Wheel of Colour

Hi there! This is just a quick post to share my good fortune with you. Months ago while randomly searching PBK on Ebay I came across Pottery barn kids awesome colour wheel puzzle. The puzzle being offered was in good used condition and was won by some other lucky soul for more than I could spend at the time. To say that I love colour would be an understatement and while in school I spent many hours mixing and painting to get Itten's colour wheel just right. Seeing the puzzle It was love at first sight and I mourned the loss of the puzzle for quite some time... and gripped about it lots to my dear hubby...

Johannes Ittens Colour Wheel

Well, what can I say sometimes the gods of ebay laugh at you and other times it's smiles all around!! I am now the proud new owner correction My daughters are the proud new owners of a brand new mint condition Pottery Barn Colour wheel puzzle complete with canvas storage bag! Me loves it!! won for just $13.05! I do my Happy dance every time I look at it! It's beautiful and even better in person. After all it's only fitting for MY daughters to own such a puzzle, it makes my designer heart skip a beat to hear my two year old perfectly pronounce Fuchsia, Magenta and Chartreuse! the joys of parenthood!

PBK Colour Wheel Puzzle

Newest editions to my Library

I've mentioned before my love of design books and especially of late, children's design. While so many retailers and show rooms continue to show pastels, circus, and baby animal themed nurseries or children's spaces... let me not forget dreaded primary colours and plastic! It's very refreshing to see sophisticated, fun, lived in and organic spaces for children. As you probably already know last year saw the fold of two of my favorite magazines, Cookie and Domino. It's tragic really as they housed a major source of inspiration for me. Luckily there are still many other sources for great design for children. Like milk mag and Jeu de paumes.

To temporarily satisfy my demand for kiddie room eye candy, I recently purchased some new titles to add to my collection. I've blogged before about Milk magazine and I especially love their Deco spreads. You needn't speak french to appreciate their inspiring images. Not quite sure how I missed this but they apparently produce a special interiors inspiration edition once yearly. I'm still kicking myself for missing the first two (sadly out of stock everywhere...) but at least I've got the third! I purchased my copy here. This is really more like a book and it's full of gorgeous and eclectic family spaces from around the world.

I also purchased the missing Jeu de Paumes Children's titles to complete my set, Children's rooms London and Children's rooms Stockholm. As usual these spaces are ever inspiring, I notice new details in their delectable photos every time I flip through them!

Children's rooms London

Children's rooms Stockholm

Milk Deco No3

Seems the more I get the more I want! but alas ces't la vie! non?

Jeu de Paumes

Last week Design Momma celebrated her 26th birthday....geesh! I'm getting old! and received the most amazing gift from my dear hubby. For years now I've requested design books as gifts for birthdays, anniversaries or any other occasion of which someone might decide to shower me with gifts! Books are definitely my favorite splurge but can be pricey and many titles wait patiently on my various wish lists for months sometimes years. Last year I spotted some Japanese Interior Design books over at Yvestown and instantly fell in love, I knew I just had to have them!

The series is published by Japanese publisher Jeu de Paumes and are written entirely in Japanese. While fully bi-lingual plus a nice amount of French I definitely can't read, write or speak a word of Japanese! that fact doesn't take away from the experience in the least! If a picture is worth a thousand words? well, these books will be "talking" to me for years to come. Their are currently four titles of Children's spaces. Children's rooms Copenhagen, Chambres d'enfant a Paris, Children's room London, and Children's rooms Stockholm. I received Copenhagen and Paris from dear Hubby.


When I first saw that little table and chairs my first reaction was "what the devil?!" they stole my Ikea hack! Upon closer inspection I realized that while similar this isn't the Latt set, and I sat back to take in the amazing Scandinavian wooden floors and pale green tones.

This is just a sampling of the eye candy that awaits you inside the Copenhagen edition. The book comes complete with a city guide and list of cool stores for sourcing some awesome euro treasures!

The allure of that amazing staircase pulls you in to one breathtaking photo after another! but seriously how Parisian is that pink! J'adore!

I'm very much in love with this green room, from the colour to the fairy lights to the dollhouse... I'm swooning!

The books pay homage to the occupant or occupants of each space and the first and last pages of the books are dedicated to artwork by the little sweethearts.

The pages of each book are filled with fun and whimsy. I think the eclecticism relied on during the formation of these amazing spaces is a uniquely European approach, I love the mix of old and new, bright, bold and many unexpected colour combinations. Coming from North America with an overriding tide of matchy matchy, pink or blue and brand new everything this approach is a breath of fresh air. Children are collectors by nature and all the rooms are brimming with collections of every sort imaginable. The spaces are beautiful, definitely juvenile yet sophisticated and with out a doubt lived in. They make me nostalgic about my own childhood but mainly inspire me to create such a dreamy space for my own daughter to cherish forever.

The books are available through their site, amazon.jp.. if your brave enough to tackle the ordering process or at the Yvestown blog. Dear Hubby contacted them via their site and reported that Sakai was especially pleasant and helpful, so they've got our two thumbs up! The books were wrapped sweetly and arrived within just a matter of days. Paumes has a huge line of books covering apartments, kitchens, studios etc. and the list is always growing. I feel that for me this is the start of a major addiction! so here's wishing me many many more birthdays!

A soft spot

I love pillows! no actually that's not the whole truth.... I lust them! Shelves, bedscapes, and big bins of brightly coloured pillows at my favorite home dec stores get me swooning! There's always room for one more, so many patterns, shapes, textures..... how could anyone possibly stop at 20? 30? or 40?!

When DH and I were first married we lived in a teeny tiny! (were talking 30 sqm...) apartment if you can call it that... needless to say storage was a hot commodity... nonetheless one of our cupboards was home to pillows that would be just perfect for our "den". Yes I know how could you possibly have a den in 30 sqm.... well you're right we didn't.... but we do now! and I've been saving up for years!! nothing brightens up a drab room, chair, couch, bed? like a brightly coloured and patterned pillow. I love pillows on beds, couches, casually tossed on the floor... ooh and I'm a rug person too... love getting cozy with a favorite interiors book on our shaggy carpet propped up by, you got it! more pillows!





To help foster my love of the cushiony stuff, I bought the Pillow Book by Shannon Okey, it's home to over 25 patterns for fun decorative pillows for use around your home, as well as Amy Butlers Gum drop Pillow pattern. This is my attempt at making this addiction a little more affordable.... you can get whole yards of gorgeous fabrics for the price of your average tossing pillow. You don't need to be to an accomplished seamstress either to make the most basic of square pillows. Like all home accessories you'll get the most bang for your buck if you invest in quality home dec weight or upholstery fabrics. I always keep my eye out for great remnants, they're generally large enough for at least a pillow or two and for a fraction of the original yardage cost.

These are just a few samples from my collection...



To spruce up our playroom a little, I decided to make a little "house" pillow/plushie to sit on my daughter' rocking chair when it isn't in use. It's put together entirely from scraps I had lying around, and a button for a door knob. It was very simple to put together, just two rectangles for the body of the pillow and I eye balled the roof... finishing it off with a scalloped edge. I cut the windows, door, flowers and grass freehand and zigzag stitched them in place. The possibilities are endless, using different fabrics and whatever embellishments you prefer. I love it! How about trying your own?

Cute.fr

After all my complaining about having to take mandatory french class in grade school (blame Canada!) I actually signed up for a year long course in University. My thoughts were set on traveling the countries flea markets in search of desirable treasures from days gone past... then came reality and motherhood, and my coveted trip has been postponed until the unknown... To stay in touch with my inner french chic I subscribe to the Cute.fr newsletter.

I wouldn't describe Cute.fr as just cute.... they are tres tres chic! they design accessories for children's rooms with that oh so hard to achieve french non chalant attitude! as in I just threw these pillows and toys in an old vintage cupboard and voila! instant chic! I'm definitely jealous of anyone who has gilded mirrors and Louis whatever chairs passed down to them... Anyway my grasp of French is being put to good use as the site caters to Francophones (or Francophiles...) only. They'll ship anywhere but as we're talking euros things are pricey..... but one or two "splurge" items can make the room... Or just draw inspiration from their eclectic styling!


It's fun to see a great girls room with grey walls and calming purple tones... Love the hanging bird mobile, I made something similar with hearts for my own daughters room...


I decided not to neglect the boys this time.... If I had a son I'd love a room like this for him.... not too babyish... and could easily morph into a young mans room.


Love the bold colours mixed with the neutral backdrop... that little bed looks so cozy! Love the paper lanterns and the bedside decor at childs eye level!


Silhouettes are all over the place right now and these could easily be replicated in sturdy cardboard or for the jackson savvy.... mdf or wood.

How cool are chalkboard walls?! I've yet to try one out in my own space... mainly because we're still renting but how fun! I'd probably put mine in the playroom though...

I love the mature colour palette of this masculine/gender neutral nursery. It could work really well even if your "nursery" is just a corner of your master bedroom...

I couldn't not include this princess room, if I were a princess my room would look like this! none of that pink and purple frou frou stuff.... just vintage linen, lace and loads of nostalgic ephemera!

Zara Home Kids

Let me start by saying that I LOVE Zara! On many occasions I can be spotted wearing head to toe Zara, I love it for me, for my daughter, my hubby and I especially love Zara Home. Their catalogues are always superbly presented and I wish I could move into some of the sets! Unfortunately Zara Home has yet to reach our shores.... a fact that's hasn't prevented me from drooling over their catalogs though... If you dream it, it will come right?


Anyway every couple of months I check in on them to see if their new catalogue is out and lo amd behold Spring/Summer 2009 is here. Below are some of the highlights from their kids line.

I'm really having a thing for elephants and valises lately....

Love the painted crib!

I want a quilt like that....

Fab colour!

So when do I move in?

Not too hard to tell I've got a little girl eh?