Etsy Kitchen Finds

Posted on June 16, 2009.

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1. Wool felt rectangular placemat, FitzFelt
I know what you’re thinking. They’re just pieces of felt, right? But these are not like the ones you played with in elementary school. FitzFelt’s products are 100% wool felt imported from Germany and they’re sustainable. As simple as they are, the quality and pops of color make them really stand out.

2. Tenugui (hand-dyed Japanese towel), tezome
I’ve been meaning to get a tenugui because I like the idea that it can be used a multitude of ways. Tezome has a great line of patterns and each towel even comes with a handmade card.

3. Hibiscus flower table runner, Kainkain
Kainkain offers kitchen and other home accessories that not only have nice designs but are very affordable. It’s not often you get both. Check out their cool pillows, too!

4. Dishwasher magnets, inkjet
A scene from the other day… Boyfriend putting a dirty glass into the dishwasher. Me: Aaahh! No, the dishes in there are clean! These magnets might be handy so I can be less of a spaz.

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Cool Anthropologie card

Posted on June 3, 2009.

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I signed up for Anthropologie’s “Anthro” card and while I’m still not sure how it works exactly, it was free and came in this cool little bag! Great packaging is always a nice surprise when all I’m used to getting are tri-fold brochures with the card slapped on with rubber cement. It might seem much to have a bag hold a card but I can use it for other things like holding jewelry or as a mini wallet for quick errands. And it’s being green, right? I think that’s what all the cool kids like to hear nowadays.

The description of the perks are written on an accordion-folded paper inside the green card:

Welcome to anthro
We feel that the better we know you, the more we can do for you.
To put it quite simply, we want to offer you old-fashioned service -
No obligations, no catch!
Let’s unfurl the possibilities.

Ease
receipt-free returns

Point-of-View
we’ll share our likes and loves

Early Bird
see it first buy it early

Sprout
shower us with suggestions and together we’ll grow

what we hold dear…

The handmade look of the packaging fits perfectly with Anthropologie’s style and it really adds a personal touch. Signing up for this card just encourages me to shop, or more like gawk, at the store more often. Although somewhat pricey, they go beyond the cookie-cutter style and everything I have bought from there somehow feels unique and extra special.

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Fading Peonies

Posted on May 27, 2009.

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Did you know peonies change color as they get older? The bright pink one on the right just bloomed today, the top one yesterday, and the pale pink on the left has been open for a couple of days now. I bought them when they were buds and I thought they would never open up but here they are blooming to the size of my hand. They really fill up a vase and it’s a much better deal than roses which are kind of overrated.

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Makin’ a Birkin

Posted on May 26, 2009.

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While I’m aware of the fact that $10,000 for a purse is insane especially in relation to my bank account, I wouldn’t even hesitate for a millisecond if an Hermes Birkin bag was handed over to me for free. We can all go on about conspicuous consumption and how they should be ashamed when the economy is suffering, but I can appreciate anything that requires attention to detail. This video shows how much work and time it takes to make just one bag. Each Birkin is made entirely by hand with one craftsman assigned to a bag from start to finish. The materials are so special that they won’t even accept an alligator skin with a mosquito bite! It lessens the sticker shock a little and you think, “Oh, I get it.” Still, it’s very much a status symbol and giving one to your middle-school child and using it as a book bag to impress all her friends is a little disturbing. But that’s a whole other issue.

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Why I love Target

Posted on May 22, 2009.

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I was leisurely roaming around Target this morning with an urge to shop. This could have been potentially dangerous because it is just like going food shopping when you’re starving. I was just about to leave after a whole internal struggle with myself on buying things I don’t really need when I passed by this Orla Kiely tablecloth all by its lonesome. And what? Is that a red clearance tag I see? Yes! To the check-out counter!

I saw this tablecloth months ago and decided to pass on it at the time. Of course, much of Orla Kiely’s Target line disappeared in a flash and I was just thinking the other day about how I should have bought it. Well like they say, good things come to those who wait – or maybe I’m the only one who likes it or needs to cover their hand-me-down dining table that looks a bit country.

I know all the design blogs have been obsessing over these for some time and I’m sure all of them have at least one Orla Kiely Target product by now. Now I completely understand the hype because the colors and the pattern have really brightened up the room. Yep, this tablecloth totally made my day.

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