Design + Decor

Cute Handmade Felt Ornaments

published on November 18, 2022 by Angela Hamilton

I love DIY. Around this time each year, you can find me crafting Christmas ornaments, festive garlands, or cute gift toppers to embellish my gift wrap. But by now I know my limits when it comes to crafting. There are some things I just don’t have the skill (or patience to acquire the skill) for. And I learned long ago that working with felt was one of them, despite my love of it. So these cute handmade felt ornaments, all by different artists mostly on Etsy, are on the top of my list should I find space on my tree this year.

I came across these felt bird ornaments by Savana Lawler Textiles when searching for something else, which kicked off too much time spent searching for felt pretties!

The same designer also sells sparkly roller skate ornaments and these cute hand embroidered name baubles.

Pretty pink felt and needlework bulb ornament by Nviri Armenian Gifts

Sweetest Dala horse by bake apple designs

Orange felt ornaments by Citrus & Poppy which also make great party favors or a sweet garland. They also have lemons, limes, and peaches.

Felted wool woodland mushrooms by Mandys Favorite Things

Love the simplicity of these neutral felt embroidered star ornaments by Sweet Bow with Love

These brown and aqua felt mushrooms by Pills Against Boredom are too cute.

Custom felt initial ornaments with embroidered embellishments by Shop Elysian Fields

Hand embroidered hearts by Mexican Beauty Shop for the colorful Christmas tree

These intricately embroidered initial ornaments by Nelly Makes Embroidery might be the most beautiful ones I’ve seen! This shop also sells the loveliest mini embroidery hoop fits for the DIYers out there.

Frockdolly also offers embroidered felt ornaments in traditional bulb shapes. Stunning!

Love the sequins adorning these layered felt Christmas trees by Silk Road Bazaar Shop. BTW if you’re looking for quirkier or more novelty ornaments, definitely peruse this shop for more designs.

More mushrooms? Why not? These felted mushrooms from farmhouse pottery come in really pretty colors.

If you’re looking for something to jazz up a holiday gift, by the way, I definitely recommend tucking one of these pretties into the ribbon of your box! It’s so fun to offer a little gift before the gift.

Artisan Home Decor for the Conscious Maximalist

published on November 16, 2022 by Angela Hamilton

It’s been a minute since we shared a moodboard for the conscious maximalist, so in honor of cozy season we’ve got one featuring our favorite artisan home decor in natural and warm hues. Perfect for fall, but work just as lovely in any other season, so you know you’ll keep it on display for a long time.

Like much of the internet, I’ve become obsessed with the pairing of lush, sagey greens and oranges, corals, and pinks. It’s a bit deeper than I usually go in my own decorating, but I find myself gravitating to it more and more, so I think it’s beyond a trend for me at this point!

My primary muse for this collection is that WIP (Work in Progress) LA Rug and how it marries warm color with green and blush. The rug is made in Bhadohi, India using mid-weight, flat-weave cotton. It also comes in a runner style which I’ve been dreaming about for my tiny kitchen!

Find more artisan home decor brands in our sustainable directory.

Introducing wallflower, a Boutique for Curated Gifts, Decor & Objects That Inspire

published on November 10, 2022 by Angela Hamilton

Hello friends! We have a big announcement for you today! Introducing our very own shop, from the founders and editors of eco club and our design studio, wallflower. We launched this fall and have been since been hard at work on our holiday collection, so I haven’t gotten around to making the *official* introduction here on the blog. So, it’s long overdue, but today we’re sharing photos from our first shoot, featuring so many of our favorite products. I’ll explain a bit more about this new endeavor and the products we’re sharing below!

Blockprint napkins

wallflower is a shop, blog, and creative studio celebrating makers + spaces + objects that inspire. Jenn and I met almost ten years ago as lifestyle bloggers with a love of crafting and collaborating with other makers. Fun fact, we both independently sold vintage finds and crochet accessories on Etsy back in college, before we knew each other. Eventually, we both became freelancers in our own fields and started collaborating on a project called The Blog Market. Later, we moved on to work together on eco club (and a bunch of other projects). We launched our studio in 2019, offering creative services for thoughtful brands and people, and finally, incorporated our ecommerce brand in fall 2022. Phew!

Porcelain plates

Pastel coasters (a personal fave!!)

Espresso cup and saucer set and cat charcuterie board

We think of wallflower as the ultimate moodboard for us — and for you! As longtime bloggers and Pinterest-obsessed curators, we believe in surrounding ourselves with beauty and creativity. Of course, we also believe in caring for people and the planet, and in the power of small business and handmade, so our shop is really a celebration of artists around the world and the creativity we all have within.

Art prints from artists around the world

Striped table runner

Pink taper candle holders

For our launch shoot, we collaborated, of course, with Charity, who helped us show off some of our favorite pieces in a small space setting.

Woven colorblock coasters

Pastel woven vessel, another favorite of mine

Design books

Woven planter basket

We collaborated with a lot of different makers to bring wallflower together. As we grow, we plan to share lots more about these designers and why we love them (and why you should too). But for now, you might recognize Kazi, a fair trade home decor brand we’ve talked about here on eco lots of times. We selected some of their most vibrant pieces for our first collection.

Blush plate

Linen scallop napkins

We also worked with a small business in India to make custom sets of the napkins shown throughout, which features a cotton block print technique and these solid linen scalloped napkins. It was soooo fun to curate custom sets! They’re all handmade and the detail is incredible.

Floral ceramic cat ring dish and striped ceramic cat ring dish with yellow and lavender earrings

This collection of ceramic cats, which features ring dishes, earrings, and pins, is a collaboration between us and Romanian ceramicist and illustrator Livia Coloji of Gruni Ceramica. You can’t find these anywhere else, they are based on Livia’s original designs and updated with wallflower’s branding (and love of florals) in mind. I think this was my favorite product to receive in the mail and finally see in-person after all our communication online. They’re just so beautiful and will make such special gifts.

Acetate hair accessories

A few greeting cards from our massive stationery collection

We also have a lifestyle collection and a self care line. We currently offer over 200 products by about 40 vendors from the US and all around the world. And we have so much more we want to share! But I’ll leave it at this intro for now, and follow up with more of our favorites soon. If you’re interested, please head to shop.studio-wallflower.com to see all of the above and more! Thanks for checking out our small shop and following along!

Eco Friendly Cabin Decor for Fall with Zuahaza

published on November 8, 2022 by Angela Hamilton

Fall is my favorite, so you can imagine my frustration when cooler temps and transitioning trees didn’t come to Seattle until about mid-October this year. But it’s here now and bringing me a much needed mood-booster on my neighborhood walks as the sun goes down each afternoon. In anticipation, last month Jennifer and I retreated to the mountains in Oregon for a fall shoot and some much needed time to work on our latest project. While there, we cozied up with Zuahaza‘s eco friendly cabin decor, featuring pillows, a throw blanket, and decor from their beautiful (and perfectly pastel) Hichu collection. See them throughout the post below along with more fall decor inspiration from our new shop, wallflower!

We take Jenn’s collection of Estelle Colored Glass wine glasses pretty much every where we go. They make not only the prettiest props, but also feel really special to sip from after a long day! Here the glassware is sitting on Zuahaza’s woven placemat/charger. It’s a super sturdy surface made from natural fique, and worked nicely as a sort of serving board.

I also brought along a pillow from their previous collection, Tyba, the one snuggled in the back here.

We have these sweet ceramic tumbler cups coming to the shop soon. They’re perfect for a morning latte!

Many of you know that I don’t go anywhere without flowers. Yes, even to Airbnbs. I grabbed a bunch of different stems at the market and simply trimmed them each to varying heights. I didn’t do much else for this arrangement, and I’m pretty pleased with the wild fall look of it all!

The Sumaz Large Throw in Cream is one of the most beautiful blankets I’ve ever curled up in! The woven details are just stunning. It’s 100% organic cotton, undyed, and a women artisan cooperative in the town of Charalá, Colombia. Honestly, I thought I might regret not having a pop of color with the blanket, but it’s such a lovely complement to the rest of our decor, from the pillow covers to the flowers and glassware, and I loved how the creamy neutrals cozied everything right up.

A preview of a couple more products we’re offering over at wallflower!

This pillow stack also features the the Paramo Pillow Covers and Cocuy Pillow Covers which come in 5 colors. I can’t decide if I like them more here on the sofa or up in the cabin’s loft on the bed… BTW, they are SO soft.

I love the rustic cabin decor of the PNW, but sometimes I crave more playful color. Zuahaza’s textiles were just the accent we needed!

Thanks to eco club member Zuahaza for gifting us these products to photograph so that you could get a better sense of the superior beauty and quality of sustainable, handmade goods produced ethically.

24 Sustainable Gifts for Conscious Maximalists – Home Edition

published on November 3, 2022 by Angela Hamilton

Gift season is here! Thank goodness it’s so much less challenging to find wonderful and sustainable gifts for Christmas and the holidays than it used to be. These days, our holiday gift guides are more and more fun (click here to see past guides, many of which have been updated for 2022). This year, I have the pleasure of including a few items from our own shop, wallflower, which launched earlier this fall. They are sprinkled throughout gift ideas from other eco club members and ethical shops we admire. PS In this gift guide I’ve focused on home decor and goods but don’t worry, our fashion edition is on its way! Too many great things to put all in one post.

sustainable home decor gift ideas for 2022

find more colorful, maximalist sustainable gifts for christmas below!

multi-striped colorblock candles made of soy from a sustainable candle maker in london

block printed cushions from pinkcityprints

sustainable christmas gifts from eco club members: zuahaza pillow covers + scarf/ will + atlas jute wall hanging (sold out) / ohh happy home washable rug (use code ECOCLUBFREE for free US shipping) / blush blanket + block print napkins from wallflower

striped artisan made table decor by archive new york

ivory + mustard boho pillow cover (shown with this kantha blanket)

vivid: style in colour coffee table book by Julia Green + Armelle Habib

colorblock cotton string lampshade by lovingstring

linen striped apron by mosey me

We’ll be sure to add to this list as the season goes on, so check back. We follow so many incredible designers and sustainable brands on social, I’m excited to spread the love however we can!

Bringing Nature Indoors: The Best Books for Plant Lovers

published on July 14, 2022 by Angela Hamilton
updated on July 6, 2022

Anyone who tells you houseplants are easy has a natural knack for it, I swear. I do not, but after about five years of trial and error, I’ve managed to get a few varieties to survive (and sometimes thrive!) in my home. I love nature, so bringing greenery indoors is a big mood booster for me, though I try to be mindful about how many I buy because most houseplants you see aren’t exactly sustainable. That means being more intentional about tending to my plant babies, to ensure they live long, healthy lives. Luckily, there are so many Insta accounts, YT channels, and beautiful books dedicated to helping plant lovers become successful plant parents, it’s easy to hone your skills if you really want to.

best books for plant lovers

The Inspired Houseplant by Jen Stearns is all about jazzing up your home’s design with plants.

Wild Creations: Inspiring Projects to Create by Hilton Carter includes 25 DIY projects and plant hacks.

The Modern Gardener by Sonya Patel Ellis by is a guide not only to houseplants, but container gardens and growing herbs.

Wild At Home: How to Style and Care for Beautiful Plants by Hilton Carter is a guide to creating an inspiring space chock full of plants, from the perspective of someone who owns over 200!

Plantopedia: The Definitive Guide to Houseplants by Lauren Camilleri contains “Instructions for potting, maintaining, and loving more than 130 different kinds of house plants.”

Plant Therapy by Dr. Katie Cooper explores our relationship with nature and how we can help to restore balance and improve our overall wellness with plants.

Indoor Jungle by Lauren Camilleri and Sophia Kaplan comes from the owners of nursery and interior design shop Leaf Supply, and here they share tips and tricks for designing with plants.

You Grow, Gurl!: Plant Kween’s Lush Guide to Growing Your Garden by Christopher Griffin of @plantkween is an illustrated guide to becoming the ultimate plant parent.

Crazy Plant Lady by Isabel Serna is a cute gift for all the quirky plant lovers out there, filled with fun quotes and illustrations.

Plants Are My Favorite People by Alessia Resta will help you start your plant collection, maintain, troubleshoot, and make it thrive.

House Planted by Lisa Muñoz is another modern guide to cultivating and styling your indoor plant collection.

Growing Joy: The Plant Lover’s Guide To Cultivating Happiness (and Plants) by Maria Failla with illustrations by Samantha Leung offers inspiration for relaxing off-screen through a plant-themed wellness practice.

Now all you need are the right supplies and a few cute planters, and you’re ready to grow your indoor jungle!