Of Janet Hill Studio

I've fallen a little bit in love with Etsy over the past few months, and I thought I'd share with you one of the reasons why. I bought this beautiful print from Janet Hill Studio at the end of last year, and I'm not quite sure why it's taken me so long to get around to telling you about it:

I adore the muted colours, and the 1920s style of the outfit and hairstyle remind me of the divine Phryne Fisher, heroine of the wonderfully fun series of books by Kerry Greenwood, which have beautiful covers illustrated by the very talented Beth Norling:

I can just picture Phryne doing a spot of feather fan dancing!

I was also very pleased with a little pack of Christmas cards I picked up at the same time as the print:

I still need to buy a mount and frame for my print, and I can't wait to see what it's going to look like once it's up on the wall. I've also been browsing the Etsy shop again, and getting tempted to buy a companion piece (or two. Or three). There are some simply gorgeous prints for sale at the moment. I love the blurred, slightly dream-like quality of this one:

These two are both charming, and make me laugh as not even I am (quite) this bad when it comes to dressing for a walk in the country:

I am drawn to both the coolness of nighttime in Manhattan...

... and to the warmth of this picnic in the sun:

This one, entitled 'Elise sips Pastis in Montreal'...

... reminds me somehow of Edward Hopper and his famous depictions of cafe scenes and women in empty rooms:

Hopper is a favourite artist of mine (I really enjoyed an exhibition of his work at Tate Modern a few years ago), and although Janet Hill's work is much lighter in atmosphere, something of the melancholy wistfulness of Hopper's style finds traces in some of Hill's most beautiful paintings:

I love the poignancy of this one -- 'Anthea's Party' -- and the way, as with the rest of Hill's work, you can conjure up an entire story from just one image. This one reminds me too of the work of Marie Laurencin, whose paintings I discovered whilst on holiday in Paris just over a year ago. If you happen to be in Paris, make sure you go to the wonderful Musee de l'Orangerie in the Jardin des Tuileries, and if you do, don't just stop at the gigantic Monet waterlillies on the ground floor, although they are spectacular...

... but wend your way downstairs to see the smaller gems they have hidden away in the basement, like this stunning portrait of Coco Chanel by Laurencin:

I was very excited to discover that prints of this picture are available to buy, and I think one might have to wing its way towards me before too long! But I'll still have room for another one of Janet Hill's, I think. The only problem is deciding which one, for, to quote Sir W in his 1601 essay 'Of Trappes for Fame', I sadly can't quite afford to be one of those people who

'spendeth all his treasure in painting'.

Of Keeping Cosy

The rain is lashing down outside, and I am snuggled up under the blankets with a lovely hot cup of tea, thanking the stars for wireless internet and laptops. I waved goodbye to my friend this morning as she caught her bus back to Cambridge (rather her than me -- the damn thing takes THREE AND A HALF HOURS, including the thirty minutes it apparently takes to change drivers in Bedford. Oh, and the hour it seems to take to drive around Milton Keynes' interminable roundabouts). Now, I'm relaxing at home for a while before braving the weather once more to strike out into town and go for a late lunch at The Royal Oak on St Gile's: a cosy pub which serves up an excellent Sunday roast.

Meanwhile, I have been amusing myself by perusing Etsy from beneath the comforting warmth of my duvet. In order to drive away the air of gloom which is threatening to pervade my room thanks to the menacing gusts of wind driving the rain onto my window, I've been considering a few of the bits and pieces that might cheer up a cold, rainy day such as this.

Although I'm not sure how well it would cope in the wet, I really like this unusual coat from Little Houses Clothing. I adore the huge collar with its lace trim, and it looks lovely and warm, as well as being pretty. And even the name is apt considering my period of study:

Shakespeare's Sister Coat, $395

I've also fallen in love with these cute cashmere leg warmers (no, I never thought I'd be writing those words either, but these are special) from Adventures of Jessica Rose. The colours are stunning, and with the little bows at the top, I think they'd look great peeping out above a pair of long boots too:

Cashmere Legwarmers in Lavender and Raisin, $85

Before venturing outside, I think I might want to slather on some protective lip balm to counteract the vicious weather November has brought, and this delicious offering from the lovely Marie Antoinette's Patisserie Collection at Vintage Bella might be just the ticket:

Pink Cake Lip Balm, $3

A little pampering of the rest of me with this Lap of Luxury Soap (ah yes, always a phrase I like to hear -- and not just with soap at the end of it) from the wonderful range at Seattle Sundries wouldn't go amiss either:

Lap of Luxury Soap, $9.50

I must admit, however, that on a day like this, part of me is quite happy just to stay indoors, curled up with a hot drink, a few biscuits, and a good book (I'm happy to report that so far, Stone's Fall is definitely meeting the demands of that last category!). But that's no reason not to look stylish, as the 'loungerie' (love it!) offered by plumprettysugar makes clear, with stay-at-home wear bright enough to cheer up the most dismal day:

Kimono Style Robe, $124

And if I were always to drink tea out of cups as lovely as this one from House of Harriet, I would be a happy girl indeed. Combining cats and tea, the entire Amsterdam Cats colletion can hardly fail to charm me:

Amsterdam Cats Big Hand-painted Mug, $60

For now, however, I will return to my current cup (which is itself rather pretty, even if it doesn't have a cat on it), and get a few more chapters in before I have to get up and pull out my umbrella. Although, as I've been writing, I could kid myself that the sun has started to peer through the clouds, and although the wind is still buffeting the walls, it's not howling quite so loudly as before. But I think I'll pack my umbrella anyway, just in case.

Sir W too bewails the weather upon occasion, although, as this excerpt from his 1600 essay 'Of Fame' makes clear, his concerns are rather more lofty than any I might have about the rain spoiling my clothes...:

'History hath added to my naturall desire of louing fame: I was there set afire with conuersing with braue spirits. I like deeds well, but they were not within my reache, and so I sought to buy what my stock would reach to: though I cannot clime so well as Caesar, yet I shoulde thinke my selfe happy if I could but get vp his Stile. But he was a Romane borne, and borne vnder a climate of more wit: we are so colde, and so dull, that we thinke of nothing beyond the compasse of our inheritance, iust like the Swissers we will lose no ground; leaue vs in durt, and finde vs in durt. The Graecians and the Romanes were Monarches of the world, not by sitting still, and keeping themselues warme, but Industry and Aduenture were the wings that made them fly high. We will aduenture vpon noting except it be on a surfit, and sixe pence at Tables'.

Of Etsy Goodness

Our flight isn't until 9.20 tonight (meaning we arrive in Rhodes at the ungodly hour of 3.20am - and then have the hour's drive to Lindos from the airport. The joy...), so I thought I would take a quick break from preparations to share my excitement over my first Etsy purchases. Etsy is a wonderful treasure trove of beautiful and unusual handcrafted and vintage items, on sale by talented people across the world (both of my buys came from the States, for example). If you aren't already familiar with it, I highly recommend a browse, although I warn you to have both time and credit card to hand, as it is all to easy to spend an afternoon getting tempted!

I have been thinking for some time about ordering some address labels, as I send a lot of cards and have always rather hankered after a pretty little label to call my own. Thus I was thrilled to find Nicole at Nature's Corridor, with her wonderful collection of labels, business cards, and other Good Things. Unfortunately, the Nature's Corridor shop has just closed, as Nicole moves across the pond to join us here in the UK, and according to her blog, she won't be re-opening for six months or a year. So I'm even more glad now that I bought these lovely labels when I did:

I couldn't choose between the two designs, so...! Well, it's always good to have variety...

On a wave of delight after finding my perfect address labels, I also invested in a wonderful set of 20 cards from Jen at MimiMuseDesigns. The cards are stunning and great value for money. I really recommend the box sets, where you can choose which designs you'd like included, and have them sent to you prettily wrapped up in ribbon. They'd make a delicious Christmas present. These are a couple of my favourites:

My Etsy experiences so far have been great - with amazing products and friendly sellers, and I think I'll definitely be doing a lot of my Christmas shopping on the site this year!

For now, however, I must dash. I arrive back in the UK a week on Thursday, but may not get the chance to blog properly again until I'm settled back in Oxford after the weekend. Until then, as I travel to a different part of the globe once more, I leave you with one of my favourite quotations from Sir W's Essayes, in which he stresses the difference between manuscript and print in the period (a fascinating subject) through this wonderful comparison. This is in fact the opening sentence to the first essay of the first part of the Essayes (from 1600), 'Of Resolution':

'The Worlde is a booke, the words and actions of men Commentaries vpon that volume: The former lyke manuscriptes priuate: the latter common; lyke things printed.'