For those of you still finishing up your holiday shopping, I thought I’d share a few gift ideas for the animals and animal lovers in your life. Our fur babies give us so much unconditional love, comfort, loyalty, and companionship throughout the year, so why not spoil them a little bit? I can assure you that Eleanor & Celia would be thrilled to receive many of these items (as would I).

1. Temporary Tattoos $9.23, 2. Hanging Cuddle Pod $19.99, 3. Star Wars Catnip Toy $3.00, 4. Inflatable Unicorn Horn $6.99, 5. Cat’s Trapeze $79.99, 6. Cat Cave $79.00, 7. Fox Terrier Toy $10, 8. Organic Catnip $10, 9. Grumpy Cat Snow Globe $16, 10. Custom Pet Portrait, price varies, 11. Cat Clothes Hanger $12

1.  Ombre Dog Collar $56, 2. Thug Life Hoodie $40, 3. Burt’s Bees Paw & Nose Lotion $12.99, 4. Custom Laser Cut Dog Tags $15.99, 5. Neon Raglan Shirt $12, 6. Bow Tie $20, 7. Canvas Gnome Toy $8, 8. Zombie Foot Dog Toy $10.49, 9. Dog Treats $10.46, 10. Arrowhead Leash $26, 11. Dog Beers Pint Glass $8

I’ve got my eye on that hanging cuddle pod for Celia, the zombie foot for Eleanor, and the custom watercolor painting for Mike D me. Now get to spoiling your fur beasts, even though they’d probably be just as happy with a few balls of crumpled wrapping paper and some belly rubs (but doesn’t that make you want to spoil them even more?).

PSST!  Tomorrow, Tuesday 12/17/2013, is the LAST DAY to order  from my shop for guaranteed delivery by Christmas Eve. Everything in the shop ships for FREE to anywhere in the U.S.! Do you have any Detroit, New York, Paris, or Italy lovers on your shopping list? I’ve got you covered!

xoxo

Here we are, the eve of Thanksgiving already. I’ve got a busy weekend planned and can’t wait to kick off my holiday shopping at some local shops for Small Business Saturday (and then of course Cyber Monday, because who are we kidding?).

Here’s a peak at some new prints in my Shop. Perhaps you’ll find the perfect gift for a friend or family member or a little something for yourself.  Oh go ahead, you deserve it. To kick off the holiday shopping weekend, I’m offering blog readers 15% off their entire purchase through Saturday November 30th, 2013! Just use coupon code Thanks2014 at checkout.

If you have an online shop of your own, or a favorite handmade shop, feel free to leave a link in the comments. I love hearing about new handmade Detroit area shops too! Let me know your favorites!

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday and stuff your faces to the max! I’ll be back next week to share my latest vintage finds.  I nabbed some gooooood stuff, dudes.

For those of you just barely suffering through all these Euro blatherings, you will be happy to know we’re almost done!

And so! Shopping abroad. Suffice it to say, I am a fan.

I love to collect mementos that remind me of the places I’ve traveled to, but I have no interest in purchasing the standard-fare types of souvenirs that are sold in travel shops and by hawkers outside popular attractions. Those cheap little tchotzkes and trinkets are just overpriced crap, and if you’re buying a plastic key chain at the Eiffel Tower, then I’m pretty sure you’ve missed the point of shopping abroad.

My favorite things to buy when traveling:

1. Jewelry, preferably vintage or locally handmade.
2. Artwork – small prints, paintings, and drawings that can easily fit into a suitcase.
3. Home Decor – vintage, handmade, or something unique to the region I’m visiting.  Though I look for things that will easily fit into a suitcase, I’m not opposed to having a lamp, rug, or piece of furniture shipped home if it’s an amazing and affordable find. (This has never happened to me).

While in Paris, we spent an entire morning at the Antiquite Brocante (antiques fair) in Bastille. Nearly 500 stalls of antique furniture, art, glassware, and various bric-a-brac straddle both sides of the Seine River at the Place de la Bastille twice a year. It’s what dreams are made of, people. Flea markets are always my jam, but I find them especially interesting in other countries. You talk to people from other walks of life, you discover what types of items are ubiquitous in other cultures, what items hold value over others, what locals are most interested in buying, etc. It’s a level of access to local culture that you wouldn’t find in a museum (not that I don’t love museums too).

Most of the vintage jewelry was waaaayy out of my price range, but I came across this gorgeous art deco ball pendant necklace for only €30. And hey! Now I know how to type that little euro symbol.

This large book of sheet music cost only €10 and it says FLIRTING TIME! I mean, come on. No choice.

One of the vendors at the antiques fair had boxes and boxes of these quirky old post cards, priced at ten for €10. When I saw the ones with the babies, I was all “These are the weirdest, creepiest, most bizarre things I’ve ever seen. I’LL TAKE THEM ALL!”

The V&A Museum in London had an entire shop accompanying the David Bowie exhibit. I really wanted this Aladdin Sane Contact Sheet, but alas, at €3,999 it was a leeeetle bit out of my price range. Instead, I bought this paper doll set. If I now own two sets of paper dolls, does this make me a paper doll enthusiast? Or just a weirdo?

This handmade ring came from a tiny clothing & jewelry boutique near our apartment in Le Marais, Paris.

One day I dragged Mike D all over Montmartre into stores that the internet told me were “vintage shops”, but were mostly filled with piles of dirty old women’s clothes. He liked it, or so I told him. At this one particular shop, the owner was VERY friendly and VERY energetic and insisted on playing How Soon is Now by The Smiths over and over (and over). He pulled out things that he thought we would like, including this tin, which he eventually convinced me to buy. I don’t know, it looks cute in my kitchen and I can put crap in it? I’m totally rocking your world right now.

I stumbled into this shop in Montmartre that had the most colorful collection of tea towels, pot holders, aprons, glassware, and other home decor.

I fell in love with the entire Bloomingville collection, and felt like I couldn’t leave the store without buying something, so I grabbed a tea towel to hang above our stove. I love the little neon hook! I also grabbed this Abbey Road street sign at a flea market in London.

We didn’t come across many vintage stores in London, but I did find this sequined beanie at a shop in Covent Garden. I can say with 100% certainty and experience that wearing a sequined beanie to a casual pub serving fish & chips will gain you many a side-eye.

The real winner of the trip was this cardboard cat hanger from a quirky little shop called Rose Bunker in Montmartre. Me.OW.

By the way, if you don’t love sequins you’re wrong.

We also brought home some lovely gifts for our friends and family that watched over our house and took care of our pets, but I didn’t take any pictures of those things because I’m a terrible blogger. Instead, here are some instax minis!

If you’re still here, then hooray for you! You’ve made it to the end.

xoxo

Paris.

Where we wandered the crooked cobblestone roads, stole bites of each other’s croque monsieurs, tried on berets in the street, and felt very much like stars of a Woody Allen film. Where we climbed to the top of the Eiffel Tower and watched the sun fall over the city while the wind, bone-piercingly cold, whipped my hair into knots. Where we insisted upon saying each street name aloud, at least twice, as we walked past them. Rue des Francs Bourgeois… Rue..des…Francs…Bour..ge..ois.  Where Mike D found (and left) his sense of direction. Where French Mike D is a navigational ninja. Where we happened upon a rather worldly feline in Pere Lachaise and then became so distracted by the beautiful tombs that we lost each other. Where I watched a mysterious man with features not unlike Javier Bardem smoke an entire cigarette before flicking the butt onto Jim Morrison’s headstone and how IT WAS THE COOLEST.  Where we aimlessly wandered the narrow and sloped streets of Montemarte, sifted through piles of dusty vintage clothes, and enjoyed brunch at the cafe from Amelie. Where I became intoxicated by the rich melodic sounds of the organs inside the cathedral of Notre Dame and where just outside, French people gave us the crepes.  Where Mike D mistakenly said “merci” instead of “excusez-moi” on at least three occasions, and how it was SO FUNNY every. single. time. Where I mastered just enough French to trick a few locals into thinking I was Parisian for about 10 whole seconds and how I just couldn’t, and still can’t, shut up about it. 

And there is that saying… to have another language is to possess another soul.  Well I’d like to think that during those ten seconds I possessed the soul of Charlotte Gainsbourg.

Where we roamed flea market stalls and sifted through a myriad of bits and bobbles until I discovered the most beautiful necklace and teacup, both of which left with me, one of which didn’t make it through the day in one piece.  Where we fought the crowds and weaved our way through a labyrinth of masterpieces for a glimpse of the Mona Lisa and pinched ourselves afterwards but not before posing for a few wayward photographs. Where Mike D insisted upon acting out the Louvre scene from National Lampoon’s European Vacation, and what is it about museums that makes us so insubordinate? Where in the wee hours of the night, a young drunk fellow stumbled onto the metro, half empty bottle of wine dangling from his hand, and tumbled onto a guy who was just not having it.  And how we exited the metro before him and were left wondering – did that girl with the Hitler hairdo ever give him her number?

Where we climbed over tables at Le Refuge des Fondues and cheered with our cohorts while we drank red wine from baby bottles.  Where the baguettes were nothing short of a religious experience, and the cheese was sufficiently divine. Where we spent the better part of a morning in Le Marais waiting out the rain, sipping cappuccinos, and feasting on a rainbow of macaroons while the sky opened above us.  Where I could never find my way through that dang loop in Bastille, and thank goodness for French Mike D.  Where the energy at Champ de Mars, under the sparkling lights of the Eiffel tower, was palpable and where I felt like I was smack in the middle of all the things I could have ever wished for, and well, you know how those moments are.

Where we only barely scratched the surface.  Where we left little pieces of ourselves to come back for.  Where we will surely, someday return.

Psst!  In case you missed my last post, here’s a silly little video I made of our trip. 

Bonjour!

Recently, Mike D and I traveled to London for a few days and then took a train over to Paris. The trip was incredible. Food! Wine! Art! Architecture! Crepes! It was a complete sensory overload in the best way possible. Consider me awestruck.

I brought three cameras with me (not including my iphone), so I’ll be back with more photos soon. In the meantime, I put together a video of all the little moments I captured during our trip. The song is so great, right? I’ve had it in my head for days now. Although I must say, Mike D campaigned really hard for this song.

If you’d like to see more instagrams of our trip, you can search for the hashtag #tiloveskistakeeurope. I’m so glad we created a unique hashtag for the trip. Since we’ve been back, I’ve looked at those photos about a million times already. So many great memories!

Psst!  For those of you have have asked about the name Tiloveski, it’s the couple uni-name I imposed upon Mike D and I (Tilley + Darowski + Love thrown in for funsies = Tiloveski).  So basically we’re like Brangelina, except waaaaay better looking.

Au revoir!

xoxo