morning find: one canoe two

I’ve loved One Canoe Two for awhile now (isn’t their logo lettering amazing?)… and can remember waiting (impatiently) for them to come out with an Ohio letterpress print (which they did!) when I first discovered their state series…

1Canoe2

However- I’m not super in love with the actual Ohio print… if I am being honest (maybe I’m just not a red girl?). I do love the California print, though… and the NC one is pretty cool, too.

Anyway- they have really great, hand-drawn letterpress goods, state prints aside. From recipe cards to an assortment of thank you notes- 1 Canoe 2 is one of my favorites. As summer is approaching- I’ve found myself loving their coaster sets… especially this one:

image is from Gus & Ruby letterpress

I’ve got summer on my mind- beach houses, a beer with a lime wedge perched on top, fire pits and 4th of July parties. Wouldn’t these be a fun little hostess gift, tied to a bottle of sangria?

girl’s night in

girl of all work

Last night, a couple friends came over for dinner. The menu wasn’t very fancy, but I loved the meal regardless:

- Shrimp dip with Frito’s (yes, processed awfulness probably made by Monsanto… but it’s SO good)

- Broiled salmon with lemon-dill sauce (ok, that is fancy)

- Popped cherry tomatoes (yes, that’s what I call them- otherwise known as my very gourmet go-to side- “saute cherry tomatoes until they burst and serve”)

- Rice pilaf

And yes, lots of wine.

I always considered dinner parties to be a lot of work, requiring pomp and circumstance, flower arrangements and place cards. But recently, and thanks to a friend, I’ve come around to the idea of just making dinner with friends at home- casual and easy (even on a weeknight!). Not that there isn’t something to be said for a grand party with sorbet and multiple courses… but, these semi-impromptu get togethers are quite nice as well. Not only was it way less expensive, but it was comforting to be in my own home- my own kitchen, and it was nice to be near the puppy, too, even though little Maisie wouldn’t stop jumping around. Our salmon came out a little overdone; I probably should have checked on it, but I was too busy laughing and chatting to do so… which is just the way it should be.

Reminds me of this post about pop-up dinner parties from Jordan Ferney of Oh Happy Day -which, although fancy (with table linens and gold chiavari chairs), it still seems to embody the semi-spontaneous, can’t-control-everything, good conversation, laid back vibe of the best dinner parties.

weekend recap

Sorry the recap is a bit late… I’ve been a little under the weather for the past day-ish. The weekend overall was wonderful, though!

1. Friday- highlight was by far was when we saw Maisie tilting her head at this one commercial on Fox. We replayed it over until it wasn’t as funny to us- and then we decided to videotape her, which made it even more funny.

2. Saturday- we went to see The Hunger Games at the Mez theater in Charlotte’s Epicenter. It’s basically like a movie theater/club – and while I hate clubs, it was sort of cool to leave the theater (filled with assigned seats in huge recliner-like chairs with drink service- yes, really)-  disoriented from the movie into a raging scene a la South Beach.

Here’s some pictures and a few captions of what we did as well… also sorry for the iphone pictures… we don’t seem to bring the big Nikon camera with us that often on random weekend excursions…

Window shopping on Saturday… see that Boston Terrier print? We’re going to be those old people with Boston Terrier towels, I’m convinced.

Speaking of, Maisie had her annual vaccine and bloodwork done, which involved not two but four pricks since she was so surprised by the whole thing. Poor thing slept and shook and favored her left shoulder all Saturday… so the baby was allowed to sleep with us that night. This is Maisie first thing Sunday morning (on a pillow, no less). She’s such a princess.

Saturday is cheat day for our (well, Dave’s) diet. We stopped in Hickory Tavern in the Metropolitan in Charlotte and enjoyed some oysters and a couple Fat Tire beers.

Ok, so this was from Thursday- but my article for Inventor’s Digest ran! If I can figure out how, I’ll link to it for you.

Wow. I’m totally out of order here, huh? Friday night I had a couple glasses of chardonnay and decided to watch Dirty Dancing. It’s by far one of my favorite movies of all time. I love the misunderstood, incommunicable Johnny and innocent, naive Baby.

And last, but not least, I went to Paper Twist for my new notebook (finally!). I ended up with cards in the Snow & Graham hydrangea print (they didn’t have the notebook) and a Russell + Hazel white notebook. They had the store all decked out in Russel + Hazel organizational/desk supply things (binders- including mini ones- and including the one I blogged about here, as well as recipe organizers, pretty file folder boxes and binder insert sheets and dividers that were all so. pretty.) I’m gushing so I’ll stop- but at the end of the day, I went for the crisp white notebook. I guess minimalist + spring finally caught up with me.

Annnd… that was the weekend! I’m feeling better tonight… although my head is pounding & it’s taken me quite awhile to write this silly little post so I’m going to call it a night. Hope you all had a wonderful weekend as well!

p.s.

I bought the hat.

hungry

source – via apron anxiety

This is both a metaphor and… not a metaphor. I’d really like to have this for breakfast. Have a wonderful Monday, everyone!

dreams

dear musketeer

I’m allowing myself to inch closer to really, truly imagining that a dream of mine can happen. Why can’t something wonderful happen to me?

Why not me?

Why not you?

things.

With the house officially sold- there are few things on my wish list. A Cuisinart Kuerig-type machine to replace our Tassimo coffee maker, that one Banana Republic hat I told you about, a pass to my local yoga studio… and this chair:

west elm

With a little side table, a swing arm lamp and a set of four pictures arranged sort of like this:

restored style

We’re off to go do some browsing today- maybe wander through the mall- to let Maisie sleep off the vaccine she got today (twice since she decided to be as difficult as possible for her new vet). Tonight we’re going over to a new friend’s to have some cocktails before going to see the Hunger Games, which should be fun. Hope you have something nice lined up for the weekend as well!

morning finds: a bit of color

Kate Spade notes

Aren’t those notes above sweet and summery? I need to find some new stationery and these are just what I’m looking for… although Emily at Cupcakes and Cashmere just posted a cute note-making tutorial, which I should probably think about doing as well.

There are a few things circling on my pinterest boards that I wanted to share because I love them that much- a little bit of color and fun for spring and summer:

Kate Spade Idiom Bangle- pinterest

J Crew necklace- pinterest

Kate Spade watch- pinterest

I guess I’m into the classy, preppy accessories right now. Also, as I type this- I’m watching CMT’s morning videos and Carrie Underwood’s “Good Girl” video came on. She looks amazing with bangs, fun flouncy dresses and this fringe dress:

source

She’s a great example of a very pretty (but ordinary) girl who now looks glamorous almost always (plus her legs are amazing). We just watched American Idol last night, so maybe that’s why she catches my eye, too.

Ok, back to one more accessory:

ASOS bangles- pinterest

Hope you have a wonderful Friday and a fun, relaxing weekend!

xo

a celebration

the heart of our home…

Our house closed today! For some people, who have sold lots of homes, or who have money, or who flip homes or something… that’s not really that big of a deal. For my husband and I- it’s huge! We’re finally able to smooth things out, feel settled, build a budget and feel less like we’re riding some big tidal wave and more like we have a purpose.

I did have every intention on cooking tonight (transparency: I can’t remember the last full meal I’ve cooked. Last night I sauteed cherry tomatoes and heated up a frozen peas single for dinner… Dave had a protein shake… and yes, I love to cook. But things have felt crazy lately…)

But we came home, saw that the money from our house sale had been wired in… and decided to go out to dinner- randomly- without a plan (who woulda thought?!). Granted, we used a Groupon… but we had a nice dinner and still spent more on dinner than we have in months. More important than the money, by far, was that we had a wonderful date night, talking about vacations (Colorado in the winter for snowboarding, California coast in the summer), our values as a couple (lame, I know!) and just laughed together.

We went to Lulu – a french restaurant set in a renovated old home in Plaza Midwood with too many rabbit dishes on the menu but otherwise it was wonderful. We both had a glass of a pinot noir, we shared some escargot and then I had a chicken-brie stuffed dish with wilted greens and Dave had the porkchop. The food was delicious and the atmosphere was quaint- we were even the only ones in the restaurant for awhile, so we were seated right next to the window that was opened slightly; a warm breeze blowing through.

Sometimes a celebration, a wonderful date is in order. And tonight was our night- no plans, no real expectations, just a wonderful dinner and a great conversation.

Cheers!

good morning!

Source

I know it says Oscar Wilde thought up this gem, but I credit it to my Nana, who always told me that you can never be overdressed (that being said, I think I’m going to wear blue pants and moccasins to work today….). I wanted to post a quick update of a few things on my mind:

1. The Seasons- I’m getting over my giddiness at the leaves coming out (perhaps it is the anticipation after all), and was thinking how sad it is that we didn’t get to go snowboarding this year. But not that sad… I’d prefer waterskiing to snowboarding most days…

Burton Feather- the model from a couple of years ago & the snowboard I wish I had….

2. I’m also thinking about how close we are to the ocean (vacation plans are still underway…) and therefore have put a new emphasis on getting this butt in shape. I’ve tried power vinyasa yoga and spinning this week. Spinning was pretty terrible… I put equal blame on my messed up knees and the fact that I haven’t worked out that hard since… well, the day before (yoga).

Yoga One in Charlotte (this may have been their old studio but it was pretty crowded in there)

But really, I think I’m going to stick with the yoga- it was nice to start my day with some om’s and a good sweat. Anyone know just how “in shape” you can get from yoga + a couple walks throughout the week? I’m so not a gym girl.

3. The whole being active kick has me wishing I ate better, too. Just because I don’t feel like I eat bad things, necessarily, doesn’t mean I am eating the best things, either. I could eat way more veggies and leafy greens… which reminds me of a conversation I had with a friend back home about green smoothies and how amazing she feels now. A coworker friend drinks one for dinner every night, too. Any ideas for good recipes? I’d rather not feel like I’m drinking spinach, if you know what I mean.

source

Also- do you think I need a juicer, or could I just use a blender? I think I need to research this one a bit more…

4. The Happiness Project- I picked up this book at the airport and am about halfway through. I’m less than impressed; maybe I just had high expectations? While I don’t love the book, I do love the idea of a Happiness Project- little changes to brighten up and make life run just a bit smoother.

The Happiness Project website

5. This hat:

Banana Republic

I didn’t buy it last weekend and I’ve been thinking about it ever since. I need to make my way to the mall this weekend… so we’ll see… I may not be able to resist at this point. Isn’t there a rule that says if you think about something long enough after you see it you should be able to buy it?

/////

This is the most random post ever, sorry! Some days are just like that.

Hope you have a wonderful Thursday… (it’s almost the weekend….!)

lunchtime find: field and sea

This is a set of 20 business card-sized expressions, for when words escape you, from Field and Sea. Sayings such as “You were right, I was wrong” and “I’ve lost my way” to “You are beautiful” and “I love you.”

What a sweet idea, don’t you think? I can think of a million things that would be so simplistic yet perfect when written on a note. What would you rather say on a card?