August is when the wasps come out. August is when I get stung. Last year, it was my left foot, and yesterday it was my right thigh. The little devil flew right up my dress. Unlike bees, wasps can sting over and over again. I’m sure I felt it sting me twice. Here is Gerald Murphy‘s painting titled Wasp and Pear. I like the proportions, the blocks of colour and the overall cubist feel of the work.
“We fulfilled people’s fantasies. We gave them a chance to experiment, to escape their ordinary lives. The aeroplane backdrop was particularly popular.” The black and white portraits of Sory Sanlé.
Joanna Powell’s fabulously madcap ceramics.
Gautier Paris 2001 fringe eyewear.
Summer fruits by Josef Frank.
A bathroom with two sinks, wonderful. A bathroom with mismatched sinks, why not? In this case, one is a very organic looking and made out of limestone and the other is concrete, modern and sleek. The rough edged San Marino marble backsplash ties the two sinks together, as do the beautiful wall mounted brass taps. Don’t get me started on the PVC vinyl vanity skirt in daffodil. It’s all so utterly cool.
Good golly, there’s nothing I don’t love about this Christopher John Rogers “Strawberry” dress. One fabulously original girl chose it as her wedding dress which only makes me love it more. The sash, the giant bow, the tulip shaped skirt, the clashing colours –– it’s all so wonderfully whimsical. The world needs dresses like this one to remind us of the fancy, the frivolity, and the sheer joy of life.
Minus thumbs –– I’ve never been into thumb rings –– I love to see every finger stacked with a hodgepodge of metals and styles. It’s a look that some women pull of with aplomb. Here’s looking at you Frankie Bergstein. The jewellery of Ariana Boussard-Reifel is beautifully stackable. And mixable. I think you could weave her sculptural designs into any combination. Boussard-Reifel grew up on a Salish an Kootenai reservation in Western Montana, and is deeply inspired by tribal and Indigenous cultures. Personally, I adore the Raissa ring –– it’s simple and bold. Several stacked together look like vertebrae.
Very few people can do the butterfly. And even those who attempt it (ahem, the arrogant man at my local pool who creates more splash than a Humpback whale) do it poorly. Unless they’re Olympic athletes, in which case it’s said to be easier than racing crawl. “Of great interest to swimmers at the moment is a new stroke, reported to be becoming popular in the United States and picturesquely described as the Butterfly stroke,” the Guardian reported in 1935. Although some say the stroke dates back as early as 1911. Either way, it’s a stroke that to this day asks us all to step back in wonder and awe when we see it masterfully swum. I held my breath yesterday, as I watched the 100 metre women’s butterfly in Tokyo. The metamorphosis from woman to fish is kind of extraordinary to watch. The speed, the fluidity, the exquisite grace.
Mid-century glass art by Per Olof Strom.
A london flat filled with salvaged finds.
One of my all time favourite potters, Paula Greif.
Købn towels, a bathing ritual.
A scalloped, pleated skirt from the fabulous Rosie Assoulin.
Low tide at the North Sea, Germany, Herbert List, 1930.
It’s Elin Frodig‘s handles that I love. The Danish ceramic artist plays with polka dots and stripes, but it’s the handles that really made me smile. Some look like elephant ears, others look like Danish sugar pretzels. They’re deliberately wonky, with proportions that don’t make sense. And that’s why I’m drawn to them. Think functional pottery with a brilliant sense of humour.
The squirrels are driving me mad. Every time I look, they’ve yanked up an Impatiens or left a trail of mud on the porch. I’ve heard that scattering small clumps of hair in your planters scares off the squirrels. Chilli peppers and mint are also used to keep squirrels away. Marigold petals, too. I rather like the idea of the Marigolds; far more pleasing to the eye than a hairball.
Mudpuppy is a small ceramic studio based out of Denver that makes one-of-a-kind mobiles, planters and sculptural objects for the home. Michael McDowell’s aesthetic is warm and whimsical. His moon chimes would look lovely in a nursery and his ceramic flowers could be planted just about anywhere. It’s not easy being a small batch ceramicist. When we see something we love, let’s share it.
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