Look to the sea (alternately titled "have a great weekend!")

Photo from Crystin Moritz

Being that I was in NYC until mid-week, this week has really flown! I hope it did for the rest of you; if it didn't, well then, TGIF right?

I am loving the above photo, which made me think of summer travel - like the whale-watching trips we went on to Martha's Vineyard as kids - or perhaps fall, since she's wearing a hoodie and trench. For some reason it also makes me think of Maine. I can't wait for our upcoming trip in August and am counting down the days, so this pic makes me happy.

In the meantime, though, I can't believe we're at the end of July already (!!). I hope that you all have a great weekend and enjoy the last days of July. We're heading up to Philadelphia for a few friends' parties, but will be back for Monday, so see you in August!

Bored to Death (new HBO show)

Qu'est-ce que c'est? A new HBO series with Jason Schwartzman, Zach Galifianakis and Ted Danson? I'm intrigued. Click here to see a preview. Looks like we need to get HBO back before September. (I've been dying about missing Entourage. Anyone know where I can find it online??)

Sea & sky

I want it, I need it, I have to have it. The bedroom itself is a bit muted and mature for me, but I love this photo by Marine Hugonnier:



I don't think seeing it alone does it justice, but I love how it's used in the above room and so simply framed in white. So gorgeous! Room by Steven Gambrel, as seen on Shelter.

gulp.

Photo from yes, please

I'm trying to be a little brave. I've sent a tweet (my first one ever!) to my 13 followers (laughable, I know) and shared the link to this little blog. Two of my best friends have never even seen my experiment in blogging, so we'll see what everyone thinks. Please don't laugh too hard. :)

Honestly, though, I'd love it if any of you wanted to leave a comment, here or on any of my past posts, or if you felt like sharing the blog with anyone you know. And I hope you enjoy yourselves, even a little bit. (Today's page of posts happens to be a bit frothy and silly, but if you go back through some older posts there are some interesting ones scattered throughout...I think.) Thanks for perusing!

Fairytale photos

Both of these beautiful images come from Hanna L. on flickr, but I saw them on The English Muse. They're both whimsical and romantic, and undoubtedly very, very pretty. The second one kind of reminds me of this photo that I posted a few weeks back, although this new one is a bit more brooding in a way. It's still dreamy, though, and I like it on this gray day.

Nice note

Such a sweet note. Sometimes, it's important to hear that, about love and life in general.

Photo found on Le Love.

Cosmic images

All images from NASA

Aren't these astronomy photos, spotted on Unruly Things, absolutely breathtaking? It's easy to forget that we are so small and that there are so many huge, unexplored and amazing things all around us. The first and last ones are my favorites.

Watermelon love

Photo by Jorge L. Gazzano, as seen on Mary Ruffle

Two things I love: fresh fruit and summer. And this photo just screams summer to me. It also makes me think of being a kid, eating the most delicious, juicy (and drippy) watermelon and spitting out the seeds. A happy little pic to brighten your hump day. See you tomorrow!

Bus-bench butt-buster

Clever, but terrifying. An Amsterdam gym called Fitness First (and their ad agency, N=5) came up with these bus benches, which measure the weight of the person sitting on the bench and then display the person's weight on the accompanying bus shelter display. Here's a pic of one:

I think I'd be okay with it, but after a big dinner out on the town, who knows? Perhaps at that point I'd need to be feeling really lazy in order to be willing to sit down on that thing.

Potato peeling trick

Ok, seriously, what? I am so confused by what this video is - Mary Ann from Gilligan's Island shilling Idaho potatoes? Okaaaay. Oh well, strange as it may be, this tip on how to "peel" a potato is AWESOME! Beats futilely scraping at it with a vegetable peeler... Watch here:



Can't wait to try this! I hope I can do it as easily. Very cool!

Grammanimal

Further evidence that I am a giant grammar nerd (or "grammanimal," as my friend Covi calls it)... Here are two recent examples of grammar and writing/editing that amused me:

The first is an example of the phenomenon called Contrastive Stress. This sentence has seven different meanings, depending on the stressed word:

1. I didn’t say she stole my money — someone else said it.
2. I didn’t say she stole my money — I didn’t say it.
3. I didn’t say she stole my money — I only implied it.
4. I didn’t say she stole my money — I said someone did, not necessarily her.
5. I didn’t say she stole my money — I considered it borrowed, even though she didn’t ask.
6. I didn’t say she stole my money — only that she stole money.
7. I didn’t say she stole my money — she stole stuff which cost me money to replace.

(Originally seen on A Cup of Jo)

2. The second - which I swear is not meant to be a political rant of any type (though I have my thoughts) - comes from Vanity Fair's literary editor and editors from the research and copy departments. I love how colorful the transcription became after their review:



You can go to the Vanity Fair site to see the edits in detail.

Perhaps this outcrop of "word nerd" entries is due in part to the fact that I listened to several podcasts on the way home from NYC, including several quickies from Grammar Girl. Please bear with me as I remove my tape-mended spectacles and pocket protector. (Kidding.)

Summer-sweet cherries

I bought the most lovely Rainier cherries at the market today. I didn't even know I liked cherries until last night! One of B's teammates from his new 25+ fastpitch baseball league (go Pirates!) brought a bag of these cherries to the game last night and we snacked on them in the stands. They were so incredibly delicious and better than normal cherries, they told me. I promptly went out and bought some today and can't wait to snack on them a little later tonight... Mmm.

Photo from feaverish via Mary Ruffle

Back.

I'm back from my New York adventure and happy to be home. We had a great weekend, skipping all over the city, eating, eating and more eating, plus throwing a fabulous rooftop party, but it's nice to be back home again. My bed never felt so comfortable (even though poor B is coming down with a bit of a cold).

Anyway, sorry I've been a bit slow in getting back with the posts, but I promise I'll have a bunch more tomorrow and throughout the week. Hope you all had a good weekend and hope the week is going well so far!

Wedding dances

Surprise! I scheduled this one before I left as a quick bit for you all. Hope you enjoy! I'll be back tomorrow or Wednesday...

I know everyone's seen the recent trend of funny first wedding dances, but I recently saw this video on A Cup of Jo and knew I had to share. I laughed for a solid five minutes. It's not the first dance at the reception, it's the entrance at the church. How funny would it be if you were sitting in the pews at this wedding, waiting for a traditional entrance and you got this? Check it out:



And in case you forgot the first wedding dance video that started this all off, here's the original (I think) that spurred all the others funny wedding dances (and it's still my fave - plus you gotta love the bride's J. Crew dress too):



So funny! Sarah, I know your wedding is in two months, but any chance you want to plan an entrance or first dance like these? :)

See you next week!

Wanted to add in one more image before I head out for the weekend...
Doesn't she look like a gorgeous mermaid / siren on the rocks? Photo by Emma Tempest.

Have a wonderful weekend and see you next week! xoxo -r.

Have a great weekend! (and city neighborhood posters)

This image is a two-fer: 1) because it pertains to this post about my trip this weekend and 2) because I wanted to post about it anyway since I am head-over-heels in love with these Ork Posters. To the brilliant Jenny Beorkrem of Ork Posters: Please make one for Annapolis or Cape Cod and I will snap them up so fast! Pretty please? (I am probably buying several anyway - starting with the Philly one for B - but I'd really prefer Annapolis or Cape Cod for myself!)

So, back to the point of this post: I am checking out a bit early this week and won't be back until late Tuesday. I know, I know, I've been a bit remiss in end-of-week and early-week postings, but what can I say? I am unemployed and enjoying summer. :) I am actually super-siked to be heading out of town bright and early Friday and heading to Brooklyn to see my bestie from college, whom I never see anymore because she is a brilliant and busy big-city girl now. I will be staying at her brand spankin' new, very own apartment and attending her rooftop soiree on Saturday night. Then we'll be running all over the city and pretending to be 22 again. It will be great.

With that being said, I'll be back mid-week with plenty of new posts and hopefully some pictures from NYC (or maybe some more hipster/yuppie pics from her hood in Brooklyn). In the meantime, hope you have a great rest of the week, a fabulous weekend and a bright Monday!

Candy-coated cake

Sorry this photo isn't very good - I took it with my iPhone in Barnes & Noble two minutes before they were closing, so it's not my best photographic work ever. Nonetheless, how cute is this cake? It's from the August 2009 issue of InStyle magazine section. I think this would be such a great idea for a fake-it recipe: take a store-bought cake (or if you're feeling ambitious, a box-mix recipe), add a tub of store-bought frosting, then put on these candies and your cake looks a million times more chic. Who am I kidding, I would just buy an already frosted cake from the grocery store and then slap on the candies. Much easier, same effect. Too cute! Also, I love that you can customize the candy (and hence the colors) to your event. So easy for any occasion, though perfectly adorable for a baby or bridal shower, birthday party or a last-minute dinner.

Feathery frock

I know I said I was freaked out by the dog fur skirt that Jenna Lyons rocked in the August 2009 Town & Country magazine, but on the flip side, I love, love, love this feathery skirt that Milla Jovovich is wearing in the above photo (as seen on {this is glamorous}). So pretty.

Photo love

"It rained outside, so we camped inside" Chanters House, Devon, England, 2002 by Tim Walker

These pictures have me mesmerized. I've been champing at the bit to post these since the minute I saw them. The colors in that first photo are so gorgeously vibrant (especially against the sedately brown library) and the others are so fabulously whimsical. But overall, as fanciful as some of them may be, they all have a stunning classic and elegant quality about them.

So, without further ado, here are some of my favorite Tim Walker photos for you to peruse:






And remember this ad for Miss Dior Cherie?:



C'est tres magnifique!

Quarterlife crisis explained

Photo by Asaf Einy

Ho-ley moley, this article is so spot-on for a lot of the people I know who are around my age. I'd like to think I'm not totally in this place, but I am picking up what they're putting down with this quote from the article:

"They can’t make any decisions, because they don’t know what they want, and they don’t know what they want because they don’t know who they are, and they don’t know who they are because they’re allowed to be anyone they want."

(Damn you, Sesame Street, Mr. Rogers and Reading Rainbow! [Just kidding...])

Anyway, I'm feeling ya, Eye Weekly. So, not to sound like a birth-control ad, but if you're between 18 and 35, I'd definitely recommend checking out the rest of the article here. (At least peruse it. You can get back to your obsessive Facebook checking later.) :)

Starry mirror

Photo by Eric Roth

Is there anything to say about this mirror other than gorgeous? It must have taken a zillion starfish to make and immeasurable patience. It's sort of in the same vein as the mirror from this post (look on the right-hand wall), but so much more pristine and so, so fresh. And all those white starfish against that sky-blue wall makes me happy. Nothing like a good dose of blue and white with a beachy vibe to flank any entryway. What a happy sight to come home to!

CG Textures

If you're not an aspiring video game designer, I'm not exactly sure what you'd use the CG Textures website for, but it's still pretty cool to look at. I even had fun browsing through the "showcase" section to see how some of the "3-D artists" (I didn't know that's what they were called) had used these textures in their own creations. All of the textures on the site are free and come in varying sizes from small to really quite large. The textures are really there for professional designers to use, but I could possibly see using these images myself for various projects (invites, party decorations, etc.) or even printing on their own for some visual impact. Thanks for sending me this link, Mr. S!

Olympus stop-motion

Wowwww.



I can't even imagine how many photos this must have taken to create. Very cool (and I like the cheery song too). I was kind of surprised to see that this stop-motion short was about a camera's 50th anniversary and not a person or couple's anniversary. Oh well, still equally cool.

Fall-ing for J. Crew (again)

I know I just posted about Jenna Lyons from J. Crew, plus said I wasn't ready for fall clothes yet (it's been muggy and hot here all week), but then I saw this:


From the J. Crew fall preview, via simplesong

I think that very well may be the perfect blazer (loving the plaid lining showing at the slim, rolled up cuffs) and the fluttery top works perfectly against the more masculine quality of the coat. Also, where can I find a sweet pink typewriter like that? I am still enjoying my tanks and summer dresses in this heat, but maybe I am ready for a bit of fall after all (as long as it looks like this!).

Best wedding photo booth ever

I know I previously rambled about my need for a photo booth at my own (hypothetical) wedding, but when I saw the below photos I nearly died. I think I would even be willing to give up my obsession with old-fashioned photo booths for an awesome set-up like this. It's so fab! Check out a few of the photos:



This amazingness (yes, I know that's not a word, but in this case, it fits) occurs when you put together the brilliant minds of an amazing event planner, a world-class photographer, and a bride who also happens to be a wedding video genius by trade.



Sasha Souza (the fabulous event planner mentioned above) covered wood with wallpaper, hung frames over the cut outs (which I assume were created before the wallpaper was hung), then the bride added family wedding photos to the smaller frames around the cut outs. How cool? I also love the idea of customizing the wall to match your wedding's design scheme - how great would it be to use wallpaper that incorporated all your colors and fabrics or design details? Heaven on wood.



Check out the photographer's blog for a few more photos and continue swooning as I did. So completely cool! (The baby in this last pic is so cute.)

Secret drive-in movies

How rad does this Guerilla Drive-In sound? It seems like such a fun summer evening jaunt. Although, I don't know exactly how big West Chester (PA) is, but finding the MacGuffin (a radio transmitter which gives you an access code, which you need to get on the members' list, which you need to be on to find out the secret location of the movie) seems kind of difficult. And yet I love the whole "secret club" scheme of it. I mean, who wouldn't want to see Caddyshack on a golf course after hours?? Check out the website for more info - so fun! Should I start one in Annapolis? How about Captain Ron at a marina for our first event? (Ha.)

Vintage surf's up

Photo from Tim Clark Interiors, a design firm in Santa Monica

Someday I will have a vintage Woody (in blue and wood, please!) to put my surfboards atop. With my scooter, my Woody, my surfboards and B's kayaks, we will have the perfect fleet. A girl can dream, right?...

Spam art

Art Director/Designer Elliott Burford is a creative dude. Just check out his website and you'll see all kinds of crazy stuff. I loved, in particular, his witty illustrations of spam (some shown above and more on his site). Take that, slimy email spammers! Now I'm going to think of these funny illustrations every time I clear out my email junk box.

Beachy and bright

This photo series is so summery. For me, it instantly sends me back to the beach: the sounds (crashing waves, seagulls, kids playing), its smells (sunscreen, hot dogs, fried clams, salty sea air) and the visuals too (bathing suits, the surf and all things sunny and bright). What a happy little trip. Photos from Morgane on Lookbook, via Oh Joy!

Have a great weekend!

Photo by JP Greenwood

This is our first weekend in town in ages, so we're going to try to enjoy it to the fullest while the summer's still here (can you believe it's end of July already??). We have dear friends coming in to town (one of whom is from South Africa and has never seen Annapolis), plus family visiting for a day. We're also going to try to fit in some boating and - bleck - finishing cleaning all the gear from our recent camping/kayaking trip. And, of course, I want to take the scooter out and enjoy it while the weather is warm. Whatever you have in store this weekend, hope it's great and see you Monday!

Lyons (and tigers) and dog skirts?

I feel like I've been posting too many home-centric things lately, so I wanted to put up something more fashion focused. I started looking around for some inspiration, but kept seeing either a lot of the same old, same old or sweaters and fall stuff - and with it being 90 degrees out, who can think about anything other than tanks, shorts or dresses (which I have been living in all summer)?

Anyway, I did notice that there are a slew of articles about Jenna Lyons (J. Crew's Creative Director) out there recently:


The first photo of her is pretty expected, but what the heck is going on in this second one (from the August 2009 Town & Country magazine)? I'll be completely honest: if Gwyneth were wearing this, I'd probably think it was the most amazing outfit ever. And I do think Jenna is working it. That blazer is to die for. But nonetheless, what is that skirt made out of?? It looks like a brown shag bathmat rolled up, or the beloved-but-deceased family pet reused for a leg cover. Jennaaaa, come on. Millions of women want to be you and are emulating your every move. Why not throw on an actual J. Crew skirt, which I'm sure you have scads of (and get for free)?