Decor & Gift: Seven Swans A-Swimming

"On the 7th day of Christmas my true love gave to me... Seven Swans A-Swimming".

I spent 2 years in England as a young girl, one of which was on the Isle of Wight living aboard a refurbished Norwegian fishing schooner called "Nylund". (For more info click on my parents' website Clarks Maritime.)

{ Nylund under full sail }

I remember the swans around the Isle of Wight and they weren't much friendlier than the geese I've encountered. However, they do look beautiful & are a good starting off point for gift suggestions. So here goes...

Pier One has some glass swan ornaments that would look lovely in bird-themed tree.

{ swan ornaments }

{ both images above from Country Living }

Or would your true love enjoy a getaway to Victoria & Swans Hotel? Located near Chinatown & Market Square, Swans is a great spot to make your homebase while in Victoria.

{ Swans ~ early 1900's }

{ Swans present day }

{ View from Swans out to Victoria's Inner Harbour }

I have a soft spot for Etsy & have sourced artwork from various Etsy shops that would suit our swan theme. This one from BalletArt shows incredible movement in it's rough grace:

{ Black & White Swan }

This one from Ching Levy Studio is peaceful & calming & would suit a library or den or a spot where your recipient would sit & read with a cup of tea:

{ Swan Lake I }

Sweet without being sickly so, this print from The Black Apple is one of many of Emily's creations I would love for a child's room.

{ Springtime Parade }

There is also this vintage image which I found at LabelStone in magnet form. Perfect for a stocking stuffer but a larger image would be wonderful framed in a kitchen, pantry, cottage or cabin.

{ White Swan Canning Label }

An inexpensive digital download from Found Objects provides you with a 8"x5" image you can print onto hand towels, fabric for pillows, whatever your heart desires! Could be used as a theme for an upcoming wedding or milestone birthday invites.

{ French Swan No 22 Rue Jolie }

For the hard to buy, funky types this retro Swans travel bag may be just the thing:

{ book bag or carry-all }

And last but certainly not least, if an Aston Martin is good enough for James Bond it's good enough for me ~ Aston Martin's new 4-seater:

{ The Cygnet }

Does the apartment building pictured & Daniel Craig come with??!!

Gift & Decorating Ideas: Six Geese A-Laying

On the 6th day of Christmas, my true love gave to me Six Geese A-Laying...

Really? Geese A-Laying? If it's the goose that laid the golden egg, great. But the geese I've come across have always been a bit grumpy & nippy. Perhaps they are worried they'll be force fed & slaughtered for fois gras.

Here are a few suggestions in keeping with our goose theme...

A bottle of Grey Goose vodka from France:

{ Grey Goose Lineup }

Looks absolutely delish served up as a peppermint froth cocktail (click HERE for recipe)

{ Peppermint Froth Cocktail }

Or for 1980's retro enthusiast, take your pick of Goose, Iceman or Maverick in TOP GUN . The movies or cds are available at Chapters.

{ 1980's hotties }

Canada Goose jackets are THE BEST. I finally gave in last year & got myself a winter jacket & I went with Canada Goose. I have never had a good quality snow jacket before. I always spent my money on dressy wool winter jackets (which I looooove). But I do love my Canada Goose:

{ and who's to say you can't wear a dress underneath?! }

A good pillow & comforter make your night's sleep that much better. Want goose down? It's your choice... but this bed looks super comfy (& I love the fact it wasn't made!):

{ unmade bed }

Katrin Wiehle is an Danish illustrator. While I was searching the internet I discovered her sweet goose pattern. I'm not sure if it is a print or can be made into material or wallpaper but I love it!

{ geese pattern }

It would be perfect in a child's room as a roman shade or as wallpaper on a feature wall in a mudroom (in place of the maps - which I do LOVE!):

{ High Street Market Mudroom }

I think mudrooms are often overlooked rooms for design efforts. But I digress... what would you use that goose pattern for?

Decor & Gift Ideas: 5 Golden Rings

"On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... Five Golden Rings." Wow! Nicely done, true love! Here are Baker Hill's gift suggestions for the 5th day of Christmas:

I'd love a stack of these Tiffany Celebration Rings:

{ Tiffany's stackable rings }

For the budget-conscious, these alternatives from Stella & Dot are wonderful options:

{ stackable band rings }

{ stackable deco rings }

Contact Leslie Smith or Jennifer VanderMye (Stella & Dot stylists) to place your order.

And for you big spenders out there... how about a gift of Olympic 'ring' tickets to London 2012 or Sochi 2014? I remember the thrill of hosting the Olympics in Vancouver. A once-in-a-lifetime experience:

{ Opening Ceremonies Vancouver Olympics }

Turning to more design-related gift ideas, I think this table from PB Teen is suitable for any girl's room & fits into the 'ring-ed theme':

{ Circolo Nesting Tables }

I also have a soft spot for this Kelly Wearstler fabric:

{ Imperial Trellis }

It's not technically RING-design but if you see it in the repeat it's RING-like. And even though it's been out for a while, it's still one of my faves. I used it in our master bedroom in a grey.

Are polka dots in keeping with our ring theme? My friend, Charmaine & her Yellow Bird Paper Greetings company has a fine selection of cheeky yet sophisticated placecards highlighted here, just waiting to be set on your holiday table:

Yellow Bird also has a wonderful selection of cards for every occasion. This charmer may be necessary after the rash of Christmas & New Year's Eve engagements:

{ Congratulations indeed! }

Happy shopping, blogworld!

Decor & Gift Ideas: Four Calling Birds

"On the fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... Four Calling Birds". My online research tells me that the word "calling" is a deviation from 'colly' or 'collie' birds which refers to a 'blackbird' or 'crow'.

This little blackbird is quite festive with her red boots & fancy hat on. She looks as though she is heading to a Christmas party & would suit a whimsical room:

You can purchase online at Nayski's Little Gift Shop.

Or for the country/rock music enthusiast, Sheryl Crow's new album is available on iTunes or in stores:

{ 100 Miles from Memphis }

How about dishes? These could be a little precious but I think they'd suit someone with a more classically elegant home. What do you think?

{ plates & footed dishes }

I discovered them online at Olive & Cocoa.

And I found these darling blackbird necklace & earrings on Etsy. Very sweet!

{ tiny blackbird earrings }

{ tiny blackbird necklace }

Now I wouldn't necessarily have been drawn to this blackbird themed fabric from Andrew Martin right away:

{ Elspeth silk; Andrew Martin }

However, check out how fab it looks in this room:

Sold? SOLD!

And to stuff in a stocking, Santa-style? This sweet little handmade pin from In My Backyard:

{ blackbird fabric pin }

I wonder what the fifth day of Christmas will bring us...

Gift & Decorating Ideas: Three French Hens

"On the third day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... Three French Hens". Here are some present suggestions & home decor ideas in keeping with the 3 french hens motif:

For the imbiber on your list these 12 Days of Christmas beers from The Bruery in Orange County are PERFECT. Brewed in French oak barrels, according the The Bruery it is a bold & spicy dark ale.

{ 3 French Hens beer }

It doesn't look like The Bruery beers are available in Canada (YET!), but to see where you can buy them click HERE.

Williams Sonoma & Pottery Barn have a series of tabletop items (plates, glasses, bowls, etc) with images from the 12 days of Christmas:

{ plates from Williams Sonoma }

{ Pottery Barn plates set at the table }

And because I can't get enough of the goodies from petitcollage this sweet little trio of hens for a child's room or a kitchen:

{ red bird trio ~ collage on wood }

There's nothing like fresh eggs for breakfast. I'm sure French hens lay pretty good eggs. I'm not sure if these are from French hens, but these free range eggs look like they'd make a wonderful poached egg or, better yet, an eggs Benny:

{ fresh eggs for Christmas morning }

Mmmmmmm! In Vancouver, you can get wonderful BC eggs (& other foodstuffs) from a number of suppliers listed on get local. A quick google search will provide you with grocers & farms in your area. And how about some yummy cornish game hens for Christmas Eve dinner?

{ cornish game hen with cranberry butter rice }

This recipe can be found online at Fried Chillies & was suggested for Valentine's Day but there's no reason you can't do it for your friends &/or family around Christmas time. How festive is it with the green sage & red cranberries???!!

I've digressed a little into food (can you tell I'm a bit peckish as I write this?) so here are some more suggestions for presents to help you check off your Christmas list.

For the toddler, preschooler or child-at-heart on your list, this darling book:

{ The Little Red Hen }

It's not your typical kid's storyline but I loved the plucky little hen when I was a girl & I think children respond to the moral in the story.

Or for the music lover how about albums (make it three!) from Black Hen Music.

Coco Love Alcorn, Jim Byrnes, Steve Dawson, The Mississippi Sheiks to name a few Black Hen artists.... So hard to choose.

What would you make out of this quirky chicken fabric from Carrie's Fabric on Etsy:

{ Metro Market "Chicks " Fabric }

A pillow for a little boy's reading nook? A tea cosy? Curtains for your henhouse?

Speaking of hen houses, for the ornithologist on your list check out this rustic birdhouse from Bird House Accents:

{ hen house birdhouse }

Three miniature French hens (or any little birdie) would be quite at home here I think.

How goes the Christmas shopping? Are you having fun yet?

Gift & Decor Ideas; Two Turtle Doves

Following in the tradition of the previous post, here are some gift & decorating ideas based on the line from the old Christmas carol:

"On the 2nd day of Christmas my true love gave to me... Two Turtle Doves":

This darling little tree featured on Country Living's website would be an easy project to do with children:

{ Turtle Doves on a Charlie Brown Tree }

You could find a dove pattern online with a quick Google search & trace them onto cardstock. Cut 'em out, thread a ribbon through & hang on requisite Charlie Brown tree. I love the galvanized bucket!!

For a child's bedroom, I am loving these pieces of artwork from petitcollage. (I'm not the only one; Martha thinks petitcollage is pretty fab too & features a how-to link HERE on her website.)

{ love birds }

{ bird love }

For the scrapbooker or font addict on your list, this Two Turtle Doves font is perfect:

{ Two Turtle Doves font }

And, it's *free* for download by clicking HERE.

And how about this darling little dishtowel from Anthropologie that looks as if it was hand stitched by one of the March sisters?

{ chirps & chats dishtowel }

This list is a little light on suggestions for the boys on your list, so what about stretching the theme a little bit & getting him Turtle & the latest Entourage season on DVD (available at Chapters or Amazon):

{ Turtle & the Entourage }

And if we're stretching the theme, why not go for the dove grey concrete bangle & ring designed by Canada's own Frank Gehry for Tiffany:

{ torque concrete bangle & ring }

For the tween or teen on your list these dove grey & orange Nikes:

{ dunk low SB Peace sneaks }

To finish... look at this girl's room painted in dove grey:

{ pagoda room }

It was featured at Decor8 & designed by Martenson Jones Interiors. A perfect example of sophistication in a child's room without being too grown up!

Happy 2nd Day of Christmas, blogworld!