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small inspiration 102

Pamela Klaafke (see her collaboration with Small here) from her bestia parvulus (animal child) series

Polixeni Papapetrou

small play - karamba

Karamba toys are hand made by Magda Bielecka in Poland. Exceptionally quirky and full of character her little people are made to be brooches, puppets or free standing toys.

what inspires you to create your toys?
Ideas usually come unexpectedly pulling my sleeve and shouting at the same time: ‘ It’s my turn now, I’m to be sewn now! I sew KARAMBA! toys as a kind of continuation, advance and extension of my childhood.
I hope they bring fun and play to everyone who comes across them.

Karamba website and blog

small type - Just Being Audrey

I just spotted this children's book at Anthro about Audrey Hepburn's life. Just Being Audrey written by Margaret Cardillo and illusrated by Julia Denos. 

A friend recently sent me Audrey's Beauty tips, a poem she would often read to her children, written by the humorist Sam Levenson:

For attractive lips, speak words of kindness.

For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.

For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.

For beautiful hair, let a child run his or her fingers through it once a day.

For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone.

People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed and redeemed; never throw out anyone.

Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of each of your arms. As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.

The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides.

The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mode, but the true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It is the caring that she lovingly gives and the passion that she shows.

The beauty of a woman grows with the passing years.

Lovely video about the book:

 

small inspiration 101

The girls (and Eni the cat)  watching the thunderstorm after playing in the rain.

photo by Steven Visneau

 

Happy Easter xoxo

 

small threads - Ode

I am dreaming of summer dresses today. Love these from Ode, a collection for girls 2 - 6 years old inspired by childhood travels and from family living in a village in India called, what else, Ode.

small art - Camilla Engman

I can't stop looking at these paintings by Camilla Engman. I think they are inspiring a photo shoot...

small magazine issue 17 out now

the first issue of our fifth year!

small shops- kicokids online and a sale!

Kicokids has opened their online shop. Cool clothes, accessories, toys and style in general from one of New York's best now available everywhere. yay!

...and if you are in the NYC area...a fantastic sample sale.

small inspiration 100

maybe a little grim for our 100 th inspiration but inspiring all the same.

Lorin Nix ( interiors from carboard, glue and paint)

Annina Gunter (dolls house miniatures)

small play- inventing kindergarten

Inventing Kindergarten  about Friedrich Froebel who is credited with the invention of modern kindergarten. There are some really amazing examples of how architects and designers such as Frank Lloyd Wright were inspired, or really molded, by the toys used in their kinder education.

....and here is where you can buy the complete set of 'Froebel's gifts'.

small finds- painted wood

...but somehow these are so much more than that...

Pen Pencil Stencil is the studio and workspace of designer Mark Giglio.

Goosegrease - hand painted wooden dolls and wedding cake toppers by the sweetest girls in Brooklyn

small furniture- kalon studios

Kalon Studios are going from strength to strength. We featured them here a few issues ago and we love their ethical approach to designing furniture for kids. You can check out their new line here

small bites- cook books

I am out of ideas and a bit tired of cooking my old standard recipes (and my family is tired of eating them!) so I have been looking around for some new recipes that both us grown-ups and kids will love. Here are some great books to pull off the shelf when you are cooking for the family and inspiration is low:

The Family Dinner

Time for Dinner strategies and inspiration for family dinner!

Family Food

and some great ones for kids who are interested in cooking themselves:

Food is Fun by the legendary Anorak magazine

Silver Spoon for Children- beautifully illustrated and contains my daughters favorite pizza dough recipe!

Ingredient Magazine: a very cool magazine for kids curious about food. 

 

small inspiration 99

Lesley Semmelhack

Archim Lippoth  (really varied and interesting work on his site- it was hard to choose just one)

small threads- upcycling

Quirky and cool upcycled fashion- all hand made in the USA by Tag You R It.

Cute totes and messenger bags for kids by Merah Muda.  Each bag is unique, made in the USA  from clothing salvaged from second hand shops and garage sales.

small type- how exquisite!

The Exquisite Book is based on the surealist game 'exquisite corpse' where each person contributes a sentence to a story having read only the line before.

In this case the artist only saw the image directly preceeeding them and had two weeks to draw their page. The book is made up of work by 100 amazing artists and each chapter folds out in accordian style to show five image.

......I think making a book like this would be a fun project to do with your kids too.

small threads- little miss y

We love the styling and photography of this Belgian line. Fia designs and sews by hand all the clothes for her brand Little Miss Y. You can order by emailing Fia directly (info[at]little-miss-y.be) or order on line at Pepatino (.....lots of other great European styles in this shop too)

Winners for last weeks Winter Water Factory giveaway are Byanna Mills (boys) and Erika Jane (girls). Congratualtions! Please get in touch with your size and address. (Winners selected by random.org)

inspiration 98

 

Christina Richards

The card society (card of the month club)