Friday Fives... fonts

Following on from yesterday's post, today's Friday five are fonts that I'm loving at the moment. Now, by no means are these my 'Top 5'. Such a thing would be impossible! It's like asking me my favourite colours! They change almost daily - although I do have a long term love affair with red!

So my 'fonts of the moment' are...






Work is done for the week! Had a great meeting at lunch with a couple I'm working with on their wedding stationery to finalise their design. They're just such a lovely client to work with. I'll share the photo's of the finished product shortly.

My parents are currenly en route from Dubai and are arriving in Melbourne at 2am! So think it's an early bed for me tonight!

Have a great weekend everyone!

V xx

New font love!

As you all know, I'm a little obsessed with typography! I'm just loving this new font that I'm currently using in a project. It's formal but with that beautiful soft handwritten element. I especially love it in this inky blue colour. I wish I new how to create this type of calligraphy myself. Maybe that will be on the 'to do' list for next year!

I'm putting this book on my Santa list this year. It's a collection of interviews from some of the worlds greatest font designers. I get the MyFonts newsletter every month so have read most of them already but I quite fancy the 'real thing' for by bookshelf!


V xx

The result

So, after almost 5 hours in the hairdressers this is the outcome! I've never been even close to blonde before so this is a major change! Luckily, Gabe wasn't too scared of me when I got home! It'll take a bit of getting used to but I really like it. Having always been a brunette, I'm interested to see if if people interact differently. Let's just see if blondes really do have more fun!

Have a great week!

V xx

Friday Fives... short hair styles

As many of you will know, there is an ongoing saga with my hair! I've got an appointment with my lovely Kelly (who now has complete ownership of my hair!) tomorrow.

What to do...

It's getting pretty short now so my options are slightly limited. These are 5 of the short styles I'm loving at the moment.

Shannon Sossamon - Love the funky, texutred look.

Natalie Portman - ok, so this is a wee bit extreme but man does she look hot with a bald head!

Agyness Deyn - I just love her look. She's so versatile. This is a more 'sun kissed' look than we're used to seeing but I think it really suits her.

Emma Watson - Hermione has most definitely grown up! A timeless look.

Rhianna - I'm not usually a massive fan but really like her style here. I often think that she should take about 27 accessories off and wear half the make up! But this shows just how naturally beautiful she is.

I'll let you know on Monday what happens!

Have a great weekend! Happy Friday!

V xx

An update...

It's been a busy week again here at Buttercup Ink HQ. I'm almost there with my Christmas collection. I managed to get my product shoots done today so just finalising my wholesale catalogue and then I'll have them available online. I'm really happy with them and definitely think they offer an alternative to the traditional snowmen and santa!






I'm also working with a lovely couple on their custom wedding stationery. It's a beautiful garden wedding and I've got a great colour scheme to work with. I'll post photo's of the finished product in shortly...

Orders for my teacher notepad have gone crazy this last week! Lot of organised mums getting the end of year gifts for the kids to give! I've also had some more requests for my AFL Star print - we can now add Essendon and Brisbane Lions to the gallery!




V xx

Friday Fives... home offices

I've been decluttering the house this last few weeks - including my office. I think it;s the 'goldfish syndrome' - no matter how much space and storage I have, I seem to quickly outgrow it! Here are 5 of my favourite home office spaces...

No space? No excuse!

Lots of shelving with lots of books! Love it!


I really like the industrial steel cabinets and high bench with stool. The beautiful cream chairs add a lovely softness.


The natural light pouring in from the window here make such a peaceful working environment.

On my wish list! I've always loved the idea of a little shed office out the back. My home office is right smack bang in the middle of the house and the 'ping' of the email is sometimes too tempting to ignore! I definitely think that being physically detached from the house (albeit by only a few meters!) would help with the work life balance.

This office shed belongs to Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Martha Mendoza. You can read all about it here.

V xx

Intentions versus goals

I'm now on day 6 of my 30 days of yoga. The group is fantastic and I really feel like I'm part of this global class. I've discovered some great blogs of fellow participants. One of the themes that has come up is about the pressure we put on ourselves everyday and how unhappy this can make us.

When I think about it, I often set unrealistic goals and actually set myself up for failure. I feel that sometimes I put pressure on myself as a mother, wife, sister, daughter, friend, designer, etc. to be 'the best'. But is perfection actually healthy? Does it improve my life and my relationships with others?

Where do you draw the line though? Surely you have to set some kind of goals in order to be productive and grow? Otherwise, aren't we just being lazy? Or should we give it all up and let our lives, minds, relationships take their own path? With this comes the feeling of helplessness and a lack of focus.

Rather than setting 'goals' I'm choosing to set my 'intentions'. 'Goal' has so many competitive connotations and I don't want to be competitive in my relationships and with myself. My friends will know that I am competitive by nature but I'm going to try and limit this personality trait to trivia nights!

By setting my intention, there's a feeling that I have control but also know that it may take it's own path and I have to be accepting of this. Kinda like a partnership - me and 'something else'. I guess it's taking the time to listen to yourself and to know when to be strong in you intention and when to 'free wheel' and allow yourself to be guided.

V xx

Friday Fives... outdoor rooms

Today my Friday Five is about inspiring outdoor rooms. I love that indoor/outdoor balance. It's amazing what can be achieved in the smallest of spaces!






Have a great weekend!

V xx

Perfect party food

It's no secret that I have a bit of a thing for Nigella Lawson! She's just so wonderful and her use of the English language is enviable!

Last night I watched my favourite ever half hour of Ms Lawson! The theme was party food. Oh how I wish I could be a guest at that party!

This was the menu...

Crab and Avocado Wraps

Potato Cakes with Smoked Salmon

White Chocolate Mint Mousse

Green Apple Martini

Cocktail Sausages

Think I'm going to have to host a little summer get-together!

V xx

A taste of the Christmas collection

I know, it seems CRAZY to be talking about Christmas already but we all know how it sneaks up on us! I couldn't believe that the mince pies were already in Coles yesterday! I'll admit, I was tempted but managed to resist!

I've been working on my Christmas collection this last few weeks and just couldn't wait to show you a little preview! It amazes me that there is still a HUGE amount of snowmen on Australian Christmas cards. It's the middle of summer!!! So, my inspiration was cool citrus tones with a retro twist and nod to the relaxed summers of the 70's.

And for those of you who don't get to enjoy a southern hemisphere festive season, send a little sunshine to warm everyone up!

Tim Burton

Yesterday, G and I were in the city and so decided to go have a look at Tim Burton: The Exhibition @ ACMI in Fed Sq as it finishes in a few days.

The exhibition brings together over 700 works, including paintings, drawings, puppets, costumes, storyboards and film showing Burton's work as director, concept artist, illustrator and photographer.



It was so inspiring. To see rough initial drawings torn out of sketch books so closely resemble the finished characters of his animations and films is just amazing.


One of my favourite pieces was the series of number illustrations. It's inspired me to explore some number and alphabet based designs. You can see the series here in the into to the website.


I forgot how much I love his movie, Big Fish. It's both magical and touching.



V xx

Friday Fives... memorable places

Today my Friday Five is some of my favourite places I've visited...

1. Applecross, Scottish Highlands


My dad and I used to take a trip here every summer for the Highland Games. It's such a beautiful and tranquil part of the world. It's extremely remote - the road in and out is impassable in bad weather - but would highly recommend it for anyone planning a trip to the UK. And the pub does some pretty amazing fish and chips!

2. Shirley Heights, Antigua


The first half of my honeymoon was spent living it up on South Beach, Miami and the second half here in Antigua relaxing on the beach with a few good books... and lots of rum! Every Sunday there is a sunset party at Shirley Heights, an old military lookout. BBQ, local steel band, more rum(!) and an unbelievable sunset.

3. Thailand


This was our last pre-baby holiday. We met up with good friends from home and travelled from Phuket to Bangkok. A fun and hilarious few weeks!

4. Blue Lagoon, Iceland


On our way to New York for Steven's birthday we stopped off in Iceland. I was so excited to go to the geothermal spas. Such a odd experience! I must admit, I was a little disappointed to find out that the ground was heated by the massive power plant along the road and wasn't a natural occurrence!

5. Sorrento and Capri, Italy


Other than friends and family, there isn't much that I miss about the UK. What I do miss however is having amazing European countries right on your door step! Our last European trip before moving to Melbourne was to Italy. Food, wine and shopping. What more could a girl want!

V xx