unruly-things

I always think that:
leap day is a little weird.

I really really really wish:
that I wasn't at work.

I really love:
new music.
discovering new clothing lines.
finding new blogs.
meeting new friends.

I'm glad:
February is over.
spring is on it's way.

I'm a little sad that:
Whiskerino comes to an end today.
{if you didn't know about it, I'm sorry. by request, I didn't blog about it. :) but if you're wondering why dlb has an gigantic beard now? now you know. I'm proud of him. not only did he win two king beards, but he stuck with it, no matter how busy he was at times. he got creative. he pushed his limits. and he came out with an amazing collection of photos. too bad he's not doing a 365 like me!}

I'm looking forward to:
shooting pictures tomorrow.
sleeping in - as usual.
a beer with my babe tonight.

{photo is my mobile for the mobile swap. I mailed it off last week, but I thought I'd share it for those of you that don't follow my flickr.}

since leap day makes me think of little frogs and the only cute frogs are green and green means spring and happiness, I thought I'd do a little green inspiration today.
{tops and tumbler, tote, pillow, flats, perfume, vase}
{p.s. leap year comes around every 4 years, as we all know, but did you know that leap day only occurs on a Friday every 28 years? enjoy!}

two headers I've just completed for these two lovely ladies:
Jen of Toujours Complexe loves all things French and fashionable. her blog is filled with bright colors and always makes me smile.
Michelle of Lovely Little Things wanted something to show her love for her home town, Seattle. she writes about her findings in the city and her fabulous discoveries.

as I mentioned before, I'm available to design a new header for your blog for $25 with three styles to pick from. all you need to do is contact me at alyson.jg {at} gmail.com and let me know a little bit about what you are looking for, and I'll take it from there!

I really like these eyelet lace letterpress cards from pistachio press. this reminds me of some embossing I did when I was in college. we made embossed prints of our name, nothing exciting but it still turned out pretty.
{from pistachio press, via poppytalk}
{note to self: sign up for letterpress class this spring}

I always enjoy hearing about companies that are bringing art and awareness together. Rosa Loves is doing just that. Rosa Loves utilizes the t-shirt industry with art and creativity to financially support a person or group of persons in need. each story is printed on the inverse side of the shirts, which is directly in line with the heart.
to read more about Rosa Loves or to contribute, check out their site here.
{from rosa loves}

I love this image from J. Crew's new photoshoot in Palm Springs, CA.
and by the way, I'm drooling over this new sweater jacket and this new dress.
{from j. crew}

I really like these new arrivals from bcbg. so neutral. so light.
{from bcbg}

lately, dlb and I have had a big interest in gourmet salts and peppers. a little while back, I saw this book at a local cooking store and my interest was truly sparked. before I began getting into cooking and experimenting in the kitchen, I didn't know that there was quite a massive collection of salts and peppers to be had. so today when I stumbled upon The Meadow, a specialty store in North Portland which has an extensive collection of gourmet finishing salts and specialty peppers, I got very excited and anxious to learn.
{left images from the meadow, right image from salt & pepper}

I wrote about Tamar Mogendorff a while ago after finding her amazing animals constructed from wool and vintage fabrics. I didn't know that her animals could get any better than they already were, and then I saw this post about her little bird houses. I really want one or ten. or at least I want to make some of my own. or start making my birds again.
{from tamar mogendorff, via black eiffel}

dlb's mom collects salt and pepper shakers. I personally have never thought I'd like to do this and really enjoy using a grinder. but, if I were to collect salt and pepper shakers, I would like to add these to my collection. simple, pretty, feminine, and almost-look-like-they-come-from-a-retro-diner cute.
{from minjis shop}

it's amazing how nice and neat my handwriting looks when the letters aren't strung together in the middle due to my "I write faster than my hands want to move" handwriting. too bad my l looks like a t or something with out the line through it.
try it here.
{from fontifier, via how about orange}

I'm thrilled and excited at the theme for Jen's March exchange - Green. I think it'll be fun and pleasant to photograph green things. since Portland is always lush and green, I'm really going to challenge myself to find beauty in not so typical green things.
I recently enjoyed participating in Jen's photo exchange for February, Morning Rituals. it really gave me a chance to slow down in the morning and really capture the moments which I love the most. in my house, the weekend mornings are precious. we wake up early. we lay in bed longer than usual. we listen to birds chirping outside our window. we cook a big breakfast. we take advantage of the early morning quiet. we explore the city before the cars and people arrive.
sign up for the exchange here and view photos from the Morning Rituals exchange as they arrive here.
{from nectar and light}

not that I need another wallet/change purse/make-up bag/accessories holder, but these little bags are calling my name.
{from oktak}

took off half day on friday.
bought my new 50mm.
went bowling with my man.
had coffee and scones at stumptown.
rode my bike in the sunshine.
found some goodies while thrifting.
went shopping with Jess.
ate a grilled cheese waffle.
ate an apple, gorgonzola, walnut crepe.
baked poppy seed pancakes.
went to the photo booth.
made a bomb diggity wrap sandwich. {really, the best ever}
took a lot of pictures.
smiled a lot. a lot a lot.
went to bed early.

how was yours?

I like the autumn/winter collection from Thai designer, Sretsis. I saw this clutch purse from wardrobe remixer Boboniaa and had to see more. lots of delicate feminine details with a hint of menswear inspiration tied in. and I love all that black and white.
{from sretsis, via boboniaa}
{I apologize to whomever posted about her last week. I bookmarked her without linking to who posted it originally!}

I'm thinking of:
coming up with a reason to make paper garlands like these.
margaritas. outside. pronto.

I'm really excited:
that dlb and I may be adding this little joy to our collection.
{really excited actually doesn't even explain how thrilled I am}

I'm planning trips for this year to:
tampa - may.
the coast - summer.
grayton beach - summer.
the philippines - december/january.

and...
I'm packing up my desk:
and leaving early today to enjoy my Friday!

I love the new Spring collection from Phillip Lim. the colors are fabulous. bright pops of yellow, neutral khaki, and off-white are paired with dark chocolate brown and cherry red. I've said it many times before, and I'll say it once again, I'm a sucker for yellow goodness.
{from phillip lim}

lately I've been spending a lot of my free time browsing the vintage clothing section on etsy. there are some truly amazing things out there. today I came across Ramona Vintage. I am in love with that plaid wool coat and adorable scalloped trim dress. there are lots more cute things in their shop, here.
{from ramona vintage}

I've really had my eyes on some light weight scarves. I think that they are the perfect transitional item from winter into spring, where the days are warm and the nights are cool. and since I seem to have a lot of solids in my wardrobe, I think I'd opt for a printed scarf for a little boost. I like these.
{from urbn}

I love breakfast. if I could, I would eat breakfast for every meal. I really want to make these poppy seed pancakes. they look so delicious.
{from 101 cookbooks}

I love the things over at Baileys. the colors are mostly white, ivory, latte, and tan, almost like irish cream. I love white decor; it looks clean, inviting, and bright. and I especially love it paired with light shades of brown. perfect for a beach house setting.
now... to find that perfect beach house...
{from baileys, via coterie}

anywhere but behind the computer. I'm tired. I'm busy. and I just want to take a nap.
even if I were laying my head down on a table while drinking chilled orange juice... as long as I were in the sun or away from work, I'd be happy.
be back tomorrow friends.
{image from Ta, who has a lovely stream}

it is absolutely gorgeous outside today in Portland. the sun is warm and the air is cool. I even had a smoothie today I was feeling so warm!

I'm ready for spring.

I like these pieces from the spring collection by Mayle. the Mexican funeral theme that surrounds the spring collection was inspired by a Manet exhibit at the Moma. I think it's so cool to think of all the things that inspire fashion today. from simply color swatches to clouds and weather, to famous paintings and entire city scapes, fashion is always growing. and I love that.
{from mayle}

how cute is this skirt?
{from j. crew}

seriously, I think that if I could really love a pair of shoes, these would be the ones. oh what a perfect shade of green and delightful ivory trim. and oh my.... that heel! they could be mine if I had an extra $360 to spare....
{from twig}

Ali and I have said many times how much we think alike.  little did we know that in our separate cities {and probably the same moment} we were each thinking about sending each other a pretty little package in the mail.  when I got home from work on Friday, this was waiting for me, bundled up tightly in a bubble wrap mailer.  

I'm looking forward to:
sunshine, bikes, and spring-like weather this weekend. {it'll be sunny and 60 degrees on Sunday!}

never did I ever:
imagine myself thinking of 60 degrees as warm!

I'm very excited:
about my herringbone shaybelle dress.
for our fall collection. just wait, it's incredible.

I adore:
this sofa.

I really really really wish that:
I wasn't trapped behind my desk today.
I hadn't procrastinated this week, thus having work to do this weekend.

if I had a million dollars:
I'd jump on a plane to Florida to have wine time with Tiff. she really needs wine time.

happy weekend.

{image from nich hance}

I'd heard about it. tried searching for it. but didn't find anything until now. {and I'm sure others have heard it too, but....}
Gap has hired Patrick Robinson, former Perry Ellis designer and recent Go International designer for Target, as it's new creative director. the new line looks great, and filled with dusty plaids and many shades of gray. dusty plaid has a nice ring to it, don't you think? read more here.
{from style.com, via for me, for you}

I was excited to hear your plans for Valentine's day, and how you'd be spending it. I have to say, I'm a little envious of Jen's plans to have sushi and gossip night with the girls. makes me think of my girls and our sushi nights with martinis and sake back in Florida. but tonight will be spent with my best friend and favorite person ever. we will continue a tradition started last year of cooking dinner together and spending the night at home, with no distractions. in honor of Valentine's day I base our meal on aphrodisiacs to inspire all things associate with love.
here's my menu for this year, with the aphrodisiacs in red:
honey soy glazed salmon
fresh green salad with ginger dressing
rosemary potatoes
chocolate covered figs
a fancy vanilla bean cheesecake with cranberry jewel topping - which I'm waiting to bake on Saturday when I have more time.
with dinner we'll be having Fantôme Saison and with dessert, Oud Beersel Framboise. if you haven't had a real Framboise lambic, not the syrupy mass-produced kind, I highly suggest you try one. they are pink and fruity and mixed with lots of pucker goodness and pair well with chocolate and berries.

so! with love from us to you... I wish you a happy Valentine's day!
{a special happy congratulations to Marta and Dan, who are expecting a little bundle of joy in August!}
{and thanks to Jess for the awesome Love Songs Compilation. I'm jammin' to it at work!}

anyone else notice the snazzy new layout for the Urban Outfitters website? I'd seen it a week or so ago, but when Jess linked to it today, it really stood out as being fresh and inviting. I actually wanted to purchase something just because the site looked so good! oh yea, and if I did purchase something or things, I'd get this dress, this sweater, this scarf, and these shoes.

send your own valentine here. view the whole gallery by clicking be mine.
{from kate spade, via lena}

after I graduated from college, I moved back to Tampa and lived with my Grandmother for a little while. since it was just the two of us eating dinner most nights, we didn't bother to set up the dining room table and put out formal silverware and placemats. instead, we put out food on little trays and carried them into the living room to watch tv. it wasn't the eat on your lap tv tray, but yet, a handy device to carry everything to the table in one swoop.
I like these Melamine trays. cute and whimsical.
{from three potato four}

oh my goodness.... I loooooove this. if you've got a fondness for big blue monsters that love cookies, you'll love it too.
{I have my own cookie monster at home. seriously. and he loves snickerdoodles!}

go here to see the dates for shows in May. the rest of the dates, including the show in Seattle which I'm dying to find out when is, have still not been released.
so to all my Tampa friends: the show is at the Amp. tickets go on sale Feb 16!

these images from the new sally scott catalogue. I love the prints and adore the colors.
{from sally scott, via port2port}

I never thought I'd be a one piece kind of girl, but this 50s inspired polka dotted bather is hot to trot. so Betty Grable, don't you think?
{from toast}

maybe I don't mind hearts and pink all that much. especially when it comes in cookie form.
so what will you be doing this Valentine's day? I'm curious to know how you spend the hallmark holiday, whether attached or not. I'll probably be at home, maybe drinking a pink beverage, maybe eating some yummy treats, maybe watching a lovely movie... with dlb and two furry rats.
{from a & co}

I'm getting excited about the mobile swap. I started working on my mobile this weekend, and in all honestly, it's more work that I anticipated. but I'm happy with my results so far.
some pictures have been posted in the flickr group. I like these two a lot. check the rest out, they are really nice so far.
{via eisley marley, images from the flickr group}

I like the idea of this poster, but I can't help wanting just a little more.
{from keep calm}

well. it's monday again. and seriously? does it have to come around so fast? it's like, I blink an eye, and whoosh, it's monday again. and I'm tired.
going to sleep after midnight on sunday night = bad idea.
oh and not to mention, I wake up this morning to find out that Polaroid is calling it quits on instant film? not a good day.

in other news, this is a picture of a key I framed that my rad friend Jess gave me for my birthday/christmas present. she knows me so well. I'm a huge sucker for skeleton keys. I would buy the whole basket of them from antique shops if I could afford them. I saw a giant key one time, maybe 7 or 8 inches long. it was $20 and I nearly bust out my credit card for that one. but I didn't get it. and I'm still sad about it.
so back to my story. Jess gave me this really cool key and to give it the best honor ever, I decided that it deserved a frame of it's own. I hot glued it in place, and sandwiched it between two pieces of glass, to create the floating look. it's hung on our wall, paired with a really cool skeleton key greeting card that I found this holiday season.
I quite like my keys. except that our tiny apartment is overwhelmed with keys now.
I can't wait to move.

I had no idea that Ez, of the ever so pleasing blog, Creature Comforts, was planning to create these gorgeous style blog buttons to go into her design and style blog guide, but I'm sure glad she did. and I'm even more glad and honored that unruly things is one of the many gorgeous blogs that she is featuring. I'm second to last, and I always like that. :)
so here I am, gray, black, blue, white... tights, candy, denim, cloudy prints... she's got me figured out so well.
I've got a lot of blog researching to do, there are lots on this list that I'm unfamiliar with. and thank you for including me!

I'm thrilled:
to have so many new visitors here, and therefore so many new blogs to read.
to have been blog of the week at Crust Station.

I'm planning:
a big post for next week featuring more custom information.
a trip to Alaska with dlb. {any recommendations for a summer trip?}

I am excited:
that all of my co-workers and I are on the same page. we just ordered pastries!
to go fabric shopping this weekend.
for my ebay purchases.

I think:
this is a fun idea. {I'll be emailing you soon Joanna.}

I have never wanted:
white wine and madelines more than when I read this post.

I'm inspired:
by Amy's post on her favorite things. {the last day to sign up for her giveaway is today!}

and these:
are a few of my favorite possessions.

last night dlb was craving a beer, so after he picked me up from work we decided to head over to Rogue for a beer and some dinner. while their food is not anything to rave about, Rogue has got it down to a science when it comes to their tasty microbrewed beers.
it just so happened, that last night was the official release party of their Imperial Red Ale. it packs in a big punch at 9% abv, but the alcohol is hidden among it's full fruity and caramel flavors. topped off with a pinch of sweet brown sugar, this American Strong Ale is a pretty good brew.
Rogue Portland is hosting a Beer and Chocolate tasting this Valentines day. 10 craft beers, 10 artisan chocolates. drinking beer and tasting chocolate with your love? it sounds like fun. for more info, see the flyer here.
{from rogue}

a week ago, Sara, of the lovely blog Miss Jane, contacted me to ask if I designed custom blog headers. she was looking for something to jazz up her site while inspiring the Seattlite in her and came to me for help. we set up a quick, easy transaction from my shop, and I began work on her headers. for $25 I provided Sara with 3 initial styles to pick from, based on her ideas and suggestions. she had picked out a color scheme that I worked with to create a simple, catchy header for her site.

after a few minor color adjustments, here is the final three I sent her.
can you guess which one she went with?
so now, I'd like to extend an offer to any of you, interested in a little blog pick me up or custom design: I'm available for hire. I'm easy to work with and can give you great, custom work for an affordable price. I'll hammer out the details over the next few days, but if you've got any questions, comments, etc., you are more than welcome to send me an email - alyson {dot} jg {at} gmail {dot} com.

since I seem to be so into yellow and stripes lately, it's not surprising that I'm head over heels for this outfit. and wow, that purse!
{from boden}

with yellow rain boots. on my way to work this morning, I passed a girl wearing bright yellow wellies. granted, the sun was out this morning, so bright that I had to put on my sunglasses, which haven't had much use lately. so, to me, it looked a little silly for her to be sporting those sassy yellow boots, however, I still fell in love.
and now I'm dreaming about owning a pair of my own. I have black, of course, but could one have more than one pair of wellies?
{from hunter}

Ruehl finally opened it's doors to the world of e commerce. with their post college casual style and amazing leather bags, I quite like it. and their jeans fit me perfectly.
I know there are a lot of people who dislike ANF and their entire philosophy, brand image, and loud loud thumping beats in store, but I kinda like them. maybe it's because I was with the company for 3 grueling retail years or maybe it's because the perfume {which they spray throughout the store} has some kind of drug in it that keeps drawing me back in. but whatever it is, I like Ruehl. I like the dimly lit atmosphere. I like the picture frames on the floor of the hallways. I like that it looks like the fictitious Greenwich Village apartment, No. 925.
and now, for those not near one of those twenty-one store locations, you can finally shop online.

are the key to my heart.
{from rare device, via 2 or 3 things}