recipe that involves them!)
this roast tomato and avocado toast (told you...)

Discovered...
design quixotic blog

Loving...

this happy little phrase

Buying...
holiday sandals from accessorize
new brush pens
H&M goodies (never a month goes by...)

Laughing...
at this

Baking...
this baked rhubarb oatmeal

Wearing...
my new Oasis block heel sandals

Wanting...
an inflatable flamingo!
this rug

Winning...
these lovely notebooks and postcard by Emma Jayne designs

Crushing on...

these colours

Watching...
Dawn of the planet of the apes
It's complicated
The Good Wife
Reasonable Doubt
Lucy
the last ever Revenge (boooooo)

Following...
mynd interiors on instagram

Admiring...
the work of Barbra Ignatiev

Looking forward to...

our holiday to Crete next month!

Favourite things that happened...
a lovely Fathers Day spent at home with the folks including one epic lemon curd cheesecake!


So, that was a round up of my month,
how was yours?

x x x

Etsy shop find...a chat with Freya Art!

I'm very excited to be able to share the work of Freya Art with you today.

I've loved, loved, loved her work for soooo long and did a little feature back in 2012, 

you can see that here.

I was super chuffed when she said yes to being part of the etsy interview series, happy days!

Freya Art & Design are a London based design studio and have been producing beautiful, whimsical  paper goods, textiles and homewares since 2009.

You'll find art prints, greeting cards, kitchenware, toys, bags, cushions, keepsakes and more on both the website and etsy shop.

So, to find out more about Freya; her loves, background, her passions and interests, read on my friends!

Grab that cuppa and a cheeky biscuit or two, get comfy...

1. Can you tell us a bit about you and your background... 

I was born & grew up in Australia, my family still live in the most beautiful house there, on the most beautiful little island. 

I built a little studio in a corner of their garden, many years ago and try and escape to it once a year. 

I was born into a home surrounded by art and inspiration, my mother is an artist & father a jazz musician and general renaissance man. So luckily my art eduction happened from day one. 

As well, the women in our family all seem to have a particular love of literature and poetry, & this was something that was always around, so falling into a career that involved art & the written word, wasn't a conscience choice, it just seemed to happen. 

I worked as freelance illustrator for many years and luckily when I began to think about setting up an internet business selling my own work, it was quite a good time to do so. People were really beginning to embrace internet shopping and seeking out something a little bit different.

2. How would you describe your work?

Optimistic and joyful, and sometimes a little wonky.

3. What’s the most rewarding thing about being a designer/illustrator?

I just love when I hear from people, from all over the world, that my work has meant something to them, that is just so, so wonderful. It really is.

And then, as a huge bonus, I get to do what I love everyday, and to be honest, if I had to get a "real" job, I don't know what else i'd be good at!

4. When did you open your etsy shop?

I opened my virtual shutters in 2009 with my Etsy store and then launched my own online retail and wholesale stores this year.

5. What books/ magazines are currently on your coffee table?

We have some beautifully illustrated Scandinavian children's storybooks and lots of piano sheet music (my boyfriend has the musical talent, not me!)

6. You use such lovely phrases and statements in your work…e.g.. ‘Shall we just curl up and stay in’ and ‘Let’s plant grass seeds in all our shoes and paint yellow inside our hats so even when it’s cold and dark we will always feel like we are walking barefoot in the sunshine’

How do you come up with these lovely quotes and do you have some favourites?

Thank you so much. 

I find coming up with the little phrases quite easy, they are just the thoughts that are in my head. I try to see the positive side to life as much as possible and surround myself with things that make me happy, that way I can give some of this joy back, I think it's a good cycle to perpetuate. 

My favourite is usually the latest one I have been working on as often it has been done with a particular person in mind, but I do have a soft spot for

"Inside us all, patiently waiting, sits a tiny little adventurous bird". 

It was one of the first I did and I really believe that phrase to be true. 

We have it framed in our house just to remind us, 

should we ever become complacent with life.

7. What makes you laugh?

I laugh very easily, so a lot of things keep me smiling. 

My family, my lovely boyfriend, general silliness, I really love a good hearty laugh, the kind where you soon can't tell if you're laughing or crying and you probably look like a lunatic (which for me happens often)…and you can't beat the English sense of humour, it's one of the main reasons I stay in England…because it's certainly not for the weather :)

8. What inspires you?

Mother Nature, kindness, a good heart, selflessness, oh there is so much to be inspired by in this world if you open yourself up to being inspired.

9. Can you tell us about a typical day for you?

I start everyday with a BIG breakfast (my absolute favourite meal of the day!), then I cycle into my studio, which is a really lovely cycle ride, through a beautiful park and along the canal (so that always sets me up for a good start to the day). 

Then it's mostly catching up on emails (soooo many emails!!), discussing with my assistant what needs to be done that day & what orders need to go out. 

Then it's sorting out the orders…and finally if I'm really lucky I get to do a teeny, tiny bit of creating. 

Although I try to set aside one day a week where I can just work out new ideas, with no interruptions.

10. Can you give us an insight into your creative process?

It doesn't sound very romantic, but most of my ideas are scribbled down on scraps of paper and shoved in a huge big fat file. I wish I was the type to carry around a lovely little sketch book and doodle lovely little sketches in it, but more often then not an idea will come to me in the least likely place and i'll quickly jot it down on the back of a receipt or whatever is at hand. So I have hundreds of scraps of paper that I will look through if I need a new idea. Nowadays I turn to the computer to complete my designs, especially for working out different colour combinations, which is integral to me, but I still think you can't beat the line work you get from a simple brush or pen.

11. What's your guilty pleasure?

Long sleep-ins on the weekend, when I can sneak them in…and ice-cream…I love ice-cream! (But actually I don't ever feel guilty about indulging in either of these things, they are a basic human right!)

12. What are your top three blogs?

I'm afraid I'm not a big blog reader, mainly because of lack of time, but if I do find time, I like day-dreaming over any lovely interior blog that has lots of lovely photos…I also love Pinterest, I could lose hours of my life on there.

(all above images are copyright of freya art & design)

A big thanks to Freya for taking the time out to be part of the etsy interviews.
You can follow her here...
facebook | etsy | website | pinterest | instagram

x x x 

Mini colour crush...

I discovered the beautiful artwork of Hiroyuki Izutsu recently and couldn't resist doing a little colour crush, soooo yum!

x x x

Lovely links...

Here are some lovely links that have caught my eye over the past few weeks that you may or may not have seen. 

Hope you discover something new!

How beautiful is this little girls room found on babiekins blog, sooooo dreamy.

Some helpful hints and tips on picking colour stories for your home from the girls from a beautiful mess blog

Check out these amazing donut nail decals from studio diy!

Such gorgeous colours in these stunning paintings by Hiroyuki Izutsu on his flickr feed

Fun, colourful metallic brush stroke party balloons from designlovefest

Another fab post from a beautiful mess..this time on some yummy sounding and lovely looking breakfast smoothies, mmm

x x x

Something for the weekend...Bircher muesli

Ok, so I know what you're going to say...

No bake overnight oats... urgh cold porridge then right?

Wrong!

I've tried a few variations of overnight oats or bircher muesli, whichever you prefer to call it, with different fruits and additions and this one's really nice.

They're such a quick and healthy breakfast and because its all thrown together the night before and left to 'mingle', you can just grab and go in the morning.

Perfect eh?

All you need to make 1 serving of bircher muesli with blueberries and almonds...

3/4 cup almond milk

1/2 cup rolled oats (I used gluten free)

1/3 cup blueberries

1/2 tsp light brown sugar

a drop of vanilla extract (literally a drop, about 1/4 tsp)

1 tbsp slivered almonds

Put all of the above in a little mason/kilner jar with a lid and give it a shake.

Put in the fridge to 'mingle' overnight.

In the morning, drizzle over some honey (about 2tsp) and sprinkle additional slivered almonds on top and you're good to go!

Enjoy!

(the above images are copyright of louise/loveprintstudio blog)

x x x

Colour crush...

I'm definitely getting in the mood for some serious holiday time.

As I write this, Madonnas 'Hoiday' has just started playing on my random setting spotify 80's radio...

I think its trying to tell me something.

Anyway, here's a beachy colour crush for your Wednesday...

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

(clockwise from top left)

x x x

Adore Home magazine...

The June/ July issue of Adore Home magazine is out now and it's a goodie!

There is a beautiful bedroom feature for the little ones in your world.

Click here to have a read of it,

and here are a few snippets...

(all images above copyright of adore home magazine)

x x x

Inspired by...Barbarian by Barbra Ignatiev

I recently came across Barbra Ignatiev's work on pinterest and was intrigued to see more of this super colourful, beautifully painted artwork, 

so off I popped, and a few clicks later...

Wow, wow, wow, soooo many gorgeous designs.

Working in watercolour, 

Barbra creates prints and patterns, 

using the most gorgeous colour palettes, and shares them on her website.

'Daily Colour' on her blog is where she posts daily wallpapers that you can download and use on your phone/ipad, etc..

(fyi, currently adorning my phone is no.67 palm trees)

There is a Society 6 shop too, where you can buy an abundance of items; leggings, t.shirts, mugs, tote bags, pillows and much much more, all featuring her beautiful prints.

I love how she describes her style; 

"flailing and carefree, I often tell people I aspire to paint like a 'sophisticated baby'. 

I think it's an accurate and quirky description of how I create"

Barbra manages to create a beautifully naive feel across all of her work; the loose brush strokes, the visible pencil marks underneath, just so lovely. 

With subject matter and themes ranging from horses, girls, florals, flamingoes, tropical foliage and make up, you'll be hard pushed not to love them.

Here are a few of my faves...

You can follow Barbra on pinterest and instagram

(all images above are copyright of Barbarian by Barbra Ignatiev)

x x x

Sunshine, ice cream and poppies galore...

How nice was the weather over the weekend??

Glorious!

We had a very lovely day spent in the garden soaking up the sun with a spot of alfresco dining and a cheeky ice-cream late afternoon when the ice cream man came up the street in his van,

(oh yeah, the ice cream man!)

Whilst the garden's at this beautiful stage of goings on, I grabbed my camera and took a few pics.

The poppies have arrived! 

I've waited so long for these little lovelies to make an appearance, I can't tell you!

We've got a nice gathering of some little red ones and then the queen of all poppies, the Oriental poppy.

Oh my....

Don't you think they look like they've been made from tissue paper?

(the above images are copyright of louise/ loveprintstudio blog)

x x x