TAKEOUT

Greetings from California! Pete and I are spending a long weekend in the San Ynez Valley to photograph a wedding that's happening tomorrow. We made a last minute decision today to take a horseback ride on a 1,000 acre vineyard/farm. Everything went smoothly aside from my severe allergy to horses, which I thought may have decreased since my last ride a few years ago. But, alas, my eyes are swollen like golf balls and my nose has yet to stop running.

Sexy, I know.

Not to worry, though. We went to a wine tasting immediately after our ride (during which I really couldn't smell or taste anything—sigh) and I drown my allegry-ridden sorrows in the red and white. 

In all seriousness, though, it's indescribably beautiful out here. I'll be sharing some images from our travels next week.

Until then . . . a little bit of long-distance Takeout.

+ YES to this clutch.

+ Hey, Clevelanders! Eater National recently named Nano Brew as one of the 12 Hottest Craft Beer Bars in America Right now.

+ This made me chuckle.

+ Being a teen in the 90s. Hilarious. I think #23—falling asleep under the stars—might be my favorite. Did anyone else choose to decorate their bedroom ceiling with those hideous things? As an aspiring interior decorater, I also chose to subsitute my closet door with rainbow colored beads. Sigh.

+ Artifact Uprising (that company I've been blabbin' away about lately) was recently featured on Design For Mankind.

+ Super useful info.

+ Lovely styling by Rebecca of A Daily Something. The girl's got skill.

+ The Coverjunkie Magazine is now in the collection of the MoMa bookstore! Great news for all cover lovers!

+ Dying over the Awkward Family Photos feature in this month's GQ.

TROUBLE WILL FIND ME

I'm going to go ahead and state that the cover art of The National's new LP is one of my personal all time favorites. It stopped me dead in my tracks and has kept me looking ever since.

Now onto listening . . . if it sounds as good as it looks, my head might explode.

If you're interested in learning more about the album, you can read reviews here and here.

BROOK FARM GENERAL STORE

I discovered the Brook Farm General Store yesterday through a Designlovefest Instagram, and boy ohhh boyyyy.

Any shop that's beautifully curated and reasonably priced is always the best kind of find!

I am a sucker for any item that turns an ordinary product into something aesthetically pleasing. Do you see how sexy that dust pan is up there?

The products above are some of my top picks from the shop. Also on my wish list: These brass hoops and stainless steel straws!

SOMETHING OLD

Peter and I photographed a wedding last weekend in Oklahoma City and I left reminded of another life lesson as I always seem to do at each celebration we're a part of.

While the bride, Cassandra, was getting ready, I was photographing her shoes, dress, and other accessories as I normally do on wedding days. While I was sorting through her belongings, I found a small green box, big enough to fit a ring or a very tiny pair of earrings. Inside the vintage jewlery box were the diamond studs from the photo above—perhaps the earrings she had purchased to wear for the day, I assumed. When I attempted to lift them out to photograph them, I discovered three rings and a monogramed pin with the initials EFJ also inside the box.

I proceeded to ask Cassandra if the belongings were hers or someone elses in the room, and she informed that they were her grandmother's, who had passed, and that she would be wearing the pieces in memory of her.

Weddings can easily be filed into the cliche category. We all know the saying "something old, something new, something borrowed, something . . ." you know how it goes, ladies. The jewelry in the photo above was Cassandra's "something old." To an outsider, the rings, earrings and pin were a few possessions that fit into a category of that age old English rhyme. To Cassandra and her family, they were one of the most special parts of a monumental day in each of their lives.

Everything any of us has ever owned is simply an object—without our lives, our loved ones and our stories they would all be meaningless pieces of well . . . nothing. Her grandmother's ring isn't the only thing Cassandra walked down the aisle with that day—she held on tightly to the memories and unconditional love of her grandmother, and celebrated one of the most joyful days of her life with her grandmother in mind and close to her heart.

TAKEOUT

So, this post officially marks another week in which Takeout is being posted on Monday instead of Friday. Sigh.

Bear with me, guys. If the next few days go as planned, I'll have something for you to check out each day this week.

Moving forward.

Do you all remember my recent post about Artifact Uprising? Well, I made my edit of 12 iPhone pup pics for my wood block purchase!

I'm over the moon about this original way to display more than just one or two photos around the house of my fur babes. I'm a firm believer in getting your digital photos off of your computer, camera, phone, etc. if you truly want to reflect on and enjoy the memories you've documented!

And, finally .  .  .

 + In love with this piece.

+ Stitched & Wired recently made some changes!

+ Rodarte’s White Swan Tutu from Black Swan.

+ The perfect solution for a sheer dress via Designlovefest!

+ Showstoppers.

+ David Beckham recently announced his plans for retirement. While I'll miss him on the pitch, I'm glad I'll still get to see him looking dapper as ever on the red carpet. Such a sharp dressed man. And by man I mean M-A-N mannnnnnnnnnnnn.

+ If this chair is comfortable, it will be miiiiiinnnne! Perfect for front porch sittin'. This one too!

+ A Q&A about co-sleeping with your kiddies! I'm not a momma, but found it interesting.

+ Illustrator Kate Bingaman-Burt has always been a favorite and her website is lookin' prettttttty damn good lately.

LONG HAIRS

I was sorting through files today and stumbled across this old photo taken by Kelly Brown. We've both gotten shorter hair cuts since then—always a mistake.

ARTIFACT UPRISING

There are few things I find more satisfying then singing the praises of companies I truly believe in. I'm always overwhelmed with excitement when I have the opportunity to share an awesome product from an equally awesome business with all of you.

And that brings me to Artifact Uprising. I could type an extra long paragraph regarding the reasons I think this biz rules, but I'll leave it up to their who we are section as their team has summed it up perfectly.

The wood block with prints (below) is the first of many products that I must own.

The wood block is handcrafted in Colorado using solid deadfall beetle-kill pine reclaimed from Colorado forests. The fine art paper prints are formatted square to fit your square images from instagram, etc. AND, you can re-use the prints as note cards or postcards - or tape them to your wall.

The best part: the whole little setup is only $21.99. I'll be placing my order as soon as I can get around to selecting my 12 prints—most likely of my putchies (dog lady, I know).

Also, be sure to check out the other products from their shop like this wood calender:

STEPPING OUTSIDE TODAY