10 CHA faves + some extras.

l.a. was a weird, but good time! i highly recommend staying in little tokyo when you're in l.a. the amazing sushi, ramen (which i'm still dreaming about) and prime availability of hello kitty goods were all amazing, as well as the nearby yogurtland and weiland brewery! i had a great time with the craft critique girls and loved seeing a bunch of my other fave scrappy peeps. the c.c. girls kept me mostly sane during my flight home drama (4 canceled flights) and had a really great time seeing more of l.a thanks to sarah, and her cousin, who let me crash their family time while i was not-so-stranded in l.a. for an extra day.

the actual CHA show was pretty much a whirlwind, as always, and there was a whole bunch of new & inspiring things! now that i've had time to decompress i thought i'd share just 10 of my favorite new items/releases.

01.SMASH* from ek success - i pretty much fell in love with this the second i happened by the booth. i think my text to sarah went something like this, "ohmygodsmashbookdrooling." you can check out more pictures of the bits and pieces and my article all about it for craft critique here, the main break down is that there are 4 different styles of SMASHbook (at least now) that you use the SMASHpen (half glue stick, half pen) to SMASH things into the book with. then there are a whole score of cute accessories and embellishments to help tell your stories and save your memorabilia! it's kind of like a gateway drug to scrapbooking, or a modern approach to old school, o.g. scrapbooking. my favorites are the awesome date/saying stamp, washi tape with words, metal clips, pockets and the little jotters!

02. wrmk sew easy add-ons - i've already been loving my sew easy, but now there is even more to love; new floss (including bakers twine), new wider heads (including 2 different banner shapes) and a storage case that you know i'm dying to own! check out my full craft critique article here.

03. lawn fawn stamps - i'm loving this little company even more now that i've met the designer and friends who run it, they are so sweet and really love what they do! i really can't wait to get my hands on the "say cheese" & "critters in the forest" sets. i see so many cute paper piecing and copic marker-ing opportunities here! check out how cute their booth was, and some more of their new release in my craft critique article here.

04. hambly washi tapes - i didn't run across any scrappy ladies at the show who weren't loving hambly's brand new addition to their repertoire, washi tapes! they pulled from their new and existing paper/transparency patterns for the washi tape and it's something a lot of people, including me, are stoked to use, plus it was so fun to see a very pregnant allison, so cute!

05. sprinklers from october afternoon - awkward name aside, this mist-able paint, a new product for o.a. at least, is something i'm really interested to try out when it starts shipping. the basics are something i've already seen around the industry, but i'm pretty smitten with this set of colors here, especially "robot blue" which happens to match my nails right now. check out my october afternoon article right here.

06. "campy trails" thickers - it's no secret that i am thickers obsessed, and the fact that i'm picking just 2 new thickers fonts from the new american craft release is a testament to my desire to keep this post short-ish. i love, love, love the colors and fonts that coordinate with the "campy trails" collection. the "meadow" font is printed glossy chipboard, and usually i don't love all caps, but i am obsessed with the fact that these have a cream background. "forest" is woodgrain patterned glossy chip and just super yummy in general. you can check out the 4 new collections, and the rest of the thickers, in my american crafts article here.

07. crate paper's "portrait" collection - this is crate paper's wedding/heritage collection but i just see so many possibilities for this collection that it's crazy! the colors, patterns and chip bits are to die for. can't wait to get these in my mitts. crate paper's entire release from CHA is pretty awesome, if they can make me love a floral, they're doing something right. check out all 4 new collections in my crate paper article here.

08. new "double dot" patterns - the original double dot (tone on tone polka dots on one side, tone on tone distress on the other) has been popular for a while and now they have come out with 3 new double sided basics patterns! i love the new "journal" best and the hexagons on the backside of the "stripe" are pretty cool in some of the colors as well. i just think that the "journal" will make such a rad base for many a layout. you can see the rest of bo bunny's new stuff here in my craft critique article.

09. mme "stella & rose" - this is the newest rack collection from my minds eye and, as always, the colors are so saturated and beautiful i'm kind of drooling over them. 4 different color families, lots of new little bits and the 6x6" paper pads are pretty cool too.

10. maya road mini sets - most of maya road's new mini chip sets are pretty cool and have ideas spinning in my head already, but what really caught my eye were these two sets of mini canvas banners! i know that banners are everywhere, and they will jump the shark soon enough, if they haven't already, but these little canvas guys (they're only about 1.5" long) are really kind of precious, don't you think? how sweet would they be misted with splatters of pigment?!?

there is a ton more CHA coverage up on craft critique including tons of new companies from every crafty persuasion, and here are the rest of my articles from CHA;

* my cute stamps

* clip it up!

* webster's pages

* sassafras

* fancy pants

* making memories

three.

as in three quick layouts to share, and yes, 2 of them are partially titled "3".

here's my layout for this month's sketch flyer at the store. i used a whole ton of the new "heat wave" collection from american crafts. you can't really tell in the picture, but the wave paper and little details of the ice creams are a really nice sealed in glitter that's really fun.

i also used their new 4x6" flap protectors to add a little flip book of additional pictures to my layout on the outside of the page protector (the brads go through the flaps, front of the protector & layout) i'll definitely be using these again soon. they'd be a great way to add less public journaling, extra photos, track listings, little bits of travel memorabilia or just about anything else.

i used a combination of basic grey's new "olivia" and crate papers "paper doll" for this guy. i have scrapped some of the pictures from our little bridge photo shoot in the past, but i kind of can't get enough of them. it's way more flowery than i normally go, but i really love the pops of chartreuse and teal counteracting the girliness just a little bit.

i know, i know another layout with "3" in the title, but it just kind of worked out that way. i thought i'd document the 3 kitties before they are split up (milo & annabelle are coming with me and the boy). i used the newest studio calico sketch for this one and just extended it to a 12x12" rather than an 8.5x11" i love the teal and burnt orange together in basic grey's "max & whiskers" collection so i leaned heavily on that part of color palette. it was fun to use some theme-y paper for once. : ) and i love, love, love the pulled thread look of this background paper.

a little summer to do list...

have you seen the brand new night owl press stuff yet? so cute! this card is one of their new customizable wood invitations/save the dates! check out their stuff here. anyway, this is just a little mini list of some fun things to do this summer since i've been working on a great big list for the year ahead, but more on that later...

a little wishful thinking...

there's nothing like a little birthday wish list related wishful thinking...

01. trip to lake tahoe 02. nixon chalet in walnut (still) 03. 4 door wrangler rubicon in metallic olive (the most perfect wrangler color ever) 04. seychelles "get outta town" sandals (they seem like a perfect brown summer flat) 05. fox ear flap hat from cottonhill's etsy (the boy says he will pretend he doesn't know me, but i deal with neon yellow on a daily basis so he can hush) 06. red shiba inu puppy (they are like little ginger house friendly foxes!) 07. tickets to "american idiot" on broadway (NPH gave it his endorsement) 08. rayban wayfarers (a true classic) in dark marble 09. birthday photoboothing with favorite people 10. adobe photo shop elements 8 (i think this is the one i should get, suggestions?) 11. rei 4 person tent (because you have to camp to have proper s'mores) 12. "happy logs" iphone skin (since the death of iphone 1 i always have a soft case on, but i'll know it's there) 13. a king size bed with bartlett sheets already on it 14. true blood season 2 on dvd 15. the anthro wooden radio with mp3 hook-up (it's half off!)

it's june 5th, e-mail me to find out where to send those gifts too, haha. yeah right.

so umm...

... this happened. we went to bloomington for the boy's brother's graduation and came back with these two. the boy's brother visits a pet store near campus all the time, so we went with him for a visit and fell in love with these two pups, and then once we found out they were the last of the litter it was all over. the boy's mum called the airline for puppy tickets and then we were out the door to pick them up! cali is the boy's brothers and axl is the boys and mine-ish. they are so sweet and so funny and so cuddly and obviously the most adorable mix of mutt ever!

i have already surpassed my layout count in 2009...

... so that's pretty sad as far as 2009's scrapbooking goes. : / oops! i blame it on cards, classes & general creative laziness. this year is definitely feeling way more inspiring! not that there weren't fun things in 2009 that i totally spaced on scrapping, but i can always go back. here are some more layouts to add to my 2010 layouts folder.

this is kind of a junker layout, one of those ones you do when it's been a while since you scrapbooked and you have to get your legs. the photo is one rhian took of me on my last full day in europe. we went to walk up and down the hills surrounding a couple of the bays in wales and it was really gorgeous, a perfect, reflective last day. this was for the sketch challenge we're doing at the store each month, but although i like bits of it, it wasn't doing it for me. so i made another one...

... this one is more like it. i'm not usually a butterfly or floral girls, but something about this boysenberry, brown & chartreuse struck me as necessary. plus i pretty much die for these dark, dark brown glitter thickers that came out with the "dear lizzy spring" line. kristina and i up to trouble as always, this time was going to see the get up kids at my favorite venue in philly for sing along fun, nostalgia & meet ups. isn't it funny how different two layouts can look even though they are both based on the same sketch?!?

love these shots rhian and i took of each other crossing dublin castle grounds, and with the crazy green grass i had the perfect excuse to use "green at heart"! i had posted this on the store blog with a little tip about using the hambly rub-ons on a like colored paper for a cool clear embossed look, the doilies are the best for the tone on tone look. also, love these white puffy thickers, one of my all time favorites!

this is another layout for the store blog's tip of the week. i peeled the backing off a set of october afternoon alphabet stickers from the new "fly a kite" collection and stuck them to a sheet of kraft so that i could cut them up to use as embellishment & background and i can also see the letter stickers better without the backing! these photos are blown up photobooth shots from the first time the k's met (kerry & kristina), i seriously do love these 2 birds. i also used the awesome new cosmo cricket core impressions paper (teal, sanded woodgrain yum!)

hopefully the layouts and creativity will keep coming.

a spring to do list...

... because i officially deem it spring simply because i just can not take any more winter! but first, let's check in on how i did with my autumn check list.

not the worst ever, i was wearing heels more than ever before in the beginning of autumn. i'd say i crossed booking my bristol trip +. perfect fall boots have been attained (even if it did happen in the winter). 3 shows is a pretty poor showing but it's almost to 5 right? i didn't get enough harvest moon for my taste, but it did happen.

and now, on to spring's edition, i'll try to remember to work on this one a little more diligently!

p.s. that first notepad is from boygirlparty and the second is from knock knock. go check out all their awesomeness for all your list needs!

the conclusion...

... to my england & more trip, in case you were dying to know how the rest of it played out, in enhanced daily facebook status update form (i filled in some gaps & added links to photos and videos all over!

day six: dublin: rhian & i rushing to our gate & getting snagged at security because we were more than a little sleepyeyed from our 2 hours sleep, a super early arrival in Dublin, a bacon butty for breakfast, a long walk to tour the Guinness storehouse and enjoy the crazy sick 360degree view of dublin from the sky bar while having the freshest of fresh pints, we snagged lots of photos at Dublin castle, st. patrick's cathedral & trinity college along the way, Guinness stew for lunch & a little nap in our overl toasty hotel room on the river liffey. walking around temple bar & grafton street, the most amazing boxty dinner at gallagher's and early jammies & girl talk while we waited for the irish dancing show to be over downstairs because it sounded like they were putting it on in our room, haha!

day seven: dublin/bristol: a delicious amount of sleep, bad irish tellie & a relaxing morning, running to a bus, flying through fog, riding through rain/snow in another bus (i really must tally at the end) and making it back to bristol to have to say goodbye to miss rhian : ( a freshly ready dinner, lots of tea and talk, attempts at blogging, planning for the rest of my stay, some british tellie, back to back skype appointments & passing out sleepy!

day eight: bristol/bath: waking up to bright sun rather than hail and nixing our rainy day bristol aquarium plans in light of the unexpected sunny day. bristol city farm to visit nicole & milo's garden allotment, talk to animals & eat at the cafe. a trip to bath to wander, snap tons of photos & listen to lots of 90's & early 00's pop rap in the car while rapping our hearts out. just barely beating the snow & hail on our beautiful drive home. amazing dinner at planet pizza. dancing & singing along to more 90s hits including veruca salt. skype & sleepies.

day nine: bristol: walking all over bristol and shopping around the college green. working on house party hopes 5: brit edition. preliminary packing. milo's amazing dinner of a chicken roast with gravy, potatoes & parsnips, stuffing and steamed carrots & broccoli. more glee, i now have nicole & milo properly addicted. unbelievable sleepypants.

day ten: wales: roadtrip with nicole to wales & conversation so good we didn't even notice we hadn't even had any music on until we were arriving. rhian, dan & zoe picking us up after i purchased more randoms at sainsbury's. a beautiful, hilly drive to swansea to walk on the beach & up and down the awesome & relaxin winding, hilly trails with nicole, rhian, dan & zoe to see as much as we could see. lunch/dinner on the pier followed by the best ice cream ever. a quick visit to the falling mumbles castle. tea at rhian & dan's and some conversation & photo swapping before our trip back to bristol to pack my things for my journey home.

day eleven: traveling: a just-about-teary goodbye with nicole at the bristol bus station as i headed out for my full day's journey via bus, express bus & airplance back home where i was so psyched to have the boy waiting for me just outside of customs. i managed to watch the first period of the usa v. canada hockey game before jet lag set in and bedtime came at just 9:30 est, haha.

i had an amazing time and am so fortunate to have awesome friends like nicole & rhian who took me in and out & about for what ended up being an awesome 3 country tour of a little slice of europe! it was so nice to come back to home & the kitties though. definitely the perfect length of time for the trip. so amazing. lot's of scrapping to come!

house party hopes 5: brit edition

i will actually already be at heathrow on my way back to the states when this publishes, so we'll call it an ode to this journey, haha. it was mostly worked on while i've been here, which explains the shorter than normal track listing, i've just been doing too many things! anyway, enjoy what there is!

01. "this too shall pass" by ok go

02. "run" by vampire weekend

03. "sun hands" by local natives

04. "souls of gold" by sister crayon

05. "fences" by phoenix

06. "rome" by yeasayer

07. "i start to run" by white denim

08. "i like you so much better when you're naked" by ida maria

09. "all is love" by karen o and the kids

10. "there are listed buildings" by los campesinos!

11. "fix up, look sharp" by dizzee rascal

12. "air force ones" by nelly

friday five #18

01. skybar - rhian & i really, really lucked out with the most beautiful dublin weather on wednesday! and, because of our early (read: operating on 2 hours) flight, we had already done and experienced and absolute ton by lunch time, including a little turn about the guinness storehouse that ends in a free fresh guinness at the skybar, which is atop the storehouse with a complete 360 degree view of dublin from above. it was beyond beautiful, as evidenced in the reflection of the sky in the mirror topped table my expertly poured guinness was resting on. (also, look at this stop motion video rhian made. it causes me to explode into a semi-violent giggling fit.)

02. shreddies - i've been having these for breakfast just about every morning since i landed! they are kind of a denser version of wheat chex with a slight sweet taste, almost like a really light honey. super delicious. they may very well be added to my short list of foods that will have to start being shipped to me in the states. also, are you ready for the cutest bit? they're tag line is, "knitted by nanas!"

03. olympic hockey - this is officially the first time i've ever actually cared about anything olympic related, and it is just about completely impossible to see any of the olympic hockey games here in england. grr to that business, but yay to the fact that i've at least been able to follow the scores in real time thanks to the scorit app and team usa is winning across the board! the boy is recording all of the nasty match-ups on sunday, and you can trust that i will be watching them as soon as humanly possible upon my return to the states.

04. tea - i've only ever been a tea drinker as a last ditch effort to stave off illness... until bristol happened. maybe it's the chill i know is just outside the window, maybe it's being surrounded by interesting boxes of tea, or maybe it's simply in the air here! i'm finding it cozy, comforting and actually even pretty yummy. my favorite at the moment is clipper's organic nettle tea.

05. bristol city farm - it was supposed to be hailing today so nicole and i were readying ourselves for a day spent at the blue reef aquarium here in bristol, but what we awoke to was instead a beautiful blue skies kind of day. we threw on clothes and headed out to enjoy it for as long as it would last and our first stop was the bristol city farm! nicole & milo have a little allotment here where they work their own little bit of garden and have some veggies & such. there is also a little cafe there that serves amazing food made with ingredients grown in the allotment. and obviously i'm a fan of anywhere i can pet pig noses, talk to whooly sheep and visit with sweet little baby cows! we also went to bath, which is a story for a whole 'nother blog entry.

so far...

bristol really has been delightful, to use a very british word and i'm having an excellent time. it really was travel from thursday evening in the states until late friday afternoon here in bristol, with a time change that really attempted to kick my bumm. i did enjoy the train ride from london's paddington station all the way across englad to bristol, at least the bits that i was awake for. the only other time i've been here was on a school trip when i was 15 and we really only saw very tourist-y parts of london. so, it was really cool to pass all the little villages and the huge open spaces inbetween. then i had loads of fun catching up with nicole over lots of tea.

by day two i was feeling way more human and felt like i could actually function on a non-zombie level. a nice relaxing morning scheduling some blog entries, munching on shreddies (they're like chex meets shredded mini wheats) & french pressing coffee. then we headed out & about in bristol and did some thrift store shopping before heading into the stokes croft section of town to meet some of nicole's "mates" for lunch at a really cute kitchen like cafe near her studio, which we also visited. it was really cool getting to check out this really artsy part of the town and seeing a bunch of original banksy stuff out on the streets (bristol is his hometown). then nicole had a yoga class to teach, so i half watched the rugby tournament milo was watching while i worked on my valentine's mix until nicole came home with a tiffin full of amazing indian food in hand. we all watched the first episode of glee on my laptop (they hadn't started watching it yet) and then i got to talk to the boy for a while on skype before heading to bed to finish my sleep catch up.

it's true, i have been horrible about taking pictures in bristol, as in none so far, but i do want to go back to stokes croft and photograph loads. But, we were much better in london. and so, that brings us to nicole and my london overnight:

we took the bus into london on sunday (talking, giggling & reminiscing the whole way) and then headed to our hostel to check in to what was supposed to be a six girl dorm, but we ended up just having it to ourselves the whole time. it had cute little pod-like bunk beds, but that was about as far as the charm went, haha. we did some shopping without much buying around the hostel, including a visit to my first top shop. we then rested our shopped out feet at the king george pub with some really yummy burgers & chips and my first proper british pint. then we decided that a silly fluff movie was totally in order for two girls apart from their boys for valentine's day (even though we aren't big valentine's day girls) and went to go see "valentine's day" the movie in a theater full of couples and one row of girls, haha. it was definitely silly & mindless, but it made me cry at the end (which isn't hard to do) and we giggled a couple of times, so it was worth it. then it was back to the hostel for a bunch more girl talk before heading to sleep...

... which was impossible because there was either no insulation or sound proofing at all in the hostel, or everyone was wearing clogs. there was also a talkative nightingale and pigeons "getting intimate" on our windowsill. needless to say we were pretty much already awake by check out time, with very little sleep leading up to it. we maintained our happy level by resting with some morning coffee & tea before heading back out for more london adventures. we also treated ourselves to day passes for the underground and didn't allow ourselves to feel guilty for sometimes taking the tube for just two stops, haha. we did a little more shopping and looking around, including the actual orla kieley shop (it was wonderful, but even harder to spend the money on in british pounds, so i left with just pictures) and then headed to camden town for lunch along camden lock and then spent the rest of our day at the stalls in camden town market. such a fun, lively, packed place to be. totally inspiring and full of things to see everywhere you look. i scored a couple of really fun, cheap buys whilst out and about. then we headed back to victoria station to meet one of nicole's friends for some coffee and chatting at victoria station before we headed to the coach station to take the bus back to bristol where i went to my first sainsbury's grocery and found a candy i had been looking for and an adorable bag i had seen a girl carrying that turned out to be a cheapie reusable grocery bag, haha. obvs snapped it up right away, especially since it was just 1 pound. a bunch more skyping with the boy, lots of usa hockey talk, and then i totally passed out to rehab from our london adventure.

tuesday we laid low, finished recovering from our london adventure and had a super lazy day. we headed out once to sainsbury's for some staples (i am obsessed with ryvita pumpkin seed and oat crispbreads with hummus on them! best crackers ever) and we also got everything we needed for dinner because it's pancake day! that's what they do for mardi gras/fat tuesday here. you have savory and sweet pancakes (which are really what we would call crepes in the states) for dinner as a last yummy hurrah before lent. it's not really my last hurrah, but i'd never turn down a good crepe dinner. i edited some more london photos, did some reading, planning & packing for dublin until rhian got to nicole's for our little pre-dublin sleepover and then we sewed all my fallen buttons back on to my new coat and talked ourselves to sleep to at least get a little rest before our 6:30 a.m. flight to dublin this morning.

having so so so much fun so far, missing my mum, the kitties, the boy & the store, but also looking forward to loads more fun in dublin with rhian and back in england with nicole before i head home on the 22nd!

friday five #14

i can't believe i've been mostly keeping up with this for fourteen-ish fridays! that's fourteen lists of things i've discovered, become obsessed with or am into that particular week. i'm loving the time-capsule-like quality of it, even now when it's only been a few months.

01. woodland creatures - i've been known to break for a leaf or shadow that looks like an animal from time to time and my heart hurts when i see a little group of deer grazing by the side of the road or a bunny or squirrel darting across the road all panicked looking. so, when i'm on a back road or in my complex i stop, roll down my window and give them a little mothering talk about the dangers of roads. is anyone else this crazy... or is it just me? p.s. the stitched fawn & flower is from here.

02. dublin - it's official! i'm going to dublin with rhian for a couple of days while i'm visiting nicole in bristol! i can't wait to finally get to ireland and i really, really can't wait to have a crazy fun adventure with miss rhian! i have the dk dublin top ten book, but am looking for a little more insight. anyone have anything we need to check out whilst we're mucking about?

03. new spoon - the new spoon album, "transference" came out this week and i am in absolute love with the dirty, under-produced garage vibe it has going on. it's like older spoon and i'm in love. it's already been playing in my car on an almost constant loop, and i definitely recommend it for the cozy feel.

04. cosmo's "boyfriend" woodgrain alpha - obvs i'm a little late in the game with these, but i couldn't decide if i needed them needed them, or was just blinded by the woodgrain. turns out i did need them need them, a whole 3 sets worth. oops! can't wait to play with them asap!

05. orla kiely store - a light bulb went off this week when i realized that when nicole and i take london i can finally visit an orla kiely store! you can find bits and pieces of her collections here, and she did that little line for target a bunch of months back, but this will be my first trip to her store where i can check it all out in person and try not to do a ton of damage. i see the possibility of something fun and orla in my future!

2009 christmas wish list

so in lieu of a friday five this week , i'm doing 25 christmas wishes!

01. a new wool coat, this one has pleats! 02. frye whipstitch hobo in "cognac" 03. shark mittens! 04. custom address stamp from paperwink (kristina turned me on to these, so good!) 05. prague (my airfare from london, not the city itself!) 06. "sagaform" dishes from huset 07. felt lowercase alphabet scarf 08. new penguin hardcover classics 09. steve madden "stardom" flats (studded, pewter faux snake skin! they're like an 80's hair metal video in shoe form!) 10. more ink for the lifestyle letterpress system 11. wooden fox necklace by joanna rutter whose shop is currently down : ( 12. "big love ring" in winter colors by pink saguaro. jen spotted these! i heart the gray one! 13. yellow bird project hoodie 14. dublin! (again, not the city itself) 15. sweetheart tree necklace by lisa leonard 16. julie west "chubby book" 17. "and then..." limited edition screenprinted poster by julie west 18. 2010 critter calendar (printed on wood) from night owl paper goods 19. always the fold over mid-city tote in grey by foley + corinna. always. 20. the chalet watch in walnut woodgrain by nixon 21. repurposed vintage paint by numbers united states cut out from somethings hiding in here 22. ever since they were in the anthro catalogue last year; "benjamin button boots" by matisse in brown have been in my dreams 23. orla kiely "tripp" large tote 24. "anna" plaid dress and "athena" braided belt (yes, i still shop at delia*s even though i'm 27) 25. a merlotte's mug (can't wait for true blood!)

it's good to have wishes that are totally out there, right?

friday five #06

kerry, bacon and all kept me so busy in austin that there was no time for last week's friday five, that's why it's a vacation though, yeah? on to this weeks five!

01. where the wild things are - i was so psyched to see this at the alamo draft house theater while i was in austin and, at least for me, it totally delivered. i thought it was completely gorgeous. it made my heart hurt the whole time, and tears stream down my face the whole last 1/3 of the movie, but in an amazing way. for me it was a study in just how hard it is to be a family and the things we are all afraid of. everyone else who i've talked to who has seen it hasn't really been into it, but has at least been able to admit that it's beautiful to watch and that it's pretty amazing what they could do with 7 or 8 lines in a children's book. i can't be alone in loving it though! anyone?

02. the new moon soundtrack - so i've already gushed about the death cab single from this album, but now it's available for complete download! there's a couple of misses for me, but the lykke li song, "possibility" is warm, syrup-y and cozy and the bon iver/st. vincent track, "roslyn" is also really hauntingly pretty. it's a pretty good listen almost all the way through, especially for a cloudy fall day (or forks washington). i have to say though, bella's oh-i'm-falling-apart-and-risking-my-life-because-a-dude-left-me attitude was a little annoying in the book, but the trailer for the movie, with the stammering, rapid blinking, collapsing & screaming is really making me kind of grossed out. is it possible i'll not see it?

03. frank - austin was very much about lots of awesome food. kerry had heard about frank from someone and so her, drew and i headed there for dinner one night while i was visiting and it was amazing! they make their own sausage and hot dogs and offer them in amazing combinations. their classic hot dog stuffed with cheese, wrapped in bacon and then fried was so yummy that i ordered a second, haha. we were a little curious about their choice of bacon infused makers mark though. if you're in austin you need to check it out.

04. heels! - while i was in austin kerry's friends were having a mad men themed party, so we teased in some bumpits, put on some awesome mad men era clothes and kerry charmed me into some heels, which i never ever wear! i borrowed a pair of her dknyc heels and fell so in love with them that i've already purchased them and they are on their way to me now. i have to say, i might actually follow through on my autumn intention to wear heels!

05 . kerry & bacon - kerry & bacon made my austin trip completely amazing, as always ,and i can't wait to blog it and scrap it! love you guys!

falling leaves & an autumn breeze

so thanks to a little help from cosmo cricket's adorable woodgrain from their new "nutmeg" collection, which i just put out today in the soon-ish to be re-opened store, i bring you my official autumn mix. i'm slightly bummed because i realized that i included some tracks from my mix for the dares, but they still hold. let me know what you think!

in the mean time it's a combination of unpacking at the new store & packing at home for my austin trip and i'm feelin' it!

in the works...

lately i've been way more inspired to work on mini albums and layouts, rather than just cards, and i think it has everything to do with my recent ruthless clean out of my scrapping area. i think since i've gone through my entire stash somewhat recently i actually have an idea of what i own and finding myself excited about embellishments and papers i forgot i even owned, like those crazy old school junkitz letter stickers! 

since my return from austin i've been wanting to make my album about the trip, but i sometimes have trouble working on a project that i have such high expectations for.  i already knew i wanted to use the chatterbox wood veneer albums as soon as i saw it, and i have all my photos printed with the "color craft bonus picture" frame from big huge labs, but i've been having trouble deciding on just the right collection of papers. 

i always associate color combinations with certain people or different events and with this trip it was all about the modern/salmon-y red, avocado & teal inspired by a row of shops right off south congress street that i fell in love with on my very first day in austin. so, i have finally picked my final collection of papers (from 7 different manufacturers, yay!) and decorated the front cover of my album, now to work on the inside pages, decide between typing or printing my journaling and go on the hunt for some very large d-rings! wish me luck!