Kim's Little Monsters

I just came across Kim Welling's awesome etsy shop, Kim's Little Monsters! She's an illustrator and all round creative person from the Netherlands. How rad are these Instant Comfort Pocket Boxes?! I was awestruck.
"Some days... you just need a little bit of consolation. So pull this little handmade treasure out of your pocket and you'll instantly feel better! Or give this box to a friend to cheer him or her up!"
Little boxes with 3D illustrations and words of comfort inside:

Or how about these wooden portrait brooches, each with its own personality story:

"Ruben, the accountant: Ruben is trying to loose weight by running tree times a week. He still lives with his mother."
"Megan, the illustrator: Megan is addicted to blogging and knits in her spare time."

Plus other goodies like these cups and saucers:

Such great ideas, and more on her blog as well, I couldn't possibly post it all! Go have a look :)

Cats & Cacti!

These odd but awesome collages are the creations of 27 year-old Chicago artist, Stephen Eichhorn. I originally assumed it was photoshop work, but after watching his video (below) saw that those plants are all maticulously cut out in all the superfine glorious detail! Hectic!
I asked him about what brought the cats and plants together to form this delightful combo:
"The plants and animal series started as an inside joke and was born from a happy accident combining the cat imagery and foliage from my other work (basically two of my favorite things). I would only show the collages to friends that would come by the studio and kept them a secret but was eventually coerced into putting them online."

He's also got a rather cool living space. Love all the greenery going on here...

Check out more of his stuff on his Flickr page. Here's a short video about his collage work:

The International Weird Collage Show

How's these bizzarro collages! And how rad that there is an entire international exhibition dedicated to their weird and wonderfulness? Quite rad, I say. Check out more here.
It's a group exhibition that takes place in Madrid. Here's some background info on the history of collage from their site which I found interesting...
*Interesting enough for me to make the effort to translate (why yes, I do speak Madridian, actually), which is why the text might seem a bit wonky. I adjusted it a bit for clarity. 

"In 1912, Picasso and George Braque decided to cut and paste pieces of paper for newspapers, magazines, fabrics and other materials to directly capture reality in his paintings, rather than copy it and distort it. At that time everything seemed a mere coincidence, an anecdote that nobody knew if it would survive the passage of the avant-garde, the passage of the art. Principles of the 1990s, artists such as Kara Walker, Greg Lamarche and Eduardo Recife, working with the Internet, with all the material that the digital age has become accessible to all. The main tools are still the same, scissors, glue and paper virtually, and now the material is infinite and always available. The Collage is already a very consolidated artistic technique within the discourse of contemporary art."

The Tea Cup Collection

"Their search began for riches rare, 

in dusty antique stores here and there.

The tea cups they saw they discussed between them, 

one-off treasures from England to Sweden.

Beautiful designs born from their minds, 

all inspired by one of a kinds.

On cushions they printed these labours of love, 

only 100 of each, not one above.

So read the label and wash with care, 

and you'll enjoy yours for many a year."

A project by Pearly Yon and Mingo Lamberti

So you might have gathered that I have a bit of a thing for teacups. If not, now you know. So I just came across these really cool cushions inspired by antique teacup designs! Perfect!

"The idea for this project was born from a visit to an antique china store in Kalk Bay called “Whatnot & China Town”. Their extensive collection of designs was so diverse that it left the two designers inspired to re-create these designs in a contemporary way.
Just as there is a trend to mix crockery sets, Mingo Lamberti and Pearly Yon thought it would work to combine their own personal styles in a scatter cushion range." via astoreisgood
You can buy the limited cushions via astoreisgood.
Nicely done, guys.

Teenagers in Love

 Loving the images and kit from clothing brand, Teenagers in Love.

Teenagers in Love is a California casual clothing company. Our intentions are to keep the world bright, unique, and freshly dressed. Pulling much aesthetic inspiration from vintage surf, skate, & bmx culture as well as vintage motorcycles and graphic design, we strive to bring back styles that the present industry seems to have forgotten.

Cool stuffs

Much foxyness going on here...
1  Fox Head wall mount via The Reimold Effect
2  Fox Mug via The Dainty Squid
3  Wood house - handpainted secret money place via OldNewAgain
4  Platters by Meyer Lavigne
5  Fox print t-shirt via NewDuds

I can't quite express the feeling of happiness/ contentment/ peace I feel when sitting at my favouritest little cafe by myself and drinking tea. There's something about the whole tea accompaniment that just makes me kinda glow inside. Especially when the crockery is so gosh darn pretty.
*contented sigh*

Weekly doodles

Ok so... The daily doodle thing didn't quite work out. At least I tried... for a day :P
Anyface, I'm going to try do one every day, but I'll post them weekly. Here goes...

Art vs Science

Toy Story...

Quite liking the vibe of these Toy Story prints from Aled Lewis.
 He's got some cool Threadless t-shirt designs as well. Check it out on his site.