Our house gets overrun with “stuff”, which ebbs and flows according to my tolerance level. Some days I’ve had enough, and out go the magazines/newspapers/computer printouts/child art project stacks that would be more than happy to take over if I’d let them. Another major offender? Shopping bags; specifically, plastic shopping bags. We live 1.5 miles from Target. It’s dangerous. I have no problem running over there daily to pick up whatever I’m “needing”. And the Starbucks inside isn’t helping – hmmm, a green iced tea and errands completed in one stop? The result? Lots and lots of plastic Target shopping bags. While we do reuse the bags as our under-the-sink garbage bag, our inventory was far greater than our needs. So, I decided to finally get with the program. I bought the shopping basket pictured above from Garnet Hill a few years ago. Real Simple (I think) featured it, and I thought it was so cute, and versatile – perfect for pretending I’m in the city (but really, my life is as suburban as it gets). Stored in my trunk, it was ready to go. Except I wasn’t ready. Yet. Finally, this spring, it just felt right. I’ve been taking it on my smaller Target runs, to the mall, to the farmers market …. and while the initial reactions were of confusion (“Do we sell these baskets?” “You want us to put the stuff back into this?”) , now it’s more of a “hey, that’s cool” look. It’s a small step on the way to greener living, but I’m trying …. and more importantly, I’ve made it a habit ….Today’s NYTimes also talks about ways to cut down on the plastic shopping bag glut (Anya Hindmarch’s canvas bag is the hot alternative to have – get in line!) Did you know that less than 1% of plastic bags are recycled? Read about it at nytimes.com.
Our family has a couple of weddings coming up: my brother is getting married in September; one of my sisters follows in December. Throw in an uncle and a cousin who are also tying the knot this fall, and you can quickly see where my weekends are going. (Oh, and speaking of weekends scheduled – soccer starts next week. That would be a whole month earlier than last year.)But back to weddings. Elisabeth of Black Pearl Press also recently got engaged, and she’s writing about some of her plans, and inspirations, as well as her lovely letterpressed work at {Frolic!} this week. {Frolic!} is one of my favorite blogs. It’s a daily “must read” – I love Chelsea’s taste, so I always feel inspired after I read her post(s). (Her gorgeous May garden party hooked me in ….) The same is true with Elisabeth. I’ve followed Black Pearl Press for over a year, and I can honestly say, if you’re looking for beautiful letterpressed invitations or announcements or stationery or whatever, she should be at the top of your list. Read all of Elisabeth’s guest-blogger posts at {Frolic!}, and be sure to check out her letterpress work here. Congratulations, Elisabeth!
This is totally and completely off-topic (and probably deserves its own post), but as an “older” woman, I am fascinated with? astounded by? saddened at? Gawker/Jezebel’s coverage of Faith Hill’s July 2007 Redbook cover. Wow. I guess all I really need is Photoshop! (and someone who is adept at using it.)
What a weekend! We spent Saturday morning at Planter’s Palette in Winfield, picking up a few perennials to “fill in” where our gardens needed it. And of course, if you’re already driving 45 minutes for plants, what’s another 15 for some awesome fruit salad? So of course, we went to Moveable Feast, too. Yesterday we visited Grandma & Grandpa at the lake. The weather was perfect for a little boat ride, a little water skiing (not me, though) and a fine dinner al fresco. To get there, we took the long way through Milwaukee in order to stop at Broadway Paper and check out their warehouse sale.
Have I mentioned before that I’m not a good sale shopper? Well, it held true to form. I scanned the sale, and then ended up picking up some cards and a birthday gift while looking through the shop. Love that store! They’ve added lots of new designers since my last visit. Off the top of my head, I recall seeing That Sky Blue, Blue Ribbon Design, Linda & Harriet, Mr. Boddington’s Studio, and Fiddlesticks. They also had Paper + Cup’s new Era weddings album, although no Communique office supplies/goodies yet. The suspense is killing me!Hmmmm, I think I went a little crazy at Broadway Paper. (Emily, I saw lots of Orange Beautiful cards, too! They looked great!) It’s the store’s fault, though. They have so many cool lines of paper that I get a little carried away. I’ve decided to add some links for “Letterpress Bliss” on my blog’s side bar. The first installment is chock full of good stuff. Click away, and be prepared to be inspired.
Happy Monday!
SaveSave
The weekend is upon us! And I’ve picked up some reading after my Thursday B&N run(see above). Reviews and snippets are sure to follow …. Thanks, R!
This morning, we’re off to the local Farmer’s Market to pick up some berries and veggies (and truth be told, some cookies and muffins as well). It’s a gorgeous day, so I’m looking forward to walking the booths.Here are the Five:
- it’s all sunshine and roses
- clutch purse winner (love the handwriting!)
- They look like bumblebees to me
- untitled
- Fairy light bokeh
Have a great weekend, all! See you on Monday ….
This is a little piece of the sky above our house yesterday. Love the blue with a smattering of clouds to study. It was a perfect weather day: our reward for surviving the 90s. Little things like that make me smile ….. and today promises more of the same. I’m looking forward to running outside, and drinking it all in.Good food photography also makes me smile. And last week, I discovered another photographer to love: Lara Ferroni. She has two blogs that I’ve been checking out:
Cook and Eat, full of pictures of the yummy food she’s made, and Still Life With …., a more general food photography blog. But perhaps my favorite of her sites is Plates & Packs. I love the abundance of simple yet gorgeous photos. (Visiting her “Travel/Near” photos makes me feel like I did get to Seattle last week – as for “Travel/Far”, well, I’m just plain jealous ….) Thanks, Lara!
Carpe diem!
Since we’re speaking of food, check out Food & Wine’s website if you get a chance. Their August issue looks wonderful (I will have to pick this up at the newsstand while I wait for my subscription to re-start. Don’t ask.) I’m looking forward to reading “Honor Thy Farmer” and “Nantucket Chefs’ Clambake”, and I am planning to make some zucchini cupcakes.
