Look up! In the sky! It's...100,000 paper airplanes.

This video is so very lovely.

Rob Bliss, a Michigan artist, created an entry for ArtPrize (an art contest with a top prize of $250k) called "100,000 Paper Airplanes and Melodies Over Monroe" in which he spent months folding over 100,000 paper airplanes. Over 20,000 people gathered in downtown Grand Rapids this past September for the event, where they played the main melody of Sigur Rós' "Olsen Olsen" and watched the thousands of planes being launched from the rooftops.

Note: if you have PMS, don't watch this video - you may cry for no reason. Just sayin'...

As seen on Soolip.

This weekend (alternately titled "it's always sunny [crazy] in Philadelphia")

Happy 30th birthday, Shelby!

Dear Holg:
I'm not sure who you are, or how we got your balloon, but thanks for lending it to us for the evening. Everyone at Jim's Steaks (including the guy who had to climb up on the counter drunkenly to retrieve it from the ceiling) really liked the colorful whimsy it added to our trek.
Yours in boisterous Philadelphian celebration,
Rachel

And to Val, who took us in at 2:30am, thanks, glad your bed doesn't smell like cheese steak, and oh my gosh, I still can't believe we saw a runaway horse and carriage the next day.

Whew. I'm still tired from this weekend.

Have a great weekend!

Photo by Rodney Smith

Hey everyone. Happy Friday and hope your Fri. the 13th is smooth sailing so far. What are you all up to this weekend? We're heading out of town tonight to attend a 30th birthday party, hang out with B's family and see a friend's new baby. We'll be laden with presents and cards galore (and it's not even the holidays yet...despite what the stores are telling us!).

I hope everyone has a great one and see you back here Monday!

Green art with TP rolls

We diligently recycle, but it's not as often that we get to reuse. Here's an adorable idea for reusing those cardboard toilet paper rolls that you're endlessly going through.

Tali from Growing Up Creative came up with this simple but beautiful idea for turning TP rolls into wall art. Here they're mounted on the wall in a kids' playroom (sitting on nails in the wall, so that you get great shadows from off the rolls), but I'm thinking these could also be painted and used as holiday garlands, as table centerpieces or as gift garnishes. So what do you think? Literally trashy or upcycling cool?

Full step-by-step instructions can be found on Growing Up Creative or Design*Sponge.

Apostrophe-a-go-go

Photo from Flickr - evidently this place is owned by a guy named Cocktail and his friend Eat.

Grammar nerds rejoice: I've just discovered a site with a lovely flow-chart explaining the proper usage of apostrophes. It makes me happy. I can't tell you how many improperly used apostrophes I've seen. For example, why don't people understand that "its" is a possessive pronoun and "it's" is a contraction of "it is"? - they're different things!



Check out the full site for further enlightenment on the usage of apostrophes.

I'm getting off my horse now...

Thank goodness it's...Friday the 13th?

Photo from Flickr

Initially I was a bit freaked out that today is Friday the 13th, but why not turn that idea on its head and be happy about it instead? I mean, no need to be all superstitious about something that may or may not be completely bunk. Then again, I am kinda freaked out about getting bad luck (we don't need any more of that around these parts), so I don't want to jinx myself. Here's hoping that everyone has a good day and nothing unlucky happens!

GapKids and Stella-ella-ella

Did you know Stella McCartney has a line for GapKids? An uber-designer doing mainstream, mid-market kids' clothes? I guess it was bound to happen...I mean, Target basically pioneered that movement with their designers' series, so why not hit the kids market too (and also take a shot at Crew Cuts from J. Crew while they're at it)?

I have to say, I really wanted to hate the line. It seems really overindulgent to offer $78 cashmere sweaters to kids who probably don't care and will likely drip ketchup on said sweater post haste. But, before I could get too judge-y, I realized I actually like the stuff!

With that being said, here are some pics of the collection for your perusal:


The cute animals help, of course.


Love the boots.


People - grown women - are clamoring over this jacket and wondering if they can fit it. It's been sold out for weeks. Stella, I'd say you're doing okay.

And my fave look (because how could you not love a frothy tutu?):


Pretty good, Stella. Daddy Paul will be proud. To see more photos and shop the collection, go here.

Empire State of Mind

This video is rad. I've loved Jay-Z since I first heard "Big Pimpin'" and Alicia Keys is pretty awesome. Be forewarned, this song is infectious and gets stuck in your head for days.



Side note: why is Alicia Keys playing piano standing up?

Also, don't think that me liking this song/video means I hate the Yankees any less. :)

Google Wave

So I kept hearing about Google Wave, but wasn't really sure what it was, and didn't think myself a big enough tech nerd to feel the need to check it out. But then I came across this amusing (and informative!) video about it on Swiss Miss, and now I think I might give it a try - if Google gives me an invitation or once it's out of beta.

Take a look at the video; I think you might be interested too (at least I know my tech-obsessed boyfriend will be):



Makes me proud that Google co-founder Sergey Brin is a MD alum like me. :)

Life's not always a picnic

Good morning, chickadees! I hope your week is going well so far. Breathe deep, as you only have today and tomorrow to get through (and I hope you got a break yesterday for Veteran's Day).

So, this photo and quote are a touch cheesy (and not meant to be a downer at all - the quote actually made me think positively for a moment - hope that's what it does for you too!), but I like the line at the end:

"...life can't be a picnic every day. Because then it's no longer a picnic. It's lunch."

From The Sweeterie.

Clean up your act

Photo by Rodney Smith

Well, after the Veterans Day sentiments and the chicken-wing eating how-tos from earlier today (wow, that sounds super crazy), I need to head out and run some errands. We have to go to a birthday party this weekend, plus we'll be seeing friends who have a new baby, and there is no food in the homestead, so I think I see a Target trip coming on!

And, after my cleaning frenzy earlier this week, a serious replenishment of cleaning products is in order (and Target's got 'em cheap!). I've been thinking about what route to go with my cleaning accoutrement - I know there has been a lot of clamoring out there to switch to homemade products, but I don't see myself mixing up batches of my own cleaning solutions at this point. First of all, we don't have a laundry room, mud room, basement or utility sink in our house, so all this mixology would need to occur in our bathtub. Ick. Also, bleach makes me gag (honestly, the smell makes my throat close up) and I wouldn't even know what to do with baking soda other than stick it in my fridge. But, B and I of course want to do our part to be green, so we always try to at least buy the more organic, "green" products.

I'm a huge lover of the Method products, mostly because I'm a sucker for good packaging and theirs is awesome, but also because they have great business practices and solid stuff. Plus, the sweet water scent they have smells so good and all of their products are very non-chemical-y, so that's a bonus.

Here are a few of my favorites from Method - and no, they are not paying me or giving me free products to endorse their stuff (but if they want to, please feel free!):

I have their soap at every sink in the house. I think bars of soap are gross, so these are the perfect alternative (and cute to boot!).


This foaming soap is really cool. As the Method website says, "[this hand wash is like] those crazy spring break parties where they fill the dance floor with foam and everyone gets freaky." You can't contest with that, right?


This moisturizing hand soap is awesome. It really keeps your hands from getting dry from washing. Our Target doesn't have this almond flower scent but I bet it's good - I love almond-y smell!


These non-toxic dishwasher tablets are just as easy as the more major brands' but I swear our dishes feel and smell cleaner. Is that weird that I can tell what our dishes smell like after they're washed?


I haven't tried these dryer sheets yet, but after reading on the Method site that most dryer sheets are made with animal fat, I will definitely be switching. And yeah yeah, we could skip dryer sheets altogether, but I have a total fear and hatred of static, and dryer sheets really help with that. These Method sheets have no animal by-products, which sounds much more appealing.

So what about you? I have a friend loves Mrs. Meyers' stuff and I like Seventh Generation for laundry detergent. Any other must-have "green" cleaners?

And with that, I'm off to Tar-jay... See you back here tomorrow?

How to eat a chicken wing

This post is dedicated to my friend Sara, who can inhale more chicken wings than any other tiny girl I've ever seen. And is heinously messy doing so.

So are you ready for this video? It could blow your mind and maybe forever change the way you eat chicken wings. Important stuff, right?

And don't skip over this just because it's a video. You know you have time (as if you aren't slacking off at work right now) and trust me, it's worth it. It's just over a minute long and it's pretty incredible (and reminds me slightly of this potato peeling trick, but better, and without any washed-up celebrities).

So, without further ado, here it is:



What do you think? Crazy? Awesome? Crazy awesome?
(Is it just me who finds this mind-blowing??)
Whatever. I like it. Now eat your wings right, people!

Originally seen on Talk Like A Gentleman.

Happy Veterans Day

Painting by Jasper Johns

Both of my grandfathers were in the Army (hysterically, both were honorably discharged with injuries - one fell off a horse and the other took shrapnel in the butt), and I have an un-brother-in-law who is a Navy pilot, so today especially I want to recognize and honor our country's veterans. Thank you not only to our country's past soldiers, but also to the current troops, for all you have done and all you do for our country. Happy Veterans Day everyone.

Nerd fact: I wasn't sure whether to notate the holiday as Veteran's Day, Veterans' Day or Veterans Day. According to Wikipedia, although the Veteran's Day or Veterans' Day spellings are grammatically acceptable, the United States government has declared that Veterans Day (with no apostrophe), rather than the possessive cases, is the official spelling. So there you go, grammanimals. Enjoy. :)

Small apartment, big style (alternately titled "Nate Berkus' sister is a lucky b!t#h")

I know a lucky girl when I see one, and Marni Golden, sister of designer Nate Berkus, is one of then. Nate did over her New York apartment for an issue of Glamour and he totally tricked it out to personalize the place and maximize space in her studio to the utmost.


I love this shot of deep peacock blue on a dresser - a huge pop among all the tan and cream. I also like the idea of draping a necklace around a lamp; it's good storage and good display!


After seeing this pic, I feel like Marni lives in the same building as my bff. I could totally be making that up (I'm pretty sure most of the studio apartments in NYC have a similar feel...as in small as all get-out), but something about the windows and wall layout looks just like Kim's...except the furnishings are obviously much more gussied up (sorry K, but you don't have Nate for a brother!). :)


I lurv the soft pink and white stripes on the wall behind the bed. Pink and gray is so girly but sophisticated. Also, pushing the sofa up against the bed is a great way to save space and separate the "zones." Can you believe she has all this stuff, but still a good amount of free space, in a studio? On a separate note, thank goodness we don't live in a studio. Yikes.


This desk area is great. Check out the necklaces on the lamp again.

By far the best NYC studio I've seen (you know, out of all four I've been in). Here's the full story with more pictures and details/tips from Nate. Enjoy! (And be grateful you live in a place with more than one room...)

Clean sweep

Squeaky clean sink from who else? The Queen of Clean herself, Martha Stewart.

Good morning, lovelies! I can't believe yesterday came and went with only one post! The day flew by so fast because I was literally running around my house alllll day...cleaning. Fun, no? Ick.

After our weekend guests (the number of which unexpectedly grew from two out-of-town friends to 14 in-town friends throughout the day), the place needed some serious work. So, I got down to business and scrubbed, vacuumed, dusted, swept, and so on and so on. My end-of-twenties old body did not enjoy the manual labor.

But, the house is barely worse for the wear (I found chili and cocktail remnants in some very odd places, but luckily was able to get most of it out), and I'm back and ready to get some new posts up. So, thanks for your patience and see you back here soon with fresh stuff!

Nailed it! (Part deux)

Photo from Stockholm Street Style

Hilary Swank was on Oprah last week and had on gray nail polish. Oprah didn't like it. (Gotta love Oprah for telling it like it is.) I must say, though, I was kind of into it!

I already wrote about how I'm liking the matte nail polish trend, and now I'm thinking of trying the matte look in gray. I think the key is to keep the nails really short and cleanly manicured. What do you think of this color for the fall and holiday season? Kinda fresh, right?

I mean, Gwyneth's already rocking it:


And so is LC:


And if it's good enough for Gwyneth (oh why not? And LC too...), then it's good enough for me!

Have a great weekend!

Image from {Bits of Beauty}

Hallo, loves! I hope you're having a good Friday and that you're excited for the weekend. I can't wait for the MRE Tug of War tomorrow - it's my favorite Annapolis event. I mean, what's not to love about an outdoor event that includes: a giant rope that extends from Eastport to Annapolis, an age-old rivalry and several rounds of friendly competition, a chili cook-off, portable beer carts and bar trucks, various local bands, and tons and tons of pups (both people's pets and the SPCA adoption truck) - it's an ideal fall day. It's supposed to be mild and sunny tomorrow, which hopefully means we'll have the perfect conditions for riding the scooter to Second St. and hanging out with friends at this fun event. So if you're around town tomorrow, stop by and say hi (we'll be on the Eastport side of course - there's nothing fun going on on the Annapolis side).

I also want to wish my friend Sarah a happy, happy birthday - we can't wait to celebrate with you and the hubs and everyone else tomorrow night!

And to anyone reading this, have a great weekend and see you Monday!

Paper Source free holiday open house

We have friends staying with us this weekend and it's the MRE Tug of War (more on that to come later) so I can't go to this, but if you're around tomorrow or Sunday and want to do some free holiday crafting, Paper Source is hosting a holiday open house this weekend. Full details for the various demos and take-aways here. If you go, send me pics of what you make!

Glittery gold gams

Photo from The Sartorialist

OMG, these leggings are bonkers, but I kind of love them. Offset by the tough Frye boots and the leather vest, and paired with neutral white and brown, they're almost not as over-the-top. Kinda crazy, but I'm feeling them. What do you think? Heinous or awesome?

SweetAmbs cookies

Oh my gosh, can we talk about how these are cookies?!? Each one is like a small piece of art. I wonder if they taste good too. It appears that SweetAmbs' Etsy shop is temporarily closed while she catches up on orders, but you can check out her blog in the meantime. Awesome wedding or party favors. Yum.