Brandy Bambi

My never-ending Christmas gifts; a vintage Bambi brandy bottle! Perfect to add to my growing collection!

Monty the Fox.

Another item from my wish list gratefully received! I was thoroughly spoilt this year! Monty the Fox was definitely worth the wait though!

My Mate Meg.

One of my lovely christmas presents and new best friend; Meg! Thank you Ben and Jo (and Donna).xx See more of Donna Wilson's knitted goodies here.

Please Bring Me Luck...

Lucky find; A 2011 50 pence piece. (Worth 50p - suprisingly!)

Home Comforts.

Sabine Finkenauer drawings and paintings are bold, colourful and somewhat comforting in their abstract representation of homes and interiors!

I Got My New Shoes On...

Early (Half Price) Christmas Treat!

Baa Humbug!

Even sheep get the winter blues! Some farmers in the UK have coloured their sheep so they can find them in all the snow! In todays Guardian. Photo: Paul Faith

A Trip to the Market.

Today we went down to Castle Market to collect our meat and vegetables for our Christmas feast. It was quite an experience as I haven't properly been down there since I was little, when my Dad used to take me for crabsticks! But it hasn't changed a bit! Transformed back into a world where my name becomes 'Love' or 'Duck' we scanned the stalls to pick out the best sprouts and parsnips. Then, armed with lots of heavy bags full of vegetables myself and my parents headed home to begin the preparations!

Presents Galore!

Busy buying and wrapping some last minute presents today! If only they were wrapped this beautifully! Photography by Oliver Schwarzwald styling by Maria Grossmann.

Hunt. Find. Discover.

Portrait and Wooden Bobbins (Internet and Garage)

Scandinavian Chopping Board (Antiques Emporium)
Embroidered Yorkshire Map (Antiques Emporium)

Elephant Teapot (Charity Shop)

So yes, I am pretty obsessive about hunting out and finding one-off bargains. And on my return home I couldn't help but pop down to my local antiques emporium to see what new treasures I could find. This week has been a week of serendipity. I love it when I have a been on the search for a particular item and then on looking in my parents garage or cellar I find they have owned it for years! So here are a few of my purchases, charity shop finds and discoveries from the last week or so.

Year 1: Let Me Introduce You...

Today the Fison-Zair blog celebrates its 1st Birthday! Hurrah! Now, let me introduce you to Isaiah and Fison. Above is a photo of my granddads, who I never had the chance to meet but nevertheless hold in great admiration. They were skilled craftsmen in Sheffield steel works and were always cleverly resourceful, repairing and restoring everyday things. If they were here today they would be 114 and 109. I like to think I get some of my creative skills from them, I hope they would be proud of what I do!

ISAK: Beautiful Happy Things

I love the whole ethos of ISAK Design, a company created by Scandinavian designer Sandra Isaksson and inspired by her heritage and travels...

'ISAK was born from a love of family and friends; these are the most important things to us. Our goal is to make the world a better place. We take everyday objects and add some beauty and happiness.'

An injection of colour and humour make Isaksson's illustrations irresistible and I can't help but smile every time I see them. I was delighted that the Inger and Ollie print was waiting for me on my arrival back in the UK. I can't wait to get it framed and up on the wall! Purchase and see more of these beautiful products via her shop, website and blog!

Inspired by the Ordinary.

Great inspiration for my work! Like me, Lotte Van Wulfften Palthe finds interest in the ordindary everyday objects we find around us, taking them out of context, disecting and reconstructing their meaning...with a great injection of colour!

Kokeshi Collection.

I brought most of these back from Japan, but my parents bought the large doll on the left in Russia in the 80s, she makes a lovely addition to the collection and they have all been given a new lease of life on my bedroom shelf.

Giddy Up!

Ok, so when dreaming of my ideal bike it was a beautiful sky blue with a shrill brring of a bell and idyllic wicker basket, that was, until I saw this! Horsey is designed by Eungi Kim who hoped it would encourage people to care more about cycling not only as transport but also as a lovely pet! It's so fun! This project was part of the Seoul Cycle Design Competition organised by Design Boom in collaboration with Seoul Design Foundation.

A Splash and a Dash...of Colour.

Laid-back 40s Glamour combined with crisp white cotton shirts and bright punches of colour. Jonathan Saunders' adds a splash of freshness to the preceedings by working floral graphics with ombre blends in this fun and feminine Spring/Summer 2011 collection.

Good-Man!

Build it up to knock it down sculptures by Miller Goodman. I saw these great nostalgic works at Tent London in September and like in my last collection I plan to use a similar process to construct my new textile designs.

Winter Warm-Up!

I found the perfect coat to keep warm in this wintery weather.

I will take it Merci Beaucoup!

Jewels of Colour.

Look at these wonderful pockets of colour! Created by the master weaver of the Bauhaus, Gunta Stolzl. Although conventionally associated with woven textiles, this method of recording and blocking colour could be good for me to use in the development of my designs.

Child's Play.

This is always the kind of thing I dreamed about making as a child, but i think I only ever managed a sheet hung haphazardly between the back of the sofa and the radiator. Nothing like the masterpieces in these photographs by Tim MacPherson. Oh to have the imagination of a child again!

Amber & Thomas

Love the palettes and fabric combination in the Amber & Thomas SS11 Collection.

Pile it High...

A few snaps from my trip to Japan...

Current obsession: a collection, a stack, a pile, stuff... whatever you want to call all this, I love the cumulative beauty of these simple objects.