The Lockhart's Trove

I spotted something with my name on it at the Imm Living sale at Joss and Main today- a Lockhart's Trove! Done in white ceramic, these whimsical padlock-and-key themed coin banks have an heirloom quality that I admire...

While I'm awfully fond of the scrolling patterns of the smaller bank, the larger version has proven too perfect to pass up. A Lockhart's Trove emblazoned with a stately leo is going to be a rather fitting gift-to-self for this Lockhart born in August!

Images by Imm Living via Joss & Main

As frivolous as the object may appear, the notion of symbolically and ceremoniously saving money resonates with me. Perhaps it will help me put away pennies for the larger purchases I dare-to-dream of?

Girl About Town: Bountiful Home

For those of you who missed this post in its Facebook album form while Blogger was down, enjoy! If you're not yet a fan of the Shock the Bourgeois Facebook page, head on over and click "like" for access to photos that don't make it on the blog!

I know, I've posted about Bountiful Home before. If it seems like I'm gushing, I am! Not only is this one of my favorite places to shop when I'm visiting in Washington, I'm also trying to convince Todd that he needs an assistant... (haha!).

Todd certainly has the knack for styling. Something rusty, something romantic, something a little kooky (just check out that mouse in the party hat!). Bountiful Home & Nursery is a visual treat indoors and out. The garden is lush with Spring blooms, the 100-year-old house is furnished with reworked vintage pieces, and every surface sparkles with mercury glass. I want one of everything.

Working with Todd to decorate my wedding has been an absolute pleasure. Thanks to his recommendation, I've selected Maxine's Floral for bouquets and centerpieces. Things are coming together beautifully- and I'm loving this opportunity to collaborate with such creative people!

Some Girl Time

This post and its comments vanished during Blogger's technical difficulties- I'm reposting as much as I can recall. A good reminder to all of us to back-up our work!

If you were wondering about the conspicuous lack of Mother's Day well-wishes on the blog, never fear: I was delivering them in person! I flew up to Seattle for a girls' weekend with my gorgeous mom herself...

We drove down to Portland for a baby shower (congratulations Samantha & John!) and some quality time with my Uncle Craig (who's officiating my wedding!), my Aunt Amanda, and their boys, my littlest (and thereby current favorite) cousins. I even got to raise a glass with my lovely bridesmaid Kalin, the witty voice behind I'm an Eating Machine. 

Of course, no girls' weekend would be complete without a shopping excursion... or without doxie gals Ella and Paige. I think Miss Paige enjoys hunting for pretty things just as much as I do! 

It might have been an impromptu visit, but it certainly was a productive one. We managed to whittle down the wedding checklist: shoes, ribbons, trimmings, Mom's dress (stunning, by the way), and decor, just about done! I also made a major decision about our invitations. Hope you liked my save-the-date cards, because I'm designing a whole suite!

What a wonderful trip- I miss you already, Mom!

Girl Around Town: Side

What was it that lured me into Side, an up-cycled furniture boutique on Berkeley's San Pablo Avenue... could it have been a glimmer of aqua blue, or perhaps the enticing aroma of fresh paint? 

The Side business card bears the Sister Parish quote, "innovation is often the ability to reach into the past and bring back what is good, what is beautiful, what is useful, what is lasting." Apt, because that's precisely what owner Carolyn Pickell is doing. While so many contrive to make new furniture appear old, Side celebrates vintage furnishings made young. The tiny shop features an ever-changing assortment of meticulously refinished antiques wearing unexpected paint colors and clever detailing (even pinstripes!). Every surface is laden with treasures, natural curiosities mingling with gilded accessories.

Side has the eclectic aesthetic of a flea market- refined, edited, and styled flawlessly. It's a new Bay Area favorite!

Beautiful Bounty in Edmonds, WA

Here's a special Christmas shopping word to the wise for my Western Washington readers: try downtown Edmonds for nostalgia, twinkle-lights, and one of my new favorite shops.

Bountiful Home resides in a little old house just off of Main Street. If you pass through its arbor and down the garden path, you'll find yourself on a welcoming porch arrayed with potted plants and rusty finds. Once inside you'll understand how Bountiful Home gets its name. Special things sparkle all around.

The shop is an homage to all things old-fashioned and lovely, from vintage glass bottles and snail-mail stationery down to the creaking floorboards. Forget about just wanting to buy something- you'll want to move in.

Definitely the place to go for romantic holiday trimmings and memorable hand-picked gifts!

Dare to Dream: Crowning Glory

Discovery of the weekend: editing html comes about as easily to me as calculus. There's a certain college math professor out there who gets that joke, and we're both grimacing. Actually, one of us is crying a little bit.

I'm comforting myself with a brief online window-shopping break. Because that's what comes easily to me. One might even say that I rule at it. Take, for example, the ceiling lamp that would look divinely right in my living room...

Crown Ceiling Light in Gold, Shades of Light

The price is (surprisingly) much less outrageous than the shape, but I'm still putting this on my "Ha, I wish" list. Today's true dare to dream? A professional to straighten up the royal mess I've made of this poor blog...

Rainy Day

I missed out on the last Alameda Flea when I was out of town, so I had been looking forward to November 7th for months. We pulled into the lot to find it largely empty (I had a fleeting moment of elation thinking of the prime parking spot we were going to score), but we soon realized that the Flea had been canceled! Drat! California clearly has a looser notion of "rain or shine" than we Seattleites are accustomed to.

We headed over to the auction house instead. We didn't get involved in the bidding, but I thought this hand-colored etching was awfully fun...

Sorry for the glare on the photo- I haven't been able to find an image of this print online. 

(Though, in googling I discovered that the artist, Thomas Rowlandson, was a bit better known for his xxx-rated etchings... so search with care!)

Our extra hour was spent puddle-jumping and leaf-kicking up on College Avenue, where we stumbled upon an estate sale and visited a few favorite shops (where I scored an excellent find, which I'll show off later!). I was glad I'd brought my camera, because everything was Autumn-colored and glistening... and it almost felt like home.

What did you do with your extra hour?

Dare to Dream: A Better Light

When I'm grumbling about my apartment, one of my favorite topics is lighting. Our space came with ceiling lights that our landlord must have found on deep discount in 1989. They've got shiny yellow-gold  trim and a glass bowls that are impossible to remove, but always filled with dead bugs (seriously, how do they get in there?). They're really not doing much for my complexion either.

I'd like to imagine that everything would take on a more glamorous aspect under the glow and sparkle of a chandelier. Our large television would become a miniature theatre, I'd start calling my living room my "salon," and late morning coffee in my robe and slippers would clearly be more aristocratic than unemployed, right?

These unusual chandeliers are among my favorites at Lucca Great Finds in Seattle. They're on my wish list (along with the extra foot of ceiling height I'd need to make them feasible in our apartment...).

J. Crew is Flipping Out

I keep spotting backwards books. How about these displays at J. Crew?

Photos taken with my iPhone

I'd planned to do a little bookshelf flip myself, but (sigh) it's something that was put off in these last few busy weeks. And, let's be honest. Today I'm going to immerse myself in the new Rue!

A Thank-You Note to Twig & Fig

Being a blogger, crafter, and general freelance type means that I spend most of my time alone in my little Berkeley apartment. I love making my own hours and rocking my own dress code (sweat pants, hell yes), but there's always a point in the afternoon when I know I must put on real clothes, must talk to someone who's not a cat, must leave the house.

I've plotted a little route around the neighborhood that satisfies. I sip an iced coffee from Peet's, stroll by the best gardens to see what's blooming, chat with the girl at the flower stand, check out the menu at Chez Panisse, peer in the windows of the estate jewelry boutique, and very often stop into a favorite paperie, Twig & Fig.

On Saturday I had to get out and enjoy the late summer sun, and I had special incentive via a tweet from Twig & Fig: "a special surprise awaits." What could it be?

A bundle of their letterpress cards! 

What a way to sweeten my weekend! The sampling included cards from several of their collections that I'd long been ogling (especially the foil skull + Edison bulb on wood veneer, it's brilliant!). These cards are much more than pretty design (and pretty faces, just check out Mr. 70s Sexy there!). They're also made from 100% recycled materials, from the brown bag envelopes and soda bottle felt to the biodegradable cello packaging. Their designs might pay homage to vintage aesthetic, but Twig & Fig is certainly forward-thinking! 

The crow, of course, will never be stamped and mailed- I'm keeping it for me! 

How did they know I was starting to decorate for Autumn?

Thanks to Twig & Fig for making my afternoon escape even more delightful than usual!

John Derian for Target (Please Sir, may I have some more?)

John Derian's website is pleasure spiked with pain for me- I want one of everything but can't afford one of anything. When I heard that he'd be designing a collection for Target, I was ecstatic (especially when I found out that everything would be under $25).

Of course, I couldn't wait to get my hands on the goods, so I joined Gilt Groupe and snagged a few pieces at their preview sale.

I'm usually hesitant to buy melamine (I prefer the look and quality of glass, ceramic, wood and metal... and I don't want my apartment to look like a daycare center), but items like this feather tray don't disappoint!

The line launches this Sunday, September 5th. Needless to say, I'll be one of the crazies lining up early.

Announcing my New Etsy Shop: Rappaccini's Garden

Dear Friends! With no more suspense (but a little more ado), allow me to present...

Rappaccini's Garden will feature vintage and handcrafted adornments for yourself and your home. The collection takes inspiration from the Gothic tale Rappaccini's Daughter by Nathaniel Hawthorne: a dark romance spiked with mad science and a poisonous flower.

Rappaccini's Garden will open on Etsy next Monday, September 6th!

For the Birds (and for Matilda)

Perhaps fellow bloggers and freelancers out there can sympathize with being tied to a computer all day. I try to make my desk space as conducive to work as possible, but I still find myself staring out the window from time to time... (right about now, for instance).

Luckily there's plenty outside to keep me entertained. A steady parade of passersby, a squirrel who watches the cats and I like we're his favorite sitcom, and a very bossy hummingbird. I'd prefer to keep the hippies at a distance, but I'd love to get a closer look at my tiny bird friend. I'm thinking a feeder outside my window could do the trick.

These are certainly dramatic- I wonder if our hummingbird prefers red or purple?

I like the antique aesthetic of this glass bottle feeder, but we've only got one bird, and this is like a sugar-water big gulp. Maybe it would encourage our little guy to bring some friends to the party?

This one might be the winner. Sweet, petite, and a good way to bring my vintage style outdoors.

My real motivation for setting up a hummingbird feeder? Matilda's enjoyment, naturally.

Back to daydreaming and birdwatching... happy weekend, all!


EDIT: I've switched out the lame blogger video for YouTube- I hope this makes viewing my video easier!

Ikea Style

There's something about Ikea that makes me want to fill myself with Swedish meatballs and fill my trunk with flatpack furniture. I'm not really one for primary colors, so it thrills me that the Ikea aesthetic seems to have matured over the years, embracing subtlety and traditional shapes. Look at all the goodies in the new catalogue!

The Närhet glasses for dessert wines, champagne, whites, & reds are a toast to sophistication.

The Gislev rug is a lot of graphic bang for only 20 bucks.

I can envision either of the new greige-stained Hemnes glass-door cabinets in my bedroom. 

Maybe to showcase a shoe collection?

I wonder if a clever crafter could customize the Florö slipcovered bedframe- perhaps with upholstery studs or ribbon trim?

The new catalogue also boasts some beautiful styling. As if I wasn't tempted enough by the low prices, they have to make everything look so magazine-fantastic.

This is exactly how a nightstand should look!

This is my favorite spread of all. The styling is so of-the-moment, and I love the over-shelf gallery. 

And look: curiosities!

Anyone else crushing on the new catalogue?

Girl About Town: Berkeley's H. Julien

Strolling on Shattuck Avenue late one night, Adam and I saw a strange and unearthly green glow emanating from a favorite shop. Curious, we approached- as several other passersby did the same. We all gathered at the window, mesmerized, like a dopey crowd in some 1950s sci-fi flick. Finally someone said, "What are they?"

No, not space invaders. The work of local artist Dave Meeker- composed entirely of drinking straws.

Meeker's straw lamps and bowls, in the neons that have been so haute in summer fashion, seem very much at home amongst the sculptural succulents at H. Julien. If you're familiar with this East Bay shop and floral design studio, you'll know that this pairing is just further proof of principal Howard Arendtson's brilliance. His displays are always a study in contrasts: soft mosses on industrial metal shelving, vibrantly-colored orchid specimens against deeply brown walls, gleaming metallics juxtaposed with earthy ceramics. Just walking into the dark and cavernous shop is an experience- and with the addition of Meeker's creations, it's downright surreal.

Arendtson's styling gives unexpected versatility to these bizarre plastic forms. Some are suspended in branches like Dr. Seuss pompoms, some are clustered like prickly plant life, another mimics a sea urchin amongst true aquatic curiosities. While outlandish, massive, and bright, they somehow don't distract from  the H. Julien merchandise. Like I said, it's a brilliant pairing.

Meeker's pieces will be on display until the end of the month. If you'd like to see them for yourself, I'd recommend you go twice- once during normal business hours, once after dark for full effect!