H N Y !

2012 was a big year! Made the leap into the design/advertising world with relative ease (preceded by lots of hard work, a little luck and an internship). Spent another year with my favorite person—traveling, working on our house, and getting into trouble. Ate some great food, bought some new shoes, occasionally went to the gym, and spent lots of time with my family and friends. A good year indeed.

Image from Plenty (via Behance)

Bar Tab

I recently purchased a vintage bar cart. This is a little collection of things I need to get it set up and stocked.

Morris Kitchen Syrup, Bar10der, W&P Barware from West Elm, Vintage MN tray, Vintage Ice Bucket,
Templeton Rye, Deer Painting

Yes, please.

I've loved this necklace from Yellow Owl Workshop for while. Maybe I'll treat myself.

Casablanca

I love old movies. While all other children of the 80s were watching Gremlins and Labyrinth, my parents were giving me in education of classic films, one friday night pizza party at a time. Casablanca is well deserving of it's ranking among the best of the best, and if you haven't seen it recently, get after it. Plus, Ingrid Bergman is just doe-eyed, Swedish perfection.

untitled

I'm not a very goal-driven person, but once in awhile I like to take on a challenge. This one is simple: 12 blog posts by the end of the year. I chose 12 because in both 2010 and 2011 I ended the year with 42 posts and I'm currently sitting at 30 for 2012. I must have been busy or something.

The amazing image above comes from the Hubble site, where you can download stunningly beautiful (and free!) images.

A Better Sweater

This is a craft project I recently actually completed. I used a merlot wool sweater that I've had forever and definitely should have retired several years ago. The longest part of the process was cutting the sweater into 3" long "leaves." I used foam core for the wreath base (it looks round, but it's actually flat!) and then hot glued the feathers on so that they overlapped each other evenly. And I did it all while watching Robert Altman's 1994 satirical look at fashion, Prêt-à-Porter. A must-see for every fashion enthusiast or anyone who's really into the 90s.

Grow

A very pretty treasury from Etsy. Also, how are we already half way through December?

A collection a day (six)

This isn't my collection, but I'm posting it anyway. 

These vintage tree tags come from pinkshirtsandcarwrecks on Etsy. 

Light it Up

As soon as the weather gets a little cold, I do three things: Wear big, ugly, warm socks all the time, spend unreal amounts of time at Target, and burn candles that smell like Christmas and pine trees. Preferrably soy and made in MN. This Pom + Spruce is a recent favorite.

The Weaver House

I love when you're wandering the labyrinth of the web and you end up somewhere beautiful and unexpected. The Weaver House site was a random find, but these Portland sisters have a great eye for taking dreamy photos and finding vintage pieces.

a collection a day (five)

This collection of 1960s View-Master reels comes from Alex's family in Mankato.

Table for Two: Lake Avenue

Alex and I recently took a quick trip up to Duluth to enjoy the fall colors and do some relaxing. We tend to focus on food when we travel so we made the effort to get to some good restaurants. The first one we tried was Lake Avenue Restaurant and Bar, recommended by my good friend, Terry, a Duluthian and fellow food lover. We shared the Chorizo Stuffed Dates and they were amazing. I had the Salted Cod Gnocchi which was topped with a little apple butter, of all things. That was a fun, unexpected flavor pairing that added a sweetness and made it taste really fall-y. Alex had the Deconstructed Fish and Chips, which was a nice take on the classic. Instead of dessert, we opted for the Caprese Eclair, a puff pastry-wrapped and baked caprese salad. It was all really good.

The other two restaurants we went to were New Scenic Cafe and Fitger's Brewhouse. I highly recommend both- NSC for everything on their menu and Fitger's for the beer (obviously) and the wild rice burger.

a collection a day (four)

This collection of vintage brooches comes from my great grandmother, Helen. 

She liked flowers, naturally.

MOOD

MOOD is a brand new online magazine by Brussels-based designer and friend, Emma Hovel, and her boyfriend Mario Villar. Their concept is a magazine that finds the intersection where food and music meet, and then take great photos. Emma kindly asked me to contribute with a recipe from my mom. We even had a little photo shoot! Check out the full issue of MOOD here and learn how to make our recipe for Warm Goat Cheese and Beet Salad.

Olympic (Design) Gold

Have you been watching? That has to be the most repeated phrase for the duration of the
summer Olympics. I have, and I love it. Here are some of my favorite past logos. The London logo is  

a pretty big departure from the usual look and feel, but it's been growing on me.

(via Stocklogos)

Summer Snapshots

Recent photos from an evening stroll on Summit Ave; a homemade summer salad; 

Nastie in Lake Calhoun; Sedum from my garden.

Call me, Maeby.

I'm a month and a half into my summer internship at OLSON. I've been delightfully busy and the learning that goes on ...I tell ya.  I kind of love it—the people, the atmosphere, and the work. You can take long lunches and swear as much as you want! My fellow interns are a fun, hardworking bunch, which is good because we spend a lot of time together. Who knows how long this complete satisfaction will last, so I'm going to enjoy the hell out of it for the time being.

Photo credit: my pops

Pixel Rose

I love this pillow from My Bearded Pigeon on Etsy.  

It's vintage and modern all at once. Kitsch and tech in one!

a collection a day (three)

Small misc. vintage items. This is my favorite collection photo yet.
These items were all collected from my Grandad's workshop. 

Table for Two: Bar La Grassa

Alex and I celebrated our anniversary recently by eating some fantastic food at Bar La Grassa in the warehouse district of Mpls. They specialize in Italian pastas and bruschetta topped with things like soft eggs and lobster and white anchovy and avocado, which we tried. My favorite dish, the gnocchi with cauliflower and orange was a plate of little pillows of heaven. Seriously, so good. We also had the cheese plate, served with Ames Farm honey and the crab ravioli, both of which were good but not stellar. For desert we had an amazing chocolate caramel cake with peanut brittle. My only complaint is that the crowd paired with the open kitchen and music makes the restaurant quite loud. But despite having to shout at each other, we'd go back because the food was totally worth it.

playing in the dirt

Gardening boots for spring planting.

chalk dust

I've been super into Dana Tanamachi's work lately. I was curious about her process, and 

then I found these time-lapse videos on her site. The results are beautiful, and they should be, because

she puts so much time and energy into the pieces. I envy her skills but not her sore muscles!

So Freakin' Cute

What makes the avocado so awesome? Is it the lumpy pear-like shape? Or the perfectly 

round pit, nestled in the center? The amazing taste and texture? We may never know, but Herman Marie
on Etsy gets it. Cut from wood and painted by hand, hang this 'cado on your wall to enjoy forever.

Gig Poster

I'm loving The Shins' new album, Port of Morrow, so I made this little 

poster for the one time I saw them in concert.

Three things

I can't wait to make home-made mojitos. I can't wait to go camping with friends.
I can't wait for my first day as a graphic design intern...

Classic Mojito for Two

2 limes

4 oz (1/2 cup) minty simple syrup

bunch of mint leaves

4 oz. white rum

club soda or sparkling water

minty simple syrup

16 oz. sugar

16 oz. water

3 sprigs of fresh mint

Minty simple syrup: Combine sugar and water in a small saucepan and set over medium high heat. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to high and let boil for a few minutes. Remove from heat and toss in the mint. Let steep for a few minutes (or until the syrup is minty enough for you). Remove the mint and let the syrup cool (can be stored in a glass jar, sealed, and refrigerated until ready to use). In a 12 oz. glass, combine lime juice, minty simple syrup, and a bunch of mint leaves. Muddle the leaves so they are bruised (not necessary to shred them). Fill the glass with ice and top with rum. Top the rest of the glass with club soda or sparkling water and garnish with a lime wedge. 

a collection a day (two)

Collected patches from my various travels. Circa 2000-2006.

a collection a day (one)

Milk cap collection. Inspired by Lisa Congdon's A Collection a Day blog (now a book), I decided to look around my house (and my parents' house) to see if I could find any compilations, clusters, or combinations (thanks for the synonyms, internet!). I fell a few short of 365 collections, but I'll post more in the coming weeks.

yes, please.

Sheer blouse from AndyVeEirn on Etsy.

We have a cabin dream. And hopefully it will look something like this Black Butte, OR beauty.

(via Cabin Porn)

house beautiful

ur bedroom is still a work in progress but for the time being we're happy with the desk area. The main elements: 1. Industrial task lamp 2. Parsons desk 3. Herman Miller chair. I got the little antique side chair from the music school where I work and the shelves are pieces of an antique table paired with Ikea brackets. We are also in love with the paint color-- the perfect dark grey, called Trail Print from Behr.

Runway to Win

I'm liking this geometric, subtly political tote from Derek Lam. 

There are 20+ pieces from different designers on the Obama site. Worth a look.

Island Time

Our short week on Sanibel Island was super relaxing. We had lots of sun, walks on the beach,
good rum drinks, and lived on "island time," which is where you do everything without
any urgency. People drive slow but it didn't bother me at all. Seriously, I'm going back next year.
Fun fact: Because of placement and shape, Sanibel is one of the few places
you can stand on the same beach and watch sunrise and sunset.

wanna see it

Mountain Lodge Chic

I love this little collection of winter design trends from My Life Scoop, via Design*Sponge.

1.  Lomokino 35mm video camera, $99
2.  Society6 Seattle iPhone case by Jenny Vorwaller, $35
3.  Zinc message boards, $30
4.  The BoomCase Mr. Retro speaker, $535
5.  Urban Garden duvet & shams, $19-$71 (on sale)
6.  Pendleton merino wool plaid blanket, $108
7.  Free Trade pouf, $109
8.  Owl table lamp, $99
9.  Wooden iPhone alarm dock, $40
10.  Gold Megaphone speaker for iPhone, $765