Showing posts with label Inspiration. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Inspiration. Show all posts
Friday, July 26, 2013
Friday, July 12, 2013
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Visiting Wovenplay in New York
Wovenplay is one of our inspirations and always has been. Based in Brooklyn, NY, we visited the studio and chatted about the New York Public Library's incredible picture library, Japanese cottons and hand dying.
Wovenplay designs, sews, dyes, and prints creative couture for the everyday artist and adventurer. The beauty of the collection is captured in its simplicity and how well we see our children when they wear it. Or insist on wearing it. The rendering of the past into the present means that swimsuits have zippers that won't rust in seawater or chlorine, tutus have proper closures for dancing and jumping, the feather headbands combine glass beading with vintage buttons.
Wovenplay believes in designing vibrant, playful pieces that combine quality of color and texture with the innately imaginative spirit of childhood. Their clothes are fanciful and modern, with a foundation of inspiration from decades passed.
Wovenplay designs, sews, dyes, and prints creative couture for the everyday artist and adventurer. The beauty of the collection is captured in its simplicity and how well we see our children when they wear it. Or insist on wearing it. The rendering of the past into the present means that swimsuits have zippers that won't rust in seawater or chlorine, tutus have proper closures for dancing and jumping, the feather headbands combine glass beading with vintage buttons.
Wovenplay believes in designing vibrant, playful pieces that combine quality of color and texture with the innately imaginative spirit of childhood. Their clothes are fanciful and modern, with a foundation of inspiration from decades passed.
Friday, March 29, 2013
10 Tips to get Kids Growing!
Advice from a Caterpillar loves to support Toronto Botanical Gardens. Getting inspired for spring, writer Ellen Farrelly has written a lovely article "10 Tips to get Kids Growing". You can visit their website at torontobotanicalgarden.ca for more gardening ideas.
It’s easy — and fun — to get kids involved in gardening, Here are 10 ideas to get you started.
1. “Start small,” says Zora Ignjatovic, an enthusiastic supporter of community gardens. She recommends using self-watering growing boxes as a handy way to begin.
2. A container can be a garden. Growing vegetables such as tiny tomatoes and herbs in a pot is an easy way to get kids gardening.
3. Garden in a bag. City Farmer author Lorraine Johnson came up with a unique way to grow tomatoes. On the roof of her house she grew each plant in a bag of potting soil. Now that’s a simple creative idea!
4. No dig. Want to get rid of the lawn and grow a garden in the backyard? Patricia Lanza has a great idea to help you get rid of the sod without the backbreaking task of digging out the grass. In her Lasagna Gardening book Lanza describes how to layer newspapers over the lawn. Instead of digging up the turf, this is a quick, kid-friendly method children can help with by laying the newspapers.
5. Raise the beds. In Square Foot Gardening Mel Bartholomew offers some great ideas for using raised beds. Not only does his practical advice help gardeners use every inch of space and incorporate good soil but a raised bed is self-contained garden that kids can reach easily.
6. Grow near water. Fruit and vegetable gardens need constant watering. Think about where the water source is located and how the garden will be watered. At GTGK, for example, kids use small watering cans. They dip their cans into large tubs of water, which often results in lots of water play, too!
7. Mulch for easy maintenance. Add a layer of mulch such as cedar or straw to the surface of the garden after planting. This preserves moisture and prevents the soil from drying out too quickly. Mulching makes garden maintenance easier for kids: they don’t have to water as frequently or worry about keeping up with the weeds.
8. Grow in sun and shade. Although most fruit and vegetables need at least six hours of sunshine a day, GTGK’s Sunday Harrison says that “red currants, leafy greens and lots of herbs will grow in a bit of shade.” Plants such as sorrel, chard and parsley grow well in shady gardens.
9. Get the soil right. Fruit and vegetables need good soil to grow. One of the best ways to improve your soil is to add compost. If you don’t have a compost bin in the backyard, mushroom or sea compost is available from garden centres. Kids like nothing more than digging compost from a pile and adding it to the beds.
10. Enjoy simple pleasures. The most important thing to remember about growing food with kids is to have fun. It’s all about exploring and connecting with nature. Kids are curious about their environment and experience joy in pleasures as simple as discovering worms in the garden or seeing butterflies or tasting that first fruit or vegetable they grew themselves. Take time to celebrate those simple pleasures.
It’s easy — and fun — to get kids involved in gardening, Here are 10 ideas to get you started.
1. “Start small,” says Zora Ignjatovic, an enthusiastic supporter of community gardens. She recommends using self-watering growing boxes as a handy way to begin.
2. A container can be a garden. Growing vegetables such as tiny tomatoes and herbs in a pot is an easy way to get kids gardening.
3. Garden in a bag. City Farmer author Lorraine Johnson came up with a unique way to grow tomatoes. On the roof of her house she grew each plant in a bag of potting soil. Now that’s a simple creative idea!
4. No dig. Want to get rid of the lawn and grow a garden in the backyard? Patricia Lanza has a great idea to help you get rid of the sod without the backbreaking task of digging out the grass. In her Lasagna Gardening book Lanza describes how to layer newspapers over the lawn. Instead of digging up the turf, this is a quick, kid-friendly method children can help with by laying the newspapers.
5. Raise the beds. In Square Foot Gardening Mel Bartholomew offers some great ideas for using raised beds. Not only does his practical advice help gardeners use every inch of space and incorporate good soil but a raised bed is self-contained garden that kids can reach easily.
6. Grow near water. Fruit and vegetable gardens need constant watering. Think about where the water source is located and how the garden will be watered. At GTGK, for example, kids use small watering cans. They dip their cans into large tubs of water, which often results in lots of water play, too!
7. Mulch for easy maintenance. Add a layer of mulch such as cedar or straw to the surface of the garden after planting. This preserves moisture and prevents the soil from drying out too quickly. Mulching makes garden maintenance easier for kids: they don’t have to water as frequently or worry about keeping up with the weeds.
8. Grow in sun and shade. Although most fruit and vegetables need at least six hours of sunshine a day, GTGK’s Sunday Harrison says that “red currants, leafy greens and lots of herbs will grow in a bit of shade.” Plants such as sorrel, chard and parsley grow well in shady gardens.
9. Get the soil right. Fruit and vegetables need good soil to grow. One of the best ways to improve your soil is to add compost. If you don’t have a compost bin in the backyard, mushroom or sea compost is available from garden centres. Kids like nothing more than digging compost from a pile and adding it to the beds.
10. Enjoy simple pleasures. The most important thing to remember about growing food with kids is to have fun. It’s all about exploring and connecting with nature. Kids are curious about their environment and experience joy in pleasures as simple as discovering worms in the garden or seeing butterflies or tasting that first fruit or vegetable they grew themselves. Take time to celebrate those simple pleasures.
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Happy Easter!
Spring time has arrived along with the Easter bunny. Hop on over for some spring inspiration.
Friday, February 15, 2013
Friday, January 25, 2013
Paris Day 2!
Snowfall in Paris with advice and Daneson toothpicks.
Enjoying the rich colours and true to its name it really is "the best falafel in the world"
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
Friday, November 23, 2012
Alice in Wonderland Opera!
We love the costumes in the new Alice in Wonderland Opera in England. Check out these beautiful pics below from Lula Magazine which is now in!
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
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