Corner Knick Knacks

For a long time, we wanted to spruce up the corners of our dining room with something other than a plain ol' cabinet. After having seen the new iKea corner cabinets (which are just around $100!), we knew we had to do a slight makeover. We removed the current cabinets, and built two of these corner cabinets - hiding their grey legs with the leftover wallpaper from Anthropologie we had from our latest installment. So what are our corner necessities?

Fresh flowers are always a must - they easily brighten a room and make it a lot more lively.

We found these ceramics from Rhyno Clayworks, which is all handmade by a talented artist named Ryan Lucier in Texas. His work is incredible, and the vases are a stunning match against our blue wall. We have a few more things from his collection that we have to photograph very soon, we were too much in awe to remember to photograph everything (insert blushing emoticon here).

This clock has got to be the greatest clock we've seen so far. It's handcrafted by Mariko Carandang from the iluxo Etsy shop. The little house at top indicates noon time - it's quite darling. Mariko also makes clocks in other designs like this kitty shape and also our favorite city - San Francisco!

And these bud vases are from Honeycomb Studio... Need we say anymore? The gold accent matched our gold peonies wallpaper so perfectly, and they are just so darling. We didn't put any flowers in these, since they stand out so well on their own.

And this is what the completed corner looks like. What's in the cabinet? Well, liquor of course! As you can see, instead of repainting the grey legs, we exploited the leftover wallpaper. But if we didn't cover it with wallpaper, we would definitely paint it gold!

What are your favorite knick knacks? Share us your favorite locally made home goods shops! We love to explore items made in the USA!

Wearing Love

We first learned of Bashful Bliss online, a clothing brand made by a mother named Tara Huff who simply had a desire to inspire women and girls to live happily and beautifully. Our favorite item from their collections is this grey sweater (that is so soft!), which features a heart on the heart of the sweater, and also a heart on its sleeve. Not only is the sweater lovely, but it's so soft and perfect for chilly nights (and great for a late night jog!). Featured below is our Beauty Editor Jeanne San Diego, wearing Bashful Bliss. Doesn't her purple ombre hair go so well with the sweater?

Unique LA in May

It's one of the many times we've explored State of Unique's fun events, and this past weekend is no exception. We came a little late this Sunday, so we didn't have much time to visit each both - but from what we browsed, we loved it all. It was such a beautiful day in Los Angeles and the stars must have aligned, because there is no other perfect weekend for Unique LA than this weekend. And it was a perfect time to grab mom something special for Mother's Day.

Meet our beautiful friend Marlene from Savour this Moment (our favorite sauce-makers ever!), who has the most delicious pesto. We bought 3 jars and were about to buy more, but they ran out of their other sauces! They're currently on Kickstarter, so make sure to read what they're all about and support!

Then we visited Hedley and Bennett, which makes the most beautifully crafted aprons we've seen. It's really stunning, and can't believe how versatile they look. They look like a kitchen staple.

And fanny packs are making a comeback with Avenue Dee! They sold us on these flamingo prints.

We saw the phrase "Vampire Slayers" and were immediately drawn to this booth. Their pickles were delicious.

Plants that don't need water? These are so perfect for our lofty offices (and urban living). They're sold by Airplantman.

Our first bite into the red velvet and lemon truffles, and we were completely sold. These are soft, delicious, and all kinds of perfect. Velvet Rope Bake Shop sure does know how to win people over.

While we love shopping for us, we also love children's fashion (hence our recent announcement of Little Zooey coming out this summer). AJ is holding a "Meowvana" tee from Tiny Whales and then he modeled for Brinko Ties for a few minutes too. We loved both brands!

Our friends from Katie Dean Jewelry also were at the event, and had such a beautiful booth that we wanted to move right in. Fresh flowers, flower crowns, and jewelry? It's such love at first sight.

And lastly, as all the shops were closing, we rushed to buy two dresses from our new favorite discovery: Fleet Collection. We absolutely loved everything about them - the cut, fabrics, and the fit. They fit comfortably and are perfect for this warm weather we're having in Los Angeles.

Our 4-year-old mascot AJ was also a hit of the event as he attracted all types of compliments about his outfit (mustache leggings, California Love tee, and Freshly Picked moccs sure do kids' fashion some justice!).

Hopefully, you take a peek at the above vendors we were lucky enough to see. We can't wait for the next State of Unique event! Until next time...

Story and Photography // Zooey Magazine