bonne annee!

Happy New Year, friends! Here's to an excellent next decade.

{pretty, festive garland from Rivulette}

new year jewelry

Look at the lovely things that Stephanie Renee at Dores has planned for the New Year. I love how delicate and interesting each piece is. The Dores vintage shop is quickly becoming one of my standbys, and I've always been tempted to buy a necklace or bracelet as well.

In other news, Kate's also got a few new things up her sleeve for the New Year...

anti-corporate gift guide

Hi friends,

the holidays are approaching, and as usual, Christmas gift madness has set in among many. Last weekend, Montreal's streets were filled with bustling shoppers, and my little yarn shop was overrun with folks purchasing last minute gift materials. I'm knitting all the gifts I give people this year in an effort to hold out against consumerism, but if I was buying things, these lovely - and almost entirely hand-made - selections would be at the top of my list.

From top: lovely jewelry from Milwaukee-based Dores :: Steven Alan cotton-wool Whitman top :: a hand-knit version of this hat that Erica made, using this wool :: Hello Handmade's Laureled tea towel :: Wonder Wonder's knit necklaces :: hand-printed cotton totes from little glowing lights.

winter, knitting, and 100 posts

Hi all, welcome to million dollar swim's 100th post! I'm looking out at a dark, snowy Montreal night - it's coming around to that cold, calm stillness that follows a big storm like the one we had today. I'm holed up cozily in my apartment though, listening to Charlotte Cornfield (my friend Dom's roommate), and working away at a few knitting projects - I finished this hot water bottle holder yesterday, and I'm just starting this slouchy hat as a gift for my grandmother. Here's to the encroaching winter...

hello? anybody home?

Readers, are there any of you still out there? It's been so long, I hardly know whether any of you remain. What can I say? I'm in the midst of one of those times where life is getting the better of me. Between writing, work, dancing, and trying to sneak in a few moments with friends when I can, my time is filling up faster than I can manage, and lovely things like this space are, unfortunately, getting lost in the shuffle. But please stick around just the same - for the time being, things may be a bit sparse, but it's short lived, I promise. With hopes of seeing more of you soon,

A.

{photo of designer Annettee Verkuyl's home via Bliss}

fall at la garconne

If I could wear nothing but these lovely printed dresses for the rest of fall, I think I would. As usual, La Garconne's styling is impeccable.

{dresses from Rachel Comey, 3.1 Phillip Lim, and Something Else}

lazy day retreat

Don't you just want to jump into these gorgeous spaces at Mildred's Lane? On this lazy day off, I definitely do.

{seen first here}

bruce peninsula

Have you listened to flat-out amazing gospel-prog-folk band Bruce Peninsula? I just got home from seeing them at Pop Montreal - my first Pop show of the weekend, and it set the bar high. This is one of those bands that sounds great coming through your computer speakers, and then sounds overwhelmingly EVEN GREATER live. Eff, I love Canadian music-makers.

inspiration: scandinavian modern

Next up in our inspiration series: Scandinavian modern. There's something about Scandinavian design that just gets it right: cheerful with out being saccharine, clean without being spare, stylish without being pretentious. If I ever redecorate, I might just have to go down this route...

Clockwise from top left: sneak peek of Isabel Penzlien's home on Design Sponge; another D*S peek, this time of Nadja Muller's home; Skinny Lamixx tea towel; more of Isabel Penzlien's lovely spaces; j. mendicino bowls from Three Potato Four; an image of the brick house; Lecien 'my folklore' fabric; photo from tas-ka; chic on wheels in Copenhagen; Xenia Taler tiles at Three Potato Four; bertoia chairs for kids.

p.s. I highly recommend that you click on the collage to expand it - there's much more detail to be seen...

preloved

I know I said I was trying not to purchase many new clothes this fall, but my gosh that gorgeous dress from Preloved is tempting me. The Canadian company makes all their pieces out of repurposed fabric, so each piece is unique, and also very friendly to the environment. In the last few years their clothing has been getting increasingly beautiful and interesting; stop by the website to check it out.

sessun for fall

Of all the fall collections I've looked at so far, Sessun has to be one of my favourites. The whole feeling of it is exactly in line with how I want to look this fall. And that black dress! Perfection.

seen first here.

inspiration: modern eclecticism

For the next installment of our inspiration series, some images centered around modern eclecticism. Enjoy!

Clockwise from top left: Urban Outfitters sofa; fabric detail from Globalweave Textile at Purl Soho; a favourite Sartorialist image; Wayne Pate 'flock' print; Jill Malek's living room, as seen on Design Sponge; photo from John Robshaw; Java pillow from Enid; fabric detail from Globalweave Textile at Purl Soho; unknown photo of an inspiration board that I found in a folder on my desktop - where is this from?? I have no idea...; John Robshaw light indigo block print; railroad tie plinths from here.

the fall wishlist returns...

It's going to be hard, I'm making a concerted effort not to spend too much money unnecessarily this fall. Fall shopping is, for some reason, this big THING that always takes over, but this year I really don't need to buy anything. There are a couple of basics, though, that I'm going to consider purchasing, and lace-up ankle boots are definitely one. I'd like to try and get them vintage, but just the same, here are some contenders from around the web. Which do you like best?

(above, Jeffrey Campbell Metropolitan)

(black leather granny boots from apricot baby baby, on Etsy)

(Old World Lace Ups at Anthropologie)

(Jeffrey Campbell Everybody)

Or, do I want desert boots, like these from Rachel Comey, above, or Clarks (?!), below?

getaway

I know I just got back from a vacation, but how much do I want to go spend some time at this amazing, 103 year old house right now? So much. From here, here, and, originally, here.

inspiration: vintage rustic

My good friend Lee is moving into a new apartment in October, and she's promised to let me help with the decorating and such. Excitement! So I've been slowly gathering some inspiration over the past few weeks, and grouping images into some loose categories. I've made them into inspiration boards, and I'll be posting them every once in a while over the next few weeks.

p.s. How much more difficult was this whole project sans Domino? SO much. Tear.

Clockwise from top left: Anthropologie catalogue; Sword+Fern stallion necklace; balcony garden from marie claire maison; vintage bottles; Nkuku baobab pendant; closeup of a vintage eel trap; CutPastePrint's Keep Calm; Anthropologie catalogue again;Otto Fabrics hammam towel; Nkuku moonlight lantern; Leslie Janson grain sack pillows;

wiksten fall preview

Well, this has just jumped to the top of my fall '09 wish list.

monday morning music

So Pete Yorn and Scarlett Johansson made a duets album. Now, do I like Pete Yorn? I do not. Did I like Scarlett's Tom Waits covers? Really not so much. Do I like the first single from Break Up? Umm shyeah! Don't know why, but it's all I want to listen to right now - a little happy, a little vintage-y, but not at all retro. It's the perfect thing to listen to on a monday morning. Check it out on their myspace, friends; the full album's out on September 15th.

nadinoo

Oh my goodness, as soon as I saw images on Camp Comfort of this lovely Germany-based clothing line, I was in love. Every piece is so sweet and and vintage-y, without looking dated. Head on over to Nadinoo's website soon, they're having a bit of a sale at the moment.

p.s. I have a feeling that some of these clothes might be right up Chelsea's alley...

two brunettes

I really like these sweet papercut cards from Etsy seller Two Brunettes. They're nice and summery and right now they're helping me to forget that this summer thing isn't going to last forever...