vacation

As I have already mentioned P and I will leave for a nice vacation today. I had planned to post on my regular schedule next week but the last two weeks have been quite busy, last week with having fun hanging out with friends and this week with the preparation for the trip. Why will I never learn and start prepping early enough, think about what I want to pack etc.? Already had started posts and took pictures of a small DIY project but realized it is too much to handle and I would be stressing out until sitting in my seat on the plane. That is why I have decided to take a little blog vacation next week, the instant I made this decision I felt relieved and ready to go on a trip.

In the meantime you can find me on Instagram, I will try to take some photos and upload them on the road. Also will taking lots of pictures with my DSLR camera, of course I had to order a zoom lens before leaving as well as some other camera related goodies. I will share some photos when I am back!

Hope to see you all back here again when I get back! :)

a little round up of travel related items from etsy

1. Bryce Canyon Souvenir Pennant 2. Handmade Leather Journal 3. Souvenir Pin 

4. Vintage Map of Utah 5. Personalized Lake Powell Poster

let me rope you in

I'm a little behind my schedule as I'm preparing for my upcoming vacation. So many things need to get finished before we leave for LA on Friday, where one of my friends will be getting married and from there we will be heading to Bryce Canyon and Lake Powell for some hiking and hopefully some relaxing as well...

After Erin posted a rope doorstop from Zara home about a month ago. I became obsessed with it and started browsing the internet for more things made out of rope. Now I need a cottage by the sea to squirrel away some nautical inspired gems...

  

1. Atelier 688 Manila Rope Light 2.Stonk Knots Towel Ring 3. Knot Bag by Shigeki Fujishiro 

4. Doorstop By Ballard Design 5. Blockshelf by Amy Hunting 6. Mirror by Anthropologie

Of course my favorite one, the rope knot bag is too expensive for me so I had to search for some cool rope DIY options and share my favorites with you. When you click on the links below you will be directed to the tutorials. I also found a tutorial for a rope doorstop/bookend (#4 above) by Mindy at Heart Main Home. I think I might give the rope vases a try soon, they seem to be a fairly easy project. Not so sure if anything that involves knots will be a project for me because I already have problems to tie my shoelaces properly, they are always to loose and open itself constantly. As if I need another tripping hazard...

 

1. Nautical Vase by Bayside Bride 2. Rope Shelf by ReCreate 

3. Rope Basket by Heather Davidson via Design Sponge 4. Mirror by Martha Stewart

5. Towel Holder by On My Honor 6. Rope Light Fixture by Ashley via Design Sponge

week twenty four

The week with our friend went by way too fast but I guess that's how it is when you have fun! My friend picked me up from work one evening and we took a stroll on the highline where we discovered the highline zoo, which I need to see at night because the animals are lit up. We also took our friend to see Sleep No More with us. I already saw it in January but wanted to see a second time anyways. The weekend we did a girls weekend at the Jersey Shore, although we didn't spent anytime at the actual beach because it was way too chilly. Relaxing by the pool was the way to go! 

Also last week a set of note cards by Le Canot Rouge arrived in my mailbox. Igor from Happy Interior Blog hosted a giveaway and I won. Yippeee! :)

guest post at homestilo

Today you can check out my second guest post (ever!) over at homestilo. Santa is currently on vacation in Turkey and lined up a bunch bloggers to fill in for her while she is away. You can see a little hint about my post below...

pimp the rider

Last week I wrote about pimping my (or your) bike and this week it is all about safety for the rider. I have to admit I don't like to wear my helmet because I look like an alien wearing it. Yes, I am vain but a crushed skull in case of an accident isn't that pretty to look at either. Enter the helmets by YAKKAY, they make cute covers for their helmets so they look more like hats. Also important is having lights in the front & back and maybe some cute reflectors, like the oh la la buttons (2) or the ones recycled from street signs (3). If you like to wear wide legged pants like me you might need some trouser straps as well, the leather ones from Brooks (1) come in different colors and the winged one is also reflective (8). Do you wear a helmet when you ride your bike or are you like me and mostly bike without a helmet?

1. trouser strap 2. reflective buttons 3. reflectors made from street signs 

4. reflective helmet bow 5. reflective bird pin 6. Yakkay helmet 

7. wheel light 8. reflective trouser strap

week twenty three

My apologies for posting late! I had a busy weekend, which started with an unlimited brunch (food & drink). From there we headed over to a bar at Times Square to watch Germany play Portugal in the UEFA cup. Not that I'm big on soccer but every two years I cheer for "my" team. And after the game I picked up my friend K, who flew in from Germany and is staying with us for the week. Sunday we headed over to the mall and did some hardcore shopping...

Last week P and I booked tours of Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater and Kentuck Knob. We'll be heading to PA in the fall to check out the houses and will also spend a couple of days in Pittsburgh. Coincidentally last week also marked Frank Lloyd Wright's 145th birthday! Do you like to look at great architecture and interiors like me? What has been the coolest place you have seen so far? Mine was definitely the Stahl House in LA by Pierre Koenig. You can see some of the places I've checked out in my stalking architecture column.

pimp my bike

As you might already know I'm an avid biker. I like to take long bike rides and if the weather is nice (no snow or rain) I bike to the train that gets me into the City. You can see my bike below, it is about half my age and I already rode it to high school because there were no school buses and the closest public transit bus station was about a 15 minute walk away. Getting to school on my bike took 15 minutes so it was the most feasible option, provided there was no snow or epic downpour.

I love the basket that is on my bike in the photograph but sadly the bike fell over one day and the basket broke. Since then I have been on the hunt for another basket. I would also like to introduce some color to my bike so the yellow milk bottle basket (11) would be perfect. Or should I go for the cute handlebar bag (9) that is made out of vintage upholstery fabric? Or keep looking?

How do you commute to work? Do you take a car, train, bus or can you walk to work? Or maybe you have to do a combination of different means of transport? 

Enjoy your weekend!

1. Brooks B17 Saddle 2. Electra Gypsy Bicycle Saddle 3. Bell 4. Bike Planter 

5. Sögreni Pedals 6. Bell by dringdring 7. Tanaka Bottle Holder 

8. Seat Cover by Beatrice Holiday 9. Handlebar Bike Bag by Beatrice Holiday 

10. Carrie Bike Basket 11. Milk Bottle Basket 12. Simeli Dress Guard

KleinReid

On May 9th I went to an Open Studio Night in Long Island City and discovered the most amazing porcelain by KleinReid, which was founded by James Klein and David Reid. Their goods range from vases, lighting and serveware and has recently expanded into soft goods, jewelry and limited edition prints. They even approached their idol Eva Zeisel for a collaboration in the late 90s which resulted in their Eva line. Also love their new turned wood series for Herman Miller. Their website is definitely worth a visit!

 

 

 

 

week twenty two

Wow it's already June! I still can't believe how fast this year is passing by...

On Saturday we were very busy getting our house ready for a friend who will be staying with us for a week. The guest bedroom was a mess, I stored boxes with the remaining flea market stuff in there and the bed hadn't been made in months...Now the whole house sparkles and we're looking forward for K's arrival on Saturday! We also hung a towel rack and some artwork in our upstairs bathroom. When I first hung the towel rack I missed the wood blocking behind the drywall about a quarter of an inch and it fell off the wall after a while. I patched up the holes and let the spackling paste dry. This was about 9 months ago and on Saturday I finally sanded the spackled area and touched up the paint. Don't know why I didn't do this sooner because it only took me about half an hour. Also I did all our laundry and even folded everything right when it came out of the dryer but I had a little washer/dryer accident and a woolen shirt got mixed up with the hot wash and landed in the dryer too. You can see the outcome below ;)

Sunday we did the Jersey City Ward Tour organized by Bike JC with a group of friends and after stopped by a friend to celebrate her birthday with a bbq.

Hope you had a great weekend as well!

ombre - feeling blue

It's Fridaaaaaay! I'm not feeling blue at all and am looking forward to the weekend. All items from my collage remind me of the beach and the sea somehow. I won't be able to make it to the beach this weekend though, so the inspiration and dreaming about it is all I can get. Will any of you be going to the beach?

Either way have a great and sunny weekend!

1. Anthropologie Flamenco Shower Curtain 2. Painted Dresser 3. Alder & Co Felt Baskets 

4. Painted Stairs 5. Adaura Ombre Chandelier 6. West Elm Wooden Vases 

7. o ME and o MY Wooden Spoons