some polka dots i spotted...

It's been raining on and off this past month. But I'm not ready for rain yet! I don't want the summer to end because I haven't been to the beach! 

Today, we're leaving for a weekend at my friend W's beach house. So I certainly hope it doesn't rain the next 4 days. I don't want any umbrellas being opened up... even if they are polka-dotted!

Photo from pinkwallpaper.

Click here for previous posts from the Some Polka Dots I Spotted... series.

some polka dots i spotted...

In my family, we try to wear polka dots every New Year's eve. They say it's for luck. Oddly, it isn't a lucky new year that we're wishing for, but a happy one.

And it turns out, for us to have a happy new year, all we need to do is be thankful.

My new year's resolution is to be thankful for at least one good thing in my life every day.

After all, even though every day may not be good, there's always something good in every day.

What about you? What is your new year's resolution?

Photo from americanhoney, annnniegirl and heritage.

Click here for previous posts from the Some Polka Dots I Spotted... series.

some polka dots i spotted...

Pat of 101gramsofeyecandy sent me a goodie bag of her printed items way back in August. The label plates were so pretty...

... that I couldn't bring myself to waste use them. Until her Candy Shop opened and I realized I could get new ones anytime I wanted (and at affordable prices at that!). I started with organizing Noah's activity books. They used to be bunched together on a shelf with a bookend. But since they were mostly thin books (spines weren't thick enough to have a title), Noah couldn't tell them apart and was never enticed to use them. So I segregated them like this...

And he now picks out the books according to the activity he wants to do!

Using these materials...

... and by placing the nylon cable ties (which I got from Japan Home Store) on just one side of the labels, I turned the label plates into a sort of door on my silver magazine file rack. So Noah just opens the "door" to pull out his activity book.

After Noah's label plates were done, I (took a deep breath and) used one of the non-kiddie pretty, patterned label plates from Pat for my things. And of course, the first one I picked was the pretty polka-dotted one!

Love how our shelves look now with these pretty label plates! Thanks Pat!  

To get your own pretty label plates and browse other printed eye candy via The Candy Shop's online catalog, just email:

Photos are my own.

Click here for previous posts from the Some Polka Dots I Spotted... series. Watch for tomorrow's post here on what's inside my box of photos.

P.S. Someday, I'll tell you more about where that Matroyshka doll set came from. :)

some polka dots i spotted...

I adoooore this chalkboard wall of polka dots! I wouldn't survive without a real mirror, but I have to say that that chalk-drawn mirror is incredibly pretty! Oh, and that toothbrush holder made me smile.

I can imagine changing the dots into stripes after a few weeks. Then maybe chevron after? And back to polka dots. Absolutely adorable!    
 

Photo from pinkwallpaper.

 

Click here for previous posts from the Some Polka Dots I Spotted series. Click here for a previous post about chalkboard walls.

some polka dots i spotted...

Just

some

random

everyday

pretty

polka dots

in

black, gray & white. 

Photos from annnniegirl and pinkwallpaper.

Click here for the down-in-the-dots version of this post. Click here for previous posts from the Some Polka Dots I Spotted... series.

some polka dots i spotted...

I've always loved pretty prints. On notebooks and on wrapping paper. On clothes too, but I have to admit that not all pretty prints look good when worn lest you want to look like upholstery. On pillows like the Bungalow 300 ones that Trisha of Playtime Break posted about here and on bed linens (baby or otherwise)  like Trisha's Dwell Studio picks here. But after watching this video, I found another item in my house I'd like to have pretty prints on: tea towels!

I never knew what tea towels were until I saw the video of 12 ways to use a tea towel. I'm not even sure what their original use is, but I love all these uses. First up is a place to drip-dry cups & glasses.

Use #2: a cushion for food preparation.

Use #3: a towel to wipe newly-washed dishes & glasses dry.

Use #4: as a pot (-er, kettle) holder.

Use #5: as a vegetable crisper. Except this use is lost on me since I am so undomesticated.

Use #6: not sure if this is technically a usage option. Though I have to say, I find this bunch of printed tea towels so pretty, I might store some like this just to prettify my kitchen!

Use #7: as a placemat.

Use #8: as a pretty way to serve bread.

Use #9: as an apron.

Use #10: as a gift wrapper.

Use #11: as a gift.

Use #12: as an environmental way to dry your hands.

Polka dots or not, I looove these studiopatro tea towels in pretty prints! If only Bungalow 300 and Dwell Studio made tea towels...

Photos are from screencaps of the video.

Click here for previous posts from the Some Polka Dots I Spotted... series.

some polka dots i spotted...

Trent Walton on Blogs:

"There's something sacred about reading a blog post on someone else's site. It's like visiting a friend's house for a quick meal 'round the breakfast table. It's personal - you're in their space, and the environment is uniquely suited for idea exchange and uninterrupted conversation. In many ways, we should be treating our blogs like our breakfast tables. Be welcoming & gracious when you host, and kind & respectful when visiting."

It's been a whole year since I started this blog. It has been a truly wonderful year! Thanks for letting me share my love for polka dots and other delightful things.

Thanks for sharing these great breakfasts with me!

Photos from blondiensc. Quote from here via acupofjo.

Click here for previous posts from the Some Polka Dots I Spotted series.

some polka dots i spotted...

I'm not sure if the Gender Reveal Party trend has caught on in Manila. Personally, I've never been to one. But I would have loved to be invited to this party primarily because of the polka dotted tablecloth and the yellow & gray color motif (see related post here).

I do like the idea of a mom-to-be hosting a party to celebrate finding out her baby's gender together with friends and family. I just love these he-or-she chocolate souvenirs!

And for the grand reveal, here are a few ideas to unveil the baby's gender... You can fill cupcakes with pink or blue buttercream icing. Everyone can bite into their cupcake all at the same time and find out... it's a boy!

Or you can fill a balikbayan box with pink or blue helium balloons and let the parents-to-be open the box in front of everyone...

Isn't it a lovely idea? I'm just not sure this game of guessing the gender will ever catch on here in the Philippines... Because of the Filipino belief that an expectant mom looks pretty & blooming when she's having a girl - and the exact opposite if she's having a boy. I imagine that everyone who voted "boy" will not be invited to the next party.

With or without the guessing game, I think the idea of a Gender Reveal event is sweet though. Whether you have a whole party with all your friends & family or an intimate one like this family here who asked their ultrasound technician to write the gender on a piece of paper. Then they brought the paper to a baby store and asked the clerk to wrap a blue or pink outfit depending on what was on the piece of paper. It was Christmas so they opened the present on Christmas morning and pulled out this pink polka-dotted onesie!

This couple here decided to do it via pancakes. They slipped the envelope from their ultrasound technician to the waitress at a diner and the pancakes that arrived told them whether they were having a boy or a girl. Yes, of course I noticed the polka-dotted ribbons on the baby boy & baby girl labels on the bowls of blueberries & strawberries. 

Their photographer friend captured their reaction. And this is what I like best about these Gender Reveal events. Whether you do it via a big party or an intimate gathering of just immediate family, I love the idea of capturing the genuinely thrilled reaction when the gender is unveiled!

I imagine Noah would be delighted to see a photo of our reaction when we found out we were having a boy.

Photos from mixbook, here, here, here and here.

Click here for previous posts from the Some Polka Dots I Spotted series.