spring look book

i've been drooling over madewell's spring line, so i thought i'd share some of my favorite looks here. i've pinned more here if you care to take a gander.

blogs i lov3

i've found that if i'm ever in need of inspiration (for projects or just to get through a long work day), these blogs will do the trick. check them out and love them as much as i do.

i absolutely adore bri emery's sense of style. check out designlovefest if you're needing ideas for a crafty new DIY project, a summer party outfit or you want to sign up for one of her blogshop classes in a city near you. super inspiring.   

 poppytalk serves the dual purpose of being both a blog and an online marketplace for select makers to sell their wares (think etsy or bigcartel). read/watch tutorials on how to make your own stamps, bind your own books, and so much more.

 

joy cho, the eclectic mastermind behind oh joy!, brings the best of print design, home decor, fashion and tasty treats straight to your RSS feed. i've bookmarked a million and one new restaurants to check out in LA per her recommendation :)

classy

per my new year's resolution to learn web design, i just wrapped up a web design class through parsons and will be starting a wordpress design class in a couple weeks. my goal is to work on some more prints/stationery this summer and have my online portfolio/shop up and running by august, so stay tuned for more updates. (check!)

i also took a super fun terrarium-building class at sprout home in williamsburg last month.  i loved it so much, that i decided to sign up for another class in a couple weeks with my friend amanda. if i had it my way, my apartment would be covered in these little guys...

(aaaand check!)

birthday birthday birthday

i turned the big 2-6 last month and celebrated with some real gems, including my dear friends daniel and arman (of waffle & wolf fame) who baked me a very special waffle cake with chocolate ganache (yum!).

there's nothing i love more than delicious food (calexico) and drink (night of joy) in the company of loved ones. AND being serenaded by my officemates?! the best. thanks for a lovely day, friends.

better late than never?

let's pretend we live in a world where katie isn't a total slacker. in said world, these photos from new year's eve in athens would have been shared 2+ months ago. so now's the fun part where we get to travel back in time...

{cali (once like a spark), robert and me}

{asher, me and katharine}

hello, 2012!

 

 {photo via bri emery of designlovefest}

psych! resolutions can be totally attainable. in fact, i'm bound and determined to do the following in 2012:

- get to the gym 3x/week
- take pilates/yoga 3-4x/month
- read 1 book/month
- date more
- bike more (buy bike)
- design a line of stationery
- re-design blog/blog more
- learn web design
- sell at least $100-worth of my handmade goods on etsy
- give to a different charity every month 

(charity suggestions via 52x52.org)

out with the old...

 {via jeff rogers}

i returned to nyc earlier this week after a 10-day trip down south (south carolina for christmas and georgia for new year's) feeling renewed and ready to take on whatever 2012 brings my way. don't get me wrong, many wonderful things happened in 2011, but last year also had some low (maybe even super low) points.  to re-cap, here are my "highs, lows and uh-ohs" for yesteryear in no particular order:

highs
1) birth of my nephew jack
2) traveling cross-country/the world for work
3) a budding romance
4) an assortment of nyc visitors (jason/tj, ethan/john, sara and jean)
5) delightful musical endeavors (the dodos, beirut and dent may)
6) loved ones united in matrimony (cathryn/palmer, catherine/chad)

lows
1) my sweet friends katherine and victoria moved out of nyc
2) heartbreak twice over
3) moving from greenpoint (my beloved brooklyn hood) to a different neighborhood that shall remain nameless, and...
4) dealing with less than stellar/shady brokers 
5) getting into a scuffle with management over no heat last winter

uh-ohs
1) identity theft
2) uninvited guests showing up at our door at the wee hours of the morning
3) my sorta new suitcase losing a wheel mid travel season

so clearly the ups trumped the downs last year (phew!), which is always a plus. stay tuned for my list of resolutions for the new year...

positive reinforcement

i just love this little banner from secret holiday & co. sometimes it's nice to be reminded that everything's going to be alright.

{buy it here}

letterpress for the pressless

 

love the look of letterpress but don't have access to a press?  check out pugly pixel's tutorial on how to create the indented loveliness of letterpress in photoshop. mind blowing...

paper creations

i love rob ryan's intricate paper creations. watch this video via poppytalk to see him hard at work.

bowlmore

it kinda warms my heart that bowling is the theme of eddie the wheel's "nearsayerfive" video.  makes me miss bowling (and friends from athens) big time... good thing i got my semi-regular dose of athens last night at the grass giraffes (eddie's band)/futurebirds show at brooklyn bowl.  that should tide me over for a little while longer.  [sigh] i'll be eating at the grit again in no time...

{"nearsayerfive" by eddie the wheel}

get up, get down

happy tuesday, friends!  i've put together a couple "it's-only-two-o'clock-and-my-face-is-about-to-hit-the-keyboard" mixes that i wanted to share with you here (you can also subscribe to them via spotify). listen up...

{via smoke signals}

"work it up, work it out"

1. "intro" - m83
2. "tongue tied" - grouplove
3. "pumped up kicks" - foster the people
4. "psychic city (voodoo city)"- YACHT
5. "animal" - miike snow
6. "daylight" - matt & kim
7. "oh dear" - matt costa
8. " turning" - cloud
9. "the polaroid song" - allo, darlin'
10. "ha ha ha" - the suzan
11. "knife" (cover version - original by grizzly bear) - CSS
 

 {via smoke signals}

"higher fives"

1. "saturdays" - cut copy
2. "swing tree" - discovery
3. "blister in the sun" - violent femmes
4. "ce jeu" - yelle
5. "i could go" - oberhofer
6. "l.e.s. artistes" - santigold
7. "half asleep" - school of seven bells
8. "paris" - geographer
9. "walking with a ghost" - tegan and sara
10. "i need fun in my life" - the drums
11. "crystalised" - the xx

chicago: a first

i visited the windy city for the first time in mid-october and practically fell in love. i wish i had had more time to explore (hard to do so when you're there for work), but perhaps i'll return sometime in the not-too-distant future?

a few highlights for me were eating dinner at big star in wicker park (think tacos and margaritas on an open-air patio), and eating/drinking/staying the night at longman & eagle in logan square. their modest six room hotel situated above the restaurant/bar is beyond hip. the little details (down to your very own pair of ear plugs for light sleepers) were greatly appreciated. i will definitely be staying there again on my next visit.

{requisite "bean" sculpture photo, chicago}

{millenium park, chicago}

{room at longman & eagle}

{longman & eagle}

{in-room amenities, longman & eagle}

{longman & eagle}

adventures out west

my final work trip this fall was a three-week jaunt to the west coast (los angeles, san francisco, and portland with a few personal days in seattle). here are a few highlights:

{LACMA}

 {halloween cupcake, west hollywood}

 {little brother weekend visit in los angeles}

 

 {san francisco}

{golden gate bridge, san fran}

{powell's books in portland}

 {my sweet friend claudia at the ace hotel, portland}

{voodoo doughnuts, portland}

{pdx signage}

 {mt. rainier, train to seattle}

{train to seattle}

{public market, seattle}

{space needle and me, seattle}

foreign and familiar

here are a few snapshots from my trip to europe earlier this month. my friend john flew over from athens and met me for a portion of the trip (paris, geneva and berlin), which made traveling abroad for work infinitely more exciting. (and yes, i apologized to him profusely for my travel anxiety...) take a gander!

 cousin laura, her husband james and me
at koko in london (camden)

 john at a sidewalk cafe in paris

florist in paris

 cimetière du père-lachaise in paris

(oscar wilde is buried there)

le louvre in paris

river cruising in paris

 nyon, outside of geneva (courtesy of john)

 fact: the tallest fountain in the world is located in geneva

 john calvin's church in geneva

the heart of geneva (courtesy of john)

 long-lost friend turned berliner

 "a spaniard and an american meet at a bar in berlin..."

 tv tower in berlin

 berlin's brandenburg gate

 bits of the berlin wall

dinner party in berlin (mitte) with good company