Blog Love

The editors at Creative Influences adore the blogosphere. It never ceases to amaze us how many wonderful blogs we discover on a daily basis. It certainly has cut down on our magazine addiction. And we love the democracy of the blogosphere! We get to hear many unique voices, that wouldn't have been possible pre-internet. Today, we'd like to celebrate the following blogs that are being added to our blog roll. Congratulations to the authors of these blogs. Each one is an artist in their own right. Hope you enjoy!

Lori Andrews is a talented designer who goes by the name the 10 cent designer. She is a talented photographer as well. I adore her photography blog, Lori Andrews Photography. And her blog entitled The 10 cent designer has lost her head is not to be missed! All headless photography, all amusing!

Katie Lewis pens a fabulous blog entitled The Nomadic Reporter from Beijing. Hearing about a tall blonde's adventures in China is utterly thrilling. Better than any reality show. She's a great writer and her bravery is astounding. Katie also realizes that if you must park a bike in your living room, it must be a great looking one. You go, girl!

The blog world was buzzing when Ab Chao started blogging again. And with good reason. The girl is talented and hilarious. I adore her sense of humor and the lamp she has in her bedroom. And oh yeah, her new kitchen is fab and the 10 cent designer helped her with it. Check it out on Hashai.


Jon at Happy Mundane, reminds us there is beauty all around us. Even in our dish soap. In this post, he talked about neon duct tape. How cool is that? Gotta get me some. He does very interesting display and projects, and gives great instructions. Always inspirational.

deedee9:14 is a blog written by the fab artist Dee Adams, who I wrote about below. She is currently working on a series of mid century birds. The girl has great taste, I love seeing her design picks.

Resurrection Fern is a blog written by prolific artist Margaret Ooman. Margaret makes the most fascinating art combining a love of the natural world with her love of textiles. I especially adore her sea stone series.

Kit Lane is a very humble "nontraditional needle felter, sculptor, painter, 3D developer." I adore the little creatures she creates as well as her delightful narratives. I think she should write a children's book. In her little worlds, the darling creatures co-exist peacefully, reminding me of Apak's works. She makes lots of other stuff too, some not as cute, but all fascinating. And she has a great blog, entitled Kit Lane - Euphamistically Challenged.

Meet Joy and Janet, the creative geniuses behind The Mogg Blogg. Joy and Janet deconstruct the design world. Oh to hell with the pithy words, they are the queens of snark, and say what every other blogger wishes they had the nerve to say. You know it's true. And they are hilarious! When you get bored of the design world taking itself so seriously, click on The Mogg Blogg. I'll be adding the moggit blinkie to my side bar, because I just can't resist a free blinking widget. You go girls!

The Brick House is penned by Morgan somewhere in California. She writes of the love/hate relationship she has with The Brick House, a mid century ranch she is renovating. It's great fun seeing the fruits of her thrifting, and her clippy sense of humor will catch you off guard. On several occasions, she almost got me busted goofing off at work, because she makes me laugh so much! Morgan doesn't have a lot of money, but she has a lot of style. She has great taste in furniture, and loves bad art. While the latter mystifies me, it never ceases to intrigue me. She also has a father-in-law named Craig, who I need to borrow. He built those fab shelves on the sides of the fireplace. Sorry, Morgan, I used an old picture of your living room, because as my readers know (gasp) - I am opposed to animal skin rugs. But I do love your home, and your blog!

I've written about Whitney Smith's pottery many times. I adore her work, and I adore her blog, This Artist's Life. Her blog tells it like it is for an artist supporting herself with her art. I admire her so much, I only dream of supporting myself artistically. I also like the fact that her blog is unapologetically honest. Whenever I look at her blog or flickr set, I want to take a pottery class.

The Order Obsessed is a blog written by Laura Cattano. Laura has raised organization to a sublime art form and can do the most amazing things with a small space. See previous post about Laura here. I am fascinated by the fact that Laura has a vision and is putting it into action. You go, girl!

Haus Maus is a blog written by Holly of the most popular blog in the world, Decor8. Decor8 is one the first blogs I discovered when I started reading blogs. Haus Maus follows Holly's transition to German life. When she began the blog, she and her husband were splitting their time time between Germany and the U.S. It has been great fun watching her decorate her apartment from scratch, in her gentle signature style. Holly shares her creativity generously and encourages everyone to be creative. Her writing style is as upbeat and gentle as her decorating style.

Haus Maus is even more fascinating to follow as she and her husband are now moving to Germany full time! And she is planning to open a shop. Can you say green with envy? Holly leads a picturesque life and I am glad she shares it with us. As an added plus, Holly gives us the scoop on the best European blogs.

It is simply an oversight that Pia Jane Bijkerk's sublime blog is not currently on my blog roll. That oversight will be swiftly corrected. I adore Pia's words and photography. And she has a new book, entitled "Paris Made by Hand," which supports the hand-made movement. Check it out.

Hello Kitty suicide art series via Hello Kitty Hell. Hello Kitty Hell is a diatribe on the mysterious popularity of Hello Kitty. It is a meta-blog if you will. I could wax philosophically about popular culture and anti-popular culture which is actually a form of pop culture. But I won't. I mean isn't it amazing that an icon can become so omnipresent, that it actually creates a spin-off culture of criticism? Okay, I know there I go again. Suffice it to say, Hello Kitty Hell is not for faint-hearted Hello Kitty fans. Since I am easily amused, I find it hilarious. I also find the whiny emails from Hello Kitty fans hilarious.

Stay tuned for future editions of Blog Love.