timeless jewelry.

My business partner and I just spent the last week at a boutique and Showcase House to benefit the Oak Park River Forest Infant Welfare Society. We met some fantastic vendors while we were there hawking our wares. One of my favorites is jeweler, Joan Maxwell {Her hubby designed one of the rooms in the house...a talented duo for sure}. All of her jewelry is exquistely crafted. She uses vintage buttons from France, fused glass, lots of freshwater pearls and beautiful beads. These are classic jewelry pieces that you will have in your wardrobe for ages.

sweet dreams.

I'm smitten with these boxes from Tattoo Dreams. Patricia Hecker is the creator of these little works of art. I adore their little legs, and the different themes to each one. wonderful! Tattoo Dreams is a side project for Patricia...she also travels the country showing her artwork {her gallery can be found on her site here}

a little mixtape for you.

I've been working a craft show all week...hope you enjoy some tunes...I've been pining for California lately. More goodies next week!

Makool loves you.

I think I have to have the coat {above}...from Makool Loves You. It's so cute, I can't even stand it. They probably have a million hits on their site from Elmhurst, Illinois. And that would be me. Visiting the coat. The clothes on Makool are made locally {Portland, Oregon}...and are often made of sustanable fabrics & always with really great style. They also offer a nice selection of jewelry, bags and ceramics by some of their favorite designers.

warm your weenie.

The weenie jokes fly around our house ever since we adopted our sweet little doxie boy with a wicked overbite {named Weenie, in the oval above}. Our 14 year old son is the main reason for the incessant "my weenie does tricks" etc. comments.

While shopping Etsy recently, I found Annie's Sweatshop, and her sweet sweet little sweaters and things for dogs {and not just weenie dogs}. The fabrics are made of recycled soda bottles...so you'll be green while keeping your pup warm. She accepts custom orders too, so you'll get just the right fit for your dog.

feelin' bleu.

I really love the jewelry by Carolina Bleu....it's simple, a little vintage-y, a little dressy...really nice designs! {I'm smitten with the lucite and smoky quartz earrings above}. Based outside of Austin, Texas, Carolina Bleu offers some great repurposed fashion {tees and aprons} as well as vintage kimonos on her etsy site. Check it out!

unfold.

The Sweet Unfolding is an adorable shop for brides-to-be. If you or someone you know is going bridezilla looking for the perfect little additions to their wedding, then send them to this little online shop, and they are sure to find what they need. You can also find some nice eco-friendly items, and gifts too! They also participate in Kiva, which is a site that gives micro-loans to those in need. I love to see businesses giving back!

find balance.

I just bought some yoga pants from Even Keel Yoga...and I love them. They are lightweight, with really soft fabric made from bamboo, organic cotton and just enough spandex. So cozy! Owner Liz Matthews is offering a 20% discount for yoga month {who knew it was yoga month...but hurrah for the discount!} just enter "NYM2008" upon checkout.

crafty goodness.

Surprise Delight Joy has got me thinking of Halloween (my very favorite holiday). I think her primitive, whimsical little creations are very sweet...I especially love the little star ornaments. Cuteness!

heavy rotation.

Holly from Decor 8 blog suggested that fellow bloggers post what music they are listening to, then link back and maybe find common ground or some new tunes! I'm all over this. Anyone who knows me is WELL AWARE of my music obsession. So, here goes {in no particular order}:

I love the poppy goodness that is Ra Ra Riot. Especially the songs "Can You Tell" and "Dying is Fine". So good {btw, you can download "Dying is Fine" from their site...scroll down a tiny bit...it's on the right}. It's in my car's disk player as we speak.


My favorite album of the year is Alopecia by the band Why? My very favorite songs on the album are "The Vowels Pt. 2" and "The Hollows". I've been playing this over and over for months.


We Were Promised Jetpacks is probably the best band name of all time. I love their music...but have to go to their myspace site to hear it. They are from Glasgow, massively hyped, super young and unsigned. No albums out there that I can find. You can {legitimitely} download "Quiet Little Voices" via KEXP's song of the day. Catchy goodness.

Lastly, I'm totally in love with the Watson Twins cover of The Cure's "Just Like Heaven". I think I've listened to it 20 times in the last couple of days. It's from their most recent album. You can hear it on their myspace page {One of my favorite music blog reads, Thanks Captain Obvious turned me on to this song}

Oh I could go on...and on...but that's it for now. Let me know what you think!

"feel good gifts".

Such sweet handmade treasures at Hasenpfeffer...absolutely adorable little bears and things made from old coats and clothing. It's hard to believe that such sweetness could come from a big 'ol unwanted coat! I love the faces on the little handheld dolls {binky buddies} and bears...such character! Love these!

send yourself a little flower.

I'm not the first to discover the lovely ceramics made by Little Flower Designs...they've been written and blogged about many times before...but I am feeling the need to profess my love for these wonderful wares on my page. Each of artist, Linda Johnson's items are made by hand and have her own illustrations etched in. Her designs are all so simple and sweet...like little works of art. I love pretty much everything on her site.

adorn + cherish.

Ok people. Back to the cute. I love the jewelry at Adorn + Cherish. Each piece is unique and made from vintage jewelry that has been reworked into something new and wonderful! Lisa, the owner and designer loves to do custom work too...so if you have grandma's old necklace, she can give it some new life for you. Check out her site, and buy some of her pieces at her etsy shop {and check back often because her jewelry sells out quickly, and she adds new items all the time!}

get hot and heavy.

This post isn't about the cute and girly. It has nothing to do with accessorizing or finding the most adorable things. Nope. This one, people, is about my hubby's newest business. It's totally shameless self-promotion.

Chicago Brick Oven is the brainchild of my husband, and our neighbors Bill and Carm. The three of them love to cook {we have the best block parties ever}. A couple of years ago they decided that they wanted to buy wood fired ovens. When they did research, they found almost all of the ovens were manufactured overseas. So, they decided to design and manufacture residential ovens here in the states! Crazy, I know...but let me tell you how yummy the food {especially pizza!!} is when it's cooked in the oven {I have eaten more pizza in the last year than I care to admit}.

Check out their new website...and pass the word on to your fellow foodie friends!