There are still nearly 4 weeks left of Lent so I thought it  might be appropriate for this weeks theme to be of a piscatory nature.


Starting with my favorite find, this gorgeous glass bowl from Apartment 48.  At $55 bucks it's pretty pricey for a 7" bowl....

...but think how lovely it would be planted with some pea gravel and a mini bamboo bonsai. If you've always admired the zen-like beauty of a goldfish swimming in a perfectly furnished environment but don't have the skill to keep the poor bugger alive for more than a few days than this could be just the solution.

Perhaps this playful Calder-esque mobile depicting a fishy mom and her fry are more to your taste and budget. As a unique but attractive baby shower gift it supplies a lot of bang for the buck at $28 including shipping. By Flensted Mobiles available at 2Modern.

How about something cozy and warm to curl your toes into? This 4'x6'  hooked rug from designer Laura Megroz would be perfect in a family room or den. Hand-hooked and made from 100% New Zealand wool at $350 I consider it a bargain. Available at Chandler 4 Corners.

When it comes to decorating my front porch I'm of the 'more is more' philosophy. How about a school of wind chimes?  Get it? School? As in school of fish?
Ahem.

Fish chimes are very popular so a simple google search will yield a lot of cheap, tacky crap. I still managed to find a few mass produced gems.

This one is from River's Edge. $14.99 at Overton's and everywhere else. I love the verdigris finish.









Don't limit wind chimes to your porch. Try suspending one alongside a few container arrangements from a garden stake designed for displaying 2 or more hanging plants. For that purpose, I really I like this stylized bamboo model I found most cheaply at Amazon.com. .

You can find both these models at pretty much any import shop as well as the places I've linked to. While I'm a firm believer that it is dandy to incorporate a bit of kitch in your outdoor decorating it helps to avoid products that are overly cutesy or literal. The nice thing about this kind of decorating is that it is far less permanent so you can relax and have a bit of fun with it.

If you are looking for something a bit more original, be prepared to pay more. It took a more careful search but I managed to find this sweet seahorse for $49.95 at Wind and Weather.

While we are still in outdoor kitch mode don't forget your party lights. PartyLights.com has several fish and fishing themed sets but I'm partial to this trout.


















Onto more serious finds. I'm knocked out by these fabulous red and white fish decoys from the 40's/50's. Offered by Urban Country at 1stDibs.com. This is an investment. Contact the dealer for pricing info or register for a free account at 1stDibs.

                                                                                                  

If glass is more your thing perhaps you'll love this 1950's Alfred Barbini aquarium lamp as much as I do. From BG Galleries  purchasable through 1stdibs.com. Same pricing info as previously mentioned.

I saved my favorite for last. Artist Patricia Figuerora  creates lush mixed media paintings with an eye toward depicting the environmental effects of pollution. Her paintings frequently incorporate haunting, ethereal  images of fish. She uses a palete of warm reds and ochers imbuing her work with the feel of natural history illustrations. Contact the artist for further info.

Put a Bird On It

Birds in design have become trendy to the point of satire. Is it possible to add a touch of feathered whimsy to your pad and without incurring the dreaded hipster tag? Certainly! By shying away from the trendy, trite, and tiresome I've managed to source some great items for the ornithological enthusiast.

Let us start with this truly inspired lamp I discovered at The Conran Shop. Truth be told, this delightful piece by the Paris company Mathieu Challieres is what inspired me to create this blog early one morning after laying awake obsessing about it.
Whimsical macabre? An oxymoron? Not when describing the bird skeletons marketed as sculptural l'objet decor at Voila!. I'm particularly fond of the parrots.

If folk art is more your thing, how about this lovely bit of carnival history from Sigmar available through 1stdibs.com.


I love the elegant simplicity of this vintage sandstone carving offering from The American Primitive Gallery.
 
Etsy.com designers are arguably some of the biggest perpetrators of 'put a bird on it' design so it took some searching but I managed to find this colorful bit of avian kitch. The designer , Paige Flynn (who updates vintage figurines with glossy paint) has a few of these in her shop but I'm partial to this turquoise peacock.



A great source of affordable art is 20x200.com where I discovered this nifty black and white print by artist Jason Polan.

I came across this nifty bottle opener from Canoe.

Also from Canoe these sweet Kristian Vedel re-issues.

I'm crazy about melamine dinnerware and this set of 4 Thomas Paul plates are just the ticket!

Now go out there and put a bird on it without shame!