WANDER + FIND

Alt Summit SLC

24.1.13

Welcome to my city and my state Alt Summit! (Am I claiming Utah as my state? Whaaaaaa?! Colorado pride is fading…)

This is the first time I will have participated in this wonderful design/blog conference here in SLC. I have always wanted to be involved in this. I would just sit here and read what all the other bloggers would wear, learn and report from the conference. I would be so jealous.

Then! About 2 years ago I got serious about starting/relaunching a blog. (I had started oh, about…4 blogs before this one.) I read, researched and studied every blog. And kept reading, researching and studying. Getting nowhere. Then my senior year in school came and I need a BFA project…I thought, kill 2 birds with one stone?! I started it officially! …well the reading, researching and studying started officially. I had a design class from the fabulous foodie blogger Heidi from FoodieCrush.com and she pushed me to JUST DO IT. So I put my research to work and bought this domain and got all the handles. Still nothing. It sat here for months. What am I going to say? write? do?? Then I interned with Heidi and learned more. I knew Alt Summit was coming, so I saved up for it. And bought my ticket within minutes of the tickets going on sale! I knew once I bought my ticket I had only a few months to really try. It motivated me to JUST DO IT. JUST TO WRITE & DO!

This blog is nothing special or anything, but I’m proud of it. I haven’t quit! Now, my blog is nowhere close to where I want it to be but that’s why I am going to Alt. And I am amped to make an awesome bloggy blog!

Goals for ALT SUMMIT:

Figure out what direction I want my content to go. I feel all over the place…?
Be a better writer & photographer.
Have awesome, original DIYs/crafts.
Network with fellow awesome bloggers and collaborate!
Start/contribute a local Utah bloging community.
Learn to manage my time and posts.
Utilize social media better.

My heart says to BE BRAVE, so I will.

One place to another

18.1.13

As I sit here on a full train all I can think about us how none of us know each other but we all are here. For this one moment in time. We’ll all have this memory but different knowledge. We all came from a place and going to another. Just living. And we all collide for this ride. None of us talking. None of us looking. Just here.

Axis41

14.1.13

I got a new job. I know right?! I’m a job jumper. But I think this is it. Frontrunner ride and all!
I liked my time at Adobe but Axis41 asked to interview me about a month ago. I said no thanks and that I already had a job. They kept emailing me and I kept declining. Axis41 is a digital agency in Salt Lake City and I don’t really do digital…I made this known to them but they wanted to interview me anyway. After many emails I gave in. This was someone else’s dream, not mine! Axis41 is awesome and lots of designers want to work here! Plus I knew I wouldn’t get it, so I interviewed. It went fine. Then they called me back for a second interview. I went. It went fine. I kind of started to wanted it but I couldn’t express enough that I’m not a digital designer!!
I was in Mexico when I got that offer letter in my inbox. I was nervous but really excited and scared out of my mind. This is BIG TIME!
I got a real job at an amazing agency within days of my last semester. I’m blessed and honored with lots of digital learning cut out for me. And scared out. of. my. mind!
I can see myself here and that’s scarier than anything else. Time to move to SLC?! I think so! :)

Christmas

25.12.12

I’m normally traveling for Christmas with my family. For years now we’ve traveled instead of presents. We all love it! But this year we’re not traveling until December 29th, so I got to stay here in Provo to celebrate my friends birthday with brunch and friends, decorate my apartment with real wreaths, go on Provo nature Christmas journeys, and make snow angles.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas!

December 21st

21.12.12

The world was suppose to end today. But waking up in my bed, the blue winter light illuminates the new day, I realize I’m alone. No one to witness this beautiful light with, no one to celebrate this apocalypse escape. There is so much I want to do, so much to behold. But not by myself. I start to wish I was tangled up with someone warm. This thought is overwhelming, I want someone to witness this light with. But who would it be…

an indefinite continued progress

17.12.12

I never knew it’s power.

Never believed it was real.

It controls us.

It tore us apart.

But we’re still here.

So is it.

Waiting.

I hate it’s dominion.

It continues.

An indefinite continued progress.

We’re an indefinite continued progress.

Of existence.

Of it’s existence.

Time.

Huge Ass Heart

12.12.12

I worked for a company that did lots of wall vinyl, wall art, and home decor (stuff for like Target!).

After this project I will never judge women who have bought or who will buy wall vinyl, because look at this HUGE ass heart?! I am so in love with it.

Before:

After:

Add some words:

This idea is a combo of this & this. Sarah’s craft room black board wall is amazing right?! So jealous. But wall vinyl is perfect for an apartment dweller such as myself.

DIY mugs & hot cocoa

10.12.12

It has finally started to get cold and snowy here. The photo was taken at work (Adobe) looking north on I-15.

I love the cold weather. It makes me want to snuggle up and read. Walk in the freshly fallen snow. And drink hot cocoa.

My favorite hot cocoa recipe:

Heat three cups of milk over medium heat. Add three tablespoons cocoa powder, two ounces dark chocolate, & a quarter cup sugar. Whisk to combine, as the milk heats the cocoa powder will dissolve.

Serve with a peppermint stick, marshmallows, or bourbon. But my favorite is extra creamy whipped with a Pirouline Chocolate Hazelnut rolled wafer…

I painted on these mugs from Crate & Barrel and I followed this post from Wit & Whistle.

TIPS & TRICKS: only do half the mug at one time, it was too hard to handle and you’ll mess up the paint. So do half one day, wait the 24 hours, do the other half. Bake the mug. And as for the little hearts, tap into your days of puff painting! For the left side of the heart, squeeze a dot, pull the blob down and repeat for the right side, meeting the blobs in the middle. I loved puff painting, I miss the simple times of the 90′s with all that teal.

Black Sheep Cafe

08.12.12

I have heard all sorts of wonderful things about this place for months now. So I now can say I have been to the Black Sheep Cafe and the only thing I regret is that I waited so long. So good. I got the Navajo Tacos and the Pear Lemonade. Amazing! And their Christmas lights are just charming.

Sorry about the bad food photography…haha…it’s a work in progress.

Station 22

01.12.12

I have always been a huge fan of Station 22. But now I cannot stop raving about it. They recently gave themselves a little make over. And, damn, doesn’t it look goooooood?! It finally fits. It finally feels right. I highly, HIGHLY recommend the chicken and waffles! So good!

The 22 lights up and it’s the most perfect shade of teal neon I have ever seen!

Not to mention their graphic design is alright too! Finally people are starting to catch on that design is key in to making their business legit!

These mixed-matched chairs are my favorite! I just want a big group of friends and family gathering in here. Oh! And all the waiters have to wear hats, it’s great!

Beehive Bazaar

30.11.12

The Beehive Bazaar is one of my favorite events that happens here in Provo & it’s happening right now! (Though the Bijou Market is quickly becoming more favorite…time to step it up Beehive…) So much creative talent is here in Provo, here are some of my favorites from this year.

I bought lots and some of my other favorites were: Mineral + Matter (omg so good!), Richard Bingham | moss (Richard get a website already!), and always the Sycamore Street Press, & Lars Loves Letters! Find all the other artist here.

Soel Boutique

27.11.12

Today is my birthday. I am officially 27 years old. Let’s go shopping!

Soel Boutique is by far the best boutique here in Provo. They carry some of the same lines as Nordstrom and Anthropologie. This is my latest favorite sweater of this winter season and it came from Soel. Happy Birthday to me.

The Gold Party

27.11.12

The Gold Party!

I have never had a birthday party (my 5th birthday princess party doesn’t count), I have never really liked my birthday, I have Thanksgiving to thank for that.

I have dreamed about my golden birthday for as long as I can remember. I always planned on going on a huge trip to Paris or something. But since I have already gone to Paris I thought I would throw my first and only birthday party for my golden birthday!

And this is how it went!

Once I get all the photos from my photographers I’ll post them!!

HAPPY 27th BIRTHDAY TO MEEEEEEEEE!

hearts!!

Communal

24.11.12

Communal is one of my favorite places to go for brunch. Bring your girl friends & get a warm beverage & their oh-so-good biscuit with homemade jam & just chat about life. This is the best way to spend your Saturday morning! You’ll eat every bite, I guarantee it.

Spray painting

23.11.12

Buy masks and spray paint them! I’m thinking these for the photo booth at The Gold Party!

Happy Thanksgiving

22.11.12

Since I use my oven as storage I will be buying my Thanksgiving Dinner in the form of Chinese Food. I feel like this is an episode from a tv show or something…

Can’t wait for this holiday to die. This holiday doesn’t even make sense. Because I seriously doubt that those Pilgrims and Indians actually sat down and ate a turkey together. I mean, think about it…there is no way the Indians said, “Yeah sure white dudes since you took our land and gold (aka corn, thanks to Disney’s Pocahontas we know the true story) we’d LOVE to have a dinner with you.”

Whatever. Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

Thanksgiving Eve Tradition

21.11.12

As you know, I dislike Thanksgiving…but there is one Thanksgiving tradition that I love. And that is Thanksgiving Eve Pizza! The night before Thanksgiving my family would out go to pizza. Not sure why, I just figured my mom didn’t want to cook a meal since she was already preparing the Thanksgiving feast for the next day…either way I wasn’t opposed to it.

When I left home and wasn’t home in Denver to celebrate this tradition with my family, I would enlist my roommates in my favorite tradition. When my brother lived here in Provo with me, we would go. And it is fun. Just chilling, eating pizza! Now I celebrate this tradition with my best friend.

I was so grateful she was here in time (she lives in Idaho now…*sigh*…) and it was another year at P712. My favorite tradition with my favorite person at my favorite pizza place. It was a good night.

P.S. I always get the hand pulled mozzarella, tomato, & basil pizza. Also favorite!

DIY Marquee Letters!

20.11.12

When I saw this post, I HAD to make these for The Gold Party! And I did! All they need now is a little spray paint!

Adobe: New Job

19.11.12

I just started my new J.O.B.! And it’s at Adobe. (Eeeeeeee!!!!!) Never in a million years would I have thought I would have gotten a sweet gig like this! Check this link for the a story and even better photos of the new Adobe Building! I work here! And, trust me, its as cool as it looks, I promise!

Art by Mike Giant!

This is the basketball court, you can see this A from the freeway, it’s huge.

So cool. I feel so cool.

Animals on Sticks

18.11.12

Buy these animals and drill a 3/16 hole & get 3/16 wooden dowels (you can get them at Walmart, a package of 16 for $1), insert, & spray with gold spray paint! (I only get the gold Rust-Oleum spray paint from HomeDepot for $4, it’s the best color gold I have found!)

Crepe Paper Streamers

17.11.12

I found this post and HAD to make them! All the beautiful paper came today. I have my scissors and movies ready to go!

Mailed!

14.11.12

All the invites are about to be mailed out! So exciting! Stay tuned for all the crafting that is about to happen!

Letterpress Invites

12.11.12

So it’s about to begin! I just got my invites for my gold party from Ink Run Press! Hold on, it’s about to get craycray up in here with crafting and party planning!

wasn’t only me

09.11.12

I know. You don’t know. But I do.

You were it. It was just you.

I know it wasn’t only me.

But I’d still take you.

Let me be the only one.

Purge me of this resentment.

I know you. I know you better than her.

Than them.

I’ll take you the way you are.

All your sides. All your selves.

Let me love you. Let me show you.

You know I can love.

The way you need.

Yesterday’s Makeup

09.11.12

I don’t know if it’s because of all the rain or the cups of tea I have been drinking, but I’m compelled to write more. Write more about the inner workings of my heart, of my soul. It’s like that moment when you looking the mirror all sleepy-eyed and realize that you’re wearing yesterday’s makeup. Stale, smeared, and smudged. You reflect on why you didn’t wash your face before heading into bed.

I rarely let my emotional side show. I have a tight grip on those, they’re tucked and filed away. I know I need to express myself more, let my emotions show. Doing this will help, I think. I hope.

These posts aren’t about one specific person, or place, or event, just thoughts, notions, impressions. An abstract idea in words & pictures trying to communicate those fleeting feelings in that moment.

I hope they are noteworthy and relatable. :)

Glittered Pumpkins

03.11.12

I hate Thanksgiving. Everyone who knows me, knows this. I just do. It might have something to do with the fact that my birthday falls on or around this dumb holiday every year, and that a lame stuffed bird gets more attention and prise than I do. Or maybe it’s the fact that my birthday has actually been forgotten about! It’s that well dress damn bird. AND if my birthday was remembered, I would get a winter coat and socks…just like my brothers would on our family outing to Mervyn’s I would just got mine a few days later on my “special day.” I’m not bitter or anything.

Or it could be that I hate this lame day because on my 18th birthday (which also happened to be on Thanksgiving…weird…) I decided to drive to Utah and surprise my super cool, super cute boyfriend who was a freshman at BYU! The plan was easy: drive there, surprise him, and make out!

When I get to Provo and surprise!! him, he’s acting all weird…I brush it off and think, “whatever cool college kid, just pretend to be excited to see your high school girlfriend who drove all this way in the snow to see you!” We even did the romantic Temple Square lights date! Alas, things were still weird. On Thanksgiving, which could possible be more horrible not with your own family, I get a call from his best friend and roommate. We’re chatting and he asked how it was going, I replied, “Weird, it’s just so weird now.” He said, “Oh good, he told you then?!!” I could hear his relief that the cat is now out of the bag…”What? WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!” silence. Long silence. “Oh no.” That’s all he could mutter. “WHAT!? What are you talking about?” This movie moment continues when he tells me that my boyfriend has a girlfriend. And that girlfriend wasn’t me.

Surprise was on me. I left heart-broken. And we didn’t even get to make out!

Then a few years later I married that same guy. And every Thanksgiving while I was married was equally as horrible because this story was the topic of conversation.

So with that story out-of-the-way, let’s make some dumb Thanksgiving glittered pumpkins! Follow these instructions. Let the beauty of the glitter take your mind off of my Thanksgiving tragedy. :)

WARNING: you will get glitter EVERYWHERE. Duh, of course you will. no. matter. what.

Birthday Month Activate!

01.11.12

Why, thank you Anthropologie. I will buy these shoes at 15% off.

Happy Halloween!

31.10.12

I was so inspired when I saw all the Roy Lichtenstein art, that I wanted to be one of them! I watched a lot of videos to figure out how to do my face makeup like this!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! I love this day!

Halloween Tchotchkes

28.10.12

Yep. I’ve got gadgets and gizmos aplenty and Halloween tchotchkes galore.

We all have a secret thing we do, proud or not, we ALL have one. And this is mine. I collect weird Halloween tchotchkes.

This started when I had a boyfriend in high school and his mother collected them. I would just gaze at them on her mantel. I loved them so much. I wanted them ALL. So, when I headed out on my own, 9 years ago, I started my own collection. This is the first year I’ve decorated with them because I felt like I had enough and I finally have my own mantel!

Before:

After:

She is new this year! Isn’t she awesome?! “Brandi Pumpkin Bat” is from one of my favorite shops in Orem, The Busy Biddy. (I cannot wait for the Christmas decor that they are putting out next week!)

I got this amazing Crow Witch from Broadbents in Lehi. (They have the best quilting fabric ever!) Her black glitter hat threw me other the edge!

I love this so much! I want it to be Halloween all year! FOREVER. *sigh*

How to paint Coasters

23.10.12

I worked for Heidi at Foodiecrush.com as her intern. I had a blast and learned a lot but she never had coasters for our diet cokes for those long afternoons of designing. I bought her these: Mojave Letterpress Coasters to say “hey Thanks!”

It has inspired me to make my own.

You will need: Stencils ($2 JoAnn’s), paint (Craft Stores), cork coasters ($3 Hobby Lobby for 6), foam brushes, and a paint brush.

Place stencil firmly on coaster and dap with paint.

Remove stencil and yep there it is! (I also cut a heart out of some paper to make my own stencil! Cute huh?!)

For the wood ones: make or find wood coasters (these are from Target $8 for 4) and start with painting a line.

Fill in area inside that line.

Paint the sides and bottom and let dry.

And there you go! (I also used gold paint to be fancy.)

Make coasters for those you love and who hire to work for free! Smilie Face!

Swimming, Rooftop Concert, & Yard Sales.

03.8.12

This is where you’ll find me this weekend:

Pool party today with a good friend and her three little ladies.

Jamming and eating awesome foods at the Provo Rooftop Concert Series. One of my favorite bands will be playing.

At the most excellent Yard Sale. My friend is an awesome craft/thrift/knitter and all about vintage. So I know there will be some awesome things to fight for.

Look forward to a follow post with some pictures and some yard sale tips and tricks!

Where will you be?

Weekend Project: Chambray Shirt

21.7.12

I cannot get enough of this chambray look that’s happening right now.

I found a denim tunic shirt from Forever 21 upder 20 bucks that’s long enough to stay tucked in but it doesn’t fit perfectly (but does anything really actual fit from there? No! But you deal because it was a deal.) and it wasn’t really chambray. I wanted it to look like any of these:

1. J.Crew // Keeper Chambray Shirt // $78.00 2. J Brand // Darla Chambray Shirt // $218.00 3. Nordstrom // Trouvé Faded Denim Shirt // $88.00 4. Madewell // Perfect Chambray Ex-Boyfriend Shirt in Ferrous Wash // $68.00

So I bleached my own to look chambray. It’s easy. It’s fast. And nearly free. You’ll need:

Denim shirt
Bleach
Water
Bucket
Spray bottle
30 min to bleach plus wash & dry time

It’s more chambray now, right?! The fit still isn’t awesome but I’ll deal.

Happy weekend!

FoodieCrush contributor

11.7.12

This summer I am interning for the wonderful Heidi who runs FoodieCrush. Her Summer 2012 issue of FoodieCrush magazine was posted yesterday. Not only am I learning lots about food, photography, and design I’m a contributor! Check me and my mad design skills on pages 6-23. This was super awesome and I loved every second of it. I cannot wait until the next issue.

09.7.12

Hello. When I was a girl I would wander around my backyard and neighborhood with my tool kit of exploration. I would find things and tucking them away in my pockets.

I still wander and find, but now it’s collecting good places to eat, awesome shops, cool music, all things design, and promoting local artists.

I want to share my findings here with you. On the interwebs. And the blogosphere.