I needed to take a cute portrait of myself for a top secret project I'm working on, so I put on my pretty new Anthro dress, my sparkly "Kate Spade" shoes (wink wink), and enlisted the help of my helpful husband to snap a bunch of pics!

I'm in love with this dress, front and back!

Jemima likes having her picture taken even more than I do, so I let her join in on the fun.

You know how they say that after a while, dogs and their human friends start to look alike? I think the same is true for how they strike a pose. Observe .....

the "gazing at each other lovingly" pose.

the "head turned sharply to the left" pose.

the "arm-to-the-side, looking straight ahead" pose.

and the "head tilted slightly to the right" pose.

But I think I'm just going to use this one for my project.

sisal rope art + 3 current obsessions

This post is going to be a bit all over the place, so bear with me! First of all, I attempted to add some height to the room (as I conversed about in the comments here) by doing this project from design*sponge. I really like how it turned out! I have to say though, she wasn't kidding when she said it takes 4-5 hours. It's definitely not a do-it-in-one-day project!

I ran out of rope before I could finish it, but I plan to add more swirly designs to the rope leading down to the "Hello" as soon as I have time. In the next day or two I'll be sharing a super fun craft project that my sister and I collaborated on. We took one very long maxi dress, cut it in half, then .... you'll have to wait and see;) Until then, I'll leave you with a few of my (current) favorite things!

1. Vera Neumann: I've wanted to buy this book since the minute it came out, and I finally treated myself and bought it a few weeks ago:) Now I want to start collecting vintage Vera table and bed linens!

Her designs are just so fresh and happy.

I've had this Vera image/quote as my desktop background on my laptop for ages!

2. An Abundance of Art: I think the organizer/neat freak in me has always said "Don't clutter up the walls. That's bad". Which is funny because I love the look of walls filled with interesting art. I had a bit of an epiphany not long after reading this post full of pictures of Kate and Andy Spade's home on M Crooked Letter. I wrote a comment saying how I wished I could have their art collection, and a few days later I thought, why can't I?!

Ever since then I've been snatching up frames with reckless abandon, and filling them with something I love ... even if it's just a family photo or a little sketch that only took me 5 minutes to draw.

3. Eye-Catching Textiles: While I don't think my love for white walls, all-white bedding and neutral furniture will ever change, my love for accessorizing everywhere with bold textiles just grows and grows.

Wouldn't this Vera Neumann tablecloth look amazing as an upholstered headboard, or even framed as over-sized wall art?

Love this navy ikat lampshade. So modern and vintage looking at the same time.

Okay, so this last example is a bit over-the-top for my tastes, but it still rocks. Go maximalism! (But only when it comes to decor).

My precious Mary Claire's wedding was today:) It's now midnight and I am WAY too tired to try and re-cap the day ... or even caption all these pictures, BUT I'm dying to throw some snapshots from today up on the blog and don't feel like waiting until a time when I can sit down and type something more thought-out, so without further ado .... check out today's wedding pics!

Me and my brother John.

My little sister!

Me with my brother Sam, and my brother John again:)

Me and my parents:)

Mary Claire and Mary Grace: BFF's since 1988!

Dancing with the bride.

a week in the southland

I'm back from a very full trip to my hometown:)

I went on a girl's trip to the Alluvian, hung out with my mama and sister ...

..and my brother Daniel:)

I made this Facebook "costume" for my brother Sam's costume party. Complete with a blank space on the right for people to "write on his wall".

And saw this gorgeous sunset during a walk on my parent's land. I also had lunch with my "Neenah", Aunt Becky and my cousin Margaret, did some clothes-shopping, and ate all my favorite foods that I can't get in California! Like the delicious white cheese queso chip dip that they serve in Mexican restaurants in the south, but is no where to be found in Mexican restaurants out here! Does anyone know what I'm talking about? I could eat bowls of it!

But one of the most fun things I did while I was at my parent's house was watch home videos that they recently converted to DVD. I brought a few of them back to CA with me and took some screenshots to share:) Check out this glamorous pose I'm striking while sunbathing on the lake.

And here I am about to go "look for rocks" with my Papa. Right after he's done waving, I tell him I have sand in my mouth and he teaches me how to spit. LOL!

But the best screenshots of all are these of me reuniting with my mama after a few days apart:)

I can't look at these without tearing up a bit. 

Look how happy we are to see each other!

I've just returned from an amazing vacation in Scottsdale, AZ, and I didn't come home empty handed! How adorable is this trench coat from H&M? I've been wanting a short, casual trench for awhile, and this is exactly what I had in mind.

Possibly my favorite thing about it is the plaid-lined hood. I think it makes the coat look extra fun and youthful.

What are those navy blue and white ruffles peeking out from under the trench coat, you ask? Why, it's this party dress, also from H&M! It's so fun and girly, I knew I had to snatch it up as soon as I spotted it. Now all I need is a place to wear it, so if you're in the greater San Diego area and you're throwing a bash anytime soon, give me a call! I'm told I'm a lot of fun at a party! LOL;) 

 I also came home with these gorgeous vintage books, a gift from my little sister Lizzie and her friend Anna. There's so much inspiration for patterns, color schemes, and decor ideas to be found on the beautiful covers! I especially love the olive green, gold, black, orange and cream color scheme of the one with the feather-looking design. Those would be great colors for a study or formal living room.

Here they are at home, next to my rather sad-looking English ivy plant:)

And that's not all! This sweet little zinc "F" letter has been on my wishlist forever, and my brother John and his girlfriend Kelli-Anne happened to spot it in Anthropologie and got it for me! I'm so excited, I just love the industrial look of it, like it was plucked off an old abandoned sign for a hardware store or something.

I think it makes a great addition to my collection of odds and ends above the sofa.

As for what I was doing in Scottsdale, that's a whole other post! Stay tuned;)