Between this and the last post, you might think you're seeing a pattern. And though the last couple weeks have definitely made me want to indulge in a little wine more than usual, I'm really not much of a drinker. However, I do love having parties and hanging out in the beautiful outdoors, which is where this little baby comes in. I'm totally into this Party Bucket with Table from Pottery Barn. 

It's fun, it's functional (times two), and it's pretty attractive. The bucket is made of galvanized steel and fits into a hand-woven all-weather wicker handled piece. I think you can imagine as easily as I have how great this would be at a party or casual cookout, and ease is what good summer entertaining should be all about. 


image via pottery barn

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No matter how interested or involved in social media I am, I'm ever the print journalist, constantly taking down notes by hand -- and realizing that my handwriting has really gone downhill since college as I'm out of practice writing by hand at that length. While spiral-bound notebooks are the most convenient, they're not always the most attractive.

This adorable strawberry notebook from MoMA is perfect for to-do lists, ideas, and notes taken during an interview. The juicy exterior is made of vegan leather and the stem-styled page marker is made of suede. There's also a honey dew version. 


image via moma store

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There are so many beautiful cotton and linen napkins out there, but sometimes paper napkins are more practical or preferred, so why not have a cute selection on hand? Meri Meri's Toot Sweet line is super adorable featuring fun patterns and, on most designs, a scalloped edge. Most of them come in lunch and beverage sizes and the striped versions offer additional colorways.

Which pattern is your favorite?

How was your weekend? We had a great time in the sunshine and the water (so happy my parents have a pool)! Now that it's basically summer, I'm thinking how much I can actually do on the iPad so I can work outside more often instead of always being cooped up inside at my desk. 

If you're going to work outside, you need a comfy place to sit. Now that I've seen these special edition hammocks in Elle Decor, I'm kind of obsessing over a loftier way of lounging. 

These hammocks are designed and woven by a young collective of craftspeople based in Masaya, Nicaragua. Each piece they produce (made-to-order) is handmade using cotton and bamboo or sustainable woods.  The collective also makes a variety of hammocks, swings, and even a macrame crib!

They further minimize their environmental impact by only purchasing hardwood not in danger of extinction and use recycled paper and small amounts of tape in their packaging. 10% of the price of each item is used for community projects. 


Don't these make you just want to set up a hammock outside, grab some lemonade, and sway to the breeze? I mean, look at these amazing settings. I just want to dive into these pictures, especially the last one (see more here):

Are you enjoying all of the sunshine as much as I am? The weather has been beautiful and I couldn't be happier about it.

I am very excited to share that Arhaus Furniture and I had so much fun working together on my guest post for their blog the greenhaus, that together (and via Arhaus' extreme generosity) we are giving away their fantastic tabletop pieces to one lucky winner!

If you win, you'll receive exactly what I used for my family dinner (pictured above):

• 8 Luisa dinner plates in mint
• 8 settings of Kent Black flatware
• 1 Classic 72" x 90" Natural Linen tablecloth 
• 2 sets of Angelique Linen tea towels (4 tea towels per set)

To enter, use the widget below; there are a few different ways to enter:

Fine print: Total retail value of products is $1,392.12. No purchase required. No likes or follows required, though they're welcome! Sweepstakes is open June 4, 2014 through June 9, 2014 at 11:59pm.  Winner must be resident of the U.S.; Void where prohibited. There will be one (1) winner chosen at random within two days of the end of the contest. Please use the widget to enter and submit your entry, there are multiple ways to enter and the more ways you enter the greater your chances of winning.  For complete rules, click here. 


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My father is notoriously difficult to buy gifts for because he always buys everything he wants immediately and then there's nothing left for birthdays, holidays, or special occasions. For Father's Day, he asked for tickets to a concert he wants to attend next weekend. I bought them the other day, so I'm all set ahead of schedule, but if you're still looking for the perfect gift for your father, father figure, husband (I am), or another great dad in your life, consider getting him a Man Crate. 

With a sense of humor and a masculine sensibility — a brass-knuckle meat tenderizer, supplies for increasing levels of zombie threat, and a Chuck Rodent club cover are par for the course (no pun intended) — the Man Crates fulfill a wide range of interests and tastes. More than two dozen crates are pre-arranged or you can request a custom gift. Each set comes with a crowbar so your man can pry open his own gift which comes adorned with "no bows, ribbons, or fluff."

Two or three years ago, instead of a work shirt or video game (my husband's usual requests), I bought him a bacon-related gift pack from another vendor and it was very well-received. Personalized gifts are always much better than something you might buy any other day of the year because they show much more thought as to who someone really is and what they like. If your guy is a first-timer, the Tactical Baby Bag (top) offers a survival guide and other smart supplies for added energy during the sleepless nights (note: this comes with the tactical bag, not a crate). 

Which ones suits your guy/dad? A few of these would work for my husband, but I think he is the retro gamer all the way. 

It doesn't get any more functional than the power cord for your phone. And the way our phones have virtually become additional appendages, having an extra charger handy is always a good idea. But why should we be resigned to making do with plain white pieces when these little lovelies exist? 

Ban.do's Power Trip charger sets (for iPhone 4/4s and 5/5s only) are so cute: one set is soft and feminine and the other is bright and cheery, but both are super stylish. If you currently have the 4/4s, the set includes an adapter so it isn't made obsolete if you upgrade. When you're at the airport around one of those charging stations and everyone's phones are trailing off in identical fashion, yours will be the one that stands out (and I'm always about that). 

Last year, we ended up coloring eggs that were meant for a deviled egg hors d'oeuvre and I loved how it came out so much that I wanted to do it again this year.  Plus, I like deviled eggs better than plain hard-boiled eggs, so this way, we can enjoy the fun of coloring the eggs and I'm more likely to eat them after. 

Hard boil eggs and remove the shells.

Halve hard-boiled eggs lengthwise.

Remove yolks and mash them (if you have a ricer, it makes the filling smoother, but using any masher or fork will do).

For 6 eggs, use:
-1/4 cup mayonnaise
-1 teaspoon vinegar
-1 teaspoon mustard,
-and salt and pepper to taste


To fill the eggs, we put the mixture in a cookie press with an accent tip on it; it gives them a light and ruffled look, but you can also use a piping bag (or a plastic storage bag with a corner cut off).

We usually top them with paprika, but you can also garnish with parsley, chopped onions or chives, crumbled crispy bacon, or horseradish. 

The coloring process is the same as eggs still in the shell: food coloring + water + time = colored eggs. The color won't take to the eggs as uniformly as they do on the shells, but as long as you're okay with that, you should be pretty happy with the results. I haven't tried to do ombre or anything more advanced than combining two or three colors on the same egg, because it takes a while for the color to saturate into the egg white. We're actually doing another batch of eggs next week when my sister comes to town, so I might try to experiment a little. 

These ice cubes are so cute! We've seen amusingly-shaped ice cubes before, but these are just a little different. Silicone molds create mini icebergs for a frozen polar bear and pair of penguins to stand upon. Created by Japanese designer Hayashi Atsuhiro, they represent the North and South Poles. As adorable as they will look in your drinks, they also serve a higher purpose: as the ice melts, the cubes act as a reminder of the situation facing real animals living on the receding Arctic and Antarctic ice caps due to global warming.


The set of molds is available at Fab.



Watch the video below to see how they look in a drink and get a better sense how they're made.

This week, as part of my part-time job, I'm attending a local conference called the WISE Symposium. WISE stands for Women Igniting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship. All day tomorrow I'll be tweeting and posting from the conference and I'm excited to hear the speakers who have been successful in starting their own businesses, attend the panels all related to starting and running a business, and learning more about local businesses who will part of the expo section. 

The company I work for is a small business founded and run by a woman. My mother-in-law is an entrepreneur and I don't think of myself as an entrepreneur, but going out on a limb and working freelance as opposed to being on staff is a direction I wasn't ever sure I could succeed in. 

Marie Claire posted 11 of Coco Chanel's best quotes and they seemed especially appropriate this week. The one above is my favorite as it's pretty close to my philosophy on life and decorating (to some extent). Check out the rest of the inspiring quotes here.