So dreamy…

Grey or gray is an achromatic or neutral color. The first recorded use of grey as a color name in the English language was in AD 700. Grey is the British, Canadian, Australian, Irish, New Zealand and South African spelling, although gray remained in common usage in the UK until the second half of the 20th century. Gray is the preferred American spelling, although grey is an accepted variant. Gray became the preferred spelling in American English around 1825.

These days I am seeing gray everywhere in home decor. I love it mixed with almost every color. Gray is the new brown, black and taupe! It’s not as warm as brown or taupe but it complements other colors really well. It is not a spotlight color it lets the other colors shine. It can make a room feel really modern, country, shabby chic, romantic or traditional depending on what you pair it with. Plus there are so many shades of gray, from blue grays to warm grays. You can’t go wrong. Not feeling brave enough to try it out yet? Then start collecting your favorite looks on Houzz.com or Pinterest and start off with a small space. How about the bathroom or laundry room?

Over the last couple of months we’ve been pulling double duty here at Simon+Kabuki. On the one hand we’ve been designing and finalizing new collections to showcase at SURTEX. This year S+K does not have a booth but our agent will be there with a large booth and lots of meetings set up for us. And on the other hand we have been designing a booth and all marketing materials for StationeryHQ, a printer, that will be at the National Stationery Show next door. We love designing stationery and have been at it for quite some time, we were one of the original designers on TinyPrints. So it was fun to design notecards, notebooks, and other goodies for StationeryHQ. They are introducing several new processes to designers like Letterpress Lite and fun new die cuts.

We hope you have time to stop by our booth and say hi, Jewel Branding, Booth 408. And if you have time to check out NSS let us know what you think of StationeryHQ’s booth. Don’t forget to come back to our blog often as we update with some of our new collections and observations from the show.

Target has a great new concept that they just launched. They’ve taken items from some popular stores and have curated and collected them for Target shoppers into The Shop. Much like their designer lines that they carry now, these items are available online and in the store. They have a great selection, Polka Dog Bakery, Privet House, Cos Bar, The Webster and The Candy Store. I really love Privet Shop which carries home decor items and hope they expand their collection. I plan on visiting my neighborhood Target and buying that awesome green pillow! Now instead of spending a million dollars at Target I can spend $2 million. My cart is always overflowing even if I just go in for detergent. Good thing everything is so reasonably priced! Now if Target could just give Simon+Kabuki a call all would be good in the world!

Maurice Bernard Sendak – June 10, 1928 – May 8, 2012

Growing up my favorite book was Where the Wild Things Are. I still have my original copy, slightly beaten, read many times and loved tremendously. I felt like I was Max or at least his tag-along friend on a fantastic journey. I loved the drawings and imagined myself as their queen. Max could be my boyfriend and we’d all live happily ever after. I know much has been said about the psychology behind Sendak’s books and illustrations but as a happy go lucky kid, I just saw them as pure fun and fantasy. There was never really a dark side for me. It’s funny how kids can read something or watch something over and over again but that is exactly what I did as a child. I can’t imagine reading any of the books I read now over and over. There is something about being a child and finding the perfect book that just can’t be repeated as we get older. I guess with bills to pay, jobs to go to, people to take care of – a little bit of happy go luck gets lost. Thank you Mr. Sendak for Max and the Wild Things!

“We’ll eat you up, we love you so!”

A hilarious reading by Christopher Walken, just click image to see video

Ideas L to R: Cookies, straws, photo jars, table setting, french toast casserole, egg toast cup, cocktails

When I was in college I thought I would be getting a degree in photography. Along the way I learned that my real interest was graphic design, thanks to an astute photography teacher who noticed I always combined words with my photos. I don’t have as much time for photography anymore unless you count taking pictures of your kids at their birthdays and other gatherings or sports events. Today I decided to take pictures of little vignettes of things around my house using my iPhone. I love all of the photography apps for the iPhone. It allows me to be creative without a darkroom, does anyone work in a darkroom anymore?! I am just an amateur but my son has inherited my love of photography and he can create magic just with his iPhone!

Here are the apps on my phone and I’ve used some of them in the photo collages:

Pic Collage and Frametastic – used both of these making my collages. These are also great for doing blog posts with Pin Boards

ColorSplash – allows you to color just one part of the photo, perfect for flowers

OldPhotoPro – change images to sepia, antique looking, perfect for a western look

Vintage Cam – has several different filters to play with

TiltShiftGen – makes things look like tiny models, so awesome!

Hipstamtic – gives images a vintage-y feel with lots of filters

Some of these I have not tried yet but my daughter’s play around with them: PS Express, Instagram, Tiny Planets, ToonPaint, Color Canvas, Lo-Mob, MoreMono, MoreLomo, SlowShutter, SketchMe, 360, iMajiCam, INPoke

Of course you can get all of these apps through iTunes. What are your favorites? Any tips or tricks? I’d like to find a collage app with a little bit more flexibility, if anyone has one they love let me know.

Yup, I did this to my kid.

But he turned out okay. I love photo announcements with baby/senior pics…

Whether you have a middle schooler graduating and you’re just having the fam over for a small celebration or you’re hosting a college grad party with a big crowd, there are easy ways to make it a memorable occasion.

I have a high school senior and I’m teaming up with two other moms to host a grad party so my little brain is overflowing with ideas for a kickass party that my son surely will not appreciate.

Here are some of my ideas:

• Photo invitation instead of the classic school announcement, this way the faraway relatives get a senior portrait and all of the pertinent info in one card

• Photo cake with baby picture/senior portrait

• Slide show or collage showing my son starting out cute and morphing into a horrible teenager

• School colors for linens and decor (duh)

• Yellow & white flowers with a navy ribbon around a vase for centerpieces

• Easy food, i.e., taco stand or heavy appetizers so it doesn’t matter what time guests arrive (this is important- guest might be party hopping)

• If you have a large party, hire someone to work the party – refilling drinks, emptying trash cans, picking up used napkins, etc. so you won’t have a huge mess to clean up after the party. I use college kids, they need the money and can stay up late

• Throw back a shot of the good stuff 15 minutes before the party starts so you can relax, you’ve earned a good time

It's that time of year!

It’s graduation time and I don’t care who you are, you know someone who is graduating from high school, college, kindergarten, or middle school. I’m lucky enough to have a kid graduating from high school on the very same day that I have another kid graduating from middle school. Just kill me.

Needless to say, there will be lots of celebration and fanfare. Here are some ideas for grad gifts:

• Cash is always good for older kids, but a check tucked into a sweatshirt from their new college is even better. Kids love to wear their emblems.

• A gas card is a nice alternative to cash for high school grads, keeps them from spending all their college money on Natty Light and Red Solo Cups.

• Personalized stuff: a phone cover with a photo of the kid with BFFs from Zazzle, personalized school supplies (for the younger set) from Frecklebox.com, monogrammed fleece or towels.

• Emergency kit: sewing stuff, basic tools, first aid supplies and candy.

• A gift card from their college bookstore.

Stay tuned for grad party planning…

Does your mom garden, if so these cute bags of seed bombs from Anthropologie would make a great gift. Put several in a basket with a small trowel and gardening gloves.

One of my favorite gifts that we gave my mom was a charm bracelet with all of the grandkids pictures. It was beautiful. We got it from VintageFaerie.com. I also love all of the custom jewelry (above) at Vintage Pearl. Speaking of personalized gifts, why not get your mom a custom cell phone case? They have great ones at KodakGallery.com.

My mom still writes handwritten notes so personalized stationery would be a great gift. This one is from TinyPrints, but they also have great options at LookLoveSend.com and SimplytoImpress.com.

Looking for an inexpensive but really thoughtful gift? Make a “Why I love you” jar. Use scrapbook supplies to decorate a regular canning jar and then just add strips of paper with your personal thoughts about your mom. I made one a few years ago for my mom, it was really fun to think back to my childhood and let her know what meant a lot to me. You can add a Starbucks gift card as a treat.

I love eating fresh fruits and veggies especially in the summer. Last year we decided to build our own vegetable garden. We built two 4′ x 8′ boxes. Each season we switch out what we grow and try new things. Not everything is a success and it is definitely trial by error, we are far from experts! Our most successful crops so far have been broccoli and cauliflower. We had tomatoes which only did okay. We also planted leeks, peppers, herbs and cucumbers. This year our selection includes tomatoes, cilantro, basil, lemon cucumbers, melons, squash, eggplant, lettuce and a few other herbs. Sometimes we want to kill our dogs or the squirrels that dig in the planters but overall it has been a really fun experience. Our kids love seeing what new veggie is growing and eating it fresh off the vine. This year I hope we have a bumper crop that lasts all through the summer. We often rely on Sunset Magazine to help with ideas, it is a great resource. What are you planting this year? Any favorites that we must try or special tips on getting the most from your garden?