kooples!

i came across the Kooples the other day. Knowing how much i like twee shit, naturally i fell in love… {james bond via screenmusings}If you’re like me you already know what Saville Road is~ namely where James Bond and John Steed get their suits. But lately Saville Road has forsaken bankers and spies for couples,…

giselle illustrations by maraja

i found “the Royal Book of Ballet” in a used book store. published in 1962, the illustrations are by Libico Maraja. he worked and was well known in post war europe. here is his website, which you’ll need babelfish for unless you read italian. a sampling of paintings from “Giselle…” his page layouts are bold…

snow white~ nancy ekholm burkert’s medieval marvel

published in 1972 nancy ekholm burkert’s “Snow White” is a marvel. inspired by medieval manuscripts and a pre-raphaelite obsession with detail, she used colored inks and tiny lines to create intricately detailed art. {right click and open in new page to enjoy in a much larger format.}there was a medieval revival in the 70s. from Rush to…

murder on the orient express fashion

did you know the orient express still exists? i didn’t. i was sure it had gone the way of the dodo. unfortunately {actually fortunately}, due to cheaper airfare it no longer goes to Istanbul, its original destination, and instead ends in venice*. check out their site. it’s nuts. they have animations to show you how…

arthur rackham’s poe~ living maelstroms and undead loves

beautiful rainy day in socal so it’s time for some E. A. Poe illustrated by the endlessly talented Arthur Rackham. These are from 1935. Rachkham shows that his use of line is more beautiful than most other artist’s command of color, as well as his mastery of large areas of black and a skillful employment…

a tour of paris through the eyes of "Madeline."

i recently reread the “Madeline” books. they were just as adorable as i remember. as i studied ludwig bemelman’s charming color sketches of paris, i couldn’t help but daydream about visiting the city. some of the sites i was familiar with from films and novels, but others i’d never heard of. armed with a list…

wuthering heights fashion

brrrrr!!! 39 degrees F here in socal! i swear the bay area was warmer. i have a theory the cloud cover kept us insulated. anyway, these burda patterns are so lovely, so romantic, i want to wrap myself in plaids and wools and daydream about scottish selkies and ghosts on the moors, especially Emily Bronte’s,…

swan lake by lizbeth zwerger

lisbeth zwerger’s Swan Lake {2002} is beautifully strange. delicate watercolors shift between impermanence and reality. from odette’s* swan headed glove to the impenetrable mists, we float in a world where dream logic reigns. i love the awkward transformation of the swan maidens. it’s ideas like this that set zwerger apart from her peers. never content…

mercer mayer’s "sleeping beauty"~

mercer mayer’s “sleeping beauty” {1984} is more than a little convoluted and while beautiful, one of his lesser works. the subtle pencil shading is gone and the colors appears straight out the the pan with next to no mixing. his solid draftsmanship has weakened and characters are often put together in unconvincing ways. still, some…