i started making wallpaper flowers last night and plan to keep making more at the shop today. i had quite a bit of orla kiely and other vintage wallpaper left over from various projects and the flowers looked simple & cheery. i’ll update later today! (we have the book wallpaper projects in the shop if you’re looking for something to do today.)

i have a love/hate relationship with daiso. i love that you can find 50 kinds of s-hooks and i hate that you can find 50 kinds of s-hooks. for those of you unfamiliar with daiso, it’s a japanese 2-dollar store. everything is $2. except when it’s not. but for the most part everything is 2 bucks. it is 2 giant floors in aberdeen centre in richmond packed with everything. i think i would have lost my mind there (in a good way) when i was a little girl & i encourage those of you with kids to make a field trip to aberdeen.

i went to daiso specifically to find some s-hooks for the shop, but there happened to be an art exhibit going on in aberdeen centre & i took these pics of match sculpture. wow.

vancouver is referred to as “hollywood north” due to the large amount of movie/TV shows that are filmed here. not too long ago the filming for charlie st. cloud wrapped up and a lot of it was shot right here in little ole deep cove. zac efron was the big star & people were either like, “zac, who?” or “OMG! ZAC EFRON IS IN DEEP COVE!”

so today one of my friends called to say the set sale was going on (that’s where they sell all the props they bought for the  movie) and they were rumored to have quite a bit of mid-century stuff. so i had to go. i found a great teak bookcase for my new soon-to-be craft room (so if/when you see the movie, look for a teak bookcase–it’s now mine) & my friend found a lovely little danish desk.

i’m trying to find some materials for an upcoming shop remodel, but the rest of the day was a dud thrifting-wise (sigh). ah well…you win some, ya lose some. the hunt continues…

in front of (i presume walter’s house) in white rock, BC.

did i tell you guys i planted my first ever outdoor herb garden? i started with basil, dill, thyme and rosemary and it seems to be pretty happy so far. this salad dressing recipe is from my friend D and it’s super easy to make:

• 3 tablespoons good olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon honey
• fresh dill (or basil, i used dill)
• juice of one lemon

each week i try to take the dogs somewhere different for a nice long walk. it’s fun for them to sniff new sniffs and it’s good for me to break the routine & see new things.

i really like walking in older* vancouver neighborhoods (like those along commercial drive) with older trees & mature gardens. i have some serious lilac tree envy. wonder if i can have a 50 year old (or older) lilac tree transplanted in my yard. that’d be super.

(in case you’re wondering i do realize that none of these pics are lilac trees. with two dogs pulling me down the street i was lucky to get any shots at all.)

*older is a relative term of course. vancouver is not known for “old”–but houses that were built 100 years ago seem to have more stories to tell than a condo built in the two thousands.

my mind is swirling with images of pretty papergoods from the stationery show which took place in NY last week. this year i only attended the show virtually by way of stalking blogs who were covering the show.

i have a weakness for pretty pulp & i spend a lot of time sourcing special papergoods for the shop. i’ve always wished i could find the time to put more of our lovely cards online because i know you guys would love ‘em. in the shop, we have an entire card catalogue filled with cards…all organized by occasion. you could spend hours finding just the right card. okay, at least i could spend hours…

darling clementine is a collection from norway which we’ve carried for awhile now & they just released some lovely new cards (ordering more cards is on my to do list today). they’re like little pieces of art, totally frame worthy.  and the gals who make up darling clementine seem to have a pretty good gig going on in norway. designsponge featured tonje of darling clementine last year…OMG, do i ever love her style!

file this under reasons i love deep cove:

did you know that every time you drive into deep cove you are welcomed with a rainbow?

sometimes you get extra lucky and there are two.

i love shopping for (& reading) great books for kids. remember the sunny, windy and snowy books we had years (& years & years) ago? well, there’s a new release in the collection and it’s on the way to deep cove.

written by emily carr grads & vancouverites robin mitchell & judith steedman, foggy tells the story of rainy and his dog foggy.

it reminds me how much i love dioramas.

and dollhouses.

which leads me to a google image search of “diorama” which leads me to a flickr search of “diorama” which yields a mad men inspired series of dioramas which makes me wonder, “when does mad men start again, anyway?”

mad men pics found here.

anthony burrill