i am just so charmed and captivated by the work of french artist and designer nathalie lete, who i recently discovered through anthropologie’s gallery. Nathalie lives and works in paris in this amazing home and atelier, and works in many artistic mediums, mixing different techniques with illustration, ceramics, textile and painting, inspired by her travels, but also by the mixing of vintage toys and old engravings of flowers and animals.

nathalie’s work is colorful, naive and poetic, sometimes unusual, influenced much by folk art. She produces children’s and graphic books, knitted and stuffed toys, glass pictures, patterned dishes, but also postcards, ceramic sculptures, silkscreen printed t-shirts, rugs and jewels in limited edition, both for herself and for commissions. You can find some of her work and limited edition pieces in the anthropologie gallery, lapin & me, john derian and couverture, as well as other unique shops listed here.

nathalie’s beautifully eclectic home and french atelier, where she works and lives.

nathalie’s totally unique and handtufted area rugs. i love the ‘paint-by-numbers’ look of the bird piece on the left.

]]> http://www.sfgirlbybay.com/2010/08/25/french-flair/feed/ 15 http://www.sfgirlbybay.com/2010/08/13/olives-the-other-crudite/ http://www.sfgirlbybay.com/2010/08/13/olives-the-other-crudite/#comments Fri, 13 Aug 2010 16:00:47 +0000 victoria http://www.sfgirlbybay.com/?p=24118

Because I love my house, I love entertaining friends in it. And part of being a good entertainer is having on hand lots fun serving pieces. Presentation can be everything and is always fun to visualize and create new ways to serve up some yummy appetizers.

One thing I like to serve a lot is an assortment of olives, usually along with other appetizers. It’s purely selfish, if the truth be told, because I adore olives! I have a few different dishes for serving them – some really funky, and some unexpected classics. I love my long and narrow white porcelain olive boat (above) — it makes a sleek display of mixed olives and other small savories. From Sur la Table these look quite modern (and only $5!). i like their minature olive tree (above top), used as a centerpiece as well. Or if things are a little more casual, I like to bring out my hand-painted large olive bowl and its sidekick ‘the pits’.

I’m so fond of olives, I’m even going to share with you my friend Eszter’s delicious recipe for herb marinated olives:

1 1/4lb brine cured olives (use an unflavored Italian brand)
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp fennel seeds, crushed
2 1/2 tbsp fresh oregano, chopped
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced

they’re really yummy if you warm them up just a bit, too!

These are so good, you might start your own olive obsession. Get inspired and creative with your serving dishes, like these two pieces (above) I mixed and matched from flea market finds. Two totally separate pieces, but I love the colors together. And the prettier the food looks the better it tastes.

the very adorable Erin Wallace, author of Bluebirdbaby and owner of freya photography, lives in a funky 1850 house on the coast of Maine with her partner and daughter. They purchased the very dated house in hopes of turning it into a mixture of modern and vintage. The first projects were stripping rooms of wallpaper and linoleum, although some wallpaper remains to retain the house’s vintage.The biggest challenge so far? The kitchen!

Erin says, “We walked into the kitchen and noticed one thing…the beautiful farm sink! It made the mustard yellow/brown everything melt away as our eyes fixed on the white beauty in the middle. The whole remodel took about a year, with a long break between stripping the layers and layers of wallpaper off the walls and the actual construction.”

“It was quite eye opening to see the entire kitchen gutted…it just seemed so big! We went with open shelving on the top to give the room a more spacious look while displaying our funky vintage kitchenware. The cupboards below were designed to be flat paneled with the overlay for a simple, clean look.”

“We’re waiting on glass knobs to make the kitchen totally complete. I picked the blue color out (Ice Blue by Benjamin Moore) months before the painter could even get in. I knew it was the color I wanted and it turned out to be perfect! Not too blue, but very happy. We tore out a wall, expanding the kitchen a tad to fit a washer/dryer and to move our fridge back to gain space.”

“We’ve added storage in every possible place, including the vintage Hoosier I found on Craigslist for all our canned goods and flours, and oodles of bookshelves for cookbooks and our water filter system. My partner’s father is a master with renovations. He made the open shelving, designed the wine rack, and also the bookshelves and storage shelving on the other side. Add that to his countless hours of painting and we are forever grateful for his amazing work.”

“The floor is my favorite part…it sat underneath 4 layers of linoleum and had plywood tacked on top of it. You can see it in the picture of the gutted kitchen (above ‘before’ shot) it wasn’t a pretty sight! But with some sanding and staining, it turned out beautifully!”

Everything you see filling our kitchen was thrifted or second hand, from the table and chairs down to the glasses and plates. Check your local flea market…you’ll find amazing things!” For more fabulous vintage finds from erin, follow her blog Bluebirdbaby, and visit her photography website, freya photography.

i am very excited to learn that one of my favorite ceramic shops is coming to the city! heath ceramics is opening a shop in san francisco’s beautiful ferry building this month. so not only can you shop for artisan foods, now you can find something gorgeous to serve them up in!

every piece of heath’s ceramic dishwares are still made in their original factory in Sausalito, California, just over the golden gate bridge, and crafted in the same manner as it has been for the past 55 years. i’m quite happy to welcome you to san francisco, heath!

[ {manda} ]

[ junkculture ]

[ limadean ]

[ _cassia_ ]

[ paper pony ]

[ mrs boo radley ]

[ cannelle-vanille ]

]]> http://www.sfgirlbybay.com/2009/08/14/dish-it-up/feed/ 6 http://www.sfgirlbybay.com/2008/09/24/get-the-dish/ http://www.sfgirlbybay.com/2008/09/24/get-the-dish/#comments Wed, 24 Sep 2008 17:19:00 +0000 victoria http://blog.lepetiteflea.com/?p=1235 Oooh, oh!! I was trying to take the day to get new posts going and catch up on many emails and an insanely long to-do list, but I just got this update from Amy Butler and had to share! Amy’s got a beautiful new line of china out with Mikasa and it couldn’t be prettier! Check Amy’s new line of china out here. Okay…back to the long list!! See you tomorrow!

And how cute are these pop art ones? They remind of some kind of casserole dish from my suburban childhood. I’m seeing Hamburger Helper.

These fun ones are called Food for Thought. The perfect plate to encourage your switch to the vegetarian team.

So just remember the look, the feel of Melamine.