Good Will Bunting

So, I know that I'm a little late to the party on this trend, but I have recently fallen in love with bunting (i.e. flag groupings/banners traditionally used for decoration). I'm hosting a Valentine's craft party in a few weeks and am dead set on that being the craft of interest, regardless of how practical it is/isn't to expect a group of gals to finish a whole banner in a few hours.

While searching on Etsy for bunting to feature here, I was delightfully surprised to find out that the trendy niche aesthetic isn't limited to just home decorating. The flags can adorn wedding cakes, greeting cards, wall hangings, yourself, or anything you can stamp! As for the home hanging assortment, there are a variety of styles ranging from shabby chic to kitschy cute to classically playful.

Wooden Bunting Flag Necklace-Candy Stripes and Yellow by lucie0ellen on Etsy, $21.00

I kid you not, one of my first thoughts before finding this necklace was, "someone needs to make bunting flag jewelry." She also makes customized name necklaces too adorable for words.

Declare Your Love - Boy Version - 8x10 Archival Print by rosydesignsonline on Etsy, $19.00

Recently Etsy's featured seller, this shop's cards and prints are a mix of heartwarming mementos and Warhol-esque pop and suit any occasion- Valentine's, Halloween, New Baby, and even Gay Weddings.

Bunting Hand Carved Stamp by doodlebugdesign on Etsy, $8.00

Just about every stamp in this shop makes me smile. I think the pastry icing bag and cupcake stamp set was made just for me. The macaron and robot love stamps are my other favorites.


Original Cake Bunting Fawn by KikiLaRu on Etsy, $24.00

This shop specializes in cake bunting and diy kits for any holiday or style. The sweet decor (no pun intended) adds a really personalized feel and would make all Apartment Therapy fans drool.


Fancy Square Banner Embroidery Applique Design Pattern by BigDreamsEmbroidery on Etsy, $4.95

I love the kitschy retro feel of this design. The color and fabric combo is very yummy too. This shop features great machine embroidery applique design patterns to help you get a start on diy bunting. There's a babushka doll in the shop that's to die for!

Happy Birthday Burlap Banner with Fleur de Lis on Etsy by funkyshique on Etsy, $22.00

Funkyshique's shop features all things burlap home decor. I love the shabby chic/simple elegance aesthetic of the work and think the photos and banners would be regulars on thisisglamorous.com.

Recycled Map Bunting Notecards (Set of 3) by saratops on Etsy, $9.00

This shop specializes in journals, stickers, tags, and notecards that incorporate recycled materials such as maps, flash cards, library cards, and even security tags. The recycled map pieces, like this one as well as the Military Flying journal are totally rad and would make me feel much cooler than I am carrying them around or sending them as gifts. :)

Check back later when I add more fun bunting-inspired pieces!

Action Jackson out.

In Love with Lucite

Because I am a self proclaimed magpie, it may or may not come as a surprise to you that I love all things lucite in decor and design. I can't articulate what this stems from, but I'd be willing to guess that my lucite love is a kind of evolution/adult version of my 13-year old self that wanted to have a house filled with nothing but inflatable furniture (and who wouldn't? Think how easy moving would be).
Though this multipurpose material was first produced in the 1930s and first used for mass production for machinery components in World War II, lucite wasn't incorporated into design until the 1960s when the space age aesthetic was all the rage (personally, I can't blame them). Luckily for me, this trend hasn't died off, and Apartment Therapy's frequent posts and pics (the top three shown here) on the subject are proof of just that.
If money was no object, I would go crazy decorating my apartment with the pristine plastic. However, the lucite decor that's out there (a la Philippe Starck ghost chairs, above, that are a heartbreaker to yours truly) tends to be on the pricey side. So, if you're like me and love lucite and pinch pennies, have no fear, Apartment Therapy is here. Last September, they posted this DIY project on how to make your own lucite chandelier.
The flawlessly elegant aesthetic that lucite achieves in interior design is maintained in its translation in jewelry, whether through faceted gem-like beads or carved nouveau pieces. Tarina Tarantino is no stranger to this medium and typically incorporates it into over-the-top pieces like her Over the Rainbow Necklace (shown above) from the My Pretty Collection. Personally, I love working lucite filigree into my jewelry, but I haven't explored all the beading possibilities. So, what do you think about this pretty plastic? Would you take the plunge like me and decorate a room completely in lucite?

Action Jackson out.

Currently Listening: Let Love In by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

Apartment Therapy for Me

As a few of you know, I will be moving in a little less than a month. I am both excited and terrified ala Jessie Spano. I've been spending a generous amounts of time on Apartment Therapy, Ikea, and various design blogs as a kind of pep talk because I'd be kidding to say moving isn't daunting. The excitement is undeniable as I will be leaving behind an apartment complex where the management company has received 10 1-star ratings on Yelp, a 20ft aluminum drain pipe has fallen on my boyfriend, and my fridge was left broken for a week (among many other mishaps).

At the same time that I'm sad not to call Hyde Park home anymore, part of me feels like moving can't start soon enough because I will be living here next year. I'm sure granite countertops, lap pools, and stainless steel appliances might make some of you cringe, but I draw the line for dingy apartments being fun and boho chic when they have a side effect of concussive damage. Hopefully, newer will equate to better in my spiffy soon-to-be digs, and maybe I'll be lucky enough to be surrounded by tenants who work (as opposed to UT students).
Perhaps excitement and terror are like love and marriage (you can't have one without the other?)...or perhaps it's just that way for me and every self-proclaimed member of Neurotics Anonymous. I've moved once a year for the past five years, and moving has only become harder with each year- progressively dwindling numbers for able-bodied people to help move and ever-growing mounds of stuff in my apartment couldn't amount to moving being easier.

My beau and I will be moving in together in a little over a month, which means meshing the odds and ends of our possessions together and seeing if the sum is greater than all the parts. My current roomie and I have lived together for the past five years, and I'm dreading finding out how much of the kitchen wares are hers (I'm guessing a lot).








Add downsizing square footage and trying to make a space that is less college/post-college aesthetics on a budget and more adult (definitely for lack of a better word), and you have one seriously stressed neurotic. Not only are the furniture and decor pieces I'm lusting after out of the budget (when added up), but it's completely impractical to try to plan how they'd fit into the new space before I'm there. This is something that my plan everything months in advance self is not liking and will just have to come terms with.

In the meantime, I'm trying to decide whether or not to get movers (which are not an appetizing item for my budget), when to pack, how many days off from work I should take for the move (moving in one weekend's time last year was not the fun times), how to get the number of boxes I need, how to budget for deposit and misc. costs, how to arrange to get a couch from Ft Worth to here, a solution for washer and dryer (we have connections in the new place, but who can afford those), etc.

When I'm not thinking about that, I'm dreaming of having my own workspace for jewelry and trading in my plastic dilapidated rolling cart for efficient functioning organization pieces...and also the fact that the complex will paint two walls for us (gray is the winner for an accent in the living room and bedroom). So, it's not all bad- just a mind bender for the next month. Part of me is desperately trying to push it out of my mind and think about when I'll use my vacation days (I've got 14 built up, but who's counting?). What's your experience with downgrading in size? Designing for a grown up space? Movers vs. no movers?

Action Jackson out.

Currently Listening: Debut by Bjork, Blind by The Sundays