Unlike painting or sculpture from which one can turn away, unlike music or film that one can turn off, architecture surrounds us.

Steven Holl

Thank You Steve

"...And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” - Steve Jobs

Rest in Peace.

Project Life 365

I have always loved scrapbooking - that much is obvious. But I have struggled with the idea of needing to cover everything chronologically, and since I would like to scrap everything from my senior year of high school to the present and onward (we're talking 4+ years of events, moments, and inspirations, not to mention every passing day with things happening - overwhelming) I also get the feeling that I'll never accomplish that or 'catch up.'

And that is disappointing.

But I came across something called Project Life by Becky Higgins, and although buying kits is not the way I approach scrapbooking, I do like what she's doing.

The basic concept is using photo pocket pages (think baseball card sheets but way better) and designing layouts using these slots for pictures, journaling, and random memories. Essentially it's like taking the odds and ends of life (things I love like ads in the mail that have pretty designs, tags from clothes, receipts from important purchases, memorabilia, etc) and placing them with thoughts and conversations from daily activities and combining them with photographs. It creates an awesome way of celebrating life, daily life, not just weddings, birthdays, and holidays.

What I love even more is the other people I have found doing Project Life (mostly throughpinterest - seriously addictive though) and my favorite by far has been Ali Edwards - her layouts are so creative and amazing. She uses multiple sizes of photo pocket pages, and even sews and trims larger ones to fit the specific thing she is scrapping. Her Project Life 365 tagged blog entires are addictive, she's on Week 26 and I've drooled over each week multiple times (not so good for the macbook..)

So I'll leave you with this image of how awesome Ali is!

I have ordered the photo pages and small journaling cards - I can't wait to start putting my own spin on this project! I always want to write down things I hear or see during the day, but I don't believe in posting all those random things for the world to see on Facebook or Twitter, so having this as a way to record things just fascinates me. Plus now I'll have a place to organize all of my movie tickets and shopping bags. If that's not bliss I don't know what is.

The End of an Era

One of my earliest childhood memories is being woken by my parents, late at night, to watch a shuttle launch from my balcony. The night launches were beautiful, and the launch today was magnificent as well (don't make fun of me if I tell you it brought tears to my eyes). But sadly, today marks the end of it all. The shuttle program is ending, and I am sad to see it go. I can only hope it will make way for a newer, better generation of space exploration vehicles :) Godspeed Atlantis! (and thanks Momma for the awesome tickets! Jobs with perks are the best!)

In other, less depressing news, Boyfriend and I will be attending my GrandBig's wedding tomorrow (!) so I'm working on a DIY way to add some cuteness to the last things left on the registry (timing has never been my strong suit, but soap dispensers will have to do!). Expect a monogram or two - it is a wedding, after all!

Happy Weekend!

Consider Me Obsessed

With this duvet cover. With this shade of teal. With ruffles. With the white to offset it.

Everything.

I am undeniably in love with this (sorry Boyfriend - you may not appreciate frilly things, but I absolutely do!) and I have had my eye on it for over a year. While it is most certainly on the 'spensive side (Urban Outfitters, you kill me) I think it is time for me to splurge (thanks, paid internship!). And in light of the new apartment we'll move in to in August, I feel a re-vamp of my interior decorating is in order!

My first three years of college have been defined by a hot pink, black, and zebra print obsession. Literally everything in my room related to one of those three. But I have come to realize that as much as I love those colors, my room needs to be a sanctuary of absolute calm - a refuge from the stress of studio and a place where I can easily sink into the wonderful realm of sleep (doesn't that sentence just make you want to dive into a pile of pillows and comforters?)

The solution? A scheme revolving around teal, gray, and white - with this magnificent duvet cover in the center! But given the high cost of this crucial piece, I have decided that the only way to justify the expense is to DIY the rest of the new decorations (so be on the lookout for those projects!)

New crafty projects AND a new ruffly duvet? Sounds lovely :)

Get Fit Friday!

We'll have to see if that title actually becomes a regular occurrence (given my inability to consistently blog as it is - regardless of theme!) but it is at least appropriate for today!

Starting on Father's Day, my family and I embarked on a commitment to eat healthier and exercise regularly - an interesting take on a Father's Day gift, but we want Daddy healthy for years to come, so a group effort seems appropriate. Plus everyone could always stand to learn a little more about portion size and get into an active routine!

I personally have never enjoyed the idea of being on a 'diet' -- I played soccer almost every day of my high school career, averaging 2-3 hours of running, playing, and drills each day. So it goes without saying that I ate what I wanted and never felt the consequences. And I'm not one for self-motivation (unless it involves crafting or architecture) and thus getting myself to stick to a workout plan during college has proved to be a challenge. And I am most certainly not a fan of running (hello, soccer - that is running with a purpose. there is a ball. and a net to score it in... but cross country? running for long distances?? that used to be our punishment for playing poorly!) and it doesn't help that I have more of a sprinters build than a distance. Oh how I wish I had inherited my mother's long legs!

But enough about me. The driving force behind this post is a gem of an app that I have become addicted to. It is probably well-known, but since it's new to me, we'll pretend you haven't heard of it. This awesome iPhone app? Lose It! (the excited embellishment is their own)

Lose It! is a weight-loss app where you enter your personal stats (age, height, weight, etc) and put in your goal weight. It then determines what you need to do to reach that goal - limiting your calories (to a healthy minimum) for a certain amount of weeks, and giving you a projected date as to when you will achieve your goal weight!

Lose It! tracks the calories you've eaten, allowing you to choose foods from a vast library with everything from grocery items to restaurants (um - did you know an order of boneless buffalo wings from Applebee's is over 1,200 calories? Yeah, me neither! And don't even think about that blue cheese!). You can also create foods when you can't find what you're looking for, and you have the caloric information on the box - a common practice for our family!

You can also include your exercise (from yet again a vast library, ranging from running to mowing the lawn) and you earn back calories for that day. There have been multiple occasions where I actually needed to go for a run in order to be able to eat dinner and stay under my calorie limit... talk about motivation!

But perhaps the best feature of this app is that you can 'friend' people and go through this weight loss journey together (read: creating competition between my dad and I as to who has stayed further under the calorie limit, who worked out more, etc etc)

Two weeks in, I am feeling much better - less tired, less distain for my body, and for once I am actually excited about eating healthy and consistently going for a run (it's even gotten easier to run - it's been a long time since I could honestly say that!) For me, this is less about weight loss, and more about re-learning how to eat and hydrate and hold myself responsible for my own body.

It might not be for everyone, but I am completely enamored - and it's making me feel lovely :)

Sweet Summertime

It's hard to believe that this is my first post of 2011! What a lazy blogger! Although in my defense, Core Design 2 Studio was literally the most insane and hectic (but fulfilling) experience of my life - averaging 2 or 3 all-nighters a week was even more of a culture shock than my first semester. But what I lost in shut eye, I gained in experience and deeper friendships with those surrounding me in studio. We have three more years to go of this amazing journey, and I am pleased to say that I am with a talented group that creates healthy competition mixed with a definite sense of family and support.

Now that it is summer, and I have caught up on sleep, I find myself really wanting to make this blog serve its original purpose. I constantly save images on my desktop for inspiration, but I'd like to actually do something with them and place them somewhere in an organized manner that allows me to look back and be inspired! Also, I am beginning my summer internship tomorrow (an awesome opportunity that I am very much looking forward to!) and am looking towards this as an opportunity to explore (with you!) office-appropriate outfits and bringing a little color and creativity into a corporate environment.

Here's to hoping that this summer will - be lovely :)