friday faves: 9.23.11

helloooooo new format!!  i decided that friday faves should also be the friday FIVE.  so each friday i will highlight FIVE things i've loved.  just an idea - we'll see how it works out!  {but i'm going to keep the title friday faves, for continuity}

here it goes!

notes on the friday faves
1. DIY ruler-mirror frame - simple but awesome!  directions on design*sponge
2. hot pink grandfather clock painted on a door?  yes, please! via the office stylist
3. a field of balloons! as seen in montreal, where a field of 500 balloons went up for the "musée des possibles" or "museum of possibilities."  simply awesome.  see more pictures and an awesome video here.  {discovered on the blog happiness is...}
 4. absolutely killer outfit as worn by emma roberts at the marchesa fashion show in NY.  {note: dress designer unknown - everything i've found just calls it a "prom dress."  frustrating!} image credits --on left: from celebuzz; on right: from street fashion blog, first found on this pinterest board
5. an underwater park, complete with underwater bench!  oh boy, time to head out to green lake in tragoess, austria and experience it for myself!  apparently this is a usually a normal dry park in a valley next to snowy mountains.  but then when it begins to warm, all the snow melts and it is transformed into an underwater park.  seriously, time to go see it for myself!  found on the blog express-o where you can read more and take a video tour of the park.

p.s. all of these images, and much much more, can be found on my pinterest page.  and if you have a pinterest of your own, let me know!

friday faves: 9.16.11 - pinterest

where did this past week go?  maybe it's just me, but it seems like just yesterday i was putting together a little list of faves to share but really it was a full seven days ago.  my own week has been filled with oodles of conflicts and challenges and cranky moments - but nothing i can't handle!  oh yes, bring it on, world!

unfortunately, i don't quite have time for a full friday faves post so i decided the best idea would be to direct you lovelies towards my pinterest page for tons and tons of beautiful and inspiring images.  {pssst - don't have pinterest yet?  let me know and i'll send you an invite!  because it's basically the greatest thing since sliced bread.  if sliced bread inhibited all forms of productive activity.}  i spend a tad too much time on pinterest, largely because of the handy iPad app, but this results in me having some absolutely gorgeous pins.  so poke around, enjoy, and if you have a page of your own - please let me know!  i'm always looking for new inspiration boards to follow :)

just one pretty picture to get you started ~

happy weekend!

xx, kait

*photo found on this pinterest board, originally posted to the tumblr tiny white daisies

friday faves: 9.9.11

it's been a crazy work week and is not ending for me today (ahhh the fun world of retail), but i wish you all a lovely and relaxing weekend!  as for friday faves, i have a couple pretties to share today, hope you like them as much as i do ~

design/decor

ampersand at the table

love, love ampersands as decor but rarely do i see any incorporated in a kitchen/dining area.  but this little space, found in chicago home + garden, is just adorable and the big black ampersand is a perfect addition.  {p.s. see the table? it's really an old door and sawhorses. so cool!}

a yellow & gray room

... that is just beginning to take shape!  it's the bedroom of my dear [and ADORABLE!] friend, joella, who just moved to a new apartment and is in the process of painting and decorating her room with a yellow & gray color scheme.  she's on a major budget but also happens to be majorly creative so i can't wait to see how it turns out!  haven't seen it in person yet but i hope to visit soon.  until, thank goodness she has a blog! [which you should all check out because she is super sweet and funny]

fashion

words to live by

stick to this simple fact & you will never go out of style!

found on this pinterest board

etc

movie posters

for two of my fave movies, by the art of adam juresko.  fun, funky, and all-in-all perfect.  found on the blog, purple deer

a random note

for those of you not in the know (a.k.a. not in iowa), tomorrow is the big IOWA-IOWA STATE game.  whoo hoo!  everyone is throwing on their tee shirts and grabbing their beer koozies and heading out to ames - or the local bar - to support their team.  as a new iowa resident, i was super excited to take part in this.  i'm used to BEARS-PACKERS and CUBS-SOX but never cared too much about college football.  of course, when i was in college near iowa city and spending a lot of time there, i rooted for the hawkeyes because it was fun and i loved the camaraderie.  but with the risk of sounding like a fair weather fan, this year i'll be switching over to the cyclone side.  [note: if you know anything about college football you will know this is not a typical "fair weather fan" situation - iowa state is not exactly known for their football team, especially as compared to university of iowa]  this is my man friend's alma mater so i figured it was a nice gesture.  considering i don't really care and all.  (it's not like he would ever have the audacity to try and tear be away from the monsters of the midway over to the cowboys...)  unfortunately, i'll be missing the actual game this year because there is a big event going on at my store and i have to work.  boooooo!  but for any iowans out there, i hope you enjoy the big game!!

and to everyone else,
you have a great weekend as well!

xx, kait

friday faves: 9.2.11

ohhh my sweet friday faves feature, i have such a love/hate affair with you!  really, i LOVE these posts!  i love to highlight some of my fave things i've seen over the past week (or even longer) without putting together a "full post."  i love starting the weekend with some beautiful, inspiring images.  i love spreading the word about giveaways!  love, love.  so what is the "hate" bit?  i hate how i have not had the time or energy to do this feature regularly.  i hate how sometimes i even dread writing a post because it usually takes me significantly longer as i am such a perfectionist.  i hate how terrible i have been the past couple months at regular friday faves posts.  UGH.

so i've decided to take some of the pressure off myself.  i've been pretty good at consistency with the wedding wednesday feature so i guess i can be a little more lax with friday faves.  right?!  let's hope so.  i'll post when the inspiration strikes and schedule permits.  and hopefully you will enjoy what i share!  and without further ado, a few faves from the last few days of august ::

design/decor

comfy-cozy attic nook

want.this.space.  i want the chandelier, the white chest, the location -- the whole nook.  and we all know how i feel about nooks!  {via belle vivre}

fashion

a mint & rose outfit

as put together by lana over at lanalou style.  want it all... especially that dress!

etc

oscar de la renta ad campaign

came across this ad on one of my fave catch-all blogs, a spot of whimsy, and fell in love.  i have a little experience doing ad/marketing campaigns and understand how important an ad can be.  all you have is a picture.  one image and some text to show your brand and product.  but ODLR knocked it out of the ballpark with this ad for their new campaign.  i mean, who doesn't want to be an oscar's girl?!

personalized embosser for books

do i really need to explain why this is so stinkin' incredible?!  i'm pretty sure i need it...

{found on be merry, kate}

enjoy your labor day weekend!

xx, kait

p.s.  i'm actually at the lake right now on a full four day weekend of relaxation and fun so this post was written yesterday and scheduled for today.  i hate doing this and only do it once in a blue moon.  forgive me?

friday faves: 7.15.11 - a personal post

first of all, this is what i have been dealing with all week . . .

 

in case you can't tell from the picture, that is a massive tree, snapped in half, next to my house.  it's technically my neighbor's tree, and she is unfortunately dealing with the majority of the consequences, but that is not to say that we aren't as well.  the clean-up crew has yet to arrive so the tree just continues to break and fall and is now half in our yard.  debris is everywhere from the crazy storm that hit chicagoland monday, but i didn't expect it to hit so close to home.  people drive by and just stare - i smile and wave.  because really, what can we do?!  of course, we have been without cable, phone, internet, and since yesterday - now electricity of all forms.  not such a great week.  so please forgive me that this week's friday faves has to be canceled.  i just haven't had time, not just because of the power/internet outage, but also because of some HUGE changes going on in my life right now... more of that to come!

i'll leave you with my greatest "fave" of the week - a truly inspirational speech given by steve jobs at stanford in 2005 ::

 

this video was sent to me by a friend who said it truly captured what i am going through right now.  and wow was he right... without getting into great detail, a friend of mine died in a very tragic and public way last week.  although we had not been close in the past year (since i got my all-consuming job and had to move out of the city and pretty much give up my social life), it still affected me.  realizing that it could have been any of us, realizing how many dreams he had that will now never happen, realizing the pain his friends are going through... realizing a lot.  and rethinking a lot of my own personal decisions.  

then i was sent this video.  and i listened to this incredibly successful and creative man say :

"i have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: 'if today were the last day of my life, would i want to do what i am about to do today?' and whenever the answer has been no for too many days in a row, i know i need to change something.  remembering that i'll be dead soon is the most important tool i've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life.  because almost everything, all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure, these things all just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important.  remembering that you are going to die is the best i way i know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose.  you are already naked, there is no reason not to follow your heart."

i was wow-ed.  and then i took some steps towards following my heart.

like i said, more on that to come :)

i hope you all have incredible, electricity-filled, weekends, spent with those you love, doing the things you love.

friday faves: 7.8.11

back to friday faves, my lovely readers!  and oh boy do i have some good ones this week!

design/decor

chic nook

this lil nook by designer melanie coddington is my idea of perfection - classy, simple, feminine, relaxing.  i could absolutely see myself curling up here and reading the day away...

 found on design*sponge

kitchen window nook

more nooks!  clearly i'm obsessed :)

that green color, the cream everything else, and that thick cushion that looks oh-so-comfy.  want.

from my home ideas

fashion

elle fanning in marc jacobs

the girl can pull off couture like no other youngin' and i just love her retro-pretty style.  plus she's just so pretty! {think if i compliment her enough she'll let me borrow this gorgeous dress?!  hey, worth a try!}

picture from getty images, via

SJP channels her animal side in D&G

at the 25th anniversary of "annie" where she presented an award

not always the biggest animal print fan, but when it's done right it's amazing.  and if anyone can "do it right," it's the superstar-fashionista sarah jessica parker herself!

{sorry, best pic i could find.  from rcfa}

p.s. the gown helen mirren wore a few months back was also animal print and also dolce + gabbana - they must be on a roll!

etc

le petit prince journals

all-time fave book in journal form = love

{you can buy it for me - and make my day!! - here}

i want to be a monkey

if i could be any animal, i'd be a monkey.  i would climb trees and enjoy still having fingers and show love by cleaning my friends... and hug little girls like this.  and be happy :)

i mean really, who wouldn't want to be a monkey?!

found on best week ever blog but first posted on cute overload
**correction: this is a sloth not a monkey!  but i would still be a monkey.  and i would still hug little girls and it would still probably be just as cute as this.

giveaways

i'm back to spreading the word about some GREAT giveaways in the bloggy world - whoo hoo!  here's a few ending soon soon soon, so get on it!

preppy personalized platters

 

by dani notes, selection found here.  the always fabulous kiki's list is offering up this giveaway.  if i were lucky enough to win, i would choose the prettypretty platter pictured above.  then again, i would be just as happy if one of my sweet readers one so head on over to enter for yourself :)

fabulous flower accessories

wild & precious always highlights the cutest things!  this time it is the etsy shop the lovely poppy, who makes truly lovely headbands and necklaces and other cute accessories with bright and pretty flower accents.  i definitely encourage you to check out this etsy site and to go to wild & precious to enter for the $20 gift certificate!

have a lovely lovely weekend!

i'll be spending it with my lovely friends downtown checking out a blues club i've never been to, then off to waverly island soaking up the sun.  oh, and then sunday at the office.  can't ever totally get away from my workaholic ways!

xx, kait

 

friday faves: 6.24.11

first full week back in the u.s. of a.  back to the office and commuting and sleeping normal hours.  back to chatting on the phone  with my girls and wearing heels and straightening my hair.  oh, and back to my pretty things blog!  and back to the many pretty things out there in the blogosphere ~

design/decor

~ perfect entry way space ~

black & white beauty.  i especially love how the books match the color scheme!

from the always-incredible tobi fairley, in the may issue of traditional home magazine

{via the glam lamb}

~ watercolor walls ~

head over heels in love.

 by the crazy-talented black crow studios {via effortless style}

 fashion/shoes

~ craving WHBM ~

as all who know me are aware, white house | black market is pretty much my favoritest store.  and somehow it's been about 3 weeks (maybe even 4...woah) since i've shopped there!  chicka-whaaa?! so here are some of the many cute new items from WHBM that i would love right about now ::

black & white & accent love forever~

that's it for now -- off to iowa for my first weekend off of 2011!  whoo hoo!

friday faves: 6.17.11

i'm back!  and as weird as it may sound, i really missed blogging/reading blogs.  definitely didn't expect that, but regardless, true story.

so here is my first friday faves post in two weeks but i'm going to make it short & sweet, just five faves from my work trip to mainland china . . .

1. giant stone sculptures

please excuse the tired eyes and no-makeup!  these pictures were taken outside of factories where i worked long days looking at samples, photographing them, and notating all details and intended changes.  still, as tired as i was, i loved these stone sculptures and insisted on taking pictures with them - regardless of how i looked!

2. sparkly sparkles everywhere

one thing i learned about china - there are sparkles everywhere!  it can be a pretty depressing landscape, filled with dust and dirt, but by adding glitter and sequins to everything, people make it even just slightly prettier.  this building is just one example.  [one of the business owners i was with wanted me to take a picture so she could possibly make her storefront look like this too.  how cool is that?!] *picture taken in guangzhou

3. interesting vehicles

no idea what this thing is exactly, but i'm sort of in love with it.  driving around china we saw the most interesting vehicles all over, this is just one that i was able to snap a pic of.  side note: driving in china is completely terrifying.  driving on the opposite side of the road, straddling the center traffic line, and going right towards oncoming traffic (including child bicyclists) without any intent of swerving is all completely acceptable.  t-e-r-r-i-f-y-i-n-g.

4. heineken in china

... in the tiny lil airport.  baller!  i kinda wished the can looked a little more "chinese" but really, i was just crazy happy to enjoy a cold beer after a long morning.  of course, then there was 3 hours of traveling and then back to work.  sigh.

5. ocean views

planes have to land on this tiny strip of land in the middle of the ocean

view of macau

pretty pretty ocean

loved all these little islands

due to the nature of my trip (work, work, work... & more work), i didn't get to see the beauty of mainland china.  the one time i really did get to see some was on our ferry ride from hong kong to zhongshan.  the ocean was just beautiful.  i wished so badly to be out there actually experiencing it rather than in a bumpy ferry, but i was still lucky to have seen it at all.

okay, now back to the office!  time to type up notes and prepare our line for the wholesale show in only one month.  and i thought work would slow down once the store closed.  silly, silly me!

{more pictures and stories from china still to come}
~all pictures taken by me, on my junky little nikon

friday faves: 6.3.11

can you believe it's june already?!  i sure can't...  june.  june as in beginning-of-summer, june as in no-more-work-on-weekends, june as in china.  yup, the time has come - i'm off to fly across the world the day after tomorrow.  hong kong, here i come!  it will be quite the experience and i will be sure to fill you in.  until then i will just have to try and calm my nerves and prepare myself for whatever china feels like throwing my way!

and until then, i will share with you a few tidbits found and bookmarked this past week ~

design/decor

~ books, books, books ~

i simply adore this little reading nook - a.d.o.r.e., adore.  love the plush cushion, the symmetry, and of course - the wall of books!  ohhh yes, adore.  my (future) child shall have his/her own little reading nook just like this one day.

from house beautiful, via shelter by julie richard ~ head on over to see more book-filled spaces

fashion

~ summery dresses from anthropologie ~

want.  and more.

etc.

~ a motorcycle ride ~

i like to try new things often but i am also a big fat worrywart so that can create some problems.  and i have always been scared of motorcycles.  let's just chalk it up to the time spent teaching first aid and watching scary videos.  but i'm proud to say that as of monday i can cross riding motorcycles off my bucket list.  and what's better...i loved it!  i guess i'm a bit like a dog - i loved the feeling of the wind against my face as we rode!  the best part was going through the country, just being surrounded by lush green everything.  oh, and it was a huge harley so that's even better!  can't wait to go again :)

[picture above is of the louis vuitton motorcycle.  oh yes, it exists]

giveaways

~ shopbop giveaways ~

{if i won, i would get this watercolor dress by free people}
lucky lucky time for us - there's not one but two $100 shopbop giveaways going on right now!  one is at the zhush [ends this sunday], and another on miles of styles [ends june 9]

link love

~ some seriously beautiful lace dresses [lovely happenings]
~ joffrey ballet in action.  pure beauty. [a spot of whimsy]
~ julianne moore's fabulous nyc apartment [design addict mom]
~ mirrors, mirrors - everywhere mirrors! [miles of style]
~ porch swings & pillows [6th street design school]

one last pretty thought . . . 

wednesday night my friend (actually, he's my high school boyfriend believe it or not!) and i went to the little lake in my neighborhood and just sat and watched the stars over the water.  i've been under massive amounts of stress lately - "lately" as in the past 6 months, and this is one of my all-time favorite activities.  we just sat and talked and laughed.  but the best part of it all was the new bon iver album that we listened to all night.  if you haven't just sat and closed your eyes and listened to bon iver while the rest of the world is silent, then you're really missing out.
and if you haven't heard bon iver at all before, then it's time to fix that!
let's start with calgary, off of the newest album --

have a lovely week!

friday faves: 5.27.11

friday faves... on sunday.   sorry!

it's ben a crazy week and i still have a  crazy week ahead of me - my store officially closes for the season today, then it's off to h'are for a speedy 2.5 day vacay, then back home to do a ton of prep work for the big trip to china.  this past week has been a lot of tying up loose ends and shockingly not very stressful.  i think i'm finally learning to leave my work at work and relax when off the clock.  well, at least a little.  i really hope that i can carry over this less-stressful mind state to the next two weeks, as i am very worried i will get overwhelmed with the pressure.  so for now, i'll just focus on the beautiful and inspiring and calming.  here are just a few ~

design/decor

~ a bright & relaxing bedroom ~

i'm really just drawn to this space -  i love the big window, the built-in shelving, the colors and print-mixing, and mostly the huge huge bed piled up with pillows.  my own bed may have a massive pillow mound, but it is currently broken so i am sleeping on an angle.  but this bed?  this bed is glorious.
moral of the story: i want to live here.

from house beautiful, march 2008 [via housebeautiful.com]

fashion/shoes

~ bright coral shoes ~

i own these.  and they are magical.  i put them on and somehow feel happier, prettier, sassier.  

[from white house black market, of course]

etc.

~ california dreaming ~

huntington beach, CA ~ summer of 2008

ohhh california, how i love thee... whenever i get stressed i find myself looking through old pictures of mine from california summers and i instantly calm.  i think it's about time i return...

[photo taken by me while suntanning]

~ this song ~

listen & love.

{i was made for sunny days}