Image courtesy of the Fabergé Museum

Discovered this fabulous constellation Easter egg by Carl Fabergé, a gift for the Russian royal family that was never received:

Image courtesy of the Fabergé Museum

Nephrite, rock crystal, dark blue glass, gold, diamonds.
Height 29 cm

This egg was made for Empress Alexandra for Easter 1917. The egg has the form of a sphere with a turning dial made out of dark blue glass with clockwork inside. It is encrusted with diamonds and a lion is engraved on it. The heir to the throne, Tsarevitch Alexei, was a Leo in the zodiac. The pedestal is made out of a whole crystal rock placed on a nephrite base. The egg corresponds completely to the original sketch made by Carl Fabergé. According to the sketch, a dark blue sphere engraved with diamonds is encircled with a gold dial plate; the sphere lies on the “clouds” that have been cut from a whole crystal rock placed on the nephrite platform. The only detail which is missing from the egg is five angels who are ascending the “clouds” towards the sphere. Probably this detail wasn’t finished due to the start of the Revolution. And because of the Revolution, «Constellation » was never gifted to the Imperial family.

K. Fabergé firm, H. Wigström’s workshop
Petrograd. 1917

I saw this bowl at the MoMA Design Store in New York, and loved the texture of the piece. Made for Kartell (and available for purchase at that link.)

Moon Bowl by Mario Bellini, for Kartell

Stars, by Seb Lester

I am in LOVE with this print by Seb Lester, featuring one of my favorite quotes:

“I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream.” A quote by a man who needs no introduction, Vincent Van Gogh. The words had an immediate resonance with Seb and he knew he had to do something with them!

The lettering that Seb has developed for this piece is made up of hundreds of thousands of tiny stars, each glistening in metallic gold. To see the stars up close and from further angles please scroll through the additional images above.

The Plike paper is a very deep midnight blue, complimenting the metallic gold print perfectly.

This is a limited edition print, which is also available on royal blue. (I’m partial to the midnight version, myself.)

Detail of Stars, by Seb Lester

Okay, so I found an ad I wanted to post after all, because the thought of using space-rated paint at home is SO amusing to me. Y’know, just in case some random part of your interior or exterior decides to launch at rocket speeds… better yet, in case you happen to host a rocket launch in your home!

You DO realize the chubby, impossibly-pointy rocketship is going to be a… THING… here, from now on, don’t you?

A print I found on Etsy. I like the color scheme, but especially I like the texture of the piece — everything seems painted on rough wood, riveted or stamped, scarred and blackened with use. I like it.

Another Etsy find, this mini tabletop copper rocket launches playfully from a golden sun. Affordable, inspiring whimsy for your desk!

I found this pillow on Etsy. Simple design, lovely color and patterns/textures making it interesting. Wouldn’t mind having this at all, very cute!

Because of the stitched-on beads and 3D elements (and the price), I didn’t file this under Children’s Items or Children’s Decor. If you want to give your child a $110 pillow to gnaw on, be my guest. Personally, I’d rather an adult gnawed on it.

Another lovely item from West Elm, this convex star mirror complements the sunburst wire wall art I blogged about several months back. I’d like both of these, truth be known, but this one especially, I like the finish.

Catch some rays. A contemporary take on the classic shape brings a decidedly new perspective to any room.

The price makes me wince, but I wouldn’t mind walking on this Moon Rug every day. 210 cm in diameter (that’s almost seven feet wide, folks!) Handmade in France, this rug is 100% wool and will sturdily withstand all manner of walking upon it.

A small step for Atypyk, a giant carpet for you.
Walk on the moon everyday.

(Via productdose.com.)

HubbleSite — the public website of the Hubble Space Telescope — just won a Webby, which delights me. Moreso, I was delighted by their (new-to-me) Wall Murals gallery section, where they offer not just large-format downloads to print and hang on the wall, but full instructions on how to go about it, tips for printing and even framing! The first mural offered (at two sizes, at that!) is of the Carina Nebula, home of Eta Carinae, in color as well as black and white. Both are amazingly striking, and I hope this isn’t the last image they offer at this size!

I’ve been planning to take the large-format images I’ve downloaded and print them on giclée canvas (for stretching and hanging), but I like this idea of pieced murals just as well. Neat, neat neat neat!