On the Radar -- Needing Some Needlepoint Now!

Thanks to designers and celebrities (Taylor Swift is a fan), needlepoint is the hobby of the moment.  We've been seeing it everywhere!  In shops, online, in fashion...and we love it.  Both of us Blackbirds have fond memories of doing plastic canvas needlepoint when we were younger, and I've been collecting vintage needlepoint books for years, in hopes of one day having the time to actually make some throw pillows or seat covers.  It's hard to find, but we do buy good Mid Century needlepoint when we find it.

Even Bergdorf's 2014 Holiday Windows gave a nod to needlepoint with this red beauty:

We saw this recently on Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (one of our guilty pleasures -- along with all of the other RH franchises!):

Pillow by Richard Rothstein.

Jonathan Adler's been on the needlepoint bandwagon for years.  His Jackie O pillow is one of my faves:

Or you can make your own pillow with this kit:

From Modern Needleworks on Etsy, here.

 Needlepoint's not just for pillows.  This vintage brooch is so sweet!

Vintage Petit Point Brooch, from The Birdcage Vintage on Etsy, here.

And you can also hang it on your wall:

Vintage framed needlepoint from edgertor on Etsy, here.

And from our shop, you can cover your tennis gear:

Vintage tennis racquet cover, from our shop, here.

Or wear a jacket that looks like needlepoint (it's really made from a fabric called grospoint, which has a needlepoint look):

1960s Lilli Russell jacket, from our shop, here.

On the Radar -- Back in the Saddle

We Blackbird girls have subscriptions to tons of home decor and fashion magazines, but we haven't had a bit of time to actually sit down and look at any of them since probably last spring.  I'm sure you're aware we've been busy -- since, dear readers, the blog has been sporadic, at best -- but not taking the time to look at our monthly dose of the great-big-world-out-there, in the form of Harper's Bazaar, Martha Stewart Living, Vogue, Country Living, and our other fave publications, is just downright sad.  So excuse us for not noticing that the rest of the world has been trying to tell us that the biggest trend for Fall 2014 is Equestrian Chic/Horsey Blue Steel. 

Yeah, we didn't see that McQueen's doing it (see above).  Or Tory Burch (that's horse tack hardware in the print):

Or Alexander Wang:

Here's Massimo Dutti:

And it's happening in the home:

Here.

Nope, we were oblivious.  Until we went out junk shopping in August.  And in one antique mall, found 28 riding helmets in 28 different booths.

From The Curious Moose on Etsy, here.

And we kept seeing other equestrian-themed things, like these two items.  Sorry, these are last two we saw.  I didn't start taking pics until we had already passed a zillion other things, and I thought, hey, maybe I should do a blog post about this.  Hmmm....

 

Then we found this lamp, in need of some TLC.

We glammed it up a bit and added gold leaf. 

Now available in our shop in Liberty, NC!

 
So, how can you get on this trend bandwagon?  Here's a few finds from Etsy that I fell in love with --

Vintage hankie from Girl Makes Goods, only 2.99!  Here.

Vintage paint by number, from Southern Gilt, here.

Vintage corduroy, from The Selvedge Shop, here.

Our 1940s silk scarf, with saddles and horsehoes, here.

Our 1970s Gucci saddle scarf, here.

Or go all out and wear it all -- and buy vintage, of course!

Check our Pinterest page for links to these items, all found on Etsy.

On the Radar -- Latin Influence

We Blackbirds get inspiration from many places, and we recently watched "Anchors Aweigh" one night when it was on TCM.  (Hey -- if Gene Kelly is on the TV, we're going to watch it.  Unless it's "The Pirate." Then no, no, no!)  Now, I'm sure you know by now that we love us some color and pattern.  The more, the better!  And what I had never really paid attention to when watching this movie is the 1940s fascination with Mexico that runs throughout.  Kathryn Grayson's Aunt Susie character works as a singer at a Mexican restaurant, and the backdrop that the restaurant provides is full of amazing inspiration, from clothing to music to the village-like atmosphere outside the restaurant, which even has a little lonely senorita for Mr. Kelly to dance with around a fountain. 

When I decided to write this week's On the Radar (finally!), then, of course, I just had to talk about the resurgence of Mexican, Spanish and otherwise Latin print, patterns, and colors.  Designers pulled it out for Spring 2014, but it's not really going anywhere quite yet.  Here's a roundup of some of my favorites, new and vintage -- and I'd like to think Aunt Susie would approve of everything!

Nicolas Jebran, 2013-2014 Couture

Valentino resort, 2015

Valentino resort, 2015

Mara Hoffman, 2014

Embroidered tunic, from Living Textiles on Etsy, here

1940s jacket from Red Poppy Vintage Shop on Etsy, here.

1970s Purse from Sunday Girl Finds on Etsy, here.

1970s rug, from our shop, here.

1980s embroidered caftan, from our shop, here.

On the Radar -- The Mod Surrealist

The Blackbirds love road trips.  However, we don't like riding in the car for long distances with no thrift store stops.  So last weekend, coming home from our little antiquing trip, we resorted to one of our travel hobbies.  It was Sunday at 6pm -- and we had just finished at the last possible Goodwill we could get to that day.  We had more than three hours left until we got home.  So what's our hobby?  Well, we like to play these little games where we come up fantasy design projects, usually mashing up different eras.  For example, if we could design a house with anything in it in the world, what would it look like?  Or what styles could we mix together to create an amazing outfit -- from head to toe?

Mod Heels, from Salome Vintage on Etsy, here.

This weekend, we mixed Surrealist and Mod styles in our little game.  What we soon realized is that mixing the two would be amazing!  The psychedelia of the 1960s blends well with 1930s Surrealism, and the clean lines of Mod is a great foil to both.  What a concept, we thought!  And it was then that we knew we were in love. 

Vintage Telephone handbag from Cumstov on Etsy, here.

So when planning the blog today, I thought, "If only we could really find the components to our look."  I know well enough by now, that if it's on our radar (sorry, pun intended), then we'll start seeing it everywhere.  I had so much fun looking for the components for the blog post, it inspired me to do an Etsy treasury.  Take a gander at the treasury here, but enjoy some of the finds now!

1940s Glamour Lips from Curio Cabinet on Etsy, here.

  

Dior Surrealist hankie from Happy Anatomy on Etsy, here.

Mimi Di N Ram brooch from Pearl Modern on Etsy, here.

Mongolian lamb coat from Save As Vintage on Etsy, here.

70s postcard from Vintage Jenee Paper on Etsy, here.

On the Radar -- An Eastern Vibe

We Blackbird girls L-O-V-E Asian design, and it's very visible in our collections.  I know we mention here and there about what we collect (believe me, you've just seen the tip of the iceberg), but we have a genre-crossing collection that we refer to as the Asian collection.  It includes Chinese checkerboards, paint-by-numbers, Asian themed sheet music and labels, tea tins, fortune telling items, and other various tiny tins, like a Buddha incense tin and a French Chinoiserie thread tin.  Also included in this is one of our most favorite things (I know, we say that about everything!) -- our bright yellow Chinese Chippendale mid-century chair.  Here's the chair, but in green.  Mmmm...I want these to add to the collection...

Well, imagine how excited I was when I was browsing Yahoo yesterday and found an article about IKEA's new products, developed with Chinese designers.  I want it all.  And I had to immediately share the link with the other Blackbird.  Look at all these goodies, available at the end of the month at IKEA.

There's lots more amazing items -- you can see the slideshow here.  I love their whimsical take on traditional Chinese design.  All the ping pong balls -- they have one vase with a ping pong paddle, and the lucky cats, are just adorable.  They are tongue in cheek, and so much fun.

I love this brighter, bolder, modern take on Asian design.  It reminds me of my Chinese checkerboards -- they have great patterns and motifs, and the colors are super bright.  Like this one:

Available on Etsy from PassedBy, here.

So in honor of IKEA taking a brief trip from Sweden to China, here's a round up of some of my favorite modern Asian finds on Etsy!

Tray from God Save the Kitsch, here.

From China Tea Ware, here.

Coasters from Cheltenham Road, here.

From Stillwater Art Studio, here.

And of course, my dream table, from one of my favorite furniture companies, Red Egg.  Their designs are stunning, and I lurve the red finish!

Indochine dining table, here.