The singing ladies

Emily Price was an adorable child, and I've been itching to post this magical picture of her for months now.

*She will be singing in our wedding along with her super talented sisters Rachel, Juliette, & Elizabeth.

Jose Villa

Just got word from our wonderful wedding photographer, Jose Villa, that our engagement session photos are ready and in the mail! Expect to see them in the coming days. 

Until then, enjoy this beautiful lavender field wedding he recently photographed. Jose is one of the only wedding photographers that has not gone digital and still shoots solely in film. 

Just a photo

"Never would stop growing" by Estampillas.

Jen Gotch

I just fell into Jen Gotch's photo stream on flickr and haven't quite made it out. These flower polaroids have left me speechless and desperately wanting a flower shop.

Berry Picking

My favorite part about summer, aside from the sunnyness of it all, is berry picking :) When my brother and I were little my mom used to take us blackberry picking, and we'd stuff ourselves until our mouths turned purple. I don't know what it is about picking fruit that is so appealing, all I know is that California is a great place to be for it :)

Here's a berry picking guide for all the US States plus a few extra countries.


*many thanks to Cup of Jo for the guide
*photo credit here

Nadinoo

This London based handmade clothing line has taken my breath away. Is it wrong to want all of it?

"Nadinoo is a unique clothing label, where each style is carefully designed and handmade by British designer Nadia Izruna. Celebrating the lady from era’s gone by, Nadinoo invites timeless silhouettes and detailing to create it’s vintage felt collections. Designs include boastful bows, flirtatious frills and beautiful bell shapes in sumptuous silks and cottons from Liberty of London prints. For further information please email us at info@nadinoo.com"

Letterpress classes in your area!

Letterpress printing is such a beautiful (and expensive) art form.  If you plan on getting married anytime soon, how amazing would it be to letterpress your own invites or wedding stationary? (and save a few grand in the process)

Here are some hot spots around the globe offering workshops posted at Briar Press in the events classifieds section.

Brooklyn, New York: thearmnyc.com

Chicopee, Massachusetts maydaystudio.com

Silver Spring, Maryland: pyramidatlanticartcenter.org + bookishlady.com

St. louis, Missouri: allalongpress.com

Alexandria, Virgina: thehiveat1511.com

Pasadena, California: armoryarts.org

Los Angeles, California: lalapress.com

San Francisco, California: jordan ferney

Carson, California: printmuseum.org

Grayslake, Illinois: paperstories.com

Evanston, Illinois: evanstonprint.com

Asheville, North Carolina:

image making on the vandercook + intro to letterpress

Raleigh, North Carolina: officinabriani.com

Toronto, Ontario Canada: bookhou.com

Scarborough, Ontario Canada: snapandtumble.com

Italy: workshops.firenze-artivisive.org

Bathurst, Australia: willamer.com.au

*photo credits here

31 days!

...and counting :)



[photo via Caroline Tran]

Let the Craig's listing begin...

Now that we have the apartment, Kenny and I have turned into craigslist mongers. We've already bought 4 chairs and this adorable retro kitchen stool.

There was a listing for a telescope, too.

It took all my strength not to buy it.

Yesss!

We got the apartment!

Many thanks to all the crossed fingers out there. 

*photo credit BrooklynPhotography

Thought of the day

Hahahahaha.

Sarah Gardner Prints

I have no idea what this even means, but I agree.

Virginia Woolf

Wonderful quote by Virgina Woolf on writing beautifully and diaries:

"What sort of diary should I like mine to be? Something loose-knit and yet not slovenly, so elastic that it will embrace anything, solemn, slight or beautiful, that comes into my mind. I should like it to resemble some deep old desk or capacious hold-all, in which one flings a mass of odds and ends without looking them through. I should like to come back, after a year or two, and find that the collection had sorted itself and refined itself and coalesced, as such deposits so mysteriously do, into a mould, transparent enough to reflect the light of our life, and yet steady, tranquil compounds with the aloofness of a work of art. The main requisite, I think, on reading my old volumes, is not to play the part of a censor, but to write as the mood comes or of anything whatever; since I was curious to find how I went for things put in haphazard, and found the significance to lie where I never saw it at the time."--V. Woolf

Homemade Snickers

Whoever suspected you could make your own Snickers without all the preservatives and plastic wrapping? (After living in San Francisco for more than a day these things become important to you.)

Best part of all, the home made delights cost less to make than buying the actual bar from the store. Who knew?

The ingredients needed for these DIY-Snickers bars are:

• 1 (14 oz.) Bar Milk Chocolate
• 1 Bag (1/2 Cup) Butterscotch Chips
• 1/3 Jar of Peanut Butter
• 1/4 Lb. Butter
• 1 Small Can (Need 1/2 Cup) Evaporated Milk
• 1 Small Can (1.5 Cups) Peanuts, Salted
• 1 Cup Sugar
• 1 Tsp. Vanilla
• 1 Lb. Caramels (chewy)
• 1 1/2 Cups Marshmallow Fluff

After you’ve visited the store to pick up your Snickers ingredients, go to Instructables for a detailed recipe.

*As seen on HeartHandmade

Aurel Schmidt

I first saw Aurel's work in a tiny St. Louis Gallery around 3 years ago. Since then, this young artist has made quite a name for herself in the art world. Today one of my classmates mentioned her and reminded me how much I adore her watercolor paintings. They are intricate and beautiful explorations of intimacy, corruption, and youth.

She works with ink and watercolor on paper, which is pretty rare in the art market today. Her hyper-realistic paintings make it easy to get lost in detail for days.

Aurel shows at Deitch Projects in New York and is collected by art king superstar Jeff Koons.

Fingerpaint

 I love looking at little kid art. Have your kids made incredible paintings lately? If so I'd love to see. :)

Home sweet home

I spent the majority of last week running around town looking at way too many apartments to keep track of. On Saturday Kenny came along to participate in the hunt. Funny enough, the first one I saw during the initial stages of the search was my favorite. When I took Kenny to see it on Saturday, he fell head over heels in love too. We must be a good match or something :)

The apartment is in Potrero Hill, which is the warmest part of San Francisco. When the rest of the city is gray and gloomy, The Hill glows with warmth and sun. Our favorite part about the apartment is that it comes with a beautiful deck and garden! We share the yard with one other couple, but other than that it's all ours. It's filled with lemon trees and cala lillies and overlooks the entire city. Whole Foods is 2 blocks down the street and my studio is just a 5 minute drive south. It's like this place was made for us. 

We are still waiting to hear back from the realtor as to whether or not we got the space (there were 2 other applications submitted)--but she told me she favored us, and that she liked my shoes--so I'm crossing my fingers.

Feel free to cross yours too. :)


*Update: we got the apartment! 

A sweet-toothed genius

Harvard grad student Ming Thompson is the sugar mastermind behind the glorious website, Ming Makes Cupcakes. Not only are there stunning photographs to pine over, but the recipes of the delicious confections are included too! Don't miss the cookie and savory sections as well.

Have you ever seen meringue so beautiful?

*As seen on Cup of Joe

Melanie Schiff

I first came across the work of Melanie Schiff in a 2008 publication of Art in America. Since then I have followed her career in awe. The below review describes her photographs beautifully.

"Starring lush potted plants and anonymous shimmering objects set in the stillness of abandoned-looking chiaroscuro interiors, Melanie Schiff's new series of photographs focuses on the subtle expression of growth, and death, suggested by the touch of dusty, drifting light--life found in unusual places.

Schiff, who has previously made work bearing strong references to early 1970s feminist art, in particular the gender and ritual politics in the body art performance and photography of Ana Mendieta and Hannah Wilke, narratively re-enters the domestic space but chooses to treat it like a landscape, retreating perhaps but equally in search of a connection and communion with her chosen background.

Direct contact with her subjects is something that Schiff is particularly keen on, whether it's feminist icons or any other source of inspiration. On an earlier series revolving around her favorite music, the artist has said, 'you hear a sad song and it feels as if you have experienced it yourself; this is the way I wanted to make art, this is the way I wanted to photograph'. Folds of cloth hanging in the attic, plants miraculously growing in a home-made bathtub pool--Schiff's new project, modestly and slowly tracing the outline and three-dimensionality of a domestic reality only barely suggestive of human activity, one that's nearly fading, nearly covered in dust, slightly languishing yet sustained by a hidden, invisible source of vitality, seems like the perfect continuation of her figurative search for the light (by Lupe Nunez-Fernandez)." 

Have a happy weekend.

Wishing you all a relaxing and sun filled weekend. Mine will be spent apartment hunting and paper writing. I also foresee lots of painting. Hope everyone is enjoying the sunshine. :) Here are a few great posts from around the web...

I can't believe places like this actually exist.

The sweetest love story and 80s wedding photos.

Beautiful vintage finds.

Icing at its best.

Why are baby profiles so adorable?

I love birthday balloons.

Who wouldn't want a fabric portrait?

Animation love

I'm hoping to do a stop motion video to show at our rehearsal dinner or maybe even wedding reception. Here's a super cute one Ken found on youtube.

April showers bring May flowers

...unless you live in San Francisco, where April showers never end. How to deal with so many puddles? Get creative with your rain gear.

My dear friend Anna tipped me off on a great alternative to galoshes. Her dormant equestrian alter-ego gave her the idea to use rubber riding boots instead of boring ole rain boots. This is why we are friends.

My lovely pair arrived in the mail last week, and I spent the larger part of yesterday sporting them around town. They are cushy inside, totally water resistant, sleek like nobody's business, and if you're short like me, they hit right below the knee (hot).

Best part of all, if you feel the sudden urge to jump on a horse in the middle of the day, nothing can stop you.

*available online at Dover Saddlery

Kestrin Pantera and Jonathan Grubb

*My love for this photograph is endless.

"When Jonathan Grubb first spotted Kestrin Pantera, she was dressed as a light-saber-wielding Jedi knight. Powerful, wise and dedicated to the “light side of the force” is how Ms. Pantera described the character she sought to embody at the 2006 Burning Man arts festival in Nevada...(NYTimes)"

*Read the rest of this wonderful love story here.