this neck of the woods

Archive for the ‘Shopping’ Category

Backwards

A little while ago I posted about a weekend trip to Paris that Dave and I took, during which we visited an antique market called Marché Vernaison. I also mentioned that we’d picked up some pretty cool loot, which I’ve only just gotten around to photographing!

Below is the outcome of about 1.5 hours (not kidding) standing in the hot sun, rummaging through boxes and boxes of old wooden letterpress type. Being the kind of people that we are – we couldn’t leave until we’d uncovered every ‘w’ ever made, in search of one that would fit in that spot perfectly. In fact we were so dedicated that we even checked through every ‘m’ as well, in the hopes that one could pose as a ‘w’. We didn’t have much luck, so modified the best ‘w’ we found.

By the end of our search we were completely and utterly covered in decades-old French filth.. it was so worth it!

this neck of the woods letterpressthis neck of the woods letterpressthis neck of the woods letterpress

Freiburg Pottery

As far as I know, there are two dedicated ceramic markets held around this area every year – Freiburg and Kandern. So far we’ve only been to the Freiburg one (first posted about here), and amazingly 12 months has gone by since we last visited! I’ve been anticipating it for weeks, counting my pennies and mentally preparing myself for an onslaught of creative awesomeness.

I wasn’t disappointed.

This year it was held on the last weekend in June, and we arrived bright and early on Saturday (ok, like 10.30 – early for me) to snatch up our favourites before anyone else could. We sought out our most favourite vendor (who consequently always sells out of her coolest stuff really quickly – and who I’m pretty sure is actually starting to get to know us) and managed to walk away with some pretty cool purchases. Who needs money when you have painstakingly handmade plates and bowls right? Priorities.In.Order.

Freiburg Ceramic MarketOur favourite vendorFreiburg Ceramic MarketOur favourite vendorme with the lootOur favourite vendorFreiburg Ceramic MarketFreiburg Ceramic MarketOur favourite vendor

Oh Happy Day!

This weekend gone (after much deliberation, cost comparing, and review reading – of course) we walked into our local camera shop, handed over a wad of cash, and in turn got to go home with the beautiful new Canon EOS 550d. It really is lovely. I’ve been using the 350d for just over 4 years now, and absolutely love it to bits – so I can’t wait to see how the 550d goes in comparison (the gigantic screen has already made the money worthwhile for me!).

Its first official outing was into the forest just down the road.. we had fun, but it was so cold that the outing didn’t last too long!

DaveMe

Fancy That – sunshine

These last two days have been a real downer. It’s raining, cold and dark – really not cool mother nature! It’s on days like these that I find myself searching for anything remotely cheery to lift my spirits and remind me that the rain won’t last forever!

Picsunshine(Top photo by Edyta on flickr or deviantArt)

(Clockwise from top left: Rosebud pin corsage, Ivory velvet clutch, Embroidered necklace, Mister Bear print, fabrics, Bird vase, Yellow Harris Bag, Lacy bird bowl duo.

I want you…

i.love.pencils. Not just any pencils.. coloured ones. You know, those ones in the shop that are perfectly displayed in giant fold-out wooden boxes? That’s inevitably where I always end up, running my fingers over the rows and re-sorting the colours. Yes, it’s an addiction I should address considering I don’t draw, but it’s been with me since I can remember.

Needless to say, I got pretty excited when I saw these images from Social Designer.. look at all those colours! Actually.. there’s 500 to be exact, and they can be yours if you purchase one of their pencil subscriptions – 25 different coloured pencils every month for 20 months (making 500 total!). Awesome huh? They also offer clear, wall-mountable cases to store your collected pencils in.. which, by the end, looks like a magnificent artwork… i’m in love!

aurora_4orchestra_5aurora_2

Found via Jolie Jolie who found it via 2Modern

In the post

ballet blue

I ordered these shoes from Buffalo (an online shoe store in Germany) earlier this week, and yesterday they arrived! mmm I love blue.

Autumn Fever

For all of us here in the Northern hemisphere, Autumn has well and truly arrived – the heaters are on, jackets are out and soup is back on the menu. The beginning of the colder seasons has got me thinking about how I can cosy-up our apartment and my wardrobe in preparation for winter. So I did some searching at my favourite online stores, and have compiled two, colour-grouped collections of items that I’d love in my apartment that make me feel all warm and Autumn-y. Enjoy!

Autumn Fever 1

Row 1: Jorun Rug, Hanging Lamp, Bamboo Lanterns. Row 2: Silk ikat skirt, Cashmere Squiggle Scarf, Smokey plaid cashmere throw. Row 3: Glass vases, Weathered curlicue mirror, Bend-and-bow handbag

Autumn Fever 2

Row 1: Autumn check dress, Storm lantern, Eleanor stripe blanket. Row 2: Tree vase, Check cashmere scarf, Hanging Lamp, Glass candle holder. Row 3: Hocker side table, Suede boots, Blankets

Anthropologie

Anthropologie Faves

Anthropologie is one of my all time favourite stores. Of course, I’ve only seen what’s online because their walk-in stores are all in America.. and that’s so far away! Somehow, I’ve always managed to resist the urge to purchase anything/everything, mainly because the cost of the item (not cheap) plus the postage/tax (really not cheap) have put it way out of my reach.

But never fear! This friday, Anthropologie is opening their first store in London! I’m already mentally allocating hours to be spent there while we’re in London at the end of the year. I’m also hoping it will mean lower postage fees.. hooray! Sorry to those living in Australia.. unfortunately the postie doesn’t travel that far :(

Now to start saving…

la case de cousin paul

boutique

While we were in wandering around Sacre Coeur in Paris, we found this beautiful store selling all different coloured ‘ball’ fairy lights. It’s called ‘la case de cousin paul‘. While they do sell ready-made sets in certain colours, you can also browse the store with a basket in hand, and pick out the colours you would like to have on your string of fairy lights! All the different colours make for such eye-candy.. I literally had to be dragged out of the store. Luckily for those of us that don’t actually live in France, they have a website in which you can drag and drop your favourite colours onto a string of lights, and they’ll ship it to you. Brilliant!