vacation

We're leaving for a week in California; we'll be staying in this houseboat in Sausalito, seeing some cousins on the peninsula, meeting up with my brother who'll be in from Miami, and pretty much eating our way through San Francisco. Oh, yeah, we'll also hit Alcatraz, the Monterey aquarium, the Ferry Building, the Exploratorium, and all the usual tourist traps. I'm hoping to check out this store and see if this hole-in-the-wall Vietnamese place is as great as I remember.

so much depends

During a long and child-free car trip last weekend, RP and I somehow ended up talking about William Carlos Williams' poem about the red wheelbarrow (glazed with rain water, beside the white chickens). This isn't the place to get all serious and poetic. We don't talk about poetry much any more, and our trips usually mean snacks handed into the backseat and lots of songs by Taio Cruz and Katy Perry. 

In other words, it's been a long time since my modern poetry class with the amazing Kenneth Koch.

Kenneth Koch painted by Alex Katz here

But I do still think about his class a lot, and I try to follow Williams—to take heart in the beauty of details, of the taste of a sweet cold plum, of the sight of a rain-slick wagon and wet feathers. Or, today, these unexpected flowers from a lovely friend

or this miniature striped frame, with a beloved picture inside,

Charlie's old passport photo fits perfectly
(and I'm still a lame photographer)

or any other small thing. So much depends on them, after all.

sisters guild

This British site has some beautiful, unusual kids' stuff. These Japanese paper balloons would be perfect for Tessa's sea-creature birthday party in a few months. Bunches of them around the house would look really fun, and you could keep it to a yellow-and-blue color scheme:

Balloons here; non-sea-creature animals are also available

And this sweet, simple dress has butterfly sleeves and a great contrast of ivory and turquoise:

"Popsicle dress" here

No way would Charlie wear this T-shirt, but it'd be great on a younger, more style-malleable boy:

T-shirt here

I'm not sure what this is (an apron? a sort of basic jumper you make yourself?)

"Pinny kit" here

but the colors and pattern (birds, turquoise, symmetry) are right on.

travels

Forgive the long absence. I'm back from a couple of little trips (and starting to get ready for a longer visit to San Francisco). First was a quick midweek visit to New York, where I caught up with old girlfriends; had a yummy lunch at this place in Chelsea Market; bought some goodies for my kids (Japanese erasers at Pearl River Mart, art books at Posman); checked out the gorgeous bedding, jewelry, and china (and everything else) at ABC; and finally got to walk the High Line. It really is a spectacular open space and an amazing addition to the city. Wildflowers, curving concrete benches, wooden lounge chairs that are readily available on a weekday at lunchtime. A few pop-up stands selling paletas (coconut, mango-lime, delicious) and cold drinks. Fairly clean public bathrooms. Ridiculous views—from the Empire State Building, to the roller rink at 30th street, to the fantastic modern architecture of Frank Gehry's IAD building, to the funny little shrines in tenement buildings that now have a front-row seat on the walkway itself.

 

 

 

It felt great to be back in the city where I lived for 10 years. I love that New York always comes back to you; I love discovering new corners of the city, like the High Line, and seeing others that haven't changed (Carl Schurz Park, Union Square, the subway).

Then we had a family trip to Deep Creek Lake in western Maryland, where despite the clouds we managed to do exactly what we wanted—namely play with water and mud.

 

RP took all these photos

e.soule photography

Elizabeth Soule's photographs feature muted colors, toy animal subjects (I know, I'm always with the animals!), and a dreamy, retro feeling. Though they definitely remind me of Jeff Friesen, whom I mentioned recently, Soule's softer look and 6x6 format have their own appeal; the soft vintage-wallpaper backgrounds tie each picture together. I'd hang a bunch in a row or group, with simple black wooden frames and white mats.

This bookish owl looks familiar from our plastic-animal collection

But this rabbit reminds me of all the real bunnies running around our neighborhood this summer

How sweet are these two sheep?

This whale is just glimpsed before he swims out of sight

P.S. I found Elizabeth Soule through the blog of Sharon Montrose, a fantastic photographer of real animals, whose upcoming book looks both beautiful and cute.

Infinity bracelets

I'm weirdly into these bracelets from etsy vendor Mesa Blue. Normally I steer clear of jewelry with major symbolism or anything too hippie-ish, but cute leather bracelets have definitely been in the ether lately. I guess I'm just digging something about the skinny double straps and shiny metal designs of these two. They'd look great mixed with a few plain bangles, or worn loosely on the same wrist as your watch. And if infinity isn't your concept, you can always choose karma:

All images here

binth summer sale

I've been a fan of Binth's streamlined, subtle prints ever since I saw this kids' alphabet poster 

Images here

in Martha Stewart's short-lived Blueprint magazine a few years ago. I couldn't find a place for the poster in my house, but Tessa's shelf had space for a single T-is-for-turtle; you can get all 26 letters from the poster as individual square prints. And some of Binth's nicest pieces are now 40% off:

Sunny the Lion print

Z single letter print

Surf and Beach would look great together

Paris city print

I like the Mondrian garage in the Los Angeles city print