bellazoo

Thanks for dropping by. I am a Designer, Illustrator, Photographer, Collector and almost Vegan (I guess you can call me a vegetarian lol)

After working and travelling in the US we decided to pursue our Design careers. After studying and working for various studios we opened our own Boutique Design Studio and have never looked back. Our family currently consists of a husband and wife team and 7 dogs and 2 cats. we live on a hill looking over the picturesque neighborhood called Montrose in the city of Pietermaritzburg, Kwa-Zulu Natal. South Africa.

Our town is well known for Alan Paton, Mandela, Gandhi, and many amazing world shakers who lived and passed through. Our town is situated an hour from the nearest beach (Durban) and an hour and a half from the mountains called the Drakensberg. The world's second-tallest waterfall (though, as per point below, there is a plausible argument that it is actually the tallest waterfall in the world, rather than Venezuela's Angel Falls) is allocated about three hours from us in the Drakensberg mountains.

Nelson Mandela capture site is allocated a few kilometers from us. And thats just one of many interesting places to visit here in South Africa. But our favourite pass time is to drive out into he country and enjoy freshly baked cheesecake and espressos. Enjoy the scenery and chat till dawn. That is if we are not busy working on deadlines or a personal project on the side.

We love vintage Scandinavian items and Antiques. There are a lot of collectible shops in the area and I sometimes pick a few things up and for the fun of it sell it on my Etsy Shop.

We are vegetarian. Leaning towards being vegan.

I don't appreciate dishonesty and try to be considerate to everyone. I will never give a bad rating for no reason...so please don't worry if you had a problem sending your goodies too me late....its always good to keep in touch and explain your situation. I would appreciate the same kind of care even though nothing bad has happened yet (touch wood)

I love paper goods, fabric goods, patterns, vintage and new. I love toys.
I’m swayed by beautiful and innovative design. Lovely designed fabrics & paper goods are by far my favourite. Second of all id have to say I love vintage toys, the history behind an item and anything that tells a story or draws me into its world. I’m taken by new perspectives and experiences. Im always learning new things. In my studio you will find vintage fabrics, Antique story books, Vintage magazines, Craft Magazines, Designer toys, BJD dolls, Plush dolls, Art Supplies, a Sewing Machine my grandmother used to make beautiful things on including loads of doll clothes for my doll collection. At last 4 of our dog children will be joining us laying somewhere calmly and perhaps the cats might be bouncing around having some fun on the staircase. In our home I have a collection of vintage kitchen ware and like most people who realised milk glass was beautiful at one point I started to collect it all. My husband and I are both designers who run a design studio(s) from home.

But to sum it all up here is a more concise list I like Vintage kitchen stuff - I love milk glass pirex bowls, Fire King items. I love their pearlescent coloured product's, baking tools, patterned vintage mugs, Scandinavian or European designs, I collect espresso cups - I love coffee Sewing - I collect vintage sewing items such as wooden bobbins, French cottons, printed vintage cottons, buttons etc . Designer Plush Toys, I love trees, seeds and all plant related items, Blythe Dolls, Designer fabrics, Domo, Tortoro, Strawberries, Vintage toy patterns, Old Photographs, Ball Jointed Dolls, Espressos, Quality Chocolates, did I say Coffee! I collect all kinds of things relating to coffee, Tea, Vinyl,Toys,Tradition-Rich History and Ultramodern Technology, Baked Cheese Cake, Activism, Digital Design, I enjoy researching and finding new Vegan products, Environmental Issues, Mark Ryden, Brendan Monroe, Hillary Lang, Linda Bergkvist, Scandinavian Design, Bobby Chiu, Miyako Kanamori, Daniel Conway, Low Brow Art, Vinyl Toys, Illustration, Gnomes, Typography, Hand lettering, Photography, Old recipes from your granny's cookbook she enjoys cooking or baking, anything Vintage, packaging design, designer toys, hello kitty and antiques haha so much to mention!!!

Any product made from dead animals or where the animal had to suffer, Traffic, Zoo's, Circuses, Headaches and being sick. :P

ooo yay! Im pretty easy, i love stuff haha. Ask if you are unsure. Keywords to describe what i love: vintage, kawaii, food, candy, paper, fabric, french, American, British, Scandi, patterns, folk goods, traditional, modern, ANYTHING LOL