In need of a new cup--Etsy shopping day

In the past six months, the husband and I have gone through my large and rather intrusive collection of random vintage dishware (which was carefully selected through the years, mind you) and have narrowed it down to my late 1960's Taylorstone "Cathay" china for everyday use, our Spode "Blue Italian" for formal stuff (it's what we registered for when we got married and only have two place settings and three pieces of serveware), my grandmother's Royal Albert "Country Rose" which is on display in my office (because we don't have room for a china cabinet right now), a cabinet full of my grandparents' crystal serveware and various cups, goblets, etc., and my large (yet shrinking) collection of various sized glass jars.

I felt like I had purged myself of the unneccessary and condensed my tableware collection to the point that it would never create a large pile in the sink before we would run out of clean dishes--I thought this was a brilliant way to put a number on the dishes one should have...

Well, now I have realized that I need some new coffee cups. I am kind of displeased with what we have right now. I like an assortment of mugs so that each one can be ascribed to a mood--am I feeling tiny and delicate today? Or do I need something big and warm to cup in my hands?--but I want them to be relatively cohesive in style (we have open-fronted cabinets). Right now, I have my grandmother's thick glass mugs. There are two styles, a standard flat-bottomed cup and one that's a little more cafe-style. They are really nothing extraordinary, but they always remind me of having coffee with powdered creamer and sweet'n'low at her house. I want to keep a couple of her mugs, but I need something new.

Anyway, here are a few styles that I am liking, though I will probably end up buying a set from an estate sale!

I love the Pyrex (on the left) for its durability and whiteness despite being 30+ years old. And vintage stoneware always has a place in my heart. It just feels right in your hand. And I love the floral prints right now (because it's Spring, I suppose). Maybe I need seasonal sets of mugs...
LEFT:Vintage Pyrex Summer Impressions mugs, from sweetrice.
RIGHT: Vintage Stoneware Takahashi mugs, from jwhite2.


I love mid-century dishware with their perfect shapes and great designs. And I've also considered only having mugs with owls on them--picking a theme and going with it. The husband and I love owls, and we already happen to have a pair of mugs with the cutest little owls sitting on a tree that were gifts from our good friend Jackie over at peppermags.
LEFT: Set of 6 Temporama mugs, from TotallyJuliaRAd.
RIGHT: Owl mug, from autumnalways.


I LOVE these two sets of mugs paired together!! Maybe I will go for a collection of brilliantly colored florals and folk images against the stark white surface of good Pyrex or Corningware!!
LEFT: Scandinavian vintage by Berggren, from levintageMaison.
RIGHT: Vintage flower mugs, from VintageEye.


Isn't this set adorable?? It depicts a cute little dimestore/candy counter scene. It's ceramic Enesco, also from leVintageMaison.


Now, isn't this set WILD?! This midcentury atomic mug set comes from AustinModern, and the seller can't find any information on the production of this set other than it was made by Hall (USA) China. The holders are cast aluminum...if you know anything, I bet he/she would be interested!

How does your garden grow??

Seeing as how good ole Phil the Groundhog has seen his shadow and we only have six weeks left of winter, I'm reading up on starting a garden! I've never really had a green thumb, but the springs and summers of my childhood are filled with many memories of tomato vines and strawberry picking and apple trees and rose gardens and on and on. I was surrounded by some amazing women with the horticultural gift.

So after having kept a couple house plants alive for more than 12 months, it's time to move into my garden. The husband and I have lived in a really great little rental house for going on three years. One of the reasons we moved into this place was because of the incredible yard--actually it's three full yards. The front yard has some hydrangeas. The side lawn has pecan trees, rose bushes, and some other flowering trees I can't identify. The back yard has an enormous magnolia tree right in the middle, providing shade for our house (saving us a ton in electricity costs when it's 100+ degrees outside). There are rose bushes, irises, fig trees, and lots of ivy.

I have to figure out a way to plant what I want to plant so that our dogs don't destroy the garden...but I want to plant tomatoes, strawberries, blueberries, arugula, dahlias, tulips, fragrant verbena, sunflowers, lots of herbs, and on and on...


Domino, which sadly is soon to be no more, has these great garden layouts online. They're based on the gardens of Oscar de la Renta and are really smart and pretty. Thanks to Jackie at peppermags for blogging on these great garden designs!


Here are some other great links for the beginning gardener (or if you just need to brush up or ask questions!)

The Germinatrix...This was a great gardening Q&A blog featured on Domino's web site. I'm not sure how long it'll be up, but go there and take notes!!

You Grow Girl...This is a really revolutionary site--people trying to change the way the gardener/human relates to plants, emphasizing environmentalism and laid-back gardening. Awesome, awesome, awesome.

Garden Harvest Supply...Thanks to Leatherneck Joe for the tip!

Hastings Garden Center...Check out all the great info under the "Garden Wise" tab; be sure to look at their potted garden layouts.
Enjoy exploring and planning. I'll be dreaming up big gardens as I stare out into the Monday rainstorm.

Get inspired--Decor8's Creativity Series!

So I was checking out the new posts over at my good friend Jackie's blog, peppermags, and she posted this great entry--Inspiration:Mind Mapping via Decor8. Basically, Decor8 is doing an 8 week creativity series. Every Thursday, a new creative "project" or something to just inspire the creative process will be posted.

The first project was mind mapping things you loved to do as a child. It's a stream of consciousness exercise--just sit down and brainstorm, making a tree of things you loved, images, smells, ANYTHING, from your childhood. It's amazing what you will uncover!! It could turn out like anything!

Here's what Decor8's looks like:


Here's what peppermag's looks like:


And here is what mine looks like:


So bookmark Decor8 and get involved with the project! Challenge yourself. Be inspired. You never know what can come of it!