As I was Saying...

I heart Pinterest...and I am spending way too much time there.
However, I am finding quite the assortment of awesomeness so I'm not complaining too much.

Case in point:
THIS.

How did I miss this cover back in February?  I think this just may be my new haircut.  It's adorable. I've been wanting something short and cute...this might be it! 

Oh Pinterest does it again.  Now I can totally justify the hours I just whittled away there...

Happy Friday all!

New Obsession

Pinterest is my new obsession.  I'm a little late in the game, I know I know...my fave bloggers have been raving about it for ages but I just never really took a moment to pop over and see what the hype was about.  This weekend however I did and OH WOW!  My life will never be the same.  I plan on blaming my future lack of productivity to this site alone.

Here are some examples of the awesomeness I found on Pinterest this weekend:

Cute button magnets...such an easy fun craft...I like easy fun crafts.

Um hello...are there even any words to accurately express the cuteness here?

 And a really pretty wedding dress.

I could go on and on about all the magical finds...but I have work to do ;)

Toodles!

I'm a Gawker.

Yeah.  

I'll admit it. 

I will spend countless hours gawking at photography blogs, etsy shops, crafty DIY sites, the latest TOMS shoes and Coach purses, digi scrap galleries, and dachshund rescue pages...I need to stop. 

Seriously.

But it's really hard when I come across sites like THIS and THIS that just totally feed into my obsession.

You people are doing me no favors.

But secretly I totally love it. 

So sue me.

craftgawker.com and weddinggawker.com

 

I Heart Color

I was just introduced to THIS today.

Pretty Pics + Color Schemes = True Love!

Oh how my life is forever changed.

images courtesy of Design Seeds

Secret Crush

So one of my dreams is to quit teaching and do graphic design and digital art all day every day.  I therefore read many blogs and websites to learn and practice new skills and to just learn the ins and outs of the design field.

One of my favorite blog/websites is Just Creative Design.  The site itself is an awesome resource, but not gonna lie, I am totally crushing on the little 23 year old Aussie who owns the site.  Not only is Jacob Cass an awesome designer, excellent writer, extremely knowledgeable about the craft, and just all around cool...he is just SO stinkin' adorable too! ;)

image credits: screenshot of Just Creative Design website

Monogram Maddness

I discovered THIS over the weekend and it changed my life.  

I seriously spent countless hours fooling around with the various options, making tons of totally fabulous monograms for the wedding I am not planning.  

Ha ha ha. 

But no, for reals the monograms you can make on this site are really pretty and fun and cute and don't have to be for a wedding...

Also after you put in your choices of color and text, your monogram is ready for download and print right away!! 
The Wedding Chicks are awesome.
It's really so kind and generous of them to share their designs.

Love it.

Awesome resource. 

Yeah I did all S's cuz it's my favorite letter...soooooooo that doesn't really give you a great look at the variety offered but go you should totally go play and enjoy!

E-zine Eye Candy

Holly over at Decor8 posted this list of GORGEOUS design-related e-zines...I'm in heaven...SUCH eye candy!

I have only just recently started perusing e-zines...they are all the rage in the blogosphere these days.  I find them to be totally inspirational and beautiful and just a completely new way to explore content on the web.  However, I discovered that I totally read them differently from how I read a normal glossy mag.  I tend to just skim through them super fast...I think I get super over-stimulated by all the ideas and gorgeousness that I zip through them to the end just to see what is in the e-zine, what I want to read and pay attention to, and what I can let float away out of my consciousness, just to so I feel less overwhelmed.  Then I go back and read the parts I want to read.  Sometimes the amount of amazingness on the web is overwhelming don't you think??

Anyways, back to the list...I LOVE Utterly Engaged and Sweet Paul...some readers mentioned another wedding e-zine I had never heard of that is also so very charming...Nonpareil Mag...ahhhh *love at first sight*

I read a few crafty online mags as well...Carina Garder's e-zine and of course Ginger Scraps Street Magazine, since I am a writer for it after all ;)  And speaking of, the latest edition is online and it's adorable!  My article is on page 23 and I have two layouts in the mag this month as well...page 26, page 30...

Here is one of them...

 

Have a very happy weekend!  Perhaps grab a cool drink and read a few online glossies...xo.

image credits: Nonpareil

Happy Happy!

First of all how could I have possibly let a delightfully colorful newsletter from Rock Scissor Paper just sit in my inbox all weekend long??  And secondly how could I have done so when it had such Happy News tucked inside?!

First of all I adore the ladies of Rock Scissor Paper.  I had the opportunity to meet them at a Stationery Workshop they taught a while back and they were not only inspiring and fun and just absolutely fabulous in every way, but they also were generous with their knowledge and time, and just willing to share everything they had learned throughout their creative journey.  It truly was awesome.

Anyways, the email I just finally opened introduced a few of their new products which is always fun, but most importantly, it had a "save the date" section just for So. Cal locals....aka ME.  *smiling really big*   This section was announcing two super awesome events: a Craft Workshop in conjunction with Tom's Shoes (OMG LOVE THEM so I MUST go!) and the arrival of Unique LA, an independent design boutique/fair...both will be here in a little over a month!  Awesome.  I am SUPER EXCITED.  I love these kinds of things.

Also the newsletter had a link to RSP's blog and I found this posting which I thought was just the yummiest and so cute, and I would so totally make these tasty treats for my sweetheart if I had any baking skills whatsoever.  As it is, I don't even think I own a whisk, let alone have a clue what a pastry cutter is; and is unsalted butter different than regular butter??  I'm thinking I wouldn't get too far through this recipe before disaster would strike.  Dang it.  But they do look delish, don't they?

Happy Monday!

image credits: Rock Scissors Paper - Make Something Happy Blog

Storytime

"It is one of life's bitterest truths that bedtime so often arrives just when things are really getting interesting."
-Lemony Snicket, The Grim Grotto

Oh how I love to read a good book right before I go to bed...but it's so true that you always get to the really good part just when it's getting too late to stay up any longer...oh what a bitter truth indeed.

I recently learned about this great blog entitled, An Illustrated Guide: Short Reviews of Notable Picture Books and I totally dig it.

Not only is the site design cool (the images of the picture books move as your cursor moves and there are great literature related quotes sprinkled throughout), but I am a just big, big fan of picture books so the concept itself is just very cool.  I would have to say that other than the crafty section, the kids section of Barnes and Noble is pretty much my favorite...I have also taken a few Children's Literature courses over the years and even a class on how to actually write Children's Books, so it's fair to say that I am indeed a fan of the genre and hence this Notable Picture book blog.

The books that are spotlighted on the blog are not super mainstream; they are a bit alternative and offbeat, but cute.  And the reviews are well-written and entertaining.  Each one ends with the phrase, "The perfect book for ___________"...the blank is filled with an appropriate term describing children who would like the book such as, "young adventurers," or "little monsters," or "budding wordsmiths"...so clever...love it.

So do you have any favorite picture books??  Perhaps they made it onto the blog??  

Take a peek!

Quotation and image credits: An Illustrated Guide

Super Cute Pocket Planner

One of my very favorite illustrators has turned her drawings into a little pocket planner.

Oh isn't it just adorable.

My mom just gave me this calendar (which is beautiful), and I was going to purchase that super cute calendar from Creative Thursday, but the one above, by Geninne, is a planner, so it's totally different which means I can totally get it.

You can never have too many calendars, right?
I mean it never hurts to know just where you need to be at all times!

Anyways, Geninne is a beautiful illustrator and I would love to have her planner just for that fact alone.  I like to read her blog because she often writes about how she creates her work.  I find it very inspiring.  I would like to eventually do that on my blog too...I just need to find the time to actually sit down and create!  Things are kind of busy right now...sometimes that whole work thing sure gets in the way... ;)

House Love

Hello??! 

Totally just found THIS.  

and its AMAZING.

I don't have a house of my own at the moment.  But when I do.  I am so gonna use this site as my home improvement guide.  Every project on there was actually done by the real, true life, super happy, uber-creative couple who created the blog while remodeling their home...the project ideas are so inspiring and really, just so darn easy! 

In the meantime however, while in my perfectly content pre-homeowner status, I am going to work my way through this incredibly productive couple's stash of artsy-crafty, organizational, money saving, and green living ideas.  Good thing the new year is right around the corner...I sense some resolutions a'brewin...

image credits: Younghouselove.com

Joy Ever After

How About Orange is one of my very favorite blogs.
I read few blogs every single day, and that is one of those few...it's just that fab.
Well the other day I learned via How About Orange about another fabulous blog that became one of my top faves the moment I saw it.  Seriously.  It was love at first sight.

Here are some reasons why...
1. this paper ornament is just chic, artsy, classy...
2. going to a cookie exchange?  Here are some freebie tags for your goodies!
3. or why not try out this winter sangria at your holiday gathering this month?

seriously.
I am loving this blog.

...and did I mention the quotes at the footer of each page.  Totally inspiring.

image credits: Joy Ever After

Comfort Foods

sometimes you just have a couple a bad days.

and comfort foods, well, they don't call 'em comfort foods for nothing.

i saw these "featured sweets" on Bakerella and i think i might have to make them.

i don't really eat muffins all that often...

or pancakes for that matter...

but mini maple pancake muffins with chocolate chips sound pretty darn amazing right about now.

 image credits: Bakerella

Owlies 2011

My Owl Barn is THE place in the blogosphere for staying in the know about all things owl. 

I've been a fan for some time now, but when I saw THIS oh boy oh boy did our relationship deepen. 

You can customize your very own 2011 owl lover calendar with completely original completely gorgeous owl artwork!  

And as if that's not awesome enough, you simply hit submit and it will be downloaded to your desktop in seconds.  You can create as many calendars as you'd like, perhaps one for all of your owl loving friends??  Love it!  I probably spent far too much time creating my calendar, trying to find the most perfect owl to match with each month...however, I do think I came up with a winning combination ;)

Enjoy!

A New Fave

Suddenly Artistic is my new favorite Digital Scrapping blog.
Nina (I think that is the author's name) creates the most beautiful layouts.
As you know, I have been experimenting with white space and well, she is THE master!
Her layouts totally inspire me.
They are examples of just how beautiful and artsy layouts with lots of empty space and small clusters of photos, word art, and brush work can be.
You must check out her gallery.
Oh, she has awesome freebies too...we love freebies ;)