Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Scarf Love and a shop with a name like mine

Do you ever think of an original idea and then see it somewhere else? At first you're like wait what?! That's my idea! And then you realize that a) it's either so good that someone else brilliant thought of it orrrr b) it needs some reevaluation. Well that happened to me recently when I came across a fabulous Etsy shop with the name Scout and Catalogue. Umm hello, shop with a twin name to my blog's name. How did I miss you when I was making up my blog name and googling like a madwoman to make sure it wasn't taken? 
After my initial mineminemine reaction I have decided that a shop and blog can have almost the same name because they are completely different things, and it doesn't hurt that this shop has me drooling all over my computer... That blue wool/silk scarf?? YES. 




Friday, December 21, 2012

Happy Winter Solstice!

Regardless of any extra hype/distraction surrounding this year's solstice (Mayan calendar panic, etc), I am really excited for this day and its symbolic and solar significance! Todays marks the shortest period of daylight all year and at 12 noon the sun will be at its lowest point on the horizon. And now the shortening of daylight will reverse and we will start moving towards those long days that I love so much! 
Winter Solstice is a great time for personal reflection, inner renewal, and manifesting peace within yourself, your family, and the world around you. 



Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Why I Need to Learn to Weave:

These pillows are fluff balls of woven goodness and I want to make them so bad. Remember my weaving obsession? Still got it thanks to these little guys. 

here

Friday, December 14, 2012

Perspective

Our world is full of surprises. A lot of them are amazing and wonderful and inspiring and beautiful. Some of them are sad and scary and make us doubt each other and feel so helpless and angry. Hearing about the tragedy in Connecticut this morning made me sick for our world and for those whose time in it has been cut so short . 

This owl paid Joey and I a visit while we were on a hike in Washington and I literally froze. It was so beautiful and mysterious. She let us hang around under her perch and stared us straight in the eyes. It was haunting and magical and a moment that I will never forget. Today I am thankful for moments like this one and the wonders of our world. And I am especially grateful for this chance to be alive. 


Thursday, December 13, 2012

Fiber Art

As if I am not already buried in heaps of inspiration and projects in the paper department, I have a brand new obsession that I cannot stop thinking about: weaving. I want a loom. I want to mix textures and colors and fibers and threads into gorgeous pieces of tactile loveliness. Of course like any hobby or art form, weaving has the potential to be ridiculously expensive. So I'm thinking a child's loom might be more of what I'm looking for to get started. I blame the Cathy McMurry Etsy shop for this weaving fever. Just look at these wall hangings! I can hardly take it.





Monday, December 10, 2012

Making your space into your place

At this point in my life, it feels like I have about ten different homes. My parents', my friends', mine, Joey's... It was especially overwhelming when I was still in school and found myself following my heart from Santa Barbara to Encinitas every single weekend! I would spend four or five days up at school in my little studio apartment, then pile clothes, books, computer, laundry, snacks into my trusty little volvo and head south for another 3 days (or 4 if I played hooky). And once I arrived it was kind of a toss up as to whether I would sleep at my parents or a friend's house. The nomadic life was fun sometimes, but this Taurus needed the feeling of home base. 

I found that a few things helped me survive this to-and-fro business. The first was stock piling my closet at home and my closet at school with two quasi-wardrobes. This sounds excessive, but basically I just took items I already had and dispersed them between the two closets so that I had the basics (warm, cold, hot weather clothes and shoes, underwear, workout clothes) in both places. I still brought home a ridiculous amount of clothes each weekend but only because they were my favorites or I wanted options. It removed a lot of the packing stress. 

The second is something that I have always done but it is a skill that I have really honed in on during my 20s so far. And that is making the spaces that you inhabit into places that feel comfortable, welcoming, and natural to you. For me, that means surrounding myself with my favorite things. I have a photo of my favorite hometown beach that moves with me wherever I go. My brother saved it for me when the first restaurant we ever worked at closed. The walls were covered in framed pictures (way before buca di beppo made the photo wall lame and commercialized). Just looking at it makes me feel happy and excited for summer, and it gives me a sense of home and comfort. 



Like that photo, I have accumulated a lot of little art and decorations that I feel really attached to and that have moved from room to room to apartment to house with me. It's become somewhat of a ritual to arrange them in each new room.  




Most of the time when I got back to my apartment after a weekend at home I was a little sad. I felt misplaced and unenthused about another week of class. I had to restock on groceries so I would pick up a little bouquet for myself while I was at the store. It felt like a mini-celebration and like I was actively doing something to help myself feel better.





 I also *tried* to keep plants alive in both locations. Honestly there were moments when I felt like if I didn't have my fern to water in Santa Barbara I wouldn't have gone back in time for class. Obviously not a smart approach to higher education, but if caring for something motivates you then capitalize on that inclination! I killed my fern...but this little guy is still thriving, thanks to a wise move from my room  where this picture was taken to Joey's room where he gets to soak up that gorgeous sunlight and now reaches all the way over and around the door.   






Thursday, December 6, 2012

New Treasures in the ParcelMint Shop!

Happy Thursday! I'm getting excited about some new additions to the shop and some new designs in the works. Here's the latest...





Click here to find all of these beauties and more for your shopping enjoyment!

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Pretty Paper

Have I mentioned that I am more than a little obsessed with paper? As soon as I saw this on etsy I knew it had to be shared. Tell me you wouldn't love this wrapped around your gifts this year. Actually, don't tell me that. But really... the color palette, those birds forming that insane spiral, that geometric awesomeness surrounding the prettiest raven ever?? I can't help it. I want it. 



Monday, December 3, 2012

Winter Pastels at Parcel Mint

I couldn't wait a second longer to share this shot of the latest batch of mini-notebooks that I made for the shop. These colors all together are sweet like honey made by happy little bees! Mint and peach and sky and gold! Scoop them up here while you can, I'll be listing them throughout this week and the one with peach binding is first on the shelves.  


Sunday, December 2, 2012

Make.Give.Wear.

Oops! One busy week and I leave you all hanging out there in blog reader land! So sorry. But while I was away I was working on some fun things to put in the shop this week, as well as getting in the winter mood with a little DIY inspo and lots of family time. 
My hopes are high for going a lot more handmade this year in the gift-giving department, and this chai concentrate DIY from freepeople is quickly climbing my to-make list. But if gift-making is not your forte, run don't walk to etsy where you can find handmade gifts as adorable as this flying bear ornament. And wouldn't you love to walk into a holiday party in those cat wedges?! They somehow feel so festive to me... but cats and christmas? Why not!