Be my guest - Kaunista kesäpäivää!

It's time to take a summer holiday trip. We'll be traveling for two weeks in Europe by train and then some traveling in our home country Finland. Can't wait to tell you about these and show pictures! And can't wait for all those beautiful places in Poland and Germany. 

I want to thank you for being my guest and I want to say I'm really happy that you are here. When autumn comes I'll start many DIY and art projects and those I will bring here. And there are so many talented and interesting people who are worth to write about. I bring them also here to you because as they do inspire me - I hope they inspire you too. The most important thing is that this blog is about inspiration - I will try my best to make it to be so. 

And now my friend, it is time to enjoy your summer! I made a small video for you. I shot it in our garden. Be my guest!

Love,

Gretchen

PS. I want to give a big Thank You for learning from the best.

   https://vimeo.com/44888825http://decor8blog.com/

Fontadelics - Fonttiherkkuja

This is the book to have. It's Scripts: Elegant Lettering from Design's Golden Age by Steven Heller and Louise Fili. Inspiration to your work or DIY. Old-fashioned fonts and vintage feel.

I love old neon light written signs. Few weeks ago I was in Montenegro in Budva and there were so many old-fashioned signs next to the beach. I was wondering why...never got the explanation but they were so pretty and gave the place a little bit old-fashioned style and spirit. But back to the book... I saw this book very first time in great blog called Book By Its Cover . This blog is really my favorite and I made an book order straight away to Amazon. I have found many lovely and useful books through this blog. It is illustrator, pattern designer and author Julia Rothman's book blog. But she's another story, I promise. Here's a peek to the book presented.

And then I have to mention another fontadelic book that I unfortunately don't have - yet! I just saw it in Wit&Whistle blog. Thanks for Amanda's fine blog, I found really great book called Typography Sketchbooks by Steven Heller(him again!) and Lita Talarico. It's worth to look maybe even worth to buy. 

Caught by inspiration? - I did. 

Top 6 - No ordinary flowerpot - kukkamaan koristeet

I'm a huge fan of vintage. I want my garden to look a little bit sweet, old-fashined and slightly different.  A little bit like an old candy box if you know what I mean. At the same time I want to be also ecological. My summer holiday just started and I finally got time to make my garden more bohemian and more beautiful. I used old kitchenware, carpet rags, burlap etc. With them I used quite ordinary old clay pots and got nice contrast and interesting combinations. I had a wonderful afternoon. I like to play with the general idea of Top 5, Top10 Top whatever - I do it with wrong numbers...so here you are: Top 6 garden decorations.  

Tänään minulla oli aikaa puuhailla puutarhassa. Rakastan vanhoja esineita ja jos vain voin haluan tehdä asioita ekologisesti. Niinpä käytin ruukuiksi vanhoja astioita, juuttikangasta, joululahjakukka-asetelmien rottinkikoreja ja koristelemiseen matonkuteita. Haluan tietenkin asioiden näyttävän kauniilta, joten mikä tahansa ei kelpaa ja aikaa vierähti tovi jos toinenkin. Vanhoja savisia kukkaruukkujakin tuli pari tänään käytettyä ja yhdistelemällä tavallista ja epätavallista saa aikaan kivoja kontrasteja ja mielenkiintoisia yhdistelmiä. Tässä Top 6 eikä viisi taikka kymmenen.

Matkakuume nousee - Eye candy for You

As I promised to show you few pics from our Croatia trip. Kolocep Island in front of Dubrovnik and of course Dubrovnik old town. I guess I'm dreaming of turquoise sea. Love it! I gave photos a little bit vintage look to make them look like more old postcards which I by the way love also.  

view from our terrace

visitors on the island

dubrovnik old town

on the city wall

jump!

Lomamatka mielessä - Travel fever

antibes

love the turquoise

i just wanted to take a picture of carousel...
but this man decided to come to the picture...nice mustache

sergio leone and us in cannes

venice

hear the music and see the bow 

stripes and reflection

It just began...holiday! And same time I felt it - travel fever...I had to look up photos from our trip to French Riviera and Venice 2010...love it and miss it. This summer we have already decided to go to Berlin. And as usual we are going to take a train. It is slowly traveling but I like it. I think it is a good choice to make if you have time. The vacation starts when you step in to the train. You can't do anything but relax. You sit and watch through the window, read, play cards, sleep, eat - you can't hurry anywhere. I see how the view changes when I get more and more further from my motherland. And I love the feeling of traveling. We have usually made 3 week trip with interrail ticket. 2009 we went to Croatia and stayed in gorgeous island called Kolocep in front of Dubrovnik. So pure water and beautiful place. I'll continue this story with photos from our Croatia trip. I'll dig some eye candies for you - that's a promise.

Vintage kortit puhuvat - Vintage postcards makes the difference

These are something what I found in Tallinn two weeks ago. In antique shop I fell in love to these old-fashioned postcards. Look at their colors and atmosphere. Certainly in one of these cards is my want-to-go-someday-place - Samarkand. Samarkand is about mosaic and how funny is that Walter Womacka also worked with mosaic even though he also painted. And if you really start to think these collages are quite a like mosaic. So here's an idea. Make a collage and take a picture or use masking tape to make your decoration piece or sew with sewing machine cards together with nice colored thread. Make it your own art and give a life to forgotten items and enjoy the moments from past.  And yes, thank you for those photographers who took these photos that we can enjoy of them.

Löysin nämä kortit pari viikkoa sitten Tallinnasta vanhasta antiikkiliikkeestä. Oli hupaisaa huomata miten valitsemani korttikokonaisuudet täydensivät toisiaan. Tietenkin kaikki olivat vanhoja ja tekijät ja aihepiirit löytyvät itärajan takaa. Mietin miten niitä voisi hauskasti käyttää ja päädyin kuvaamaan ne kollaaseina. Niiden tunnelmassa on jotain ihanan vanhaa ja kulunutta ja mennyttä aikaa. Parasta oli se, että löysin korttien maisemista oman haavematkakohteeni: Samarkand, josta olen aiemmin kirjoittanut mosaiikkijutussani. Joku päivä sinne on pakko päästä. Mutta ideana sinulle: tee korteista kollaasi ja ota kuva ja tee siitä taulu tai juliste, tai yhdistele postikortit masking tapella kokonaisuudeksi suoraan seinälle tai ompele ompelukoneella (tai miksei käsinkin) kivan värisellä langalla kortit yhteen omaksi kokonaisuudeksi. Tee siitä oma taideteoksesi ja anna vanhoille unohtuneille korteille uusi elämä ja nauti menneisyyden tuulahduksesta. Ja kiitos kuvaajille, jotka ovat ikuistaneet nämä kohteet, jotta voimme niitä ihailla.