sweet photos

Soft shades of pink in photographs reflect a sweet calmness. 

Here are a few of my favorite photos via my Pinterest collection. 

via Opcion tumblr

via Jellysundae tumblr

via Studiovoice, Japan

via Foreverfaith3 tumbler

Lulu

Our Lulu is 1 1/2 years old now. We cannot imagine life without her....

Father Daughter Dance

This year's Father Daughter Dance for Maya's school was themed Teen Beach Movie.
Teen Beach Movie, a Disney original, is about two surfers who mysteriously wind up in a classic beach-party movie called 'Wet Side Story'. There, it's surfers vs. bikers for control of the beach hangout-and everyone spontaneously breaks into song and dance.

Maya wanted to wear the red polka dotted dress one of the main character named "Lela" was wearing in one of the scenes of the film.

We ironically had a red polka dotted dress given to us by a friend ( a hand-me-down) that we decided to alter to create the "Lela" dress.

I first removed the sash/tie, collar, and lace applique in order to start with a blank canvas.

I cut and sewed the neckline to shape then used the sash as straps for the dress.

The collar was reused as the decorative piece along the bodice.

The dress came out really cute and it was quite easy to alter.
Sometimes moving a few things around makes a world of a difference.

As you can see, Maya had great fun at the Father Daughter Dance. She's gettin' down with her classmates in this shot taken by her daddy.

Beautiful Shop : Neest

Beautifully handcrafted products made from wood at Neest, France. 

* * *About Neest* * * 

 « Natural style of life » is at the heart of Neëst. This trend finds its inspiration in the new Japanese design which in turn was founded upon a strong Scandinavian influence. This « Natural style of life » is about enhancing everyday items by mixing vintage and contemporary objects.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Wishing you a lucky day!!!

SF Girl By Bay feature

One of my Instagram photo was selected for the  #sfgirlguide instagram round-up on the
SF Girl By Bay blog today! Yay! Although a small feature, I was pretty happy when contacted by
Victoria of   SF Girl By Bay regarding this because she is one of my go-to bloggers for design inspiration!

Crystal Cove State Park Laguna Beach, CA

Victoria thought it would be fun to put together a unique city guide via instagram. 

A visual worldwide travel guide for the best places to visit, eat, drink, and shop. 

Everyone can participate. Visit the great sfgirlguide + giveaway for more information. 

Thank you Victoria for the kind feature! 

SF Girl By Bay is a san francisco-based blogger, photographer, photo stylist, design junkie and bonafide flea market queen. VICTORIA SMITH is editor of sfgirlbybay, one of the west coast’s leading interior design blogs, featuring new product reviews, shopping tips, including art, photography and design resources, as well as home entertaining and lifestyle stories, with a ridiculously loyal readership that includes social media butterflies, top magazine editors, shoppers, and industry professionals.

Southwest Black Bean Salad

The Southwest Black Bean Salad is something I make quite often when I want something hearty, healthy, and refreshing. It's quite easy to make and very satisfying! My recipe has a bit of an asian twist.

Here's the easy recipe:

Curbly Feature

My DIY outdoor bench seating was featured in Curbly yesterday!

Curbly is a DIY design community for people who love where they live.
Many of my projects are inspired by Curbly's DIY posts, including this outdoor seating project.
I am truly honored to be featured by such a renowned DIY blog.

Here's a link to my original DIY outdoor seating post if you happened to have missed it!

Also, visit Curbly for cool DIY ideas for the home.

Funky Fresh T- shirts

I was given the opportunity to design simple T-shirts for Maya and her dance crew's school 'talent show'.
They will be performing a hip hop dance routine. With three boys and two girls in the group, I thought red was a gender neutral color and would look great on stage! Where did they ever get the name "Funky Fresh Beach Bunch" you ask? Well it was originally going to be Funky Fresh Five, however, we weren't sure if all 5 were going to be able to remain in the group. We agreed to change the name to 'Funky Fresh Beach Bunch', as a ode to their amazing 3rd grade teacher Mrs. Beach!

I was able to purchase plain colored T-shirts from Michaels. 

They carry an array of colors and sizes for just about $5. 

I printed out the fonts and black bursts (based on my digital design) onto cardstock and used an exacto knife to create my own templates. I traced them onto sticky back felt and applied to the shirts. For extra security I sewed down each letter.

 I sewed on some faceted black beads for extra sparkle.

I used fabric ink and my hand carved logo stamp to create custom labels.

I printed my own 'care' tags on thick cardstock and added details with black fine point Sharpie and gold Sakura markers (my personal favorite).

I will be passing them out today at dance practice.
I hope the kids and the parents enjoy their shirts! Fingers crossed....

Nori = Seaweed

Beautiful sheets of Nori aka 'seaweed' by Design Nori for  Umino Seaweed Shop .

What will they lasercut next?

Hippy Tree

I just placed an order for several items from this awesome shop Hippy Tree.
I love their earthy color combinations along with the quality and detail of their products.
They design clothing, hats, and accessories.

It is my brother's birthday this Saturday and he is an avid outdoorsman.
Hippy Tree  is totally his speed I feel....