it's september - i'm outta here. (+ auggie re-cap)

ah. we're at the beach. on plane. climbing a volcano. catching a wave.... living la pura vida. (ok, maybe in 12 hours we'll be there).

thrilled that i'll be spending the first part of september in costa rica.. the middle part of september in the hill country celebrating one of my best friend's bachelorette and bringing in cooler weather as october nears. bring it on! so ready for fall. and ready to run in some cooler weather. (did i mention i signed myself up for a half-marathon?!)

here's what you missed in august:
a very pathetic july re-cap
new couples shower games at charm & fig - good for baby shower or weddings
some custom work & moving announcements at charm & fig
my countdown to costa rica - etsy treasury and a wipe out!
taking time to make some freaking lemonade.
neon & neutral moleskine journals. made with lots o' love & hand-carved stamps.
a very one-of-a-kind shower invite: tex-brit baby!!

some fun instagram photos along the way... (are you following me yet?)

a view of buffalo bayou park from my mothers -- looks like a 1950's architect's rendering of a model park.

working on a FUN project. will reveal the full thing in late september.

jon & i's attempt to recycle some wine glasses.

goodies from the pinpoint method. check 'em out.

mas projects. neon & neutral.

favorite donut. shipley's strawberry sprinkles. donuts are better than muffins in every way. (taste, calories, joy, etc.)

a good running day for me.. 5 miles.

sprinkles cupcakes - houston, texas.

picking out postcards from penguin books collection.

bracelets made from recycled flip-flops. these colors make me happy!

jazzed up my already peeling mint manicure with some color. just in time for costa rica.

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summerfest tie-dye

it's one of my favorite weekends in houston -- free press summerfest! here's a pretty festive shot of the flaming lips letting loose with all their colorful balloons...

like any music festival, summerfest is always a little fashion show... but once you get there you sweat your brains out and laugh at the idiots wearing leggings, skinny jeans, stilletto heels, etc.

this year i hadn't really planned what i was going to wear so i took a couple of jon's white cotton shirts and made some tie-dye tank tops with my friend andie. for the colors, i used rit dye. i only had scarlett red, royal blue and yellow on hand.. but did some guessing on mixing colors and came out with these results.

for andie's we dipped the sides vertically leaving a little biased white strip inbetween the indigo and chartreuse.

(also, thanks to andie for bringing over some starbucks vanilla scones. choice tie-dying nibbles!)

 for mine, i dipped the bottom, tied off sections on the top for some starburst and shredded the back because a: it looks totes 90's and b: it will keep me cool! breezes of all kind are welcome in 90+ degree heat. 

here's the final looks after we cut them up a bit... what do you think?

but, wait! there's more... check out the summerfest posts i've written for other blogs around the internet:

pre-show tips on transportation & more at downtownhouston.org.

highlights & post-show tips at chevydriveshouston.com.



 

may expectations ( + april wrap-up)

eeeep. it's may. busy time for us as we're moving toward the end of the month, which means we'll be packing-up from here on out. we're not going far, just a few miles south of here.... so i'll be getting up close and personal with a familiar neighborhood.

 i also expect to be outside playing a lot more this month-- we joined a kickball league, and while it seems to be centered around drinking, i'm actually looking forward to the exercise aspect of it (no joke). bathing suit season is coming up and i'll take what i can get.

here's what i was up to in april (and my fancy instagram photos too):

march re-cap

two DIY projects to bring some pink in your life

people who make things - sara lowery ng of noble house designs

my newfound love affair with texas dewberries

stationery shop is open for biz.... charm & fig

totes cray cray & ping pong ( look, i enjoy writing like a tween).

juicing.. this batch had a single beet in it. it's a pretty saturating vegetable & helps purify your blood among other things. plus, make's everything pink for a few days... :)

I'll do a full-on juice post soon!

mas sparkles por favor.

swoon for spoon. hey britt daniel.

margarita at tacos a go go in the heights! we'll miss this place when we move.

me & jon watching a friend play at a crawfish festival. sunny days.

mailing off my friends & family samples for charm & fig.

max was born!

me & max. just a couple hours old.

wahoo! sending off some etsy orders.. clearly, i need to purchase some stamps worth more than 45 cents. 

my home town is celebrating the arrival of its minor league baseball team and brand new stadium. thanks to my dad for inviting us! we had a blast. 

the stadium is gorgeous... it was definitely designed for families. every where you look, there's something for kids to enjoy... and pretty good beers on tap (saint arnold!).

 

people who make things: sara lowery ng of noble house designs

sara lowery ng is the brains behind noble house designs, an amazing accessories line that is all about statement pieces. when i first met sara, she was wearing an indian-inspired necklace similar to this. 

when i found out she made it herself, i bombarded her with questions about her how she got started, balancing her day job and noble house designs (a topic we revisit in this talk) and so much more. not only does sara have killer lady style (picture lily pullitzter and kate spade at coachella), but she's funny, loves to travel and has a tremendous entrepreneurial spirit.

sara in india with a little elephant

where are you from and where do you live? And how does your environment relate to your work?

i am from columbus, ohio originally but have been living in houston, texas for over 6 years now. my work is all about color and allowing your accessories to match your personality. colorful, inspired by traveling the world/other cultures, not afraid to make a statement and yet still easy going. as an outsider looking in on the southern/texas lifestyle, women are well accessorized and love to dress up and are always put together at all times...  so its an inspiring city to see such fantastic muses for my jewelry.

what were your favorite creative outlets growing up?

i absolutely loved drawing and coloring when i was younger! when i was really little ( i think around 4 or 5) I would watch my favorite disney movies and color in my coloring books.  when i was in high school, i loved my art classes and loved to sketch and draw while listening to music.  around the same time, i started to appreciate vintage fashion and accessories.  so, my creativity took a long time to develop and understand how to use it.

tribal earrings - noble house designs

what are you favorite materials/medium to work with?
 

i really love any materials in vivid color.  i just crave colorful baubles and beads.  i like to mix up the high end gemstones with vintage plastic beads.  as long as the color story works, i will put anything together.  

what influences or inspires you?
 

fashion and Interior design magazines  - i subscribe to them all!  but i love how editors put together a color story and edit their picks.  it reminds me to go crazy but edit and then edit again.  i also enjoy how they inspire to show us beautiful things.  i also am influenced by vintage fashions and jewelry. i love anything from the 1970s.

nautical citrus - noble house designs

spring/summer 2012 - hazard necklace - noble house designs

how do you work through roadblocks on a project or piece?
 

i used to stop, walk away and come back to it after a day or two.  now, i work thru any roadblocks that might come up and make myself sit thru the frustration and do it.  i found if i walk away from a project with hopes to come back to it – i never would.  so i would waste a ton of momentum in the design process. i would have an idea and never see it to the end.  don’t get me wrong, sometimes the pieces that i work thru to finish are hideous!  but i usually learn something from the process.    

what has surprised you most about how your work has evolved, if at all?
  

that my style really has evolved. i have found my voice in my pieces that make me unique and i hope, tell my story. but that has been the most surprising!

black & gold vintage - noble house designs 

whats the hardest part of balancing your day job and noble house designs?
 

good question.  the hardest part is making yourself focus on issues that you don’t care and are not excited by. its been a struggle but if i didn’t dislike my full time job so much, i would of never ventured out and started NHD. things always happen for a reason :)


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there you have it! shop noble house designs to add some serious color to your wardrobe. and be sure to check out sara's blog, where she writes about color trends, home decor and her favorite things.

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two (neon) pink projects

been inspired by neon pink big time. saw these awesome neon pansies over the weekend... (sidenote: i want a garden so badly. we had chardonnay mojitos with fresh mint at tiny boxwood's and that delicious cocktail really put my garden envy in overdrive).

i tried to transform these worn out flats into something a little more fun. i taped them off, painted them with neon acrylic paint, then sealed them with mod podge. i'm sure they will crack and last less than 10 wears, but i was planning on throwing them away anyway.

 here's the finished product.. and i swear i didn't turn up the saturation on the color, they are very bright.

next up -- my friend andie sent me a project she found on a wedding website. all it was was wrapping jars with rope and tacky glue. we picked neon pink and white. really liked they way they turned out.  

the wider jars will probably be used for citronella candles on summer nights and the bottles will be hold wildflowers.

now i'm infected with neon stripes. everything i see, i'm picturing a neon stripe on it...your dog? stripe. that wooden tray that holds my magazines? stripppppe. baskets, electronics, chairs...stripe. stripe. stripe.

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