Speaking of birthdays, how sweet are these cake stands from Let Them Eat Cake? Made from mismatched vintage china these cake stands are too pretty to stash away in your cupboard until the next celebration. Some clever alternatives to keep them out of hiding are using them keep your jewelry organized, filling the tea cup with flowers or toothpicks and the ever practical keys and cell phone stand. Of course nothing would look better than a pile of cupcakes displayed for your viewing and eating pleasure. The price range is from $60-$100 depending on the size.

I can hardly wait for Christmas this year! Living in Utah now I think pretty much guarantees we’ll have a white Christmas and I can’t wait to start decorating. I’ve noticed this new concept of using a basket for a Christmas tree stand on the cover of Cottage Living and on the Les Indiennes website and I think it’s a great idea.

A quick search online found a few affordable options to pull off this look:

Clockwise from top left: Ten Thousand Villages Kaisa Planter ($18), Pier 1 Water Hyacinth Basket ($18), Coco Company (upon request), Crate & Barrel Nest Basket ($44.95)

Yippee! My copy of “Domino: The Book of Decorating” arrived today! I am literally salivating on the pages. It encompasses the best design ideas you’ve seen in Domino since it launched 3 years ago plus it includes a guide to all the best decorating resources. I’m obsessed! Order your copy now for 35% off through Barnes & Noble, click here.

Here’s a little reality check for you today in the form of a roller skate bookend by Harry Allen and a golden dipped saltine cracker necklace from Emily Elizabeth Jewelry. I’ll take both please!

My love affair with textiles, especially of the exotic kind, continues with these suzani’s and turkish towels from Laviva Home. These are just a few items from Laura Aviva’s hand selected collection. Look here for more gorgeous textiles from around the world.

When I spotted the Raksha Bella collection over at More Ways to Waste Time I almost cried because they’re so beautiful. I’m sad to be leaving our little house in the hills of Mill Valley but I when I saw this lovely bedding it made me excited to set up house all over again in Utah. It’s on the pricier end for bedding, $311-$449 for duvets, but since it’s handmade in India using quality certified organic cotton I’d say it’s more than justified. Drool over it at any of these Bay Area locations.

I am loving the handmade textiles and tableware collections from Jacaranda Home. I love the bold colors and the happy designs. The beautiful au natural cotton canvas is embroidered in the traditional style by Mexican Otami Indians and can take up to three months to make! I also love the various ways you can use the textiles, from pillow covers to shower curtains or as framed wall decor. As usual they have been all over the design nets and design mags but yours truly is just getting hip to them. If they’re new to you too enjoy!

Check out these fun Zoo Timers, designed by one of the founders of the American modernism movement, George Nelson. They would be perfect in a modern kids room. Available at the funky kids shop Genius Jones for $125 each.

How fantastic is this striped lawn lounger (available in single or double size) from The Handpicked Collection out of the UK? Just roll it up and take with you to the beach, the park or use it for camping out. I also love this shabby chic oilcloth picnic blanket. Just wipe it down, roll it up and pack it to go.

(via Ruby Press)

I went with Haley and Tia to see SATC last night. It was SO GOOD! It’s exactly what I wanted it to be: over-the-top fashion, hilarious racy comments from Samantha, emotional Carrie and Big drama and lots of laughing-while-crying moments courtesy of Charlotte.

For you design lovers out there, the biggest eye candy, other than the wardrobe of course, was provided by Carrie’s apartment makeover. There have been many blogs that have covered the makeover already which you can check out: CasaSugar scored an interview with production design Jeremy Conway and the July issue of Traditional Home has an interview with the set decorator Lydia Marks, so I’ll just cover a couple items.

First of all the blue paint color was stunning and we can all buy it since it’s Benjamin Moore’s Electric Blue. Secondly I loved the picture display behind her headboard. I also love the rich-looking cream colored drapes, they remind me of a wedding dress. There are many more wow pieces you can check out here but the “LOVE” wall hanging in her entry was a standout. Available through The Rug Company (they also provided the rugs throughout her apartment) it’s a Paul Smith needlepoint design and retails for about $1,295. Now go see the movie!

Images: Chicago Tribune, CasaSugar and The Rug Company

How pretty is this dish set from Rosanna, Inc. She offers a variety of mix and match dishes and glassware to liven up the table top. This Bohemian tabletop set would make a really cute wedding present. The plates are made of refined porcelain and are dishwasher and microwave safe. Each set comes in a pretty gift box with 6 dessert plates for $60 and 6 dinner plates for $100.

I am in love with these rug designs by Irish lad Luke Irwin. All of the rugs are hand knotted in Nepal in the foothills of the Himalayas using a Tibetan weaving technique. This exoticness must be why they are way out of my price range; prices start at 300 euro a meter, that’s about $475 every 3 feet at the current exchange rate! I think my favorite is the geese (goose?) rug pattern, perfect for a sophisticated child’s room.

While I’m on the subject of type-art, check out these fun and funky typographic rugs from Sweden based John Pour Home. Made from felt and cut by hand they are available in several bold and bright colors with pre-fab sayings or you can customize your own. I’d like a big fat M for our last name for the entry or maybe 1973, the year we were born for the kitchen floor. What’s that noise, oh yeah the hubs saying NO, *sigh*.

Design*Sponge recently featured artist Lisa Congdon’s delicious kitchen. Lisa’s kitchen is filled with her collection of vintage kitchen wares in bright pops of color and she shared some clever and inexpensive design ideas from frosting her windows to a creative display of plates. This adorable paper cuckoo clock caught my eye immediately. From Etsy seller DecoyLab, the clock is available in limited colors for a very reasonable $28.00.

I love this mumm printed wall sconce from Design Public. The shade is silk and comes in a variety of cheery patterns. When we bought our house, the seller had installed all new light fixtures. Unfortunately he bought the Home Depot generic special so over time I want to replace all of them, but you’d be amazed how expensive new lighting can be. In our living room he installed these faux alabaster 1/2 shell looking sconces. They’re nice and we can totally live with them, but these are much more my style! $110-$150 depending on size.

I recently convinced the hubs that we needed to upgrade our second-hand Urban Ore kitchen table - I promised it would be the only thing I put on the credit card and I would pay it off in 6 months (wish me luck with that). I decided on this beauty from Sundance and I waited until it was 20% off so I got a decent deal on it (yes that is me still justifying my purchase). Unfortunately it doesn’t look right with the Depot chandelier over it so of course that means we need a new kitchen light.

Any one of these ceiling lights from Rejuvenation, the amazing repro lighting company, would look fab over this retro table and would be a nice addition to our future remodeled kitchen.

I’m digging these linen hand drawn silk-screened pillows and lamp shades from Garnish Studio (a fellow Aeolidia designed website). The symmetrical prints in cool colors are modern and would look great in a West Elm inspired home. Using her background in art, designer Dana Killion launched Garnish to offer an alternative to the boring old white lamp shade. I really like the addition of color coordinated tassels to her pillows, it gives them just a touch of whimsy. Her organic designs remind me of Karl Blossfeldt’s abstract and elegant photographs of plant parts.

One of the things I miss the most about our years living in San Francisco was meandering home from work, up and over the hills, to our apartment below Russian Hill. I loved the discovery of a new boutique on Polk, taking a peek at the menu for the latest hipster restaurant on Hayes or stopping into a little sweet shop on Union for a before dinner treat. So last week I came up with a plan. The hubs and I commute home together, so instead of waiting around for him I decided to get a head start and walk in the general direction of the Golden Gate Bridge and he could pick me up wherever I ended up.

This plan led to the best SF discovery I’ve had in awhile, the design boutique Eden & Eden! As soon as I turned the enormous antique doorknob to enter I felt a wave of awe fill my soul. I was like a kid in a candy store, oohing and awing over the ferm Living wallpaper, the stunning Ivana Helsinki clothing and bags, colorful Antoni & Alison cashmere sweaters and my new favorite, People Will Always Need Plates witty mugs and of course plates. The shop has a real international vibe, due to owner Rachel’s British beginnings. There are items from Denmark, Finland and the UK all displayed with the sophisticated eye of a curator. On the Eden & Eden website they have made a select few goodies available for purchase which gives a sense of the diversity and the quirky personality of the shop. Rachel could not have been more kind or easy to talk to, in fact I think I talked her ear off!

If you like what you see at the shop, Rachel and Christiane from ferm Living have joined forces to offer design consulting. I would love to hire an interior designer but have often been intimidated by the thought that a designers taste might take over and my home wouldn’t feel like mine anymore. I was happy to hear Rachel talk about their low-key design services, often reusing items you already own to revise a room or an entire house. It is truly a pleasure to visit this unique boutique, if you live in San Francisco or come visit don’t miss Eden & Eden! Located at 560 Jackson Street at the base of Columbus Ave in North Beach.

Here are some snaps Rachel graciously allowed me to take on my last visit.

I recently had the realization that my international web window shopping is getting a little pricey. Alas, I’m not buying anything, just enjoying the view….for now.

My heart skipped a beat when I saw these beautiful Louise Body designs. Her cushions just slayed me. The hand painted details on vintage fabric with dainty birds on one side and rich brocade on the other, oh so pretty! Her wallpaper kills me too, so Palace of Versailles circa Marie Antoinette. Have you seen the Sofia Coppola movie by the way? The set design was breathtaking! These cushions are about $120 each.

Continuing my worldly wandering shopping spree, here are some lovely French products by Atelier R. Bernier available through the Sydney, Australia shop Lola et Moi.

Domestic, from France, has the most amazing collection of vinyl wall stickers and mirrors from an incredible roster of talented international artists and graphic designers. Geneviève Gauckler’s Potato Queen set above is one of my faves.

I love the freedom and possibilities of vinyl stickers over the permanence of wallpaper, though I do love wallpaper too. Warning you will spend hours browsing this site!

(via Husmusen)

One of my favorite home blogs is Ranch Redo. Eric and Laurie blog about the renovations to their ranch home in Oregon. They have pretty much done all of the work themselves and constantly inspire me. Recently they have been talking about wallpapering one of their rooms and they shared these modern finds from Bradbury & Bradbury a wallpaper company specializing in period prints.

My latest infatuation from across the pond, Toast House&Home. There is something so fun about getting a beautiful magazine style catalog sent By Air Mail par avion Royal Mail that makes it just that much cooler. I am in love with this set of dishes. I want to repaint my house using all of these soft colors. And yes that gorgeous Tipi is for sale.

(via frolic)

I adore these fantastic lamps from Stray Dog Designs! Not only are they unique and funky but they are made from recycled materials. Learn more about them here….

I was recently hired as a freelance blogger for a new eco-blog called EcoSalon.com. At EcoSalon I will be covering artisan, decor and fashion items, similar to the things you find here at Little Willow but with an eco-edge. The thing that sets EcoSalon apart is its authenticity. It’s real people sharing how to live an eco-friendly lifestyle without being preachy or crunchy. For example you can find out how to properly wash a pillow (which I am doing as I write this), where to buy stunning recycled glass carafes made from broken windshields or how to get a healthy high from herbal espresso. I am really excited for this opportunity to contribute to the rainbow of “green” knowledge available to women! Feel free to send me suggestions and if my Editor approves, (yes people I have an Editor now, it’s the big time), we’ll write about it!

Colorful laser cut clocks and silk satin lampshades from the UK accessories company Nadia Sheltawy. Trained as a textile designer in London, Nadia’s designs are playful with a modern edge. Seeing as I’ve been showcasing lamp shades lately I couldn’t resist sharing her lovely shade designs available in three different sizes and several colors. For sale here.