Saturday Shop Spotlight: atstuart/obelisk

I discovered this Etsy shop a few weeks ago and have loved everything in it! Mostly because of their simple design and that they make things out of concrete, which is one of my most favorite materials of all time! Like I've said before, I am a grey girl and I love modern, simple lines and these guys have them both! Anywhere from concrete hooks to planters to floating shelves.  I will definitely be using some of their creations when we build/remodel a home.  Concrete looks beautiful with dark woods (which is one of my other top materials!) and everything in this shop is AMAZING!

Here's their "bio" from Etsy:

obelisk is an innovative, family-owned, design group offering fine concrete decor and more. We are concrete artisans, print makers, photographers, carpenters, painters, crafters and designers. We are two brothers who work out of a 3600 sq. ft. of a turn-of-the-last-century neighborhood bakery in The Pioneer Valley and an even older barn on the Mid-coast of Maine.
When not renovating our charming bakery, making theatre, or installing custom concrete counters and sinks, we are here offering hand made art and objects that feed the soul and fill the home. All of our wares are hand-formed, hand printed or hand made.
W e are inspired by anything steeped with history, age or patina; objects and design from the machine age, old New England Mills, vintage industrial, nature, old French guesthouses, the Maine coast, The Pacific Northwest, modern design and simple functional art...

And here are some of my favorites from their shop.  I hope you stop by their Etsy shop and find something you have to have for your home! Just click here and Enjoy!

concrete side bistro table

concrete garden bowl

concrete planter

concrete soap dish

concrete utensil holder

concrete floating shelves

Thrifty Thursday: Tie Tutorial

Thank you PurlBee for this wonderful tie tutorial! Just in time for Father's Day- visit http://www.purlbee.com/fathers-day-ties/ to learn how to create your own tie for the special man in your life.  With the freedom to choose any fabric or color you like- what a wonderful gift idea and DIY challenge!  Once I find a Dustin-approved fabric, I will be on my way to making my very own tie! Enjoy!

Wish List Wednesday: Pick 5

Here are some goodies I found on Etsy this week! Enjoy!

Big Fan from SZOSTAK on Etsy

concrete hooks from atstuart on Etsy - LOVE these!!

deerskin ipad sleeve from FERUTObags - what a perfect man gift!

"Number 5" side table from ajaradecor on Etsy

vintage melmac dishes from glasspanic

Modern Monday: Anniversary Presents- year 6

Iron is the traditional anniversary gift for the sixth year of marriage and they have introduced wood as the modern gift for that year.  I'm loving that since I love shopping for wood! I have found some amazing picks on Etsy this week- some iron, some wood and some perfect mixes between the two.  Enjoy!

4 piece candelabra set from wuda on Etsy

coaster table from themodernproject on Etsy

mixed media art from CherieLesterArt on Etsy

hexagon wine rack from stericdesign on Etsy

industrial styled cabinet from 26Briks on Etsy

industrial iron and wood coffee table from TallTimber on Etsy

large wooden letter from Hindsvik on Etsy

Circuits 5 Distressed Wall Sculpture from studio724 on Etsy

E.F. Lounge chair from lunarloungedesign on Etsy

reclaimed wood ipod/iphone charger from SwedishGuyDesign on Etsy

rusted iron number 8 from Yonei on Etsy

sliced maple wall sculpture from LoveALittleArt on Etsy

mid century modern console cabinet nightstand from lunarloungedesign on Etsy

Levi Modern Vase from jalexstudios on Etsy

The Argentine Bench from mcmetzger on Etsy

Saturday Shop Spotlight: Urge Studio

This week's shop spotlight is on Urge Studio, a Pittsburg based Etsy shop that has an eclectic mix of vintage finds.  Their motto is: an inspired moment creates a spontaneous urge.  I have featured a few of their items in previous blog posts but I love so many of their finds that I just had to feature the shop itself! I know you'll find something you love at urgestudio! Enjoy!
 

basket wall storage

reclaimed wood coat rack

hardware store bins

pepsi crate

steel RX file boxes

vintage simpson bosworth chairs

vintage wood cheese boxes

Thrifty Thursday: DIY Wine/Beer Bottle Glasses

My husband and I love wine and beer- well, good wine and beer, which means we usually have many bottles we are getting rid of.  We saw these low ball tumblers at a local wine bar and LOVED them- the color, the shape, the whole idea as well as how easy it would be to do it ourselves, and for basically free. Well, I'm sure we would be motivated to go out and purchase more so we could have a whole set.  So, I found a tutorial that will help us all make our own glasses (whether high or low ball, or even vases) out of our recycled bottles.  You can see the step by step directions here: http://www.zellaguide.com/2009/02/diy-glass-bottle-cutting/

Basically, all you need to do is:
1. finish your beverage so you have an empty bottle (that's the fun part!)


You'll need to purchase a bottle cutter.  They used Ephrem’s Bottle Cutter which can be easily found online for $30-40.  The kit comes with:

• the bottle cutter- to cut the bottles, of course
• a candle- to heat the line which the cutter makes in the glass
• sand paper- to file down those dangerous edges after you cut the glass
• carbide polishing powder- to smooth those edges even more so you don’t cut your lips if you’re making a glass

Now I've seen tutorials online where you're just using string of some sort and a candle so if I can find it again, I'll post a second tutorial and maybe compare the two.  Since this is "Thrifty Thursday" and all, if there is a cheaper way where you don't have to spend $30+ on some tool, then that would be great! Another advantage to making these yourself is that you can choose the color of the glass.  Anywhere from clear to green to amber/brown- whatever works with your decor.  Do share if you decide to try this tutorial- I would love to see pics of a placesetting with some of these included.  Enjoy!

the actual process as seen with a beer bottle

the finished product aka tumblers from Pottery Barn- I personally prefer the raised bottoms of the wine bottles

another idea one could try- vases

Wish List Wednesday

Lately I've been obsessed with this mustard yellow color.  I'm just loving it in every aspect of life.  I am also obsessed with arrows since I purchased this really cute gold arrow necklace.  And of course I'm obsessed with mountains since I'm planning my first trip home to Alaska with the hubs and trying to decide what to share with him first! So, enjoy my picks for this week!

arrow note card from AshleyPahl on Etsy

large wooden ampersand from Hindsvik on Etsy

sunset strip over the alps print from fotoforest on Etsy

summer weeds in burnt butter teatowel from skinnylaminx on Etsy

Friday Fabric Finds: Liberty of London

This week I am featuring a beautiful fabric from Liberty of London: Tana Lawn Classics. It's called Hot Pink Sarah's Secret Garden.  Such a fun and dainty floral.  Liberty of London has some amazing fabrics but you'd better be sure of the one you want at $35 a yard- ouch! But I think they're worth it.  Enjoy!

Modern Monday: Anniversary Presents- year 5

For the five year mark (which D and I will be celebrating in October! woohoo!) the traditional anniversary gifts is wood.  We could spend so much $$$ on anything wood: furniture, decorations, accessories- we love it all! Now, the modern gift is silverware.  I must admit, silverware/flatware really does nothing for me- I don't swoon over it when I see any in catalogs, I don't plan for it, etc.  It's not a big ticket item and to me, it's just not that exciting. Sorry people! Now, I have found a few selections that I like that I'm sharing today but maybe my problem is that I just haven't found the perfect set? Maybe one day... I had to limit my "wood" selections so that I wouldn't go crazy and have the longest blog entry ever so I hope you enjoy a little taste of my favorites.  Here's to celebrating 5 years!

artizano flatware from NapaStyle

set of benches/tables from architecti on Etsy

dresser from salvaged wood by robrray on Etsy

heritage storage console from VivaTerra

reclaimed wood picture frame from IvarsDesign on Etsy

almoco flatware from Design Within Reach in black matte

vintage storage bins from urgestudio on Etsy

blacksmith flatware from VivaTerra

The Gustavian reclaimed Bed from VivaTerra

teak flatware from VivaTerra

twig flatware from VivaTerra

vintage fir sideboard from VivaTerra