Two Saturdays ago, I spent an “event-filled” day with my friend Sandy during which we visited a trunk show of Susy Pilgrim Waters.  I immediately fell in love with everything there.  The clothing, bags, all items had each been hand printed and it was obvious a lot of TLC went into making them.  Sandy treated me to one of Susy’s cozy wraps which I have been wearing faithfully several days a week ever since.  And, an extra special treat was being able to meet Susy, she is an absolute peach and was so friendly, one of those people who put you at ease and make you feel like you’re an old friend.  Susy is a talented illustrator and her drawings and illustrations are fantastic; I love the layering, colors and textures in her work.  I’ve been a fan for some time, and it was such a treat to get to meet her in person.  Thank you Susy (and Sandy), I love my wrap!

Definitely check out Susy’s website and her blog to see lots of her work!

(*Sandy recently helped build out Susy’s new website, along with our friend Angela who did the design of the site.  Just a little shout out to my peeps!)

{images shown belong to Susy Pilgrim Waters}

It’s become cold and rainy recently, those types of days where you want to stay snuggled up under the covers and have hot cups of  tea all day.  Maditi’s photographs on Flickr fit perfectly with this type of weather.  The contrast and tones match perfectly with the grey, overcast daylight, and I love that these photographs seem to tell you a story.  I want to know who’s the person in the photographs, what’s their relation to the photographer, and where were these photographs taken.  The perfect images to savor and ponder over a steaming cup of tea…

{images shown belong to maditi}

Have you noticed that I haven’t had a recipe post on here in a bit?  I have, and it’s because I’ve been such a lazy cook lately (cereal is just too easy and too yummy to eat when I’m tired).  Thankfully, I found out about Sunday Suppers via one of my favorites, simplesong.  The photos are just so drop-dead gorgeous (seriously, they are divine… look at that saturated color and contrast… swoon!) and the food looks so delicious and creative.  It’s just enough of a kick in the pants to make me realize I’ve got to take advantage of the season and all it’s fresh produce and start creating again.  I also love the concept, offering a cooking-dining experience with local and organic ingredients and making meals together with friends.  I only wish I lived in Brooklyn so I could take advantage of this unique approach to a cooking class!

{images shown belong to Sunday Suppers}

After a few weeks of fiddling with my design, I’ve finally letterpress printed my calling cards.  Based on my ideas from the inspiration collage with texture and color, I went for a two color approach as well as a blind impression run which evokes a lace pattern (but isn’t an actual lace design, which probably would have felt a bit stuffy).  I also worked with Emilie Friday (an amazing calligrapher) and she wrote my name in the most perfect way: being lighthearted and sweet, but still elegant and delicate.  I’m so pleased with the result of her work and highly recommend her, she’s very friendly and great to work with.  I chose to use a bright dark blue, similar to lapis lazuli, and a warm, lavender grey.  I’m excited to start passing these out, I just need a business card container to keep them flat!

{to view more of my letterpress work photos, please visit my Flickr}

Today is a holiday in the States, Memorial Day, which is a day of reflection for all of those who’ve given their time and perhaps even their life for the for our country.  It’s also the “start of summer” and many of us have the day off and celebrate with friends and family at a BBQ, poolside, or the lucky few who have a “summer home” (I know of one lucky couple going up to their family’s cottage in Lake Winnipesaukee – umm, can you adopt me?).  So instead of being able to travel to a watery locale, I’m daydreaming of one instead via pia jane bijkerk and her post about she lives in a houseboat.

The photos of the swans in the water, her gorgeous blue bathroom, and that light and airy bedroom really make the idea of living in a houseboat very attractive.  The fact that she lives in an old cargo boat in an canal that’s existed for centuries in Amsterdam sounds so romantic to me.  And she has ducks and swans as neighbors… who wouldn’t want that!

(*Also, listen to an audio clip she recorded from her houseboat during a summer rainstorm… it’s fantastic.)

{images shown belong to pia jane bijkerk}

Yesterday was an absolutely perfect day, spent picnicking in a park with close friends and a beautiful baby girl.  There were yummy sandwiches, fresh fruit, chips… aah, the chips (I went a little overboard with them).  There were three cameras total, and between all of us (four of us there went to art school together) it was like a non-stop photo shoot.  But the best part of all was just to be able to take some time of our busy schedules and meet in the most tranquil of settings: an amazing sunny day, the perfect amount of cool breeze, the trees finally full of bright, green leaves dappling the sunshine on our heads, and the laughter and chit-chat shared with good friends.  It is so good to be able to take a breather and just relax, to enjoy the very simple things and know that no movie, no gadget, nothing you can put money on could give you the contentment and satisfaction of just being with those you love and care about.  We ended our experience with a run to the best summer spot around, Bubbling Brook.

I hope whatever it is that you plan to do this weekend, you get to spend a relaxing time with family and friends.

{to view more of my outings & experiences photos, please visit my Flickr}

I am not a dog person, I am a cat person, but I am in love with Cate’s Living with Clowns set on Flickr.  The expressions on her dogs’ faces are simply priceless.  I also love the set-up of the shots, the composition and framing.  They have such lovely light, color and texture.  These are wonderful animal images but are also beautifully shot photographs.

{images shown belong to * cate *}

With my husband graduating in June with his MFA and several gallery openings to attend this summer, it was time to make him some new business cards.  The last time he opted for Moo cards, which were fun and playful, featuring some of his work.  However, he said they felt a little like trading cards for his taste, and this time around he wanted something simple, understated, and mature.  He was interested doing a complete blind letterpress (using no ink), but since his contact information was involved we opted to do a hint of color, going with an extremely pale warm grey.  The simplicity of the design also reflects his new website, and the cards pair nicely with his current work.

{to view more of my letterpress work photos, please visit my Flickr}

Check out these colorful and inspiring diptychs from Saint Verde Digest.  They were inspired by 17-18th century European fashion and Yinka Shonibare’s installations.

Chromatic, rich, opulent and intensely vibrant.  Loving the combination of these images today.

{images via Saint Verde Digest}

After receiving The New Terrarium in the mail, I’ve been very excited to make one.  Last weekend, I bought all the needed ingredients: plants, glass jars, rocks, soil, and activated charcoal.  I also found a great online video who gave simple instructions, and I highly recommend it.

First, I added about an inch of gravel/small pebbles to the clean jar.  Then, I added about a 1/2 inch of activated charcoal (*not like the charcoal you grill with; I found mine at Petco in the aquarium section.  It helps keep the moisture balance in check since there’s no drainage).  Then I added my soil, choosing an all natural potting soil mix.  Next, came plants: White Creeping Thyme, Miniature Thyme, Mossy stonecrop (a sedum), Dwarf bugleweed, and October Daphne (also a sedum).  After arranging and planting, I lightly misted all the plants and put the lid on.  Apparently you only need to mist every month or two when things start to get dry, since the terrarium will keep it’s own little ecosystem with the lid on and the existing moisture inside.

Unfortunately, I apparently misted too much and over watered mine, which is the number one cause of terrariums failing.  I also noticed inside I had feathery-thin and web-like strands on some of my plants, and I’m not sure if this was some sort of growth or perhaps from a little friend who snuck inside when I was planting.  In any case, a week later a few of my plants look very weak so I’ve decided to remake my terrarium with different plants.  Hopefully I can save these little ones and put them outside in the garden.

Does anyone have any advice as to this strange thin growth inside?  Also, has anyone else used sedums with much luck in a terrarium?

{to view more of my in the garden photos, please visit my Flickr}