Monthly Archives: January 2009

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Bella’s mittens

January 31, 2009 – 3:29 pm

Ahem…yes, so … I’ve mentioned (cough, cough), that I have this …ahem, obsession with Twilight before on this blog, right? Riiiggghhhttt…..

Well, it’s a fixation that’s now made its way into my DIY wardrobe.

Some weeks back, I was discussing the movie with a friend who also knits. She mentioned the mittens worn by Kristen Stewart (Bella) in the film and on a repeat viewing (yeah, I went again … I’ll leave it at ‘more than once’ and let you all guess the number) I paid attention and found myself admiring them as well.

I guess we weren’t the only ones. Google a pattern for these things and you’ll start to understand how many of us have an unhealthy preoccupation here.

That said, this was my first attempt at knitting mittens and I couldn’t be happier with how they turned out.

Their creator said it best: “The result is a super dense material for even the coldest nights in Forks. Hot vampires not included.”

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Bon Hiver

January 28, 2009 – 7:32 pm

It’s a French term. It means “good winter.” (and if it sounds familiar, it’s how this awesome band got its name).

Until this morning, I was ready to tell this season to shove it. Pack up its below-zero temps and get the you-know-what out of here.

But I woke up today to a blanket of snow and sipped a steaming mug of coffee with a grin as I watched the flurries touch down.

With 12 inches on the ground, it was the kind of storm that brought a city to a standstill (and kept myself and many of my coworkers at home).

It’s also a reminder of how, every now and then, I can have a big crush on winter.

I love days like this. When the snow is fluffy and white. When all that accumulation forces my dog to bound around the backyard, scooping up mouthfuls of the powdery stuff in glee. When the sun comes out and makes the landscape sparkle like a crystal carpet. And somewhere I know there are kids who put on their snowsuits at 8 a.m., just so they can be the first to sled down a hill of freshly fallen snow.

One day of a good winter like this and I can almost forget the other 90-some days of its drab, bleak alter ego.

People, I said almost.

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A dining room remodel … one print at a time

January 19, 2009 – 12:07 am

When I have my heart set on a decorating project, the idea can percolate in my head longer than coffee on the pot.

Ages ago, I bought a set of Charley Harper postcards with the seed of a notion they’d look great in frames somewhere in my house. Those cards sat on a shelf for months before I decided that in 2009, it was time to hit up a Hobby Lobby framing sale.

Now I am thisclose to closing in on my grand remodeling scheme of my dining room. All I need is the IKEA dining set I’ve had my eye on for …oohhhhh…about 18 months, the bookshelves my father was coerced into building me and a few other pieces I’ve been scoping out on the ‘ol Internet for me to make that vision leap from my head to the table.

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I can’t wait to share before and afters with you guys when I’m done!

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I really love …

January 13, 2009 – 9:47 pm

My new Polli earrings.

I first spotted these beauties during Nick and I’s visit to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art on our trip west last summer. If the museum wasn’t cool enough, this place had the best museum gift shop I’ve ever been. As in, I wanted anything and everything in the place.

But I settled that day instead for a great biography about 20th century photographer Lee Miller and left without the earrings. Why? I suppose I thought I had too many other trinkets to buy while playing tourist or that we’d come back later in the week if I didn’t see anything better. I didn’t and these guys decided to haunted me for months after (ever have a purchase like that just slip out of your hands?)

Before Christmas I found out you could purchase goods from the museum online and I thought, maybe, just maybe, these earrings might find their way into my possession after all.

Thanks to a wonderful mother-in-law, a patient sales lady in San Francisco, and a bit of help from Santa, I’ve got the most beautiful, unique bling for my lobes and an addition to my jewelry collection I’ll cherish forever.

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Ending the year on a commercial note

January 9, 2009 – 10:41 pm

With the hub-bub of the holidays and meeting deadlines for some year-end work, I never got a chance to blog about an awesome opportunity that proved to be a major professional (and personal) highlight of my 2008.

Back in November, I was hired for a commercial shoot for a Fort Wayne-based company that makes radio equipment for the military. I know, TOTALLY out of my element and the work you’re used to seeing on this blog!

But it was such a great experience that — once I got the clearance to post about it — I felt like I would be remiss not sharing about with you guys. As I was processing these images, Nick joked, “What’d you guys do, fly to Iraq for the photo shoot?” My answer? “Location, location, location, baby!” :)

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Favorites of 2008

January 4, 2009 – 10:02 pm

I’m a chronic “thinking-ahead”er. My list of goals I want to accomplish in 2009 is already two pages long and after I tick everything off that, no doubt there will be a part deux waiting in the wings.

That’s why working on this post was good for me. Every once in a while, it does a person good to stop, take a minute to breath, and look at how far she’s come. I started this blog a little more than a year ago — and back then, I was all talk with big dreams. I’ve still got a lot more dreams in store for myself, but so many came true in 2008 that if I pinched myself, I’d be covered in bruises.

Thank you to all my past clients and to friends and family too. You all have had confidence in my abilities and so many of you were there for me with an encouraging word or an affirmation of my work that words can’t express what that’s meant to me. So instead, I’ll let you hit the play button so the pictures can do the talking.

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