Paisley St Claire

Esther Coombs

I've mentioned Esther Coombs before (here) and I promised a better look at her beautiful ceramics, so here it is. UK based Esther 'upcycles' old china tea sets, plates and jugs by hand-drawing her own unique art onto each piece. I think these would make a charming housewarming or bridal kitchen tea gift. Esther is going to start a commissions section in her etsy store so I'm guessing you could even get something personalised. I adore it... and yes Mum, that is a Royal Albert set in the last picture.

Love these Leona Looks

Sigh. Can I get paid more please? I'd like one each of these Leona Edmiston dresses.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Munieca

Today I'm loving the super sweet art from Argentinian esty artist, Munieca. These prints would be perfect for my daughters bedroom. Munieca is having a sale, so now would be a good time to check out her store.

Blushing Bride

Today I'm inspired by the gorgeous blush-toned decorations from Martha Stewart Weddings. Easily adapted for non-wedding events - so pretty!

Art Glass

When I look at these images I just see perfection. I am in awe of the artists who can create such amazingly beautiful things.

The bottles were created by Michael Schunke. The ones in the first picture are all individually hand blown without the use of molds and the bottles in the second picture are hand blown glass using a traditional Italian incalmo technique. Three separate pieces of glass are joined while hot and the center band is made of a complimentary opaque band of glass with 24K gold on the surface, adding a subtle design. The gorgeous hand blown glass fruit pieces are by artist Anthony Biancaniello.

All available at Artful Home.

My HUGE 5th Anniversary Sale!

Today marks 5 years since I made my first sale of bags and purses. I nervously posted them to Hunter Gatherer in Melbourne wondering if anyone would buy them. As it turns out they sold out in about 2 weeks and I was madly making more for their next order.

A lot has happened in the 5 years since then and I feel a lot wiser (and sometimes a bit more cynical) than when I first started out. I am really excited about the direction I'm taking the label and there are a lot of changes in the pipeline. But right now I'm celebrating the 5th anniversary of my Jaime Beattie label with a huge sale. Discounts start at 25% and go to a whopping 60% so visit the website to start shopping!

Have a great weekend!

Mathilda's Market this Sunday

Mathilda's Market is on in Brisbane (and Perth) this Sunday. Its their biggest market yet with 70 retailers selling fabulous baby and kids stuff. Tees2Knees (above) will be there with their bright appliqued kids shirts which are made on the Sunshine Coast. Full details of the market are below or you can visit the website.

Lou Lou Shoes

I love love love these shoes! I recently discovered Lou Lou shoes and was pleased to find that they are actually designed by a young Sydney woman who also worked in the corporate world before becoming a designer. The detailing and colour combinations are perfect. Check out the website here - the shoes are surprisingly affordable and some styles are even on sale.

Blossom Child

Further to my pleats and tucks obsession, I bought this adorable dress for my 2 year old daughter on the weekend. It was from the Blossom Child stall at the Boutique Markets. Now all I have to do is convince her to wear it. I showed it to her and she frankly said "I don't like dresses." Great.
Check out the Blossom Child etsy shop and made-it store.

Boutique Markets @ Portside Wharf this Sunday

The Boutique Markets at Portside Wharf is on again this Sunday (12th July) from 8am to 4pm. It will be an extra huge day because it coincides with Portside Wharf's annual Coffee and Chocolate Affair which starts at 10am - just in time for morning tea. I've seen the list of stall holders for this weekend's Boutique Markets and there are some great retailers like Little Jane St and Thea and Sami. Should be a great day.

Also, I've updated my bloglist (on the right) with a few new Fresh Blog Finds. Some great blogs - something for everyone.

Have a great weekend! 

Bellebas

I am absolutely besotted by pleats and tucks at the moment. They feature heavily in a collection I am designing. One label who presents pleats in a really unique way is Bellebas. Luli De Paula is an Argentinian fashion designer living in Ireland who creates beautiful dresses and tops featuring exquisite detailing. I would really love to have that dress in the last picture. Check out the Bellebas website and etsy shop.

Curly Jo

The lovely Jo from Curly Jo Design emailed me about her beautifully crafted glass pendants. Curly Jo pendants feature various components such as millefiori, enamel and gold and are all carefully handmade. You can buy online here or, if you're in Brisbane, at the Young Designer's Market. Check out the Curly Jo blog to see what's new.

Custom Kokeshi 2009

The 'Kokeshi: From Folk Art to Art Toy' exhibition opens at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles on 11 July 2009. As part of the exhibition, Christina Conway has curated a showcase called 'Custom Kokeshi 2009' of over 100 internationally respected artists, illustrators and designers.

From top: Amy Sol, Aline Yamada, Stella Im Hultberg, and Australia's Eveline Tarunadjaja.
Images via Arrested Motion.

You can see more sneak peaks on Christina Conway's blog. Being a huge Japanophile, I'm really excited about this collection. I can't wait to see the full images of the all the kokeshi dolls.

Kokeshi dolls have become mainstream popular these days. You can even buy little kokeshi keyrings at the local newsagent now. If you want some more tradional ones though check out my post here.  Or you can play around making your own virtual kokeshi here.

These amigurumi kokeshi dolls or 'Krokeshi' by Emi Motokawa are super cute too. Available here.

Visit the Japanese American National Museum website for full details of the Kokeshi exhibition.

Latest Press: Sunday Magazine

Sunday was a good day. For the first time I didn't go to the Young Designer's Market but my totes being in the Sunday Magazine more than made up for it. Some of the colours have sold out but there will be more coming.

Mathilda's Market

You know a market must be good when within 2 years it has grown from a biannual Sydney market to one that is held 3 times a year in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Canberra. Mathilda's Market showcases some of Australia's freshest handmade and limited production toys, clothing, accessories and home wares for little ones.

According to founder, Anne Lewis, Mathilda’s Market caters for parents who appreciate their children looking unique and stylish, and who are looking for an affordable alternative to buying mass produced products at chain shopping centres. Personally, the idea of beautiful things that haven't been mass produced gives me a little zing and I cringe at the idea of buying anything with a tv character on it - except for maybe Charlie and Lola.

The next Mathilda's Market is on this Sunday (5th July) in Sydney and then in Brisbane and Perth on Sunday 19th July 2009. Check out the website for locations and details of your local market retailers.

Boopsie Daisy

If you like your art like a trip on acid-laced sherbet then is Boopsie Daisy the stuff for you! Inspired by her favourite things - food and dolls - Missy's photographs give us a snap shot of an amazing fantasy world. Perhaps she is really the female version of Peter Pan? Shop here.

Latest Press & Giveaway Winners

My totes have been popping up everywhere lately. Latest press in The Skinny, Scotland's biggest free arts and entertainment magazine and Brisbane's Courier Mail.

And thank you to everyone who left a comment in the Blog Giveaway - you all get a postcard and magnet. I've sent out emails but because Google ID doesn't work properly with the Typepad comments I'm not sure if everyone will get their email. So if you left a comment in the last post please email me at jaime [at] jaimebeattie [dot] com [dot] au with the name and address you would like the giveaway sent to. Cheers!