new york

After reading on the Times site about a never-published Alice in Wonderland chapter (!) - with a related letter that's up for sale (£15,000 to £20,000!), I happened to notice a story about a new statue that's just been unveiled in London, on Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth . A play on traditional statues, this one's a ship ... in bottle ! Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle was created by British artist Yinka Shonibare. Unusual and whimsical, this is just the kind of statue I'd really enjoy coming across (and I think a trip to London is long overdue!). What's more, there's also an interesting history about the textiles used in the original ship... [...] Shonibare’s model of Nelson’s HMS Victory (his flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar) is gaudy with sails made from his trademark Dutch wax fabrics. “The Dutch wax fabrics were originally Indonesian-influenced fabrics, known as batik. The Dutch tried the Indonesian market with industrially produced versions and then subse

It's no secret that I have a soft spot for the ukulele. It's small, it's cute, it's Hawaiian. What's not to love? It'd be harder to make the uke any cuter. OK, maybe if the ukuleles were miniature and being played by tiny amigurumi animals... THEN the humble uke could be unequivocally declared to be the Cute Overload of musical instruments. Oh. Wait. YES. I present to you, on this fine Craft Rock Friday, the wonder that is U900 Japanese Ukulele Duo . Here's their video for "Walk Don't Run". The bear's expression is priceless. Their video for "Diamond Head" was awarded an honorable prize "Ukulele Video of the Year 2010" hosted by UkeHunt . You can read an interview with U900's human representative on UkeHunt . U900's new record, Ukulele Beatles, is available for pre-order on Amazon Japan .

Totally digging the "This & That" feature on Oh Joy! , where Joy pairs a fashion piece with a matching item of decor. I really like how Joy takes note of the small details in life, and celebrates them. I love discovering connections between things, and seeing how seemingly random elements are related - whether or not this is intentional. What's more, the act of placing objects side-by-side, like Joy does, really makes them act as a foils to one another, highlighting their best qualities. In the same way that the people closest to you - friends, family, loves - pull out the best in you. Check out more pairings tagged with "This & That" on the Oh Joy! blog .

These bowls by Viennese designers Mischer’Traxler are fascinating and beautiful ... at once simple and complex. The bowls are formed around common vegetables, leaving a negative space that really shows off the beauty of each vegetable. Read more about this series on Edible Geography .

Molly at the Purl Bee posted a great a tutorial for a 20-minute tote bag . It looks super quick and super cute. Best of all, her examples are made with the Spring 2010 Echino Ni-Co fabric collection . I am such a sucker for Echino fabric... I adore the pink glasses print, and the bus pattern is pretty darn sweet, too.

Today's Craft Rock Friday is a little less 'rock' that usual. It's actually an ad for natural gas, but is so adorable I can't resist posting it. It reminds of parts of Michel Gondry's The Science of Sleep - everyday objects coming to life in crafty ways... Plus, my parents are thinking of getting gas heating installed at their place, so there you go. :) The steam on the kettle is a brilliant touch. (via She is Sew Creative )

So fabulous, and looks pretty easy. I love how these three colours look together. Full tutorial here . [ via ]

When we got back from Toronto's One of a Kind spring show (where my partner was exhibiting his lovely letterpress cards and stationery ), we were loaded down with loot - business cards from exhibitors we'd liked, pamphlets and advertising about upcoming craftiness, magazines, and other treasures. As he was flipping through some of the magazines, I heard him call from the other room "oh my gosh YOU'RE IN STUDIO MAGAZINE !" And you know what? We were! Thanks so much to Jen Anisef for including us in her list of Canadian craft and design blogs. We're honoured to be included in such a great list - Siobhan and I have been following Toronto Craft Alert for years and are both subscribers to and admirers of Uppercase . I was very interested to visit My Fair Isle for the first time - as an avid knitter, it's right up my alley! Thanks again! We're thrilled to have been mentioned.

One of the things that got the whole city of Vancouver excited this week was a visit from a grey whale... He swam right into town! Here's a video of the whale swimming up False Creek. Not to worry, he found his way out. Today's Craft Rock Friday is a tribute to the False Creek Whale (who even has his own Twitter account , btw!). Neko Case's song, "People Got A Lotta Nerve" features these great lyrics about a whale: We know, they call them 'killer whales' But you seem surprised When it pinned you down to the bottom of the tank Where you can't turn around It took half your leg, and both your lungs And I craved I ate hearts of sharks I know you know, that I'm a man, man, man Man, man, man eater But still you're surprised-prised-prised when I eat ya Yes, I'm a man, man, man Man, man, man eater But still you're surprised-prised-prised when I eat ya The video also starts out with some crafty goodness: girls knitting (though in a somewhat dub