Fly

Daniel Hyun Lim

Beautiful illustrations from artist, Daniel Hyun Lim. His style has a dreamy quality in both the color and composition.

Summer Toes

Face it, we all have issues with our feet. Every time we put a sandal on our foot, we stop and think to ourselves, "why do my feet look like this?" or maybe you're saying "is it already time to show my feet to the public again?" meaning its already summer!! Or maybe you are among the 10% of women who feel like they have the most beautiful feet in the world. Well ladies and maybe gents, I have never fit into that category. I am always in search for something to improve what I have. Sometimes I come across a new polish that makes my feet smile. Lately I have been adding polka dots to my pedicure routine and they are so much fun! Make your feet smile this summer by adding some extra color. I have had red, purple, pink, & green with white polka dots, but this week, I tried yellow with black polka dots. Recently, I read that bumble bees were having a hard time finding their way back to their hives, which presents a larger problem to our world. (Can't get into that now) I decided to pay a little homage to our busy bees and do yellow and black. I am having lots of fun with it!

Swindle Magazine

I love these beautiful spreads from Swindle Magazine. The colors, the photography, and the textured background patterns are such a nice mix for a delicious layout.

NYLON TV

I am really impressed with Nylon Magazine's webisodes featuring artists, musicians, and fashion from all over the world. I'm diggin' the few I saw on Kimora Lee Simmons, London's fabulous Top Shop and the shopping at Shibuya-Ku. There's so much to see on NYLON TV, click here to check it out. Info via The Mag Hag blog.

Estudio Mopa

Great work from Brazilian design and illustration studio, Estudio Mopa. {{thanks, Melissa, for the link!}}

Fly Girl of the Week

Who:  Dayle, 36
Where: Kansas City, MO via Baltimore, MD (Go Ravens!)
What do you do? Retail Graphic Designer, Hallmark Cards. Outside of work I love creating cute, fun, girly things like jewelry, purses, pincushions, collages and ATC cards. If it’s crafty, I’m all over it. I would love to travel around the world and learn new design techniques. I really want to work in different parts of the world designing things that make people happy and most importantly have fun doing it.
What inspires you? Yikes, it may be easy to list what doesn’t inspire me. I guess everything: color, nature, cupcakes, steamed crabs, other designers, music, my family, other cultures, magazines, and everything in between.
Why are you fly? Because I’m loud, bold, funny and determined to get things done. I’m not afraid to try new things and explore new ways to design. Fly is a state of mind and I have all the energy needed to stay on top of my game.
Advice: BE THE BEST YOU. It’s not important what other people are doing. Stay focused and keep moving towards your goals. When you decide what kind of person you what to be in life, claim it, then celebrate.

Martha Rich

More beautiful illustrations from Martha Rich.

The Fabulous Life of Najwa Moses

I love this girl (see Najwa top left). She's always hitting the best parties in New York documenting the hottest fashion scenes and people. Here are some photos from her blog, Styleaholics, featuring her most recent nights out on the town. Click here to see more.

The Arts Market

If you live in or close to Philly and you're into art, music and fashion check out this event, The Arts Market, which is going on tonight at Warmdaddy's. There will be goodies to see on the rooftop as well as indoors, and from what I understand the food and drinks at Warmdaddy's are delicious. This should be a fun event.

Flyness at the Heatwave 7.0: The Annual MIH BBQ

Check out these pics I took of some beautiful fly girls at the 7th Annual Heatwave BBQ at Prospect Park, Brooklyn. I had a wonderful time catching up with old friends and people watching while baking in the incredibly hot sun. Click here to see more pics on the The Brooklyn Circus blog.

DIY Project

I am so not a DIY kind of girl, but when I saw these shelves in the March/April 2007 issue of Blueprint Magazine I was inspired to create my own in the little nook I have in one of my rooms.

I enlisted my step-father to help...well actually he did everything I just did some of the painting (see me doing the finishing touches!). He did a great job and I was truly grateful. I think we made the spacing of the shelves too far apart, but that can be corrected later. I couldn't wait to get my books and art supplies out of boxes and on display. For more info on how to do your own, check out the Blueprint site for the
how-to shelving directions.

Rakia's Fashion Tips: Shoe Clips

Welcome to a new segment of Fly where you will find fun, simple and cute fashion tips from Rakia Reynolds. She's been featured in Lucky Magazine for her sense of style, she's always working on funky styling projects and experimenting with fashion. I feel honored to have Rakia share her tips right here on Fly. Look for her fabulous tips every week!

BIO:
Rakia Reynolds is a 28 year old earthy, chic, budget conscious fashionista living in Philadelphia. She started creating her own wears out of simple necessity. She enjoys thrifting, antiquing, creating new styles for people, writing, film noir, and food to name a few. She adores playing at the park with her four year old daughter and going on dates with her husband.

Being the pack rat that I am, every other week, I find myself being the collector of something! Be it frog broaches, pieces of blue vintage cloth, rare coins, or dragonfly patches, I love to be a "collector" from time to time. This week my obsession for "collecting" is shoe clips. Shoe clips are great for those who like to transform their shoes without transforming their pocket:). I found these great vintage yellow wedges at an estate sale last week and decided to give them a little boost by adding a cool accessory to the front. I tried two options to see what would look best. Let me know which one you liked best.

You can find shoe clips on eBay or any antique or vintage store. They were really big in the 60's. They range in price from $2 a pair to $25 (roughly. and also depending on where you live). If you can't find shoe clips, clip on earrings can also do the job. Try shoe clips on ballet flats, heels, wedges, and even thong sandals.

Villa Design

I adore these earrings and cocktail rings by Villa Design. Each piece is hand made with beautifully colored handcrafted glass beads. I love how they all look like little precious candies. Check out the Etsy shop here and to learn more about the designer, click here.

Bouchon Bakery

Yesterday I had to make my way back up to Manhattan to move my couch (long story), and since I was there I went ahead and stopped at some places to pick up some things. I went to the Whole Foods at Columbus Circle to buy my favorite sandwich bread (it's the Whole Foods brand Oat Nut bread). The Whole Foods in Philly doesn't carry it, at least the one closest to me doesn't, and when this was brought to my attention I just stood there in the bread section with my mouth wide open — I was in shock! I also made my way to the Bouchon Bakery for croissants to take home. They're very flaky, yummy and almost too pretty to eat. Carbolicious!

Sara Fanelli

One of my favorite children's book illustrators is Sara Fanelli. She uses collage to create a whimsical world of fun and fantasy for children, yet intriguing enough for adults to enjoy.