beautiful silkscreened cards by esther mar of essimar. i love the rounded edges and mix of bright color and texture…perfect for a unique holiay thank-you card. click here for more info and to contact essimar for orders. [thanks, esther!]

donna jo brady at re-surface design decided to run a little holiday special at the d*s shop- for the rest of the december shop run she’ll be offering a fresh new design at a special discounted price. the lamps are available right here for $60 each and have a fresh new textile pattern on a soft lavender shade. click here for more info and to shop.

sara jenson’s pomegranate bags were a huge hit in the shop this month so i was thrilled when she emailed today with new designs. sara is selling her gorgeous pomengranate designs via her site, lost bird found. the pomegranate pattern comes in canvas bag, small pouch, large tote, apron and as canvas fabric. each one is cuter than the next…click here to view the full collection and shop online. [great work, sara!]

i first met artist amanda kavanagh through my dad- they were flickr photo buddies and from the moment he showed me her work i was hooked. amanda lives in brooklyn with her husband and creates beautiful paintings from her home near prospect park. i’ve always loved the sort of ethereal moods she creates in her work and her ability to play with light in such a powerful way. over lunch a few weeks ago we talked about affordable art and the trend in sites like tiny showcase (where she sold out almost immediately) that cater to people interested in prints. amanda was considering offering high quality print versions of her work and today she opened a shop where she’s selling 8 prints (in limited additions of 100) for prices as low as $25 each. each print is signed and numbered and printed on acid-free hahnemuhle photo rag satin 310 gsm using ultrachrome archival inks. the prints are really lovely and since so many of us are interested in affordable art i thought this would be right up our alley. click here for more info and to shop online. [great work, amanda!]

[kristina from three layer cake is in town today (all the way from rome!) so i’m off to meet her and chat design. be back later this afternoon with a new post]

lorraine from design studio fifty-eight b sent over this beautiful new vase called “oh china”. the oh china vase is made from silver and gold plated spools of colorful thread. the effect is simple but modern and the thread is such a nice pop of color. fifty-eight b has a great collection of furniture as well which you can check out right here- they also have studios in dublin and paris so click here for more info on the studio and their locations. [thanks, lorraine!]

after yetserday’s ipod cozies i got tons of requests for more handmade versions. these cozies from stitchella on etsy were too cute to pass up. each handmade felt case is perfect for an ipod nano or cell phone case and has a recycled button closure to keep your gadget from falling out. the final touch is a cute screen printed bird in three styles (crow, sparrow and something that looks like a chickadee)- they’re available right here for $10 each. enjoy!

i’m so happy i found my carrie bradshaw curtains at marimekko and it looks like their winter collection now includes a similar pattern called kirgiisi designed by maija isola and kristina isola. kirgiisi comes in a very holiday friendly palette of rich red and green and a muted tan and white variety. any of the colors would look lovely as curtains, table linens, pillows or anything you can think of…click here for more info.