From Etsy sellers, here are four pretty things for the home that are evocative of a summer that is almost gone.

The colors are summery without being overtly beachy, which I like. After all, I’m trying to recall the heyday of the hottest season, not gussy up a timeshare. If you’re not sure what I mean, have a look in the lobby of your nearest warm weather holiday resort and be prepared for PEACH SEASHELL OVERLOAD.

When you want decor that speaks to you — as opposed to outside observers — there’s no need to make your stuff shout.

When I fall in love with a shop, I typically fall HARD. Recently, I have gone ga-ga for Flutter, a shop filled with a “delightful disarray of found objects and clutter.” The bad news is that Flutter is located about a billion miles from me…well, it might as well be a billion miles with airfare what it is right now. The good news is that Flutter, like Coleen & Company, has some of its wares for sale online.

I’d gladly invite any of these things into my home. Besides the fact that pagodas are hot right now, I’m a sucker for all things blue. I also love fruit-themed containers, vintage-look pillows, and anything “distressed.” It’s a good thing I don’t have a lot of extra green, because if I did, I’d be single-handedly paying off Flutter’s lease!

The problem with so many of the lovely antique and vintage things I see each day is that while they look as close as can be on my laptop’s screen, they’re actually thousands of miles away in cute little shops located all over the country.

I find, for example, the most darling little hand shaped teapot, only to discover that the Arizonian potter who creates them doesn’t do distance sales but would be happy to meet me at my convenience. That’s just one hypothetical example, of course.

Everything in the pic above can be found at Coleen & Company, in lovely Newport Beach, CA. Designer Coleen Rider finds lots of sweet pieces who knows where, stocking her shop with all things beautiful. She even deigns to put some of it up on the Internet so that those of us who secretly dream of things like leather-topped Italian writing desks, vintage porcelain birds, and colorful Chinoiserie panels can drool.

That problem I mentioned in the very start of this post? It’s no problem at all — order what you like on the web site (if, unlike me, you have the money), and Rider will have it lovingly packed and carefully shipped right to your doorstep. Happy shopping!

I tagged this post with “DIY” but I’ll have you know that I have absolutely no idea how to create a stencil or make wall panels. I can stretch a canvas, but I would need to consult an expert when it comes to printing something on one.

Too bad that the crafty gal who whipped up these wonderful Doctor Who wall panels didn’t post instructions! I’m crying tiny tears right now out of abject jealousy.

A certain taerowyn crafted these for a fellow crafter during some sort of Doctor Who/Torchwood maillove swapfest. In her own words:

Basically, it’s nine 6′x6′ canvases that can hang in any way. I envision this kind of 3×3 grid, but you could do it as a border near the ceiling, or hang in a pattern of less than nine and then swap them out depending on your mood etc.

I only wish I had intercepted the USPS package so these would be mine, all mine.

I like things that surprise me, and this predilection applies not only to stuff for the home, but to art as well.

What’s grand is that stuff for the home and art are sometimes overlapping categories. Sadly too much art for the home can be lumped into a mass of terrible Thomas Kinkaide-esque prints in plastic frames and too many people think of “real art” as something that hangs in museums and costs millions of dollars. All I can say is, “So not true.”

The awesome prints above were created by one Elsita and can be purchased in her Etsy store. What’s surprising about her prints is that they look like normal pretty pictures until you realize that a girl’s jacket is sprouting, it’s snowing noses, and ohmigosh those bunnies have been impaled with knitting needles! The best part? It’s art, it’s funky, and it’s affordable.

Once you’ve had a bit of a looksee at Elsita’s store, go check out Elsita’s blog to learn a bit about her life, her art, and her other projects because it’s cool to see into her world.

Please don’t confuse this with the five things I can’t live without. It’s totally, totally different! For one thing, I already have some of the things listed below. It’s just that my particular versions aren’t quite as nice. And some of the things are totally impractical, pointless, and even silly!

It is the height of ridiculousness and something I could probably make myself, if necessary. We’ve talked about ceramic cats in the past, but this one is just a tad different. What’s stopping me from snapping it right up is the price tag. The Rosenau Castle cat (part of Nymphenburg‘s Big Five porcelain trophy series) costs a cool $929. Ouch.

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It’s a pear…with a butthole. At least that’s what it looks like to my eyes, which have seen scads of cartoon cats with little star-like pencil sharpeners under their cartoon tails. While I’m sure that Maija Isola and Kristina Isola put a lot of thought into this colorful fruit back in 1969, all I can see is a pear with a butthole.

This is what buttpear looks like on the wall in your super mod living room in what I’m sure is your fabulous New York City apartment that’s located in a building that was once a factory.

What I do like here is the concept, conceived of by Marimekko for CB2. In case you didn’t know, it’s Crate & Barrel’s new hip venture meant to appeal to young hip folks like me and you. First you buy a set of metal hanging bars and hardware, then you buy interchangeable fabric prints like this one, which I adore. They’re relatively inexpensive as wall decor goes, and they are absolutely HUGE. That means bang for your buck!

But, yeah…a pear with a butthole.