the joy of hammock-ing

When I moved into my new place in Berkley, I knew I wanted a hammock for our backyard. There is a big, beautiful tree to relax under and a rose bush that buds endless amounts of nose-gasms. I think that it is fairly safe to say that it is the best purchase I have ever made. The pure joy of sitting in an adult-sized craddle-like device under the shade of a giant is nothing short of glorious.

Benefits of hammock-ing:
• Weight-loss: Stress makes you fat.
• Popularity: Depressed people are lonely people.
• Better Health: Relaxed people don't get heart attacks.
• Beauty: Wrinkles don't look good on sheets or faces.
• Be Richer: Skinny, popular, healthy, pretty people make more money.

estate-saling

This weekend I went door-to-door and all around town searching out some good deals, and I ended up with a few good finds. The first sale I found a coffee table for $10, marked down to $5, but with only $4.70 in my pocket, they let the $0.30 slide. Lucky me!

So this  bought...

...this!

I have plans to paint it, but I just can't decide what color! I am inspired to do something like this at the moment - but I have a tendency to change my mind :) Once the project is completed I will be sure to post pictures!

My 2nd find of the day was at a Veteran's sale. And those old men melted my heart. So I couldn't leave empty handed! I ended up buying a hot dog and some brass candle sticks that now look like this after a coat of $2.88 spray paint from Home Depot - and can you believe they carded me when I bought it?! (Sorry there isn't a before picture - but you can picture brass can't you?)

Candlesticks - $3

Painted and on the table.

Pinterest - My latest web obsession

The past month or so I started pinning on pinterest - OhMyGawd is it addictive! Beyond being a great way to organize inspiration and collect things I want but can't afford - I have found it to be a great tool as a designer. Pinterest can be used to create mood boards and style boards for clients to help them figure out what they like and what kind of aesthetic feel they want to achieve. It's also a great way to share work whether it's yours or a friends :). So sign-up and start pinning!

Weekly Challenges

My friend Niki and I have decided to do weekly challenges. We have a knack for setting goals for ourselves that are just a bit hard to chew: create a business, write a book, take a business class, take a glass blowing class, yoga, buy a house to redo, etc... We fully intend to keep adding to that list and finish every single one, but our intentions are faster than our actions. So we decided to break it down by giving ourselves weekly goals and challenges. They have started off easy, (eating breakfast, drinking water...), but we can't wait to see what they will push us to do & accomplish week by week.

falling from planes and stalking celebs

Saturday June 18th, was my boyfriend Nick's 26th birthday. He is too smart for his own good sometimes so I like to try to take on the challenge of surprising him. I was able to keep him from guessing what the surprise was until we were an hour away from the anticipated event: skydiving.

PUMPED!

Nick getting geared up!

The story continues after the jump (pun intended?)

Card Making

I have been dabbling around in my down time at work to play in illustrator and create some card designs - they have been turning out to be pretty 'cutesy' but it's been fun to play with patterns, layers, shapes and type.