The Homely Place

Nat over at The Homely Place designs lovely colorful and inspired prints and now offers her pretty images on mugs and tea towels.  How perfect for my kitchen!  She has started a People Fund account which is a place to feature your creative projects and raise funds.  Cheers to you, Nat!  I think it's a great place to support artists!  Please visit her shop and see her pretty designs - I can't wait to have one of her tea towels in my kitchen!  You can read more about her venture here on her blog.  (By the way, how great is her video?)

Thanks, Nat!

So Much Pretty

I love interior design - not in the traditional sense, but in the endlessly creative ways people express their interests and personalities.  If I had the time and resources I would be changing my decor every year - there is too much to love!  I also wish I could raise my ceilings a few feet but that is neither here nor there! :)  In any case, I need a dose of pretty and these random rooms are the answer. 

We are in the market to buy more (I know, more) bookshelves and I cannot decide what color wood would look best in the room - these white shelves are calling my name at the moment!  The room they're going in has dark wood floors and a painted, white, floor-to-ceiling, brick fireplace.  Too much white?  The only other 'must' for the room is a black and white, round, chevron printed rug (love) and a loveseat in an undecided color/fabric.  What do you think?  I can't decide!

[Sorry, I cannot remember where I found these images - it was quite some time ago!]

Happy Friday!

PS - J and I saw Kevin James and Ray Romano last night and I am still laughing!

Cherry Blossoms

"Upon waking, many people consider the coming day with trepidation.  Because of the natural human tendency to focus on what we fear or dislike, it is easy to unwittingly send a message of unrest into the future that negatively impacts the quality of our day.  However, while our lives are busy and frequently replete with challenges, they are also rich with joy and experiences worth savoring.  We can attract this natural bliss by starting each day with a message of love.

When you send love ahead to your day, that feeling will manifest itself in your interpersonal interactions, your professional endeavors, and your domestic duties.  Tasks and circumstances once made trying by your own anxiety are transformed by your caring, and you will find yourself approaching life's subtle nuances with great affection."

"If you are commuting to work, transmit love to the roads upon which you will drive, your fellow commuters, and your parking space.  If you have colleagues who arrive at your workplace before you, send them good wishes... Sending love ahead to everyone you will meet and everything you will do can ensure that your day is suffused with grace.

If you have difficulty directing love to those situations and individuals you deem particularly frustrating, consider that the warmth and tenderness you project can change your life for the better.  Each morning in sending this love, you will exercise your power to control the ambience of your existence and color your day with a positive force."

The passage above is from one of my companion books, DailyOM.  A source of inspiration and comfort for me.  And I think we all need a small dose of positivity for this day in particular as we are awake an hour earlier than usual! :)

And I hope these photos of the always lovely cherry blossoms can remind us of the beauty that surrounds us.  I might be stuck in an office during the day but when I venture outdoors this time of year I can't help but love the beautiful blooms I see all around me.  These trees are at my parents' home and they're close to 20 years old.  See the knobby tree trunk?

Happy Monday!  

Beautiful Rooms & Birthday

It's rare to find a seemingly random set of photos that so perfectly describe my personal style and therefore I had to repost and share with you all, my friends!  I can (and will) take direct inspiration from these images and update the rooms in my home - not joking, there are several pieces from these rooms that I own in variations.  Who is the designer?  And can we be best friends?

All images via An Indian Summer via The Design Files.

I keep returning to these rooms time and time again.  LOVE!

PS - And a very happy Birthday to my Dad!  We had a family dinner last night to celebrate and it felt great to relax - especially since it was sunny and in the 70's - beautiful!

Oscar Favorites

This year J and I didn't quite meet our goal of watching all the Oscar nominated films (only 2!) but I still enjoyed watching the show - and the red carpet!  Tonight I had a few favorites. 



Rooney Mara stole my heart with this hair and makeup - I love her style.





Rooney Mara (LOVE.) and Kristen Wiig (can I borrow this?).



I don't always love what Angelina wears but I definitely LOVED this black dress (although I think she'd look lovelier if she put on about 10lbs!)!  And Milla Jovovich looked incredible - what a gorgeous wedding dress that would make!  Octavia Spencer looked beautiful and I was so happy she won for her role in The Help - great movie (and even better book!).

Uncommonly Beautiful

I LOVE this (found on Rosie Molinary's blog):

Happy Friday - any fun plans for the weekend?  I have to work on Saturday but then fun on Sunday with yoga, book club, and a birthday dinner with my girlfriends.  And then it all begins again! 

Enjoy your weekend!

Award Winner!

Earlier in the month I was given an award (the Liebster Blog Award!) by a fellow blogger, Lisa, of Lisa Graham Art.  Her art is colorful, quirky, and inspired - I enjoy seeing her new creations!  


This award is a way to spread awareness about smaller blogs that are still worth checking out.  Here's how this works:


Liebster is a German word meaning "dearest" and the award is given to bloggers with fewer than 200 followers.  The award has a few stipulations:

1. Thank the giver and link back to the blogger who gave it to you.
2. Reveal your five blogger picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.
3. Copy and paste the award on your blog.
4. Hope that people you have sent the award to forward it on to their favorite bloggers.

And the award goes to...

lemabean.

20 Something and Striving

In the belly of the fish...

the homely place

BollyInStyle

I love all these blogs and am honored to spread the love!

Inspiration

"An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity."


[Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.]

Creative Courage

I love paper - journals, cards, invitations, garlands, wrapping - you name it!  And as some of you already know I have expressed a desire to own my own paper shop specializing in paper products - mainly cards and invitations.  In the past I've created invitations for our wedding rehearsal dinner, parties, birthday cards, and other miscellaneous projects.

I had high hopes for opening an Etsy shop in 2011 but throughout the year I felt the inspiration draining from me.  This led to my temporary break from blogging.

Where did all my inspiration and creative energy go?  What happened to my motivation? 

I was feeling overwhelmed with the whole creative process.  Randomly back in November I stumbled across (I do quite a bit of 'stumbling' on the internet, isn't it a wonderful place?!) Stephanie Levy's blog and found myself signing up for her Creative Courage e-course.  This class is all about building confidence and jumpstarting your creative drive!  From her blog:  "Creative Courage is a practical guide that will help you clarify your own unique path and give you the tools you need to start making your goals real...".  This seven week course starts on Monday!

Just what I needed.

I received an email from Stephanie today welcoming me to class and announcing that there are still a few spots available.  I want to pass the word along to you!  I believe this will be a very fulfilling experience for me and I'm hoping to find the "creative courage" to continue on my [paper] path.

Tuesday Tune

So, I've found another love to add to my short list of musical artist soulmates - Thievery Corporation.  I have continued to stumble across this group (and I even featured them in early 2011!).  I would hear songs I loved on different iTunes radio stations, Pandora... etc. and would later realize they were all the same band.  I'm destined to love this group!  One of their cds, The Richest Man in Babylon, was waiting for me under the Christmas tree this year and I'm already looking forward to completing my collection.  I LOVE this album!  This music falls into my category of "perfect".  (Can you guess who else is there?)

I was listening to it last night and I was conjuring images of myself as a yoga teacher playing this cd during class.... or perhaps a cafe owner... or maybe relaxing at the beach... or... or...

What do you think?

Jaipur [India]

"Jaipur is the 'Pink City' because in the 1800's the whole city was painted pink to welcome Prince Albert.  The old city walls are still standing and inside there were things to see at every turn!  Monkeys, fruit stands, street food vendors, crumbling pink walls, old wooden shutters, cows, goats - everything!  It literally looks just like my daydreams - an exotic place stuck in time - a faraway land..."

"...As the evening crept in to night we wound through the streets snapping photos everywhere and enjoying everything.  Everyone in Jaipur has been so friendly... We found our way to a hindu temple, and a fair-trade shop where I proceeded to die and go to heaven.  The shopkeeper took us through the side streets and up an ancient spiral staircase (don't look down!) to a rooftop overlooking Jaipur.  Amazing!  Really?  How cool is this guy?  And as if the night couldn't get any better he took us back down to the square with a flower market.  While the girls bought spices I snuck away and found jasmine perfume..."

"We ended our evening with a rooftop dinner and watched fireworks (wedding season) over the Jaipur skies... what an absolutely perfect afternoon and evening... right when I least expected it, India delivered this gem of a city.  Tomorrow awaits!"

"The Hawa Mahal (above) was really only a photo opportunity but next door were snake charmers - real snake charmers.  This was unreal!"

"JAIPUR IS AWESOME.  This is what I was dreaming of when I was dreaming of India.  Incredible India!  Jaipur is so charming and totally exotic...  We rode in a rickshaw!  How fun!  It wasn't as scary as it looked in Delhi but the traffic here is so much calmer (still crazy) and there aren't as many horns.  It was exhilirating to drive in the hustle and bustle of everyday life."

"We bounced along in the tuk tuk - winding through the bustling streets of the old city.  Past all the beautiful women in their vibrant saris.  We saw our first elephant when we stopped to admire the Amber Fort (I'm pictured above at the vista point!)...  The views of the Amber Fort were expansive and very beautiful.  It sits on a hill range with a winding wall snaking its way through the peaks.  Really stunning!"

"The Fort and Palace was gorgeous.  I must be in some kind of dream world with all these beautiful archways at every turn (my weakness)."

"...And one of the highlights of the day was our stop at the block printing studio (see photo below).  So cool!  I picked some up to take home!"

"Everywhere I turn I see a picture... I know now that I have certainly missed my camera over the last couple months..."

"We were up on the top of the hill overlooking the city - after foregoing a visit down the other side of the hill to the Monkey Palace (too many monkeys!).  I love the view.  What a whole different world than my own - the constant tug between old and new... it continues to humble me..."

"...Someday I'd like to return to Jaipur - the city that so far has embodied my ideal of India..."