Showing posts with label etsy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label etsy. Show all posts

17.10.11

Life's higher qualities...


hello everyone!
  it has been quite a while, since {the last time I came to post here},
wishing, to all those who seem to have left earth's classroom too early,
to rest in peace.

 days passed by and in between, I spent a few days in Greece,
taking care of some rather not so pleasant dental care appointments,
catching up with some friends,
while enjoying the view to the mountains facing east
and to the sea facing south from my parents' apartment.

I tried hard to focus on all things positive, as the political & financial situation
there makes it rather hard.
sometimes I succeeded & then others I failed...

 some family situations brought up to the surface traumas of the past,
 only to realize that one actually never gets over them...
 not completely, as much as time heals...
  we simply choose to turn the page
instead, quite often leaving behind people who are unable to follow...

. . . . . . . . . . . 

but, but, but!... have come with nothing else than positive & relaxed mood to share with you,
some pictures taken yesterday, back home in Germany,
(where the movement process is step by step and quite relaxed beginning)
with my partly damaged camera 
(the digital display got destroyed),
which though to my surprise, still takes wonderful pictures.

... the only difference is that I must wait until the card's images are transferred to the computer,
where I can see what I actually did.

and off course, there is always a silver lining in every cloud,
so long as we are willing to find it, right?

using the view finder is something I since more than a year happily did,
with my newest DSLR camera,
bringing back memories from more than 10 years ago,
when I was happily shooting with my parents' vintage Ricoh camera,
similar to this one 

but trusting my eye & instinct cause there is no possibility to immediately check on the display 
what I did is something new.

I'm pleased with the results,
so I'm happy to share them with you!



A couple of shots of the amazing order that arrived
 from {AM studio} [find an explicit post here]
 all captured during the magic hours of early morning sun
and early afternoon...

unplugged...
unstyled...
just as I set them on the table
one by one, while opening my parcel...
 discovering the extra surprises Melissa was so kind and thoughtful to include.



She loves her job and I know it with all my heart...
and it is becoming more and more important
in my everyday life that I interact with people
who know themselves what they love with all their heart, too
and are devoting their lives in doing it...

everything that is pictured in this post, except the "Hello ideas" porcelain letters,
which you may find {here},
were added as a gift.




Melissa has been wanting to thank me for {the post I wrote about her}
a while ago, but I reassured her that my present was that I actually discovered
her & her work.

She anyway surpassed any expectations (that I didn't actually have)
by including a little white dove ornament,
a mini himmeli mobile {check them here!}
and a vintage, wooden thread spool,
together with a handwritten book card,
with notes referring to love.





                                              I hope that you'll enjoy watching this pictures,
 as I literally felt that time stopped when I was taking them...

I also hope to be able to transmit some of the love and peacefulness
felt...

this is to peace eventually all around the world 
but most of all and before all,
in each and every one of our hearts.



I keep reminding this to myself:

peace or war begin inside us.

and war can take many simple kind of "acceptable" by society every day forms...
like over antagonism or over ambitiousness for example.




I recently realized thanks to a few situations,
that a peaceful life
is one of my highest goals to achieve through this life...

what about you?
what is important to you?
which qualities are of higher importance in your life?
which ones are your striving to achieve?




24.9.11

Woody Allen & other famous people illustrations


 hello everyone on this Saturday afternoon!

 thank you so much for showing up and sharing nice comments
 about the days spent in our current home
 &
 around Frankfurt with {this} lovely lady.
 ... developing friendships is so precious nowadays...

in case you are you perhaps wondering how come you are seeing me here
three days in a row during a busy period,
well... I was rather not supposed to be having time to
be on line today, at least not until later,
but a slight change of plans is 
resulting in me "stealing" some time

as I'm collecting inspiration lately
together with planning our future home to be,
I randomly stumble upon
quite a few things and people,
whose work drows my attention & feel it's quite suitable to bring 
to our rather selective pages

there are already a couple of people whose
work has touched me beyond words can describe
and am looking forward to sharing here,
but such posts require no time limits,
as I may be writing... forever!

this post will be kept relatively short,
and in all its spontaneity,
I'll proceed with sharing
a choice of prints
from the ingenious and quite recognized work
of illustrator {Judy Kaufman},

since yesterday I'm also becoming familiar with it...

I really like the famous people illustrations,
my favorite ones being these of 
Woody Alen & Charles Chaplin
{the 1st & last pictures here}

there is actually a collection of  9 of them
where you can choose a set of three from.
hop {here} and there you are!

I guess my 3rd choice would be {Frida Carlo}...
what about you?
does this kind of art attract you?
yes? which would you choices be?

personally, I'm also attracted to such prints like the ones below:


..................................... this neighborhood ...................................




........................... this tree in black & white .................................
................................ with its cleverly "hidden" birds ...............................
{can you actually count how many?}

 

........................... this urban city and cars.....................................

which attracts my eye with all these graphic lines,
 simplicity & soft grey tones...


&
....................................... Charles Chaplin .................................
................... last, but certainly not least as it is my favorite ...........

......................

so my dears, clock is ticking,
break from "real life" is over, 
and running right back to it,
 as the weather
today is a wonderful gift,
especially for us living in the middle & northern parts of Europe

I'll have to wish you already a wonderful weekend ahead,
and renew our date here quite soon,
 this time sharing more pictures from
the special handmade gift I received,
while also sharing inspiration,
lovely artists I have been having the pleasure of personally 
getting in contact with thanks to this blog
&
if all angels of the earth and universe bless me with the gift of
time,
a little taste of the ever on going creativity sessions taking place here
&
perhaps some shop updates to share

take care ~
enjoy your weekends!

16.9.11

~ 3 x 3 ...


Happy Friday everyone!

I hope that the title has not... scared you by thinking that today 
there is going to be a maths lessons contacted through
these pages & lines!

just a simple way to share with you
9 favorite things,
one of which is also featuring a favorite number of mine:
3, as my birth month is March,
the third of the year.

a little note in between ~>
in case you are a regular reader and are following these posts
one by one, my apologies for still not having proceeded
with the revelations mentioned in {this post}

everything in their time, as it is often said,
it will be done :)

till then, some recent finds from etsy that I have recently stumpled upon and {loved},
as they put me smoothly into an autumn mood...
unless you live in places like Australia for example,
you are quite possibly in the same mood, right?

these choices today are not part of a {larger collection of 16} as it is usually the case,
but just a little company of 9 items,
which would stand nicely
next to one anther,
adding charming details to a relatively minimal room,
with few, selected objets, clean cut lines,
bringing an introduction 
to the change of the season.

to visit each item individually,
starting from top to bottom & left to right,
line by line,
click on the numbers respectively:



hope you are inspired to start redecorating for autumn!

see you soon everyone! 
~ take care 
      xx

~ ~ ~

P.S: Collage made by me for Domestic Stories with Ivy 2011 [all rights reserved] using the respective linked pictures of the shops

1.9.11

~ goodbye summer ~






Hello everyone!
 it 's one of those times that I'm  happy to be managing to come here 
 and post despite the late hour of the day.

 So first things first,
 let me wish you a great new month ahead,
 together with the new season...

 whenever September comes, it makes me look back to my school years
or even the ones I was working as an English teacher back in Greece...
I remember the bittersweetness it brought with it at the beginning...

on the one hand so eager to begin something new,
on the other hand still wishing that there would be more days
free left for swimming & a relaxed way of life

but then, which kid {and teacher} doesn't love having a great excuse to 
 get their hands on new stationary?

see my point ; )

anyways, 
 before I move on to current news and autumn related stuff
{coming tomorrow}
I wanted to say the sweetest goodbye to this summer,
and cherish some of its wonderful moments 

 one of these was our preparation for a mini 5 day vacation
 on Kos {a Dodecanesean Greek island}
and off course the heavenly delighful days
 we spent there, for which you can read about it 

 As you have probably suspected from the pictures floating around this post,
 one of my favorite part of the trip's preparation was packing for the trip
having the chance to use the new Tote that has just arrived at our door.


in a perfect size, perfectly sewn & double sided in beautiful black & white
cotton fabric,
I was so pleased to have ordered this 
from the {etsy shop} of a very {creative woman},
who also happens to be a marine scientist
living in Faro, Portugal.

Rita's passion is to sew and she certainly does a fabulous job!
I discovered her shop after she placed an order

So happy she did!
not only for honouring me by choosing somethimg handmade & thought off by me,
but also cause I got to the chance to get familiar with
 her wonderful bags, more of which you can see {here}


this is my order shortly after I opened it {the bag is folded in the middle here} 
 it was nicely wrapped,
 there was a thoughtful personal letter
&
a proof of having contributed to a good cause with my purchase!

I like that so much!
 the cherry on the top of the cake,
was a very practical & pretty present:
a tissue "pocket"

however of a detail it might be,
I really disliked having to carry my tissues in their plastic package
so this little accessory has been making my day 
everytime I need to pull out
or to offer a tissue!

Even though I have already since a long time personally thanked Rita,
I had also promised to link you to a few 
shops connected to bags,
worthy of their price
and 
{Ogato tigrado} is certainly one of them.

Thank you Rita,
I spent a fantastic summer carrying your bag!

it accompanied me from the beaches in Greece,
to the Spa in Frankfurt
&
the river in our neighbourhood,
carrying blankets to set on the grass...

 and now that the season has changed and so do the colours of the wardrobe,
it is finding it's space around our home,
other times filled with magazines
&
others with crafting supplies.

still I think "she" was at her happiest right there: 

Good bye summer... till next year!

have a good night everyone
&
a warm hearted welcome to all new readers
I'm so glad to see you here and be reading your comments 
Thank you so much : )

 c u all tomorrow... 
  with  more posts
 {one of which was planned for today, which is being posted with a little delay though}

better late than never said the Greeks ; )


11.8.11

~ unplugged & chills down the spine...




~ hello everyone :)
 I'm happy to be managing to post here today, even if it is late evening already!

how have you been?
 there's a lot of time spent working at home
from this side of the world, which one the hand is wonderful,
on the other hand makes me desire a new actual
interior decoration project & interration with people
of course...

have gathered a few moments of today to go along with some thoughts & pictures...

ready to come along with me?

~ as seem from the recent pictures all over, {this vintage} camera is dominating our table

~ lots of {these recycled jars} have been gathered by now
  providing the chance to enjoy candle light all over our place
&
 since we supplied ourselves with a few {packages of hundreds of candlelights},
they can burn day & night, making every grey day brighter, warmer & more inviting...




~ have been working on our shop, where the {30% summer sale} is continuing until the end of August.
we think that it is a marvelous chance to get more for less, while focusing on quality
and possibly stock up for Christmas... yes?

~ we 'd just love to "virtually" see you there, get in contact with you
and be of service :)

~ speaking of the shop, there is a {new set of cards} avaliable in the stationary department 
it's all about architecture & opening the {doors of your life}




~ there is a lot of energy and time needed and invested in finding a place for us to live
 it is a very emotional process for me, which is the reason why I'm generally more quiet
than I have usually lately been

~ a lot of past losses passed by before my eyes these days... leading clearly to a need in establishing
new basis... making new beginnings, this time more consciously & more aware

~ it's not a fairy tale love any more...
I have really relocated in Germany since more than 3 years now

  ~ ~ ~

from around the blogosphere, 
~ have been adoring all Annalena's latest posts and especially this simple, oh so charming 
&
posted in her D.I.Y column at Emma's design blog.

~ I'm loving Nina Holst's {hallway}, actually her whole living space is just amazing!
 the thought that some of our shop's items are to be hosted
there, makes me happy and very honoured

~ the styling of them both inspired this moodboard, the making of which, I've promised to post about.
for now, here is just a taste of the final outcome:
a "live" moodboard in naturals & grey...



I have been loving using my 50mm lens set to 1.7mm,
capturing light on everyday objects around our home,
as they are... unplugged... unstyled...  


[this image is slightly altered to the first, just for the record ;)]

~ have been going through our travelling pictures, finding favorites,
which mostly mark unforgettable moments,
& deep feelings ...


this is a church in the {Monastery of Randa in Mallorca},
where we spent a {short winter vacation} last year

I still remember the incredible quiet and stillness, with the nuns' angelic voices being the only interruption...

divine feelings... or rather feelings beyond description... goose bumps on the skin...
chills running down the spine
&
deep, silent joy...

... I guess I'll leave you this way ...
wishing you a wonderful evening & a good night

~ ~ ~

also wishing luck to everyone who has entered the {give away},
which just closed a little while ago.
the winner will be announced in the upcoming days!

8.8.11

1000 paths to happiness ~


hello there,
 it's Monday, let's talk about  h a p i n e s s, shall we?

I know some of you are back in their offices and this is not
always a good thing,
still, if you can spare some time,
fill up this cup of yours
&
think along what makes YOU happy,
while reading this post

all ready?

. . . . . . . . . . . . 

after a weekend fully at home, with only a late Saturday afternoon spent at Ikea,
{just to supply our home with a few every day basics}
there was a lot of time to engage in simple things I love
realise a little bit deeper what makes me happy

what actually stands next to the word happiness for me personally...


well, happiness for me is tranquility,
feelings of deep joy,
enjoyment of every day life's simple things, even its routines 

happiness is warm sun on my skin,
{oh and did we have the chance to lie down & sunbathe in our little, miraculous veranda yesterday!}
rainy afternoons inside, with hot drinks,
in an ambiance we love,



happiness is being genuinly creative,
enjoying contact with nature & animals,
seeing yourself grow & being pleased with the process,

happiness is waking up next to the one you love,
dinners under the moon,
candlelight... 



 happiness is hugging a friend,
making a present,
being understanding, compassionate...



happiness is communication
{no... social media is not what I had in mind despite their many positive sides}
for example, the process of actually writing posts
for this blog does indeed bring me happiness,
as much as knowing that they will be read by you,
still, 
I'm  rather referring to real talks with friends & people,
sharing & listening carefully,
with a heart & ears bright open

happiness is also knowing when to talk & when to be quiet,
cause sometimes silence is golden
and by this I don't mean stubbornly not talking,
but remaining quiet
just in order to hear your own self

happiness is giggling,  deep down from the belly
cause your did something silly!



for me happiness is freedom from ambition,
while at the same time setting off to achieve all we wish for,
being one with the present
&
in peace with things as they currently are,
leaving endless to do lists aside

............................

speaking of which my dears, the "to post" list on this blog is
increasing more and more,
as there are some posts meant to be shared
&
 then I always love coming here sharing life as it happens,
o.k...where does this
 naturally point to? ~> more posting!

of course : )

this means organising my day more around this blog,
spending more time on it,
which eventually leads to this becoming also part of my job.

As advertising in the usual & expected way found on blogs
doesn't seem to fit around these pages,
I have been developing a slightly altered approach to sponsorship,
for a limited amount of chosen sponsors.

.... any time soon I'll share more, being specific.



... but for now, I'll keep the posts today revolving around
white, grey & naturals,
occasionally with a touch of golden,
much as the pictures accompaning this post,
all made this weekend to support the {stylish we hope!}
appearance of our etsy shop

wishing you all to have the loveliest of beginnings in this new day and week
&
once more, thank you so much for your warmhearted "get well" wishes

will see you later with a mood board,
following exactly the colour palette of this one,
while elaborating on the "making of" process of it

and a few happy & usuful reminders:

a. there is 30% Summer Sale going on in the shop, till the end of August
for all sizes of prints. The code is ~>  S u m m e r   S a l e

b. as part of the {one year blog celebration}, there are still 3 days left for you
to become a subscriber of this blog & enjoy a 50% reduction to all shop items
till the 10th of August. The code is ~> "Domestic stories celebrate"

c.  you can enter the fabulous & generous give away right {here}, for a chance to win a Goodies bag from Domestic stories, sure to make you happy!


29.7.11

Blog celebration + give away!


so  D o m e s t i c  s t o r i e s  are celebrating!

what are they celebrating?
&
eventually what am I as their editor, writer & godmother celebrating?

let's see together, shall we?
cause most important of all, 
all this is taking place thank's to 

YOU!

You, Domestic stories and I are celebrating:

~ almost a year since the first "Welcoming" post back on the 10th of August 2010

~ more than 200 blog followers (currently 221)

~ more than 444 {currently 472} fans on the Facebook page created just 3 months ago,

~ more than 1320 people favoriting our respective etsy shop New Ivy Style {newivystyle}

~  addition of our shop to more than 611 circles since it reopened this April
{these etsy treasuries we are creating are making us quite popular & beloved indeed!}

~ 40 etsy Front pages

~ around 2830 hearts for the 54 items currently available

~ almost 1.500.000 views of my personal flickr acccount since July 2009

~ a year of cooperating with Ikea Family Live
& new ones to be coming!

~ a few publications & mentions of printed press like {this} feature among others

~ numerous mentions & features
on interior design blogs
like decor8, Apartment therapy, sfgirlbybay & many wonderful others
{some are mentioned in the "elsewhere, thank you" section on the sidebar on your left}

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

and then apart from numbers

D o m e s t i c  s t o r i e s  are celebrating a year of sharing creativity, reality, life, happinesses, worries,
hard times, good times...

a year of sharing life through a lens, a screen, a couple of keys on a keyboard
&
 a very eager to place herself out there person,
communicating who she is, 
what she does
what she loves,
sharing her passions, her experiences, her insight, her bright & sometimes goofy moments,
 right here with people like you,

who are inspired by living a creative, beautiful life, no matter the odds

last but not least  D o m e s t i c  s t o r i e s  are celebrating a year of  l e a r n i n g
cause this online community has be proven to be a fantastic teacher,
with the most fabulous of classmates & friends!

so before I go on with announcing the presents awaiting you,

let me THANK YOU one more time for brigning me right here,
exactly where I am...

It is just the perfect place to go on with my life, wishes & dreams to be coming true one by one,
day by day...

........................................


.... so time to put the cleenex away and proceed with a festive mood!

Here it is dear all:

one lucky winner will receive a 
F E S T I V E   G O O D I E S  B A G 
 from  D o m e s t i c  s t o r i e s  including:

a. 2 prints of your choice

b.  one paper boat garland from the {three designs available},
with the ability to customise the order

c. a little notebook much like {this one} 
currently available only off line,
which can also be customised

d.  a little secret surprise you'll love

e. another little secret surprise you'll love even more ;)


...and because D o m e s t i c  s t o r i e s  believe that whoever joins us* here is entitled to receive a present and be a winner,
starting Monday the 1st of August until the 10th of August 2011,
you may be entering the shop with
the code

"DOMESTIC STORIES CELEBRATE"

and receive a 50% recuction to ALL items of the shop

{* s u b s c r i b e  to receive the posts by email, simply fill out THIS form}

.... so what do you think, are we festive enough?

here is a glimple of our  home decor shop:




.........

now... what do you need to do so that you are entitled to enter the give away
& use the reduction code?

1. follow D o m e s t i c  s t o r i e s  blog via google and/or networked blogs


3. visit our shop {right here}

4.  return + leave a comment that you follow & like us + share which
prints you'd like to win 
which is your favorite paper boat garland from {these}

5. in the very probable case that you are already a blog follower & our FB liker,
simply share the link to this celebration on your wall
& tweet about it!
........

that's it my dears!
wishing everyone good luck!

The winner will be picked on the 11th of August 2011!

happy sharing with your friends & happy commenting!

and the loveliest of weekends ahead : )

.............................................

P.S: you wouldn't happen to be too shy to share an opinion on {this recent post} would you? ;)