Inspired By Nature, June Hunter

I'm introducing a new Kstyle frequent post category today and I'm calling it "Inspired By Nature". I love design that is inspired by nature so it is a natural for me that I would love these tiles by artist and photographer June Hunter. Her images are applied to Italian marble tiles and then coated with a glass-like layer of acrylic which gives them such a surreal glow. I could see hanging a group in a bathroom back splash in my mountain retreat or Santa Fe getaway. Hey, I can dream can't I? This gorgeous line also includes jewelry. plan on spending more than a few minutes here, k
Oh and June Hunter tiles appeared on the Thanksgiving 2006 episode of the TV show "Men in Trees".

Note: Just wanted to mention that you will be seeing lots of new Kstyle banners in the future. I admit it. I like for things to work. Not to match but to work. So when I can and for the design fun of it I will change my banners quite frequently to sort of work with my latest post. I know it will be fun for me and I hope you'll like the added surprise when you drop by Kstyle. enjoy, k

Saturday Slide Show Teaser

I'm just giving you a teeny tiny taste of my slide show Saturday this week. Be sure to stop by and check out the fabulous work of Portuguese textile artist Planeta Hilda. We're talking over a hundred photos of some of the most colorful, hot, fabric horses on the planet. k

For The Pottery Lover, Lisa Ruland

I love the name "Dancing Pots" which so beautifully describes the pottery of artist Lisa Ruland. I found this whimsical line via blog designers block which led me to a new source called craft2eu an online gallery of European artists. I will be featuring some of the other amazing work on Kstyle throughout the week. total eye candy, k

Passionate About lampwork, launch

I love these "space shuttle rings" by lampwork artist Jennifer Wood. For sure you would have to be just a little bit careful because well they are made of glass but definitely worthy of some oohs and awes throughout your day. You can find these gems at Jennifer's Etsy shop and be prepared, there are a lot more goodies to see. k

The Casapinka Girls

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to let you know about a fabulous new adventure and blog called casapinka. Two of my blogging pals Pink from Pink Mohair and Anna from Absolutely Beautiful Things have teamed up for a designing/blogging adventure which starts TODAY! Anna, a designer from Brisbane, Australia will help Pink a busy working mom/blogger renovate her 80's suburban home. Simple? Well not really as they have agreed to never meet but to do the whole renovation over the internet and Yay with us as observers and contributors. I don't know about you but I can't wait to watch and weigh in. See you there. k

The Magic Hour, Tracy Helgeson

As I'm sure most of you know by now my son "The Fisherman" is a photo-journalisn major at SOU and his constant mantra to me is "Mom, it's all about the magic hour". That time 1/2 hour after sunrise and a 1/2 hour before sunset when the light and color combine to exude a passionate warmth unparalleled at any other time during the day. In my opinion artist Tracy Helgesen captures this "magic hour" brilliantly in her collection of landscape paintings. They just glow and I would love, love to design a room or an entire home around her stunning collection. in awe, k

I Love Whimsy, Felieke Van Der Leest

Words just can't describe the originality that defines the work of jewelry designer Felieke Van Der Leest. It's not easy to truly "break out of the box" but I believe this artist clearly does just that. I discovered this work via the equally original blog called why not. I just can't tell you how absolutely inspiring and humbling it has been for me to traverse the design world via the "blogosphere". I love every minute of it and I hope you do too. truly inspirational, k

A Little Treat

Bluff RoadLampwork is one of the best out there and I wanted you to see this amazing work.

Each bead which in this case is a lentil shape is a tiny work of art. The colors in this set are just outstanding. Not easy to achieve with a fairly limited palette of colors. Oh and the current bidding on ebay right now for this exquisite set is over $500. enjoy, k

Slide Show Saturday, Adriana Delphino

Welcome to Kstyle's Slide Show Saturday. I'm really loving this new feature. It's been fun to scope out talent and then feature the work in a way that really adds some impact to their collections. I love the work of Brazilian artist Adriana Delphino. Her use of color and design adds so much energy to her work. It's not easy to blend so many mediums but Adriana does it well. See more of her wonderful work here and look for the launch of her web site in March. enjoy, k

Stylin With Birds. Lladro

Found this gorgeous line of jewelry while browsing archives at a new favorite blog called Belle Vivre. The classic white on gold look is always a sure winner for me. And of course add the birds and I'm in love. You can find this work as well as lots of other fantastic ceramic pieces at Bodo Sperlein, loving this. k

And don't forget to drop back by Kstyle this weekend for my Saturday slide show. Brazilian design and color at its best. k

A "Silver" Lining at Kstyle

So many of my readers and fellow bloggers are also designers or creators so I know you will appreciate it when I tell you that while my new earrings which are now YAY lined with a silver core may look fairly simple they were anything but. Sometimes I really think that clean, simple, edited design is the most difficult to achieve. Why? because every single flaw or imperfection shows. Especially in the eye of the camera. So I am so pleased that I have finally learned how to add this additional layer to my beads and to my jewelry. It wasn't easy and it certainly wasn't cheap but then if it were easy, well you know the answer to that. Oh and I would like to ask you all a desgin question.

In the beads you see above I have blended three colors, navy, green and turquoise. I will be adding more 3 color combinations and I'm curious to know what you would be into keeping in mind that we are headed into spring and summer. My next color combo will probably be a coral, lavender and green. But I'd love to hear from you. What trends do you see coming and or what colors do you personally wear a lot? And those of you out there who visit Kstyle but don't typically comment. Please weigh in. I'd really like to hear from you. Thanks so much. k

"Slideshow Saturday" Teaser

I'm just giving you a tiny peek at Brazilian designer Adriana Delphino's gorgeous line of jewelry which I will be featuring on "Slide Show Saturday" this weekend. I'm really craving color right now and wow just wait until you see some of this very "hot' work. I am so excited about this new feature on Kstyle. I have lined up some really breathtaking talent and I can't wait to show it to you. slide show fun coming your way. k

One More Treat

This is just so fun I didn't want you to miss it while cruising the collection of artwork featured at American Art Company. This piece by Sally Prangley is in the "Third Contemporary Basket" exhibit. Love the unexpected beadwork. now there's a surprise, k

Lots more from this substantial gallery below.

Stylin Wth Birds, Don Derry

If you wanted to know what really attracts me personally these gorgeous hancarved stylized birds by Don Derry would be high on my "I would like to own this list." The sheen on the wood is so fine that the title of this exhibition is actually Don Derry "It's not glass? Plan to spend some time online at American Art Gallery. Some fabulous work shown here. k

Stylin with Art Quilts, Northwest

These quilts were featured at The American Art Gallery in an exhibit called "The Norhwest". The colors and the textures in these quilts are just beyond description. Be sure to check out some of the other wonderful quilters represented in the show here. total eye candy. k

Stylin with Art Quilts, Tokyo 2006

Browsing through flicker got me started on the quilt thing and I have to admit I had no idea what an amazing arform quilting could be. The quilts above were shown in the Tokyo 2006 quilt show and you can go here to see many more fabulous pieces. k

Yay Success

bUT only after many broken beads. Remember I told you one of my new years resolsutons was to learn how to line my signature glass bead charms with sterling silver and then gold. Well Yay I finally did it. Or I should say we finally did it. R has been helping me and we finally got it right.There are cracked beads all over my work bench but wow I am so pleased. They look gorgeous. I hope to have a few pics up tomorrow so stay tuned. k

Passionate About Lampwork

Another great set of lampwork beads this time by artist Michael Silberberg. You can find this "retro dots and lines" set right now on ebay. very cool, k

Cleeeever

Thank you to fabulous blog Designer's Block for alerting me to this incredibly clever new design package that now defines iconic retailer Saks Fifth Avenue. The redesign was undertaken by design firm Pentagram and the concept is brilliant. Basically the design team took one of the original script font logos, redesigned it, placed it in a box and then subdivided that box into 64 smaller squares. Those squares can then be shuffled, rotated and repositioned to create an almost infinite number of design possibilities. You can see a few in the examples above. The designers call it "recognizable consistency without sameness". how cleeeever is that. k

For The Pottery Lover, Davis studio

Check out this new pottery group by Davis Studio. I love the unexpected color combination. And the large platter in the first photo is so fun. I'm not sure I would want to actually use. Absolutely gorgeous. love this, k