KidsHaus

Ann Wood Handmade Sailboat

I first saw these handmade boats by Ann Wood when Hazelwood Children opened their virtual doors last year. I was stunned at the level of detail that goes into each of her boats. You can choose from 1 or 2 bird passengers (how cute is that?) made of vintage fabric and stuffed with 100% wool. Each boat is made entirely by hand by Ann from recycled cardboard (mostly cereal boxes), newspaper, vintage buttons and found and salvaged fabric. This would be such a wonderful center piece hanging from the ceiling in a child's room -- just watch the imagination go.

Art: Amber Alexander

I'm absolutely in love with Amber Alexander's watercolor paintings of animals that are reminiscent of fairy tales. They're both romantic and whimsical. I love the golden retriever wearing her bonnet and ruffled collar.

Art Sale: Trish Grantham

Trish Grantham recently returned from a trip to NYC and was inspired to add more depth and layers to her work. As always, they're all charming! I see a few that scream Valentine's Day...

Tamar Mogendorff's Bird House

Ms. Bean exuberantly told me that her school is making bird houses (out of wood) this morning -- it will be really fun to see the outcome of everyone's creations. What a fun project for kids. So, while on the subject of bird houses, I was simply blown away by Tamar Mogendorff's Bird House  handmade of cotton fabric -- what an imaginative and gorgeous design. You can pair it with Inke's Wallpaper Treehouse.

BoyGirl Party

This week has unintentionally revolved around art for me, though I'm quite happy about it. Art is one of those magical things that, if it strikes your fancy, can speak to you, inspire you and put you in a certain mood. I periodically peek into boygirl party to see what she's creating and found that there are some wonderful pieces of art still looking for a good home, as well as some great memo pads, note cards, etc. Susie's illustrations are so darn witty and charming -- don't they just strike your fancy?

Etsy: Bird Nerd

Chelsea is only 25 years old and is creating lovely collages and linocuts of birds, birds and more birds (and the occasional squirrel). In fact, she calls herself Bird Nerd.

Artist: Todd Karam

I'm not sure if I'll ever grow tired of the animal silhouettes -- especially when they can be done in so many ways. I really like how Seattle artist, Todd Karam, has mixed simple and abstract imagery.

Summer Salt Design

First, you've got to just love the name Summer Salt Design. Second, their one of a kind bird arches are undeniably unique and adorable. Hanging one of these above Ms. Bean's bed would guarantee sweet dreams.

Pinecone + Chickadee

Pinecone + Chickadee is a husband & wife team who designs and screen prints utterly charming cards, tees, totes & journals. I'm especially fond of their greeting card line. Seriously, who can resist a green elephant?

Etsy Find: Gypsy and Twink

I'm absolutely in love with these adorable wood cutouts from Etsy's Gypsy and Twink!

Etsy Find: Bad Bird

Bad Bird has got an array of sweet and simple animal prints. I wouldn't be able to pick just one...

Perch Lighting

I love these hand-made ceramic lights by Perch. They would be ideal for a child's room with their sophisticated yet playful aesthetic...

Art sale: Trish Grantham

Über talented Trish Grantham is having another online art sale today. Don't miss this one! There are some truly adorable pieces...

The Bird Has Landed

I ordered a few wall decals from Vinyl Wall Art after writing a recent post about their adorable designs. I couldn't be happier with the outcome after applying one of the birds above a piece of artwork in Ms. Bean's room. She loved it so much that she crafted the bird a train engineer's hat out of construction paper. I'm still working on finding a home for a couple of birds and an owl...

Curious Kitty Mobile

Mahar Dry Goods collaborated with artist Kristin Loffer Theiss of klt:works to make this whimsical and adorable mobile of cats spying on unsuspecting birdies. Made of wool felt and cotton fabric. Very cute!

 

 

Mahar Dry Goods collaborated with artist Kristin Loffer Theiss of klt:works to make this whimsical and adorable mobile of cats spying on unsuspecting birdies. Made of wool felt and cotton fabric. Very cute!

 

 

Wooden Post Cards

I don't believe I've ever seen a wooden postcard before, and if I did, it obviously never made an impression. Now these fancy postcards from Night Owl Paper Goods certainly made an impression. How about that fashionable owl!? Made of sustainable-yield forest management, the wood is cut thin to achieve a high quantity of product from a small amount of raw material.

Count the Birdies

Local Seattle artist and BlueBottle gallery owner, Matthew Porter, has recently published his second children's book Count the Birdies, geared to teach children to count and recognize colors. The illustrations are inspired by Japanese woodcuts which include house sparrows perched on white pear blossoms, tiny hummingbirds flitting among pink cherry blossoms and other common birds and flowers. I haven't read it yet but the illustrations look just as lovely as his first book, ABC, which was a Winner of Child Magazine 2006 Best Children's Books and was chosen by the American Association of Booksellers for Children as one of the Best Books for Children in 2006! Both of my girls love this book where Matthew has illustrated animals for each letter -- for instance, "N" is for "Nuthatch" (a bird) and "Q" is for "Quokka" (an Australian marsupial).

If you fancy decorating your child's room with uniquely painted pieces of the Quokka, Vole or Nuthatch, Matthew sells them in limited edition format at BlueBottle gallery.