LotusHaus

Sex and the City } Carried Away in New York!

Check out the uberhip Sex and the City Movie Screening & After Party in New York! Despite the rain, thousands of fans came out to watch the premiere at the Radio City Music Hall. The after party was held at the Modern Museum of Art (MoMA). Production, design & decor by 1540 Production and Floral Design by Oscar Mora. To read more about New York movie premiere and after party click here! Let me know if you've seen the movie and if you did anything special to make a night out of it! Some of my gal pals went all out!

GlobalFlora } Water Lily Collection by Preston Bailey

Featured Floral Designer: Preston Bailey - New York

If you decide to skip town and have a tropical destination wedding make sure to go with a Sandals Resort in Jamaica, St. Lucia, Antigua or the Bahamas! Why? So you can lay on the beach and have a celebrity style wedding with a signature wedding package by the world famous Preston Bailey. If I were to get married all over again (our 5 year anniversary is this August), I would definitely go to Jamaica and select the Water Lily Collection shown above!

DIY Orchid Box by Preston Bailey

Check out this gorgeous Orchid Box arrangement by Preston Bailey! Read Preston's blog for instructions on how to make this arrangement for your own wedding or special event!

Atomic Bonsai Kit

Develop a green thumb with this super cute and kill proof atomic bonsai kit! Available at Tortoise on Abbott Kinney Blvd in LA.

Starfire Studio } Fused Glass Art Panels on Etsy

Peep these super funky glass panels by Etsy seller Starfire Studios! Via retro modern designer Jenn Ski.

Baby Bunch } Organic Gift Set that looks like a flower bouquet!

I was shopping around Madison Park today after an appointment with my Naturopath and saw this great organic baby gift set from Baby Bunch. I wish I would have picked these up for all the baby showers I attended this year! This beautiful gift set includes organic cotton baby essentials presented in a floral bouquet with wood veneer roses, faux foliage and a lovely decorative lidded box!

My Kind of Picnic!

These colorful tiered bento-style lunchboxes and tableware from Graham & Green make me want to party outside! These are from the UK but click here to purchase similar lunchboxes in the US.

Aviva Stanoff } Nature and Design - An Everyday Celebration

I have long been inspired by Aviva Stanoff and her amazing body of work since I discovered her Brooklyn design studio many years ago. (Check out my eco-luxe color & trend board). Aviva embodies the union of her Japanese heritage and the modern metropolis lifestyle.

"From her North Hollywood roots in 1970’s bohemian California to tending to the flowers surrounding her grandfather’s Buddhist temple in Okayama, Japan, Aviva Stanoff represents a cultural tapestry...She finds inspiration in the subtle palette of nature, the deliberate minimalism of tradition, and the city sunset seen every night from her design studio window. She translates these inspirations into pattern, color, and beautiful environments."

With roots in the fashion textiles industry, the Aviva Stanoff collection is known for its high end, heirloom quality pillows and soft goods that are hand-dyed, etched, and painted one at a time in her Brooklyn studio by skilled artisans. Real foliage is used to create the prints you see and with a special technique these elements are embossed into plush velvet leaving the texture and essence of nature for you to enjoy. For more inspiration, check out this video and watch Aviva explain how she creates her work. I guarantee it will awe and inspire!

Mother's Day Celebration

Mother's Day was a wonderful day! I had all the mothers in the house (mom, grandma and mom-in-law) and we had a fat old brunch at our big tables decorated with fresh lilac from local yards and pretty pastel blumeboxes. This was the first time I had the chance to use these recyclable cardboard vases and they provided a great boost of color (great idea for simple and affordable wedding centerpieces). They were also great as portable gifts - each mother got to take one home. Upon entering my home, guests were greated by a vintage Thai painting of women in the floating markets. This painting and my mom's love of lilac and yellow were my color inspiration. I decorated some white lidded boxes with 100% recycled cotton Midori paper in three different colors (purple, pink and blue) and filled each box with color coordinated goodies, like candles, candies, stationary and a sweet capiz photo frame of my husband and I. They were fun to open and can be reused infinitely! Afterwards we enjoyed a stroll through the Bonsai Collection and Rhododendron Garden at the Weyerhauser campus in Federal Way (south of Seattle).

Goodie Bags from Matt & Nat

"choose life, choose positivity, choose the golden rule, choose to be at peace with yourself, choose salvation." Choose Matt & Nat vegan handbags! By choosing vegan, you are supporting cruelty free, non-leather goods that are made of the highest quality synthetics. Influenced by east and west, yin and yang, Matt and Nat embrace a positive philosophy and call us all to choose life, salvation and peace within ourselves. I'm in!

FabricPot } Fashionable and Sustainable Planters

I'm really liking these funky and eco-friendly fabric planters by FabricPot. Instead of a ceramic or plastic container, these pots use high tech, breathable fabric made with 100% recycled polyester. The fabric material provides proper aeration and makes these planters collapsible and easy to store. On sale now for $24.

It's a Heavenly Blog

I recently discovered a new wedding and design inspired blog called You Love Me and It's Heavenly, by Carlene, a fellow Filipina graphics gal and bride to be. Above are two of her heavenly illustrations! If you're wedding bound, this blog is a must read!

Happy Mother's Day!

I hope you all enjoy spending time with the women that have shaped your lives! Many peace and blessings to the women of the world. May you continue to shine your light and your love!

GlobalFlora } Coral Fixation

Featured Event Theme: Coral Fixation via ThirteenMinutes Magazine

This post is inspired by an amazing fashion spread I saw in ThirteenMinutes, an avant garde Asian American magazine. I just love this sleek and modern take on the traditional "Seaside" theme. Coral is fascinating with it's varying textures and dynamic forms. Hair styling by Philippe Paschkes, photography by Richard Warren, and makeup by Viktorija Bowers. Seashell takeout favor idea by Pink Pearls, rare black coral ring by Art Deco Rings,  modern seashore tablescape by Rebecca Thuss, and coral sea shell arrangement by Zofia Design.

Mother's Day Eco-Friendly Bedroom Makeover

How about helping your mom refresh her personal space with these gorgeous and eco-friendly elements from Gaiam! Sweet and sentimental, this allium inspired organic cotton bedding set, and embroidered fair trade silk chrysanthemum throw pillow, are sure to set a soothing and blissful mood. Create a corner for tea and reflection with this beautiful and sustainable tea table and cushion set. And lastly, help her create a zen atmosphere with a combination of a natural rock & resin fountain, inner peace sculpture and some enlightening paisely wall sconces.

Mother's Day Gifts from Carol's Daughter

Carol's Daughter is an amazing hair and beauty product line with roots in Brooklyn and an awesome story of dedication and entrepreneurship (read her memoir! Success Never Smelled So Sweet: How I Followed My Nose and Found my Passion). In the mid 90s, the Tui Hair Oil was given to me by a friend in Brooklyn (Guava, mango and passionfruit ~ smells so good!). At that time all of the products were handmade and packaged in the kitchen of Carol's Daughter, Lisa Price, and you could only get it at a small shop in Brooklyn. Now, Carol's Daughter has an amazing Body Shop-like store in Harlem on 125th St., many locations nationwide and celebrity support from the likes of Mary J. Blige and Jada Pinkett Smith. I highly recommend all of the gift sets available and promise that your mom and you with both enjoy the tantalizing scents and luxurious butters!

Escada Summer 2008 } Wedding or Special Event Color Inspiration

I drove by the Escada boutique and was inspired by the window display. I just love the color story for the Summer 2008 collection. With saturated brights and sophistication, this palette of purple, fuschia, orange, caramel and chocolate would be an amazing color theme for a wedding, shower or special event.

Next to the color pegs, you will see some beautiful Mokara Orchids that could be used to carry this theme. For you event planners and DIY brides, check out FiftyFlowers.com for bulk flowers, DIY flower combos and wholesale prices. They even carry organic roses. Gerbera daisies come in these lush colors as well! Flip through Organic Style magazine and read about B&H Flowers an amazing organic gerbera daisy farm in California. Make sure to watch the cool video tour on pg 37.

P.S. Christy Turlington looks gorgeous in this ad campaign (did you know her mother was Salvadoran?)! She's simply stunning!

Modern Asian Style } Baby Announcements

I'm really diggin' these modern Asian inspired Baby Announcements from Fine Stationary! When baby gets bigger, I would highly recommend getting a custom silhouette/cameo print. Click here to see what I mean. So cute and modern!

Fair Trade and Sustainable Fabrics with Global Appeal!

If you're into textiles, like I am, you'll probably have a shelf full of beautiful fabric waiting for you to make something out of it. Mine usually end up as temporary table runners or pillow covers. Sorry to do this to you, but you're gonna want to add to your collection! Fabric and Art is a great online source for a well edited selection of fabrics from around the world ~ many of which are fair trade, organic and sustainable. You'll find Japanese and Asian inspired cotton prints, Fair Trade Silks and Brocades, Fair Trade Batiks, Organic Cotton, Hemp, Soy and Bamboo Jersey,  Eco-dyed Cottons,  African Prints, Aboriginal Art Prints, Indian wovens, and Silk Brocade. Shown above from left to right - Japanese Print, Silk Brocade, African Batik, Indian Woven Stripe, Asian Print and Aboriginal Art print. Enjoy!