Love Swah exhibiting at the MCA Zine Fair 2013!

If you wonder why I have been so busy lately, slaving away on weekends and nights instead of doing fun things such as eating and drinking, well I’ve been madly working my butt off on writing and designing a series of zines! I have completed 2 dessert zines – filled with my delicious recipes and photos of cupcakes, slices, cakes and more, as well as 3 travel zines on New York, San Francisco and Iceland. I am hoping to complete a 4th travel zine on Vietnam however a recent bout of sickness has set back a few days so I’ll keep you posted.

I am thrilled to be sharing a table this year with the wonderful JJ from the food blog 84th & 3rd, so make sure you check out her work too! For those who aren’t familiar with what the MCA Zine Fair is, firstly check out my review of last year’s Zine Fair. Zines are limited-run publications that are usually handmade and self-published and are on nearly every topic your imagination can think of. It’s a fun day of creativity, shopping and mingling with creatives. What more could you want?

Here are some excerpts from my zines, firstly the dessert zines volumes 1 and 2.

Iceland:

New York:

San Francisco:

Please come visit me, bring coffee and possibly buy a zine (a girl’s gotta pay her rent) – I will have bribery cupcakes! Can’t make it? That’s ok. They will be available in my online shop (coming soon) and I’ll be releasing them as ebooks too!

Pantone Pairings by David Schwen

I always love it when food and design collide and it frequently involves Pantone.

These Pantone Pairings of food on Instagram by Minneapolis based designer David Schwen are eye-catching, clever and I look forward to following this ongoing project. What flavour combination are you hoping he does next?

For more Pantone Pairings in this series go here

Strange Fruits by Sarah Illenberger

I recently stumbled across this series of gorgeous and quirky food art by German art director Sarah Illenberger. I would love to hang any of these on my wall. Hello disco pineapple!

For more of her work check out sarahillenberger.tictail.com

Holiday Travel Woes

This time of year is often stressful for a lot of us, not only does the financial and emotional pressure often take its toll (don’t you love those family fights?), travelling during this period can be a complete nightmare! Fortunately for me I am staying put this year, my family is coming from QLD and as far as Norway to celebrate and I don’t have to brave those terrible airport queues or holiday traffic disasters!

I love a good infographic, and this one by CarInsurance.org sums up our sense of duty during the festive season to visit our loved ones and families – with 91% of us travelling by car (ugh). Stay safe on the roads, try not to scream at Grandma and eat LOTS of ham.

Kitty Couture – Feline fashion for the discerning crazy cat lady

The other day I went for a wander to the shops to find the perfect birthday dress. I wanted something 50s styled, preferably in mint green. Then I passed a cat dress and any sensible dress ideas went out the window. Isn’t it wonderful?! However I do draw the line at a cat wearing a bow tie, fortunately this part is detachable.

A pair of Charlotte Olympia cat shoes has been on my wish-list for a very long time but at over AU$700 a pair I think I need to be content with just admiring.

ASOS has some very pleasant-looking cat sweaters. Left + Right

This is ridiculous. I kind of think I need a cat-ular. Yes, that’s a cat spatular. The fact that it guarantees you a purr-fect breakfast just tops it off.

If you want to embrace the cat look on a more low-key level, then perhaps some cat eye sunglasses are more appropriate.

More cat stuff here!

Love Swah has had a facelift!

I’ve been wanting to give Love Swah a little “sprucing” for a while now and with the Eat Drink Blog conference coming up this weekend I needed to get it done ASAP! Let me know what you think of the new look (and if you find anything broken let me know… sometimes it happens).

I am also making matching business cards to hand out at the conference. Due to the last minute nature of these cards they are going to be handmade… made with love of course.

I look forward to meeting you all soon in Adelaide!

Jessica Hische designs the Penguin Drop Cap series

I’ve spoken of my love for Jessica Hische before and was super excited to hear she has collaborated with Paul Buckley (the Penguin Art Director) to produce a series of Penguin book covers featuring an illustrated drop cap designed by Jessica. Each book will also have “a foil-stamped paper-over-board case and a decorative color stain on all three edges.”

A is for Austen.

B is for Brontë.

C is for Cather.

To see more of this collection check it out here. And if you’re unfamiliar with Jessica’s Daily Drop Cap then do yourself a favour and explore her beautiful lettering here.

Addicted to Succulents

A while ago I blogged about my 2 little succulents planted in Wedgwood tea tins and some succulent-related inspiration. Well this love for succulents has seemed to have turned into a full blown addiction and they keep multiplying!

We have a table out on our balcony that they sit on (the herb garden has been shoved off onto the ground, sorry herbs). The succulents are a mixture of presents, plants I have bought at Bunnings, a few from Surry Hills markets and quite a few cuttings from plants I find when I go walking.

I love the variety of shapes and colours the succulents come in. I have a soft spot for the pale plants.

This little guy is my favourite! It reminds me of a ceramic rose.

I also love this pale guy, he is a cutting from a plant I found around Redfern and has been sitting in a glass of water for the past month. These weather-beaten pots I find on my morning jog all around Surry Hills. I keep coming back from my workout lugging a variety of pottery and covered in dirt.

This looks like a rose and a cabbage had a baby! I got in from Bunnings, I need to buy some new pots as I hate the plastic aqua containers they come in.

My Wedgwood plants are still going strong! On the far right is a Milo tin I recycled, just make sure you punch holes in the bottom of your found containers so the water can drain.

How cute is the little polka dot pot? I got it for very cheap from a $2 shop.

Aaaaaand here is part 2 of my succulents. This table is kept indoors but still gets afternoon sun. These are cuttings I get from established succulent plants around the neighbourhood. I sit them in glasses of water until their roots form, then they can be planted in soil and moved outdoors.

I found this guy on the side of the road, dried out and caked in dirt. I have cleaned him up and trying to bring him back to life. Succulents are very hardy so I think he’ll do just fine!

This is a gorgeous cutting I got which is ready to be planted soon.

Check out those roots!

My next succulent-related project is to try and make a terrarium!

My housemate is being very patient about our balcony and living room filling up with plants. But she knows it’s either this or cats. Lots and lots of cats.

The Candy Room, Melbourne

I recently stumbled across the most gorgeous designed sweet shop in Melbourne called The Candy Room. Designed by Red Design Group, they painted the entire space white and decorated surfaces with black line drawings. It results in a fun and edgy unique concept store that I cannot wait to visit next time I’m down south!

Dear Internet, please help me find nice cushions

Hello Internet! I was wondering if I could have some help. My housemate and I purchased a lovely couch recently, it’s name is Frenchie (Freedom named it, not us).

I love it’s retro design and beautiful dark grey colour. However it is looking a little lonely in our living room without some fabulous cushions to brighten it up. I have been cushion-hunting for over a month now and everything is either too blergh or too pricey! All I want is some brightly coloured cushions in bold patterns, I am thinking mustard or teal in stripes, chevron or polka dots.

I would prefer to keep my money in Australia but am am open to online abroad, and ideally want to get 2-3 pillows for under $150. I have been eyeing off these gorgeous Swedish cushions however even the cheapest cushion is over $100AUD! I have trawled various Domayne and Freedom type shops at the Supa Centa (yes, that’s how it is spelt) and checked out the stores along Crown St with no luck (too pricey once again).

If you have any suggestions I would be more than grateful. If all else fails I might design my own fabric at Spoonflower and sew them myself!