the very lovely stylist, photographer and author, Pia Jane Bijkerk has been capturing my attention and imagination for years. her photographs of places like amsterdam and paris always make me long for travel, and drive me to create eclectic spaces that put me at ease, as much as they inspire. pia’s shared a few things she coveting with me, and now she’s got me wishing for them as well! i’m excited to bring you pia’s beautiful “it list”.

1. I’ve been coveting a cassandra ellis quilt for some years now. I love her choice of fabrics and her modern patterns, and I also love that she makes quilts from your own fabric collection. She runs courses on quilt making in the UK, and this October her first book, Quilt Love, will be published.

2. Armadillo & Co make the most beautiful woven rugs, each one is ethically produced and made by hand. The founders are Jodie Fried (from Bholu) and Sally Pottharst, who both have a lovely aesthetic. I love the entrance mats, bold striped runners, and I adore the flower mat, it would look so lovely on my cork kitchen floor.

3. I’ve been wanting to do a weaving course for ages – Harriet Goodall holds day workshops here in Australia, and I’m hoping to attend at least one this year. I’d love to learn about what materials I can use to make simple, loose baskets, and if I am daring enough, I’d love to try my hand at making a light shade for my office. (photograph of Harriet’s work by Chris Chen)

4. Speaking of workshops, I’ve also always wanted to do a ceramics course of sorts, creating free form vessels and small sculptures using modern and ancient techniques. I’d love to make things like bone china feathers, chimes, plant tags, bottles and tea cups. This collection by Una of House of Ceramics is so sublime. And I adore my friend Kylie Johnson’s work where she imprints her poetry into the clay – you may recognize some of her pieces in Anthropologie.  And one of my long-time favorite ceramicists is Emmanuelle Wittmann (who I featured in my book, Paris: Made by Hand) – Emmanuelle holds workshops, so next time I’m in Paris I’ll have to make sure I attend!

5. I am right into paper art at the moment, and I am smitten with this petit paper & shell sculpture by Erika Ekrem of Odelae. How sweet is this? And so creative, very clever. I’m inspired.

6. Island retreating. Yes, I love a bit of jungle living, and one such place is Langkawi, just off the east coast of Malaysia. My partner and I have been traveling there once a year for the past few years, staying mostly at the Bon Ton  which has two fabulous restaurants. I love to imagine myself living in such a place one day, surrounded by huge coconut palms, sipping iced tea in my jungle hut (dreams can come true, right?).

• photographs by Pia Jane Bijkerk.

so i know it seems like i just got back in town, but i’m hitting the road again! i had no travel plans this year at all, but a couple of trips kind of fell into my lap, so when opportunity knocks, you kinda just have to go, right!? first, was the house swap with joanna of a cup of jo, and now i’m heading to amsterdam, antwerp and paris for a bit of blog work.

i don’t leave for another week, but i’m gearing up! I’m checking out pia jane bijkerk’s books, paris: made by hand and amsterdam: made by hand, but i’m not very aware of what’s new and great in antwerp, or paris for that matter! it’s been years since I’ve been, so i’m enticing you with a giveaway to get your help!

so, i’m looking for your expert travel advice once again and giving away one of pia’s books! i’m on the hunt for great design and art, home goods and accessories, and of course, a girl’s gotta eat. so, whatcha got for me? what are your favorite spots in these cities? post your comment below and when i return, i will giveaway a copy one of these books – your choice – to the lucky winner. please post by june 17th, and remember to leave a way to reach you!

• photos via pia jane bijkerk.

i’ve got mad girl-crush-talent-envy on pia jane bijkerk. not only can pia style the heck out of anything, she can photograph it too. yep, serious idol worship here. i thought i’d share some beautiful interiors pia jane has styled and photographed, as well as the ateliers she’s shot for her books, paris: made by hand and amsterdam: made by hand; and images from her book my heart wanders – where pia shares how she leaves behind a comfortable life in Sydney to follow her instincts, first setting up home in Paris, then on a houseboat in Amsterdam. everything pia does pretty much makes me want to run away from home and live a vagabond life in europe. follow more of pia’s adventures on her blog, enhance the everyday. see, mad girl crush, right?

i am already a big fan of Leslie Oschmann of Swarm’s painting canvas bags, and home furnishings. but now leslie and the Amsterdam-based design-duo Little Owl, have created these gorgeous plate sets, called the Altered Perspectives series, available through anthropologie. each set contains a various number of plates, and each set is one of a kind. A vintage portrait, painted on canvas, is layered atop traditional blue and white transferware, resulting in a vintage-modern work of art from two timeless elements. beautiful!

my leslie oschmann swarm bag arrived today, and it couldn’t be more awesome. i posted about swarm bags a few weeks ago, and couldn’t imagine they’d be more beautiful in person. i swoon for swarm.

until next week!
bri from designlovefest

*images via dwell.

i’m a huge, fanatical fan of designer leslie oschmann of swarm. if you’re not familiar with leslie’s work you may have seen it lurking around an anthropologie shop and not even realized the work was contemporary. re-purposed from vintage painting canvases, leslie’s work takes on a whole new wonderful life when she gets to deconstructing these paintings.

amsterdam-based swarm’s new work includes this series of unique, leather handled carry bags made by hand using vintage oil paintings sourced from flea markets in Holland and Belgium. Each bag tell its own story through the juxtaposition of timeworn painted canvas, making each one a distinctive piece of wearable art. This series of carry bags are strong, versatile and spacious, and are designed to show signs of age so that their stories live on, and have an interior pocket, also made from a painting.

leslie’s other new collection further explores the re-invention of juxtaposed and re-purposed materials — this time with chairs. By altering some of the original components, new life is breathed into each chair, transforming them into the “altered” ego of their former self. so, i thought it might be fun to juxtapose leslie’s new bags next to her new chair collection! for more on leslie, visit swarm.

last evening i watched an episode of the sundance channel’s ‘man shops globe’, a documentary series that follows anthropologie’s buyer at large, keith johnson as he shops for treasures from around the world. nice job if you can get it!

in this episode keith visits artist leslie oschmann, a former anthropologie visual director, at her home studio, swarm, in amsterdam, holland. i knew i recognized leslie’s work immediately, as i had snapped the shot above recently at anthropologie’s union square store, two of her vintage-inspired portraits. i love leslie’s innovative work – re-purposing and giving new life to old canvases and laminating them to mid-century modern furnishings. take a lovely gander!

Loflife magazine shared this super sweet loft that came to them by way of Uxus Design and the company’s (and the loft’s) owners and directors, George Gottl and Oliver Michell. The two decided to keep the original wooden interior of this 18th century Amsterdam sugar warehouse, built in 1763 and located on the Bloemgracht canal and in the trendy Jordaan district of Amsterdam (the one area I was able to explore on my jam-packed 48-hour journey on business to the city a few years back, and it was fabulous for both shopping and site seeing).

Uxus Design has this to say about the loft: “In keeping the original open-plan layout we created a series of dramatic curtain walls that could be opened and closed according to the needs of use. Made of luxurious Italian linen, the curtain walls are opaque when lit from the front yet transparent from behind. At night, the space becomes a series of glowing tents, creating the effect of a surreal interior landscape.” For more on this sugar factory turned loft home and virtual candy for the eyes, visit Loftlife magazine.

have y’all noticed the bicycle fever taking place these days? everywhere i look, there’s some really sweet new bike designs popping up! not to mention the always fabulous 2009 tour de france is on! it’s a pretty great thing – good for the environment, and good for our fitness and health. I fixed up an old, vintage motobecane bicycle and i just love it. i even added cherries to my basket (my friends and i like to call it ‘pimping your ride’). amsterdam is a wonderful example of a city that gets around by bike and i was lucky enough to spend 48 hours there a few years back. even on cobbled stone roads, mums ride around with groceries in their baskets, and one or two children in tow. I was so impressed! here’s a glimpse of some shots i took there, and some great new bikes i’ve been seeing around the web, including mrs. french’s lovely bicycle round-up here on sfgirlbybay. happy cycling!

my bike – i’ve “pimped my ride”!

the sweetpea bicycle. so sweet, indeed!

I love this city road bike from handsome cycles.

Simple City bike from gary fisher (via apartment therapy newsletter).