Melissa loves: Pia Bijkerk

"harriet knew that she always made the best decisions while sitting on her favourite chair. meanwhile, alfred remains to be the best butler a girl could ever want."
The lovely Pia Bijkerk(pronounced by'kerk) is a multi-talented wonder. Her beautiful approach to life is inherent in not just her photography (which we are gathered here today to see) but, her interior styling, her creative and "heart"felt projects and her homey and inviting blog. There is so much to see and enjoy it is hard to know where to begin! I fell in love the moment I met "Harriet". The long lashed sweetheart in the photo above.
In Pia's words: " Harriet came to me on a fabulous whim: My partner (who is known as 'french boy' on my blog) bought me a pen tablet recently and the moment I put pen to tablet I felt this wave of inspiration to draw all over my photographs. Suddenly Harriet and her friends appeared as I drew tiny lines and shapes while imagining a tea party for little creatures. Hence the first to be of many, 'Harriet's confession', was born. As I've continued with the drawings and am developing the characters, I find I am inspired by my life - past and present, and in a way, I think little Harriet is a little part of me (yes, once upon a time I did indeed fall in love with the postman.)"

It is inspiring to me when someone takes a chance, a chance with something new, and let's their imagination and whimsy lead them on a whole new path. Thank goodness they do, as then WE are the recipients of the new creation and it makes our lives so much richer. Or, in the case of Pia's "Harriet"....Richer and Happier! How can you not feel wonder and happiness when you follow little Harriet's imagined journey? Imagined but, made more tangible to me because she occupies a very real space in Pia's photographs!
Pia....? "When I view the drawings I feel inspiration  - I define inspiration as being filled with a creative energy that is completely enveloping. While Harriet and her friends make me giggle, they fill me with more ideas of who they are and where they will go and each drawing re-inspires me to create another. I could definitely say I am now addicted to creating these drawings!   And now when I see them I see a book about Harriet - I imagine one day I would like to create a bound collection of Harriet and her friends, situated in all these fabulous interiors and settings around the world. It could be like an adult's children's book. Some sort of comic, I suppose, that inspires others and takes readers straight into Harriet's world."
Ack! Yes please Pia! :) Don't you all want a copy? I do, I do! To see more photos(some seen for the first time here today)of Harriet's adventures, scroll on down and enjoy(please click on images to make them larger)! Pia, thank you for taking a chance and bringing sweet Harriet to life to brighten and inspire ours! xo Melissa

1.Athena's crownby luxedeluxe
2.bronze doily fine china dessert plate by mudpuppy
3.Caress small butterfly by KarinEriksson
4.Stephanotis Wedding Bouquet with Swarovski Crystals and Tiffany Blue Ribbon by dkdesignshawaii
5.handmade purse with tea time embroidery by bridgetdavies
6.Hawthorne Cluster necklace by AbigailPercy

#1. untitled
#2.  "harriet knew that she always made the best decisions while sitting on her favourite chair. meanwhile, alfred remains to be the best butler a girl could ever want. "

#3."at bedtime, harriet always found her mind wandered to the same place."
#4.untitled
#5." there is nothing a little wine, chocolate, books and a long, hot bath couldn't fix for harriet."
#6."This is Flo's home. Flo is Harriet's brother's friend's sister-in-law's cousin's uncle's boyfriend's best mate. (And rumor has it, this is the secret place Harriet meets the postman.)"

Could'ya love that description more? I think not! :)

Comments

[Persephone]

I love these little illustrations too - Pia has such a wonderful imagination and a generous spirit.

[cindy k]

pia and harriet are a match made in heaven. i love your picks today, too. everything in this post is so pretty and delicate. lovely. happy weekend!

[Miss B.]

This is so utterly sweet and inspiring! I HEART Harriet so...

[erica]

Pia's world is so inspiring...

[Marichelle B]

The heart project was amazing!!! Completely agree with Persephone - Pia's imagination is extraordinary!

[Danielle]

couldn't agree with you more. I LOVE Pia's blog. Her soundscapes always seem to be posted on a day i need to be taken on a journey out of my own little stressful life and harriet, well, its just all too good!

[corine@hidden in france]

I love her world

[karey m.]

how absolutely brilliant! i want one!

and every time i catch a new snippet about pia, i admire her even more...i think she may be a fairy, right?

[jeska]

Lovely sweet post.

Pia's blog is so cosy and inviting and the rain sound scape was so soothing. I wish I lived on a boat house : )

[Tartelette]

Great interview and showcasing of Pia's work. Yes, we love Harriet!

[s.hOPtalk]

How is it possible to have so much loveliness in one spot? I LOVE your finds and plan on spending some time today exploring Pia's inspiring world.

Beautiful Melissa.

[Design Lovely]

How can you not love her? I haven't seen these images before. They are just fabulous. Thank you for sharing.

[mrs. french]

I love everything she touches...thanks for this ever so lovely post. I must go now and absorb all of this perfection...xo

[esti]

I love Pia's world and I've enjoyed harriet's stories a lot.

[michelle@bluemoss]

very sweet post
(and i love the tea time purse and bridget davies fabulous etsy shop)

[joslyn]

i couldn't agree more...i think pia is amazing, amazing, amazing.
xo

[robin bird]

i adored harriet the moment we met! and we quickly found we had one very important thing in common...we both loved pia :)