Inspired Home: Gardener and Marks White Natural History Cottage

White, shabby, natural, light filled, old, rusty, sparkly, vintage, ethereal, industrial... some of the words that come to mind when I see these lovely images from Gardener & Marks, an Australian design firm, that also specializes in renting out props for a myriad of uses. This home was once a 1900's mattress factory.

Seriously, between the plank floors, exposed beam ceilings, natural history vibe, powder coats of white paint on the beadboard and brick for this industrial cottage feel, when can I move in?

Inspired Room: Mourning for Japan

sibella court's bathroom

Today is a somewhat somber, moody day. With all the tragic happenings in Japan, we happened to Netflix the film, Grave of the Dragonflies before the earthquake and it could not have come at a more perfect time. Really, it's so close to the current status of Japan, what are the odds we would Netflix this film right before the tragedy occurred?  It  is truly a beautiful and tragic story of the a brother and sister fighting for survival after the 1945 fire bombing in Kobe Japan's WWII, based upon a semi-autobiographical novel by Akiyuki Nosaka .  Truly, the thing that brings peace is knowing that Christ has a plan for us, and that families can be together forever. Being that it has been thundering and stormy all day, and the tidings of the week, I'm feeling that very black and natural interiors are fitting.  Interesting she has a few Japanese themed items in her home as well.

Stylist Sibella Court, has a beautiful home, a curious shop called The Society, inc... Her lovely book, Etcetera: Creating Beautiful Interiors with the Things You Love, chronicals her many designs and ephemera finds, with photos taken by her brother, photographer Chris Court.

the random trail of glowing bulbs is mesmerizing

 sibella's living room, loving the Japanese pilgrim's jacket

this would be a perfect place to read Wuthering Heights

her favorite quote from Jeanette Wilnterson’s Lighthouse Keeping: My Mother called me silver

 sibella's bedroom

Inspired Color: Pinks and Wild Florals

floral pink footed bathtub by lama designs

I feature pink a lot on here, (like here) or sfgirlbybays post here). It's something that can be very soft and sweet, but I love it with a hint of a gothic feel, even masculine. I'm not a big 'hot pink' person, but there is a fine line with the intensity of the color and what it's paired with for a mature audience.

 Paired with these pink touches, there seems to be an element of some nature inspired flourish. Flowers, branches, zebra stripes or whatever, I'm seeing a recurring theme and I'm loving it.

rustic dining room ~ shilobyrd

living room ~lonny mag

pincusion chair pumpkin pouf plumo

 floral tapestry wallpaper, french provencal bedroom

 fireplace pink and white eclectic fireplace with zebra rug ~ domino

joy isaacs london home via tea party crasher blog

 deer painting colorful white interior via atlanta homes and lifestyles 

Camping Theme Party

 snippet and ink ~ click to enlarge

I am helping do some centerpieces for a camp themed activity this weekend. Materials we will use include anything we can find on a nature walk or already own, with some little handmade paper tents,  (and here) Sticks, moss, river rocks, pine cones, nests, woodland creature figurines, feathers, little compasses, lanterns...
 The boys will have fun going on a nature walk, and I will enjoy preoccupying my mind from other things going on in our lives I would rather not obsess over.

The City Cradle

Smores trees how to

I was thinking of taking plain soup/veggie/fruit cans, cleaning them out and filling them with sticks topped with marshmallows, like so smores-y, right? The budget is pretty limited, so we'll see how it turns out, but I think this could be cheap, easy and cute. But for now, some more lovely ideas.

Merci New York and Oh Darling via Green Wedding Shoes

Daisy Dreaming via Creative Hostess (visit here for larger image)

More woodsy theme ideas and menu ideas here.

I'll try and remember to take pics of what we come up with next week! Any other ideas would be helpful.

Treasured Vintage

I found a delightful blog the other day. I love how all her photos are {mostly} original, rustic, pretty and sweet. Full of vintage treasures, garlands, parties and her little shop of curiosities. Go give Saffron and Genevieve a visit!

rustic Christmas tree

paper flower at home in a rusty vase

vintage ladder masquerading as a bookshelf

vintage metal lockers

antique dolls

cow head and gazebo perfection

garden party with potted moss favors

vintage bottles

Thanks for stopping by! Here are two free downloads of scanned vintage ephemera put together from the lovely Cathe of Just Something I Made! (visit her blog for lots of inspiration & click on images for full view)