Kate Spade tumbl(e)s for you

I've been thinning out my google reader account and un-following blogs left and right in order to just get down to the blogs I really like to read. I have, however, recently added a new one: the Kate Spade New York tumblr blog. I know, I know... it is just a really well-dressed up advertisement, but I can't help it. It's just so darn pretty and who can resist dreaming about living in such a candy-colored yet ladylike New York world? A sample of images...

all images via http://www.katespadeny.tumblr.com/

Snowflake Kites

Video courtesy of youtube

This holiday ad from Starbucks is so captivating. Those snowflake kites are cheerful, serene, beautiful....I had to search around and see if they were available to regular joes. Since the answer to questions like this are always on the Internet, I was pretty sure I would be able to find out.

Sure enough- http://jordanairkites.com/snowflakes.html.

It seems Dean Jordan has been a kite enthusiast since a young age and he is responsible for these wind powered beauties. His company's site is filled with other incredible designs as well, but I remain partial to the snowflakes. There is just something about their delicate intricacy and how they look right at home in the winter sky....it would be pretty amazing to start a collection of these kites to fly during the holiday season.

Nickolas Muray

I love a good discovery! On the always fun blog, KRISATOMIC, I found and fell in love with the photograph at the top of this post. I just adore the crispness of color, the composition, the slight furrow in the sleeping girl's brow. Turns out that the photographer, Nickolas Muray, was one of the first major commercial photographers and master of using color.

There's a little bit of a Norman Rockwell feel to Muray's work, but that actually appeals to me because a lot of his images also have a sense of humor about them and are so beautifully composed and lit (plus, I'll admit it, I kinda a sucker for Mr. Rockwell too).

Below are a few of my favorite images that Muray took in the 1930s and 40s (these are part of the George Eastman House archive).

Turns out that Muray also had a long term relationship with Frida Kahlo and took gorgeous pictures of her that also captured his talent and love of color. Aren't these lovely?

Nickolas Muray'a photographs of Frida Kahlo via Smith Kramer Traveling Exhibitions