o plucky pioneers!

If you aren’t familiar with the Plucky Pioneer series, my friend Kate and I started it back in January to showcase young entrepreneurial women in the field of Art and Design. The women we select are not your average MBA types, but rather designers and artists who have taken their passion for their craft to the next level. Each Plucky feature includes a cheat sheet of their favorite things and a behind the scenes interview, in which the Pioneers discuss everything from their inspiration and design aesthetic to best business practices.

After a one month hiatus, the Monday interviews and Tuesday cheat sheets will resume next week. We have a most wonderfully talented Plucky Pioneer to feature – I'm sure you already know and love her creations. As the series continues, I'm excited to get to know more of the women who are leading today's design frontier and are personal sources of endless inspiration. The full archive of interviews and cheat sheets can be found here.

Above is a look back at the artwork and designs of our Pioneers over the last six months >  1,11) The wonderfully whimsical and colorful illustrations of Brooklyn artist Bella Foster skyrocketed in popularity with her artwork for the Kate Spade 2010 agenda 2) Anna Bond of Rifle Paper Co. – her hand drawn work, from wedding suites to children's alphabet prints, is sure to brighten your day 3) Catherine Fitzsimmon's Rickshaw Design creates darling "hand block prints for your bohemian baby" 4) Emily Maynard of Elva Fields creates the most stunning necklaces, above is Bellini – she writes, it's "perfect for brunch or any other festive event that might call for some champagne"… I couldn’t agree more! 5) I credit Breck Hostetter's (of Sesame Letterpress) gorgeous letterpress designs with piquing my own interest in the craft - I especially enjoy those adorable baby announcements 6) Dabney Lee's bold and colorful prints are distinctly her from a mile away – an instant centerpiece to any home office décor 7) Catherine Chen and Haley Boyd founded Marais USA right out of college, believing that good design and affordability shouldn’t be mutually exclusive –Anthropologie and thousands of fans have embraced their spirit 8) best friends Rand Niederhoffer and Camilla Gale opened their Brooklyn fashion boutique Thistle & Clover, showcasing young, up-and-coming designers, and viewing the shop as a home away from home 9,15) Lo Boheme's vintage inspired headbands add a touch of Jazz Age glamour to any bridal party 10) Margaret Elizabeth started making jewelry in her BC dorm room, and word of her marvelous work inevitably spread – I just love that clementine ribbon necklace! 12) Hannah Brooks Nation's Gadabout had grown from fun custom paper goods to her recent iPhone app - allowing the user to send their own e-stationery based on her darling templates  13) our first pioneer, Heather Clawson, designs interiors which exude timeless style and understated  elegance 14) Tamara Kaye-Honey's House of Honey seamlessly mixes the traditional with the modern and the vintage with the new 16) Sarah Waldo's organic clothing for children is just d-a-r-l-i-n-g, and her line boats the cutest models on earth.

spot on

From stars to stripes to madras, nothings surpasses the summery whimsy of the polka dot > 1) classic blue + white steven alan dress 2) vintage canisters 3) day tote 4) makeup case 5) anthro silk scarf 6) aga stove 7) vintage paper napkins 8) toms 9) giraffe markings 10) chinaset 11) vintage ad 12) lanvin scarf 13) accessorize scarf 14) tea cups 15) printed skirt 

baumgarten

Looking through Michael Baumgarten's portfolio, I just l-o-v-e the variety of styles and directions that his work takes. From the dusty, "new antiquarian" interior shots at the top for Vogue Italia, to the British Vogue editorial work on luxury jewels, and the landscape work that mixes the mediums of lace and photography – it's all splendid fun fantastical.

{collage by moi, images from here} 

summer afternoon, summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language {henry james}

Here's to lawn games, BBQs, and shady trees to read under – with Memorial Day behind us, I'm hoping to make time for some proper summer afternoons this year > 1) vintage nike kicks 2) badminton set 3) nautical striped boatneck tee 4) stella sailboat print dress 5) MOXIE 6) croquet set 7) selima shades 8,9) beach reads and cabana paintings by alan kingsbury 10,14) vintage sailboat photographs - from here + here 11) abby clawson low design for jack spade 12) sailboat print fabric 13) vintage cruise line luggage tag 15) vintage seventeen magazine spread 16) striped espadrille