Loving The Dollar Store

Its the 20th year anniversary of The Schneider Art Museum
located in Ashland, Oregon where I live. I'm a volunteer for
the museum and for the last month we've been working on
these cake centerpieces for our big fundraiser event and birthday
celebration "The Art Affair" which takes place in a few weeks.
We've made 23 of these "designer" birthday cakes and again
The Dollar Store rules. We've cleaned out all the artificial
flowers and everything else we could get our hands on there
to complete the table decotations. If you only needed a few cakes
fresh flowers would be spectacular. I think their festive and fun.
Oh, and there will be a lit candle in the top of every cake. k

The Leaning Tower of Pottery

I absolutely love this amazing line of pottery by kaete
brittin shaw. The subtle use of color and unusual sculptural
quality of the bowls when stacked are so creative and fun.
You will see lots of pottery on k style. I am a collector and
love to promote this art form. I really believe that in good
decorating we need to "cut the sweet" and pieces like this
help us to do that when incorporated into our overall design.
Take a look at kaete's site. Their are many other amazing
and original pieces. enjoy, k

Windsor Nature Discovery

Windsor Publications first began its line of nature posters
with a variety of regional fish posters and then
evolved into all things nature. When the company was
bought several other nature inspired lines were added.
The original line featured the "botanical style" which is
evident on many of the posters. Established artists
in the many arenas covered were hired to create each
unique poster. Many of the posters/charts have been
featured as backdrops in a whole slew of movies and tv
shows.The hummingbird chart was always a favorite and
hangs in my house today. Enjoy. k

Passionate About Lampwork

I discovered lampworking about 7 yrs ago while living in
Ajijic, Mexico. The art form completely captivated me. In very
simple terms lampworking is the art of melting gorgeous
glass rods made in Murano, Italy around a metal rod (mandrel)
to create a wide variety of glass beads used to create fabulous
jewelry and other art objects. Go here to see a complete
explanation of this fascinating art/craft. Dustin Tabor whose
beads are represented above is one of my absolute favorite
lampworkers. You will see lots of lampwork featured on this
site as well as my own creations which I will post from time
to time. Enjoy. k

For the Pottery Lover, Reckless Designs

You will see lots of fabulous ceramics/pottery on k style.
I love to make new finds like this bold, graphic line from
Reckless Designs located in the UK. This is just a tiny sampling of
their line which features a variey of motifs available in a
vast number of shapes and sizes. Lots of it is mix and match
and you can literally create your own unique set from the
many options. I love it. k

I Love Whimsy

I am sooo going to have this darling specialty soap from
Gianna Rose Atelier. I love the whimsy and the unexpected
red color. The packaging is just icing on the cake. I also love
the caramel cafe latte round soaps here and the sea shell soaps here.
First noticed these soaps on Hostess with the Mostess. Too cute. k

For Sissey L

First of all let me tell you just a little about sissey L. She is
without question my first and foremost fashion guru. She
has educated me on the finer points of all things fashion and
the latest trends for years and it goes without saying that in
this category sissey rules. So when i saw this darling Angela
Adams purse in lavender and chocolate brown i wanted my
sissey to check it out. One of the really fun benefits to writing
this blog is that I can readily share my finds with family and
freinds as well as all of you. Oh and this fabulous purse has
matching belts and wallets all available at Hazel Chicago's online
store. But the best part is the $100 price which puts it into
my category of great designer bags for $100 or less. Will let
you know if sissey approves. k

Handcrafted Excellence

Mother Goose is a Portland Landmark and one
of my favorite stores to spend the day in. It's literally
chalk full of handmades and one of a kind gems. I love
the natural theme of these silk leaf motif mobiles by
fiber artist Jan Carson . I think I could find a place for
them in every room of my house. Portland is a hub for
art and design of all kinds and Im a regular visitor. Stay
tuned for lots more Portland finds as we move along. k

Loving The Dollar Store

Good design is everywhere. Even in The Dollar Store. I love
this set of retro notecards and matching polka dot envelopes.
This set contains 8 cards & envelopes. Not bad for a $1.00. The
secret to shopping in these "bargain" stores is to look for simple,
clean, often graphic design and stay away from the over
decorated, over embellished and overdone. I love The Dollar
Store and you will see my fun finds posted here. k

Styling With Birds, Jonathon Adler

As you get to know me you'll learn that I love all
things birds. Jonathon Adler's stylized bird salt & pepper
shakers are not only right up my alley but they're
also on sale at velocity art and design. Speaking of birds I'll
be introducing you soon to "henry" who I'll guess
is not what you think. Stay tuned. k

Santa Fe Spoons

While checking out the sumptuos site zippergifts I came across
these salad utentsils and I can't think of a more perfect hostess
gift and of course I'll have to have a set for myself. While you
can't specify which stripe pattern you want at only $10.00
for a set i think I'll just order all three and keep the extras on hand. k

Introducing k style

This is my first post on K style. My name is Karen Robinson and
I am a design junkie. I love it all . From the great design I see
every day on the web to my FAV dollar store finds. I can't wait
to share it all with you. Then there's the occasional drama of the
week involving the "players " in my life. Check out my personal
profile to see nicknames and codenames for the jist of my
daily ramblings. Now on to my first find.

I live in Ashland, Oregon which straddles the I5 corridor pretty much dead center between San Francisco, Ca and Portland, Oregon. So I tend to shop up and down the west coast. One of my all time favorite stores is Twist a gallery/store which features fabulous artists in multiple mediums. The necklace featured is by jewelry artist I.Ronni Kappos and I love it. Simple, elegant, contemporary and "clean" like so much of the style and design I hope to share. k