The weather in Sydney is glorious right now – sunny blue skies, beautiful sea breezes… summer is definitely on its way. Being the homebody that I am, I’ve been mostly enjoying the weather from the comfort of my home. I’m growing organic vegies and herbs in our little backyard (above is evidence of our first tiny harvest! Three radishes, they were delicious, I can’t wait for more), and on the front porch I have created a little retreat from the sun, complete with comfy cushions and bamboo blinds. Below is a glimpse of the backyard and the front porch…

I’m finally getting the house organised, it’s taken a lot longer than I had planned, but it’s coming together so nicely, I’m eager to show you the spaces I’ve been creating.

Meanwhile, I’m going to be sending out the first batch of books at the end of this week, so if you’d like to receive My Heart Wanders, or Paris: Made by Hand, or Amsterdam:Made by Hand (or all three), signed and wrapped and delivered to your front door by the end of this month, then place your order now so I can include you with this first batch.  Thank you for the wonderful orders so far, I’m so looking forward to signing the books with your names and sending them off around the world – a little piece of my heart will be wandering off with each parcel.

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Spring is already in the air. Jasmine is also in bloom and the sweet scent is heavenly.

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If you missed the official book launch at Ariel in Sydney last Friday, there are a few more events coming up during the last couple of weeks of May, I hope you can come along. This Sunday May 15, there will be a french-inspired high tea author interview, organised by Books and Nooks. It will be at Velluto, in Potts Point. From what I know, it’s already sold out, but if you want to come along, it might be worth giving Books and Nooks a call anyway, they may be able to make room for one or two more.

On May 21st, I am going to get creative in Stef’s window display area at her gorgeous store, newspaper taxi. Stef and I have been busy thinking up some great ideas for the day, it’s going to be so much fun being surrounded by creative people in such a beautiful boutique, sipping sparkling wine, chatting about all the things we love, and nibbling on some of the most delicious treats from neighbouring cafe Black Star Pastry…

please feel free to print this invitation out, give to your friends, or post it on your blog. x

Tickets cost $5.00 which puts you in the draw to win a fab lucky door prize with handmade goodies from newspaper taxi. But if you pre-order My Heart Wanders through newspaper taxi (I will sign it for you on the day), then you can come along to the event for free! But please RSVP sooner rather than later as places will be limited…

………………………………………..

When:
Saturday, May 21, 2011 at 4pm
Where:
Newspaper Taxi, 247 Australia Street, Newtown
Tickets:
$5.00 per person or pre-order My Heart Wanders now online and get in for free
RSVP:
Stefanie on 0421 981 182 or info@newspapertaxi.com.au

………………………………………..

I have something rather magical in mind for the window which I will work on with Stef in the lead up to the day, and then it will be revealed at 4pm on Saturday, May 21st. Oh I do hope to see you there!

xx

PS For those who live on the Northern Beaches, Jayde from Little Paper Lane in Mona Vale is hosting a similar event on May 28th, which I will tell you more about in a few days time.
PPS word is that My Heart Wanders will be released in Europe on June 6th, yay!

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Over the next few weeks I’ll be creating some special window displays in bookstores and boutiques across the city, in celebration of the release of My Heart Wanders. I’m thrilled that these gorgeous stores have all been so enthusiastic about the idea of a ‘wandering window display’, inviting me to come and play in their windows. While in Melbourne last weekend I created two window displays which I’ll show photos of soon, but seeing them in real life is always better, so if you live in Melbourne, please head to Coventry Bookstore in South Melbourne, and Avenue Bookstore in Albert Park.  If you live in Sydney, please keep your eyes on the shop windows you see here in this post, and in a couple of weeks time (when I catch my breath!) I’ll show you lots of photos of the making of each display…

Thank you Shearer’s for making My Heart Wanders one of your books of the month!

Also I have added more events to the blog sidebar on the right, including one at newspaper taxi in newtown, one at little paper lane in mona vale, and a special event at Velluto’s – all of which are guaranteed to be lots of fun, I do hope you can join us. Please click on the links for more details.

I have two windows to create tomorrow (hmm, which ones do you think? I’ll reveal locations on twitter as well as snapshots as I work), so I will have to keep this post short & sweet. I will try not to keep you in suspense of how my book launch went on Friday night, as well as the fabulous fun I had in Melbourne over the weekend, for too long. But I will be off to Brisbane on Thursday to help Kylie finish the prep for Saturday’s launch, so I will most likely not get to show + tell you all the details of all the events until next week. I hope you can wait ’til then.

A huge thank you to everyone who has been coming out to say hi, joining in the fun to help celebrate the release of My Heart Wanders here in Australia. It’s a wonderful welcome back to my home land, I couldn’t have wanted for more – you are beautiful,  merci beaucoup mes amis.

xx

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My first ever job as a stylist was assisting on a david jones catalogue, some 7 or so years back now. I was nervous, to say the very least. I had no idea about styling, or photo shoots, or anything of the sort. I remember walking into the windowless studio – a concrete room filled with hi-tech camera paraphernalia and trestle tables full of props – daunted by the bright lights and the fact that everyone in the room knew exactly what they were doing. That is when I met Jenni Booth, the stylist I was to be assisting. Jenni took me under her wing from that first moment, teaching me the ropes of styling for the many months that followed. Her generosity and genuineness never faded, and we soon became great friends.  I’ve always said that if it wasn’t for assisting Jenni, I would never have wanted to pursue a career in styling.

playing with props at Jenni’s place

A few years back, during a skype conversation while I was living in Amsterdam, Jenni let me in on an idea that she’d been nurturing for some time. We were rattling on about the frustration of never having enough time in a day as a stylist – so often we are allocated a minimal amount of hours to prep for a shoot, and those precious hours are spent rushing around from store to store, with most of it wasted in travel and trawling the internet for props. Even if we find something on the internet worth pursuing, we still have to get out there and pick the item up. During our conversation, Jenni asked me, “What if you could hire your props online, with clear photos and prices of each item. Would you use that service?” I answered, “absolutely! That would be awesome.” In the months that followed, Jenni got to work on creating just that – an online hiring store that would be super easy to navigate, with loads of great props, clear photos, and next day delivery.

Today, I’m super excited to be the first online to tell you about my dear friend Jenni’s new venture,  Prop Hire Online…

What makes Prop Hire Online truly unique is that it is an ONLINE ONLY store. It has been created to make the life of a stylist, art director, photographer – really anyone in the industry who requires props  - a lot easier and much more productive. It’s open 24hrs a day, so you can hire when it suits you. There are beautiful clear photographs of all items to show you exactly what you are hiring. It works just like an online shopping cart where items for hire can be added and tallied as you browse. Then, the items are delivered the next day to your studio or location and will be collected when the hire period is finished.

all sorts of props – from baskets, books, and backdrops…

Jenni has also included something rather exclusive to the range of items available - stylist supplies and kits. So if you have run out of masking tape or need a whole new kit, she can add this to your order and deliver it too. With this launch there are over 500 items available to hire for every kind of shoot, be it interiors, still life, food or fashion. New products will be added as they are gathered and a regular newsletter will keep you up to date with the latest arrivals.

One of the other things I love about it is that you can type anything you like in the search button – be it, say, the colour ‘red’ – and you get a selection of all the red props…

Isn’t that cool? Since shoots are often theme-based, you can narrow down your search this way. Let’s try, ‘green’…

I love it. There are so many gorgeous items. Looks at some of the crates…

and vintage bottles…

Last year while I was visiting from Amsterdam, Jenni and I were in a fabulous antique store in a little country town, and found this divine vintage French champagne bottle to add to the Prop Hire Online collection…

It’s one of my favourite items in stock, and I can’t wait to hire it for an upcoming shoot.

So if you’re based in Sydney or around, and are a stylist, photographer, art director, or just love photographing beautiful props for your blog, OR if you want a stylist’s kit of your own, then this is the store for you. Congratulations Jenni, after all the hard work and persistence, you’ve done it! And it’s more than fabulous. I am a very proud friend.

xx

-photo credits: first 3 images by me, fab product images by Alan Richardson.
-click here to visit Prop Hire Online.

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I’ve been surrounded by boxes for days, knee deep in cardboard and packing paper. I’ve begun wearing gloves while I open and unwrap each item as I’ve been getting some seriously nasty paper cuts. But still, I am inspired.

All this unwrapping and flattening boxes has given me some wonderful ideas for upcoming book launch events. Lots and lots of ideas. Also, I’m very glad that my beautiful oak table from Paris passed quarantine…

Phew!

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This is it, mes amis, this. is. it! the books have arrived, they’re big and beautiful and as you can imagine, I’m incredibly excited to finally be able to reveal the details of the celebratory book launch here in Sydney…

There will be bubbles, there will be books, the ever-lovely Victoria Carey, editor of Country Style Magazine will be speaking on the night, and there may even be room for a little live music too. Oh, I cannot wait, I do hope you can come along.

When: Friday, April 29, at 6pm
Where: Ariel Books, 42 Oxford St, Paddington
RSVP: email here or call (02) 9332 4581

This special celebration will kick off a month of fabulous and exclusive book events happening all over the city, which I am bursting to tell you about. Once all the finer details are sorted, I will be sure to let you know what is happening and where. And, big news: if you live in Brisbane or Melbourne, there is something incredibly special in the works for both locations too.

Oh, my heart is happy.

xx

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We moved into our new home here in Sydney four days ago. We don’t have internet. We don’t have a bed. We are camping in our living room. It’s been a hectic few weeks trying to get sorted, and it will be a hectic few more weeks trying to get settled. All the while I’ve been unpacking boxes, and in one of them I found this jar of sparkles. Yes, once upon a time, I kept sparkles in a jar. Today, this jar of sparkles sits on the mantle piece, surrounded by chaos, reminding me that there is magic in the most unlikely of places.

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In a gorgeous little back street of Newtown, appropriately named ‘australia street’, sits an incredibly quaint boutique called newspaper taxi. I’d been dying to visit ever since I met owner Stefanie Bassett at my impromptu book signing last year at Berkelouw bookstore in Newtown. Finally last week, I got my chance…

(the always inspiring children’s magazine, papier mache.)

Stef’s store is filled with vintage collectibles, handmade home wares and beautiful publications like you see above, and below…

(ebony’s divine gift wrapping zine. Ebony is also selling her zines online, of which all proceeds from the sales will go directly to Red Cross to help survivors in Japan.)

(above left: beautiful ceramic brooches made by sarah o’sullivan above right: a little in store vignette of vintage goodness.)

Newspaper Taxi is also an exclusive stockist of one of our favourite parisian artisans, Nathalie Lété. At the moment, Stef has some stunning prints by Nathalie. If you’re in newtown, be sure to check out stef’s store.  If you’re nowhere near newtown and don’t think you’ll be there in the near future, you can also view part of stef’s extensive collection of goodies on her online shop here. And! she writes a blog here with updates on her newest finds.

Oh, I can’t wait to visit again and again. It’s good to be back in my ol’ hometown.

xx

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