Pancake Brunch

Last summer two of my best girlfriends got engaged.  And I must have done something right because I get to be a bridesmaid in both!  The first wedding is April 2nd and the second will be in June.  This means a double dose of bachelorette party craziness in March!  Since I live in NYC and they are in Atlanta, I've had to miss a handful of showers for them both already which I hate.  But luckily, I'll be able to join for both bachelorette parties and I plan to make up for lost wedding shower time by doing a little something special for them each.  For the first, we'll be heading down to sunny Florida and I'll be hosting a Pancake Brunch the 1st morning in our 3 bedroom penthouse on the beach (!!!!) 

Below I found some good ideas for the decor/set-up from here and here.

Really like the vintage syrup dispensers for different flavors.

Wouldn't a crossword about the bride be fun to have at each guest's seat?

A Beautiful Mess!

Cab at 10:15pm last night.

My street, covered and still coming.

Not a useful railing...

After I took this photo, about half of the snow on this tree fell on my head.  My freshly blowdried head...gorgeous, but what a mess!

From Picture to Paper

My afternoon snack.

What do you think?  Do we like this idea for a new series?

Awesome

Awesome floor.  Awesome stainless steel drawers.  Awesome light fixtures.  Awesome cabinets.

Thank you.

"Trois Gymnopédies"

Good for a Sunday night.

Tonight

I'm going here

With Kate

To have these

Just kidding, I have a feeling there will be less umbrellas at Ciano.

Very excited for cocktails with Kate from Embarassment of Riches, one of the first blogs I started reading!

A Few Trip Pics

I don't know how you other bloggers do it.  I've been back since Tuesday from a four day trip to CA and I'm still exhausted.  I haven't even unpacked yet, much less had time to blog about it.  I give major props to those bloggers who stay at it even while on vacation, hiring guest bloggers to post, uploading trip pictures, and even writing posts before the trip to post while you're away, etc.  I'm definitely never going to be that kind of blogger (at least while maintaining a full-time job.)  Anyway, here are just a few pictures I wanted to share, I took about a million...

Citrus trees everywhere.  At the lovely house where KTW is staying, they have grapefruit,

Meyer lemons, oranges, and limes!  So fresh, so fantastic.

Needs no explanation.

Boat lockers in Sausalito, they go on and on.

As do the lovely sailboats.

The Madrone Art Bar in San Francisco's NoPa neighborhood is covered in constantly changing conceptual art.  Like this deer head with gold painted machine guns for antlers.

More to come...

Renewable Clothing

By Fernando Brizio

*Felt tip pens bleed out over time to create one of a kind, re-wearable dresses. 

Insert pens, wear, wash, repeat cycle.  Fantastic.

Loving: Christian Faur

Christian Faur

Loving: Miss Capricho

Miss Capricho

Sweet Tooth?

I've seen a lot of candy tables at weddings and parties, but how about a whole wall of candy like this one? 

I'm really liking this vertical presentation.

via Style Me Pretty



Headed Out West

In two days, I'll be travelling out to visit KTW in Palo Alto where he's currently working for three months.  I've been so excited for this trip, not only to see him, but also to visit such a beautiful state (and get out of the snow!)  I really fell in love with San Francisco a few years back and hope we'll be able to spend a little time there.  We also have plans to drive down Highway 1 to see Big Sur, Carmel, and Monterey, which I've never seen.  Clearly I'm big on planning so I've been googling restaurants, places to see, etc. but definitely prefer to find places more by word of mouth.  Any tips?  They'd be much appreciated :) 

Here are my ideas so far:

Obviously...

Cannot wait for this!

Entrance to the boutique hotel that we'll stay at for one night in Monterey.

Downtown Palo Alto reminds me of downtown Franklin, TN, looking forward to checking out the shops.

Have been told lunch high on the hills, above the fog at Post Ranch Inn 

makes you feel like you're floating, sounds like a must to me!

Presido Social Club in SF has also been recommended.  Love the interior and menu sounds delish.

And finally, I hope we'll be able to do a little of this...

 and depending on how things go, hopefully not this...

Fingers crossed this Nor'Easter doesn't mess up our fun plans!

My Inspiration Board

For about a year now, I've been ripping pages out of magazines.  Recipes and images of decorating tips, parties I want to recreate, and clothes I'm pining over have all been piling up because I didn't know what to do with them, I just knew I had to keep them.  Finally, I bit the bullet last weekend and bought a cork board and some tacks and went to work.  Why keep them in a box in my closet?  If these are images that I currently have some sort of response to, they need to be up, I need to see them, they need to inspire me.  The main thing I realized once I pulled it all together is how much color inspires me.  Take a look, I love how bright and vibrant this came out.

Getting started...I had to discard a lot and just keep my very favorite images. 

The recipes have been set aside for a "cookbook binder."

These were strategically placed to blend with the colors that were in the pictures.

Final outcome, it hasn't been hung yet so this isn't the best picture but it gives

you an idea of what I'm going for.  My plan is to continue to add and take away as I see fit. 

Hopefully this will keep my studio apartment a very creative one!

Brooklyn Brine

A few weeks ago, my Uncle Todd and his wife Annie (we've agreed Aunt Annie sounds a little funny because we are pretty close in age,) hosted us for a day after Christmas meal. Their new baby, August was awake to entertain and he is the most precious, round, cuddly baby boy in Nashville. Their home was recently featured in a house tour of trendy East Nashville so it was decorated beautifully and was a great place to spend what was supposed to be my last night in Nashville (blizzard...).  One thing about their house I love is they are NOT afraid of color, every room has a personality, and they don't take themselves too seriously.  That's three things actually, I could go on...

A deer head gets a poinsettia lei.

 Both avid music fans, this lime green listening room has a retro feel with today's best sound.

Who doesn't need a tiki cup collection in their house?

 Bad lighting for the picture but the orange and blue still punch in their master bedroom.

 A very retro chair in a very cool fabric.

 A white tree is perfect in their bright pink living room.

Lookin good fam!

Annie and Todd always give the best gifts. In past years, they've given gift certificates to Bliss Spas in NY and this year, they added to my Le Creuset collection! Although my budget is a little more limited, I wanted to get them something special as well. Annie used to live in NY and Todd is a total foodie so I thought these made the perfect present!

Brooklyn Brine Co. creates some truly tasty snacks. I don't like pickles. But I like these pickles. I also bought them the Lavender Asparagus, not too heavy on the lavender, they're just right! I got a text before I got home that night from my uncle: "send more asparagus!"  I think they were a hit, go buy some.