I’m swooning for this swing!!

While I’ve got body art on my mind, how many of you have happened upon the super-cute temporary tat line known as Tattly?? I fondly remember sporadic family dinner trips to the local kosher diner, and my parents giving my siblings and I a few quarters to mess around with in the vending machines. We always came home with some uber-cheesy temporary tattoos, and proceeded to nag my parents to apply them to little forearms, wrists, and ankels after bathtime with a wet sponge and some pressure. Temporary tattoos are totally a part of my childhood (especially the part where I got caught sporting one at school!), but I never thought the day would come when this easy little paper-and-water applicated body art-form made it to design-y cult status! Meet Tattly…

Here are a slew of my favorites:

Fantastic, right?? The “Tattone” number just cracks me up! And naturally, I’m smitten by those Eames rockers. And that scribble onto a little boys arm? Pretty believably Sharpie-gone-awry! (And I want to smack that Mother anchor right onto my pumped up forearm – it deserves some love after all the freakishly-nesting scrubbing and scouring I did this morning!). :)

But this one just takes the cake! Love?

Also, I can think of so many people I’d love to gift with this “complete kitchen” set!

How fun!!

(But none as much as Hugh Jackman’s!)

Have any of you mamas out there ever done pregnant belly art? I’m so intrigued by the concept! I’ve been seen henna-decorated bellies since my pregnancy with Frieda, but never thought I’d actually go for it! Perhaps it’s due to the fact that I’m currently on a decorating-stint with nesting our new home and all… or maybe I just like the fear-factor of messing the thing up and being stuck with some gnarly brown design on my stomach for the next 2 weeks. :)

In any case, I’m totally smitten by the ritual and plan on picking up a henna set and letting my husband go wild with his middle-eastern side this weekend – right onto my growing belly. Here’s to celebrating the life we grow inside – through random and far-out rituals!!

P.S. How insanely cute is that camel wool cape?!?!

If you’re reading this, you’d likely know about my infatuation with the mid-century era, particularly the modernism – Nelson, Miller, Saarinen, Knoll, Noguchi… but nothing blows my mind quite like Eames. Charles & Ray Eames are now officially “American Masters”, and while I’ve missed the airing on PBS network, I’m very much looking forward to snuggling up tonight post-dinner with my lover and a bowl of popcorn to stream the new documentary, Charles & Ray Eames: The Architect and the Painter. You can join me in my lesson in modern American history here.

P.S. Check out how a nearly-lost art form is revived as the iconic Fiberglass Shell Chairs are recreated!

Over the weekend we knocked the kitchen off our “to do” and painted the eating area, plus one accent kitchen wall, the most perfect shade of sunshine yellow. It’s by far my favorite room in the house right now!! Can’t wait to move onto furnishing the inside of that little eating nook and creating the “hub” of the house. I’m on the lookout for a tulip-styled round white table for 4, some mismatched mid-century modern seating, an oversized corkboard for the wall, a funky DIY light fixture (that I can’t wait to share with you!!), and some bright green potted wheatgrass to make the yellow even more sunshine-y. Can’t wait to see it all come together in there!!

The most important part of choosing the paint color for this kitchen was the flooring; a way to avoid it. We picked a shade that was in the floor but that would direct eyes away from it. I really can’t get over how well this method works! not only do our eyes steer clear of the flooring now, but the floor actually looks close to cute against this pop of color!

Freida took to it like a pro!

Every morning when I see the paint cans waiting idly on the floor for Sunday to come around once more, the bright and colorful dripping paint never fails to make me smile.

I must seriously be consumed with thoughts of paint, because somehow I started seeing paint everywhere!!

How adorable is this wooden bowling play set??

Nothing like some beautiful and unique Japanese playthings to brighten up your day (not to mention a hilariously translated, non-decipherable website!).

I’ve been coveting the concept of a pink accent wall for at least a year now, and while we never had the guts (or the need) to re-paint our lovely green living room wall in our previous apartment, once here surrounded by “renter’s white” – we  finally gave it a go! We launched 2012 in a super-bright way this past Sunday – via a coat of hot pink paint in the living room!

I won’t deny that once the day went on and the pink shade deepened, I did start to freak out a tiny bit. :)

I kept wondering if it looked too dollhouse-y next to the white walls and couch, or thinking it totally clashed with the orange-y wood flooring, or that it simply wasn’t a “hot” enough pink. Thankfully, I already know a thing about painting walls – you almost always freak out from the color at first. It takes a few days of living in it, and a few different light settings before you can truly decide if you like it or not…

After living in it for almost a week now, the only thing I know for certain is that I really love pink as an accent, and that I really to change out my lightbulbs for white light – the slightest yellow tinge against this color looks just awful! :)

That evening a friend of mine (thanks Layla!) sent me an email linked to the Apartment Therapy pink round-up, and it just  reinforced my love for this warm girly hue! Here’s why:

And if you find yourself falling in love with the pink but overwhelmed with the concept of wall color, try accenting:

We’ll be continuing our redenzvous with color throughout the house tomorrow (including bright yellow in the kitchen!), and I’ll make sure to post some pics of the complete pink wall once it is finished (read: furnished). :)

Wanted to take a minute to introduce you all to a new boutique out of Israel. Shana and Toad is a chic and charming childrens boutique for boys, girls, and babes, and carries a slew of fashion-forward favorites from all across the spectrum. To be honest, I have never ordered from them before as they are relatively new on the market (and I’ve only just discovered them!), but I figure that in instances when I’m tempted to purchase from European sights (like Little Fashion Gallery etc.) I might as well buy from Shan and Toad and support an Israeli-owned small business. Shana and Toad features a wonderful lineup of some of the most fabulous childrens labels, including Bobo Choses (my favorite!), Little Marc, TALC, Maan, La Petite Luce, No Sugar Added, and many more!! They have beautiful collections for both boys and girls – definitely worth taking a minute to check out their collections!

Also, their winter collection all on sale now and you can grab some serious steals!! Remember this chunky-knit umbrella sweater?? Snag it today for $35!

And this insanely adorable Bunny Ears Sweatshirt from TALC!