White Wash

I finally got my white jeans from Gap!

I want to be able to dress them up and wear them with springy platforms, so I ordered the "tall" size.  All of my other Gap jeans are only long enough to be worn with flip-flops or Uggs, so I thought this was a good move.  WRONG.  They hang about a foot past my...foot.

 But don't fret!  I have a solution, created by FAMOUS PEOPLE.  Style Snaps to the rescue. I've never bought at as-seen-on-TV product.  (Except a Snuggie.)  I'll do a full review once they arrive - if all goes according to plan, I will be able to change the length of the pants on a whim.  And since I'm getting 32 of them (what a DEAL!), I'm willing to share.

Please?

I wonder if my apartment management office would let us paint the bedroom this color:

 photo from my new favorite Richmond home bloggers - younghouselove.com

I sure hope so - we even have the contrasting white bedroom furniture to really make it pop.  All I would need is my dreamy orange chair and a few well-placed bright pillows.  I think my yellow and white duvet could even stay...

Need

Will buy these earrings on Friday once new credit card statement period begins:

Thanks to Whitney for showing me a new blog!

National Puppy Day!

Happy National Puppy Day!!!!  Hopefully next year I will be celebrating with my very own puppy.  Or at least by 2013.  ...and to think, some of my friends are having human babies!!!

 

Celebrate by taking your pooch out for a walk, wearing one of these:

Dog Fannie Pack, courtesy of Laura

NPR Love

I wish I had seen this in time for Valentine's Day.  Happy March 22nd!

style-myapartment-pretty

Today has been a LONG day at work.  I'm zoning out for the next 37 minutes dreaming about a few things that crossed my Google Reader today...

 

This O'Hara Bar Cart, part of the Lilly Pulitzer home decor line coming later this summer to HFI Brands would be great where our current boring (and far too large) side table is next to the couch.  I need a bright lamp with a white shade, fresh flowers, and a few back issues of Southern Living that I haven't gotten to yet stacked on top to complete the look.  And maybe something of Brian's - ha.

While we're looking at the new Lilly stuff, I could also go for one of these orange chairs in our bedroom.  Bedding and wall-hangings in the bedroom are the last thing that need to be done - maybe orange/navy will be my inspiration.  Wahoowah.  Go Dukes.

Speaking of blank walls, my cheery Kate Spade prints that I posted about last week arrived yesterday.  Now I need to go get over-sized white frames/mats.  I'm thinking I'll pick up two so I can purchase and frame this on a sliver of wall looking from the living area into the kitchen.  Brian has already given the thumbs up, so we are moving right along.  Etsy is just my FAVORITE.  I recommend that all of my DC friends get matching ones!

photo: Kim of AlbieDesigns, via Etsy

Erin says...

I'm considering a weekly post centered around Erin.  Since she doesn't actually read this blog, she seems like an excellent starting point (following that logic, I can quote just about anyone other than Whitney, Danko, and my boyfriend).  I'll start today and hope to remember to do it again next Thursday. 

Erin: ugh it's that march basketball thing again?
 all the boys love it

i wish there was like a month were it was gymnastics madness

"Where the gold at?"

How have I gone 5+ years without seeing this????  

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

unsuckmycommute

Photo: unsuckdcmetro.blogspot.com

Brian sent this to me this morning after dealing with a crummy commute due to someone jumping in front of a train at Foggy Bottom.  I particularly like the little pink peep with the iPad since that will soon be my entire office (and therefore, half the riders at Foggy Bottom).  The fire is a nice touch too.  I, on the other hand, had a lovely commute, as I drove to work for the 4th time this week.  What can I say, it's been a long week.

I love pictures

I love pictures - looking at pictures, posing for pictures and taking pictures! Recently, my family has been digging back through old photos.  My aunt, uncle, mom and dad have all found great pictures.  After talking to my mom today, she told me that her teenage self in the prom picture at the very bottom (she's on the far right) has inspired her to go on a diet.  Good luck!

Clockwise, the top photo is my mom's father (on the right), then my grandmother and grandfather on my dad's side. Both of my grandfathers passed away before I was born and I've seen very few pictures - these were new to me and so exciting to see.  The bottom photo is of my mom at prom, and last is my dad straight chillin' yo.

Vision

I have a vision.  it involves a white mat and white frame on a to-be-determined wall of my our apartment.  I've been stalking Caitlin McGauley's blog since my last post, hoping she will put some of her prints up for sale.  I'm thrilled that Kate Spade thought the same thing and now I can make my vision a reality, with some other featured artists as well.  I am going to commit to buying each season and will switch out the prints as the months pass by.  I can't wait for them to arrive!  I hope it's not too girly for my very boyish boyfriend!

Je Voudrais

Aller à Paris! Maintenant! S'il vous plaît.

These ads are great - making me want to go back to places I've been and travel to those I haven't. Great find from my new favorite online magazine - move over Lonny, Matchbox is here.

Break Needed!

I'm very frustrated with a blog post I just spent 30 minutes on and can't get to work.  Ugh.

With that, I'm going to sign off and go watch Brad fall in love with Emily on my DVR.  One thing I did discover today was a new artist to follow - Caitlin McGauley.  My mom is a watercolor artist and does great paintings of flowers and all things beautiful.  What she doesn't do is fashion - so this fills the void without making me feel guilty!  These are the perfect sunny pictures as I gear up to spend 5 days in St. John with my family this weekend.

paintings from www.caitlinmcgauley.blogspot.com

I want a baby

A puppy baby, duhhhh. I want one so so so bad. It's a good thing our apartment doesn't allow them on our floor (and I like my almost-finished apartment too much to move) or else I would've run to the closest AKC-registered English Bulldog breeder and spent all of my savings bonds on a puppy baby to cuddle with! And ohhhh would it have required some savings-bond-cashing - these smush-able cuties are EXPENSIVE. Time to start saving, Brian.

Pictures from The Daily Puppy, of course!

DVR, of course

When Parents Text: The Kemps
Dad: Cee-lo is my new favorite artist
Me: I don't want to know what you are watching that made you decide that. I'm watching The Bachelor.
Dad: Today Show of course

Big Girl

This post is a long time coming, but GUYS...Brian gave me a KitchenAid Stand Mixer for Christmas. And it's green. And it's pretty much the best thing ever. I've officially made it to the big leagues in kitchen gear - Mrs. Bronson calls this the "Big Girl Mixer." Sadly, 10 days after I got it, we both decided to go on a pretty hardcore diet so I'm unable to bake to quite the extreme I had envisioned when I saw the box on Christmas Eve. The closest it has come to making sweets was when I made meringue cookies in the picture above. I can't wait until my bikini-wearing days are behind me on March 9 to really put it to use!

Crafty

I love this idea. As someone who loves to craft (when time, budget, and - let's be real - space permit), Etsy's Special Delivery: Share Your Love 2011 is just the encouragement I need to bust out the construction paper, scissors and Elmer's glue. Sadly, the rules clearly state you cannot use glitter. Maybe I should host a pre-Valentine's Day party so I can practice my Cake Pop making, and we can all make cards for those less fortunate. ...kinda puts those dozen roses in perspective!

GChat

One of Whitney's friends recently posted a blog entry looking back at your very first gchat. As of 2:39 PM on January 6, 2011, I have exactly 8318 gchats logged in my account. The very first one was May 29, 2007, but is only one sentence long, saying "helllllllllllllo" to Connie. The first one of relevance was a month later on June 29. I gchatted with MOD who, at the time, was just finishing the traditional backpack-across-Europe post-grad trip. At the time we talked, she was in London with a boy from JMU who was her travel buddy. The trip didn't turn out as planned and she was ready to come home, asking who could pick her up from the airport since our gang was all headed to Mevans' beach house for the weekend.

At the end of the conversation, we talked about our new lives in DC after graduation and how "we will just have to find stable, normal boys in D.C." This was the perfect first conversation (ok, so technically second) because, fast forwarding to 2011, I'm living with Brian and MOD recently got engaged to her long-term boyfriend, Scott - both of whom we met in DC. Looks like everything's working out just as we planned!

Saw this at Monograms & Manicures and had to copy!

1. Keep in touch with friends and family more. This includes birthday cards, more phone calls, and now, ichatting! With one of my best friends expecting her first baby boy this spring, I must keep up with everything and everyone much more in 2011!

2. Learn more about wine and beer. This is a rollover from 2008 and is solved by making frequent trips to Lost Dog Cafe and gazing through their beer doors. I would also like to get to Screwtop Wine Bar this year, and maybe make RFD our pre-Caps-game spot.

3. Blog more. With a new computer, relatively new camera, and new apartment to spread out in, I need to get better about updating...not so much for everyone to read, but for me to look back on.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, everyone! Last night Brian and I hosted a few friends for a low-key New Year's Eve. After several years of spending too much money for too little fun we took matters into our own hands, making meatballs, pigs in blankets (WITH KETCHUP!) and other yummy treats. It was great to ring in 2011 with close friends, and even better being able to walk 10 steps to my bed!

Here we go, 2011.