peace and out!

Just wanted to pop by to say Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays - no matter what you might celebrate - from both me and this mashugana...

...who's a little less than pleased with life right now.

A scratched cornea - probably from play with the puppy or a branch outside - means my little man will be spending the holidays as a cone-head. We plan to decorate it with bows. Or maybe reindeer horns. He's gonna love us sooooo much.

You know what's weird though? This whole thing has managed to increase my Christmas spirit tenfold. Yesterday when I accepted that a trip to the vet was necessary to figure out what was wrong, I started worrying about cost. Christmas eve almost always means emergency vet hours, which means hundreds of dollars just to step in the door. Well, a couple of hours after I voiced that worry, my family gathered around and presented me with this:

My amazing little sister had suggested everyone pool a bit of money and help me out. It is very, very hard to be bah-humbuggy in the face of that. The gift wasn't the money (they know I can afford it, it's just rough given the time of year), the gift was the care. Truly. I'm feeling the definition of loved.

Speaking of love, did you see Sara Ruffin Costello's home featured in the Wall Street Journal? No? Well you should definitely check it out. Maybe it's just because I wasn't feelin Christmas until now, but this is the first holiday decor feature that I've been really inspired by this year:

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It's so understated, and somehow she's managed to elevate writing on a mirror in lipstick from the tacky tag of a drunk teenager to ridiculously chic and pretty. I'll definitely be taking some cues from this for next year!

And with that, I'll be off. Enjoy every moment of this time with your loved ones, and eat as much chocolate and gravy as you can possibly stand. It's good for you. Promise. 

See you in the new year beauties!

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halloween = possibly the only time I'll show orange a little love

Since it's that time of year, when pumpkins are lighting up porches and costume stores are totally cleaned out (seriously, I can't even find a witch's hat people), I felt compelled to put together a little roundup devoted to Halloween's official hue: orange. And I gotta say, this is probably the only time you'll catch me doing that. 

Don't get me wrong, I don't hate orange. I'm just not a huge fan. If it asked me out to dinner I wouldn't tell it to fuck off, but I might politely let it know that I'm seeing other colours. Like pink and black and gold. And my relationships with those shades are keeping me more than satisfied (they're pretty hot and heavy).

But the spaces below might just make me reconsider orange's offer. A few of them may even persuade me to give it a second date. And two or three, just two or three (I'm looking at you sexy Ryan Korban bedroom), could earn it a visit home to meet  the folks . . .

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pumpkin pretty: no-carve alternatives

Every year when Halloween is approaching I get really excited for pumpkin carving. I get myself all psyched up, dream up beautiful designs, and make a day out of picking out the best ones before trucking them home with visions of masterpieces in my head. 

And every year, when I'm finally finished hacking away and I step back to take in my creation, with orange goo all over me, I am met with a pumpkin that looks like a drunk two year old went to town on it with a pair of pliers. 

And I don't even like pumpkin seeds. 

So this year when I started seeing no-carve alternatives pop-up I was intrigued. A can of paint and a glue gun? Now those crafting projects I can handle. Even better, these gorgeous d.i.y's have upped Halloween's girly quotient by a million, and you know I'm on board with that!

So here's a little round-up of awesome pumpkin projects that don't require any carving (and only a couple even need scooping). Almost all of these would make gorgeous halloween party decor, so if you're throwing one I hope these'll help! Make sure to click on the links at the bottom of the post for step by step instructions  for each and every one. 

My faves are 2, 4 and 20. How about you?

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