put a crown on it. 13.

Photography: Fiona Galbraith  Crown & Styling: Nicole Valentine Don

it is autumn in the southern hemisphere and i made this maple crown to round out the seasonal floral crown series. photographer Fiona Galbraith spent a very rainy Sydney afternoon with me and helped capture that little bit of magic that you can feel in the crisp fall air.

Italy, you're just my type.

Italy was a haven for interesting fonts; many look like they are straight out of the 70's and my hunch is that filmmaker Wes Anderson has been inspired by them as well (Italian imagery in general I think). the classic go-to seems to be the one that is used in the 'biglietteria' image - you see this on many of the street signs and at all of the train stations- i love it. this is a round up of some of my favourites from in and around Rome & Tuscany.

the window boxes (and the like) of Italy.

the plant life in Italy is just incredible. this is just a small sample of the flowers and window boxes i saw around Rome and Tuscany. there were plenty we drove past that i couldn't get a photo of as well...my senses were overwhelmed by the colours, lushness and creativity behind them all. click through for more:

i heart Tuscany.

we went to my best friend's wedding in Tuscany and the event could not have been in a more magical place- most of these photos are from in and around an old medieval village called Certaldo/Certaldo Alto. to get to the nuptials, we had to take a funicular- the Wes Anderson nuances were everywhere! be sure to click through for more beauties: 

walls alive!

check out my latest interiors round up for JB Est 1979, HERE!

i heart Rome.

we did a pretty great job of Rome in half a day, conquered it you might say. my favourite parts were the Pantheon and all of the amazing plants growing crazy everywhere. there will be a separate post dedicated just to the window boxes, i'm sure.

*click through for more of our Roman holiday

#littlenickidoeseurope

so long, Australia; i'm leaving on a jet plane! i will be posting European updates here as we go and be sure to follow along with the adventures on instagram if you're not already!  #littlenickidoeseurope

1000 bedrooms.

just under a year ago now, photographer m. ellen burns came to our house one morning and photographed us in our bedroom (which looks so different now!). she has a project called 1000 bedrooms in which her goal is to photograph 1000 bedrooms across the world over the next few years. her images are about the people, not the room. she shoots off a roll of film and processes it in the dark room at her work, so for her this ends up being a time consuming passion project. i was so happy to be part of this! she was also cool enough to send me through contact strip of some of our outtakes. chris just does not look impressed at all; i think he got up on the wrong side of bed that morning ;)

DIY: pendant lamp hanging planters

Photo by: Fiona Galbraith

howdy all!  click HERE to check out what i've been up to over at JB Est 1979 today.

stone fox bride.

i loved reading about Jemima Kirke's understated wedding this week, it just made me love her even more. i noticed some similarities between us (or imagined them...?); i'd like to think i've got a bit of Jessa in me ;)

here

itchy feet.

i'm getting so ready to leave on our little European adventure this weekend. it's time to stand on new lands with our feet in fresh soil; looking out from a brand spankin' vantage point. like a breath of fresh.air.*photos from our trip to morocco

inspired by: Sia - Chandelier.

i don't feel like i have the right foundation to get into the political arguments that might stem from this video (despite having a background in art history & theory); i just want keep it simple and say that this has .moved.me.

this girl is so gloriously unselfconscious, it makes me wish i had something to focus on so wholeheartedly and with such passion (even for just 3 minutes and 52 seconds). she is incredible. my favourite bit is sitting at the little table- i could watch it on repeat.

words for the day:

here

le french freak out.

ici

bonjour tout le monde! i am going un petit peu crazy trying to plan our trip to Europe next week (eep!). basically, i want an authentic city by city or region by region experience via hotels or airbnb every place i visit- is that too much to ask? i feel that if you go to Paris for instance, you should stay in a place that has a spiral staircase or an old wooden & iron gated lift, gorgeous chevron hardwood floors and a big, old, skeleton key to get in: like this dream Parisian apartment. likewise, if you were to stay by the beach in Sydney, you should get an array of colourful beach towels at your disposal, a hills hoist out the back and maybe a pair of complimentary 'thongs' (flip flops) for your stay. it's a mystery to me that most hotels are still so bland and run of the mill.

i have been desperate to find a lovely lavender filled place of perfection somewhere in Provence and stumbled upon this incredible place: D'une Ile. unfortunately it is in Normandy, so will have to wait for another time, but the owner was helpful enough to put me onto this incredible website, which i am now subscribed to and outright obsessed with. you choose which region in France you wish to stay in and what type of experience you are after, i.e. cuisine, tradition & crafts, wine, etc. i could not be happier; everything is coming up lavender!

show me the mantle!

‘The Way We Live with The Things We Love’, 2009 Photography: Gilles de Chabaneix

it's getting chilly here in Sydney (it's still snowing where my parents are in Canada even!)…what better way to stay warm, then cozying up by the fire (or space heater, if you live with me). you know i love a good mantle piece, so i've shared some fun, colourful and intriguing bohemian mantles over at JB Est 1979 today; check them out HERE!

i, (heart) robot.

remember this post? well, here is what i made - a naive cardboard cut-out robot costume for the launch of Domayne Australia's 2014 winter bedding range. i also did the cat lover silhouettes that feature in the cover of the catalogue.