I Turn My Camera On...

For those of you who've had to bear with my overzealous Twitter updates about my new Holga 120N, here it is!
Photo taken by Wayde on Polaroid Model 230 Land Camera.

soZealous in the News

It's been a big week for soZealous! Not to mention Christmas on top of it all! I've had a great time making gifts for friends and family this year—including this little number!


Check out the full tutorial on how to make your own handmade feather band at Veritas Magazine.

And finally, the big culminating article this week, a "Made in DM" feature in Des Moines' Juice publication!


Thank you to all my shop lovers and everyone who's helped make soZealous a reality. Expect to see more of everything in 2009!

Merry Christmas to all and God bless xx

Functionalitechnology

Pretty little USB Keys from BY:AMT coming to a port near you in 2009! Heart.

These antler cell phone holder plug-ins are literally off the hook! Available from Nendo.

Best of the Week Vol. 11

1.) Cotton Candy from this month's Vogue Britain.
2.) If you enjoyed the Miss Dior Cherie commercial, check out this Christmas ad for H&M!
3.) This photo affirmed that Blue Christmases are in this year...
4.) A ship made of lace. Magical.
5.) Ramdaq Photography presents a more grown-up version of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.
6.) Start a beautiful new year with a calendar to match.

Miss Dior Cherie by Sofia Coppola

Everything about this clip makes my heart smile...

soZealous & Vitae Design Collective!

(Photo by Cat Rocketship for Rock Iowa Flickr)
soZealous merchandise is now available at Vitae Design Collective in downtown Des Moines!

The boutique is located at 1731 Grand Ave. and carries art, jewelry, and apparel from local & independent designers.

Be sure to check out the Vitae Holiday Bash tomorrow, Dec. 6th, 7-10pm. More details below:


Support your local designers!

1st Annual Urbanestics Underground

Here's some shots from Saturday night's basement boutique! Photos by Leslie.








The Collective: (Top, left to right) Leslie of Urbanestics, Sarah of Good Posture, Dave & Seth of Save Deth; (Bottom, left to right) Erin of soZealous, Dena & Maren of Heads Twogether, and Jessie of Jessie Made This.

Temporary Hiatus

photo by redcrayon
For those if you who have been wondering about my absence, I have been ultra busy preparing for Urbanestics Underground this weekend! There will be lots of lovely pieces for sale and new items in the soZealous shop after that. December will hopefully bring a little more consistency to all forms of web interaction for me.

Also in December will be a "Made in Des Moines" profile of me in Juice! I will post any updates on that as they're received.

Best of the Week Vol. 10 (Belated)

1.) Kirke has amazing style...and is only 12 years old...?
2.) No deer were injured in the making of these pretty plaques on Etsy—check them out in the Nice Shop!
3.) Fishnet Wallpaper from Flavor Paper. Not even kidding.
4.) Html + Moleskins = Awesomeness.
5.) Stunning porfolio by Raphael Vicenzi on the Behance Network.
6.) Attention type addicts! The uppercase font scarf.

Urbanestics Underground

Here's the official poster for our first ever "guerilla" craft fair!

Selling along with soZealous will be:

SaveDeth Yo-yo's, DVDs, Apparel
Good Posture Handmade items, Home Accessories
Urbanestics Vintage housewares, Handmade originals
Jessiemadethis Handcrafted jewelry, Metals
Heads Twogether Revamped vintage jewelry

Get your handmade in time for the holidays!

29TH NOVEMBER, 2008. 3810 SW BLUEGRASS DR, ANKENY, IA. 7-11pm.

Best of the Week Vol. 9

1.) Delightful illustrated prints by Lab Partners (via Poppytalk). They also have an Etsy shop!
2.) Domino's feature on the apartment of J.Crew Creative Director, Jenna Lyons. I'm really into zebra prints right now...and chandeliers, always!
3.) This (appears to be) nameless blog is pure eyecandy.
4.) The little grungegypsy is at is again...image from her beautiful blog.
5.) Margaux Lange has an interesting portfolio of jewelry constructed from disassembled Barbie parts (link via Cool Hunting).
6.) "Prim & Proper" line of Eclectonote repurposed books by UPPERCASE. I'm sure you're already aware that I'm a big fan of all things revamped vintage!

Thought on a Friday

Via LOVE.

I've been tagged!

Photo by amoraleda
I had been seeing this around on some of my regular reads, so I was excited when the lovely Solanah tagged my blog! Her shop is one of my favorites on Etsy—check it out here!

The Rules:
1. Link to your tagger and list these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blog.
4. Let them know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

The List!

1. I can unicycle. I was taught by my amazing hubby who can ride down hills and hop logs on his.
2. I have been sprayed by a skunk.
3. I prefer my fruit cooked and my vegetables raw.
4. I have been in two major motion pictures. As an extra in Proof starring Gwyneth Paltrow, and a speaking part opposite Cillian Murphy in Peacock.
5. I am a Karaoke ALL-STAR. You wouldn't know it, but I am. And DDR.
6. I learned how to surf on the Tasman Sea.
7. I hope to travel to Iceland someday. Mainly because of the Sigur Ros Heima DVD.
Photo by Lallisig
The Tagged...

Urbanestics
DenaDot
Chilly Minnesota
Mer Mag
Love Forever
Oh Happy Day
The Girl Who Married a Bear

Best of the Week Vol. 8

1.) Hint Mag had an beautiful photo feature on the "Happy House" of Siouxsie Sioux.
2.) Sexy tea set at Ruth Cross.
3.) My kind of...soiree. Chandeliers, short films and fashion @ Manoush party.
4.) 'Medic Esthetic' footwear by Gwendolyn Huskens.
5.) Dawn Cerny's delightful Pink Dot Girl.
6.) From Flickr fav. Lennah's current calendar project.

Thought on a Friday

From I_am_Amy's Flickr stream.

First Twitter Contest!

Can you guess what I'm going as for Halloween???


Follow me on Twitter, as I will be "tweeting" clues periodically. When you think you know, Direct Message me the answer! Winner gets one of these pretty little brocade chalkboards! You can even choose one of the available colors. See soZealous shop for more options.

One guess per Twitterer. Contest closes Friday 6pm/ central.

Wonderwall, Inc.

Classic meets Contemporary in this sleek salon by Japanese designer Masamichi Katayama. Check out the rest of the design portfolio at Wonderwall, Inc..



A new book about the projects of Masamichi Katayama, aptly titled Wonderwall: Masamichi Katayama Projects N'2 by Staoko Suzuki, also hits stores this week!

Best of the Week Vol. 7*

1.) Karl Lagerfield sports the Chanel Gun Shoe.
2.) Make a unique statement by creating your own letter photo art.
3.) grungegypsy has a gorgeous photo collage blog. Take a moment to peruse through her lovely postings!
4.) Iris Ceramica offers these beautiful ceramic wall tiles for interiors. Featured photo is from the Neobarocco line.
5.) Flickr user SugarBloom Cupcakes makes some mean, fashionable sweets!
6.) Cool Hunting has highlighted the Bible Illuminated,the world's most widely-read book in, what possibly may be, its most aesthetically pleasing format to date.

*Week of 10.20.08 - 10.26.08

Thought on a Friday

Photo found on grungegypsy's Xanga site.

Suite Dreams

Fabulous "Rococo" bedroom line from The Horchow Collection, which interestingly enough came into existence as the first luxury mail-order catalog.

Presented the opportunity to chose either one of these beds...? Conflict ensues.

The blog has been on the back burner this week...I've been busy catching up with orders, "career shopping", and turning 26! But there are more items waiting to be posted in the shop, as well as loads of inspiration I've been coming across! SOON.

Best of the Week Vol. 6 [Fashionably Late]

1.) View samples from Phaidon Publishing's recent glamor book, SAMPLE, here.
2.) I feel like I reference This is Glamorous a lot, but this cork board lamp is too fabulous.
3.) Deep in the archives of Loveology, a chandelier hanging from a tree. Loving the juxtaposition in this photo. And the blog is pure visual candy!
4.) This comes a little late in the year, but I am all over this Geisha Calendar!
5.) 10 easy steps to making your own hair accessory! Courtesy of Maquette.

“A small key opens big doors.”

- Turkish Proverb.


And a large key looks best when displayed on walls!

One of the newest items coming soon to the soZealous Etsy Shop. Stay tuned for more updates!

It's Business Time.

The new business cards are here! Designed by my fabulous hubby, Wayde.

Look Closer.

Wait a second...is that couch made out of a...?


Yes. And it's merely one of the many morbidly stylish Coffin Couches. Just in time for Halloween!

Lifestyles of the Tragically Hip

It's tagline: "is in your place". More appropriately it should read, "you wish it was your place."

This is The Selby, a photography blog by Todd Selby that showcases living spaces of the rich & ridiculously creative.


If you can handle it's more than a little pretentious vibe, I'm sure you'll eat it up. I sure as heck did.

Light it up.

Generate Design has a fabulous line of illuminating accessories from lit furniture to interactive lighting at all price ranges.

Par exemple: Rubber Chandelier (left), $4,499. Glo Chandelier (right), $499.

Best of the Week Vol. 5

1.) These "cupcake paper sleeves" are SO adorable! That's probably not the technical name, bit it's what I've dubbed them. Photo posted on This is Glamorous blog.
2.) Ffffound featured this aesthetically pleasing bookcover, and better yet—by a New Zealander!
3.) Illustrations of Marguerite Sauvage.
4.)"Lustre Opaline", part of the Marie Christophe collection. Link courtesy of HeySusy.
5.) Be Careful with Ka...Paule Ka. From Style Bubble, one of my new favorite fashion blogs.
6.) The 20 Most Creative Resumes I've seen in a long time... found at Design for Mankind.

Side note #1 - This is my 100th blog entry! Thanks to all my readers & customers who inspire me to continue producing things.
Side note #2 - There will be new items posted in the shop this week! So keep an eye out, Zealots!

Life Imitates Art

LEFT: L’école des femmes SS09 courtesy of Design is Mine.
RIGHT: "Words are not enough" by advice to sink in slowly.

On-the-job Dressing

I was a tingle to find a 1966 Fall/ Winter issue of Simplicity Magazine at a rummage sale today. The advertisements, sketches, and clothing highlights had me glued! But the most intriguing article was a complete in-depth analysis for "On-the-job Dressing".

Here are some valuable tips I picked up on succeeding fashionably in the business world (which will come in handy upon my re-entrance into it):

1). Proper clothes, good make-up and girdles are the working girl's best friends.
2). Wear a sweater and skirt on the job? ONLY if it's worn with scarf or pin, proper shoes, gloves.
3). For on-the-job prettiness, do have a neat shiny hairdo. Never wear hair clips or rollers, even under a scarf, on the job.
4). Smart job-dressing: two dresses that go two places with a change of accessories.
5). The girl with big ideas about her job, about a life of her own, looks her best AT ALL TIMES.

And last, but certainly not least, remember:

How To: Brocade Inspired Bookcase

This is an old(ish) post from Apartment Therapy that gives instructions on how to beautify that old, ugly bookshelf.

You can even do this cheaper than the estimated price of materials by using wrapping paper instead of wallpaper as the backdrop!

Now with all that extra money you saved, wouldn't a little accent from the soZealous shop just top it off? [Shameless self-promotion].

Etsy Finds: Highlights from the Everyday Gift Guide

Today was a rather exciting day for the soZealous Etsy shop! My "Pretty Little Brocade Chalkboard" was featured in the Everyday Gift Guide, a compilation of daily picks distributed to a staggering 17,500 readers! Needless to say I made a few sales, not to mention increased my "lover" base by nearly 100%. Shucks.


All this just happened to coincide with my first official day of "unemployment". Coincidence? I'd like to think not...

Amidst the surge of interest and Etsy convos, I was able to upload a few new items to the shop including this fabulous wall embellishing!


You know you want it.

Best of the Week Vol. 4

1.) Vintage Advertising Flickr Pool, entitled grafismos da realidade.
2.) Backstage at the Fendi show (Paris Fashion Week), link courtesy of Fashion is Spinach.
3.) Oh Joy! featured a gorgeous fashion spread by Koto Bolofo from Vogue Germany. Photos by Koto Bolofo.
4.) Being a girl just got a WHOLE lot classier...Thanks, Moxie! And NOTCOT for the link.
5.) Home of Wary-Meyers, courtesy of sfgirlbybay.

Twitter Payz

Now, I'm not ultimately saavy in the world of Social Media, but I get an A in my interest of it. Particularly in the networking site that is Twitter. It's been been the best way of meeting people with shared interests locally and I've had an astonishing amount of offers from "Tweeps" willing to offload things to me from wicker chair sets to chocolate fondue fountains.


At times you might have to weed through the mediocre hunger complaints and political jabs (which readers will not be subjected to in the soZealous Twitter feed). But depending on you "follow", you can be the first to know about events, news, contests, and more! It's really what you put into it. Here are some Twitterers that I recommend:

@designmilk - "Dedicated to art & design."
@VeerUpdate - "Elements for Creativity™"
@NOTCOT - "For your Ideas + Aesthetics + Amusement."
@Skellie - "For current and future movers and shakers of the web: people who understand that content is King, Queen and the entire royal family."
@storque - "The media branch of Etsy.com"
@designrelated - "Where design meets inspiration."
@nubbytwiglet - "Art-Official Intelligence." And my favorite blogger at the moment.
@SmartyPig - "The coolest social media online savings site." Remember how I said "Twitter Payz (with a 'z')? Each month SmartyPig has a Twitter contest that you can easily win 1 of 3 $100 giftcards to open SmartyPig accounts. Guess who one of the big winners was yesterday?!

For me, Twitter has been a great way to advertise shop updates, blog posts, and general musings on life. I might have got on the band wagon a little late, but I'm riding it now! And if you're not already on, I encourage you to sign up and start following your favorite bloggers, businesses, and creatives to stay connected!

October Wishes & Birthday Dreams

"October is the fallen leaf, but it is also a wider horizon more clearly seen. It is the distant hillsonce more in sight, and the enduring constellations about them once again." -Hal Borland

Today is the first day of my favorite month! I wouldn't have had to be born into it to appreciate October as much as I do, but I'm very fortunate that I did. Doesn't October 21st have such a lovely ring to it? Ahhhhh.....and it's fastly approaching!

Items on this year's birthday wishlist:

1). A New Career

photo by Luca Fantini

Preferably one in the Brand/Product/Events/Promotional Marketing, Public/Media Relations or any other related Industry. I've got experience. You've got my email: sozealous@gmail.com

2.) Kodak Duraflex Camera

photo by phoenixsu85

I've been wanting one of these cameras since I saw Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus. These can be found in various secondhand stores, but it would be GREAT to find one that actually works. In addition to this request, a PRO Flickr Account would be much appreciated!

3.) Design Books

photo by nubbytwiglet

I've become increasingly obsessed with design (and business) books of all kinds. Some titles I'd like to have join my personal library include: "Sizes May Vary: A Workbook for Graphic Design" by Mark Boyce, "Editing by Design" by Jan White, "Fashion Wonderland" by Victionary, "Craft, Inc.: Turn Your Creative Hobby into a Business" by Meg Mateo Ilasco, "Hand Job: A Catalogue of Type" by Michael Perry, and "Fresh Fruits" by Shoichi Aoki.

4.) Black & White

photo by Ahmet Gul.

Includes but not limited to embellished, shiny, lacey, sparkly, damask or vintage home decor & dresses. YOU KNOW IT.

Fin.

Second Lives

NY Times online recently featured excerpts from the Second Lives exhibit at the Museum of Arts & Design. This phenomenal piece by Stuart Haygarth is a chandelier made entirely of recycled eyeglasses.

(Peruse through the slideshow and don't miss the radical tidal wave of vinyl records!)

Back to the topic of chandeliers, if you were ever interested on how to properly clean one, here is a link to an amusing site that teaches not only that, but everything else from remote controls to Wii Fit boards.

The Aesthetically Pleasing Book Cover Club

Now moderating The Aesthetically Pleasing Book Cover Club on Flickr! Presenting my first entry:



A safe place to judge books by their fabulous covers.

Please join and submit your favs!

Best of the Week Vol. 3

1.) Beautiful images from the D&G 10 Year Book Project by Nuearmy.
2.) Cut # 01:Prayer on the Behance Network from Danile Napolitano's profile. I just really love this clip.
3.) Marie Antoinette inspired boutique! Confection Perfection courtesy of Desire to Inspire.
4.) Nubby Twiglet is probably my all-time favorite blogger (of the moment). Here's a fantastic article she wrote on The Power of Personal Branding.
5.) Gorgeous pic featured on sfgirlbybay blog.
6.) Zooey Deschanel on the October cover of Nylon Magazine. The girl! The hair! The typeface! Check it.