inspire*inspire

Polaroid Flower Vase

Oh hello! Remember me?! I used to be the enthusiastic author of this blog... But now I'm a student and struggle to find the time and energy to do anything that falls outside my course duty.

I don't know if it's the commute to school or the amount of information I'm trying to absorb every day, but it's now a month into the course and I'm only just starting to get into the swing of things.

Of course, the fact that I already had to hand-in my first essay today (Eek!) and have two ongoing projects in motion (argggh!) has probably, a little something to do with it too.

Either way, I feel like I've fallen off the face of the blog-sphere! So now I've got half a day to rest, after handing in my work and before I get cracking on the rest, I can finally do my favourite thing in the world, which I truly miss these days- posting on this blog!

 

via: That unreliable girl

I found this adorable Polaroid Flower Vase by Jung Hwajin on That Unreliable Girl blog, and I just had to share it with you all.

For me, this really ticks all the boxes in terms of style, size, function, reference (I love Polaroid!) and the fact that it is hanging rather that sitting on surface. So adorable!

Have a wonderful weekend, lovelies!

Jason Thielke

I have recently discovered the beautiful work of Jason Thielke.

His architectural figure drawing is rich in details with a soft and soulful feel.

I adore the combination of his skillful blueprint-like construction and the strong emotional expression.

The result, as you can see, is fantasticly fascinating!

Visit his website for details on his upcoming exhibitions and to see more of his work.

Enjoy!

BODIE and FOU

Whether you're already thinking about your holiday shopping or just looking for stylish gifts, look no further than this lovely online boutique, by French sisters Elodie (BODIE) and Karine (FOU):

images via bodieandfou.com

Full of goodies from bath products, kitchenware and home accessories to furniture, wallpaper and treasures for kids, this gorgeous boutique makes shopping for gifts a real treat.

Enjoy!

Salt Lake temple

Designer, Cameron Moll, has handcrafted this incredibly intricate letterpress poster of Salt Lake temple, character by character over the course of about a 100 hours.

 

 

images via cameronmoll.com

Prints of the poster can be purchased, signed or unsigned, here.

Chris Everard

With posting being rather scares around here lately (seriously, who knew that being a student can be so time and energy consuming?!! Aghh...) I thought I'd make it up to you all by giving you a visual treasure box, that could potentially keep you busy the whole weekend, if not even longer.

Uber-talented photographer, Chris Everard, has dozens of stunning images for you to salivate over. Available for viewing on his agent, Sarah Kaye's website, where you can find a long list of photographers and stylists. Some of which will be featured here in the future. 

 

Enjoy*

Framed objects

Today I love 'framed objects' by design studio 'the.'

Although they have already made the blog-rounds, I just can't help but wanting to share these lovelies with you all, for the sake of those who may have not yet seen them, for some reason.

 

These pretty and practical frames make a lot of sense to me. I love the idea of taking simple, everyday things and changing the way we look at them. 

The sheer thought of placing a favourite book on display like this, makes me jump for joy!

images via thinkofthe.com

Miracle

image: inspire*inspire

and the winners are...

Thanks to all of you who took the time to participate in inspire*inspire's first ever giveaway.

I hope you've enjoyed browsing through, To Dry For, our generous sponsors' website.

I sure enjoyed putting it all together for you and then reading all about your picks.

But most of all, I've enjoyed putting all your names in a hat and blindly selecting the winners, the old fashion way.

And the winners are:

                                                                                                                                                                             image: inspire*inspire

William B.

Sharon R.

Sabine

Belafonte

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Congratulations to all of you!

I will be contacting you later today for further details on claiming your prize. 

Lille

This post should have been published on Friday... But with the last couple of weeks being so packed full of events and activities, I feel like I've been working against the clock to try fulfill all my obligations.

Still, Mr.inspire and I managed to clear our Thursday out and hop on the train to France, to spend the day in the lovely city of Lille.

image: Larazoni

I was incredibly surprised and inspired by the place and people of Lille. Although it had that wonderful European feel shining through,  there was also a invigorating fusion of old and new, local and foreign and traditional and modern influences.

image: Little_Break

We especially enjoyed walking around Vieux-Lille, the old part of the city, Where you can find gorgeous patisseries, boutiques, galleries and magnificent architecture.

image: inspire*inspire

One of the great surprises we came across, while exploring that district, was the design gallery/shop, Sr77.

The lovely owner and curator, Stephane Rochaix, has managed to create a stylish yet welcoming space, where you can happily explore the best of design goodness.

image: via Sr77

With pieces by Spanish design maverick, Jaime Hayón; luxurious home decor by Hella Jongerius and Arik Levy; and colourful gift items such as Pantnone mugs and Wallepaper city guides- this gem of a shop is a 'must visit'!

 

We concluded our day trip with diner at the Berliner restaurant (recommended to us by Stephane, of Sr77).

The place has a real Berlin-chic to it, with vintage furniture and a wall full of graffiti and 'street art'.

The menu was pleasantly surprising, and the food was fantastic.

images: youropi.com

Not your  typical French experience, the Berliner offers fusion cuisine in a relaxed atmosphere with friendly (and English speaking) staff.

I highly recommend it!

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Hope you're all having a wonderful weekend!

Stay tuned tomorrow for the giveaway winners.

Nano cage

The last few days have been crazy busy. I've been trying to cover as much of the London Design Festival as I possibly could, in between all my other obligations.

Over the next couple of weeks, I will share with you all the great finds I have come across, while visiting the different festival events and participating galleries and shops.

There's some really good stuff to come, so stay tuned!

But I'd like t start by introducing what, to me, was the star design of the whole festival...
Enter the Nano cage:

These little beauties are digital bird cages / art sculptures by artist Troy Abbott. They contain a digital video bird which makes for a very humane solution for all of us, nature lovers, and for those who just couldn't be bothered with cleaning up the mess.

Check out this link to the artist's website to see how it works.

Giveaway: To Dry For

Update- this Giveaway is now closed!

While I am spending this day registering at Central Saint Martins and officially becoming a (very excited) student again, I thought I'd arrange a sweet giveaway for all of you, lovely readers, so you would also have something exciting to do today :)

After my recent post about their gorgeous products,  Sally and Dave, of 
To Dry For, were ever so generous as to sponsor this giveaway and let four lucky readers choose any design they would like to win!

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HOW TO ENTER:

• Visit To Dry For and browse through all the different designs. Choose the one you would like to win and then come back and leave a comment (in the comments section below) telling me which design you chose.

• Alternatively, you can Tweet or blog about this giveaway ( make sure to let me know that you have) and you will be entered  into the prize draw.

• Giveaway closes on Sunday, October 4th. Winners will be announced on Monday, October 5th.

This Giveaway is now closed!

Nosideup

Today I love these simple, yet striking, black & white drawings, from Nosideup's Etsy shop.

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Come by again tomorrow and enter to win the first ever Giveaway on inspire*inspire!

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Origami teabags

Here's something that would make your daily cup of tea, a cause for celebration!

Designed by Nathalia Ponomareva, these origami birds teabags are already making waves in the design world and blogsphere. Not surprising, considering their massive appeal to tea drinkers, birds lovers, origami and papercraft fans, product and graphic designers and those who just enjoy the simple things in life.

Personally, I am going to be counting the days until these lovelies are picked up by a manufacturer and brought from the prototype stage right onto the shelves of my local shops.

To Dry for...

Sometimes, art can be found in the most unexpected places...

 

These beautiful designs are just a few of my personal favorites, from a selection of 101 brilliant and joy-inducing tea towels from the online shop To Dry For.

 

The brainchild of Oxford-based duo, Sally Gough and Dave Emery, ToDryFor offers a fantastic range of eye-pleasing tea towels that would add a spot of quirkiness to your kitchen and a little bit of fun to the, otherwise rather dull chore of dish-drying.

The vibrant designs can be just as well framed and hanged on the kitchen wall. Not to mention, they would make for a lovely, lightweight, low cost gift  (with prices ranging between £7.50 -£11.50) that you could easily send in the post!

With commissioned work from Rob Ryan, Stuart Kolakovic and People will always need plates,  and designs that cover anything from architecture and skiing, to nature and classic nostalgia (note the hilarious Mr. T towel) there is truly something for everyone at ToDryFor!

Visit the website to view and enjoy the full range and read through the witty product descriptions.

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