Christmas tree time. The big (or little) choice.

It's that time of year again when we start wondering what tree will we use.


You can always just pop down to the nearest supermarket and get a green fakey - but I doubt that's what you want to do. Do you ever make your own? Fashion them out of wire, bamboo, old wood? Have you used the same one for so many years you've forgotten how it came to be 'the tree'?

Start with a simple idea - 
great design always shows through

The tree needs to be big enough to hold the promise of goodies, still allow you to use the living spaces available to you, fit a star on top, and mostly - encourage joy in it's corner. 

We all love a traditional real pine Christmas tree. Do we like it in our house though? Can we fit one in our house? Personally I adore the smell of fresh pine in my house for a few months. I have not always lived with the luxury of being able to fit one in my home so there is certainly a novelty attached to it. 

Bird houses in your home - and the rain drop glass - perfect tree ingredients!

Does an Emu, wearing a Santa hat, hanging in a tree need a home? Sure does!!

Even when we have this big green tree we still have other wooden trees (or pots of wood) scattered around the house. Some of our homes' most remembered trees have been painted pieces of wood found in the vacant bush block next door and decorated with pretty glass pieces, kinder creations and the 6 new significant pieces allowed each year.

Texture is sometimes the important thing.

We love the symbol of the tree for Christmas. It's connection to earth and life. The joy of sitting under them in parks, planting bulbs under them for spring or picking delicious fruit from them. They are a gift themselves.

Elegance is always a winner

So - whatever you decide for your home this year remember to take some photos, or sketch it, and share your ideas with us. We love an idea swap! 

Traditional, contemporary, made it myself or a WOW installation - have fun deciding.




Love Clarence x

Fancy Goods and Fancy Places

Spring Carnival or just a nice long weekend for you? 


We are doing carnival vicariously through our customers this year. Lucky you're fun getting such great outfits and parties together. We're enjoying all your stories of trackside shenanigans and lunches being had. We're here, on site, in store ALL weekend waiting for a visit from you.


Clarence went out on location yesterday. It's such a joy playing with well designed objects, found treasures and fresh flowers to create beautiful spaces.  

This beautiful big old cabinet is already 'ear marked' for a wonderful wedding entrance piece.
Get a look at the oil burner. Can you believe that industrial perfection! 

This particular location shoot was made easier by working with Bec Smith as our photographer. 


Nothing too much of an issue and loads of great suggestions plus - the most important thing PATIENCE, loads of patience.

The start of another shot.
These chairs come in about 6 different sizes. One Clarence girl has just taken a pair home for bedside tables and a few little ones for the short people in the house.

We - of course - get over excited and move things the whole time. Bec never once got annoyed. Just inspired - got to LOVE that!! Was it her, us or the bubbles? Who knows but it was great.


This bit of Clarence was taken to Bobi's home on a beautiful piece of Yarra Valley land. 


We do love going on tour so ask us - we will probably want to hang out with you too!

In store Clarence is opening up Christmas decorations, mulling over our new Christmas window (it's coming soon!) and putting some more beautiful Angus & Celeste on the shelves.

Are you familiar with them? A totally gorgeous couple from the Yarra Ranges that make Australian botanical inspired pottery. DO NOT THINK SOUVENIRS. Think, delicate, detailed and quirky ...

In their own words:

"Angus and Celeste combine simple materials with complicated processes to produce nothing less than pure objects of desire. The time and attention to detail involved in every object is obvious as soon as you see it. Producing the highest quality contemporary porcelain jewellery and modern collectible home wares you will find Angus & Celeste in galleries, select stockists and in the gardens and homes of people who enjoy beautiful objects."

They make perfect gifts as they tick all the boxes; artisan, beautiful craftsmanship, sustainable (practice wise and they support the 15 Trees Project), local and Angus & Celeste truly are lovely people. 


To steal a quote from their page - “A thing of beauty is a joy forever.” 




Ok - well back to the weddings, functions, boxes and Christmas decisions. This is a busy but also such a satisfying time of year. Hope you're all enjoying the sun today if you have it, and are lucky (if you need to be!) over the Melbourne Cup weekend.


Coming to Yarra Glen races?? Pop by and visit us, we'd love to see you.




Love Clarence x

Clarence has been shopping in the sun

Is there anyone that doesn't love Spring? It's that beautiful 'wake up' time of year when we all feel fresh and sunny - but not to hot. Thawed out from our damp, cold Victorian winter.


To speed this process up, and get one last gasp before the madness of Spring Carnival and Christmas are upon us, Ms Clarence went to Byron Bay. It was a trip about finding time to breathe and bringing home loved ones and loved things. We think it was a success!

This is our evening view  .... our 'thinking time' view

But we just had to get out there and get shopping!!

There is beautiful Renee Jeffery pottery being unwrapped at Clarence RIGHT NOW that came down from sunny Byron. 

A Foxy Tea pot just unwrapped ...

Owls and Pussy  Cats  .. pea green ...  

How can you not love a sleeping dragon with your tea?

Every cup comes with a little reminder of love at the bottom.  Gorgeous xo

Sitting pretty in store now ...

We hope it carries a bit of that sunshine and seaside deliciousness onto your kitchen table.


Next Blog we'll Showcase Renee with a little question & answer time.....  check it out.


Ok - well back to the flowers - see you soon


Love Clarence

Some treasure just won't make it to the shop...

Sometimes you are shopping and your heart actually stops, you can't breath and you get a pain inside you when you try to walk away from the amazing thing... well, that is what happens to me anyway.  I try to find things like that to sell in my shop, Clarence EST 2010 - flowers and fancy goods, Healesville.

But, lets be honest... some treasure just wont make it to the shop. Like this recent unbelievably AWESOME SCORE!!!! I have wanted a luggage trunk since my days travelling with the famous Spiegeltent but never have I seen one so beautiful. Check this out -

Bad photo but it happens to have a lot
of "B" stickers on it... My name is Bobilee...
Not that I need any more convincing!!

Just your standard looking op-shop trunk

Are you ready to take a peek inside??

Surprise! I am amazing!!

Complete with original coathangers and immaculate lining.

I am one happy lady

I did have to phone a friend to see if I was out of my mind on this purchase, it was not a cheap score but just a good one.  My friend Anton simply told me that if I ever did not want it then he would buy it off me.  I also google-imaged luggage trunks and couldn't find one as sweet as this!

I love vintage treasure and imagining the history of the piece.  The thing with this one is that it probably was a part of a set, with matching hat box, beauty case and smaller luggage cases. I wonder where it has travelled and who owned such a stunning thing... I am sooooo happy they looked after it and had such amazing taste!

My Red Dog!

You know when you wanna see a movie so bad but feel like you have to find a child to take with you as some kind of shield from people noticing that you are just a big baby?!? Well, Lucky for me, I had Indi, boy aged 4, the perfect scapegoat and afternoon date for me.

Yesterday we saw Red Dog. It was FANTASTIC! I highly recommend this flick.  Great Aussie humour, a story of love, loyalty, and, oh god! I can't pretend to be a movie critic or some kind of amazing writer... The film just really affected me and I cried like a baby... I would have completely broke down and howled if no-one else was there, but I just managed to hold it in so Indi wouldn't think I was a complete loser.

Anywhoo... It made me love my own dog even more (I didn't know it was possible, but it's true!). Her name is Kaya. This is a tribute to Kaya disguised as a movie review - 

Meet Kaya. How SWEET is she???

She is pretty much the cutest dog in the world. She has many nick-names including 'puppy-chulo' 'Miss Manaia' and 'Manaia Twain,' none of which she answers to.  She doesn't even answer to 'Kaya' only 'Kai' which happens to mean 'food' or 'a meal' in Maori.

 

Always snoozy... the ultimate chiller!

"MUM... it's 6am, Can we go for a walk now??"

Kaya at Clarence!

Yes, she was actually asleep like that! Close your legs Miss Manaia!

There is definitely a special bond between animals and humans.  Some humans I know like animals more than humans... they are just less-complicated I guess.

My legs are crossed and she has found a comfy spot to nestle in.

People think she is a he because she is very handsome!

Kaya with her dad Micka, after a ride in the boat in the dam.

This would be here facebook profile if she had one... I'm not that obsessed!

Hot summer night, Parents decide to sleep on the balcony in a swag.
Hot summer morning... Kaya thinks that is a great idea!

Here are some other dogs that look nothing like Red Dog but I'm sure they are just as devoted!

This is not Kaya, This is Remmie, I'm sure he is loved just as much!

Remmie and Sam. Just some more sweet dogs.

Good bye from us.  I'm going to take Kaya for a walk.  Do yourself a favour and go and see Red Dog... and take some tissues for the laughing and crying tears!

My best friend :)

Letterpress workshop with Girlprinter

I recently participated in a letterpress course taken by Carolyn Fraser, aka Girlprinter and Idlewild Press.  You can see some of Carolyn's work here http://www.girlprinter.com/blog/ 

In my life pre-Clarence printing in dirty factories was my favourite past time.  I studied Textile design at RMIT for one year before leaving to work in a screen printing studio in Melbourne, sampling for Akira Isogawa and getting experimental.  I made an outfit for Harry Angus from The Cat Empire and soon found myself designing and making their band merchandise.  This became quite a nifty little side business doing specialty merchandise for bands, business uniforms and carnival performers. 

After I opened Clarence, I was so busy running my business I hadn't made or printed a single thing so you can imagine my excitement getting let loose in Carolyn's studio.  We learnt the basics over a 2 day workshop and were given time to create our own project.  The anticipation of what to make can easily give you a creative block... just ask my friend Kitty.M.  http://www.facebook.com/pages/KITTYMStationeryDesign/204175442949050

I had been (and still am) toying with the idea "Who is Clarence?" So I got experimental with that in mind.  See my pics... 

Drawers of old font. I am literally in Heaven!

Letters set... design forming.

Maybe Clarence is this guy? 

Is Clarence a Monkey? 

Locked and loaded for the first print.

I love letterpress!  The precision and patience required is such an enjoyable process. I love being forced to SLOW DOWN and be fussy to the millimetre, or should I say.. copper.  I love that it has it has its own language, special tools and measurement... em, en, picar, pt.  I love the smell of it, I love the furniture and I love the result. It is like fabric and it makes me soooo happy! This is what I made with special thanks to Girlprinter.  So great to get my hands dirty and print again, this time in a very clean studio! :) 

Clarence Card

Clarence Art