Florentius The Gardener

Some illustrations and words worth taking a look at - from Kęstutis Kasparavicius, Lithuanian illustrator of children's books. Here are a couple of illustrations from one of his 48 books, Florentius the Gardener.

I think that a good book for children must also be a good book for adults. I try to write so that one would want to read the same book over and over again. Books should be such that one wouldn't want to throw them in the corner after opening the first page. Such that one could turn the pages for a long while, look at the drawings without reading the text, or, quite the opposite, read without paying attention to the illustrations. Such that one could start reading right from the middle or actually try reading from the end. Such that there would be points in them at which one wants to pause and think for a while and, certainly, not rush.

Courtesy of Lithuanian Children's Book Exhibition 'Illustrarium'. Click the link to find many more wonderful illustrators.

Rabbit Treasuries

Recently I have been lucky enough to be featured in a couple of rabbit themed treasuries on Etsy. My Tea Sipping Rabbit cameo brooch appeared in this April Tea Lovers Treasury - Lemon Bunnies by battic Also my dearest Samson necklace was featured in this Hippity Hoppity treasury by Tib44 Click the images to see these wonderful treasuries full size! I wish I had more time to make treasuries. It is so fun!

Friend named Autumn

Hello dear friend called Autumn. Your breezes cool us, your sun warms us. Your crunchy leaves make us smile and shorter days make us sleepy. Thank you.

Happiness print by bomobob on Etsy.

Autumn my dear, your already half gone - how can that be? My, how time flies!

German Film Festival

It's that time of year again- the German Film Festival is on!

From April 7 to April 18th various German films spanning a broad range of genres are being played in Adelaide, Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Perth. I have been to see various films there over the past 3 years and been absolutely delighted, laughed, cried, even covered my eyes. There was one film that went way over my head, but another I loved so much that I dragged my friends along to see it with me few days later.

It's just so exciting - I find European films in general are so refreshing compared to mainstream American films. Like me, this may be a great chance to get in touch with your German heritage. Or if you're not German, why not just pretend? I mean who doesn't like chocolate, pretzels and beer? (All things you get for free on opening night, and all things I'm not allowed to have... haha!)

Click here for more info. Auf Wiedersehen!

Marisol Spoon

Last night while Etsy browsing I found shop to dote on... Marisol Spoon. Super cute badges. Most of these prints by Marisol are also available in art prints and lockets Pretty squirrel locket! Adorable Stella of the Sea print. Enjoy your Friday people! xx

Mice friends

These are my 3 pet mice friends. They were photographed about a month ago by my husband in his new studio. This is the cuddliest, oldest, wisest mouse I have, Bear. Bear just turned 2, which is 80 in mouse years. She is a siamese texel (which means her fur is wavy) and is very pretty with her ruby coloured eyes. This is the baby of the group - kind hearted Yasha, who will turn 2 at the end of May. And last but not least Mem, the clean freak of the group. She is always so busy making house! I have had the girls nearly 2 years and seen them grow and cared for them through their ups and downs. I adore them and am quite sad that their little lives will soon be coming to a close. But don't worry, we will make the most of their elderly years!

What are you reading?

There is a film that I adore called Doctor Zhivago. The 3 hour epic was made in 1965 and tells the story of various Russians affected by the First World War and Revolution in Russia. Of course there is a love story involved.

My dad ordered me the book from the US. It is hardcover and has beautiful roughly 'cut' pages. Now to get my head around those long Russian names! So, what are you reading?

New Products March 2011 - 20% Off!

Pretty new items now available on www.brambleandbear.etsy.com and Little Shop Of Handmade in Carnegie. To say thanks to my loyal readers I am offering 20% off the entire range of bramble and bear. Simply add the coupon code ONEYEAR at checkout on my Etsy store with any purchase before April 14th. My way of saying thank you! :)

Two little blue birds sit on a branch. It is a chilly winter morning, but they keep their spirits up. Chirping away, they appear to say ‘Spring is nearly here’.

Ginger the kitten is very cheeky. On any given afternoon you may find her scaling the blossom tree in search of a dangling blossom with which to play.

Meet Samson the Mini Lop rabbit. He enjoys nothing more than a quiet evening in his library reading prose and smoking his pipe. (Hand drawn by me!)

Full bloom of summer beauty, freshly picked from a cottage garden and placed in a Victorian vase.

Meet Charming Mr. Frog. Decked in coat tails and cravat and armed with a bouquet of freshly picked flowers, he is ready to sweep you off your feet.

Little Miss Kitty. Isn’t she pretty, with her pink bow and petticoat? With one last check on those scones in the oven, she is all ready to greet her guests for afternoon tea.

This morning was a special morning. Everyone in the Deer family got up bright and early. There was a lot of brushing and preening. Now with their antlers high and proud they pose for their annual family portrait. Don’t they look grand?

Penguin cake toppers

A lovely girl at work Amanda is getting married. Her and her fiance once saw some penguins in the wild with their arms around each others back, like they were having a cuddle! So when thinking about cake topper decorations for their wedding, penguins were an obvious choice. I worked with Amanda in the design of these pretties which I sculpted in polymer clay and painted. I am pleased with the result. I wish Amanda and her fiance every happiness for their special day next week and for decades to come!


During the molding stage Final result

Celebrate with us

Wowee! bramble and bear has as of March 14 officially been around for one year. It's all gone so quickly and I am happy with the improvements and progress of this little business over the past year.
To celebrate I have done two things.


1) Pretty new banner for my Etsy store! What do you think? (click to view fullsize)

2) 20% off all in store until April 14th! Simply enter ONEYEAR as a coupon code on check out to make your purchase an absolute bargain.

Thank you to all my customers, you make this so enjoyable and worthwhile!! Could not have done it without you.

xxxx

A very pretty little tea party

On Saturday afternoon I went to a very pretty little tea party hosted by my sister in law, Leora.

A couple of weeks before hand I had received a gorgeous invitation in the mail which she purchased from Whimsy Whimsical's etsy store.
It was a beautiful sunny day and 8 lovely ladies enjoyed cupcakes, sparkling pink lemonade and delectable teas. The little shack Leora and my brother in law call their home was decorated with handmade crepe flowers and buntings. There were also plenty of lollies to go around and we each got a kikki.K. lolly bag to take home with us.
All in all a lovely afternoon!

Custom Bunnies

About a month ago I received a lovely Etsy convo from someone who had made a purchase from my market stall 5 months ago. I remember them clearly - the girl of the couple had been debating whether to purchase the necklace of polymer clay rabbit Poppy or polymer clay rabbit Rhubarb. She ended up choosing Poppy and now wanted to reunite her with her sister Rhubarb. But alas, Rhubarb had been sold! So I worked with the couple and made them some other options for friends for Poppy. It ended up they wanted the whole familly! So Pumpkin, Rose and Parsley have now all gone off to their new home in the Australian Capital Territory with Poppy.

Enjoy!

I am...

I am feeling unmotivated. I am trying to buy an new car as my other one was written off due to flood damage 3 weeks ago. I am wearing a pretty summer dress. I am itching my eyes. I am wanting an over sized woolen jumper. I am feeling sorry for people in Christchurch. I am liking this geometric necklace by verabel below. I am wishing it was the one I saw in Sorrento over summer, hanging from the neck of a delicate pretty young mother to be. But that dream is lost forever.

I only wear foxes

Happy Monday!

My Jemima Puddle-duck and Fox gold cameo brooch was featured in a treasury on the weekend. It was created by melissahojnacki. I had already spied the gorgeous designs by dandyrions and DIVINEsweetness. But the pretty little fox brooch by MissYvonneNicole was an entirely new delight to me.

Click image to see in more detail and click on the links. Enjoy :)

Blackbird Summer Market

Tomorrow bramble and bear will be holding a stall at The Blackbird Market. It is my favourite market of all!
Situated in the quaint Worker Club Hotel on the corner of Brunswick and Gertrude Streets, Fitzroy. Escape the possible showers and browse quirky wares from Melbourne designers while listening to 1960's tunes! Tomorrow should be even more enjoyable than usual as I will have my best friend Lauren to keep me company between meeting other lovely people.

Hope to see you there! :)

Hidden Animal Teacups

You can never have enough cute tea cups! Behold Hidden Animal Teacup designed by Ange-line Tetrault.

They are large white china mugs with either a Bear, Owl or Fox appearing as you drink your tea. What could be sweeter? Each cup comes in a different shape with gorgeous scalloped edges and ornate handle.

I first saw these tea cups in Frankie magazine about 6 weeks ago. After have a massive search of the internet I found them on Amazon.com and am planning to purchase! Not sure whether I should get just one, one for me and one or two for friends, or all 3 for myself. Decisions decisions!

Which do you like best?

Happy Friday

Here is Polo the rabbit from RosyBunny's photo stream.

Enjoy your weekend!

Kitchen Love

On the weekend I went shopping with my best friend to escape the 40 degree heat. We decided to look for engagement presents for a friend and hit up the kitchen and homeware stores. Whilst we did find presents for our friend I stumbled across some things I just had to have! I have been living out of home for 2 and a half years and never had a sifter! I couldn't pass this one up. Also bought this sweet set of Maxwell and Williams mugs in the soldier version. Only $9.95 for 4. Bargain! They also come in Babuska and Geisha designs.