The two beautiful people in this picture are my grandparents. On the back of the photo, in block print, someone scrawled: Unknown, August 10, 1942. Below that notation, in my grandmother’s perfect penmanship cursive, reads: Sue and Vane Brant, Duluth, MN – 1942. Considering the recent debate about street style worthiness and the profession of […]
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the five rules of style
The sun is finally out and after the “longest winter in the history of the world,” I am ready to do some shopping. In an effort to define my “look” for the season, I examined the trends online and in several fashion magazines (Vogue, Vogue UK, Marie Clare, Elle, Lucky, etc.) and here is a […]
Design Trends for 2014: What’s Next in Art, Fashion and Dining?
Woke up this morning contemplating a tweet I saw late Monday night on my feed. A well-known lifestyle blogger and director of her own brand and design studio, Kate Arends of Wit & Delight, gently slammed Kinfolk magazine and her “bloggy friends” (her term). She politely suggested it was time to step up our […]
Happy Hour Countdown: Inspiration Files
On Wednesday, I drew a line in the sand against the current (maybe boring) state of design, fashion, and experiences. Seems like I hit a nerve and people are talking, which is a good thing. One of promises I made in the essay was to keep the conversation moving forward and to stop editing myself. […]
Nostalgia: Daddy Pat
This handsome young man was my grandfather. I have this picture dated around 1942. Doesn’t he look like a barrel of laughs? He was. I am not sure why his birthday has hit me so hard this year, as he passed away a few years ago. My sister suggested that maybe with how crazy the […]
Pop Says: Just Be Honest
Ed Note: After a conversation with my sister today, I wanted to revisit this post. And clarify that it is an on-going challenge. But one that makes me happier each and every day I practice just being honest. Earlier this year, I was talking to my parents about my New Year’s Resolution…ummm, list. The second […]
All I Want for Christmas
After spending the morning panicking about what to get everyone on the list (and Pop noticing I hadn’t posted in a couple of days!), I decided to sit in front of the tree for a few minutes, listen to a carol (or two), and just breathe. The ornament in the picture is from my mother’s […]
Random Acts of Kindness are NOT Random
The morning of December 21, my Brother’s birthday, I happened to see an interesting and inspiring story on the Today show. You can see the video and read the transcript here. A family moved into a house and was cleaning out the previous owner’s belongings, who was a deceased elderly woman. The family found a […]
Agenda: Done By December One
Tired of feeling like I was missing the joy of the holidays, I decided to make a plan to be Done by December One. Last year, I used these holiday planning checklists and had a very relaxing December! Since it worked for me, I thought I would share it with you. Click here to download […]
Thoughts on Veterans Day
Woke up this morning and did some quick math. I realized most of the men in my life have served in the military. My paternal grandfather (above left) served in the Navy. He passed away a few months before I was born. My step-grandfather, who entered my life when I was four, served in the […]