Four for Friday

Yo, guys!  I'm out.  Happy weekend, have some fiesty fun okay?  See you back on Monday morning.  FfF is here to take it way...

-  Ready for some in-you-face delicious lookin' food pics? (Seriously, there photos are so great; the camera was all up-close and in food's personal space.  Love it!)  Click your way over to  Kitchen Demure.  Elissa, the Canadian author makes up nutritious dishes from scratch out of accessible ingredients.  The results are anything but demure.

- The founders of Project Wedding have a new site up and running: EnRoute.  It's filled with homey vacation rentals for newlyweds who prefer an experience a less touristy experience.  By no means are this great vacation spots just for newlyweds though, so check it out!

- I'm newly following style blogger Liz at Late Afternoon.  I love her breezy, causal sophistication.  (That's San Fran for you!!!) Found via Design Love Fest, thanks Bri!

- Amy Merrick just launched her own flower haven!  Loving it!!!  I've been a devout follower of Amy through her An Apple A Day.  I think I discovered her through Saipua (she worked there as an associate floral designer) or Design Sponge (she writes their floral ditties).  Florist extraordinaire, for serious!

cut paper map

Right now I'm kinda obsessed with anything and everything French.  Been watching a lot of French films, films set in France, French music, French art, culture, etc.  I've also started researching Parisian things for the vacy... veg restaurants, upcoming exhibitions and shows.  Paris Opera Ballet?  A concert?  Day trips to country towns and castles?!!! 

I'm in love with this hand-cut paper map of Paris.  Lovely, no?

Map available at Famille Summerbelle, found via Remodelista

The Best Worst Beauty Advice

Always good for a dose of charming French humor and a lovely illustration, Garance shares The Best Worst Beauty Advice. (Readers emailed her the most terrible things fellow ladies had recommended they try!) My favorite quips:

- "To cut your bangs yourself, find some scissors, and just get a piece of tape, stick it at the desired length, and then cut. Simple as that." (Ooooh. Yikes. I cut my own bangs. And yeah, it's no simple feat to get perfect fringe. This method sounds... interesting.)

- "A girl can never have too much blue eye-shadow" (HA! My high school cheerleading photos would suggest otherwise.)

- "The best treatment against pimples : nail polish remover! They heal quicker." (Holy hot damn! Who in their right mind would put nail polish remover on their skin? Let alone their face?!!!)

Hot Hits of Poppin' Pink

Nothin' says "holy-hot-August" like some hot pink!  These are my favorite, flirty accessories for fun in the sun.

Feathered earrings on Betty, by UO
(available in France only, phooey!)

Below, left to right:
- Bralet by Cosa Bella at Barney's
- Sunglasses by Betsy Johnson at UO
- Roxy sandals at Zappos
- Raffia duffel by Meredith Wendell at Net a Porter

Psst!  For hot pink interior ideas check out this post on The Glitter Guide.

Sølve Sundsbø

I discovered Sølve Sundsbø's work quite a while ago.  Back before little w&w created.  Probably about the time he was showing at Colette in Paris.  But I ran into him on the pages of Vogue Nippon just now.  I was flipping through an article about... buying art?  I don't know.  Can't read Japanese.  But anyway.  There was Sundsbø and one of his beautiful parrots.  It seems that the parrot was 100,000 yen.  Seems like a pretty good deal; only 1,300 US dollahs, yo!

Watch his parrot films here, they'll take your breath away!

Happy Thursday!

Hope this week is treating you well.  I've been pretty busy myself; my boss is traveling for work so it's been a little nutzo in this neck o' the woods.

I've also prepping for next week; my sweetheart's birthday and our 2 year 'niversery, the arrival of my little sis and her BF, plus some work travel.  Lots to get organized.  Everything is kind of a mess at the moment.  I've got so much fun stuff to look forward to though!  Yippie!

Photo by Jules Falk Hunter, via Snippet and Ink

La la la... Lollies!

Aren't these lollies pretty?!!!  I have a soft spot for hard candies.  It's not that I particularly like eating them.  You know, they're okay.  Nothing to write home about.  (Except for root beer favored ones, those I adore!!!)  But there is something so charming about hand made lollies. 

These, from King Arthur's blog are super easy.  No candy molds needed!

I love Lamp.

This desk lamp is so cool!  I love the eclectic mix of antique oxidized copper and the mod neon cord.  What thinks you?  Fan of the fun combo?  Or a little too edgy for your taste?

Found on Pinterest, pinned from Remodelista

Pretty Palette/ Neurals & Neon

I love this shade of neon citrine; the perfect blend of yellow and green.  It looks particularly harmonious paired with natural neutral hues; stone, beige, taupe, straw, putty and dusty greys.

I'm actually representing this palette in the flesh today.  That's right, I'm sporting a neon citrine silk tee with a pretty creamy nude color cotton crochet lace pencil skirt.  Shoes are nude snake skin for a little more textural outfitting fun.  How I do love texture : )

Top photo: Kim Norda originally shot by Venetia Scott for Margaret Howell, Spring/Summer 2010 collection. Modified image via Pinterest

Above, clockwise from top left:
- Marc by Marc Jacobs bag on Net-a-Porter
- Wedding details coordinated by Bash, Please.  Design by Pica Press.  Found via Forget Me Not Weddings.
- Image of ballet fats from Ateqah's Flickr
- Cambridge Satchel worn by Carolina Engman of Fashion Squad
- Nail polish by American Apparel, photo from 5 Inch and Up
- Stylish gal on STREET FSN
- Interior by Lucas Allen

Polaroid Wall

How fab is this wall of Polaroids?!!!  Color coded.  Color code everything people, it's magical.  Everything everywhere should always be color coded.  Yeah, I know...  That just took it to a weird, obsessive compulsive place.  Not so cool.

But really, I love this kind of orderly-ness.  It's just like my new favorite Esty: Mascara Jones.  That shop has pages and pages of kick-butt mid century knick knacks.  The listings flow in a seamless rainbow.  Love it!!!

Are there things you sort by color?  When I had giant closets in California, all of my clothing was sorted by color.  And sub-sorted by item.  Hanging in order of placement on the body; top to bottom.  Yes.  Obsessive compulsive.  Much.

Polaroid wall found on You Are My Fave, images from Photo Jojo

Happy (the-first-of August) Monday!

I hope you all had a great weekend.  Mine was full of random, fun activities.  The BF and I were busy little summer birds.  Random summer birds...

- I bought two pairs of new shorts.  They are both in fall fabrics and will look nice with tights.  But that means I can't wear them for another few months.  Hmph.

- We were stranded in Brooklyn on Friday night because the L train stalled.  (Ugh.  MTA, get it together.  You prevented me from journeying to Manhattan for ice cream.  That cannot be forgiven.)  Instead of going into the city, we wandered around a little aimlessly and eventually went home.



- On Saturday I was torn between brunch options.  On a sudden whim I went with quinoa pancakes.  They were actually called Carmen Miranda Pancakes because banana, mango, and berries were piled on top.  I almost never ever have pancakes.  But these were so good!  So good.

- We saw Crazy Stupid Love at noon, when most people in New York are just getting to their first cup of coffee.  Empty theaters are incredible.

- I went to a local market with a special section of (like 50 different!) coffee beans.  I was overwhelmed with the choices and aromas.  So I bought nothing.  And picked up an iced coffee and Dunkin Doughnuts on the way home.  It hit the spot.  Shame...

- We ordered some vegan pizza 5 minutes before the shop closed.  Our only option was (BF's favorite) chick-un and jalapeno.  The jalapeno freaked me out at first.  But it was so good!  I would totally get it again.

- We went to a trade show at the Javits convention center.  A very dear friend of mine was debuting her accessories line.  Her stuff looked beyond incredible.  Her name and company must remain anonymous for some legal reasons.  But... Congrats!  Congrats!

- We got caught in the rain a couple times.  iPhone assured me there would be no rain this weekend.  iPhone was wrong.  It was really warm, hence I was not so grumpy about it.  iPhone was cursed at anyway.

- I drank some Fresca and tried to explain to the BF why I like it... even though I hate grapefruit.

Print by Bonnie Tsang

Four for Friday

Enjoy the rest of you Friday, my sweet readers.  I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.  A FfF post and then... Off to weekend fun!

- A huge congratulations to Linda of Call Me Cupcake, she's celebrating two years of blogging with a book deal!!!  Hooray!  Can't wait to add that one to my dessert bake book library : )

- Check it out, Coach has 10 very stylish guest bloggers featured on their site.  Each of the 10 sounds off on the new season's accessories.  There are outfitting tips and photos galore!  Two of my faves are there: Katie Rodgers and Blaire Eadie.

- When I look at Irene Suchocki's photos I feel like a little girl.  Like 6 or 7 years old.  Who loves princess, unicorns and fairy tails.  (Yeah, okay... I still totally love those things.)  Her moody photos of Paris are especially gorgeous!  I hope it looks exactly like this when I'm there in a few months!!!

- Rue Magazine is out in it's 6th issue!  So much good stuff, read it from cover to cover... virtually.  (Virtually as in it's a virtual magazine.  Not the 'almost all but not quite' type of virtually.  Cuz really, really, for reals, I did read it cover to cover!)

Peaches Please

I walked through the Union Square green market on my way into work this morning.  The stalls have exploded with peaches!!!  We've been buried in berries and last week newly arrived plums were plentiful.  Now peaches!!!  Ugh... I love summer.  And it's fruit.  The UFO peaches seemed to be the most popular variety for now.  (Maybe the other varieties aren't quite ripe yet?)

This recipe at Always With Butter convinced me that the little UFO's are okay for baking. I've been planning to make a peach tart all week.  I assumed UFO's would be too swat looking, sliced up.  I'm thinking they may be okay now!  Hopefully this weekend I'll get to my peach tart making.  (Then I can share it with you next week!)

Are there any summery desserts that you're wanting to bake?

Heavenly Hemp

Do you cook with hemp?  Hemp seeds?  Butter?  Milk?  Protein powder?  I come from a hemp-loving family.  My brother is a big hemp-head.  He loves that it's a high-protien plant food and that it's an ultra sustainable, earth friendly crop.  There's also my mom who is all about non-gluten baking ingredients now that she has celiac disease.  The BF and I are hemp fans, mostly when it comes to dessert...  Our favorite spot in NYC has hemp-milk ice cream.  And it is D-licious, people!  The taste and consistency are incredible.

After reading Sara's posting about hemp baking on My New Roots (and doing a little research of my own) I'm going to stock up on some hemp ingredients.  Incorporating this super-food into my recipes is good for my body and the environment (and therefore, my piece of mind).  To recap: hemp is a vegan, gluten-free, sugar-free, trans fat-free, cholesterol free, and packed with protien (all 20 amino acids!).  Its very easy for your body to break down and absorb, it's high in fiber, contains the perfect ratio of essential fatty acids, and delivers vitamins A, B1, B3, B5, D, E, iron and magnesium.  Super!

Mmmm, looking forward to making a batch of these Hemp Protein Granola Bars.  Thanks Sarah, for the recipe and all the info!!!

Color Crush: Navy & Burgundy

Midnight blues and deep wine?  Not the shades I'd immediately gravitate to for summer but they sure do look good!  Each worn alone, back to neutrals is classic.  But out together?  It's outfitting magic!

Top photo: The Glamourai

Below, left to right: The Sartorialist, The Locals and Hanneli Mustaparta

You Are What You Eat

Yesterday, a friend had shared the link for You Are What You Eat on his Facebook wall.  Because this friend generally shares insightful links I clicked.  I was quite surprised, and happily so, with the content.  As a diet and health conscious person, I find nutrition stuff pretty interesting.  You Are What You Eat wasn't just a wordy article though, it was a photo essay.  (Yay, pictures!!!)

Mark Menjivar's documents the refrigerator contents from 34 households.  All kinds of people, all kinds of food! Menjivar explains, "These are portraits of the rich and the poor.  Vegetarians, Republicans, members of the NRA, those left out, the under appreciated, former soldiers in Hitler’s SS, dreamers, and so much more.  We never know the full story of one’s life."

If you can bear a little light reading, check out his introduction.  He addresses some aspects of the project that you might otherwise take for granted, "An intense curiosity and questions about stewardship led me to begin to make these unconventional portraits. A refrigerator is both a private and a shared space.  One person likened the question, “May I photograph the interior of your fridge?” to asking someone to pose nude for the camera."

They are in fact a very personal type of portrait.  It's pretty cool.  Would you let someone photograph you 'fridge as it sits right now?  I'm not so sure I would...

Photos from the Kitchenist

Neapolitan Style

From your daily duds to the baker's dish, Neapolitan is looking high-summer chic.  The classic, creamy, trio of shades can be an apparel challenge.  Best to go with muted, dusty pastels like this color blocked dress from Marc by Marc Jacobs (as seen on Atlantic-Pacific).  Are you a Neo flavor fan? Check out this recipe for Neapolitan cake on Babble Food.  Mmmm!

Pretty Picture/ Painted Lady Typography

Painted Lady isn't really the name of this lettering but when I saw it I thought of the colorful and ornate San Fran row houses.  This unnamed font by Jonny Wan is a prime example of his style; drawing inspiration from ancient cultures, shapes and symmetry.  Much of his graphic design work reminds me of native North and Central American art.  Many motifs also call to mind ancient Near East and Asian influence.  Browse his work here, at Agency Rush.

Found via Design Work Life

Colorful Light

I love this contemporary interpretation of stained glass!  What a gorgeous door; filled with a rainbow of slides.  This quirky home, located on the rolling hills of South Tyrol in Northern Italy, is the residence of architect Armin Blasbichler and his family.  The building is overrun with playful details, head over to Design Sponge for additional peeks inside!

Photos by Ingrid Heiss

Pop Invites

These are such a cute idea for summer party invitations!  Make them coordinate with your party's color theme or just go with your favorite shades.  I think any combination would look pretty.  (Like maybe something along these lines?!!!)

Head here for the how-to.  It seems pretty easy; all you need are velum, colored glassine, popsicle sticks and some spray adhesive.  Besides a tutorial, the link also has printable clip art for your invite info!

From Martha Stewart via Poppytalk