life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans

"life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans"
(John Lennon)

I have never been to New York City, so when a dear friend moved there recently I jumped at the opportunity to get up there and check it out! Little did I know I would be there during crazy Hurricane Irene! I am at least glad I got a rockin' deal on that plane ticket. Anyway, what was going to be a weekend of going to the Met and the Brooklyn Flea, shopping, seeing Sleep No More, and eating lots of great food; took a bit of a turn on Saturday due to the weather shutting down the city. And the reality is, while all of those things would have been great to cram into a four day trip, it was still such a fun weekend.

I can't complain too much, we did manage to make a ton of stops on Friday—Central Park, SoHo, 5th Avenue, Times Square (which was totally weird to me), Restaurant Row, and we ended the night meeting up with my friend Kath and heading to a karaoke bar on the lower east side. It was here that she got the next two days started by singing "Rock it like a Hurricane," which was possibly one of my favorite moments of the entire weekend! Once it was clear that we would not be making it over to Brooklyn on Saturday, or anywhere outside of Greenwich village for that matter, we settled into two days of slowing down and making the most of it. Which basically consisted of finding one of the few places in the neighborhood open to grab dinner, great conversation over a few beers while watching it storm outside, and marathon Bravo tv watching.

Turns out the trip had less to do with me seeing everything I could while I was there; and more to do with me stepping out of my day to day and reminding myself that I am, in fact, living. It is easy to get into so much of a routine that we forget that we are experiencing things every day. A city with something around every corner can wake you back up to this. So can a hurricane. And stopping long enough to spend time with people that are in your life. And not worrying so much about walking in the rain.

estate sale finds

I spotted an estate sale over in the 12South neighborhood Friday afternoon, and am sure glad I did! $8 later I walked away with these lovely finds:

A little ceramic crock, a wooden letter opener, and a very old children's book.

The ceramic crock is probably meant to hold butter, but right now it is storing some muscadines that I got over the weekend just fine! I have been looking for a letter opener, but that is the kind of thing you don't necessarily go out and buy unless you have a really organized office...which I don't...so I snatched this up the minute I saw it! The wood detailing is really beautiful and I think it is pretty neat/convenient that there is a ruler on the blade. And this children's book that is filled with folk stories was one of those buys that my gut told me to move forward with. Not quite sure what I will ultimately do with it, but the pages are really old and not holding up all that well; so I thought I might save the good ones but cutting them loose and letting them stand on their own for framing and art. Perfect for a cool kid's room!

when life hands you a busted water heater...

I woke up yesterday, jumped out of bed, ran down to the garage (which is really the laundry room, storage space, as well as my studio) to grab something out of the dryer, and “splash”… stepped right down onto a wet floor. My response was nothing worth mentioning on my blog, but you can imagine when I realized that the old water heater that had been hanging on by a thread, had finally given up and was busted. Anyhoo, a few hours and a new water heater later I was back in action. The clean up could have been MUCH worse, trust me, so I thank the good Lord above that I caught it before it really flooded. And anything of real value that was down there was bypassed completely by the water, so I have to send a shout out to him for that too! At the end of the day, the mess that I did have to clean up could only be looked at as an opportunity to get my studio back in action! And to get some things reorganized. However, as I was moving everything back in, the leg of my worktable definitely came off…just fell to the ground! Granted, this worktable consisted of two misfit tables pushed together and covered with kraft paper, but whatever, it worked. It is no longer working. Just like that danged water heater. So, I am now on the lookout for an actual worktable. A few years ago I came across a picture of one that I have been pining for ever since—long wooden surface on top, storage space below, and it was on rollers. I spent some time today looking around for some other ideas. I would love to make it or have it made vs. buying one. Unless of course, I found a really great old wooden table that called my name! So that whole "when life hands you lemons.." quote could play in here. Sure, I can't say I enjoyed yesterday's fiasco, but it did result in a clean studio and a much needed jolt to improve my work space. A space that really does me so much good.

Here are few that I came across:

Source: tinywhitedaisies.tumblr.com via Justine on Pinterest

Source: ffffound.com via Superkitina on Pinterest

Source: mnml.it via Vik on Pinterest

Source: readymade.com via Susan on Pinterest

Source: None via twelve chairs boston on Pinterest

Source: factory20.com via Amy on Pinterest

painted floors

I love the look of a painted hardwood floor. Especially when it is a light color...say white or pale gray. It is a perfect solution for floors that are in bad conditon and would need some major refinishing. But lately, I have seen it in rooms where this does not seem to be the case. There are so many options for color and pattern that it has nothing to do with hiding anything, it is about enhancing a room. In some cases it is the focal point! Here are a couple of my favorites from Pinterest:

Source: morganmoore.typepad.com via Amy on Pinterest

Source: blog.katiemaennle.com via Jennifer on Pinterest

Source: futuredomesticgoddess.blogspot.com via Brooke on Pinterest

Source: awelltraveledwoman.tumblr.com via Emily on Pinterest

Source: ginger-ella.tumblr.com via Cassie Nicholas on Pinterest

I also love the concept of a painted concrete floor. That is something I could do in my garage/studio!

Source: google.com via PJ on Pinterest

Source: erineverafter.blogspot.com via Jennifer on Pinterest

Source: s3.amazonaws.com via Leigh on Pinterest

crafty girls brunch

I have been blessed over the past year to reconnect, as well as meet, some close girlfriends who are crafty and creative. I love to look back and see how people come in and out of your life at all the right times, and the wealth of creative friends that have been dominate in my life lately are nothing short of necessary and perfectly timed. I am at my best when I am creating something, and most of the time it is the only real way that I heal and grow. To begin to have others to do that with is such a nice change, and has been something I have truly missed since I graduated college.

Yesterday I had a few of those girls over for a Sunday brunch—to enjoy a beautiful day, to spend some time together, to nosh, and to make something with our hands. Appropriately enough, we made friendship bracelets! Here are a few snapshots from the day:

pinterest

The last two weeks I have spent more time scrolling through Pinterest than I have any other blog that I normally visit. I have been seeing this whole Pinterest thing here and there, but it was my mother who nudged me to it. Thanks mom! The minute I signed up I was hooked! I have spent the past few years pulling images and taking screen shots of things I wanted to remember, or found inspiring, and would put them into folders on my desktop. Thank goodness for this more organized way of managing all of that! It is also too much fun to share with others. You can find me HERE. Below is a sampling of what I have going so far:

how to hem jeans: a DIY for short people!

This weekend I figured out how to do something that will change my life forever! And I am not exaggerating! I successfully hemmed two pairs of jeans without having to lose the original hem, resulting in jeans that DON'T look like they have been altered! At 5’2” there are very few times that I put on a pair of jeans and they fit perfectly. They are almost always way too long. Over the years I have tried to fix pants by cutting length off and making a new hem, only to have it look so obvious. Sure, a tailor is an option, but adding that extra cost is less than desirable, and I always felt like this was something I should learn to do myself. I recently found a pair of jeans that I loved and couldn’t pass up, but were definitely going to need to be hemmed. Days later I happened upon a tutorial on how to keep the original hem, so I felt like it was as good a time as any to try this out. It worked beautifully and I am not sure there are words that express how exciting this is!! For all of you other short friends of mine, here is the lowdown:

Put on the pair of jeans and roll up the cuff to the desired length. Pin it in place. Take the jeans off and measure the length, but do not include the hem in the measurement. Divide that measurement in half and this is the number you will use to pin the final sewing length. For example, I rolled mine up about 4.5 inches (I told you I was short!) and the original hem was about ½ inch. So I was really only working off of 4 inches. I divided that number in half and was left with 2 inches. I moved the amount rolled up, down to 2 inches and pinned it there. Using a thread that matches your jean color, you then stitch right underneath the hem. Try them on before you cut off the excess fabric to double check that the length is correct. Once you cut the extra folded fabric off, iron the hem down. It will barely be visible that there is a seam above the hem, and who looks that closely anyway?!

Top shows the original amount that I rolled up (the 4.5 inches), and the bottom
shows the amount divided in half and pinned (2 inches)

Measuring and pinning around the whole hemline

Stitch right below the original hem

Finished stitching

Cut the excess fabric off

Finished! You can't even tell they have been altered!

bold is the new black

I was browsing through the mall over the weekend and popped on into J. Crew. They have their new fall line out now, and wow, talk about popping! This color palette is so BOLD and I am kind of obsessed with it. The red is the kicker, but every color under that is so cool. It is almost too much in the sense that the colors together vibrate a bit, but then they throw in a soft pink, or brown, or hunter green. I am not up on the fashion scene as much, so this may have been out there for the last few years, but I am really inspired by the palette they have gone with. It seems so fresh!

the marlow hobo

My friend Howard once said to me that he will never understand how women choose their purses. Since he mentioned this, I find myself observing women and their bag/purse choices and I definitely get what he means. Often times it is exactly what I expect, most of the time it is not! It is a strange thing how women express themselves through this odd necessity. Whether we base it on what is trendy, or what outfits we are wearing, the fact remains that most of us have had plenty of purses over the years that most likely outline all the phases of styles we have been through.

Recently I made the decision that it was time to find a "grown up" bag. After many, many, many years of carrying purses that were either vintage store finds (aka always under $20) or trendier finds that I refuse to pay more than $50 for because I am not a big trend person (aka Target or TJ Maxx purses); I felt like I was ready to choose a bag that I would actually want to hang onto for many, many, many years! I had already decided it would have to be brown leather, the questions over the past few months have been ... what style? messenger, tote, hobo. Should it be more of a work bag or an actual purse? How big or small did it really need to be? Did I want handles or a strap? What sort of bag would be my style for more than a short season? After much searching I have found this perfect bag! Turns out I am a “hobo” kind of girl. Large enough for work, but still can pass as a purse. Perfect brown leather, sturdy bottom so it doesn’t slouch, two types of handles, and neither compete with each other, plenty of pockets, but not too many that it looks tacky, very little detail on the outside. And to push the point home even further it is named the “Marlow Hobo”. Get out of here! Of course I had to get it! And I couldn’t be happier! I think Howard would see me with this bag and agree that it fits me perfectly!

"splendid" just about sums it up!

There is a new ice cream shop in my ‘hood and I am pretty much in love with every flavor they have. Jenis Splendid Ice Cream opened in June and after tasting what I have so far, I would like to meet this Jeni and shake her hand! This is the best ice cream I have ever had, hands down, and I am not necessarily an ice cream kind of person.

Check out some of these flavors:
Salty Caramel
Goat Cheese and Black Cherries
Pistachio and Honey
Sweet Corn and Black Raspberries
Riesling Poached Pear
Bangkok Peanut
Rockmill Golden Ale and Apricots
Wildberry Lavendar
Tonight I had the Coriander Raspberry paired with the Lemon Yogurt—yum!

Oh, and did I mention they make their own waffle cones in the shop? Come on! Too good!
This place is walking distance from my house, which is probably a good thing because I have a feeling I will need that extra walk to counter balance all of the calories I will gain eating it every week!

Here is a link to an interview with Jeni and a recipe for her Sweet Corn & Black Raspberry Ice Cream. Look for her cookbook too!

This kid was in his pajamas and was so excited to
pick out his ice cream. Adorable!