Gather kids, it’s story time! Seriously, gather your kids if you have them, as this post is for the little ones and the little ones at heart. It’s a treasured childhood book of mine and I found a you tube reading of it to share with you which (again, with the peeing in the pants) brightened my day so much so that I now need to wear shades.

This book is called tikki tikki tembo, and the story is set in ancient China. It’s written by Arlene Mosel and illustrated by Blair Lent.

I adore this book, although my 30 year old copy is in Sydney, I can still bring it to you right here, thanks to technology. It is this book that first captured my imagination and sent my heart wandering East. It was through my constant yearning to learn more and more about China that I soon learnt about Tibet. I was devastated to realise that right at that moment, a country and people I cherished were destroying and torturing it’s neighbour and themselves. My wandering heart bled. That was about ten years ago. and at that time I was at Uni studying art, so I went to a Chinese calligraphist in Sydney who taught me the Chinese character for ‘love with suffering’, I was told it is a character used often. I still continue to use this symbol in my art.

But as some of you may know, thanks to all of us pressuring to bring this situation to the headlines and hearts of thousands, Tibet and China are talking right now. This is positive.

My post about my Tibetan friend Tenpa gathered some great and controversial comments, check them out here. And as I mentioned in my last comment on that post, I will not only be showcasing Tibet on my blog, but everything that is connected with it, and that includes China. So why not start with Tikki Tembo! It begins a little something like this…

The illustrations captured my imagination as a little girl. When Mum read me the book I was instantly taken to the little house at the top of the hill, or resting with the old man and his ladder.
And it is now one of my niece and nephew’s favourite as I have been reading it to them since they were toddlers. Their faces beam when they hear me say tikki’s name and they join in with pure delight.

I highly recommend you buy a copy as the printed version is definately the best. But for those who just can’t wait, here is the very awesome retro video reading. Make yourself a tea, take a break and a deep breath. And enjoy…

And just for laughs, here is a chipmunk version of tikki’s name!

Based on Mark and Sally Bailey’s farm property in the Herefordshire countryside of the UK, Recycled Home, pour moi, is love at first sight with a staircase and an old giant’s scissors hanging on a worn out wall on the front cover. Their intro exposes perfectly their decorating philosophy: “Use what you’ve got, be true to the structure of your house and the materials it is made from… think of your home as a delicious experiment.”

The book is filled with the most delectable photographs by South African Debi Treloar: One of my favourites being a tiny copper-sailed boat resting serenely on top of an old-fashioned door knob. And if you love wood, warm whites and textures you will love this book. Be warned though – you will end up wanting to buy everything at your next antique & flea market visit as this book guides you to seeing the beauty in things you would never have looked twice at.

I love the textile section where you will find an old otherwise boring chest of drawers with wrapped handles in different wild vintage fabrics, stairs covered with a patchwork of mini persian rugs, and the fabric of an old bathing tent made into stunning curtains. But as I flick through the pages, my added tip as a stylist to make this style work in your own home is organisation. Without organisation, this look can quickly design itself into a display of useless scraps.

WHAT I LOVE:

WHAT I’M ‘OVER’:

Mark and Sally have included a fabulous resource section from across Europe at the back of their book. And what more could you want? What about a website where you can buy their awesome finds and creations? Wouldn’t that be great? Yes it would and here it is!

Enhance The Everyday rating for Recycled Home by Mark and Sally Bailey: 4 outta 5

pilfered from Uncle Beefy

Who doesn’t love a quote? Pia obsession confession #1: Quotes. If someone gives me a book of quotes that’s it, anything I was doing goes out the window and I am stuck in that book until I get to the last quote. I am truly obsessed by them – I mean, they are tiny little pieces of art are they not? They make you think, question, ponder, wonder, and instantly fly you someplace else. And what’s more, if you have one of those freakish abilities with memory you can pull them out of your head to really bring home your story at your next dinner party. Instead, my story finishes with something like this, “and yeah you know, it is just like that guy said, you know, that guy, his name starts with an S, you know, everyone knows him! Anyway, he said something like, ‘fish with a man and you eat with…’ no no hang on, it’s ‘be a fish and eat for a day’ I mean no, sorry, it’s…). By then everyone’s eyes have rolled so far into the backs of their heads that I am surrounded by a table of zombies grappling to fill up their wine glasses to dull the pain.

Actually I’m wondering now whether the eye rolling just starts the moment I start a story, not necessarily when I end it. Hmm. Food for thought.

Anyhoo, I stumbled upon Uncle Beefy’s cool blog who then lead me to Compendium, a Seattle based company who’s mission is this: “To inspire, educate, motivate and celebrate the world we love and live in. We will strive to set an example of hope, passion, and creativity in everything we do—from the products and programs we create, to the ways we can make a difference for our clients, customers and community.”

Right on! Love finding companies with these goals. From what I understand, they are the guys who make all those journals and books, and postcards with cool quotes. You will have noticed already that I love to throw in a quote or two in my stories (like in Handy Hints numbero uno), and I have already a list of some great French ones I’ve learnt that I will be sharing with you so you can show them off at your next dinner party (I will try to give some pronunciation tips too, so you don’t look like a complete fool to the guest who’s secretly fluent in French). But for now, I will leave you to ponder this oldy-but-a-goody, you may even be able to find a slot for it at tonight’s soirée…