I can't leave #1 out!

Chris and I out for Brian's birthday at Kenadee's on Saturday night. (Their website is kinda embarrassing - I actually think I see cellulite on that one girl's leg). *Jenny - please send me the gaggle of leggings picture! :)

2/3

Two thirds of my boys :)

January Morning Sky

Lake Michigan provides the backdrop for some of the most beautiful sunrises. Good morning!

Just Bought...

These most adorable little baby booties from local etsy seller jenniferladd (loving the shop local feature) for a friend who just had her first baby. Yay! If Ralph or Milo were more girly I would consider buying a couple pairs for their little doggy paws just because these are so darn cute. ;)

Store Idea #1,000,002

Okay, maybe I haven't had that many ideas...yet. But here's one! This article about fusing your plastic bags on etsy is really interesting (and useful if you are like me and have 1,001 plastic bags collected and ready to take a trip to your local plastic bag collection dropoff). How about customers come in with their plastic bags, and with a minimum of 10 bags they get 10% off their purchase. Then, I fuse the bags and make them into products that the store can then sell! (Check out the related items area at the bottom of the article) - kinda interesting, no? Saving the earth, one grocery bag at a time. :)

Great Idea

Isn't this a brilliant idea? Panels of wallpaper from Ferm Living hung from poster hanging bars - such unique (and easily changeable) artwork! Looks great behind a register too, doesn't it? You could use vintage papers, leftovers from a home project, or whatever! I bet it would work well with wrapping paper too - a nice way to do something inexpensive for particular holidays or seasons. Fun!

SmartCar ForTwo

This, my friends - will hopefully be mine in 24 months or less!

Go Packers!

It's like negative one million degrees outside!

Anthropologie in Milwaukee!

I can't really even begin to tell you how exciting it is to have been able to welcome both Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie to Milwaukee this winter. I stepped into Anthropologie over my lunch break today (opening day) - and could barely contain the squeals. Had I not been shopping alone - well - I wouldn't have even tried but I didn't want to draw too much attention to my sheer, unbridled excitement. I know a lot of other cities already have these stores, and maybe other people don't share in my extremely high level of excitement. But - I work in Milwaukee's Third Ward and in just the past two years have seen such a dramatic change in this area - Anthropologie was almost too much for me to handle. Okay, maybe not. I loved it! I can't afford much in the store but that won't stop me from going in and touching everything and oohing and aahing over things like this $88 sweater I'm dying to get my grubby little hands on. Their home goods are not nearly as pricey as their clothing, so I did manage to pick up the really cute dish towel pictured above that I'm going to turn into a shade for the window on my front door. I also picked up a sweet, old-fashioned perfume bottle that was (already) marked down to about 5 dollars. Hooray for Milwaukee! (We are finally getting some decent shopping in this city!)

Three Potato Four

I came across these really cool boxes via Oh Joy! this morning - they're available at Three Potato Four - I think the styling of the photograph is really cool. This would probably be a relatively simple (and cheap) DIY and would be great for displaying sale paper stock, etc. You could even price the contents according to the number box (i.e. Items in Box 1 - 50% off - etc.) Just a fun little idea. Now - where to hunt for old boxes? What would these originally have held- like - milk jugs or something? :)

*On a side note - apparently, the bird vases (also from TPF) are pigeons - but Allison - wouldn't you agree they look more like penguins? :) Thought you'd enjoy.

Display idea

These serving platters from showlifestyle.com would be a really great collection to own for displaying specialty items - like a really beautiful piece from a personalized stationary set, a unique card or an individual print. Just something to call out and display a special item from the rest of the noise. I see them stacked into columns of varying heights - beautiful! And of course, while browsing their website I came across these beautiful nesting bowls as well. Enjoy!

I wanna go to Stockholm.

Stockholm, originally uploaded by Peter Gutierrez.

And Chris - FYI - it is the CAPITOL of SWEDEN. :) Wanna go?

laundry day?

I enjoy doing laundry. Not the folding - no no. But for some reason I like the rest of it - maybe it is just because it's easy (for most of us). I can kind of just float through it, and let my mind wander. It gets to wander a lot, probably because I do laundry so infrequently that I have to invest a big chunk of time once I finally get around to it. So, I'm thinking...wouldn't it be a really fun project to pimp my laundry area out? It's different that doing a more important room in the house - I think it would actually be more fun - less thought involved - less stressing over expenses. I could get pretty creative (one the cheap!), especially with the help of these fun pictures. I feel a weekend project coming on! (Look at the utility sink skirt- ahhh!)

saturday with Kicky and Buckaroo

saturday with Kicky and Buckaroo, originally uploaded by The 10 cent designer.

Cool photo from flickr. Loving the "blog this" feature! Expect to see much much MUCH more from flickr. :)

January Rain

A good listen for a rainy Tuesday in January - by one of my favorite favorites, David Gray.

someone else's store

have a look at one element of another stationary store - i like the handmade quality of their pricing method. cute!

color palette for a rainy monday

I think this is such a restful, peaceful color palette - good inspiration for a bedroom or any other place needing a little more calm.

Cool Sign

There's something interesting about this storefront sign. I'm filing it into my digital memory right now.

Live Wire Farm

I'm loving these beautiful pieces from Live Wire Farm. I checked out their website a few months back to drool over their gorgeous wood rings (I just re-drooled over them today, as a matter of fact).

The hooks, shelf posts and other bits would be a lovely way to bring some of the outside in, and incorporate some earthiness into your decor. I love the styling of the product photography, as well!

Winter White

These gorgeous rooms are so inspiring to me. I love all of the variations of white and gray, infused with bits of color here and there. Totally unlike how my house is decorated, but in my mind these describe my ideal style. Someday - but for now our fifties ranch just doesn't fit the dream. I guess I need an old farmhouse to lovingly restore.

Oh, to be a bride again!

I'm waiting for my wedding fixation to end, but I just don't think it's in the cards, when there are so many sweet and romantic gowns from J.Crew to swoon over. Aren't these so perfect? I love how simple they are, how organic - yet romantic and lovely at the same time. Barefoot wedding in a forest clearing? Sounds perfectly fitting.