hiking in stilettos

Saturday, December 27

Letter Writing

Between writing letters, sending thank-you notes and Christmas cards, and creating New Year's invitations, I have had stationary on the brain. I also made a resolution to write letters more frequently since my Christmas epistles gained such a positive reaction. Thus, I have been tooling around to find some unique, artful stationary. Here are a few of my favorites.

Pine cone and Alphabet from Set Editions. Although not typically my style, I am drawn the elegant minimalism of the stationary from Set Editions.

Owl and Merci from Hammerpress
Not only do I adore Brady Vest's designs, the cards are environmentally sound. He also makes really great, unconventional wedding invitations....

Spring Trees, Quality Vintage, Artichoke, Flowering Trees from YeeHaw Industries. There are so many wonderful designs from YeeHaw, not to mention that their work is printed on post-consumer recycled paper!

Portrait, Famous Bicycle, and Rainy Day from Letterpress Delicacies. I love the fun, vintage-inspired designs printed on recycled paper. The critters are so cute, and the bicycle is reminiscent of France (two things that I absolutely adore)!

Thursday, December 25

Happy Christmas to All

Today is a day to be mindful of the many blessings in our lives. Wishing you all a wonderful day filled with love and warmth.

image credit

Wednesday, December 24

Casual Christmas

With nieces and nephews in the house, Christmas Eve typically involves sitting on the floor opening and putting together toys, playing with said toys, and running around the kitchen helping my mom prepare dinner. Thus, my holiday attire must be conducive to these types activities. (Pretty party dresses must be reserved for other occasions such as New Years... more about that later.) Here is a peek at what I wore for Christmas Eve with the family.

cardigans and heels, Target; cami, Ann Taylor Loft; jeans, Paige Denim; necklaces, Anthropologie; nail color, A Ruby for Rudolph by OPI

closer image of my new alphabet necklaces! see here.

ABC's

I absolutely adore monograms when it comes to accessories and housewares (purses and clothing aside), so when I saw these necklaces in the Anthropologie catalog, I was in heaven. My friend Erin bought me the "A" for Christmas, and I ordered the other letters online since the store had sold out. The layering of the pieces can be a bit tricky as a couple of them are the same length, so if you want more than one, you may have to choose the same ones as I did. Also, if you are not interested in having your initials around your neck, choose letters that are meaningful to you... your mother's first name, the name of a spouse or significant other, children's names.

In addition to the necklaces, I also received a monogram soap dish and a wooden cutting board from two of my favorite people. I love that the cutting board comes with its own silver spreader! It will look wonderful in my kitchen hutch beside the great lettered mugs and dessert plates I found at Anthro on clearance!

mug and plate images courtesy of Anthropologie.com

Tuesday, December 16

Movies and Internet Connections

I apologize for the slight lack of posts lately. Unfortunately, as I have relocated for the holidays, my internet access has been slightly limited (not to mention my time). However, I anticipate a few good posts in the near future, so you will not be disappointed, lovely readers.

Onto another favorite holiday frivolity, movies. This season is so wonderful because I actually have time away from medical books and science texts to turn my attentions to fiction and gushiness. Here are some of my personal holiday-themed picks.

Love Actually (I love love.)

A Charlie Brown Christmas (This one has a great soundtrack, too!)

Rudolph and The Island of Misfit Toys

Elf

Miracle on 34th Street (Classic)

The Holiday

So, here's to cuddling up with a warm blanket and hot cocoa to enjoy some Christmas cheer!

images courtesy of IMDb

Wednesday, December 10

Tag!

My lovely friend Jessie of The Lucky Stone, tagged me with an about you the other day. Let me just say that although we have never met in "real" life, I am absolutely certain that if we lived in the same city, Jessie and I would be great friends. Perhaps some day! Check out her blog and The Lucky Stone Vintage Etsy site for some really great things!

Now, onto the business of the tag...

10 years ago... I had recently turned 16 and was a sophomore in high school. I thought I was really something special because I could drive to school while most other sophomores were still 15. I worked at a local restaurant as a hostess, and my sister worked there as well as a waitress, so work was always a lot of fun. My brother got married a month after I turned sixteen, and I remember feeling so important to be sitting next to him at the rehearsal dinner.

8 years ago... I was a senior in high school and had already decided upon Agnes Scott College for the next year. I applied early decision because I knew that ASC would be a great place for me to continue my education. My aunt went there for her undergrad, and it made my mom really happy for me to follow in those shoes. I also found and lost my first real love during my eighteenth year, and he is still a good friend of mine today. When I left for college in the fall, I met my very best friend and college roommate, Erin.

BFF Erin and I in our old apartment

6 years ago... My sophomore year in college, I was living with Erin in an apartment in Atlanta. I worked at Anthropologie and spent my days studying and discovering new music. It was during the years in our apartment that I really developed my love of music of all types. I also became involved with the dance program at Agnes Scott during this year, and the women that I met there will have a place in my heart forever. Times spent in the studio and onstage were some of my greatest college memories.

The 2005-2006 Studio Dance Theatre Company

2 years ago... I was 24 and working full-time at CVS in Atlanta while I applied to pharmacy school. I wanted desperately to get into UGA and had only applied there, so it took me twice to get in. Still, everything happens for a reason because during those two years, my relationship with K developed into the love that we have now. We'd been dating only a few months then, but part of me already knew that he was the one for me. He worked overnight and every other weekend, and I worked 8-4 with weekends off, so I would get up super early on Saturdays and make him breakfast. He would come over right after work around 6:30 am to pancakes with blueberry syrup, bacon, eggs, and decaf coffee. I'm still certain to this day that my culinary capabilities had something to do with him falling in love with me. :)

K and I on our first trip together skiing in NC February 2007

5 yummy things:

My mom's homemade sourdough bread

Fresh, homemade salsa

Pizza with artichokes, spinach, and black olives

Fruit tart with whip cream

Cheese, especially brie, gorgonzola, feta, and sharp cheddar (I had to agree on this one Jessie!)

5 places I would like to escape to:

Jackson Hole, Wyoming

Tuscany, Italy

Anywhere in Greece

Squaw Valley, California

Nice, France

5 things I would never wear:

Platform sneakers

Pajamas in public (especially house shoes!)

A purse with a picture of my cat on it

Jeans with extensive holes under the back pockets

Holiday socks

5 favorite tv shows:

Gossip Girl

The Office

What Not to Wear

Project Runway

Privileged

5 things I enjoy doing:

Yoga/Pilates/Dance

Just about anything outside: running, camping, hiking, biking

Read (Mostly fiction. I get so bogged down by everything medicine-related that I love to escape into a good book.)

Decorate and redesign rooms

Cook and bake

5 favorite toys:

My kitten Cooper

iBook (and hopefully iPhone soon too!!)

Nintendo DS that I got for free! (Read about it here.)

My little Mini Cooper

My closet. I love to spend some down time putting outfits together!

5 people that I am tagging!

Under the Tree...

I took a break from studying on Monday to do a bit of gift wrapping. Part of the reason that I love Christmas is giving gifts to the people that I love. Each year I try to do something a bit different with my wrapping without going too overboard. I just can't see spending a ton of money on paper, but I definitely want the gifts reflect the effort put into them. Also, I often try to use recycled papers or natural embellishments such as pine cones, cranberries, or pieces of old jewelry.

I have a total of four nieces and nephews, and I absolutely love watching them open their gifts! This year I chose a bright, vintage-inspired set of wrapping paper for their presents. I fashioned a bow out of crumpled strips of the same or coordinating paper, and I am quite pleased with the result. I have found that although they may appreciate the pretty packaging, children tend to enjoy ripping it open a bit more, so I like to keep their packages slightly simpler.

I love the paisley print the most! The snowflakes were picked out by my nephews, and the other pink paper by my niece.

I love the use of vintage linens in these two images from Martha Stewart. Napkins and tea towels work wonderfully for wrapping, especially when giving kitchen or home-oriented gifts. They are also really adorable for wrapping edible homemade goodies or wine bottles.

This is probably one of my top few favorites when it comes to wrapping. I used this idea last year, and it got great reviews! Instead of just using newspaper for your wrapping, find newspapers written in a foreign language, and then tie a coordinating bow around the middle. I used a french newspaper and solid color ribbons, and I loved the outcome. Martha Stewart suggests Japanese newsprint and a corresponding floral print ribbon, which looks great.

This is the paper that I will be using for my adult gifts this year. I love the simple elegance of the black and white and the use of cameos as embellishments. (I adore cameos in any setting.) I think I may also recycle some silver, sparkly broaches and charms to use as gift toppers as well. The wonderful thing about this paper? You can print it directly from the Martha Stewart website! Talk about convenience.

Tuesday, December 9

Holiday Baking

Baking with my mom and sister is one of my favorite holiday traditions. We usually begin around Thanksgiving and continue throughout December. Since I am in Athens this year we haven't been able to completely fulfill the tradition, but starting next week, the fun will begin again! Here's a peek at a couple goodies that we made for Thanksgiving.

I used a heart-shaped cookie cutter and a knife to make leaves for the top of the pie.

After finishing the weaving and leaves, brush over the pie with an egg wash to ensure a crisp, golden finish!

We used the boxed pie crust mix to make things a bit easier (making crust from scratch can be a bit dodgy!) and found a can of cranberry-apple filling in the seasonal section at a local market. To make the weave top of the pie, simply roll out your second crust and it into strips. If you don't have a roller, you can use a tall glass like we did! Then weave the strips in one by one until the pie is covered.

The finished product: Cranberry-Apple Pie. Yum!

Next we made pumpkin bars with homemade cream cheese icing. The icing was super easy to make and tasted delicious. These were definitely a hit at Thanksgiving dinner, especially in the bite size bars that we cut them into. The longest part of this treat is the baking time, but everything else is pretty simple.

We also made some whip cream for our coffee. Homemade whip cream is one of my favorite things to make, and it is so easy! Just add 8 oz of whipping cream, 1/4 cup sugar, and a capful of vanilla extract and beat. It makes a great addition to a piece of pie, a cup of coffee, or even ice cream!

Monday, December 8

The Fashionista's Guide to the Great Outdoors: Vol. III: Skiing

It is that time of year again when snow flurries begin to fall and ski slopes begin their seasons. It's around this time of December that I long to live in places like Breckenridge, Vail or Lake Tahoe. Not only would some snow make the season more festive, the skiing in those cities is phenomenal. Although West Virginia does have its perks for those of us living in the southeast, there's just no comparison to the mountains of the west.

Like most of you, I simply cannot peruse through ski towns or carve down the slopes looking drab and dull. Among my favorite places to find ski apparel that fits my style are Urban Outfitters and Target for base layers and hoodies and Anthropologie for great scarves, hats, and non-ski gloves. You can also find some fun things at REI, especially warm socks, toboggans, ear warmers, etc.

Every layer is important when dealing with such frigid temperatures, but those layers can also be fun to wear. As I have mentioned before, your base layer is vital, so choose something along the lines of Under Armor. As long as you have something that will absorb water without letting heat out, you'll be golden. When it comes to skiing, I would definitely add long underwear beneath your ski pants and a layer of waterproof socks. If you are cold-natured like yours truly, I would suggest a layer of tights, then long underwear, then ski pants.

If you want something more fun and colorful, choose two to three colors and play with your layers. Honestly, not many people will see your base layers, but I personally like them to be as fun as possible. Also, bright colors show up well on the slopes and can help your friends identify you, so choose scarves, hats, and gloves in colors that you like. Another important accessory is goggles or sunglasses. If it is snowing, I would go with goggles, but if the weather is clear and sunny, sunglasses will do the trick.

When it comes to actual ski clothes such as insulated pants and jackets, I would definitely check places like Moosejaw, REI, and a local ski and sport store (Peter Glenn for you Georgians). Brands to look for include Roxy, Volcom,and Burton for some of the more fun colors and patterns. As for skis and snowboards, you really need to go have the bindings fit to your shoe size and board/skis fit to your expertise level.

Happy winter to you all and happy skiing to those of you who share my love of snow!

Tuesday, December 2

Holiday Decorations

As I mentioned before, Christmas is my favorite holiday, so I spent some time this past weekend making my apartment festive. Since I share an apartment and since the apartment came furnished in a style that is a bit woodsy (and not in the cute, kitschy sort of way), I didn't put out all of my vintage ornaments and antique decor. I'm saving it for next year when K and I will have our first Christmas as a married couple. I tried to go with the woodsy, country sort of theme, but with a bit of a vintage twist. (The name of my apartment complex is The Lodge... think leaves and wood everywhere!) I think the final result is quite cute considering the circumstances. As always, the apartment is a work in progress, but here are some of my make-shift Christmas decorations.

Monday, December 1

Baby It's Cold Outside...

The time of year has finally arrived when we can celebrate scarves, hats, sweaters, and gloves. Here's a tribute to all things warm and fuzzy about winter from some of my favorite places...

Items available online from J. Crew [3, 4, 8], Anthropologie [1, 5, 9], and Ruche [2, 6, 7].