from the windows of the cottage where rosie brown lives with her husband ewan and little baby girl, verity belle (isn’t that the sweetest name), she can look out over the garden and watch the sea foretell the changing weather. the family just moved into this cottage in pittenweem, a small fishing village with one of the last working harbors in the area , just 7 months ago. the couple had wanted to move from edinburgh (see rosie’s edinburgh home here) and the tiny artist community seemed like the perfect choice for the owner of papa stour. each august the artists in the town throw open their doors to welcome visitors and show their work. rosie’s cottage is located just opposite a 7th century cave on a wynd (doesn’t that word just make you want to buy a ticket to scotland?) leading up from the harbor and is inaccessible by car. (see all of rosie’s home on flickr)   {thanks rosie, ewan and verity belle!} -amy a.

[photo above: The house was originally 2 cottage that were made into one in the 70's by the National Trust so it's a very quirky shape.  Most of the windows are south facing which is where the garden is too which makes it a lovely sunny place.  I wanted to give it a more spacious feel so painted most of the house white except for our studio and bedroom. There was a big red check carpet running throughout the hall and curtains with pelmets which took away a lot of the light.  We re-carpeted the hall in a thin stripe of duck egg and off white which gives it a more beachy light look.  We used white blinds instead of curtains to give it a more modern and light feel.]

[photo above: The nursery is located in a lovely little room at the top of the house with amazing views out the sea. The cot was mine when I was little and the blankets are by Nicola Mcghee, our newest Papa Stour artist, she does beautiful wool blankets that all come in vintage bags. The Chinese lantern was a find from New York many years ago.  The quilted blankets were bought in India from one of the hotel owners who had a small hand block print studio in one of the rooms they were beautiful and cost next to nothing.]

[photo above: This is the spare room. The map is an old map of the Kingdom of Fife (where we now live) that my husband has had for 15 or odd years, so amazing that we are now there!)]

CLICK HERE for more of Rosie’s Brown’s Scotland home!

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i was so bummed to miss IDS this year, but it’s been great to hear from designers at the show about their new work. i’m always happy to see an email from bev hisey in my inbox and i was even happier to hear about her gorgeous new butterfly bag chairs. made of 3mm wool felt, they were shown in the arren williams space at IDS and are currently on my list of things i would rather be sitting on than my rickety living room sofa (yes, ac, i’m admitting it’s not comfortable). i’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for anything bean-bag like so these felt versions seem like the perfect way to integrate my favorite tv-watching seat into my (slightly) grown-up home. thanks to bev for passing them along- you can see more of her work right here.

i couldn’t resist sharing a little monday morning eye candy of the avian variety. this colorful new mobile from madeleine stamer at little circus design is painfully sweet. whether you have a little one who needs above-crib decoration or have the perfect spot for this in your adult home, you can pick up one of madeleine’s new mobiles in cool blue or warm red shades right here. thanks, madeleine!

the moma design store’s new 2010 gift catalog includes this adorable little paperclip holder named “chip”. the chrome plated sculpture uses internal magnets to hold clips, giving it the appearance of wings or feathers. perch it on top of your papers and you’ve got a handy paperweight, too. it’s a tad over my budget for an office accessory, but that doesn’t stop me from wishing it perched on my desk. click here for more info and to buy online.

today i’m thrilled to welcome a very special trio to the d*s guest blog: amy, sarah and anna blessing. the blessing sisters run a beautiful site called bbb craft where they share their love of handmade skills like knitting, needlepoint, crocheting, paper arts and collage. in addition to their work with a retail shop in santa monica and chicago, the blessing sisters spend their spare time creating lovely things and sharing them on their website. though i enjoyed growing up without siblings, when i hear about sisters, or any family members, joining together to create something special like this i’m always happy (and a tiny bit envious) that they let people like us in on their fun. so i’m thrilled to welcome amy, sarah and anna to the d*s guest blog this week where they’ll be sharing all sorts of crafty ideas.

today the bbb craft sisters will be focusing on nature-crafts, like these beautiful pinecones, coasters and branch lighting. click here to check out their full post and more great nature-inspired craft ideas.

before i head out for the weekend i wanted to end the week with these great new designs from budesign of latvia. their accessories hanger is such a great idea- i always have so many small things that i want to put away (too many to leave on an entryway table) and this is a great way to make better use of a hallway closet. it would even be great for small scarves and gloves- which always end up buried under my shoes in the closet. in addition to their closet hook/hanger, budesign made some beautiful lighting inspired by a cheese grater. it would be so fun to see in a grocery store, deli or cheese counter. which reminds me- it’s time for lunch. i’m off to raid the pantry for something to eat- i hope you all have a wonderful weekend and i’ll see you on monday! stay tuned for a new d*s desktop wallpaper next week! below is a summary of this week’s highlights:

• new d*s twitter feed (hooray for winning our name back!)
• past & present: history of tartan, tartan shopping roundup
• biz ladies 2010: logo design advice from meg mateo ilasco
• in the kitchen with: skinny laminx’s banana bread
• budget roundup: under $100: bookends
• living in: amadeus!
• new city guide: lousianna’s twin cities: monroe and west monroe
• sneak peeks: ryan humphrey of top design, sanna annukka + jasper goodall, nina gotlieb,
• diy projects: kate’s menu binder, faux-topiary, hidden jewelry box, tin can planters, knitted plant cozies, clock mirror transformation
• before & afters: rocking + director’s chairs, barb’s dresser + wendy’s home exterior, san francisco loft makeover, lucy’s clock mirror (+ how-to)
• we like it wild: knitting plant cozies
• small measures with ashley: time for tea
• misc: it takes two- couples art show, folk object website, old tom foolery cards, muovo dog beds, amy ruppel forest print, nature inspired v-day gifts at terrain, bookbook (antique book macbook cover), new sesame letterpress cards, new textiles from henry road, the cutting garden at flora grubb,

I don’t remember exactly when Heather Moore of Skinny laMinx submitted her recipe for banana bread to us, but it was almost two years ago, I think! Unfortunately, whenever Heather had time to shoot the images, it was winter and light was not plentiful. So I took the opportunity to carry the recipe with me to my mini food styling and photography workshop with Adam Pearson and Matt Armendariz, and we made the banana bread in the great sun of southern California in mid-December! I dashed out to the supermarket to buy some missing ingredients for another recipe, and when I got back I noticed some of the cake was missing. I asked Adam what happened. He said, “It fell.” I said, “Oh…then we can’t eat it?” He said,”It fell into my mouth!!” We thoroughly enjoyed eating this banana bread, and hope you will too. Do you have your own favorite way of eating banana bread? If any of it survives more than one day, we recommend trying this one toasted, with butter.

About Heather: Heather Moore is an illustrator and designer from Cape Town, South Africa. She illustrates for magazines and advertising, and also loves to make fabric designs for her label Skinny laMinx, which she sells through her online shop and in an increasing number of boutique stores all over the world. {Portrait by Mr. laMinx. Food styling by Adam C Pearson, food photography by Matt Armendariz}

CLICK HERE for the full recipe (and more pictures) after the jump!

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images above, clockwise from top left: skinny laminx, tea brewery, gayane teapot, green teas chatter, trip advisor, repro depot, about.com

I grew up largely in the southeastern United States. Accordingly, I’ve been known to harbor certain “southern” traits-the use of the word “y’all”; a profound and enduring love of the film Steel Magnolias, not to mention an ability to quote it when the situation merits (I have used Clairee’s line to Ouiser “You know I worship the quicksand you walk on” many, many times on a widely varied body of individuals); and a penchant for black tea. No meal was complete without a pitcher of mom’s super sweet iced tea growing up. It didn’t matter if we were sitting down to Tuesday night’s dinner or the Thanksgiving meal. If we were eating, we were also drinking sweet tea. We downed it with thirsty devotion, as though it was the only beverage available; on many occasions, it was.

I don’t remember when the shift to hot black tea occurred (an ex-boyfriend and his British mom might have had something to do with it), but I do recall moving away from cloyingly sweet tea when I started becoming interested in health and nutrition (and became aware of the fact that heart disease and Type 2 diabetes run in my family). While I left the heavy sugar behind, I retained an appreciation for Orange Pekoe, embracing all of its kin along the way. Most mornings now find me with a mug of hot tea in hand. As January is “National Tea Month”, today’s “Small Measures” acknowledges the importance of tea, tea time, and all of its attendant pleasures.

Tea has multitudinous benefits. We’ll begin with the obvious, health. Research from Brigham and Women’s Hospital , along with Harvard University, indicates that the amino acid L-theanine found naturally in tea bolsters the body’s immune system. Drinking five 20 ounce cups of black tea daily for 2-4 weeks showed an increase in both immune system defenses and resistance to disease, the research revealed. Specifically, consumption of tea showed a significant increase in the presence of gamma delta T cells, the body’s first line of defense against disease and infection. As if that weren’t enough to fire up the kettle, this link provides more clinical research on the multifaceted benefits of tea. I’ll drink to that!

CLICK HERE for the rest of Ashley’s “Time for Tea” post after the jump! *Click here for the D*S Teapot roundup to go with your tea*

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when it comes to west coast garden style, i can think of few places i admire more than flora grubb. the first time i visited this incredible san francisco nursery/shop was with heidi and i think i would have stayed all day had their not been the promise of a delicious lunch on the horizon. so i was thrilled to hear from susie nadler at flora grub about her new business venture ‘the cutting garden‘, a cut flower studio at flora grubb gardens.

susie’s husband is flora’s business partner and after talking and working with flora, they all decided that fresh flowers would be a great way to expand the services offered at flora grubb. the cutting garden designs a wide range of beautiful arrangements (made from seasonal, california-grown materials) or your home, special events, or offices, and also runs a beautiful floral blog on the flora grubb site. one of susie’s goals is to help people become comfortable with cutting from their own gardens and arranging stems themselves, so susie will be helping customers with tips and tools of the trade for keeping the look of cut flowers going in your home. i’m so excited to check out the cutting garden in person, but until then i’ll be staring at these arrangements on a regular basis. if you’re in the area, drop by flora grubb to check out the new cutting garden, or visit them on the web right here. looking for valentine’s day gifts? flora grubb has a great online v-day selection right here.

*click here and here to check out more work from the cutting garden and flora grubb! thanks, susie!

if i lived in los angeles i think i’d end up spending an inordinate amount of time at paula’s henry road shop (or her adorable house, if i was lucky enough to be invited). until i can get out west again, i’ll have to live vicariously through these gorgeous photos of new fabrics, tea towels, and bread bags from the shop. i’m seriously obsessed with the bright orange piping on the chair above- it would be so beautiful in a sunny room. if you’re in LA you can swing by paula’s shop in person, or check out her latest collection at the online shop. thanks, paula!