It’s been a while since I blogged about one of my favourite things – pretty paper. Today’s selection is from Pistachio. They’ve got a small but beautiful collection of paper products (cards, wrapping paper and invitations) and gorgeous gifts and apothecary items. Best of all, the products are made with an effort to preserve the planet.
Their mission: “The story of Pistachio began with a simple idea – being generous, environmentally sensitive and engaged with life is good for us and good for the planet.
Pistachio is about creating, using, and reusing things intelligently, about wasting less, and about putting good things into and onto our bodies.
We embrace the idea that being environmentally caring doesn’t mean denying, abandoning or refusing the things we love, but rather designing, developing and using products in more informed, eco-friendly ways.”
Love these gorgeous cards and wrapping paper. Check out epistachio.com for more information.
For more great decorating and design ideas, follow me on Twitter!
The most thoughtful gifts are the ones that come from the heart. While our ideas may cost you some time, they won’t cost you a lot of money. This Mother’s Day, surprise mom with something unexpected. Plant her a summer garden patch or perhaps host an afternoon high tea for her and some of her friends. Need more ideas? Check out the full story: Mother’s Day gifts under $25.
(The fab teapot, mugs and plates picture here are from Rosanna Inc.)
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It’s been a while since I’ve blogged about one of my favourite things: stationery! In recent years, I admit I’ve become a bit of a tech junkie; if you’re one, too, check out Lauren McPhillips’ blog Tech Style. I love my little gadgets like my laptop, BlackBerry and iPod Touch. But even still, I love the tactile nature of notebooks and journals. I love feeling the smooth cover of a beautiful diary beneath my fingers and flipping through the pages of an old agenda book. So, despite being pretty nicely outfitted with gadgets, I still find myself turning to the old standbys of pen and paper to record important things. My newest find are these lovely products from Jenni Bick. Featuring an assortment of journals, photo albums, specialty papers, invitations and gift-wrap, this site is a paper lover’s treasure trove. 
Two of my favourites are pictured here. Snow & Graham sticky note blocks (above) are $14.50 each and the Moderno Italian bonded leather journals (right) in pretty spring colours are $25 each.
For more information, visit jennibick.com.
You might also be interested in:
Organizing 101: Stationery
This primer on organizing stationery makes staying connected with friends and family easy.
Pretty paper
Revive the art of hand-written letters with lovely stationery.
Flower invitations, menus and placecards
Download our free flower invitations, menus, and place cards!
How to: Organize your home office
Designer tricks for turning your home office into an attractive and efficient workspace.
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Nothing says rest and relaxation more to me than cozying up with a hot cup of tea and as the weekend approaches, I welcome the chance to sit down and unwind. Wrapping my hands around a hot cuppa and inhaling the fresh aroma of a perfectly brewed cup of tea seems to melt my stress away. This tea set from Mighty Leaf is a sweet treat for the tea lover and comes with an assortment of tasty teas to try: Breakfast Americana, Organic Earl Grey, Bombay Chai, Orange Dulce and Vanilla Bean. Mmm! I can just feel myself starting relax! Once you’ve got your mug in hand, start a new tradition with styleathome.com’s guide to teatime etiquette, plus find tips for brewing the perfect cup of tea.
Available online at: mightyleaf.ca
These nifty notecards from Felix Doolittle make me think of the Beatrix Potter books I used to pore over as a child. Not only is the artwork reminiscent of Beatrix’s style but the size and shape of the notecards is just like her books … perfect for small hands. (Does that matter or am I just rambling?) If you’re as fanatical about pretty paper as I am, you’ll surely want to add this find to your list of must-shop stationery stores. The designs come in themed collections, notecards, invitations, memo papers, even baker’s labels. Even though these pretty delights are born and raised in West Newton, Massachusetts, you can shop online and have them shipped to Canada via UPS. We LOVE the Internet!
Available online at: Felix Doolittle
House guests often get a bad rap. It’s not easy being one. While visiting friends and family can be wonderful and oftentimes, these visits are long overdue … staying over one or two nights might just remind you why you don’t do it more often. It can just be plain difficult to adapt to someone else’s life at home. But if you are going to be a house guest for a night or two, start things off right from the moment you step foot inside the house you’ll be calling home for a little while. Show up bearing gifts. Bribe your host or hostess with something that’s sure to delight. Pictured left to right: Happy Hour Carafe and Glasses ($32), Towering Espresso Set ($32) and Weighted Sphere Vase ($72), all from violet.com.
I often find myself bemoaning the fact that rarely do we hand write personal letters or cards and send them out via postal service anymore. And if pretty paper and note cards (like the kind I blogged about here) aren’t enough to inspire you to put your computer away and communicate the old-fashioned way, maybe these jeweled pencils will do the trick. This simply but stylishly packaged slide box of five pencils is the perfect gift for yourself … or … fine, for someone else. With a Swarovski lead crystal at the head, these jeweled pencils are more than just writing tools. In the middle of the day, they might just come in handy as chopsticks to hold your hair up. They are jeweled, after all.
Available at: violet.com
Price: $15 for a box set of five
