Where my head's at...

Kwon Seulgi - Untitled - Brooch - 2011
silicone, pigment, plastic, thread, wood, stainless steel


Kwon Seulgi - Untitled - Brooch - 2011
silicone, pigment sterling silver, thread, stone, glass bead, stainless steel


Kwon Seulgi - Cell 10 Brooch - Oct 2009
silicone, pigment, plastic, stainless steel



Chanel Spring 2012 Under the Sea


Studio Bertjan Pot - Cluster Light 2009


Ernesto Neto - "Simple and light as a dream...the gravity don’t lie...just loves the time" 2006
Installation view fromTanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York
Photo: Fabian Birgfeld, photoTECTONICS.
Courtesy of the artist and Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York (Via Moment/C)

Minerals - grey, gold, black, silver

Galena with Chalcopyrite, Sphalerite and Quartz
See many more photo's and details here on Mineral Classics


Metastibnite via Mineral Classics


Pyrrhotite on Galena from Russia via Mineral Classics


Sphalerite on Chalcopyrite via Surrey Minerals


Pyrite in Slate via The San Francisco Gem & Mineral Society

Pyrite via Mindat


Stibnitewith Barite via irocks


Skutterudite via irocks

The Bloomberg Pavillion

I've been having the kind of week that you normally only see on movies. A chance to change something from their past which would completely alter my life. I've stuck with the decision I made so many years ago but it hasn't stopped my thoughts and emotions being turned upside down and inside out. Everything in my life that seemed fixed suddenly has other options and it's almost impossible not to think of all the possibilities that could have unfolded. My poor wee brain feels thoroughly fragmented as it churns over all the possible ways things could have gone.

What better day to send out one of my draft posts from last year of the Bloomberg Pavillion with it's multi-faceted structure. That's what my brain is like this week, a solid base with all manner of wildness spilling out the top and looking different depending on where you approach it and the time of day.





'bloomberg pavilion' by akihisa hirata architecture office, tokyo, japan. photo © takumi ota
images courtesy of akihisa hirata architecture office + museum of contemporary art tokyo
found via Designboom

Ulrika Kestere, Hair, Blue Clothes

Ulrika Kestere - Winter horse poster €22 here

Ulrika Kestere - Ice Princess

I was originally directed towards the top photograph by Ulrika Kestere by someone saying she had a similar wardrobe to me. I thought they meant furniture wardrobe but clearly they meant likes to wear lots of different blues with a touch of red. The clothes are nice but it's the photo itself I like most. It is part of a series called "Girl with 7 horses" and she has made this one available to buy as a print here. You can see more of her photographs on her blog Ulicam. I liked the wintery one because I collect blue dresses and have long wanted to photograph them in snow, but it's always been too wet, too cold or too windy. She is tougher than I am.

I was looking at old photos this week and found one of me as a kid on the banks of the Mississippi River wearing blue with a touch of red (loved my bandanna) in 1984 when our parents bundled us all into a Camper Van and spent the Summer driving from LA to New York (having been living in LA 2yrs but returning to live in Scotland). I didn't realise I was doing non traditional hair buns in '84, I thought I didn't bun my hair until college in '89. Ulrika has an animated gif of braided hair that reminds me of why I put up with my really long but infuriatingly prone to tangling hair for so long. I loved playing with it, so many ways to express my mood. But when you have ME every bit of energy is precious and it's pointless wasting it on a daily battle with tuggy hair (you can see the tugs beginning to form a blur in centre of the bottom photo). Last January I chopped nearly all of it off and last month I did it again. But it's nice to find photo's of it long.


Me with my Brother. Watching Mississippi paddle steamer 1984

Me at Big Bear Lake, California 2008

Etsy finds in Greys Blues Yellows

Okapi - Silvergrey Neckpeice


idea2lifestyle - Moon Water Skirt Pants (very very tempted to buy these)


Lacasadecoto - Pouf Crochet Aqua


MaLieb - Leap of the Heart


CoMod - Herman Miller Eames Fiberglass Side Chair Rocker


Uzura - Hemp Bag with Organic Cotton Lining



Kelansartcouture - top piece, bottom piece.


MadebyCassandraSmith - Yellow, Blue and Seafoam Painted Antler


Adatine - Rabbit Diet Brooch


SuiteOneStudio - Porcelain Bowls

I've been really wiped out recently, partly the M.E. but also a bit of a cold that doesn't escalate, but refuses to leave. So what's a girl to do but immerse herself in Etsy. I looked at lots of things but these ones reflect today's colours, greys and pale blues with moments of brighter blue and yellow when the sun peaked through the cold February sky.


Thaitee - Lady Jane Dress


UpInTheAirSomewhere - Aqua Paper Bowl


Nellianna - Chestnut Origami Paper Lampshades

Susanna Bauer - Leaves

Susanna Bauer - Leaves

These remind me of the delight I felt the first time I saw an Andy Goldsworthy leaf sculpture at the Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh. I've had a love for this type of work ever since and Susanna has a new take on them that I'm really enjoying.

Cactus Beetroot Cranberry

The flowers are nearly finished on the Christmas Cactus, they always brings such a great splash of neon pink over Christmas and this year they were especially abundant (having been scant after major pruning 2yrs earlier).

Another intense pink that lasts all through winter is of course beetroot. All that colour hints at it's high beta carotene content. When eaten regularly it's liver cleansing abilities are ideal for those of you who had more than the occasional tipple during the party season. My usual Summer salad of beetroot, pear and feta got a seasonal boost with fresh cranberries. Also good for your liver and packed with phytonutrients and antioxidants.

Not that my liver has suffered in any way, I barely drink at all, but I do like to dribble Tawny Port onto things around Christmas time so I can pretend they are trifle so I'm sure my liver is happy to have a pink boost to help cleanse it. Hopefully by next year my Cranberry plant will have settled in enough to produce an edible harvest so I won't need to depend on shops at all.

Winter returns

All photo's from Winter 2010, near my parents house.
Top 3: Frosty Umbel, Dried Rosebay Willowherb, Village House.

After a pretty consistently mild and gale filled few months Winter, in the sense that we are used to it here in Scotland, has finally returned. The gales have stopped and even the strong winds have eased in the last week or two, such a relief. This week much of the country is blanketed in snow so it seemed fitting to post some snowy shots (from 2010), though the snow seems to have missed us here. Instead we are getting hard frosts every night so a lot of the plants, especially the supposed annuals, that had been unnaturally surviving the winter are starting to peg out. I was thrilled they lasted at all so losing them isn't too sad, and their winter longevity meant I was able to get an extra season of cuttings to replace the Summer cuttings that didn't all do well. It's good to get a proper run of cold as it keeps things like greenfly from getting out of control outside (let's not get into my neglectful plant care which has allowed them to flourish inside!).