Tea Towel Art by Richard Bawden

Lately, my brain feels like molasses. I love my little guy's coos and crowings, but I love them just a little bit less at 5:00 am. And coffee seems to bother his tummy (I'm still nursing), so I can't gulp down more than one cup a day. My point is that I'm trying to update this blog more often, but it's still quite hard to compose coherent thoughts these days! Thanks for bearing with me.

I did manage to snap a pic of these lovely tea towels I bought on our honeymoon in London the other day. They feature artwork by Richard Bawden, known mostly for his art prints. I couldn't decide between the smiling otter & his newly-caught fish and the pair of owls framed with oak leaves, so I purchased both. Not a bad dilemma to have, right? I can't remember which shop behind the British Museum featured them, but maybe it will come to me one of these days. Or probably not (much more likely). At any rate, they've held up amazingly well through messes and many wash cycles so I'm really pleased with the quality.

You can browse through more of Richard Bawden's wonderful, colorful illustrations here.

Martin Wilson, Take Two

I first wrote about Martin Wilson a few years ago on my blog here. Then a few weeks ago, I noticed Diane Keaton (whom I follow on Pinterest) had repinned one of photos from my blog post. Crazy, right? Sometimes it's a very small world.

The repin made me wonder what other works Martin had posted to his website recently, so I headed over to his site and was delightfully rewarded with more new (and old) pieces! The one above is called "Always Coming Back to You" and features photos from India and London that form a heart shape on a background of famous sights from the two locations.

As I wrote before, Martin uses contact sheets printed from strips of negatives from his film camera to form his prints. There's no Photoshop or editing involved - he has to keep track of the print in his head and shoot in the right order. He doesn't cut and paste frames. If he messes up, he has to start all over again! So his prints often take months of careful planning to create.

This second one is titled "Red Letter Days" and forms the words "Call Write Come" from photos of parts of the iconic cherry red Royal Mail boxes found all over London.

This last one, called "One Hundred", is a touching tribute to his "granny". She turned 100 years old, so Martin created this homage to her. It features a photo of a public year sign (presumably often from the cornerstones of buildings) for each year that she's been alive, from 1906 to 2006. What a beautiful, touching gift.

See more of Martin Wilson's work here.

Back from Vacation

I've returned from my little trip across the pond to Dublin and London. In Ireland, we took a short detour to Howth to hike the sea cliffs. It's only 20 minutes from Dublin on the train, and you get sights like this! I highly recommend trying out their multiple hiking trails for yourself if you're in the area. It was our favorite part of our vacation.

Tea Towels and Aprons from JiltyDrawings

I miss living in London every day, so these playful and fun tea towels and aprons from Jilty Drawings would definitely make me feel like I was back in the UK!

They're based on popular British cakes and "biscuits" (that's cookies, if you're American), as well as English nursery rhymes. Have you ever heard, "Oranges and lemons ring the bells of St. Clemen's"? The end of the rhyme is a bit, well, gruesome to say the least but the other stanzas charmingly describe the different sounds of the church bells around London.

See more from Jilty Drawings' Etsy shop here!

Color Photos of London During the Blitz

These never-before-seen color images of the damage caused by the Blitz in London have been released in honor of the 70th anniversary of V-Day in Britain.

It's incredible to see the aftermath of the bombings - it's amazing how one building could be completely destroyed but the one next to it could be untouched. What a scary time for London's citizens!

Thankfully, the city has since been rebuilt (although you can still see shell marks on many buildings that survived).

London Neighborhood Prints by Little Gonzales

These London neighborhood prints by Little Gonzales, featuring the sights of the city's various areas, are so wonderful! He mixes witty phrases with classic British icons, all in bright colors.

I think the little bird above "Hampstead Heath" is my favorite detail. So clever and whimsical! See more of Little Gonzales' work here.

Timorous Beasties

Timorous Beasties, a Glaswegian design firm, has wonderful and modern toile wallpapers. The London version above is my favorite, but all of their wall coverings are lovely.

See more here!

Photos from How to Be a Retronaut

How to Be a Retronaut features a varied and wide-ranging selection of color and black & white vintage photographs and videos from around the world (although many are from the United Kingdom).

These autochromes of Peace Day in 1919, King Edward VII (one of the last photos taken before his death), and the Pool of London especially caught my eye. It's fun to compare places and clothing styles I've seen in person with how they used to be. (I have to say, thankfully the Thames is a lot cleaner now!)

See more old photos here.

London Mugs by Our Shop

I'm completely enamored of these mugs by Our Shop. They remind me of my time in London, and make me yearn to go back!

Anne Smith Illustrated Maps

These illustrated maps by Anne Smith are so colorful and fun! They include just the right amount of information about the points of interest, without including extra details that would distract from her wonderful drawings.

Amazing Night Photography by Scott Lanphere

This photo of Big Ben was my background for months last year, and now Scott Lanphere has even more incredible night shots to choose from in his gallery!

It's amazing how well he captures the lights glowing in the dark velvety night. The contrast of shadow and streetlights (or moonshine, as in the top photo) really draws you in and makes you notice every little detail. I also really love the blur that the fog creates in the London photo!

See more of Lanphere's photography here.

Random Round Up

Just a few of the things I'm loving this week - I hope you enjoy them too! From top to bottom: a floral burst by Charmaine Olivia on Oh Joy, a Pride & Prejudice print from Poster Text, a glimpse of the new Vittoria Sella exhibition at Panopticon Gallery here in Boston, amazing vintage London street signs from Unicorn Kiosks, a sweet potato and sage gratin from Cookstr that I can't wait to try out this fall, and lovely diy bird thank you notes from Martha Stewart.

London Skyline

London has a new skyline illustration thanks to Transport for London's contest winner Richard Coward (top)! As a prize, his work will be featured on TfL merchandise.

Runners up Kate McLelland (center) and Nick Brown (bottom) will also have their work featured. Read the article and see more images from the Creative Review article here!

Taylor's Type

Aren't these city-themed posters from Taylor's Type great? I love the modern, clean lines and bright colors.

City prints are always a fun way to remember places you've visited and loved!

Banksy

If you've ever been to London, you might have come across works by the graffiti artist Banksy around the city. The photo above is my favorite piece of his!

Now you can go on a self-guided tour of his remaining stencils with this map. What a great idea!

(Photo above by Riviera2005.)

Annual Tweed Run

Tweed, facial hair, and the streets of London - what more could you ask for! These photos are from the annual Tweed Run (on bicycles) through the streets of beautiful London.

I've always wanted to see this in person. For now, I'll just have to live vicariously through these nostalgic captured moments!

(Via Pitch Design Union.)

New City Series

I've added a new series of city-themed prints to my shop. Vintage images of London, New York City, and Paris decorate the backgrounds while a mix of vintage and script fonts proclaims, "A Bad Day in {City Featured} is still better than a good day anywhere else".

These prints were inspired by my love of travel. We all have favorite places, and favorite cities. When we're there, whether visiting somewhere close to home or somewhere thousands of miles away, life just seems easier and the days are rose-colored. Even a bad day in a favorite place is better than a good day somewhere else!

If you'd like a version of this featuring your favorite place, don't hesitate to ask! I can easily customize this print.

Photography by Sican

Intensely-colored, light- and shadow-filled photo prints from Sican. The silhouette of Big Ben rising over the River Thames makes me miss London!

London-Themed Posters

Some of the amazing posters from Blanka, created to celebrate London. See the rest of the set here!