Oh Joy!

some little things...

...love these new pieces from Rockett St. George...

feeling tiny accents of wood...

{left to right, top to bottom: cameo campaign chair, apple jar with spoon {via Design*Sponge}, woodgrain bangle, akhassa body scrub, i/o desk organizer {via Notcot}, and wauwinet table lamp.}

totally random...

...but SO cute! Excuse my non-design post for a moment while I share with you this ridiculously cute image of Pito...a cat that my friend Jenn saw while in Japan on a recent trip. Pito wears a backpack and sits like a person on his owner's lap...and is so comfortable that he falls asleep that way. He looks like my cat Bruce except Bruce doesn't have a backpack. See a few more photos of Pito here.

{Turns out Pito is a very popular cat! See more photos of him from others here and here and here.}

cozy and tailored...

...by Mer... {via Refinery 29}

skinny skinny

While at Terrain a couple weeks ago, I picked up one of Skinny Skinny's soaps. I love the sweet and 100% recycled, reclaimed, sustainable and biodegradable packaging...especially those great book-like gift boxes!

happy mother's day!

...to all you moms out there and to mine! {photo of me and my mom...sometime in the early 80's}

lines & shapes: volume 2 sneak peek

The new volume of Lines & Shapes is will be available right here on Monday...with a brand new  theme, the sneak peek page above features the work of ThussFarrell and Meg Mateo Ilasco.

bits of periwinkle & mustard...

...from Australian Fleur Wood's Spring 08 collection...

a little preview...

Over in stationery land, we're all gearing up for the upcoming Stationery Show which runs from May 18-21 at Javits in New York. Since the show is only open to buyers and press, here's a little Nantaka Joy preview for you from my newest collection to be launched at the Stationery Show. I'll be with a great group of designers represented by Mixed Co. in booth #1448. I'll post more booth information next week...in the meantime, you can see more preview photos of the Mixed Co. designers' booth over at Design*Sponge right here. Thanks Grace!

{Photo by Karen Wise}

fun portraits...

...with whimsical one-liner descriptions about the person featured by Carter Kustera...

ellie curtis

I love these hand-drawn illustrative patterns by Ellie Curtis. Ellie sells her pillows through her Etsy shop but is currently away at an artist's residence and will re-open the shop when  she's back.

twigs & droplets

Some sweet new necklaces and earring by Cursive Design inspired by water drops on branches after the rain...

whimsy & spice

Just in time for Mother's Day...a little sweet something for you. Brooklyn-based Whimsy & Spice creates handmade sweets that combine aromatic spices and unique flavors...and they have an Etsy shop filled with their goodies for delivery outside of Brooklyn!

{Thanks Mari!}

{marissa likes}: sundance

...for cool rustic and industrial decor...

{left to right, top to bottom: illumination by inch candle, 1934 dining chair,  steamer trunk end table, and seltzer bottle pendant lamp. All from Sundance.}

wearable marimekko

Although I do wish Marimekko made more tailored pieces (I find them too poufy sometimes) I do really love their prints on clothing...so bold and graphic...

james welling's flowers

I recently purchased this beautiful exhibition catalogue for my mom's birthday gift featuring the colorful, Rorschach Test-like photograms of flowers by the esteemed Los Angeles-based conceptual photographer, James Welling. Welling placed the blossoms of a common southern California plant on sheets of 8x10 film and exposed them to light. The negatives were then projected onto special photo paper through a color mural enlarger and color filters, to produce the dramatic, spectral, almost sun- or moon-dappled images reproduced here. See more about the book here or see some of the prints here.

zip cushions

Love the simple shapes of these Zip Cushions by Australian designer Matthew Sheargold...

feeling mini rainbows...

{left to right, top to bottom: alexander mcqueen butterfly dress, ronni kappos charm bracelet, paul smith tea pot, phaidon color library series, rainbow staircase from feb 08 Domino, and orla kiely wheelie case.}

happy friday + a tiny garden

It's certainly been an extra green week of posting here with our little field trip earlier this week. Here's a photo of one of my purchases from that field trip...a tiny garden of the sweetest little succulents in my favorite new swirled marble pot. Since we live in a high rise apartment, I'll have to wait a little longer until I can fill a real live outdoor garden. Have a great weekend everyone..can't believe May is here already.

{marissa likes}: skeem votives

Marissa picked up one of these Skeem travel votives the other day at Terrain, and we both loved the graphic black type against the brightly colored wax. The Philadelphia-based company uses a soy/paraffin wax blend poured into reusable glass containers.