oui ceramic garlands

Shapes garland

For her online shop, Oui, Angela Hodgkinson makes pretty soy candles—and,  I just discovered, these ceramic garlands. I love that they have no purpose other than decoration. And I love the unexpected combination of clay and string. Like minimalist mobiles, they'd be great in a kid's room. Or adding a little (pale, subtle) color and fun to my (pale, subtle) living room.

I love the white-painted brick mantel
and the structural bright-green plant

spring flowers

Peonies in the kitchen

I'm so corny that I couldn't resist a couple of Hipstamatic photos of things that grew in our backyard. I'd forgotten about that app; it gives such great effects. And I love arranging flowers.

Roses in the living room

restoration hardware mulholland collection

Mulholland chaise

This outdoor furniture from Restoration Hardware—a new line this season—has clean lines (much cleaner than Restoration's typical cluttered style), a gorgeous brass finish, and simple, strappy surfaces instead of mildew-fostering cushions. If I had an extra pile of money lying around, I'd take a couple of the Mulholland chaises. And sure, the dining set and a few armchairs and the sofa. Oh, and that bleached-out deck and the ocean behind it.

Armchair

Sofa

Sleek but cozy

warby parker sunglasses

Jasper in marine slate

Just got an oh-so-urgent email reporting that Warby Parker now sells prescription sunglasses. This is a terrific, thoughful company: hip design, great customer service—and they donate a pair of glasses every time one is purchased. I love my Webb glasses, and the new prescription line is definitely tempting:

Thatcher in revolver black

Everett in gimlet tortoise

Liv in greystone
(I'm leaning toward these but don't know if I can pull them off)

rikshaw navy kurta

Navy-ground tuxedo kurta

Catherine Fitzsimmons of Rikshaw Design puts out cute kids' clothing, bedding, and women's tops. (She travels to India, where her pieces are made, several times a year to get inspired, check out artisans, and oversee production.) This one has my name on it (and I'd wear it just like that). Her sweet, self-deprecating blog chronicles her crunchy, creative life in Marin County, with an emphasis on surfing, eating healthy (or trying to) and beachy travel.

formentera summer house

The pool looks good

Spotted this gorgeous Spanish country house via this blogger, who has a great eye. I'm free for a visit in August, thank you very much.

zara basic sandal

Basic sandal

Normally I'm not a crazy spike-heeled shoe girl. But I was intrigued by these Zara heels on the super-stylish Blair of Atlantic-Pacific. Then the adorable Jules of Sincerely, Jules (thanks, Tara!) was wearing them too. And they're $49.90. (No, they're not leather.) Now, I'm extremely picky about shoe details. I used to have this thing where if a shoe had an open toe, the back had to be open too. This totally breaks that rule—and I love it.

sunuva swimwear

Reversible bikini

British company Sunuva puts out some seriously appealing swimsuits and dresses for girls—nice hippie-chick detailing but nothing too froufrou.

Embroidered dress

Dandelion rashguard (or "vest"; they're British)
with cute beaded side ties

Tie-dye dress
(and I'm strangely drawn to the women's version of this)

Drop-waist kaftan

valhalla brooklyn on etsy

Larch bag

Another thing found while stalking Pinterest: these leather bags, handmade in Brooklyn, with Balenciaga-style detailing and appealing neutral colors.

Lynx bag

Onishi bag

boys T-shirts

Quiksilver Mountain Wave shirt
(also comes in a nice muted green)

I post tons of cute girls' clothing here, but I've written almost nothing about nine-year-old-boy style. That's because in the Venn diagram of my preferred clothing for Charlie and his preferred clothing, there is a very very tiny overlap. One thing we can agree on: Quiksilver and Billabong make great, subtle T-shirts that wash up nicely, come in great colors that we both like, and are neither babyish nor inappropriate. You can get them from Amazon, Nordstrom, Zappos, or the companies' own sites—or just Google around and see what you find.

Billabong Poseidon shirt

Billabong Uproar shirt;
in general I think grownup bands and logos on kids' clothes are annoying,
but this one works for me

Kids Are Free shirt

mia christopher

Ink on paper

I saw Mia Christopher's artwork on Pinterest. (So far I'm just lurking there; fun as it seems, I don't exactly need *more* time online.) Her work is simple, peaceful, and beautifully composed.

Ink on paper

Ink on paper

Colored pencil on paper