Have a great weekend!

Did I really just read that there is a chance of snow today?? I thought we'd been over this, weather - it's spring now - act like it! Jeesh. Fine fine, if this is just March's way of finishing up the lion part, and you're about to go out like a lamb, I guess I can deal for one more weekend...


Photo from Mary Ruffle

In the meantime, I'll be opening windows (after the snow, I suppose), enjoying the sunshine if it peeks out for a bit, and having a good weekend. We're going to a friend's 30th birthday fiesta (margarita! ay yi yi!) and then back in time for baseball for B - if it doesn't get rained out, that is. Either way, I'm excited for another weekend and some fun hanging out with friends.

Monday will be here soon; enjoy yourself in the meantime (and hope to see you back here Monday!).

Summer dreaming and kosher puff 'n' stuff

Me, dreaming of summer (and with the heat in our place cranked up to 85 degrees, because in reality it's still butt cold out)

I know I'm completely deluding myself, but I let my thoughts get away from me for a minute. You see, we're already booking a bunch of plans for this summer (populaarrr. [kidding kidding.]) and I let my brain wander to sunny days. Trouble! It's a cruel joke, really, letting myself think of summer when winter is still very much here, but a girl can dream, right?

So in an effort to get back to reality - without being too jarring to my psyche - I tried to think of something that could bridge both summer and cold, cold winter. What, in the twisted mind of me, could that possibly be, you ask?

Marshmallows.

Sounds weird, I know, but think about it: marshmallows = summer camping trips and s'mores, but marshmallows also bring to mind warm cups of hot cocoa after playing in the snow.

See? Not totally crazy.

Last year I discovered these puppies from Trader Joe's (looove it there, by the way), and I was in heaven:

Photo via Flickr

They're cheeap (as almost everything at TJ's is), have a slight hint of vanilla, and best of all, they're lovely little squares, like this:

Photo via Nutritious Junk

...Which means they were perfect s'mores ingredients. We tried them out while camping with friends at the Poconos Blues Festival and they were awesome. Delicious and I couldn't believe how much better they fit the s'more construction. Don't judge me for the fact that I was super excited about that. :)

But sadly, good old Joe wasn't that into them, because TJ's has discontinued them and they don't seem to be carrying marshmallows at all anymore. Boooo.

Luckily, I just came across these Elyon marshmallows on the design blog, The Dieline, and they're pretty cute too:



Elyon designs Yael Miller of Miller Creative, via The Dieline

Even the barcodes for these guys are adorable:

The best part though? They're both fat free and gluten free, plus they're kosher and not made with any animal gelatin (ick).

So come summer (don't think about it, don't think about it!), I'm going to head over to Whole Foods and give these Elyon 'mallows a try; hopefully they'll puff up to the TJ's version (RIP). Maybe I'll even give them a go in some hot cocoa come Wednesday if we get snow again like they're predicting. ;)

Top photo from hunkydory spring 2010 via This is Glamorous.

Back from Philly on a gray day

I'm back from the City of Brotherly Love and happy to be in my pretty little city (Annapolis). I'm feeling good today, but I know not everyone might be since it's pretty gross out this morning. Are you having a rough morning because it's Wednesday and because it's supposed to be gray, rainy and even sleet today? Well, don't feel too bad, I'm sure tomorrow will be better. But just in case you need some consolation, here's a little something for ya:

Card by crackeddesigns on Etsy, via Lovely Happenings

To you I say:

Sorry things are in the crapper.

Ha! (And sorry for the laaame sense of humor.) :)

But really, no, no, things are not in the crapper, despite the weather and it only being Wednesday. It'll be Friday soon enough (woohoo!) and sunny once again. I hope your day is a good one...and if not, I'll be back here in a bit with lots of ridiculous things to distract you either way.

Cheers!

3-1-10

March calendar design by Orange Beautiful

Welcome to March! I can't believe February flew by so fast. It always does. Tons of holidays, my birthday, and boatloads of snow: they all add up to a fast-moving month. But now we're officially into March, the Olympic games are over, and I'm hoping this month gets to the "out like a lamb" part faster than the "in like a lion" part lasts. Happy March, y'all!

Stood up by the snow and movie sequel anticipation

Well, the big 3-day snow never materialized (despite 50mph winds, I've yet to see a single flake of snow), so I'm left feeling a little stood up. Good thing Val broke some big news this morning to cheer me up a bit. Yup, that's right: Zoolander. Sequel.

What really, really, ridiculously good news - makes me want to go get an orange mocha frappuccino! (If you're not getting any of these references from the first movie, just skip this post now...)

So what has Derek Zoolander been up to for the past 10 years? Perhaps this?:

Image from MTV's Photoshoppers

And in case you need some cheering up too, here's a little something to leave you on a good note (or a ridiculous one). It's yours truly doing Derek Zoolander's signature pose, the "Blue Steel." Since we couldn't have a breakdance fight right here on sea*life*style, let's have a Blue-Steel-off. Ready, set, go:


I think mine needs some work... (and I need some self-tanner immediately!)

Just kidding about missing tights...

Photo found on Pretty Pieces blog

Bleck. I just heard we're supposed to be getting more snow - starting as a mix this afternoon and going through Saturday night. Spring? Bare legs? What was I talking about?? Guess I'll have my tights a bit longer...

Rain, rain, go away

Hand-painted watercolor card by Anna Fraser, as seen on design is mine.

It rained all day yesterday and it's still raining this morning. It seemed kind of dreamy and relaxing as we went to sleep with the soft sound of it last night but I doubt it will seem as sweet when I have to head out of the house this morning and into it. Wish I could stay in bed today. Ah well, I guess this rain is better than another monster snow storm, right?

Is it raining where you are?

Thanks! (And butterflies abound / thinking of spring)

Thank you all for the birthday wishes via text, email, e-card and phone calls yesterday (my cell was buzzing all day long!). I can't wait to see some of you at my surprise party this Saturday. Oops, scratch that; I'm not supposed to know about that. ;)

I had a lovely day yesterday, thanks to my ever-lovely boyfriend B. I hope he reads this, despite the pictures looking "girly" (in which case he usually skims those posts). (It's okay, I understand, boyfriend.) :)

The bouquet above said "happy day" and "thank you" to me for some reason, but I suppose it's also very much a spring thing. With all the snow we've had, spring seems eons away so I'm not allowing myself to even think of it, but here's another spring-y, butterfly-y item to add a little happy eye candy to your day:

Pretty, no?

Bouquet from Martha Stewart Weddings; cake as seen on Style Me Pretty.

And while we're on the subject (I can't believe I'm letting myself think about spring - it'll be ages until we see/feel it!), this photo is just so cheery!:

Photo from Selina Lake via decor8

It makes me want to go out and buy a bright new umbrella for April's showers. (I'm all taken care of on the beautiful blooms front for now - my aunt sent gorgeous flowers for my birthday - woohoo! Thanks, AR!)

How about you? Have you tired of all this snow and started to think of sunny days? Are you ready to stop rocking turtlenecks and boots, and to break out the tanks and flops? I so am.

Have a great (Valentine's Day) weekend!

Photo from Lovely Happenings

TGIF! I know you're all probably excited for this weekend, since it's the start of many fun things: a few days' break from work, the Olympics (go, team USA!), V-Day (whether you're celebrating or not, go out and get yourself something sweet!), Presidents Day (hopefully you're off on Monday for this), my birthday (hint hint), Mardi Gras, and so on. And here in Maryland, we might even be getting...dare I say it?...more snow on Monday. So what's not to love about this weekend?

Do you have anything fun planned for the upcoming holiday weekend? Looking forward to hearing from you, and hopefully seeing you back here Monday!

xoxo for a V-Day weekend, r.

"Chalk" full of fun and my favorite lights

Photo from Kelly McCaleb's tumblr

Everything about this room makes me happy: the light streaming in from all sides, the gorgeous hardwood floors, the clean white chairs against the rustic farmhouse table, the minimalist but just-right decor. Beyond all that, this photo originally caught my eye because of the great chalkboard wall: I've seen chalkboard paint done a lot of ways, but for some reason this wall seems the nicest of them all (and that lil' munchkin drawing on it only adds to the cuteness factor!). But most of all, I love the pendant lamps hanging in both rooms shown in this photo. Clean, crisp, and classic, they fit in so perfectly in this space. I'm not complaining about the hugely high ceilings we have in our house, but if they weren't so soaring (and we weren't renting), I'd definitely want to put in a pendant shade like these.

(Note to you, my peeps: Sorry for all the house posts lately - I think being homebound for so long due to all this snow has left me with interiors on the brain! I'll do my best to keep things varied around here though...)

Tastes like summer: Magic Juice

In an effort to trick myself into thinking we're not still in the dead of winter (with likely at least another two months to go), I've been salivating over fresh fruit, light layers and delicious drinks.

Yesterday was another snow day here, so B and I made smoothies for brunch (from frozen fruit chunks, since you'd be hard-pressed to find fresh mango around here right now), but I'm drooling over this drink recipe posted on Design*Sponge last week:

Doesn't it look delicious? (If not totally out of season...)

Created by wardrobe stylist Talitha and shared with us by Tec and Chelsea Petaja (he, an amazing photographer; she, an artist and educator), "Magic Juice" looks light, refreshing and perfect for a summer day....or just for pretending it's summer.

Here's the run-down on how to make it:

Ingredients (makes two drinks):
6 hulled strawberries
1 peeled orange
5-7 mint leaves
1/4 peeled cucumber
4-6 oz gin, depending on taste
8 oz fresh lemonade

Methodology:
Dice, then muddle fruits and mint
Pour gin into fruit mixture and let sit for 10-15 minutes
Strain over lemonade and ice
Garnish with fruit slice or mint leaf

I might crank up the heat in our house, put on some shorts (and perhaps some self-tanner - don't want to blind myself with those pale, pale legs), kick back with one of these bevs, and pretend like there's not actually still 39" of snow on the ground.

A sky full of colorful umbrellas

Installation by Ingo Maurer, photograph by Jesús Manuel Nieto Bobadilla, as found on Oh Brooke

I think I've become used to the bright sunny days we've been having as a result of the light bouncing off all the mounds of snow, because in comparison, today feels kind of gray. Thankfully, I came across this umbrella-laden photo and its cheery colors and composition are really brightening my afternoon.

The best part of this pic is that it's available to download - for free. Aren't the colors pretty? Wouldn't it be great in a kids' room? Or a bathroom? Or entryway? Anywhere, really. It's so fun and ethereal.

You can get it here, at 11x14 size, or you can download an edited version of the image (which is available bigger - and still free!) from Oh Brooke (who framed and matted it for her baby's room).

Print this baby out on your color printer and pop it in an Ikea frame and you have great, cheery art on the cheap. And who doesn't love almost-free art?

Cabin fever? Cabinet re-do.

It sounds like this snow has left people housebound and a little stir crazy. I think we lucked out in that we had power the whole time, plus we were able to drive somewhere every day from Friday through Sunday. In fact, B and I were just saying we had a really fun weekend but didn't feel like we got to spend very much time in our house just vegging! Anyway, in case you're stuck in your house and ready to start tearing down the walls, here's some inspiration for updating your home, or in this case, your kitchen. I am crazy for this project.

This brilliant woman, Anne Turner Carroll, transformed her kitchen from basic (and not bad, just kinda eh) to beautiful. Here are the before photos:


Not too bad.


Shot from the dining room looking in to the kitchen.

The existing cabinets were moved up to the ceiling, and then capped off with thick crown molding. You can see the line (right above the brown paint) of the cabinet bottoms' original placement in this during shot:


Moving the cabinets up got rid of that empty space we all have above our cabinets (which is pretty much useless - or makes for ugly storage - and just seems to collect dust!) and made room for a super-cute display/storage ledge under the closed cabinets.

These after photos are incredible!:

It's amazing how a cheap and easy solution of repainting the existing cabinets white and adding new hardware made such a huge impact. I also love the white subway tiles that were used for a backsplash. This kitchen is so much lighter and brighter overall!


Don't the cabinets look great up higher like that? It's genius that she got to keep her closed storage (good for putting away dishes and items without having to meticulously arrange them), but she still has the shelves below for visual effect.


Here's the side of the kitchen. I really like all the light fixtures shown here.


Brilliant.


I also really love the beadboard-esque ceiling. It's a nice touch of added texture without closing things in, since it carries through the bright white.


Here's the after shot from the dining room. The cut-out to the kitchen was made much larger and arched. It looks like a different house!

I love, love, love this kitchen re-do, and the great idea for repurposing your existing cabinets.

All photos are from Cottage Living, as seen on Sabbe Spot.

Rap from The Great White North

When I think of Canada, hip hop is not one of the first things that springs to mind. In fact, I don't think I could even name one rapper or hip-hop artist out of Canada other than the one-hit wonder Snow (of the incredible 90s reggae-rap hit, "Informer").

Here's a photo to jog your memory:

It's in your head now, right?
"In-forrr-mer, a blah blah blah blah blah blah blaaah, I lickey boom boom dowwwn."
Wow, that was a masterpiece.

Anyway, I was reading the Canadian blog High Street Love the other day and she posted a video from her town of Thunder Bay. I think it's the sampling of ADELE's "Hometown Glory" that really makes this song, but I kinda like it, so I wanted to share. And, as A mentions, the production on this video is incredible:

Not too bad considering it's a white-boy Canadian rapper, right? Kinda catchy... And really good video/editing work, considering it's only semi-pro. Pretty good!

Snowpocalypse 2010

Photo by Dewey Nicks, via Habitually Chic

I'm done posting about the snow after this, I promise (welllll, I might have to take that back in a few days, since we're supposed to be getting more snow on Tuesday/Wednesday), but remember the uber-amber-alert snow warnings we got on Friday? It came. Here in Annapolis, we got 33 inches of the powdery stuff, and in some parts of Maryland it was up to 38 inches. Yikes!

It took us three solid hours of shoveling on Saturday to get B's Outback out of our parking spot. The first 30 minutes of that time might have been slightly wasted since we don't own a shovel (yes, B dug with a camping hoe/mini-shovel contraption and I used a combo of ice scraper, ice sweeper and...stick. Yes, stick). Thank goodness our neighbor took pity on me with my silly stick-shoveling and lent us his shovel. The work was much more productive after that. :) [Stop judging about the stick shoveling! It's not our fault! Every store in town was sold out of both firewood and shovels by Thursday evening! Marylanders are very afraid of snow!]

Anyway, all the hard work was well worth it, because with B's all-wheel drive, we were able to make it safely and fairly easily to a bar on Saturday night to hang out with friends, and head out to another friend's house to watch the Super Bowl yesterday. Too bad when we got home last night, some giant SUV had taken our hard-earned shoveled parking spot! Technically we can have people towed for that (since the spot is reserved for us), but we were feeling charitable (and tired) so we let them stay for the night. But if you are the owner of a green SUV monstrosity parked in a spot that is not your own, somewhere in Annapolis, and you're still there today, watch out - I have a stick-shovel and am not afraid to wield it! (Kidding.)

Did you all get snowed in? Did you have fun? We made snow angels like in the photo and had a blast enjoying the "snowpocalypse" of 2010. Hope you got to enjoy the weather too!

Have a great weekend!

Photo from i can read's tumblr, via Lovely Happenings

Well, the snow finally started around noon, but it's yet to stick. I'm still skeptical. It's definitely picking up though, and practically everywhere is closing early, so I'll leave you now, and with wishes for a fun weekend snowed in. I'm excited for it personally - running out to get snacks, stocking up the bar, making plans with friends to corral at one house or another and get stuck - but I hope you don't get stranded anywhere unsavory. Have fun and enjoy the excuse to stay in!

Hope to see you back here Monday!

xoxo, r.

Brains perform best when they're hydrated

Happy Friday! Uber-extreme blizzard warnings for today aside, I thought I'd try to help get your Friday started off on a good note. Believe me when I say that if you watch this video, it will get make you chortle at least a bit - seriously, trust me on this one.

*Two small disclaimers: 1) If you're afraid of ventriloquist dummies, do not watch this (clowns freak me out, but I'm mostly okay with dummies). 2) There is music with this video, so plug in your headphones or turn down the volume if you're at work. Otherwise, enjoy!



Seriously, this is an oversize marionette dancing to cheesy early 90s music. What is not to love about this ad? And an ad for water, no less. Kudos, ad peeps, kudos.

Found here.

P.S. Skip to 1:06-1:14 in the video if you don't have time to watch the whole thing (come on though - it's only a minute!) but can spare a second or two to see sheer awesomeness.

SNOOOOWW!

Photo from yes and yes

Emergency! Have you heard?!?! It's the snowpocalypse! They're predicting 24" for Maryland over the next few days, starting tomorrow at 10am. We're being advised to "shelter in place" tomorrow. Therefore, RUN - do not walk - to your nearest grocery store and buy the jumbo pack of TP, all the milk you can carry, copious canned goods, and maybe some chips...ASAP!

Can you tell I'm kidding?

I love that people are freaking out about this. Haven't we already gotten snow like 14 times already this winter? I'm pretty sure we'll all make it out alive. I might even go sledding tomorrow. Or have a snowy brunch:

Photo by Emerson of EmersonMade

Okay, just kidding, I won't be dining dans la neige anytime soon - I hate the cold - but I will be enjoying the snow day(s). Tomorrow morning I'm stocking up on firewood and bevs, and hopefully we'll have a nice, relaxing weekend at the homestead - and be able to make it out in time for the Super Bowl on Sunday!

At the very least, hopefully they'll close your workplaces midday and you'll all get to go home early for a slightly extended weekend. Woohoo! Hope you have a good snow day!

Soak in a sub tub on a snowy day

I'm sure you must be entirely sick of hearing me say this by now, but it snowed here last night. Again. I think just the fact that we live in Maryland - not Alaska, not Vermont - keeps me so surprised each time we get dumped with the cold white stuff. This is at least our fifth snow this season!

Anyway, I hope all this frosty precipitation didn't mess up your morning commute. On a chilly day like today, all I can seem to think of is cuddling up in bed, or sitting by a fireplace drinking hot tea, or taking a really warm shower. Wow, that all sounded so old-lady-ish, didn't it?

While this bathtub fits in nicely with the aforementioned winter hibernation tactics, there's nothing elderly about it. In fact, it would be great for kids. I mean, who wouldn't want a porthole in their bathtub?:

The Porthole Bathtub by Water Monopoly, as seen on Beach Bungalow 8

As described on their website: "The porthole bath is an original French double ended bath with two portholes cut into the side. It makes a wonderful piece for children's bathrooms, or it can be used to create a bathroom with a nautical theme. The bath can also be supplied without portholes, and has a variety of different feet available."

But why wouldn't you want fun portholes?

(Oh wait, unless you don't want someone to walk in and get a lovely view of your saddlebags all splayed out. Ew. Why do I think of these things?? Let's keep this tub for the kids only for now, I suppose.)

I think this cute blue tub is the only thing this ideal bathroom is missing.

Snowy Monday morning and Unhappy Hipsters

Morning, y'all! (Wow, can't believe I just used "y'all" so breezily and without thought. I've been in the pseudo-South for too long...)

How was your weekend? I know it's another Monday morn - bleck - but at least this one is sunny and bright, thanks to the most recent dumping of snow in the Northeast (or semi-South, as we are here in MD). Can you believe we had another snow storm here? Mother Nature is really showing us what's up this winter. At least it'll be pretty for another day or two.

So, even though it's Monday, at least we have some things to be happy about. Besides our recent dusting of snow, it's also February now (can you believe it?), which means Valentine's Day, President's Day, my birthday and Annapolis Restaurant Week all in one month - what more could you want? :)

Let's continue to get this Monday morning started off on a fun note, shall we? If you haven't been to Unhappy Hipsters yet, go go go. It's hilarious. It's basically just a tumblr site of random photos, but the clever captions pertaining to our era's angsty hipsters puts it totally over the top into super funny territory.

Side note: Val, this so reminds me of your skinny-jeans-wearing, rocking-a-handkerchief-"for when I ride my bike" donning, messy-haired-by-night, high-paid-oil-exec-by-day boys in Phila! Doesn't it just scream them? And Sam/Jamie, living in Hampden, you should be able to relate. :)

Here's a recent posting:

"Maybe naming him Rimbaud wasn't such a good idea."
(Photo from Dwell, February 2009)

So, laugh at the unhappiness of hipsters here. Go now!