What do you see....?

Living in LA it's easy to feel as though you're surrounded by artists who spend their afternoons brooding in front of a canvas, channeling their inner Van Gough. 

this is one of my favorite pieces done on the back of a paper grocery bag (can you believe it?) by my boyfriends mom

However if you're like me, while this is inspiring it's also a little intimidating! What do you do if you want to create your own art yet feel challenged by a simple set of stick figures? Never fear, I have the DIY art project for you! Not only does it look edgy and cool, it costs almost zero $, takes no time at all and even better, I'm pretty sure a monkey could do it!


Equipment
Paper
Paint
Good folding technique
Frame


Cut a piece of paper to fit your desired frame.  Place a medium amount of paint on the paper in different shapes and then fold in half. Make sure not to make too much of a crease down the middle, the idea is just to mirror image the paint on both sides of the paper. 
Spend an afternoon coming up with these fun images, wait for them to dry and put them in your frame of choice!


Feel free to play with color and create a blot that looks appealing to you. Some you'll love and some you'll hate, go with what feels good.

Voila! Customized art work that's a really great talking point!! Of course my friends like to poke fun and play psychiatrist after we unveil the images we see! It might be more fun than you think!


Enjoy!

but I don't wanna....do I?

If you're like me, then you have pile upon pile of your favorite fashion, decor and design magazines stashed all over your house.  I just can't seem to part with these little jewels of inspiration and am yet to come up with a better alternative to storing them. My fear (however irrational it may seem) is that if I put them too far away I'll never see them and they'll be lost forever like a long forgotten treasure map (yes these magazines contain the location of my much desired treasures).  This is where the fabulousness of online magazines come in. No you don't get to turn the actual pages and smell the new paper smell, but as reluctant as I am, I think that's all part of welcoming a new era of reading - hello Kindle and iPad. The dilema of where to store these dream diaries is completely taken away and you can't deny the obvious environmental pluses that come with reduced paper consumption. 
Here's a list of some of the greatest digital design magazines that I've found out there.. Give them a go, they might just change your mind.

Lonny Magazine

Although there's not many issues (three to be exact) this little jewel was created by those genius' who put together the cult design mag, Domino magazine. R.I.P...sigh

Fryd + Design

My girlfriend who lives in Norway put me onto this Scandinavian take on life and design in Northern Europe... It's adorably neat and simple.

Neet Magazine

As a self professed "style bible for the digital age", this quarterly UK based online publication has some of the greatest vintage finds and DIY projects around.

Nesting Newbies

 

For those of us who are already missing the visceral accompaniments that come with a good ol' traditional read, this virtual mag has added some sound effects to make you feel as though you're actually turning the page...it's sweet, but they're not fooling anyone! Although I may be muting the flip sound on this site, they have me hooked on their delightful collection of recipes and demonstrative 'how to' video clips. 

Sweet Paul

On the heels of his wildly successful blog of the same title, Sweet Paul, prop and food stylist Paul Lowe has fulfilled one of his biggest dreams with his 'bon appetite' meets martha stewart culinary and craft magazine.  The food design is truly some of the best I've ever seen and the photography captures the taste and quirky style of this digital gem beautifully. If this magazine can't inspire you in one way or another, then I don't know what will! It's safe to say I'm crazy about the guy's style and thank goodness I have his blog to follow in between editions.

So go ahead! Download them, print out the pages you've fallen in love with, and dive head first into the digital age of reading.. I for one am taking it one step at a time. But let me tell you, this isn't a bad place to start...not at all!

a beach day to remember

Tomorrow my friends and I (along with the rest of Los Angeles) are planning a day at the beach to celebrate Memorial Day.  Here's my must haves list for a fun hassle free day in the sun and surf.

Smokey Joe table top weber and grill $35. It's something that you can use all summer long! Don't forget to bring your coals, matches and bbq equipment.

pottery barn throw $49 to keep you warm when those evening breezes start to pick up.

never underestimate the importance of sun smarts! In Australia I grew up with the sun smart moto of "slip, slop, slap". Slip on a sun shirt, slop on some sunscreen and slap on a hat. Choose something light weight and higher SPF for your face and switch to a lower SPF for your body if you want to look like you've actually been to the beach.

personally I'll be getting my tan from Kate Somerville's Somerville360... the best.

I'm loving J Crew's sunhat for $165. However am sure I can find something equally as effective for a one eighth of the price here.

if you're like most people, you love the look of your hair after a day of playing in the sun and surf.  Bring along an extra spray bottle and fill it up with some salty sea water so you can spritz your hair all day long to keep the beach babe tousled hair happening. This tip came from hair stylist extraordinaire Christine Symonds at Byron and Tracy Salon; who's responsible for Lauren Conrad's sultry waves and the cover of this months People Style Watch.

which brings me to....magazines! Bring some easy reading material to keep you busy between games of charades, frisbee and for our friends sing alongs with my boyfriends trusty guitar skills.

Food is another story entirely! Stay tuned for a couple of great recipes that make for crowd pleasing munchies and hassle free transportation!

hmmm.....what to order?

I consider myself to be a reasonably healthy person.  I'm not going to lie, I enjoy beautifully made cuisine (not just the leafy stuff) and I have a killer sweet tooth that I undoubtedly inherited from my mother. I've always admired people like Alice Waters who pioneered california cuisine and made the importance of local and organic produce chic. Truth be told I've always toyed with the idea of vegetarianism and pescatarianism as I could never quite justify the difference between the love I feel for my dog and some of the other cute animals I was consuming (I know, I know but it's true!) Nonetheless, I have always been aware of what it is that I'm putting into my body and how my body reacts to what I'm fueling it with.  So when Michael Pollen collaborated on the recent documentary Food Inc., I was both chomping at the bit to acquire that information, yet terrified at what this would do to my relationship with the food that I know and love. 

One evening I lured my boyfriend into sharing this terrifying experience with me with a bottle of red and a 'healthy' dinner.  Needless to say the wine was consumed while we pushed around our now seemingly toxic cuisine.  There's no doubt in my mind that Michael Pollan plays a highly important role in shaking us up by unveiling the jaw dropping truth to what we're condoning as consumers and ultimately risking in the name of a cheap and cheerful bite.  It's easy to feel overwhelmed once obtaining these startling facts, so when I found Michael Pollan's book Food Rules, I breathed a sigh of relief!  Thank goodness! An easy way to break it down and apply as little or as much as we can. There are 64 rules in total and here are the top 15 that I pulled from the book.

1. Avoid food products containing ingredients that a third-grader cannot pronounce.

2. Avoid foods you see advertised on television.

3. Eat only foods that will eventually rot.

4. It’s not food if it arrived through the window of your car.

5. Eat mostly plants, especially leaves.

6. Eat animals that have themselves eaten well.

7. The whiter the bread, the sooner you’ll be dead....blunt but true.

8. Have a glass of wine with dinner.

9. Stop eating at 80% capacity.

10. Eat when you are hungry, not when you are bored. If you’re not hungry enough to eat an apple, then you’re not hungry.

11. Don’t get your fuel from the same place your car does.

12. Do all your eating at a table.

13. Leave something on your plate.

14. Break the rules once in a while. “All things in moderation. Including moderation.”

15. Buy fresh local produce when you can.

Hope this helps you as much as it helped me! Remember to treat your body with the respect that it deserves and more importantly get informed so that you too can make informed choices!

Power to the people!....now pass me that ice cream sandwich.  

brides to be and table tops

There's nothing like a beautiful table setting to welcome your guests. When the elements are brought together correctly it has the ability to set the mood and immediately transport your guests to 'lovelyville'.  Whether it's a casual dinner, a wedding or a baby shower, you have the ability customize your setting based on the tone of the event.  This particular setting was for one of my dearest friend's bridal showers and was a hit for our surprise spa afternoon. 

Spend an afternoon going through your fridge pulling out all the little jars of bibs and bobs that you no longer use or have passed their use by date.  Any old wine bottles and jars in varying size, anything that can hold some liquid can hold some flowers!  Don't be afraid to experiment with colour too. In fall those darker green bottles pair beautifully with baby pumpkins and burnt sienna tones but for spring or girly celebrations, I prefer a cleaner palette. 

If you're a little shy about putting larger complicated bouquets together then that's okay! When you're choosing flowers stick with wild flowers such as daisies. It's as simple as giving them a trim and putting them in the vase, it doesn't get much easier than that! Here's some other tips...


➣ Lilies are a great flower as the smallest bouquet can fill your house with their sweet scent like an expensively pungent candle. 
➣ Keep in mind that for a dinner party you might want to steer away from overly aromatic flowers as you don't want it to compete with your dinner! 
➣ Be sure to remove all of the leaves before trimming your flowers as the extra greenery will do you no favors in terms of longevity.  
➣ Group your flowers together in colour and variety to create a more organized arrangement.


Voila! Domestic Goddess that will have your friends oohing and ahhing!