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.